What Does the Bible Say About Love?
Did you know that the word “love” appears in the Bible over 300 times? Some translated versions depict it over 361 times. That’s almost one for every day of the year! Because Bible verses about love appear throughout Scripture, we can get a clear idea of how God views the idea of love. We can see the different kinds of love God wants us to find and give—love for Him, love for our family, love for each other, and love for ourselves.
One of the most popular Bible verses about love is 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. This verse can be found throughout literature and is a common reading at weddings. By studying it, we can see the attributes that God wants our love to have.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. —1 Corinthians 13:4-7
What can this piece of Scripture tell us about the nature of love? Some important qualities we can pull from it include patience, kindness, trust and the power of hope. Do we have this kind of love in our lives? Do we give this kind of love freely, whether to a friend, family member, partner, or spouse?
Reading Bible verses about love can help us understand it on a deeper level. We might be surprised to find that this complicated emotion actually isn’t that complicated. Here are fifty Bible verses on the subject of love.
Popular Bible Verses About Love
- For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. —John 3:16
- And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. —Romans 8:28
- Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. —Psalm 23:6
- Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. —Ephesians 4:2
- If you love me, keep my commands. —John 14:15
Bible Verses About Devotion
- Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honor. —Proverbs 21:21
- Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. —Mark 12:30
- I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. —Psalm 116:1-2
- Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” —Hebrews 13:5
- Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. —Proverbs 3:3-4
Bible Verses About Relationships
- So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. —Matthew 7:12
- Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. —1 Thessalonians 5:11
- A friend loves at all times.—Proverbs 17:17
- If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. —1 Corinthians 13:2
- How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! —Psalms 133:1
Bible Verses for Marriage
- I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine. —Song of Solomon 6:3
- Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. —Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
- I found the one my heart loves. —Song of Solomon 3:4
- And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. —Colossians 3:14
- Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. —Romans 12:10
Bible Verses for Valentine’s Day
- Do everything in love. —1 Corinthians 16:14
- And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. —Hebrews 10:24
- May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you. —1 Thessalonians 3:12
- And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. —Romans 5:5
- And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. —Corinthians 13:13
Bible Verses About Family Love
- So in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. —Romans 12:5
- Children’s children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children. —Proverbs 17:6
- Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. —Galatians 6:2
- May your father and mother rejoice; may she who gave you birth be joyful! —Proverbs 23:25
- May the Lord keep watch between you and me when we are away from each other. —Genesis 31:49
Bible Verses About Loving One Another
- Love your neighbor as yourself. —Matthew 22:39
- And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. —1 John 4:21
- Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. —1 Peter 4:8
- No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. —1 John 4:12
- Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. —John 15:13
Bible Verses About Loving Yourself
- You are altogether beautiful, my love; there is no flaw in you. —Song of Solomon 4:7
- Whoever gets sense loves his own soul; he who keeps understanding will discover good. —Proverbs 19:8
- I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. —Psalm 139:14
- Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. —1 Timothy 4:12
- For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart. —1 Samuel 16:7
Bible Verses About the Love of God
- The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. —Psalm 103:8
- May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance. —2 Thessalonians 3:5
- But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. —Romans 5:8
- And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. —1 John 4:16
- For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. —Romans 8:38-39
Short Bible Verses About Love
- There is no fear in love. —1 John 4:18
- We love because He first loved us. —1 John 4:19
- Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance. —Jude 1:2
- My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. —John 15:12
- Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs. —Proverbs 10:12
A Prayer for Love
Jesus, guide my life and my work. Words cannot express what I owe You; help me to express this debt in how I live, love, work. Protect and save the ones I love. Let those who are far away know that I care for them. Let those who are close see my love in my words and actions. Let my love be but a tiny reflection of Yours. Amen. —Marci Alborghetti, Contributing Editor
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