1 Corinthians 13:1 (YLT)

Passage

If with the tongues of men and of messengers I speak, and have not love, I have become brass sounding, or a cymbal tinkling;

Nearby Context

1 Corinthians 13:1 If with the tongues of men and of messengers I speak, and have not love, I have become brass sounding, or a cymbal tinkling;

1 Corinthians 13:2 and if I have prophecy, and know all the secrets, and all the knowledge, and if I have all the faith, so as to remove mountains, and have not love, I am nothing;

1 Corinthians 13:3 and if I give away to feed others all my goods, and if I give up my body that I may be burned, and have not love, I am profited nothing.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "tongues", "messengers", "speak", "love", "become", "brass", "sounding", and "cymbal". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "tongues" and "messengers", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "and if I have prophecy and know...", so "tongues" and "messengers" should be read forward into that movement. In 1 Corinthians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

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