There is a beautiful rhythm to this sentence, with the clause if I have not love placed at its centre. The word that is used here for love, agape, is not often encountered in Greek literature. However, this word and its corresponding verb (agapao) function as a normal word for love in the Septuagint (the ancient Greek translation of the Old Testament).

In this chapter Paul does not once refer to the Corinthians and their shortcomings. In fact, he repeatedly speaks in the first person (I; see 1 Corinthians 13:1–3, 1 Corinthians 13:11–12).

In 1 Corinthians 13:1–3 Paul forcefully points out that spiritual gifts are useless without love. The spiritual gifts listed here have all been mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:1–31. Yet here they are described with deliberate exaggeration.

The list begins with the gift that the Corinthians were particularly emphasizing, namely, speaking in tongues. When Paul refers to speaking in the tongues of angels, he is probably not referring to a real possibility. Rather, he is using obvious exaggeration (hyperbole) to bring his point across. (Hyperbole was a common rhetorical technique in Paul’s day. It is found also in some of Jesus’ teachings; see, e.g., Matthew 7:3; Matthew 17:20.)

When it is devoid of love, the gift of tongues is worse than useless. It is painful to listen to. Like a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal, it is meaningless and irritating.

The word translated as gong literally refers to copper or bronze. Paul may have in mind the bronze vases that served to amplify sound in ancient Greek theatres. Cymbals were commonplace musical instruments which sounded like small bells. The Greek word translated as clanging (alalazon) originally referred to the war cry of soldiers.