Text -- 2 Corinthians 7:4 (NET)

A Letter That Caused Sadness

7:4 I have great confidence in you; I take great pride on your behalf. I am filled with encouragement; I am overflowing with joy in the midst of all our suffering.

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Robertson: 2Co 7:4

I overflow with joy in all our affliction ( huperperisseuomai tēi charāi epi pāsēi tēi thlipsei hēmōn ).

A thoroughly Pauline sentiment. Perisseuō means to overflow, as we have seen. Hupeṙperisseuō (late word, so far only here and Byzantine writers) is to have a regular flood. Vulgate superabundo .

Vincent: 2Co 7:4

My boldness

Note the change for the first time to the first person singular.

Vincent: 2Co 7:4

Comfort

The Greek has the comfort, the article apparently pointing to the special comfort he had received through the coming of Titus (2Co 7:6).

Vincent: 2Co 7:4

I am exceeding joyful ( ὑπερπερισσεύμαι τῇ χαρᾷ )

Lit., I superabound with the joy . Rev., I overflow with joy . Note the article again, the joy.

Wesley: 2Co 7:4

Of this he treats, 2Co 7:6, &c.; of his joy, 2Co 7:7, &c.; of both, 2Co 7:13.

JFB: 2Co 7:4

(compare 2Co 6:11).

JFB: 2Co 7:4

Not only do I speak with unreserved openness to you, but I glory (boast) greatly to others in your behalf, in speaking of you.

JFB: 2Co 7:4

At the report of Titus (2Co 7:6-7, 2Co 7:9, 2Co 7:13; 2Co 1:4).

JFB: 2Co 7:4

Greek, I overabound with joy (2Co 7:7, 2Co 7:9, 2Co 7:16).

JFB: 2Co 7:4

Described in 2Co 7:5; also in 2Co 4:7-8; 2Co 6:4-5.

Clarke: 2Co 7:4

Great is my boldness of speech - He seems to refer to the manner in which he spoke of them to others

Clarke: 2Co 7:4

Great is my glorying of you - They had probably been very loving and affectionate previously to the time in which they were perverted by their false apostle. He therefore had boasted of them in all the Churches

Clarke: 2Co 7:4

I am filled with comfort - My affection for you has still the most powerful ascendancy in my soul. Here we may see the affection of the most tender father to his children

Clarke: 2Co 7:4

I am exceeding joyful - Ὑπερπερισσευομαι· I superabound in joy; I have a joy beyond expression. Ὑπερπερισσευω is an extremely rare verb. I have not met with it in any Greek author; and it occurs no where in the New Testament but here and in Rom 5:20

Clarke: 2Co 7:4

In all our tribulation - Perhaps επι here should be rendered under instead of in, as it signifies, Mar 2:26; Luk 3:2; Act 11:28. Under all our tribulations, I feel inexpressible joy on your account.

Calvin: 2Co 7:4

4.Great is my boldness Now, as if he had obtained the enlargement of heart that he had desired on the part of the Corinthians, he leaves off complaining, and pours out his heart with cheerfulness. “What need is there that I should expend so much labor upon a matter already accomplished? For I think I have already what I asked. For the things that Titus has reported to me respecting you are not merely sufficient for quieting my mind, but afford me also ground of glorying confidently on your account ⁶³⁷ Nay more, they have effectually dispelled the grief, which many great and heavy afflictions had occasioned me.” He goes on step by step, by way of climax; for glorying is more than being of an easy and quiet mind; and being freed from grief occasioned by many afflictions, is greater than either of those. Chrysostom explains this boldness somewhat differently, in this manner — “If I deal with you the more freely, it is on this account, that, relying on the assurance of your good will towards me, I think I may take so much liberty with you.” I have stated, however, what appeared to me to be the more probable meaning — that the report given by Titus had removed the unfavorable impression, which had previously racked his mind. ⁶³⁸

TSK: 2Co 7:4

my boldness : 2Co 3:12, 2Co 6:11, 2Co 10:1, 2Co 10:2, 2Co 11:21; Eph 6:19, Eph 6:20; Phi 1:20; 1Th 2:2

great : 2Co 1:14, 2Co 9:2-4; 1Co 1:4; 1Th 2:19

I am filled : 2Co 7:6, 2Co 7:7, 2Co 1:4, 2Co 2:14, 2Co 6:10; Act 5:41; Rom 5:3; Phi 2:17; Col 1:24; 1Th 3:7-9; Jam 1:2

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: 2Co 7:4

Great is my boldness of speech toward you - This verse seems designed to soften the apparent harshness of what he had said 2Co 6:12, when he intimated that there was a lack of love in them toward him (Bloomfield), as well as to refer to the plainness which he had used all along in his letters to them. He says, therefore, that he speaks freely; he speaks as a friend; he speaks with the utmost openness and frankness; he conceals nothing from them. He speaks freely of their faults, and he speaks freely of his love to them; and he as frankly commends them and praises them. It is the open, undisguised language of a friend, when he throws open his whole soul and conceals nothing.

Great is my glorying of you - I have great occasion to commend and praise you, and I do it freely. He refers here to the fact that he had boasted of their liberality in regard to the proposed collection for the poor saints of Judea 2Co 9:4; that he had formerly boasted much of them to Titus, and of their readiness to obey his commands 2Co 7:14; and that now he had had abundant evidence, by what he had heard from Titus (verses 5ff), that they were disposed to yield to his commands, and obey his injunctions. He had probably often had occasion to boast of their favorable regard for him.

I am filled with comfort - That is, by the evidence which I have received of your readiness to obey me.

I am exceeding joyful - I am overjoyed. The word used here occurs nowhere else in the New Testament except in Rom 5:20. It is not found in the classic writers; and is a word which Paul evidently compounded (from ὑπὲρ huper and περισσεύω perisseuō ), and means to superabound over, to superabound greatly, or exceedingly. It is a word which would be used only when the heart was full, and when it would be difficult to find words to express its conceptions. Paul’ s heart was full of joy; and he pours forth his feelings in the most fervid and glowing language. I have joy which cannot be expressed.

In all our tribulation - see the note, 2Co 1:4.

Poole: 2Co 7:4

Great is my boldness of speech toward you because I so dearly love you, therefore I speak so boldly and freely to you (as men use to speak most freely to those whom they most love).

Great is my glorying of you I boast of your obedience to others, and therefore would be far from exposing you. And this I do not feignedly, for

I am filled with comfort on your behalf (a further account of this he giveth us afterward).

I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation yea, (saith he), the report I have received of your carriage and behaviour, upon your receipt of my former Epistle, hath filled me with a joy that balanceth all the affliction and tribulation that I meet with for the gospel. So good news to a faithful minister is the repentance and reformation of any member or members that belong to his flock; whereas the hireling, or false teacher, is not much concerned whether the souls of his people do well or ill.

Gill: 2Co 7:4

Great is my boldness of speech towards you,.... Or "liberty of speaking", which I use with you; I very freely, and without any disguise, open my mind to you; I faithfully tell you your faults; I am free in my exhortations and counsels to you, as in the case of the incestuous person, and in other instances, which is a sign of true friendship; for had I any suspicion of you, or not cordial affection for you, I should have been more reserved, more upon my guard, and have spoke and wrote with more caution: besides,

great is my glorying, or "boasting of you"; of your faith in Christ, your love to the people of God, respect to the ministers of the Gospel, obedience to us, and very great liberality to the poor saints, of which the apostle frequently boasts in this epistle: now as speaking freely to them when present with them, or in writing to them, so glorying in them, and speaking well of them when absent, clearly showed what an opinion he had of them, and what true hearty respect he had for them:

I am filled with comfort, says he; not only with divine and spiritual consolations from God, but with the news Titus brought of the state of this church, of the good effect the apostle's reproof and advice had both upon them, and the offender among them, and of their tender and affectionate regard to him: this filled him brimful of comfort, yea, adds he,

I am exceeding joyful; I abound, I over abound in joy; such is the joy that possesses my soul, at the tidings brought me, that it superabounds all the sorrow and anguish of spirit, out of which I wrote unto you, occasioned by the unhappy affair among you: yea, it makes me inexpressibly joyful in all our tribulation; which is not small we meet with, wherever we go, in preaching the Gospel of Christ.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: 2Co 7:4

¹ tn Grk “great is my boasting.”

² tn Or “comfort.”

³ tn Grk “I am overflowing with joy in all our suffering”; the words “in the midst of” are not in the Greek text but are supplied to clarify that Paul is not rejoicing in the suffering itself, but in his relationship with the Corinthians in the midst of all his suffering.

Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: 2Co 7:1-16

1 He proceeds in exhorting them to purity of life;

2 and to bear him like affection as he does to them.

3 Whereof lest he might seem to doubt, he declares what comfort he took in his afflictions by the report which Titus gave of their godly sorrow, which his former epistle had wrought in them;

13 and of their loving-kindness and obedience toward Titus, answerable to his former boastings of them.

MHCC: 2Co 7:1-4

The promises of God are strong reasons for us to follow after holiness; we must cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit. If we hope in God as our Father, we must seek to be holy as he is holy, and perfect as our Father in heaven. His grace, by the influences of his Spirit, alone can purify, but holiness should be the object of our constant prayers. If the ministers of the gospel are thought contemptible, there is danger lest the gospel itself be despised also; and though ministers must flatter none, yet they must be gentle towards all. Ministers may look for esteem and favour, when they can safely appeal to the people, that they have corrupted no man by false doctrines or flattering speeches; that they have defrauded no man; nor sought to promote their own interests so as to hurt any. It was affection to them made the apostle speak so freely to them, and caused him to glory of them, in all places, and upon all occasions.

Matthew Henry: 2Co 7:1-4

These verses contain a double exhortation: -

I. To make a progress in holiness, or to perfect holiness in the fear of God, 2Co 7:1. This exhortation is given with most tender affection to those who were dearly beloved, and enforced by strong arguments, even the consideration of those exceedingly great and precious promises which were mentioned in the former chapter, and which the Corinthians had an interest in and a title to. The promises of God are strong inducements to sanctification, in both the branches thereof; namely, 1. The dying unto sin, or mortifying our lusts and corruptions: we must cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit. Sin is filthiness, and there are defilements of body and mind. There are sins of the flesh, that are committed with the body, and sins of the spirit, spiritual wickednesses; and we must cleanse ourselves from the filthiness of both, for God is to be glorified both with body and soul. 2. The living unto righteousness and holiness. If we hope God is our Father, we must endeavour to be partakers of his holiness, to be holy as he is holy, and perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect. We must be still perfecting holiness, and not be contented with sincerity (which is our gospel perfection), without aiming at sinless perfection, though we shall always come short of it while we are in this world; and this we must do in the fear of God, which is the root and principle of all religion, and there is no holiness without it. Note, Faith and hope in the promises of God must not destroy our fear of God, who taketh pleasure in those that fear him and hope in his mercy.

II. To show a due regard to the ministers of the gospel: Receive us, 2Co 7:2. Those who labour in the word and doctrine should be had in reputation, and be highly esteemed for their work's sake: and this would be a help to making progress in holiness. If the ministers of the gospel are thought contemptible because of their office, there is danger lest the gospel itself be contemned also. The apostle did not think it any disparagement to court the favour of the Corinthians; and, though we must flatter none, yet we must be gentle towards all. He tells them, 1. He had done nothing to forfeit their esteem and good-will, but was cautious not to do any thing to deserve their ill-will (2Co 7:2): " We have wronged no man: we have done you no harm, but always designed your good." I have coveted no man's silver, nor gold, nor apparel, said he to the elders of Ephesus, Act 20:33. " We have corrupted no man, by false doctrines or flattering speeches. We have defrauded no man; we have not sought ourselves, nor to promote our own secular interests by crafty and greedy measures, to the damage of any persons."This is an appeal like that of Samuel, 1 Sa. 12. Note, Then may ministers the more confidently expect esteem and favour from the people when they can safely appeal to them that they are guilty of nothing that deserves disesteem or displeasure. 2. He did not herein reflect upon them for want of affection to him, 2Co 7:3, 2Co 7:4. So tenderly and cautiously did the apostle deal with the Corinthians, among whom there were some who would be glad of any occasion to reproach him, and prejudice the minds of others against him. To prevent any insinuations against him on account of what he had said, as if he intended to charge them with wronging him, or unjust accusations of him for having wronged them, he assures them again of his great affection to them, insomuch that he could spend his last breath at Corinth, and live and die with them, if his business with other churches, and his work as an apostle (which was not to be confined to one place only), would permit him to do so. An he adds it was his great affection to them that made him use such boldness or freedom of speech towards them, and caused him to glory, or make his boast of them, in all places, and upon all occasions, being filled with comfort, and exceedingly joyful in all their tribulations.

Barclay: 2Co 7:2-4

Paul is speaking with the accents of purest love. The breaches are healed. The quarrels are all made up and love reigns supreme. The phrase that we have translated "Our heart lies wide open to you," literally means, "Our heart is enlarged." Chrysostom has a fine comment. He says that heat makes all things expand and the warmth of love will always expand a man's heart.

