John Calvin Commentary 1 Peter 4:8

"above all things being fervent in your love among yourselves; for love covereth a multitude of sins:" — 1 Peter 4:8 (ASV)

And above all things, He commends charity or love as the first thing, for it is the bond of perfection. And He urges it to be fervent, or intense, or vehement, which is the same thing; for whoever is immoderately fervent in self-love, loves others coldly. And He commends it on account of its fruit, because it buries innumerable sins, and nothing is more desirable than this. But the sentence is taken from Solomon, whose words are found in Proverbs 10:12.

“Hatred discovers reproaches, but love covers a multitude of sins.”

What Solomon meant is sufficiently clear, for the two clauses contain things that are set in contrast with each other. Just as he says in the first clause that hatred is the cause why men slander and defame one another, and spread whatever is reproachful and dishonorable, so it follows that a contrary effect is ascribed to love. That is, men who love one another kindly and courteously forgive one another. Thus it happens that, willingly burying each other’s vices, each person seeks to preserve the honor of the other.

Thus Peter confirms his exhortation that nothing is more necessary than to cherish mutual love. For who does not have many faults? Therefore, all stand in need of forgiveness, and there is no one who does not wish to be forgiven.

Love brings us this singular benefit when it exists among us, so that innumerable evils are covered in oblivion. On the other hand, where hatred is given free rein, men, by mutual biting and tearing, must necessarily consume one another, as Paul says (Galatians 5:15).

And it ought to be noted that Solomon does not say that only a few sins are covered, but a multitude of sins, according to what Christ declares when He commands us to forgive our brothers seventy times seven (Matthew 18:22). But the more sins love covers, the more evident its usefulness appears for the well-being of humankind.

This is the plain meaning of the words. Hence it appears how absurd the Papists are, who seek to elicit from this passage their own satisfactions, as though almsgiving and other duties of charity were a sort of compensation to God for blotting out their sins. It is enough to point out in passing their gross ignorance, for in a matter so clear it would be superfluous to add many words.