1 Corinthians 12:31

But covet earnestly the best gifts,.... Which may be rendered either indicatively as an assertion, "ye do covet earnestly the best gifts": of prophesying and teaching, of doing miracles, healing diseases, speaking with, and interpreting, different tongues and languages; but I can, and do show you something that is better, and more excellent than these: or, by way of interrogation, "do ye covet earnestly the best gifts?" do you zealously affect them, fervently desire them, and emulate one another in your endeavours after them?

Ye covet earnestly the best gifts - And they are worth your pursuit, though but few of you can attain them. But there is a far more excellent gift than all these; and one which all may, yea, must attain or perish.

But where grace is given it is for the salvation of those who have it. Gifts are bestowed for the advantage and salvation of others. And there may be great gifts where there is not a dram of grace, but persons possessed of them are utterly out of the divine favour.

Thus "long-suffering," compare 1Co 12:4; "faith," 1Co 12:7; "joy," 1Co 12:6; "meekness," 1Co 12:5; "goodness," 1Co 12:5; "gentleness," 1Co 12:4 (the Greek is the same for "is kind"). It is the work of the Holy Spirit, and consists in love to God, on account of God's love in Christ to us, and as a consequence, love to man, especially to the brethren in Christ (Ro 5:5;

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

THERE are among us many who have recently joined the visible Church of Christ. We have heartily welcomed them and we desire to always entertain, concerning them, a joyous feeling of thankfulness that they have united with us. May they never have to regret it and may the Church of God never have to regret it, either! Dear Friend, now that you have become a member of a Christian Church, you should say to yourself, "What can I do for it?

THERE are among us many who have recently joined the visible Church of Christ. We have heartily welcomed them and we desire to always entertain, concerning them, a joyous feeling of thankfulness that they have united with us. May they never have to regret it and may the Church of God never have to regret it, either! Dear Friend, now that you have become a member of a Christian Church, you should say to yourself, "What can I do for it? I have not come here merely to confess that I am saved and there to let the matter stop, but I have enlisted in an army that I may be a comrade with other soldiers, and be drilled, and trained, and equipped so that I may know how to march and to go forth to the battle. I have come into the church to be a member of a body. What is my office? Every member has its own special office in the body—it is not there merely for its own comfort, but to be a help to the whole system of which it forms a part. What, then, can I do?" The question which we should each one ask of the Lord is that which Saul asked on the way to Damascus, "Lord, what will You have me to do?" When that question is once answered and you, dear Friend, know your proper place in the body of Christ, and have taken that place, whatever it may be, I think that your next desire will be that you may be in the best spiritualhealth— that you may be as vigorous as you can be—that, little though you ever may have to place at your Lord's disposal, yet that the best use may be made of that little! Even when we have done all those things that are commanded us, we shall still have to confess that we are unprofitable servants to our great Lord and Master. Yet everyone of us should pray that he may have as much to use for Christ as he can use, and that he may be as well fitted by the Holy Spirit for the Master's service as it is possible that he can be.

But covet earnestly - To covet signifies to desire earnestly. This disposition towards heavenly things is highly laudable; towards earthly things, is deeply criminal. A man may possess the best of all these gifts, and yet be deficient in what is essentially necessary to his salvation, for he may be without that love or charity which the apostle here calls the more excellent way, and which he proceeds in the next chapter to describe. Some think that this verse should be read affirmatively, Ye earnestly contend about the best gifts; but I show unto you a more excellent way; i.e. get your hearts filled with love to God and man - love, which is the principle of obedience, which works no ill to its neighbor, and which is the fulfilling of the law. This is a likely reading, for there were certainly more contentions in the Church of Corinth about the gifts than about the graces of the Spirit. 1. After all that has been said on the different offices mentioned by the apostle in the preceding chapter, there are some of them which perhaps are not understood. I confess I scarcely know what to make of those which we translate helps and governments. Bishop Pearce, who could neither see Church government nor state government in these words, expresses himself thus: “These two words, after all that the commentators say about them, I do not understand; and in no other part of the New Testament is either of them, in any sense, mentioned as the gift of the Spirit; especially it is observable that in 1Co 12:29, 1Co 12:30, where the gifts of the Spirit are again enumerated, no notice is taken of any thing like them, while all the other several parts are exactly enumerated. […]

But covet earnestly - Greek “Be zealous for” Ζηλοῦτε Zēloute. This word, however, may be either in the indicative mood (ye do covet earnestly), or in the imperative, as in our translation. Doddridge contends that it should be rendered in the indicative mood, for he says it seems to be a contradiction that after the apostle had been showing that these gifts were not at their own option, and that they ought not to emulate the gifts of another, or aspire to superiority, to undo all again, and give them such contrary advice.