In the King James Version in 2Co 6:12we note a translation which is very common in the New Testament and not very fortunate, "Ye are straitened in your own bowels." The word translated bowels is the Greek word splagchna (4698). It literally means the upper viscera, the heart, the liver and the lungs. In these organs the seat of the emotions was supposed to lie. The form of expression sounds awkward but it is not really any more curious than our own English form. We speak of a man being melancholy which literally means that he has a black liver. We put the seat of love in the heart, which, after all, is a physical organ. But in English idiom it is more natural to use the word heart than bowels.

Paul here makes a great series of claims. He has wronged no one, he has corrupted no one, he has taken advantage of no one. Towards the end of his life Sir Walter Scott made the great claim, "I have unsettled no man's faith, I have corrupted no man's principles." Thackeray, also towards the end of his life, wrote a prayer in which he prayed that he "might never write a word inconsistent with the love of God, or the love of man, might never propagate has own prejudices or pander to those of others, might always speak the truth with his pen, and might never be actuated by a love of greed."

Only one thing is worse than sinning oneself, and that is teaching another to sin. It is one of the grim truths of life that another must always present a person with his first temptation, must give him the first push into sin, and it is a terrible thing to introduce a younger or a weaker brother to the wrong thing.

Someone tells of an old man who on his death-bed seemed distressed by something. When asked what was the matter he said that, when he was a boy, he and some companions had been playing at a cross-roads in the middle of a common. There was a signpost there and it was loose in its socket. They turned it round so that its arms were facing in the wrong directions. And the old man said, "I cannot stop wondering how many people were sent on the wrong road by the thing we did that day."

There can be no regret like the regret of having sent another on the wrong way. It was Paul's proud claim that his guidance and his influence had always been towards the best.

He finishes this passage by telling the Corinthians how complete his comfort is and how overflowing his joy even although at the moment troubles are all around him. Surely there never was a clearer proof that human relationships are the most important thing in life. If a man is happy at home, he can face up to anything outside. If a man is in fellowship with his friends, he can withstand the slings and arrows of fortune with a smile. As the writer of the Proverbs has it, "Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a fatted ox and hatred with it." (Pro 15:17).

Constable: 2Co 1:12--8:1

II. ANSWERS TO INSINUATIONS ABOUT THE SINCERITY OF PAUL'S COMMITMENT TO THE CORINTHIANS AND TO THE MINISTRY 1:12--7:16

Second Corinthians is a rather difficult book to outline because it is a very personal letter.

"Traditionally, Paul's two letters to Timothy and one to Titus are called the Pastorals.' But 2 Corinthians has a strong claim to be recognized as the Pastoral Epistle par excellence, because it contains not pure' but applied' pastoralia."⁶³

Paul's purpose in writing was not to teach doctrine primarily, though he did so to a considerable extent. It was primarily to answer the criticisms of opponents who were seeking to undermine his ministry, especially in Corinth.

"Here it is his strong feeling rather than any deliberate arrangement that suggests the order of his utterances. Nevertheless, although exact analysis is seldom possible owing to digressions and repetitions, yet some divisions are fairly clear, and the letter becomes more intelligible when they are noted."⁶⁴

Constable: 2Co 6:11--7:5

1. An appeal for large-heartedness and consistency 6:11-7:4

Paul now turned to a direct appeal for the Corinthians to reconcile with him in their hearts.

"The call for reconciliation with Paul, therefore, stands in parallel with the call for reconciliation with God [5:20]. While it would be too much to say that these two forms of reconciliation are equally important, for Paul they are directly linked with one another."²⁰¹

He did this to stimulate them to accept him and his ministry so they would continue to experience all the blessings that God wanted them to have.

Constable: 2Co 7:2-4

Restatement of the appeal 7:2-4

7:2 Paul returned to his appeal for the Corinthians' full affection (6:11-13) claiming no fault toward the Corinthians on three counts (v. 2). He had done no wrong to anyone, had not led anyone astray, nor had he deceived anyone for his own advantage.

7:3 Paul did not say what he did to pass the blame for bad conditions off on his readers. He was not implying that everyone in the Corinthian church blamed him as his critics did either. He explained that they had a secure place in his affections. Neither death nor the trials of life, including charges against him, would alter his love for this church. There was no reason they should feel restraint in their dealings with him. Regardless of their reaction he promised he would never exclude them from his love. This is a good example of unconditional love.

7:4 Nevertheless he was confident that the Corinthians would respond to his defense and exhortation properly. Even though conditions were far from ideal in the church, Paul was proud of his converts there. God had filled his heart with comfort (cf. 1:3-4). In spite of much affliction, some of which the Corinthians produced, Paul felt an overriding sense of joy. His explanation of the reason for these positive feelings follows.

"The idea of receiving joy in the midst of affliction strongly suggests that Paul wrote this part of the epistle while enduring suffering."²¹²

This paragraph is transitional. It summarizess Paul's appeal for large-heartedness and consistency (6:11-7:4) and resumes his personal narrative that he left behind temporarily in 2:13.

College: 2Co 7:1-16

2 CORINTHIANS 7

2. Holiness Demanded (6:14-7:1) (continued)

7:1 Since we have these promises, dear friends,

Despite the fact that serious warnings regarding separation have been included, overall Paul regards the Scripture from a positive perspective. Thus, it is the covenant relationship with God the Corinthian believers share with the whole church which Paul believes should motivate them to reconcile with God and with Paul. That he still feels close kinship with them is indicated by the interjection "dear friends" (ajgaphtoiv, agapçtoi), or "beloved ones."

let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit,

Elsewhere only in James 4:8 is the word "purify" (kaqarivzw, katharizô) used of someone cleansing themselves in a religious sense. Purification is normally viewed as something God does to those who present themselves to him. Of Gentiles, Peter can say in Acts 15:9 that God "purified their hearts by faith." In Heb 9:14 and 1 John 1:7, it is the blood of Christ, infinitely superior to that of goats and sheep, which cleanses Christians from sin. Paul, then, seems to assume dependence upon Christ when he calls for complete purification here in 2 Corinthians.

The stress in this case is on the reality that believers, however reliant upon God and the blood of Christ, must take decisive, personal action over the way they live their lives. This means conscientious separation from influences of people, ideas, or common cultural practices which in any way take away from complete and loyal service to Christ. As elsewhere, Paul seems to assume that believers live their lives in the context of worship, offering themselves as "living sacrifices" (Rom 12:1).

The word "contaminates" (molusmov", molysmos ), only used here in all the NT, is usually associated with idolatry. This association fits with Paul's reference to idols in 6:16. Such contamination is a very real, constant danger in Corinth, whether it involved eating meat offered to idols or continuing to participate in social rituals to pagan gods. Such practices cannot be limited simply to externals and wiped off when one participates in the Christian community. They eat away internally, affecting the way one thinks, contributing to jealousies and bickering, and underlying the very suspicious attitudes Paul detected in the Corinthians toward himself.

That Paul is concerned about unchecked sexual vices among the Corinthians as well is indicated by the fact that in 1 Cor 7:34 he wishes to inspire unmarried Christian girls "to be devoted to the Lord both in body and spirit," using the same Greek language as here.

perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.

Paul lays down the ultimate Christian goal, the righteousness of God coming to full fruition in each believer. He does not mean this in the legal sense of being declared righteous but in the lived out sense. Christians seek to become what they are. In this sense, they are never content with the holiness, meaning "set apart for God," of their lives. They recognize just as God is totally other from the world, so they must continually be working out what it means to be God's servant in the power of Christ in their own surroundings. For the Corinthians this must mean not just separation from Paul's opponents but a continuing vigil against contamination in all aspects of their lives.

Paul grounds the Christian's quest for holiness in respect for God. The word "reverence" (fovbo", phobos ) is sometimes translated "fear," as in 5:11. It acknowledges human deference to God's authority and holiness. Paul presumes God's assessment of behavior much like the judgment of believers mentioned in 5:10. This should spur believers to realize the holiness of God in as many avenues of their lives as possible.

3. Paul's Trust Expressed (7:2-4)

7:2 Make room for us in your hearts.

The NIV, like most versions (RSV, NASB, JB, NEB, NRSV, NLT), takes some liberty in translation in order to demonstrate Paul's desire to complete the thoughts of 6:11-13. The phrase "in your hearts," though not present, does seem to be implied since the idea of Paul's opening his heart and his desire for the Corinthians to do the same dominates 6:11-13. The verb "make room" (cwrevw, chôreô) is only used here by Paul but eight times in the gospels, most notably in John 21:25 which speaks of the inability of the world to "have room" for the volumes that could be written about Jesus. Interestingly, the word can also mean "withdraw" since making room for the presence of one person may require removing oneself from the presence of another. Could Paul be hinting that the Corinthians who have been involved with the outsiders must withdraw from them in order to have room for a renewed relationship with him?

We have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have exploited no one.

This trio of denials is geared to remove what must have been genuine obstacles which prevented the Corinthians from renewing their feelings of closeness to Paul. Behind these very emphatic protestations of innocence, effected by the thrice repeated "no one," most likely are loud and affective accusations from the outside opponents of Paul who are even now in Corinth undermining his relationship with the Corinthians.

What specifically each of these accusations refers to is speculative. When Paul asserts that no one has been "wronged" (ajdikevw, adikeô), he uses a word which can refer in a legal sense to a crime like theft or assault, as in 1 Cor 6:8. Probably, though, he does not employ the word so specifically here but, as is more his custom in the sense of personally offending someone as in Gal 4:12. In fact, he uses the same word in 7:12 with regard to his being harmed by someone in Corinth, very likely the leader of the opposition during the Painful Visit. Perhaps, he means that he did not harm this person either in provoking the attack or retaliating to the attack despite accusations to the contrary. In fact, he was the only one wronged.

The word "corrupted" (fqeirwv, phtheirô) can mean to cause someone financial ruin but more likely refers to leading someone into moral depravity, as in 1 Cor 15:33. Once again, Paul accuses his opponents of wreaking this exact kind of havoc, this time on the Corinthians rather than himself, in 11:3, comparing their activity to the serpent's deception of Eve. They are the corrupters, not him. It is possible that his opponents' accusation against him in this regard relates to his message of freedom from the law (Gal 5:13) being misappropriated, as it seems did happen.

Paul probably does use the word "exploited" (pleonektevw, pleonekteô) in the sense of using people for fraudulent financial gain. He makes the same denial in 12:17 and 12:18. The effort Paul was making to collect money from his churches to take to the suffering Jerusalem church left him vulnerable to this kind of charge from conniving opponents. What Paul says in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 leaves little doubt that the Corinthians were very slow on the uptake in terms of this offering which lends credibility to the fact that misunderstanding regarding the collection was a very serious part of the Corinthians' distrust of Paul. Once again, Paul probably believes the true exploiters are the opponents, who, judging from 2:17, were likely ingratiating themselves to the Corinthians for financial gain.

7:3 I do not say this to condemn you;

Paul's disclaimer shows his desire not to allow any misunderstanding to alienate the Corinthians further from him. He does not wish for them to think that his trio of denials in any way insinuates that the complicity some of the Corinthians may have had with the outsiders against Paul is an offense he would charge against them. In this sense, he thinks of them as minors (6:18) who have been lead astray by knowing adults. It's the adults, the opponents, he condemns, a point he will make much more vociferously in chapter 11. This remark seems to anticipate the knowledge of their repentance (7:9) and innocence (7:11) which Titus brought to him. It also seems intended to begin to pave the way for his future, anticipated visit, as does much of what follows.

I have said before that you have such a place in our hearts that we would live or die with you.

Paul has returned to employing the first person singular pronoun in this verse, which will continue through the chapter and more regularly through the rest of the letter. He last employed it extensively in 1:23-2:13, just prior to launching his defense of true apostolic ministry which continued through 7:1 for which he predominantly spoke in first person plural. The issue now being discussed is strictly between himself and the Corinthians and not about principles of apostleship.

Paul almost certainly refers back to 6:11-12, the last place he actually mentioned the word "heart," as he once again links his current remarks to those, after the interlude of 6:14-7:1. However, he does voice strong, personal feelings for the Corinthians also in 1:4-7 and 3:2.

Paul's willingness to "live or die" with the Corinthians expresses the closeness of his bond with them. In Greek literature, the phrase denotes unbreachable friendship as between Horace and Lydia or Orestes and Electra. In English literature, we could illustrate the thought with Romeo and Juliet, or in contemporary cinema with Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Because of the fact that Paul's Greek statement is the reverse of the NIV, "die or live," some ponder whether Paul intends a more theological sense in terms of the Christian bond of identification with the death and resurrection of Christ. Thus, Paul would be speaking of his eternal relationship with the Corinthians beyond death (Rom 6:8; 2 Cor 4:8-18; 2 Tim 2:11). If this is so, it is far beneath the surface since the immediate context remains consistently at the personal level and never moves to christological notions.

7:4 I have great confidence in you; I take great pride in you.

These two sentences (actually incomplete in Greek, without verbs) even in Greek are written in parallel fashion suggesting that they are both intended to function as compliments to the Corinthians, which occur again in 6:14 and 7:16. Paul seems now to assume the role of the proud father. The word "great" (polluv", pollys ), usually translated "much" or "many," is repeated in both, as is the expression translated "I" (moiv, moi ), "with me" or "in me."

