Charles Spurgeon Commentary 2 Peter 1:5-7

"Yea, and for this very cause adding on your part all diligence, in your faith supply virtue; and in [your] virtue knowledge; and in [your] knowledge self-control; and in [your] self-control patience; and in [your] patience godliness; and in [your] godliness brotherly kindness; and in [your] brotherly kindness love." — 2 Peter 1:5-7 (ASV)

Add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge, and to knowledge temperance, and to temperance patience, and to patience godliness, and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.

As you have seen the mason take up first one stone, and then another, and then gradually build the house, so are you Christians to take first one virtue, and then another, and then another, and to pile up these stones of grace one upon the other until you have built a palace for the indwelling of the Holy Ghost. Faith, of course, comes first, because faith is the foundation of all the graces, and there can be no true grace where there is no true faith.

Then add to your faith virtue, which should have been translated "courage." True courage is a very great blessing to the Christian; indeed, without it, how will he be able to face his foes? And to courage knowledge, for courage without knowledge would be foolish rashness, which would lead you to the cannon's mouth when there was nothing to be gained by flinging away your life. And to knowledge temperance; for there are some who no sooner get knowledge than they are carried away with the new doctrine which they have learned and become like people intoxicated, for it is possible to be intoxicated even with truth.

Happy is that Christian who has temperance with his knowledge, who, while holding one doctrine, does not push that to the extreme, but learns to hold other doctrines in due conformity with it. And to temperance patience, or endurance, so that we are able to endure the trial of cruel mockings, or sharp pains, or fierce persecutions, or the usual afflictions of this life.

He is a poor Christian who has no power of endurance; a true Christian must endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. And to endurance godliness: having a constant respect to God in all our ways, living to God, and living like God so far as the finite can be like the Infinite. And to godliness brotherly kindness. O dear friends, let us be very kind to those who are our brothers in Christ Jesus; let the ties of Christian kinship unite us in true brotherhood to each other. And to brotherly kindness charity; let us have love to all men, though specially to the household of faith.