1 Corinthians 13:8 (WEB)

Passage

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will be done away with. Where there are various languages, they will cease. Where there is knowledge, it will be done away with.

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 13:6 doesn’t rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth;

1 Corinthians 13:7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13:8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will be done away with. Where there are various languages, they will cease. Where there is knowledge, it will be done away with.

1 Corinthians 13:9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part;

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

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "love", "never", "fails", "where", "prophecies", "done", and "away". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "love" and "never", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "bears all things believes all things hopes..." into verse 9's "For we know in part and we...", so "love" and "never" 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 "love" and "never" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.