The word translated "confidence" (parrhsiva, parrçsia) was heavily employed as a slogan for freedom of speech in classical Greece and came to convey soul-baring boldness in speech (See comments on 3:12). This is how Paul normally uses the word (2 Cor 3:12; Eph 3:12; 6:19; Phil 1:20; Col 2:15; Phlm 1:8), and some insist is what he intends here. However, this is out of sync with the twin statement which expresses unabashed pride in the Corinthians. No doubt, Paul has spoken boldly and personally as he has expressed his deep feelings for them. However, the compliment he wishes to pay the Corinthians is that he has done this because he has confidence that neither his boldness in this nor his frankness in reprimanding them and calling for their repentance will drive them away from him.

I am greatly encouraged; in all our troubles my joy knows no bounds.

The nifty parallelism with the previous two clauses created by the NIV translation of the first clause does not exist in Greek. This is a complete clause, with a verb, and relates to the participial clause which follows it (though expressed as a finite verb by the NIV). A more literal expression of the first clause would be: "I have been filled full with comfort."

His statement reflects Titus's news of reunification with the Corinthians which he will report shortly. Right now, he simply wants to express the fullness of satisfaction he now feels after months of emptiness and anxiety regarding his relationship with them following the Painful Visit and the Severe Letter. Mention of "encouraged," actually the noun "encouragement," or "comfort" (paravklhsi", paraklçsis), strikes the recurring theme of the remainder of the chapter, the word being repeated either in its noun or verb form six more times in 7:6 (twice), 7:7 (twice), and 7:13 (twice). This theme also opens the letter (1:3-7).

The second clause is more literally rendered as "overflowing with joy in spite of all our troubles." His intention is to parallel the filled-full metaphor with one which pictures an overabundance of good feeling. The word "abound" (perisseuvw, perisseuô) is a favorite of Paul's in 2 Corinthians, used ten times, most significantly in 1:5 where he talks about the sufferings of Christ as well as comfort through Christ overflowing his life. The word used here is much more obscure, used elsewhere only by Paul in Rom 5:20. It adds the preposition "over" (uJpevr, hyper ) to "abound" (perisseuô), giving the idea of "superabounding" or "completely overflowing." In a very emotional expression, Paul is saying that he is totally awash in joy. It is thoroughly overwhelming him. One gets the distinct impression that Paul was storing up an enormous amount of pent-up emotion over his ordeal with the Corinthians. Now he is saying it has been released into a tidal wave of joy.

Paul's mention of "troubles" bodes back not only to the troubles which he specifically mentions "in Asia" (1:4-8) but also to the overall difficulties which characterize apostolic ministry (4:17; 6:4). Probably, he would include the problems he has experienced with the Corinthians as well (2:4).

V. ENCOURAGING NEWS:

RELATIONSHIP FULLY RESTORED (7:5-16)

Having fully defended his apostolic ministry among the Corinthians, Paul picks up the travel narrative involving Titus which he had left at 2:14. His reunion with Titus gushes with drama and emotion. Titus was returning after having delivered Paul's Severe Letter and what must have been some kind of ultimatum to which at least a majority of the Corinthians responded well. The good news overwhelms Paul with positive thoughts about the Corinthians. He reflects on these in 7:5-16 and also makes the most specific comments we have about what may have been the contents of the Severe Letter, only briefly mentioned in 2:4, as well as on the Corinthians' reaction to it.

A. TITUS REPORTS LOVE FOR PAUL (7:5-7)

7:5 For when we came into Macedonia, this body of ours had no rest,

Back in 2:12-13 Paul said that he first waited for Titus in Troas, in Asia on the Eastern side of the Aegean Sea. When Titus did not show up, supposedly as prearranged, Paul decided to cut off Titus's travel time by crossing the sea into Macedonia, in Europe. Where he went in Macedonia is only a guess. At least three established congregations were in the region, Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea. Philippi, the most northern of the three, is the first city he would have come to and the one Paul seemed closest to, as reflected in the letter he wrote to them. This is most likely where he is and, thus would also be the location from which he writes 2 Corinthians, since the letter springs from Titus's report.

While waiting for Titus in Philippi, Paul worried on a number of scores. Did he miss Titus? Had something tragic happened to him along the way? Was he delayed because things went so badly in Corinth? Had the Corinthians reacted indignantly to his letter of censure? Were his opponents now reeling more of the Corinthians into their tangled heretical web. What would he do if the Corinthians finally had rejected him out of hand? Could he dare go back, even if he vowed not to? Who would shepherd the faithful, if any were left?

This worrying is reflected in his report that he simply could not relax and the comments which follow it. Although the word he uses for "body" (savrx, sarx ), often translated "flesh" or "sinful nature," usually has connotations of human sinfulness, here he uses the word generically for "whole person." Mostly he has in mind his physical body. Perhaps, quite literally, he had trouble sleeping. But probably his worry is so overwhelming him that he was having trouble concentrating on anything else, his preaching or writing or even ministry among the Philippians. He probably kept wanting to do something but couldn't. All he could do was wait, fidget, and worry.

but we were harassed at every turn-conflicts on the outside, fears within.

The word translated "harassed" (qlivbw, thlibô) has now surfaced for its third time in this letter (1:6; 4:8). Its noun cognate arises no less than nine times (1:4 - twice; 1:8; 2:4; 4:17; 6:4; 7:4; 8:2; 8:13). All of these references have Paul's own troubles in view. Mostly, these seem to be problems he encounters from those who oppose the gospel, often Jews from city to city, but it can be Gentiles as well, or even purported Christians, like Judaizers, who preach a different gospel. These hostilities he experienced bothered him like they would anyone else, even if he did understand such difficulties were inevitable for an apostle like himself united in the sufferings of Christ.

Does he mean by his statement here that he or the church was experiencing hostility while waiting for Titus in Philippi? It is certainly possible and is probably indicated by the reference to experiencing disturbances "on the outside." The mention of "fears within" most certainly refers to his worry over the Corinthian situation. However, both could refer to the Corinthian situation, Paul simply saying that it affected him physically, in the sense that people could see his worry and agitation, and was tearing him up emotionally, or internally.

7:6 But God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus,

Paul appears to allude to Isa 49:13 as he describes this inviting characterization of God's nature, interestingly the same chapter he quoted from in 6:2. In Isaiah, the word "downcast" is rendered "afflicted one" and probably refers to people who are oppressed, like the Jews in exile. The Greek word Paul uses (tapeinov", tapeinos ) normally refers to people who are humble in terms of their demeanor (Luke 14:11; James 4:10). Here, Paul refers to himself in his worry over the Corinthians which drove him into depression.

Paul attributes to God's personal care for him - no doubt in answer to prayer - the safe arrival of Titus with the news he needed to hear. One can only imagine his state of anxiety when he first looked into Titus's eyes and asked him, "How did it go?" Of course, the fact that he was indeed, "comforted" or "encouraged" probably doesn't convey the half of it. Yes, he was relieved. No doubt, though, he was ecstatic with joy, as he describes himself in 7:4.

7:7 and not only by his coming but also by the comfort you had given him.

Paul seems intent on using the word "comfort" to hold his thoughts together. It must be assumed that this primarily means that Titus was warmly welcomed into the Corinthian church despite the storm clouds hanging over the situation, despite Titus's understandable trepidation. Whether Titus was well received initially or eventually cannot be determined from what Paul says here.

He told us about your longing for me, your deep sorrow, your ardent concern for me, so that my joy was greater than ever.

Titus's report apparently told Paul exactly what he needed to hear. He had been counting on the strong, mutual relationship between himself and the Corinthians to pull this dangerous situation out. He had already bared his soul to them. Would the depths of their feelings for him surface or would they turn away and reject him? Titus conveys to Paul that the Corinthian's love for Paul has overcome everything else.

Their "longing" (ejpipovqhsi", epipothçsis) tries to convey the emotional aching when someone can't stand to be apart from someone they love. The noun is only used elsewhere in 7:11, although the verb cognate is a favorite of Paul's, used in 5:2 and 9:14, as well as Rom 1:11; Phil 1:8; 2:26; 1 Thess 3:6 and 2 Tim 1:4. The word describing the Corinthians' "deep sorrow" (ojdurmov", odyrmos ), only used elsewhere in Matt 2:18 of Rachel's mourning in Ramah, is also translated "lamentation," or "wailing," and pictures the outpouring of tears and anguish at a funeral. "Ardent concern" (zh'lo", zçlos), normally translated "zeal," attempts to convey the Corinthians' enthusiasm to be reunited with Paul. With each of the three words, the "your" is repeated, emphasizing that this is about the turn around in the attitude of the Corinthians toward Paul.

The result of hearing from Titus about the Corinthians' strong positive feelings for Paul is "joy." The actual Greek word used is an infinitive from the verb "rejoice" (caivrw, chairô). From the way Paul exults, the news is probably much better than he had even hoped for. Given the way he was stewing about this and his pent up emotion, he may have burst into singing or dancing, or possibly have broken down into sobs of joy. Regardless he says his joy was "greater than ever" (ma'llon, mallon ) the Greek adverb usually meaning "more." His exultation here reinforces the overabundance of joy he described in 7:4.

B. TRUE REPENTANCE DEMONSTRATES INNOCENCE

(7:8-13a)

7:8 Even if I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it.

The letter of 2 Corinthians throbs with emotional pain, in Paul, in the Corinthians, perpetuated by Paul's disastrous impromptu visit and the bad feelings that have lingered. The verb for "sorrow" (lupevw, lypeô) is used six times in this context, the cognate noun twice, both words a combined 18 times in the letter. Other than 6:10, the context that involves the other uses of these words is 2:1-5, precisely where Paul mentioned the chastising letter the first time. He makes it very clear in the earlier context (2:4) that the intention of the letter was not to hurt them but to avoid further hurt should he come again without getting matters cleared up. His lack of remorse in grieving them through the letter is based upon his knowledge of the letter's effectiveness. The word he uses for "regret" (metamevlomai, metamelomai ) describes what Judas did after betraying Christ (Matt 27:3) but also what God never does (Heb 7:21).

Though I did regret it-I see that my letter hurt you, but only for a little while-

Paul's admission of regret refers to when he first wrote the Painful Letter (2:4). Having written it, he feared it was so harshly critical that it might drive the Corinthians even further away from him. But there it was. So he sent it and worried about it for months. Now, as Titus tells him, it did rock them. However, this was only for a short time until the reality of how they had wronged him sunk in.

7:9 yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance.

Despite the NIV's translation "am happy," the verb here is "rejoice" (caivrw, chairô), being picked up from 7:7. He is not gloating that he managed to get revenge by dealing them a crushing blow back at them through the letter. It was not his purpose to totally demoralize them but rather to have the honest truth cut to the quick in a way that would rejuvenate them in their relationship toward him and toward God. The letter brought them "to repentance," to a reversal of their former attitude, to a complete change of heart and behavior.

The word "repentance" (metavnoia, metanoia ), in both its noun and verb forms, is only used five times by Paul, three of those in 2 Corinthians (7:10; 12:21), though it is very popular in the Gospels and Acts. Though it normally has strictly spiritual connotations regarding a turning away from sin and toward God, Paul's use here seems double-barreled, mostly of the Corinthians' relationship toward him, with secondary implications regarding their relationship toward God.

For you became sorrowful as God intended and so were not harmed in any way by us.

Paul believes that God desired a change in the Corinthians or he would not have written the disciplining letter. The positive result that came from the letter - and from Titus - was precisely what God desired. Paul and the letter acted as his instrument.

The result of the letter speaks for itself. The Corinthians were not driven away from Paul or from God. Rather, they came back to full fellowship. Obviously, no permanent injury occurred. The word Paul uses for "harmed" (zhmiovw, zçmioô) can refer to financial loss in business. He emphasizes the lack of ill effect by using "any way" (mhdeniv, mçdeni), meaning "nothing," rather than just "not." Paul seems aware of no lingering problems related to this harrowing event. Yet Paul will deal with severe difficulties yet in chapters 10-13. Whether those are the same problems, which he just comes back to, or are new ones relates to the issues surrounding the integrity of the letter (see Introduction).

7:10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret,

Paul regroups what he said directly about the Corinthians into a truism balanced positively and negatively. The truism applies both to spiritual matters and to human relationships in general. In this positive half, then, it should be recognized that "salvation" (swthriva, sôtçria) in a nontheological sense refers to being rescued from any kind of bad situation. Paul envisages a four-step process beginning with sorrow which is so sincere that it is validated by God. This will lead to a change of heart and behavior, a restoration of relationship, and will end without any leftover bad feelings.

Biblical examples of this kind of successful healing process include David (2 Sam 12:13; Ps 51); Peter (Mark 14:72); and Paul (Acts 9:1-22).

but worldly sorrow brings death.

The negative half of Paul's truism involves just two steps because it is so ineffective and damaging. If criticism is taken badly in a totally self-interested way, one will never see the positive intention of the critic. The hurt will fester and grow to the point where it infects everything in a person. The result could be self-destruction as with Judas (Matt 27:3-5) or the person striking out in murderous assault, either on the critic or whoever is within range at the moment of explosion.

