What is love according to the Bible?
In the Bible, love is not mainly a feeling but a committed, self-giving choice to seek another’s good — modeled supremely by God’s love for us in Jesus. It acts, serves, forgives, and endures.
Scripture’s clearest portrait of love is 1 Corinthians 13: love is patient and kind, not envious or proud — described by what it does, not by emotion alone.
The source and standard of love is God himself: “We love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). The cross is love defined — God giving his Son for people who did not deserve it.
So biblical love is both received and given: we are loved by God, and that love overflows into how we treat him and others.
Original BibleDawn answer · reviewed 2026-06. Drafted with AI assistance and reviewed for accuracy.