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Fruit of the Spirit
One passage. Several ways in.
Galatians 5:22-23 · KJV
Eight words hidden in a grid, all of them from one sentence in Galatians 5.
Read the passageWays to explore this
A closer reading
One fruit, not nine
Read the verse and notice the singular noun. Paul does not write “the fruits of the Spirit are” — he writes “the fruit of the Spirit is,” and then gives nine words for it. The list describes one life, not a scorecard.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
Galatians 5:22-23 · KJVThe words that have shifted
Three of them mean something narrower in modern English than they did in 1611. Longsuffering is patience under provocation. Meekness is power under restraint, not weakness. Temperance is self-control of every kind, not only about drink.
“Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
Galatians 5:23 · KJVAgainst such there is no law
The sentence ends with an understatement. Paul has spent the chapter arguing about law and freedom, and finishes the list by pointing out that nobody ever needed a rule against any of this.
“Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.”
Galatians 5:23 · KJV
About the fruit of the Spirit
Paul's list is one sentence, and it names a single fruit rather than nine of them: “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.” The singular is doing work. These are not nine separate achievements to be collected but one thing described from nine angles.
It arrives directly after a much longer and uglier list — the works of the flesh — and the contrast is in the grammar as well as the content. Works are things done; fruit is something that grows on a tree that is alive. The passage closes the list with a dry aside that is easy to read past: “against such there is no law.” There was never a rule forbidding kindness.
Eight of the nine are hidden below. The ninth, longsuffering, is too long for a grid this size — which is its own small joke, and a fair description of the quality.
Written and checked against the King James text by Random Bible. Last reviewed September 17, 2026.
Fruit of the Spirit: common questions
What are the nine fruits of the Spirit?
Galatians 5:22–23 lists love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and temperance. The verse calls them the fruit — singular — of the Spirit.
Where is the fruit of the Spirit in the Bible?
Galatians 5:22–23, immediately after Paul's list of the works of the flesh in verses 19–21.
Can I print this word search?
Yes. Use your browser's print command on this page — the grid, the word list and the verse print on one sheet, and the on-screen controls are left out.
What does “temperance” mean in Galatians 5:23?
Self-control in general, not only moderation in drinking. The Greek word behind it describes mastery over one's own impulses.