COMMENTARY (I Corinthians 13:8-13)
"Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away" (I Cor. 13.8).
Love never fails. Love abides now, and will abide forever. God is love. God is from everlasting, unto everlasting; hence, love has been from everlasting; it abides in the life of those who obey the Lord Jesus Christ now; it will continue to be present unto everlasting.
The Greek word "fail" in " ... but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail ..." is "katargatha'sonti", which means "they shall be done away." This word is used in various forms; it is used four times within the verses 8 through 11. The incomplete capacity of knowledge which we have attained at present through the edification of prophecy, while living in a corruptible body, will be changed; we will possess a perfect capacity of full knowledge in Heaven.
Tongues will no longer continue in Heaven--" ... whether there be tongues, they shall cease." Tongues are a sign for the unbeliever, at least in some particular contexts, and there will be no unbelievers in Heaven. As to speaking in tongues for edification, the apostle gives account of the procedure and interpretation in 14:27, 28.
The vanishing inferior capacity of partial knowledge that we presently possess will be changed to the complete, superior, everlasting capacity of full knowledge: " ... whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away."
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