Edify

Definition: to instruct and improve especially in moral and religious knowledge

Why I Looked It Up

A sign at my church (image at right) quoted 1 Corinthians 8:1. Here’s the verse from the NIV:

Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that “We all possess knowledge.” But knowledge puffs up while love builds up.

And here’s the New King James:

Now concerning things offered to idols: We know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love edifies.

The sign in question was about my church’s work in Ethiopia, where we’ve built a school. I assume the implication is that “love for fellow man is what caused this school to come about.” But, honestly, the Biblical text is a little confusing.

About a week after I wrote this, someone asked a question and qualified it with:

…for my own edification.

The question had nothing to do with morals or spirituality, so I think he meant “education.”

Postscript

I was in a church service, reading along from Romans 14:19:

Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.

What’s interesting is that the pastor was reading from a different translation, and he read the final word of that sentence as “upbuilding.”