How Do I Love Thee?
I’ve been challenged recently to examine my love in all things and I’ve been surprised by my research. I have always imagined that, while there are many different type of love, the love that a believer gives is the same toward everyone. After studying the Greek Lexicon to examine the text where we are commanded to love I’ve found that the Greek terms are more definitive and give a better understanding of how we are to love. So far I seem to have isolated three general types of love in these commandments, Agape, Phileo and Agapao. If my suspicions are correct I’ve been applying Agape where Phileo was called for. I wanted to throw this out for your consideration. I’ve never heard anyone make these distinctions but they seem critical to His plan. Any thoughts?
Labels: Theology
offered by Kc | 11/24/2005 08:15:00 PM
17 Comments:
i'm not so sure about this but this is what i remembered back in school.
agapao (verb)/agape (noun) - a word representing the divine love of God toward His Son, human beings in general and believers.
phileo (verb) - natural human type of love and affection that we have for a friend. also called brotherly love.
eros (verb) - refers to sexual, erotic love or desire.
as far as i can remember, God wants us to love unconditionally, the way He loves us.
just a thought.
hey, nice layout. c",)
Pia thanks so much for the input. It seems you’re not only well educated and intelligent but you have excellent taste as well! (grin)
Thanks for pointing out the distinction between verb and noun. I’ve come to perceive them as kinetic love (verb) and potential love (noun), with kinetic love being the expression of the potential love. Do you think that would work from a scriptural viewpoint?
I think we understand that agape is commanded of us (Rom 13:10). If we believed that phileo fulfilled the law, then I think we would be misled because the references I saw to phileo implied the affection that comes with familiarity, as opposed to the unconditional love that is ultimately required of us toward all our neighbors.
Kc,
Great subject! There are many different terms. For example, when Paul refers to "the love of money" in 1 Timothy 6, that word is philaguria. The word means "a greed for wealth."
Our word love is used so loosely and indiscriminately that it is truly appalling.
True love is a responsibility, not a feeling. Our Lord did not feel like enduring that pain on the cross; look at His prayer in Matt. 26. Yet, His love for His Father compelled Him to be obedient.
One of the worst terms that I hear is "I am in love with so and so." I tell people all the time if you fall in love, you can fall out of love. Love is not a feeling; if it was, I would have been married and divorced numerous times!
I constantly work to use the word appropriately, not referring to emotion, but rather to my responsibility to another human being.
Kc, I hope you and all of my other fellow bloggers had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I have plenty to be thankful to the Lord for, and I appreciate how He moves through people like you to cause me to grow in Him.
Stay blessed!
Guys thanks for helping here. I’m focusing on our love specifically.
I’m coming up with a different take on these words and it’s got me a little concerned. In the text where Agape is used it seems to signify the love that we have or hold for Christ and for one another. I would call this brotherly love and it is a thing we possess or have. Phileo love seems to be used to indicate a preferential love for those people or things we actively or currently find attractive, likable and that we approve of. While Agapao is derived from Agape it seems to be predominantly used to define the act of loving as hospitality and endearment. This is all well and good but nowhere do I find this to be a sacrificial act or one that would require us to accept responsibility for the welfare of another. The text that addresses sacrificial acts seem to apply specifically to Christ and our fellow believers.
Jeff I like the concept of Agape as covenantal in that I see it as committed and caring. I appreciate the OT reference too.
Zeke I agree our love for all men should be unconditional but I think it’s Agapao love.
Ron I really want to talk out the responsibility issue, maybe even a separate blog on responsibility in love. That understanding seems to have gotten lost somewhere along the way.
Great thoughts all and I we will continue this discussion.
kc, isn't agapao the verb form of agape?
Is a technical distinction always intended when a different word is used for love?
Zeke it seems that Agape is something inside of us, part of us. Agapao is something we do and Phileo is something we prefer. The remaining forms seem to be more descriptive of each of these three. Am I seeing this wrong?
DP I would really appreciate your input on this. Take the verse that Zeke mentioned in Romans 13:10. In vs. 9 Agapao is used to command and define the positive action of loving our neighbor and vs. 10 explains how that having Agape prevents any negative action thereby fulfilling the law. Am I making too much of this?
Kc,
When you say you are focusing on our love, what love are you referring to? The affectionate love that we have for friends or family, or the God kind of love that God commands us to have for mankind? I do not have my reference materials with me, for I am out of town, but if you will allow me, let me use this as an analogy:
I am in Washington, DC with some friends that we met in New Jersey. We have been closer than brothers for over 15 years. When we first met, they had no furniture when they arrived in New Jersey. We helped them get all kinds of furniture and other things to help them get settled. This was the agape love in action. We did not expect anything in return; we simply wanted to be a blessing. A few years later, in 1993, when we had no place to stay while we were waiting for our house to close, this same family brought us into their home and allowed us to stay there for about 6 weeks. Imagine, 9 people staying in a two bedroom house! Yet, they had a desire to be a blessing to us when we were in need. This was both phileo and agape.
I do not want to go on too long, but this issue is a crucial issue for the body of Christ. When I get back to Cincinnati, I would like to provide some more information.
God Bless!
I come to this from a respectful KJV-Only perspective. God knew that the Word would be brought to the nations through English, not through Greek. Hence, maybe He did not intend to put too much technical distinction on words like 'love', which are the same in English. God's word gives wisdom to the simple. Not much good if your not familiar with a dead language.
God Bless
Dee thanks so much for the visit and the recommendations. I appreciate seeing your encouraging words on many of the blogs I follow.
Matt I take this as an honor knowing your current disposition and I hope I can always count on your wisdom even with your worthless and expensive education. (grin)
I still have a problem with the term “verb form of the word”, not that I think it isn’t, but what specifically does that mean? If Agape is a noun, a thing, then how is that “thing” put in to action from a scriptural perspective?
DF if anyone else had said that I would likely have written it off but I know your opinion is not without merit so I need to question you further on it. You said, “God knew that the Word would be brought to the nations through English”. Even the TBS uses the “Textus Receptus” for all their translations. With the English word love having such a broad application wouldn’t it be of value to examine its use in translation?
Ron, I'll be looking forward to your input. I think this is important too but we seem to be in the minority on that. ;-)
Most of what I read by others here has been mostly correct.
I would suggest another resource, CS Lewis' The Four Loves. It develves into all four types.
Pia is right agape is a noun agapaeo is a verb (I love as Matt has so eloquently stated).
KJVers tried to distinguish by using the word "charity" but that has just confused matters. But "love" does not help us out either. But there realy are no way to express it as it is expressed in Greek. But of course that is true when any language is translated into another
I suppose if other languages make use of different words for love, then perhaps there may be value in using the Greek to differentiate them.
I suppose the context of the word used may give us soem clues as to nuances in meaning. I am not really a Bible scholar, so I am a bit out of my depth.
I would just question the assumption that the Greek words are always used in a consistent manner.
DF I agree and I think that's what is holding me back. I'm uncertain about the definitions to start with and then trying to determine which of, or how many of, the alternate meanings is specifically or generally intended in each verse is a chore. I'll keep knocking. ;-)
oops Pech I nearly missed you!
Well that's two votes for me to get my head out of historical translations and in to some modern verse. Dee had the same suggestion. Given the source I might have to force myself but I'll have to break and take a chapter of John Foxe now and again to get throught it! (or maybe a bit o' the TOB? hehe) ;-)
Matt and Matthew thanks again for your input. ;-)
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