In a spiritual sense, if people only recognize their sinfulness without ever repenting of it, certain eternal, condemning judgment surely awaits.

7:11 See what this godly sorrow has produced in you: what earnestness, what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what concern, what readiness to see justice done.

Paul now lists seven evidences of the genuineness of the Corinthians' pain at having grieved Paul. Although the first evidence, "earnestness," is preceded by "what" (povshn, posçn), the six which follow are preceded by a strong adversative conjunction normally translated "but" (ajllav, alla ), the effect of which is to bring sharp attention to each evidence.

The first evidence, translated "earnestness" (spoudhv, spoudç) will be used four more times in 2 Corinthians (7:12; 8:7,8,16). In Greek culture the word could describe someone who was being publicly honored for distinctive civil service. It labels someone who moves quickly and eagerly to serve. In the case of the Corinthians, it probably focuses on the speed at which the letter evoked their genuine feelings for Paul and their zeal to right the wrong that had been done.

The second evidence, "eagerness to clear yourselves" is really just one word (ajpologiva, apologia ) which refers to a speech to defend oneself. Apparently, the Corinthians responded immediately to Titus's reading Paul's letter by telling their side of the story. This suggests that at least some misunderstanding on Paul's part was involved in the situation. No doubt, Titus has conveyed their explanation to Paul, and he has found it helpful.

The third evidence, "indignation" (ajganavkthsi", aganaktçsis) is only used here in the NT. It suggests irritation and disgust projected toward the actions of someone. It is doubtful that these feelings are directed at Paul. Some suggest this disgust focuses on the Corinthians themselves, essentially kicking themselves for the way they hurt Paul. On the other hand, it seems more likely that their irritation would fall upon those who had implicated the whole church in the offense against Paul or perhaps just the one who had actually offended Paul, whom they disciplined as Paul demanded (2:6; 7:12).

The fourth evidence, "alarm," is the Greek word normally translated "fear" (fovbo", phobos ). Do the Corinthians react out of fear for what Paul might do, or God? Perhaps, it is a little of both. However, the upper hand would seem to go to God since this is quite often associated with the word in the NT. Besides, being motivated by God's divine supervision is stated directly in 7:2 and is assumed by the numerous references to "godly sorrow" in 7:8-11.

The fifth evidence, "longing," repeats what Paul said in 7:7, expressing the Corinthians' intense desire to be reunited with Paul, perhaps even in the physical sense of seeing him again.

The sixth evidence, "concern," also mentioned in 7:7, emphasizes once again their enthusiastic zeal for their relationship with Paul.

The seventh evidence, "readiness to see justice done," just one word in Greek (ejkdivkhsi", ekdikçsis), involves rendering just punishment to avenge a wrong. Most certainly Paul is thinking in terms of the offender on whom the church inflicts punishment for what was done against Paul (2:6; 7:12).

At every point you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.

Although the word "innocent" (aJgnov", hagnos ) might suggest that the Corinthians exonerated themselves by demonstrating they were guiltless, the fact that they repented (7:9) shows that this was not the case. Rather, having cleared themselves by repenting and punishing the one who offended Paul, they now stand before Paul purified from the hurt they caused him. Their guilt from standing by and not defending Paul to begin with is now removed.

7:12 So even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did the wrong or of the injured party, but rather that before God you could see for yourselves how devoted to us you are.

The fact that Paul directed the Severe Letter to the Corinthian church makes it patently obvious that his deepest concern was for them. Yet, even though Paul phrases his point here in absolute terms, he may intend a more comparative thrust. The fact that the Severe Letter contained discussion and instruction about the offender is certain. Punishing this offender was not his chief concern. The grievous letter no doubt talked about the one offended, certainly Paul, who had been hurt by the action of the offender and probably by the inaction of the church to stand behind him. But again, having himself avenged was not Paul's major purpose. Rather, Paul was preoccupied with the Corinthian church and their relationship to him. His desire was to fully restore that relationship. Understanding his hurt and punishing the offender were simply steps to that end.

Though it is sometimes discussed, it is not likely that the offender can be identified with the person Paul has disciplined in 1 Cor 5:1-5. It does seem possible, however, that the person is somehow connected to the outside forces whose accusations Paul seems to be responding to in 2:14-7:4. Perhaps the individual is a leader of a minority in the church influenced by these opponents in the Corinthian church who openly accused Paul of unauthentic apostleship. Perhaps Paul sought to challenge or discipline this one or a sympathetic group and was shouted down and told to mind his own business. In any case the church as a whole must have not supported Paul in this confrontation which is what prompted the Severe Letter.

The phrase "before God" is significant because it suggests that previously the church was not considering its actions in the sight of God. They were acting in a more worldly manner which is the only explanation for why they could have idly watched Paul being offended by one of their own. The letter, however, has forced them to look at themselves honestly and down deep to realize that God's desire was for them to support Paul as their apostle and as their friend.

7:13a By all this we are encouraged.

Paul refers to the positive response to the Severe Letter which he has been describing from 7:8-12. Repeating his good feelings toward the Corinthians from his initial response to Titus's news (7:6) helps frame these descriptions. Stating his feelings of encouragement here also leads into his further remarks in 7:13b-16.

C. TITUS EXPRESSES DEEP AFFECTION (7:13b-16)

7:13b In addition to our own encouragement, we were especially delighted to see how happy Titus was,

The versification at this point in 2 Corinthians is decidedly poor. Beginning at this point, Paul's thoughts clearly go in a new direction, filling out more from the perspective of Titus, up to this point left at 7:7. Paul hooks back into the inexpressible joy he felt upon Titus's good news by repeating the verb (caivrw, chairô) used in 7:7, meaning "rejoice," rendered as "joy" there and "delighted" here by the NIV. Paul also repeats the adverb used there (ma'llon, mallon ), meaning "more," rendered by the NIV as "how" here and "greater than ever" in 7:7. To those two words, he adds an adverb related to the verb "overabounds" (uJperperisseuvomai, hyperperisseuomai ) used in connection with Paul's "joy" in 7:4. This word is translated as "especially" by the NIV. The effect of this pile up of hyperbole is to suggest that Paul was beyond happy, past rejoicing, totally overwhelmed with joy. Now, it is not just because of Titus's good report but, in particular, because of how excited Titus himself was. It is a contagious joy. One can just imagine the two of them laughing and hugging over all this together.

because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you.

Given Paul's high anxiety over the Severe Letter and the difficult situation at Corinth, it should not be surprising that Titus, being sent into that situation, carried with him a strong dose of trepidation. However, none of this apparently panned out into anything negatively confrontational once Titus actually arrived. In fact, Paul says here that the opposite occurred. Titus was actually buoyed by the experience of meeting and consulting with the Corinthians.

7:14 I had boasted to him about you, and you have not embarrassed me.

Despite Paul's anxiety about the breakdown between him and the Corinthians, he believed in the genuineness of their Christian commitment. This commitment linked them to him, and even though severely tested, this link would in the end be strengthened. Thus, he must have believed Titus's mission would be successful and told him so. The fact that his statement is conveyed as a conditional (eij, ei , "if"), not shown by the NIV, suggests that Paul has some reservations, however.

The relief Paul expresses in not being "embarrassed" (kataiscuvnw, kataischynô), or "shamed," in his optimism by the behavior of the Corinthians suggests he felt a margin of concern that this could, in fact, occur. His good estimate of them to Titus, in the end, then was not just wishful thinking. They proved it accurate beyond his dreams.

But just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting about you to Titus has proved to be true as well.

Paul reinforces his personal integrity on two fronts by tying them together. His praise of them to Titus before Titus's journey must have had substance behind it in reality since they did live up to it. Of course, they could not have demonstrated their genuineness either if he had not been totally frank with them in the Severe Letter. So, truth has won out, as it should.

7:15 And his affection for you is all the greater when he remembers that you were all obedient,

To make the Corinthians feel even better about themselves in this redeemed situation, Paul is happy to inform them that Titus developed a deep attachment to them during his stay. To express the depth of Titus's feelings, Paul's word for "affection" is splavgcnon ( splanchnon , used in 6:12), which refers physically to a person's "guts" as the seat of personal, intense emotions. Once again (also 7:13), for "all the greater" Paul uses perissotevrw" (perissoterôs), which refers to overflowing abundance. He may be exaggerating a bit. However, Titus must be feeling very close to the Corinthians as is often the case when people work through a stressful situation together.

Paul's reference to obedience suggests that either the content of the letter or Paul's verbal preparation of Titus, or both, included specific instructions to the Corinthians. Most likely this involved punishment for the offender (2:6), but it may have included action to bring the minority influenced by him back in line with the majority. It could also have involved distancing themselves from the harmful outside influences which had set them against Paul. Whatever it was, apparently it was not easy for the Corinthians to do and, thus, Titus is warmed when he thinks about their efforts.

receiving him with fear and trembling.

The phrase "fear and trembling" is unique to Paul in the NT. He uses it to describe himself as he began his work among the Corinthians (1 Cor 2:3), to the Philippians in regard to living out their salvation (Phil 2:13), and to slaves' obedience to their masters. In each of these contexts, as here, the case can be made that the anxiety reaction is not in the external circumstances alone but more in the spiritual dimension of pleasing God in what one does. Thus, Paul is not saying that the Corinthians were cowering because of Titus per se or because of Paul. They genuinely were concerned about God and how he desired for them to react to the hostile situation. Possibly, they had already received the Severe Letter before Titus came, which would only increase their anticipation of how the meeting with Titus would go. Regardless, their reverence for God seems to have set the tone for the successful outcome that occurred.

7:16 I am glad I can have complete confidence in you.

Paul winds up his reaction to Titus's report by summarizing his present attitude toward them. Having now gotten past the crisis, he is ready to push on toward pending horizons, namely the collection, which he brings up in chapter eight. At this point, he feels good about their taking on more and new responsibilities.

The verb "am glad" (caivrw, chairô), or "rejoice," is the same one employed in 7:7,9, and 13. The word "have confidence" (qarrevw, tharreô) is different than the word used in 7:4 but was used in 5:6,8 and will again be used in 10:1,2. It describes a bold assurance someone has about themselves or someone else with regard to future action. In this case, Paul feels no hesitation in counting on the Corinthians in future circumstances.

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

McGarvey: 2Co 7:4

Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying on your behalf: I am filled with comfort, I overflow with joy in all our affliction . [This verse tells of Paul's restored confidence in the Corinthians, and his consequent freedom of speech and joyfulness of heart. The next few verses show us that these changes were wrought in him by the report which he received from Titus concerning affairs at Corinth.]

Lapide: 2Co 7:1-16

 

CHAPTER 7

SYNOPSIS OF THE CHAPTER

i. He declares his love, sincerity, and his confidence in the Corinthians.

ii. He declares (ver. 6) his joy at their repentance and amendment.

iii. He states (ver. 10) the signs and acts of true repentance.

iv. He names (ver. 13) Titus as his witness for the repentance, love, and obedience of the Corinthians.

Ver. 1. — Having therefore these promises. The promises that, Christians should be the temples of God, should be His sons and daughters, and should have God dwelling in them and walking in them.

Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit. From this passage theologians draw the division of sin into that which is fleshly and that which is spiritual. The first has to do with a carnal object, and makes man like a beast, as, e.g., gluttony, lust, and drunkenness. The second has to do with a spiritual object, and makes man like a devil, as e.g., anger, pride, envy.

S. Basil ( Reg. 53) says appropriately that "filthiness of the flesh denotes carnal actions, and filthiness of the spirit is having intercourse with them that do such things, as, e.g., the Corinthians had with the fornicator whom the Apostle bade them wholly to avoid."

Perfecting holiness. So that the mind, purged from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, may be perfectly holy and pure, given in the fear of God to good works. The fear of God is both the beginning and perfecting of true wisdom and holiness (Ecclus 1:16-19, and Ecclus 5:18). The more the fear of God increases, the more does holiness increase, and so the perfect fear of God is perfect holiness.  S. Basil ( Reg. 53) says beautifully: " Holiness consists in being dedicated to God, and thenceforward wholly clinging to Him, in eagerly seeking after and earnestly maintaining such things as are pleasing to Him. Even in things offered to God as gifts those are rejected as unpleasing to Him which are maimed or defective; and to resume for human uses what has been once dedicated as a gift to God is infamous and accursed."

Ver. 2. — Receive us. Embrace us with the arms of love, as with all our heart we do you (Theophylact). Cf. vi. 11-13. Strictly, the Greek denotes "make a place for us"—a large place in your hearts. Maldonatus ( Not. Manusc.) renders the words. "Bear with me if I have praised myself over-much."

We have defrauded no man. We have obtained no man's goods, either by violence or fraud. Cf. ii. 11.

Ver.3. — I speak not this to condemn you. I do not mean to accuse you of suspecting me of such things.

