In his famous hymn to love in 1 Corinthians 13 Paul says, “if … I have not love, I am nothing” (v. 2). In Romans 13 he says that “love is the fulfillment of the law” (v. 10), and he enjoins Christians to owe no one anything except the debt of love (v. 8). In the latter half of Romans 12 Paul provides insight and guidance concerning the nature of love. Love is defined at the outset (v. 9), middle (v. 17), and end (v. 21) as a commitment to good, and especially the victory of good over evil. This section is something of a manual on the fruit of the Spirit, for nearly every virtue listed in Galatians 5:22 is expounded here. The examples are loosely joined together, although Paul directs them first to love within the Christian community (vv. 9–13), and then to love toward the world at large (v…