1 Corinthians 13:11-13 teaches that spiritual maturity means setting aside childish ways of thinking, and that faith, hope, and love will remain after everything else passes away, with love being the greatest of the three. Paul is closing out his famous chapter on love by moving from the immature to the mature and from the partial to the complete.
The passage sits in the middle of Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth, a city known for its busy port, its mix of cultures, and a congregation that was proud of its spiritual gifts. Paul wrote this letter to correct their rivalries and pride, and chapter 13 shows them a better way to measure what matters.
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. 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. 13 But now faith, hope, and love remain—these three. The greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13:11-13 (WEB)
1 Corinthians 13:11-13 Summary
Paul begins with an illustration from ordinary life. A child talks, feels, and reasons like a child, but a grown adult leaves those patterns behind. He then describes our present knowledge as a blurred reflection in a mirror, set against the day when we will see God clearly and know fully, as we ourselves are fully known by him.
He closes by naming three things that last: faith, hope, and love. Of these three, love is the greatest, because it is the quality that will still be shining when faith gives way to sight and hope gives way to fulfillment.
Context of 1 Corinthians 13:11-13
Paul’s readers were eager for impressive spiritual gifts such as prophecy, speaking in tongues, and deep knowledge. The surrounding verses in verses 8 through 10 explain that these gifts are real but partial, and that they will one day be set aside when the complete arrives. Paul’s aim is to show that gifts are temporary tools, while love is lasting.
Verse 11 uses the picture of growing up to explain this shift. Verses 12 and 13 then turn to the contrast between seeing now and seeing later, and close with the statement that love outlasts all else. Read in this setting, the passage is a corrective for a congregation that had confused spiritual display with spiritual maturity.
1 Corinthians 13:11-13 Verse by Verse
1 John 4:8
He who doesn’t love doesn’t know God, for God is love.
(WEB)
John’s short statement that God is love explains why love can be the greatest of all things. It is not simply a virtue God approves of, but the very nature of the one who knows us fully and calls us to reflect him.
Romans 5:5
And hope doesn’t disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
(WEB)
Paul tells the Romans that God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit. This shows that the love Paul praises in Corinthians is a gift we receive from God, not something we produce on our own.
A Prayer Based on 1 Corinthians 13:11-13
Lord, I confess that I often measure myself by what I can show others, and I forget that you value love above every gift. Help me set aside the childish habits of comparison and pride, and teach me to think and act as someone who is growing up in you. When I see only in part, remind me that you already know me completely and will one day bring me into full clarity.
Fill my heart with faith that trusts you today, hope that waits for your promises, and love that reaches toward the people around me. Let love be the mark of my life, the thing that remains when everything else has been made complete. Amen.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does “when I became a man, I put away childish things” mean?
Paul is describing spiritual and emotional growth, not rejecting childhood itself. A mature believer leaves behind the pride, rivalry, and shallow thinking that marked the Corinthians’ immaturity.
Why does Paul compare our knowledge to a mirror?
In Paul’s day, mirrors were polished metal and gave a dim, distorted image. Our present understanding of God is real but partial, and it will become clear only when we see him face to face.
Why is love greater than faith and hope in 1 Corinthians 13:13?
Faith and hope are directed toward God and the future and will end when their purpose is fulfilled. Love is the character of God himself and continues fully into eternity.
