For we walk by faith, not by sight.
Parallel translations
- WEB for we walk by faith, not by sight.
- KJV (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
- NKJV For we walk by faith, not by sight.
- NASB for we walk by faith, not by sight—
- NLT For we live by believing and not by seeing.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The Christian life is governed by faith in God's promises, not by what is visibly seen. We trust unseen realities over present appearances.
Overview
This brief, well-known verse summarizes the believer's posture: living by trust in God's word and promises rather than by sight of present circumstances. It echoes 4:18 and grounds the confidence Paul has just described. Faith holds firmly to the unseen Lord and the unseen glory to come.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Heb 11:1–27Now faith is the assurance of what we hope for and the certainty of what we do not see.
- 2 Cor 4:18So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
- Rom 8:24–25For in this hope we were saved; but hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he can already see?
- 1 Pet 1:8Though you have not seen Him, you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, you believe in Him and rejoice with an inexpressible and glorious joy,
- Heb 10:38But My righteous one will live by faith; and if he shrinks back, I will take no pleasure in him.”
- Gal 2:20I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.
- 1 Pet 5:9Resist him, standing firm in your faith and in the knowledge that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering.
- 1 Cor 13:12Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
- 2 Cor 1:24Not that we lord it over your faith, but we are fellow workers with you for your joy, because it is by faith that you stand firm.
- Deut 12:9For you have not yet come to the resting place and the inheritance that the LORD your God is giving you.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
In Christ all God's promises are 'Yes and Amen'; though rich, he became poor to make us rich, and in him God reconciles the world, making us new creations.
How 2 Corinthians 5:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.