“Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.” (Romans 12:9, KJV)

In Romans 12:9 Paul is describing what Christian love is meant to look like when it is no longer merely a word, a sentiment, or a performance, but a real moral and spiritual life that can be seen. The verse stands at the beginning of a series of practical exhortations in Romans 12, where the apostle turns from the great doctrinal mercies of God expounded earlier in the epistle to the transformed conduct that those mercies are meant to produce. After urging believers to present their bodies “a living sacrifice” and to be “transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:1–2, KJV), Paul begins to sketch the texture of that renewed life, and he begins with love because love is the pulse of Christian obedience. Romans 12:9 is not mainly about affectionate feelings; it is about a holy integrity that brings the heart, the mouth, and the deeds into agreement.

“Let love be without dissimulation” means that love must be free from hypocrisy, disguise, or an acted part. The word “dissimulation” points to love that pretends, flatters, or uses the language of kindness while hiding selfish motives, bitterness, or indifference. In the KJV phrasing, love is something that can wear a mask, and Paul commands believers to take the mask off. This is significant in the context of the church as a “body” with “many members” (Romans 12:4–5, KJV), because life together cannot be sustained by mere politeness or religious theater. Sincere love is the opposite of duplicity; it is love that does not say one thing and mean another, does not bless with the lips while despising in the heart, and does not serve people merely to gain influence, reputation, or advantage. In this way the verse quietly judges a common human substitute for love: the appearance of goodness without the reality of goodwill.

The second sentence explains what such sincerity requires: “Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good.” Paul binds love to moral discernment. In Scripture, love is not morally neutral and is not proved by tolerance of everything. Genuine love hates what destroys, corrupts, and defiles, because evil harms the beloved and dishonors God. To “abhor” is strong language, suggesting not a mild dislike but an inward recoil from evil’s true nature. In the same breath, love is commanded to “cleave” to good, language that suggests attachment, loyalty, and steadfast union. The symbolism is almost physical: evil is something to shrink from as repulsive, while good is something to cling to as life-giving. Love, then, is not a vague warmth; it is a moral commitment that refuses evil’s seductions and holds fast to what God calls good.

This pairing of hatred and clinging reveals an important theme: Christian love is both tender and holy. It does not excuse sin in the name of kindness, and it does not practice harshness in the name of righteousness. Instead, it is sincere in motive and discriminating in direction. A love “without dissimulation” is not merely honest about its affection; it is also honest about the difference between good and evil. If love is genuine, it cannot make peace with what God calls evil, because such peace would be complicity, not compassion. Likewise, if love is genuine, it cannot be content with avoiding evil; it must actively adhere to good, pursuing what benefits others, what builds up the church, and what aligns with the will of God.

The verse also carries the theme of inner transformation. Romans 12 has already insisted on a renewed mind and a surrendered life, and Romans 12:9 shows what that renewal produces at the relational level. Hypocritical love belongs to the old self that manages appearances; sincere love belongs to the renewed self that has been brought into the light. The abhorring of evil and cleaving to good indicate that love is not merely an emotion that rises and falls; it is a disciplined posture shaped by God’s mercies. Paul is describing a life in which the heart has been taught to recoil from evil not just because it is socially unacceptable, but because it is spiritually deadly, and to cling to good not just because it is admirable, but because it reflects God’s character.

In sum, Romans 12:9 teaches that love, in the Christian life, must be real rather than performed, and that real love expresses itself as a decisive moral allegiance: it turns away from evil with genuine revulsion and holds tightly to good with faithful attachment. In the flow of Romans, this is the beginning of what it looks like when doctrine becomes daily life: the mercies of God do not merely inform the mind; they create a sincere, discerning, steadfast love that refuses the mask and chooses the good.