Wednesday 04 March 2015

Psalm: Psalm 119:49-64

Background

Our passage today is one of the widely known and best loved tobe found anywhere in the Bible, with its powerful tribute to a lovewhich "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things,endures all things" (v. 7). It's often used at wedding services,which itself is something of an irony as Paul himself appears notto have married. But in noting how it follows on from what Paul hasbeen saying earlier about the variety of spiritual gifts in thelife of the Church, we begin to see what he means by introducing itin terms of "a still more excellent way" (1Corinthians 12:31).

For Paul begins by contrasting love with some of the spiritualgifts which he has outlined in the previous chapter: "if I speak inthe tongues of mortals and of angels … if I have prophetic powers,and understand all mysteries … if I have all faith, so as to removemountains…". All these are among the gifts God bestows on theChurch - but without love, they are "nothing", a "noisy gong or aclanging cymbal" (vv. 1-3).

Paul goes on to extol love's virtues, but in a way whichemphasises its almost self-effacing character: "love is not enviousor boastful or arrogant or rude. It doesn't insist on its own way;it is not irritable or resentful" (vv. 4-5). It's almost as if loveresembles one of those seemingly 'weaker members' of which he spokein the previous chapter (1Corinthians 12:22), but which yet proves to be indispensible tothe life and health of the body as a whole.

For, as Paul reminds us, while all these other gifts have theirtime and place, they will not last: "As for prophecies, they willcome to an end; as for tongues they will cease; as for knowledge,it will come to an end" - but as for love, "Love never ends" (v.8). It is this apparently passive, patient and long-sufferingvirtue of love that proves to be the "more excellent way" and theway that leads into the presence of God.

The chapter closes with Paul almost in mystical mode, reflectingon his own growth in knowledge and understanding in the light oflove. He does this by using images that reveal some of theinfluences of the Greek philosophy of his time, in the contrastsbetween child and adult, mirror reflection and reality, the partialand the whole. But he may also be pointing to the limitations ofthat knowledge and spiritual gifting which some of those at Corinthmay claim, when he speaks of putting "an end to childish ways" (v.11). For it leads him to conclude in those famous words that "nowfaith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of theseis love" (v. 13).

To Ponder

• Do you consider that love is always the "more excellent way"?In what way?

• Is it always true that "love never ends" - and what happens ifit does?

• What does it mean for you to know now "only in part" - andtrust that in time you will come to "know fully, even as I havebeen fully known" (v. 12)?