1 Corinthians 13:12 (WEB)

Passage

For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, even as I was also fully known.

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 13:10 but when that which is complete has come, then that which is partial will be done away with.

1 Corinthians 13:11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child. Now that I have become a man, I have put away childish things.

1 Corinthians 13:12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, even as I was also fully known.

1 Corinthians 13:13 But now faith, hope, and love remain—these three. The greatest of these is love.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "mirror", "dimly", "face", "part", "fully", and "even". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "mirror" and "dimly", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "When I was a child I spoke..." into verse 13's "But now faith hope and love remain...", so "mirror" and "dimly" belong inside that flow. In 1 Corinthians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "mirror" and "dimly" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.