Bible Verses About Love

The Bible's most famous definition of love is behavioral, not emotional. 1 Corinthians 13 does not describe a feeling; it lists what love does and does not do — "suffereth long," "envieth not," "vaunteth not itself" — and then makes the startling claim that without love, eloquence, knowledge, and even sacrificial generosity amount to nothing. Elsewhere love is the ground of everything else: John 3:16 begins the gospel's most quoted sentence with "For God so loved," and 1 John 4:8 goes further, defining God's own nature as love. These fifteen verses cover love received, love commanded, and love practiced — in full KJV text, with modern English available verse by verse.

Quick answer: 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 is the working definition: "Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not..." John 3:16 gives the most-quoted summary of love as action: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son." 1 John 4:8 states the identity — "God is love" — and 1 John 4:19 explains the order of operations: "We love him, because he first loved us."

The 15 verses, in full text

01 · King James Version

Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
Love is patient and is kind. Love doesn’t envy. Love doesn’t brag, is not proud,

1 Corinthians 13:4

02 · King James Version

Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13:7

03 · King James Version

Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
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 13:8

04 · King James Version

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
But now faith, hope, and love remain—these three. The greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13

05 · King James Version

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only born Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

John 3:16

06 · King James Version

Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
Beloved, let’s love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

1 John 4:7

07 · King James Version

He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love.

1 John 4:8

08 · King James Version

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8

09 · King James Version

A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also love one another.

John 13:34

10 · King James Version

We love him, because he first loved us.
We love him, because he first loved us.

1 John 4:19

11 · King James Version

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

Matthew 22:37

12 · King James Version

And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.
Walk in love, even as Christ also loved us and gave himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling fragrance.

Ephesians 5:2

13 · King James Version

And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.
Above all these things, walk in love, which is the bond of perfection.

Colossians 3:14

14 · King James Version

And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
And above all things be earnest in your love among yourselves, for love covers a multitude of sins.

1 Peter 4:8

15 · King James Version

Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.
Many waters can’t quench love, neither can floods drown it. If a man would give all the wealth of his house for love, he would be utterly scorned.

Song of Solomon 8:7

When to read these verses

These verses are read at weddings (1 Corinthians 13), in family conflicts (Ephesians 4:32 belongs here as much as in forgiveness), when a relationship has gone cold (Revelation 2:4 addresses exactly that, though it did not fit this list's fifteen), and when the command to love feels impossible — Matthew 22:37-39 requires loving neighbors as oneself, an instruction that never gets easier. One useful practice: read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 slowly and substitute your own name for "charity" in each clause, an exercise in honest self-assessment that the passage was practically built for.

How to use this list

Copy any verse from its card — 1 Corinthians 13:4 is the standard for a wedding or anniversary note, 1 John 4:19 for a reminder that love is a response before it is an effort. Each card switches between the King James Version ("charity") and the World English Bible ("love") — the same Greek word, agapē, lies behind both, and modern readers often find "love" clearer while KJV readers know exactly what "charity" means in context. The random verse tool above can draw additional verses from this theme one at a time.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most famous Bible verse about love?

John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Within the Bible itself, 1 Corinthians 13 is the extended treatment — thirteen verses on what love is, does, and outlasts.

What does 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 say love is?

In the King James Version: "Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. Charity never faileth." The list is a set of behaviors rather than a definition of feeling.

What verse says "we love him, because he first loved us"?

1 John 4:19. The verse sits at the end of a passage (1 John 4:7-21) that argues in a circle on purpose: love comes from God, everyone who loves is born of God, and the command to love one another is inseparable from loving God. Verse 19 gives the direction of causality — God's love comes first, ours responds.

What are Bible verses for a wedding?

1 Corinthians 13:4-8 and 13:13 ("the greatest of these is charity") are the most traditional. Song of Solomon 8:7 — "Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it" — is a favorite Old Testament reading, and 1 John 4:7-8, Colossians 3:14 and Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 are also commonly chosen.

More Bible verse tools

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Today's verse in the King James Version — same verse all day, no repeats-for-clickbait, plus the archive.

WEB Verse of the Day

Today's verse in the World English Bible — modern English, public domain, same daily schedule as the KJV page.