Ye are in our hearts to die and live with you. So great is my love for you that with you and for you I am ready both to die and to live. How this harmonises with the preceding will be seen in ver. 4. S. Paul alludes to lovers, whose love is commonly so ardent as to make them of one life, to hold all things in common, and to involve one in the death of the other. Cf. Nilus and Euryalus in Virgil, Æn. ix. 427-445; the Soldurii, mentioned by Caesar in lib. iii. de Bello Gallico, and the sacred cohort of the Thebans, described by Plutarch. Erasmus and others add that the Apostle is referring to that ancient kind of friendship in which on the death of one friend the other also killed himself, as Caesar records that the Soldurii were in the habit of doing. Such was the friendship Horace says that he had with Mæcenas. In Peru and Mexico wives and the better-loved servants, when the husband or master dies, throw themselves upon the funeral pyre, or are buried alive with the dead body. In Japan, too, when noblemen are condemned to death, they in company with their nearest friends inflict death on themselves by ripping themselves up. Such suicide the Apostle condemns, but praises and embraces the friendship. He seems to say: "As they love each other even to death, so do I, 0 Corinthians, love you, and long to live with you and die with you; but I do not, as they, long to inflict on myself death." But there is no need to suppose that the Apostle finds a model for his love in illicit and parricidal friendships. They chiefly manifested themselves in simultaneous death and self-murder, and were, therefore, wickednesses, and deserving blame rather than praise

Ver. 4. — Great is my boldness of speech toward you. My boldness is great because my love is so great. Hence comes my "glorying of you" (Theophylact and Ambrose). Paul says all this to banish all suspicion of his good faith, and to gain credence to his declaration, "We have wronged no man," &c. "I have not said this," he seems to sail, "out of any distrust of your good opinion of me, but out of the boldness engendered by my great love for you; hence it is that I am wont to glory of you." Let superiors learn of S. Paul, to beware lest those under them distrust them, from a belief that their superiors do not believe them, do not trust in them, and do not therefore confidently entrust themselves and their goods to their superior; let them rather endeavour to deal openly with them, and let them know that they are loved; let them show that they have a good opinion of their inferiors, and by so doing they will bind their hearts to themselves, and turn them wherever they please.

I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation. Viz., because you have corrected what in my First Epistle I condemned. You have so comforted me that I not only am filled with comfort, but more than filled. This exuberance of joy drowns all feeling of my afflictions, even as floods of water put out a small fire.

Observe here that friendship produces four affections in the souls of friends. The first affection is one of trust, of which Paul says: "Great is my confidence in you;" the second is one of glorying, of which he says: "Great is my glorying of you;" the third is one of comfort, of which he says: "I am filled with comfort;" the fourth is one of superabundant joy, of which he says. "I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulations."

Ver. 5. — Without were fightings. Unbelievers were openly hostile.

Within were fears. I was inwardly anxious, both because of false brethren and of weak Christians, lest they should be led to fall away through our persecutions (Anselm and Ambrose).

Ver. 7.— When he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more. I was before saddened through your divisions and other sins, but when I saw and heard of your desire to amend, your penitence for your sins, and your zeal to protect me against all detractors, I rejoiced.

Ver. 8. — For though I made you sorry with a better. Although in my First Epistle I made you sorry by rebuking your vices, nevertheless it was good for us, and it stirred you to repentance, which brought you at once peace and joy.

Though it were but for a season. My Epistle saddened you but for a short time, and it led you to repentance; therefore I rejoice both over my letter and your repentance.

Ver. 9 . — Ye sorrowed to repentance. This sorrow led you to repentance, to mourning (ver. 7), to indignation and revenge (ver. 11). Repentance, therefore, is not merely a coming to one's self again, as I will show directly by several proofs.

Ver. 10.— For gladly sorrow worketh repentance. Observe 1. that the Apostle here distinguishes two kinds of sorrow, one according to God, and one of the world. The sorrow of the world, or carnal sorrow, is that which springs from loss of excessively loved worldly goods—as when wealth or pleasures are lost, when friends or great men are offended. This sorrow often works death to the soul, by bidding us recover our goods and offend God. Not unseldom it even works diseases and death to the body, for many pine away and die through excessive grief. "Sorrow slays many," says Ecclus. 30:25, "and there is no use in it." But godly or Divine sorrow is that which follows on the thought of having offended God, and is called contrition; it produces penance, or self-punishment; so leading to salvation, it is firm, sure, and not to be repented of. Hence Chrysostom and Erasmus refer not to be repented of to penance, not to salvation.

2. The Apostle distinguishes this sorrow from penance as the cause from the effect; for sorrow, that is contrition, works penance, that is self-punishment. Hence it is evident that this sorrow and this penance are not merely a return to one's sense and a new life, as heretics think; nor mere leaving off one's past sins, as Erasmus says, but are contrition and self-discipline. It is evident in the second place that sinners are justified and attain salvation, not by faith alone, but also by penance; and thirdly, that repentance includes this contrition, confession, and satisfaction, and that these are the three parts of repentance. So in ver. 11 the Apostle, explaining repentance, says that it works carefulness, i.e., to appease and satisfy God, revenge, &c.

Here we should take note of the golden saying of S. Chrysostom ( Hom. 5 ad Pop.), on the use, end, and fruit of sorrow. He says: " Sorrow was given us, not that we should mourn over death or other ills, but to blot out sin and to be a remedy against it. Just as the remedy for blear eyes takes away that particular disease and no others, so does sorrow banish sin, but not other ailments. For example, a man loses his money—he grieves, but does not mend his case; one loses his son—he grieves, but does not thereby raise the dead. He meets with scorn and contempt—he grieves, but the insult remains; he falls sick—he grieves, but does not thereby banish his sickness, nay, he makes it worse. But when a man sins and grieves for it, he blots out his sin, for godly sorrow works repentance powerful for salvation. Sorrow, therefore, was made because of sin alone, and from it takes its birth, and, like a moth, eats it up and destroys it."

Cassian, following his master S. Chrysostom, thus describes ( lib. ix. c. 10) godly sorrow: " Sorrow ran be said to be useful to us only when it is enkindled within us by repentance for our sins, or by a longing after perfection, springing from the contemplation of our future bliss . . .. This sorrow, which worketh repentance powerful to salvation, is obedient, affable, humble, meek, tender, and long-suferring, as descending from the love of God, and unweariedly extending itself through its longing after perfection to all bodily mortification, and to complete spiritual contrition. It is at times joyful, and feeds itself on hope of progress; it retains all the pleasantness of affability and long-suffering, having in it all the fruits of the holy Spirit—love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." He proceeds to give the marks of worldly sorrow: " It is harsh, impatient, hard, full of bitterness and unfruitful grief, and guilty despair. It breaks of from diligence and saving grief any one that it may have laid hold of; it is void of reason, and not only hinders prayer from being efficacious, but destroys all the aforesaid fruits of the Spirit conferred by godly sorrow."

Ver. 11. — For behold this selfsame thing, &c. The Apostle here, as Calvin admits, names seven effects of godly sorrow and true repentance. (1.) Carefulness to expiate the offence against God and to regain His favour. (2.) Defence (rendered by Ambrose, "excusing;" by Erasmus, "satisfaction;" by Maldonatus, "clearing of the accusation"), not by words but by deeds—by a good life. Here the defence may be the defence of S. Paul against his detractors and the false apostles. (3.) Indignation—that now, recognising your divisions your passing over the act of incest and the other sins rebuked in my First Epistle, you were grieved and penitent, you were indignant with yourselves. (4.) Fear, not only of man, but fear of offending God. (5.) Desire to correct self, and to satisfy man and still more God. (6.) Zeal to honour God and to cast the notorious sinner out of the Church (Anselm and Chrysostom). (7.) Revenge, or purpose to punish sin by grief and tears, by bodily and spiritual mortification (Theodoret, Theophylact, Ambrose, S. Thomas). Calvin himself says (Inst. lib. iii. c. 13, § 16): " Last of all is revenge. The more severe we are against ourselves, the keener our condemnation of our sins, the more hope ought we to have that God will be propitious and merciful to us. And surely the soul that is smitten with fear of God's judgment cannot but anticipate part of His punishment by inflicting punishment on itself."

In these seven effects and fruits of repentance there is a gradation; for the Apostle rises by steps from the less to the greater, as is expressed by the repeated, "yea, what." This sorrow for having offended God has not only brought on carefulness to be reconciled to Him, but also defence of me, Paul; not only that, but indignation against sin, holy fear of guarding against sin for the future, desire of making satisfaction, zeal against sinners, and, lastly, revenge on sin, which is the last step and fruit of repentance.

This passage plainly shows us, therefore, that repentance is not merely a change of life and a purpose of better living, but is also detestation of the old life, mortification, and satisfaction. Hence the Council of Trent (sess. xiv. c. 8), following the ancient usage of the Church, bids confessors, in enjoining satisfaction, to regard not only the needs of the new life, but also the revenge due to the sin committed, although its guilt by absolution is remitted.

Tertullian, one of the earliest of the Fathers, says the same ( de Penit. c. ix.). His words are: " Public confession is a discipline which lays low and humiliates man, and acts as an allurement to mercy. As to dress and food, it bids us lie in sackcloth and ashes, defile the body with sordid clothing, tame the mind with sorrow, with stern treatment change what is sinful, to use food and drink for the sake of the life only, not for the pleasure of the belly, to cherish prayer by fastings, to weep and cry to God day and night, to attend Church services, and to kneel with those that are pleasing to God, to add supplications to those of all the brethren."

Climacus, too ( de Penit. Gradu. 5), says: " Repentance is thought condemning itself, a perpetual repudiation of bodily delight, a voluntary endurance of all afflictions, a constant deviser of sufferings for itself, a severe mortifier of the pleasures of appetite, a condemner of the physical life also in its keenest sensual delight, an abyss of humility."

How different is all this from the easy system of Luther and Calvin, who enjoin no other penance than faith for every sin, no matter how frequent or how heinous. I believe, say they, that God has pardoned thee thy sins through the merits of Christ, and therefore He will pardon thee all thy punishment and guilt. In other words, believe yourself to be in the Elysian Fields, believe yourself a king, and straightway you are such; at all events, if not really, certainly in imagination. Surely all this is but like the fond dreams of lovers. Let him believe this who lacks, not so much faith, as brains and sound sense, and who, at his own risk, desires and intends to enter on the broad way of the many, which leads to perdition, and not the narrow way of the few, which leads to life. As the Sibyl said to Æneas. "Easy is the descent to Avernus, but to retrace one's steps, and to emerge into the upper air—this is labour, this is toil; the few God-born ones, beloved by Jupiter, or raised by their virtues to the heavens, have alone availed to do it."

Let the Protestants listen to S. Jerome, or the author of the Epistle to Susanna after lapsing, (whoever he may be, he is certainly of weight and of early times, nay, Erasmus and Marianus think from the style that he is S. Augustine himself). Prescribing to her or any other penitent the form of lamentation and repentance, he says; " Who shall comfort thee, 0 virgin-daughter of Zion, for thy contrition is made vast as the sea? Pour out thy heart as water before the face of the Lord, raise to Him thy hands as a remedy against thy sins. Take thy lamentation, and chiefly on no day omit to say the 51st Psalm, which is always used for this purpose, and with groaning and tears go through each verse, as far as that one, 'A broken and contrite heart, 0 God, shalt Thou not despise.' Moreover, pour out this lament, not without compunction of heart, in the sight of God, thy Judge. Who will give water to my head and a fount of tears to my eyes, that I may bewail the wounds of my soul? Woe is me! for I am become as Sodom, and am burnt even as Gomorrha. Who will have pity on my ashes? I have sinned worse than Sodom, for she sinned in ignorance of the law, but I have received grace and sinned. If a man sin against a man there will be one to plead for him, but I have sinned against the Lord, and whom shall I find to atone for me? How bitter is the fruit of concupiscence—more bitter than gall, more cruel than the sword! How am I become desolate! Suddenly have I fallen away and perished through my iniquity, like as a dream when one awaketh. Therefore has my image become vile in the city of the Lord, my name has been blotted out. Cursed be the day when the womb bore me, and the cruel light saw me. Better for me if I had not been born than become thus a proverb amongst the Gentiles. Through me confusion and reproach have come on the servants of the Lord, and on them that worthily worship Him. Mourn for me, ye mountains and rivers, for I am the daughter of weeping. My sin and my iniquity are not like to the offences of men. This wickedness is horrible, to pollute with flesh a virgin who has professed chastity. I have lied against the Lord Most High, but still I will call to the Lord: 'Lord, rebuke me not in Thy anger, neither chasten me in Thy heavy displeasure. '" S. Ambrose gives the same directions to a lapsed virgin. Cf. Cyprian ( Serm. de Lapsis ), Chrysostom ( Hom. 41 ad Prop.).

