Advanced Commentary

Texts -- 2 Corinthians 10:1-13 (NET)

Context
Paul’s Authority from the Lord
10:1 Now I , Paul , appeal to you personally by the meekness and gentleness of Christ (I who am meek when present among you , but am full of courage toward you when away !)– 10:2 now I ask that when I am present I may not have to be bold with the confidence that (I expect ) I will dare to use against some who consider us to be behaving according to human standards . 10:3 For though we live as human beings , we do not wage war according to human standards , 10:4 for the weapons of our warfare are not human weapons , but are made powerful by God for tearing down strongholds . We tear down arguments 10:5 and every arrogant obstacle that is raised up against the knowledge of God , and we take every thought captive to make it obey Christ . 10:6 We are also ready to punish every act of disobedience , whenever your obedience is complete . 10:7 You are looking at outward appearances . If anyone is confident that he belongs to Christ , he should reflect on this again : Just as he himself belongs to Christ , so too do we . 10:8 For if I boast somewhat more about our authority that the Lord gave us for building you up and not for tearing you down , I will not be ashamed of doing so. 10:9 I do not want to seem as though I am trying to terrify you with my letters , 10:10 because some say , “His letters are weighty and forceful , but his physical presence is weak and his speech is of no account .” 10:11 Let such a person consider this : What we say by letters when we are absent , we also are in actions when we are present .
Paul’s Mission
10:12 For we would not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who recommend themselves . But when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves , they are without understanding . 10:13 But we will not boast beyond certain limits , but will confine our boasting according to the limits of the work to which God has appointed us , that reaches even as far as you .

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

more

Arts

Hymns

(Note: In "active" or "on" condition, the hymns music will be played automatically when mouse hover on a hymns title)
  • Hai Bangkit Bagi Yesus [KJ.340] ( Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus )
  • [2Co 10:3] Sing, My Tongue, The Glorious Battle

Questions

Sermon Illustrations

What is Carnality?; What Is Carnality?; Believer’s Warfare

Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • These instructions deal with how Israel was to come into possession of the Promised Land (cf. Num. 33:50-56). They are in the context of civil legislation because Israel did not have a standing army. Soldiers volunteered to g...
  • 24:1 The connective "and"(NASB, Gr. kai) ties what follows to Jesus' preceding denunciation of the generation of Jews that rejected Him and the divine judgment that would follow (23:36-39). However the "apocalyptic"or "eschat...
  • First Corinthians did not dispel the problems in the church at Corinth completely. While it resolved some of these, opposition to the Apostle Paul persisted and Paul's critics continued to speak out against him in the church....
  • I. Introduction 1:1-11A. Salutation 1:1-2B. Thanksgiving for comfort in affliction 1:3-111. Thanksgiving for comfort 1:3-72. Thanksgiving for deliverance 1:8-11II. Answers to insinuations about the sincerity of Paul's commitm...
  • Paul cited the example of Jesus Christ's gift of Himself for needy humanity to motivate his readers further to finish their work of assembling the collection.8:8 Paul wanted his readers to understand that he did not want them...
  • In this third and last major division of his epistle the apostle Paul defended his apostolic authority. He did this to silence his critics in Corinth and perhaps elsewhere permanently and to confirm the united support of the ...
  • 10:1-2 Paul may have identified himself by name here so his readers would have no doubt that what he proceeded to say indeed came from him. He began by gently asking his readers to respond to his appeal to submit to his apost...
  • As Paul defended himself against the charge of cowardice leveled by his critics, so he also claimed ability to deal forcefully with them in person as well as by letter. He referred to this to explain his conduct further and t...
  • Paul defended his right to preach the gospel in Corinth and denied his critics' claim that they had been responsible for what God had done through Paul there. He did this to vindicate his former actions and to prepare for fut...
  • In the first subsection he explained his need to present this evidence.11:1 Paul found it necessary to remind and reveal to the Corinthians some of the evidences of the Lord's commendation of his ministry (cf. 10:18). He call...
  • To answer his critics and prove the extent of his own service and sufferings for Christ, Paul related many of his painful experiences as an apostle.11:16 Paul apologized again for having to resort to mentioning these experien...
  • 12:11 Again Paul reminded his readers that he had spoken of his own qualifications as an apostle as he had only because the Corinthians required such proof. He had not done so because he wanted to commend himself or because h...
  • 12:19 The first part of this verse may have been a statement or a question. The meaning is the same in either case. Paul said what he did, especially in 10:1-12:18, primarily to build up the Corinthian believers in their fait...
  • 13:1 There are at least four possibilities about what Paul meant by the two or three witnesses that would confirm his credibility and his critics' guilt. First, he may simply have been saying that the church would pass judgme...
  • 13:11 Obedience to five commands would result in one condition that Paul wanted his readers to express in a particular practice.1. They were to rejoice, probably because they had the opportunity to judge themselves before God...
  • This prayer illustrates Paul's genuine concern for the Thessalonians, and it bridges the narrative material in chapters 1-3 and the parenetic material in chapters 4-5.633:11 Paul summarized the content of his prayer in the fo...
  • The Ephesian church already had elders long before Paul wrote this letter (Acts 20:17-35)."If our identification of the false teachers as elders is correct, then Paul's reason for this set of instructions is that Timothy must...
  • The real qualifications of a teacher (v. 1) are wisdom (the ability to view life from God's perspective) and understanding (mental perception and comprehension).145We can perceive understanding in others quite easily, but wis...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ; and being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, when your ...
Back to Commentary Page


TIP #24: Use the Study Dictionary to learn and to research all aspects of 20,000+ terms/words. [ALL]
created in 0.05 seconds
powered by
bible.org - YLSA