"Labors"or "hard work"encompasses all the strenuous activities of life including manual labor.
"Watchings"are "sleepless nights."
"Fastings"or "hunger"refers to missed meals.
6:6-7a Paul now named various graces that God had produced within him mainly in and through these trials. Notice that he moved from external circumstances to internal qualities.
"Pureness"is singlemindedness as well as moral uprightness.
"Knowledge"or "understanding"includes understanding of the Christian faith, insight, and sensitivity to God's will (cf. 1 Pet. 3:7).
"Patience"is longsuffering with difficult people without retaliation.
"Kindness"reflects a generous and sympathetic disposition that manifests itself in good actions (cf. Luke 6:35).
Perhaps Paul used "the Holy Spirit"here in the same sense that he did in Galatians 5:16. We should walk in the Spirit just as we walk in purity, knowledge, etc. The Spirit as a gift rather than as a person may be in view.
"Genuine love"is the honest desire to do what is best for those in view.
"The word of truth"probably refers to "truthful speech"or perhaps the message of truth (cf. 5:19).
"The power of God"was the power that God manifested when His ambassadors followed Him faithfully and proclaimed His Word.
6:7b Paul next described some of the conditions under which he ministered and some of the methods he used.
"Weapons"may refer to the sword of the Spirit (the Word of God) and the shield of faith (cf. Rom. 6:13; Eph. 6:11-17; 1 Thess. 5:8). The right hand normally attacked with a sword and the left defended with a shield. However these are "weapons of righteousness,"the spiritual weapons that God supplies. Another possibility, not necessary mutually exclusive, is that "weapons of righteousness"may refer to the weapons that come from doing right, personal integrity. Righteousness often refers to right conduct in the New Testament. The right and left hands may then be a figurative expression (merism) for all acts.
". . . one so equipped is prepared to meet attack from any quarter . . ."200
6:8-10 These contrasts probably give us some indication of the charges that Paul's critics were leveling at him (cf. Rom 3:8; 1 Cor. 4:13). Human responses to Paul's preaching evidently varied greatly (v. 8), but God's estimate was positive regardless of the opinions of people. These contrasts may be between human responses or between the human and the divine responses. Regardless of people's estimates of him the great apostle continued to fight the good fight of faith (v. 8). Moreover regardless of how he appeared to be doing, in reality God was preserving and blessing him (vv. 9-10).