Climacus, in the passage already cited, relating examples and describing, the disposition of penitents, has the following remarks, which may worthily act as goads of compunction to the sinner: " When I came to the monastery of penitents, nay, to the religion of them that flee from sin, I saw and heard things which may well take God by storm. I saw some of those guilty ones standing and watching through whole nights till daybreak, standing motionless, resisting sleep applying force to nature, giving themselves no rest, but chiding themselves. Others I saw in prayer, with their hands bound behind their backs after the fashion of criminals, turning their sorrowful faces to the earth, saying that they were unworthy to see the heavens, asking for nothing, but offering to God a mind silent and mute and filled with confusion. Some I saw sitting on the ground that was strewn with sackcloth and ashes, covering, their faces with their knees, and bruising their foreheads against the earth. Others were smiting their breasts, and with deep sighs recalling their past life; others were weeping, and others lamenting their inability to do the like. I saw some as though turned into stone by grief, and insensible to everything. Others, with looks fixed on the ground, were constantly moving their heads and roaring like lions . . .. I saw too some with their thirsty tongues protruding from their mouth as dogs. Some of these tortured themselves under the heat of a burning sun, others submitted to the most bitter cold; some drank a little water, that they might not be altogether parched with thirst, and so gained relief. Some would eat a little bread and then throw away the rest, as if they were unworthy of it. What place was there among them for laughter, for gossip, for anger, for enjoyment of wine or fruits? They all alike cried to God, and nought was heard save the voice of prayer." If any one desire more he will find much of the same kind, and enough to make him dumb. He ends by saying: " I saw them, and I counted them who so mourn after falling happier than they who have never fallen, and do not so bewail themselves."

Lastly, listen to the repentance and sorrow of S. Paula for some slight sins, as recorded by S. Jerome: " She had not, even when stricken with violent fever, any soft bed-clothing, but lay on sackcloth, spread on the bare hard ground, and so took her rest, if that is to be called rest which mingled night and day with never-ceasing prayers, according to the words of the Psalmist, 'Every night will I wash my bed, and water my couch with my tears.' You might suppose that in her were fountains of tears, so bitterly did she bewail the slightest sins; and you might have thought her guilty of the most heinous crimes. When she was bidden by us, as often was the ease, to spare her eyes, and save them for reading the Gospel, she would say, 'Defiled must that face be which, against the commandment of God, I have often painted with red dyes, and antimony, and different cosmetics. Afflicted must be the body which has been devoted to many delights. Long laughter must be atoned for by long mourning. Soft clothing and dainty silks must be exchanged for rough sackcloth. I, who once lived for my husband and the world, now desire to please Christ."

In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter. Free from the sin of the fornicator. Although at first you neglected to punish it, yet you have shown your detestation of it by punishing it, and by your repentance (Anselm and Theophylact).

Ver. 12 . — Though I wrote unto you, I did it not, &c. He who suffered wrong was the father whose wife the incestuous man had taken to himself. Hence it is evident that the father was alive. The Apostle says in effect: In the former Epistle I wrote somewhat sharply, but I did not mean to avenge the private injuries done by the incestuous person and suffered by the father; but I wished to show the care that I have for the common salvation of your Church, by expelling from it this public scandal.

Ver. 13.— Therefore we were comforted. By your repentance, zeal, &c., as was said (vers. 6, 7, 9, 11). The Latin version points this verse as follows: "Before God, therefore, we were comforted. But in our comfort we joyed the more," &c. If with some Greek copies we read "in your comfort," S. Paul refers to the good news that he had heard of their repentance. "The tears of penitents," says S. Bernard, "are the wine of angels," nay, they are the wine of penitents, for nothing so makes glad the heart as compunction. How sweet to the penitent is it with the Magdalene to weep at the feet of Jesus, to bathe them with tears, to wipe them, to kiss them, and then to hear: "Thy sins are forgiven thee." None but one who has tried it knows this sweetness.

Ver. 14 . — Even so our boasting which I made before Titus is found a truth. I am accustomed to boast to him of you as good disciples, and you have proved my boasting true.

Ver. 16. — I have confidence in you in all things. I dare to speak and act boldly with you, whether in the way of praise or blame. You are always obedient to me, and, therefore, I am bold, and am able to boast of you and think well of you (Chrysostom, Theophylact, Ambrose). Anselm remarks on the prudence of Paul, as of a physician, in curing with the pleasant medicines of consolation and praise the wounds now nearly healed, so that the burning inflicted by his former rebuke might be wholly healed.

Commentary -- Other

Evidence: 2Co 7:4

" Receive every inward and outward trouble, every disappointment, pain, uneasiness, temptation, darkness and desolation with both hands, as to a true opportunity and blessed occasion of dying to self and entering into a fuller fellowship with thy self-denying, suffering Savior." John Wesley

Introduction / Outline

Robertson: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

Second Corinthians

From Macedonia a.d. 54 Or 55

By Way of Introduction

The Pauline authorship is admitted by all real scholars, though there is doubt by some as to the unity of the Epistle. J.H. Kennedy ( The Second and Third Letters of St. Paul to the Corinthians , 1900) has presented the arguments in a plausible, but not wholly convincing, manner for the plea that chapters 2 Corinthians 10-13 really represent a separate and earlier letter, the one referred to in 2Co_2:3, which was later tacked on to chapters 1-9 as part of the same Epistle. This theory does explain the difference in tone between chapters 1 to 7 and 10 to 13, but that fact is sufficiently clear from the stubborn minority against Paul in Corinth reported by Titus after the majority had been won to Paul by First Corinthians and by Titus (2Co_2:1-11). There are in fact three obvious divisions in the Epistle. Chapters 1 to 7 deal with the report of Titus about the victory in Corinth and Paul’s wonderful digression on the glory of the ministry in 2 Corinthians 2:12-6:10; chapters 8 and 2Co_9:1-15 discuss the collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem already mentioned in 1Co_16:1. and which Titus is to press to completion on his return to Corinth; chapters 10 to 13 deal sharply with the Judaizing minority who still oppose Paul’s leadership. These three subjects are in no sense inconsistent with each other. The letter is a unity. Nowhere do we gain so clear an insight into Paul’s own struggles and hopes as a preacher. It is a handbook for the modern minister of inestimable value. One can hear Paul’s heart throb through these chapters. The syntax is often broken by anacolutha. The sentences are sometimes disconnected. Grammatical agreements are overlooked. But there is power here, the grip of a great soul holding on to the highest ideals in the midst of manifold opposition and discouragements. Christ is Master of Paul at every turn.

The date of the Epistle is clearly after I Corinthians, for Paul has left Ephesus and is now in Macedonia (2Co_2:13), probably at Philippi, where he met Titus, though he had hoped to meet him at Troas on his return from Corinth. At a guess one may say that Paul wrote in the autumn of a.d. 54 or 55 of the same year in the spring of which he had written I Corinthians, and before he went on to Corinth himself where he wrote Romans (Act_20:1-3; Rom_16:1).

The occasion for writing is the return of Titus from Corinth with mixed news of the Pauline majority and the minority in opposition. So Titus is sent back with this Epistle to finish the task while Paul waits awhile for matters to clear up (2Co_13:1-10).

It is not certain whether the letter mentioned in 2Co_2:3 is our I Corinthians or a lost letter like the one alluded to in 1Co_5:9. If it is a lost one, we know of four Corinthian Epistles (the one in 1Co_5:9, our I Corinthians, the one in 2Co_2:3, our II Corinthians), assuming the unity of II Corinthians. Few things in Paul’s ministry gave him more concern than the troubles in Corinth. The modern city pastor finds little in his work that Paul has not faced and mastered. There is consolation and courage for the preacher in the conduct and counsels of this greatest of all preachers.

JFB: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

THE following reasons seem to have induced Paul to write this Second Epistle to the Corinthians: (1) That he might explain the reasons for his having deferred to pay them his promised visit, by taking Corinth as his way to Macedonia (1Co 4:19; 2Co 1:15-16; compare 1Co 16:5); and so that he might set forth to them his apostolic walk in general (2Co 1:12, 2Co 1:24; 2Co 6:3-13; 2Co 7:2). (2) That he might commend their obedience in reference to the directions in his First Epistle, and at the same time direct them now to forgive the offender, as having been punished sufficiently (2Co 2:1-11; 2Co 7:6-16). (3) That he might urge them to collect for the poor saints at Jerusalem (2Co 8:1-9, 2Co 8:15). (4) That he might maintain his apostolic authority and reprove gainsayers.

The external testimonies for its genuineness are IRENÆUS [Against Heresies, 3,7,1]; ATHENAGORAS [Of the Resurrection of the Dead]; CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA [Miscellanies, 3, p. 94; 4, p. 101]; TERTULLIAN [On Modesty, 13].

The TIME OF WRITING was after Pentecost, A.D. 57, when Paul left Ephesus for Troas. Having stayed in the latter place for some time preaching the Gospel with effect (2Co 2:12), he went on to Macedonia, being eager to meet Titus there, having been disappointed in his not coming to Troas, as had been agreed on between them. Having heard from him the tidings he so much desired of the good effect produced on the Corinthians by his First Epistle, and after having tested the liberality of the Macedonian churches (2Co 8:1), he wrote this Second Epistle, and then went on to Greece, where he abode for three months; and then, after travelling by land, reached Philippi on his return at Passover or Easter, A.D. 58 (Act 20:1-6). So that this Epistle must have been written about autumn, A.D. 57.

Macedonia was THE PLACE from which it was written (2Co 9:2, where the present tense, "I boast," or "am boasting," implies his presence then in Macedonia). In Asia (Lydian Asia) he had undergone some great peril of his life (2Co 1:8-9), whether the reference be [PALEY] to the tumult at Ephesus (Acts 19:23-41), or, as ALFORD thinks, to a dangerous illness in which he despaired of life. Thence he passed by Troas to Philippi, the first city which would meet him in entering Macedonia. The importance of the Philippian Church would induce him to stay there some time; as also his desire to collect contributions from the Macedonian churches for the poor saints at Jerusalem. His anxiety of mind is recorded (2Co 7:5) as occurring when he came into Macedonia, and therefore must have been at Philippi, which was the first city of Macedonia in coming from Troas; and here, too, from 2Co 7:6, compared with 2Co 7:5, must have been the scene of his receiving the comforting tidings from Titus. "Macedonia" is used for Philippi in 2Co 11:9, as is proved by comparison with Phi 4:15-16. So it is probably used here (2Co 7:5). ALFORD argues from 2Co 8:1, where he speaks of the "grace bestowed on the churches (plural) of Macedonia," that Paul must have visited other churches in Macedonia, besides Philippi, when he wrote, for example, Thessalonica, Berea, &c., and that Philippi, the first on his route, is less likely to have been the scene of his writing than the last on his route, whichever it was, perhaps Thessalonica. But Philippi, as being the chief town of the province, was probably the place to which all the collections of the churches were sent. Ancient tradition, too (as appears from the subscription to this Epistle), favors the view that Philippi was the place from which this Epistle was sent by the hands of Titus who received, besides, a charge to prosecute at Corinth the collection which he had begun at his first visit (2Co 8:6).

The STYLE is most varied, and passes rapidly from one phase of feeling to another; now joyous and consolatory, again severe and full of reproof; at one time gentle and affectionate, at another, sternly rebuking opponents and upholding his dignity as an apostle. This variety of style accords with the warm and earnest character of the apostle, which nowhere is manifested more beautifully than in this Epistle. His bodily frailty, and the chronic malady under which he suffered, and which is often alluded to (2Co 4:7; 2Co 5:1-4; 2Co 12:7-9; compare Note, see on 2Co 1:8), must have been especially trying to one of his ardent temperament. But besides this, was the more pressing anxiety of the "care of all the churches." At Corinth, as elsewhere, Judaizing emissaries wished to bind legal fetters of letter and form (compare 2Co. 3:3-18) on the freedom and catholicity of the Church. On the other hand, there were free thinkers who defended their immorality of practice by infidel theories (1Co 15:12, 1Co 15:32-36). These were the "fightings without," and "fears within" (2Co 7:5-6) which agitated the apostle's mind until Titus brought him comforting tidings from Corinth. Even then, while the majority at Corinth had testified their repentance, and, as Paul had desired, excommunicated the incestuous person, and contributed for the poor Christians of Judea, there was still a minority who, more contemptuously than ever, resisted the apostle. These accused him of crafty and mercenary motives, as if he had personal gain in view in the collection being made; and this, notwithstanding his scrupulous care to be above the possibility of reasonable suspicion, by having others besides himself to take charge of the money. This insinuation was palpably inconsistent with their other charge, that he could be no true apostle, as he did not claim maintenance from the churches which he founded. Another accusation they brought of cowardly weakness; that he was always threatening severe measures without daring to execute them (2Co 10:8-16; 2Co 13:2); and that he was vacillating in his teaching and practice, circumcising Timothy, and yet withholding circumcision from Titus; a Jew among the Jews, and a Greek among the Greeks. That most of these opponents were of the Judaizing party in the Church, appears from 2Co 11:22. They seem to have been headed by an emissary from Judea ("he that cometh," 2Co 11:4), who had brought "letters of commendation" (2Co 3:1) from members of the Church at Jerusalem, and who boasted of his purity of Hebrew descent, and his close connection with Christ Himself (2Co 11:13, 2Co 11:23). His partisans contrasted his high pretensions with the timid humility of Paul (1Co 2:3); and his rhetoric with the apostle's plain and unadorned style (2Co 11:6; 2Co 10:10, 2Co 10:13). It was this state of things at Corinth, reported by Titus, that caused Paul to send him back forthwith thither with this Second Epistle, which is addressed, not to Corinth only (1Co 1:2), but to all the churches also in Achaia (2Co 1:1), which had in some degree been affected by the same causes as affected the Corinthian Church. The widely different tone in different parts of the Epistle is due to the diversity which existed at Corinth between the penitent majority and the refractory minority. The former he addresses with the warmest affection; the latter with menace and warning. Two deputies, chosen by the churches to take charge of the contribution to be collected at Corinth, accompanied Titus (2Co 8:18-19, 2Co 8:22).

