Bible Verses About Love
Love runs through the whole Bible, from God's love that initiates salvation to the practical, everyday love believers are called to show one another. These verses look at love from a few different angles: as a gift given first by God, as a description of how love behaves, and as something that grows in a believer's life.
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.
The clearest statement of the scale of God's love — giving His only Son so that the world might have life.
But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Shows the timing of God's love: it reached us while we were still sinners, not after we'd earned it.
Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
Defines love by its actions — patient, kind, free of envy and pride — rather than by feeling alone.
We love him, because he first loved us.
Explains where our capacity to love comes from: it's a response to being loved by God first.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Names love as the first of the 'fruit of the Spirit' — something that grows in a believer's life over time.
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Frequently asked questions
What does the Bible say love actually is?
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 defines love by describing its behavior — patient, kind, not envious or boastful — rather than as just a feeling.
Does the Bible say God loved us first?
Yes — 1 John 4:19 and Romans 5:8 both emphasize that God's love toward us came before any response on our part.