First Corinthians contains the New Testament passage saying that faith, hope, and love remain, with love greatest.
The words appear in 1 Corinthians 13:13, at the close of a chapter devoted to love. Paul presents love as more enduring and more important than impressive spiritual gifts, eloquent speech, knowledge, or extraordinary faith. The passage is widely read at weddings, but its original setting was a disagreement among Corinthian Christians about status and spiritual abilities.
The letter addresses the church at Corinth, a major Greek city, and discusses divisions, lawsuits, sexual ethics, marriage, food associated with idols, worship, spiritual gifts, and the resurrection. The “greatest” statement is therefore part of a wider argument about how Christian community life should be ordered.
A frequent mix-up is attributing the passage to Romans because Romans also discusses faith and love. The familiar wording belongs specifically to Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians.