By The Water
Eros (Greek ἔρως) is romantic, desiring love — and it is the one of the four Greek loves that never appears in the New Testament. That silence is not disapproval. Scripture treats married love as a good gift, devotes an entire book to it in the Song of Solomon, and commands a husband to “rejoice with the wife of thy youth” (Proverbs 5:18). The Bible's concern is never that desire exists, only where it is directed.
| Original word | ἔρως |
|---|---|
| Transliteration | erōs (EH-rohs) |
| Strong's number | None — the word does not occur in the New Testament |
| Part of speech | Noun, masculine |
| Short definition | romantic or desiring love |
| Occurrences | 0 in the Greek New Testament; twice in the Septuagint (Proverbs 7:18; 30:16) |
“Set me as a seal upon thine heart… for love is strong as death… Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it.”Song of Solomon 8:6–7 (KJV)
The word that isn't there
Search a Greek New Testament for eros and you will find nothing. The apostles chose agape — a comparatively colourless word — and filled it with the love of the cross. That choice says something about emphasis, not about ethics. Greek eros carried heavy cultural freight: the god Eros, temple prostitution, a whole vocabulary of appetite. Writers describing a God who loves sinners at his own expense needed a different word.
The word does appear twice in the Septuagint, the Greek Old Testament — both times in Proverbs, and both as warnings about appetite let loose (Proverbs 7:18, the adulteress's invitation; 30:16, the grave that never says “enough”).
But the reality is honoured
Absence of the word is not absence of the subject. Scripture is markedly unembarrassed:
- The Song of Solomon is an unblushing love poem preserved in the canon — mutual desire, delight in the body, longing and consummation, with no apology attached.
- Proverbs 5:18–19 commands delight: “rejoice with the wife of thy youth… let her breasts satisfy thee at all times; and be thou ravished always with her love.”
- Genesis 2:24 establishes the pattern before any law is given: “they shall be one flesh” — quoted approvingly by Jesus (Matthew 19:5) and Paul (Ephesians 5:31).
- 1 Corinthians 7:3–5 treats physical intimacy in marriage as a mutual obligation, not a concession — Paul tells couples not to withhold from one another.
- Hebrews 13:4 — “Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled.”
Where the Bible does object
The consistent concern is direction and covenant, not desire itself. Scripture warns against desire pursued outside the covenant it was made for — adultery (Exodus 20:14), porneia or sexual immorality (1 Corinthians 6:18), and looking that has already become taking (Matthew 5:28). The book that celebrates the Song of Solomon also says the adulteress's house “inclineth unto death” (Proverbs 2:18). Same appetite; different aim.
Eros needs agape
The practical wisdom in the four-loves framework is that eros alone cannot carry a marriage. Desire fluctuates; agape — chosen, self-giving, covenantal — is what holds when it does. That is why Paul's charge to husbands is not “desire your wives” but “love [agapate] your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it” (Ephesians 5:25). Eros is a good servant inside a covenant kept by agape. See how the four loves fit together →
A note on C. S. Lewis
Much popular teaching on eros descends from C. S. Lewis's The Four Loves (1960), which distinguished eros (being in love) from mere appetite, and argued that eros becomes destructive precisely when it is treated as a god. That framing is useful, but it is Lewis's, not Scripture's vocabulary — the Bible itself simply speaks of desire, marriage and faithfulness in plainer terms.
Open the word, not just a definition
By The Water's Word Study tab covers the words Scripture actually uses for love — agape (G26), phileō (G5368) and their families — so you can trace what the New Testament says rather than what a chart claims it says.
Frequently asked questions
Is the word eros in the Bible?
Not in the New Testament — eros never appears in the Greek text. It occurs twice in the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament), both times in Proverbs as warnings about uncontrolled appetite.
If eros isn't in the Bible, does that mean romantic love is bad?
No. The Song of Solomon is an entire book celebrating romantic love, Proverbs 5:18–19 commands a husband to delight in his wife, and Hebrews 13:4 calls marriage honourable. The word is absent; the reality is affirmed.
What is the difference between eros and agape?
Eros is desiring love, drawn by attraction; agape is self-giving love, chosen regardless of return. Paul charges husbands to love with agape "even as Christ also loved the church" (Ephesians 5:25) — the love that keeps a covenant when desire fluctuates. Learn more.
What does the Song of Solomon teach about eros?
That mutual desire within covenant is good and worth poetry. It describes longing, delight and consummation without embarrassment, and ends by calling love 'strong as death' — a flame many waters cannot quench (Song of Solomon 8:6–7).