1 Corinthians 13:3 (ESV)

3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Another gift is added to the list: that of charity. Paul may be thinking of Jesus’ command to the rich young man to sell all his possessions and give the money to the poor (Matthew 19:21). Yet Paul’s example is different from the command of Jesus. The verb he uses, I give away, refers to the distribution of things (especially of food) to several people. It seems that he has in mind the gradual donation of one’s possessions over the course of a lifetime.

Such a course of action is certain to be noticed and praised by people. Yet if the giver gives for the sake of self-glorification (or any motive other than love), he will gain nothing.

When it comes to the second part of the verse, Western manuscripts read, And if I deliver up my body to be burned, while a number of ancient Egyptian manuscripts contain the words and if I deliver up my body that I may boast. Most translations follow the first reading, since the meaning of the second reading is obscure. Moreover, the phrase that I may boast would make the phrase but have not love redundant, since both phrases describe a negative motive.

The practice of burning people at the stake would only be revived in later years, under the reign of Nero (AD 54–68). Yet the Jews remembered times in their history when persecution could involve death by fire (see, e.g., Daniel 3:19–30). If the Western manuscripts’ reading is followed, Paul is describing an extreme form of self-sacrifice, namely, to willingly give one’s body to the flames. Remarkably, even the greatest act of self-sacrifice can be devoid of love.