1 Corinthians 13:11 Meaning: Putting Away Childish Things
When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child. Now that I have become a man, I have put away childish things.
When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
When I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child: now that I am become a man, I have put away childish things.
When I was a babe, as a babe I was speaking, as a babe I was thinking, as a babe I was reasoning, and when I have become a man, I have made useless the things of the babe;
When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I felt as a child, I reasoned as a child; when I became a man, I had done with what belonged to the child.
Meaning in one sentence
Paul compares our present knowledge to childhood, showing that spiritual gifts will pass away when we reach full maturity in God's presence.
Context
Paul has been arguing that love matters more than any spiritual gift. Speaking in tongues, prophecy, knowledge, none of them last forever. Only love never fails. Now he reaches for a picture everyone understands: growing up. When you are a child, you talk and think in ways that fit a child. But when you become an adult, you leave those ways behind. Paul is not scolding the Corinthian church for being childish. He is helping them see that the gifts they so admire are partial, like a child’s understanding. A day is coming when we will see fully, and then the partial will simply fall away. The chapter builds to that hope: love is the one thing that will still matter when everything else is finished.
Key Words
The Greek word for “child” here, nēpios, means an infant, someone who cannot yet speak clearly. Paul uses three verbs to describe that stage: laleō (speaking), phroneō (thinking or having a certain mindset), and logizomai (reasoning or calculating). Together they cover the whole inner world of a child, words, feelings, thoughts. But notice the verb Paul chooses for leaving those behind: katargeō. It is the same word he used five times earlier in this chapter for prophecies falling silent and knowledge vanishing. It means to render something inoperative, to bring it to an end. The point is not that Paul scorned his younger self. It is that childish ways simply have no use once you are grown. In the same way, our partial knowledge and gifts will have no purpose when we see God face to face.
How Christians Read This Verse
Many Christians have read this verse as a picture of the journey from this life to the next. Matthew Henry noted that the extraordinary gifts of the early church were temporary, meant to serve until the full revelation of Scripture or heaven. John Calvin taught that while we live in this world we require ongoing instruction, like children in school, but the perfection of heaven will end that need. Some traditions, including many in the Wesleyan and Methodist streams, see here a growth in personal holiness: we are called to mature beyond spiritual childishness, laying aside pride and self-importance. Other commentators, like Adam Clarke, emphasize the contrast between our present limited experience and the vast knowledge that awaits us. Both readings agree on the main point: something far better is coming.
A common misunderstanding
Some people take this verse to mean that grown Christians should stop using spiritual gifts like prophecy or tongues. They think Paul is saying such gifts are only for spiritual beginners. In fact, Paul himself exercised these gifts and urged others to desire them. The comparison is not between childhood and adulthood in this life, but between this life and the life to come. The “childish things” are our present partial knowledge, not the gifts themselves. Those gifts are good and useful now, but they will not be needed when we see God directly.
Living This Out
This week, hold your understanding of God with an open hand. You may have strong convictions, clear theology, impressive experiences. They are real and valuable. But they are also partial. They are like a child’s careful drawing of the sun, a true picture, but nothing like standing in the light itself. When you feel frustrated by what you do not understand, or proud of what you do, remember that both feelings belong to this unfinished season. The point is not to dismiss what God has given you now. The point is to stay humble and keep love at the center, because love is the one thing that will still fit when everything partial is gone.
Main takeaway: Our present knowledge and spiritual gifts are like childhood tools, good for now but meant to give way to the full love of heaven.
For Families
For ages 5, 8
When you were a baby, you needed help with everything. Now you can do many things yourself. One day we will see God and understand so much more than we do now. That will be even better than growing up.
For ages 9, 12
Think about something you loved when you were younger, maybe a toy or a game. You probably don’t play with it anymore because you have outgrown it. Paul says our spiritual knowledge is a little like that. The things we understand about God now are real, but they are not the whole picture. One day we will know God completely, and our partial understanding will feel as small as a child’s toy. That is something to look forward to.
Questions People Ask
Does 1 Corinthians 13:11 mean we should stop using spiritual gifts as we mature?
No. Paul is comparing our present life to childhood and the life to come to adulthood. Spiritual gifts are useful now, just as a child's abilities are useful in childhood. But in heaven, when we see God directly, gifts like prophecy and tongues will no longer be needed because we will know fully.
What does 'put away childish things' mean in this verse?
The Greek word Paul uses (katargeō) means to render inactive or to bring to an end. He uses the same word earlier in the chapter for prophecies ceasing and knowledge vanishing. He is saying that when perfection comes, the partial gifts of this life will naturally stop, just as an adult no longer needs a child's way of speaking and thinking.
Is Paul insulting the Corinthians by calling them children?
Not exactly. He did call them 'babies in Christ' earlier in 1 Corinthians 3:1, but here his point is broader. He is describing the normal human experience of growing from childhood to adulthood as a picture of our spiritual journey from this life to the next. The focus is not on their immaturity but on the temporary nature of partial knowledge.
What 'childish things' should I put away in my own life?
Paul's main point is not a list of behaviors to stop. He is talking about the partial ways we now understand God, through prophecy, tongues, and knowledge. Those are good for now, but they will pass away. The practical application is to hold them loosely, not to be arrogant about what we know, and to focus on love, which lasts forever.
For pastors & researchers
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