JFB: 2 Corinthians (Outline)

• THE HEADING; PAUL'S CONSOLATIONS IN RECENT TRIALS IN ASIA; HIS SINCERITY TOWARDS THE CORINTHIANS; EXPLANATION OF HIS NOT HAVING VISITED THEM AS HE HAD PURPOSED. (2Co. 1:1-24)
• REASON WHY HE HAD NOT VISITED THEM ON HIS WAY TO MACEDONIA; THE INCESTUOUS PERSON OUGHT NOW TO BE FORGIVEN; HIS ANXIETY TO HEAR TIDINGS OF THEIR STATE FROM TITUS, AND HIS JOY WHEN AT LAST THE GOOD NEWS REACHES HIM. (2Co. 2:1-17)
• THE SOLE COMMENDATION HE NEEDS TO PROVE GOD'S SANCTION OF HIS MINISTRY HE HAS IN HIS CORINTHIAN CONVERTS: HIS MINISTRY EXCELS THE MOSAIC, AS THE GOSPEL OF LIFE AND LIBERTY EXCELS THE LAW OF CONDEMNATION. (2Co. 3:1-18) Are we beginning again to recommend ourselves (2Co 5:12) (as some of them might say he had done in his first Epistle; or, a reproof to "some" who had begun doing so)!
• HIS PREACHING IS OPEN AND SINCERE, THOUGH TO MANY THE GOSPEL IS HIDDEN. (2Co. 4:1-18)
• THE HOPE (2Co 4:17-18) OF ETERNAL GLORY IN THE RESURRECTION BODY. (2Co. 5:1-21)
• HIS APOSTOLIC MINISTRY IS APPROVED BY FAITHFULNESS IN EXHORTATION, IN SUFFERINGS, IN EXHIBITION OF THE FRUITS OF THE HOLY GHOST: HIS LARGENESS OF HEART TO THEM CALLS FOR ENLARGEMENT OF THEIR HEART TO HIM. EXHORTATIONS TO SEPARATION FROM POLLUTION. (2Co. 6:1-18)
• SELF-PURIFICATION THEIR DUTY RESULTING FROM THE FOREGOING. HIS LOVE TO THEM, AND JOY AT THE GOOD EFFECTS ON THEM OF HIS FORMER EPISTLE, AS REPORTED BY TITUS. (2Co. 7:1-16)
• THE COLLECTION FOR THE SAINTS; THE READINESS OF THE MACEDONIANS A PATTERN TO THE CORINTHIANS; CHRIST THE HIGHEST PATTERN; EACH IS TO GIVE WILLINGLY AFTER HIS ABILITY; TITUS AND TWO OTHERS ARE THE AGENTS ACCREDITED TO COMPLETE THE COLLECTION. (2Co. 8:1-24)
• REASONS FOR HIS SENDING TITUS. THE GREATER THEIR BOUNTIFULNESS, THE MORE SHALL BE THE RETURN OF BLESSING TO THEM, AND THANKSGIVING TO GOD. (2Co 9:1-15)
• HE VINDICATES HIS APOSTOLIC AUTHORITY AGAINST THOSE WHO DEPRECIATED HIM FOR HIS PERSONAL APPEARANCE. HE WILL MAKE HIS POWER FELT WHEN HE COMES. HE BOASTS NOT, AS THEY, BEYOND HIS MEASURE. (2Co. 10:1-18)
• THROUGH JEALOUSY OVER THE CORINTHIANS, WHO MADE MORE ACCOUNT OF THE FALSE APOSTLES THAN OF HIM, HE IS OBLIGED TO COMMEND HIMSELF AS IN MANY RESPECTS SUPERIOR. (2Co. 11:1-33)
• REVELATIONS IN WHICH HE MIGHT GLORY: BUT HE RATHER GLORIES IN INFIRMITIES, AS CALLING FORTH CHRIST'S POWER: SIGNS OF HIS APOSTLESHIP: HIS DISINTERESTEDNESS: NOT THAT HE IS EXCUSING HIMSELF TO THEM; BUT HE DOES ALL FOR THEIR GOOD, LEST HE SHOULD FIND THEM NOT SUCH AS HE DESIRED, AND SO SHOULD HAVE TO BE SEVERE AT HIS COMING. (2Co. 12:1-21) He proceeds to illustrate the "glorying in infirmities" (2Co 11:30). He gave one instance which might expose him to ridicule (2Co 11:33); he now gives another, but this one connected with a glorious revelation of which it was the sequel: but he dwells not on the glory done to himself, but on the infirmity which followed it, as displaying Christ's power. The oldest manuscripts read, "I MUST NEEDS boast (or glory) though it be not expedient; for I will come." The "for" gives a proof that it is "not expedient to boast": I will take the case of revelations, in which if anywhere boasting might be thought harmless. "Visions" refers to things seen: "revelations," to things heard (compare 1Sa 9:15) or revealed in any way. In "visions" their signification was not always vouchsafed; in "revelations" there was always an unveiling of truths before hidden (Dan 2:19, Dan 2:31). All parts of Scripture alike are matter of inspiration; but not all of revelation. There are degrees of revelation; but not of inspiration.
• HE THREATENS A SEVERE PROOF OF HIS APOSTOLIC AUTHORITY, BUT PREFERS THEY WOULD SPARE HIM THE NECESSITY FOR IT. (2Co 13:1-14)

TSK: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

The most remarkable circumstance in this Epistle, observes Mr. Scott, is the confidence of the Apostle in the goodness of his cause, and in the power of God to bear him out in it. Opposed as he then was by a powerful and sagacious party, whose authority, reputation, and interest were deeply concerned, and who were ready to seize on every thing that could discredit him, it is wonderful to hear him so firmly insist upon his apostolical authority, and so unreservedly appeal to the miraculous power which he has exercised and conferred at Corinth. So far from shrinking from the contest, as afraid of some discovery being made, unfavourable to him and the common cause, he, with great modesty and meekness indeed, but with equal boldness and decision, expressly declares that his opposers and despisers were the ministers of Satan, and menaces them with miraculous judgments, when as many of their deluded hearers had been brought to repentance and re-established in the faith, as proper means could in a reasonable time effect. It is inconceivable that a stronger internal testimony, not only of integrity, but of divine inspiration, can exist. Had there been anything of imposture among the Christians, it was next to impossible but such a conduct must have occasioned a disclosure of it. Of the effects produced by this latter epistle we have no circumstantial account; for the journey which St. Paul took to Corinth, after he had written it, is mentioned by St. Luke only in a few words (Act 20:2, Act 20:3). We know, however, that St. Paul was there after he had written this Epistle; that the contributions for the poor brethren at Jerusalem were brought to him from different parts to that city (Rom 15:26); and that, after remaining there several months, he sent salutations from some of the principal members of that church, by whom he must have been greatly respected, to the church of Rome (Rom 16:22, Rom 16:23). From this time we hear no more of the false teacher and his party; and when Clement of Rome wrote his epistle to the Corinthians, St. Paul was considered by them as a divine apostle, to whose authority he might appeal without fear of contradiction. The false teacher, therefore, must either have been silenced by St. Paul, by virtue of his apostolical powers, and by an act of severity which he had threatened (2Co 13:2, 2Co 13:3); or this adversary of the apostle had, at that time, voluntarily quitted the place. Whichever was the cause, the effect produced must operate as a confirmation of our faith, and as a proof of St. Paul’s divine mission.

TSK: 2 Corinthians 7 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

2Co 7:1, He proceeds in exhorting them to purity of life; 2Co 7:2, and to bear him like affection as he does to them; 2Co 7:3, Whereof lest he might seem to doubt, he declares what comfort he took in his afflictions by the report which Titus gave of their godly sorrow, which his former epistle had wrought in them; 2Co 7:13, and of their loving-kindness and obedience toward Titus, answerable to his former boastings of them.

Poole: 2 Corinthians 7 (Chapter Introduction)

CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 7

MHCC: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

The second epistle to the Corinthians probably was written about a year after the first. Its contents are closely connected with those of the former epistle. The manner in which the letter St. Paul formerly wrote had been received, is particularly noticed; this was such as to fill his heart with gratitude to God, who enabled him fully to discharge his duty towards them. Many had shown marks of repentance, and amended their conduct, but others still followed their false teachers; and as the apostle delayed his visit, from his unwillingness to treat them with severity, they charged him with levity and change of conduct. Also, with pride, vain-glory, and severity, and they spake of him with contempt. In this epistle we find the same ardent affection towards the disciples at Corinth, as in the former, the same zeal for the honour of the gospel, and the same boldness in giving Christian reproof. The first six chapters are chiefly practical: the rest have more reference to the state of the Corinthian church, but they contain many rules of general application.

MHCC: 2 Corinthians 7 (Chapter Introduction)

(2Co 7:1-4) An exhortation to holiness, and the whole church entreated to bear affection to the apostle.

(2Co 7:5-11) He rejoiced in their sorrowing to repentance.

(2Co 7:12-16) And in the comfort they and Titus had together.

Matthew Henry: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians

In his former epistle the apostle had signified his intentions of coming to Corinth, as he passed through Macedonia (1Co 16:5), but, being providentially hindered for some time, he writes this second epistle to them about a year after the former; and there seem to be these two urgent occasions: - 1. The case of the incestuous person, who lay under censure, required that with all speed he should be restored and received again into communion. This therefore he gives directions about (ch. 2), and afterwards (ch. 7) he declares the satisfaction he had upon the intelligence he received of their good behaviour in that affair. 2. There was a contribution now making for the poor saints at Jerusalem, in which he exhorts the Corinthians to join (ch. 8, 2Co 9:1-15).

There are divers other things very observable in this epistle; for example, I. The account the apostle gives of his labours and success in preaching the gospel in several places, ch. 2. II. The comparison he makes between the Old and New Testament dispensation, ch. 3. III. The manifold sufferings that he and his fellow-labourers met with, and the motives and encouragements for their diligence and patience, ch. 4, 5. IV. The caution he gives the Corinthians against mingling with unbelievers, ch. 6. V. The way and manner in which he justifies himself and his apostleship from the opprobrious insinuations and accusations of false teachers, who endeavoured to ruin his reputation at Corinth, ch. 10-12, and throughout the whole epistle.

Matthew Henry: 2 Corinthians 7 (Chapter Introduction)

This chapter begins with an exhortation to progressive holiness and a due regard to the ministers of the gospel (2Co 7:1-4). Then the apostle returns from a long digression to speak further of the affair concerning the incestuous person, and tells them what comfort he received in his distress about that matter, upon his meeting with Titus (2Co 7:5-7), and how re rejoiced in their repentance, with the evidences thereof (2Co 7:8-11). And, lastly, he concludes with endeavouring to comfort the Corinthians, upon whom his admonitions had had so good an effect (2Co 7:12-16).

Barclay: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTERS TO THE CORINTHIANS

The Greatness Of Corinth

A glance at the map will show that Corinth was made for greatness. The southern part of Greece is very nearly an island. On the west the Corinthian Gulf deeply indents the land and on the east the Saronic Gulf. All that is left to join the two parts of Greece together is a little isthmus only four miles across. On that narrow neck of land Corinth stands. Such a position made it inevitable that it should be one of the greatest trading and commercial centres of the ancient world. All traffic from Athens and the north of Greece to Sparta and the Peloponnese had to be routed through Corinth, because it stood on the little neck of land that connected the two.

Not only did the north to south traffic of Greece pass through Corinth of necessity, by far the greater part of the east to west traffic of the Mediterranean passed through her from choice. The extreme southern tip of Greece was known as Cape Malea (now called Cape Matapan). It was dangerous, and to round Cape Malea had much the same sound as to round Cape Horn had in later times. The Greeks had two sayings which showed what they thought of it--"Let him who sails round Malea forget his home," and, "Let him who sails round Malea first make his will."

The consequence was that mariners followed one of two courses. They sailed up the Saronic Gulf, and, if their ships were small enough, dragged them out of the water, set them on rollers, hauled them across the isthmus, and re-launched them on the other side. The isthmus was actually called the Diolkos, the place of dragging across. The idea is the same as that which is contained in the Scottish place name Tarbert, which means a place where the land is so narrow that a boat can be dragged from loch to loch. If that course was not possible because the ship was too large, the cargo was disembarked, carried by porters across the isthmus, and re-embarked on another ship at the other side. This four mile journey across the isthmus, where the Corinth Canal now runs, saved a journey of two hundred and two miles round Cape Malea, the most dangerous cape in the Mediterranean.

It is easy to see how great a commercial city Corinth must have been. The north to south traffic of Greece had no alternative but to pass through her; by far the greater part of the east to west trade of the Mediterranean world chose to pass through her. Round Corinth there clustered three other towns, Lechaeum at the west end of the isthmus, Cenchrea at the east end and Schoenus just a short distance away. Farrar writes, "Objects of luxury soon found their way to the markets which were visited by every nation in the civilized world--Arabian balsam, Phoenician dates, Libyan ivory, Babylonian carpets, Cilician goatsair, Lycaonian wool, Phrygian slaves."

Corinth, as Farrar calls her, was the Vanity Fair of the ancient world. Men called her The Bridge of Greece; one called her The Lounge of Greece. It has been said that if a man stands long enough in Piccadilly Circus he will in the end meet everyone in the country. Corinth was the Piccadilly Circus of the Mediterranean. To add to the concourse which came to it, Corinth was the place where the Isthmian Games were held, which were second only to the Olympics. Corinth was a rich and populous city with one of the greatest commercial trades in the ancient world.

The Wickedness Of Corinth

There was another side to Corinth. She had a reputation for commercial prosperity, but she was also a byword for evil living. The very word korinthiazesthai, to live like a Corinthian, had become a part of the Greek language, and meant to live with drunken and immoral debauchery. The word actually penetrated to the English language, and, in Regency times, a Corinthian was one of the wealthy young bucks who lived in reckless and riotous living. Aelian, the late Greek writer, tells us that if ever a Corinthian was shown upon the stage in a Greek play he was shown drunk. The very name Corinth was synonymous with debauchery and there was one source of evil in the city which was known all over the civilized world. Above the isthmus towered the hill of the Acropolis, and on it stood the great temple of Aphrodite, the goddess of love. To that temple there were attached one thousand priestesses who were sacred prostitutes, and in the evenings they descended from the Acropolis and plied their trade upon the streets of Corinth, until it became a Greek proverb, "It is not every man who can afford a journey to Corinth." In addition to these cruder sins, there flourished far more recondite vices, which had come in with the traders and the sailors from the ends of the earth, until Corinth became not only a synonym for wealth and luxury, drunkenness and debauchery, but also for filth.

The History Of Corinth

The history of Corinth falls into two parts. She was a very ancient city. Thucydides, the Greek historian, claims that it was in Corinth that the first triremes, the Greek battleships, were built. Legend has it that it was in Corinth that the Argo was built, the ship in which Jason sailed the seas, searching for the golden fleece. But in 146 B.C. disaster befell her. The Romans were engaged in conquering the world. When they sought to reduce Greece, Corinth was the leader of the opposition. But the Greeks could not stand against the disciplined Romans, and in 146 B.C. Lucius Mummius, the Roman general, captured Corinth and left her a desolate heap of ruins.

But any place with the geographical situation of Corinth could not remain a devastation. Almost exactly one hundred years later, in 46 B.C. Julius Caesar rebuilt her and she arose from her ruins. Now she became a Roman colony. More, she became a capital city, the metropolis of the Roman province of Achaea, which included practically all Greece.

In those days, which were the days of Paul, her population was very mixed. (i) There were the Roman veterans whom Julius Caesar had settled there. When a Roman soldier had served his time, he was granted the citizenship and was then sent out to some newly-founded city and given a grant of land so that he might become a settler there. These Roman colonies were planted all over the world, and always the backbone of them was the contingent of veteran regular soldiers whose faithful service had won them the citizenship. (ii) When Corinth was rebuilt the merchants came back, for her situation still gave her commercial supremacy. (iii) There were many Jews among the population. The rebuilt city offered them commercial opportunities which they were not slow to take. (iv) There was a sprinkling of Phoenicians and Phrygians and people from the east, with their exotic customs and their hysterical ways. Farrar speaks of "this mongrel and heterogeneous population of Greek adventurers and Roman bourgeois, with a tainting infusion of Phoenicians; this mass of Jews, ex-soldiers, philosophers, merchants, sailors, freedmen, slaves, trades-people, hucksters and agents of every form of vice." He characterizes her as a colony "without aristocracy, without traditions and without well-established citizens."

Remember the background of Corinth, remember its name for wealth and luxury, for drunkenness and immorality and vice, and then read 1Co_6:9-10 .

Are you not aware that the unrighteous will not inherit the

Kingdom of God? Make no mistake--neither fornicators, nor

idolaters, nor adulterers, nor sensualists, nor homosexuals, nor

thieves, nor rapacious men, nor drunkards, nor slanderers, nor

robbers shall inherit the Kingdom of God--and such were some of

you.

In this hotbed of vice, in the most unlikely place in all the Greek world, some of Paulgreatest work was done, and some of the mightiest triumphs of Christianity were won.

Paul In Corinth

Paul stayed longer in Corinth than in any other city, with the single exception of Ephesus. He had left Macedonia with his life in peril and had crossed over to Athens. There he had had little success and had gone on to Corinth, and he remained there for eighteen months. We realize how little we really know of his work when we see that the whole story of that eighteen months is compressed by Luke into 17 verses (Act_18:1-17 ).

When Paul arrived in Corinth he took up residence with Aquila and Prisca. He preached in the synagogue with great success. With the arrival of Timothy and Silas from Macedonia, he redoubled his efforts, but the Jews were so stubbornly hostile that he had to leave the synagogue. He took up his residence with one Justus who lived next door to the synagogue. His most notable convert was Crispus, who was actually the ruler of the synagogue, and amongst the general public he had good success.

In the year A.D. 52 there came to Corinth as its new governor a Roman called Gallio. He was famous for his charm and gentleness. The Jews tried to take advantage of his newness and good nature and brought Paul to trial before him on a charge of teaching contrary to their law. But Gallio, with impartial Roman justice, refused to have anything to do with the case or to take any action. So Paul completed his work in Corinth and moved on to Syria.

The Correspondence With Corinth

It was when he was in Ephesus in the year A.D. 55 that Paul, learning that things were not all well in Corinth, wrote to the church there. There is every possibility that the Corinthian correspondence as we have it is out of order. We must remember that it was not until A.D. 90 or thereby that Paulcorrespondence was collected. In many churches it must have existed only on scraps of papyrus and the putting it together would be a problem: and it seems that, when the Corinthian letters were collected, they were not all discovered and were not arranged in the right order. Let us see if we can reconstruct what happened.

(i) There was a letter which preceded 1 Corinthians. In 1Co_5:9 Paul writes, "I wrote you a letter not to associate with immoral men." This obviously refers to some previous letter. Some scholars believe that letter is lost without trace. Others think it is contained in 2Co_6:14-18 and 2Co_7:1 . Certainly that passage suits what Paul said he wrote about. It occurs rather awkwardly in its context, and, if we take it out and read straight on from 2Co_6:13 to 2Co_7:2 , we get excellent sense and connection. Scholars call this letter The Previous Letter. (In the original letters there were no chapter or verse divisions. The chapters were not divided up until the thirteenth century and the verses not till the sixteenth, and because of that the arranging of the collection of letters would be much more difficult).

(ii) News came to Paul from various sources of trouble at Corinth. (a) News came from those who were of the household of Chloe (1Co_1:11 ). They brought news of the contentions with which the church was torn. (b) News came with the visit of Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus to Ephesus. (1Co_16:17 ). By personal contact they were able to fill up the gaps in Paulinformation. (c) News came in a letter in which the Corinthian Church had asked Paul guidance on various problems. In 1Co_7:1 Paul begins, "Concerning the matters about which you wrote..." In answer to all this information Paul wrote 1 Corinthians and despatched it to Corinth apparently by the hand of Timothy (1Co_4:17 ).

(iii) The result of the letter was that things became worse than ever, and, although we have no direct record of it, we can deduce that Paul paid a personal visit to Corinth. In 2Co_12:14 he writes, "The third time I am ready to come to you." In 2Co_13:1-2 , he says again that he is coming to them for the third time. Now, if there was a third time, there must have been a second time. We have the record of only one visit, whose story is told in Act_18:1-17 . We have no record at all of the second, but Corinth was only two or three daysailing from Ephesus.

(iv) The visit did no good at all. Matters were only exacerbated and the result was an exceedingly severe letter. We learn about that letter from certain passages in 2 Corinthians. In 2Co_2:4 Paul writes, "I wrote to you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears." In 2Co_7:8 he writes, "For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it though I did regret it; for I see that that letter has grieved you, though only for a while." It was a letter which was the product of anguish of mind, a letter so severe that Paul was almost sorry that he ever sent it.

Scholars call this The Severe Letter. Have we got it? It obviously cannot be I Corinthians, because it is not a tear-stained and anguished letter. When Paul wrote it, it is clear enough that things were under control. Now if we read through 2 Corinthians we find an odd circumstance. In 2Cor 1-9 everything is made up, there is complete reconciliation and all are friends again; but at 2Cor 10 comes the strangest break. 2Cor 10-13 are the most heartbroken cry Paul ever wrote. They show that he has been hurt and insulted as he never was before or afterwards by any church. His appearance, his speech, his apostleship, his honesty have all been under attack.

Most scholars believe that 2Cor 10-13 are the severe letter, and that they have become misplaced when Paulletters were put together. If we want the real chronological course of Paulcorrespondence with Corinth, we really ought to read 2Cor 10-13 before 2Cor 1-9. We do know that this letter was sent off with Titus. (2Co_2:13 ; 2Co_7:13 ).

(v) Paul was worried about this letter. He could not wait until Titus came back with an answer, so he set out to meet him (2Co_2:13 ; 2Co_7:5 , 2Co_7:13 ). Somewhere in Macedonia he met him and learned that all was well, and, probably at Philippi, he sat down and wrote 2Cor 1-9, the letter of reconciliation.

Stalker has said that the letters of Paul take the roof off the early churches and let us see what went on inside. Of none of them is that truer than the letters to Corinth. Here we see what "the care of all the churches" must have meant to Paul. Here we see the heart-breaks and the joys. Here we see Paul, the shepherd of his flock, bearing the sorrows and the problems of his people on his heart.

The Corinthian Correspondence

Before we read the letters in detail let us set down the progress of the Corinthian correspondence in tabular form.

(i) The Previous Letter, which may be contained in 2Co_6:14-18 and 2Co_7:1 .

(ii) The arrival of Chloepeople, of Stephanas, Fortunatus and Achaicus, and of the letter to Paul from the Corinthian Church.

(iii) 1 Corinthians is written in reply and is despatched with Timothy.

(iv) The situation grows worse and Paul pays a personal visit to Corinth, which is so complete a failure that it almost breaks his heart.

(v) The consequence is The Severe Letter, which is almost certainly contained in 2Cor 10-13, and which was despatched with Titus.

(vi) Unable to wait for an answer, Paul sets out to meet Titus. He meets him in Macedonia, learns that all is well and, probably from Philippi, writes 2Cor 1-9, The Letter of Reconciliation.

The first four chapters of 1 Corinthians deal with the divided state of the Church of God at Corinth. Instead of being a unity in Christ it was split into sects and parties, who had attached themselves to the names of various leaders and teachers. It is Paulteaching that these divisions had emerged because the Corinthians thought too much about human wisdom and knowledge and too little about the sheer grace of God. In fact, for all their so-called wisdom, they are really in a state of immaturity. They think that they are wise men, but really they are no better than babies.

FURTHER READING

2 Corinthians

F. F. Bruce, 1 and 2 Corinthians (NCB; E)

J. Hering, The Second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians (translated by A. W. Heathcote and P. J. Allcock)

A. Plummer, 2 Corinthians (ICC; G)

R. V. G. Tasker, The Second Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians (TC; E)

Abbreviations

ICC: International Critical Commentary

MC: Moffatt Commentary

NCB: New Century Bible

TC: Tyndale Commentary

E: English Text

G: Greek Text

Barclay: 2 Corinthians 7 (Chapter Introduction)

Get You Out (2Co_6:14-18; 2Co_7:1)

The Accent Of Love (2Co_6:11-13; 2Co_7:2-4)

Godly Sorrow And Godly Joy (2Co_7:5-16)

Constable: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

Introduction

Historical background

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. One man in particular seems to have been the ringleader of the opposition (10:7). He had rallied the support of a significant minority. The issue was Paul's apostolic authority. His critics were claiming authority equal with Paul's. This was in effect a claim to apostolic authority on their part or a denial of the full apostolic authority of Paul.

News of continuing problems in Corinth reached Paul in Ephesus during his prolonged stay there during his third missionary journey. He then made a brief visit to Corinth. However his efforts to resolve the conflicts fell through (2:1; 12:14; 13:1-2). Paul apparently suffered insult and lost face during that visit (2:5-8; 7:12). Consequently this was a painful visit for Paul. He then returned to Ephesus.

Paul's next step in dealing with the situation in Corinth was to send a severe letter from Ephesus by the hand of Titus and another unnamed brother (2:3-4; 7:8-12; 12:18). He apparently directed this letter, now lost, at the party opposed to him and particularly its leader. Some commentators believe that 2 Corinthians 10-13 contains part of this letter, but the evidence for this is not convincing.¹

Paul evidently intended to receive Titus' report concerning the effects of this severe letter in Ephesus. However, persecution there made it expedient for Paul to leave that city earlier than he had anticipated (Acts 20:1). He found an open door for the gospel to the north in Troas. Eager to meet Titus who was taking the land route from Corinth back to Ephesus Paul moved west into Macedonia (2:12-13). There Titus met him and gave him an encouraging report (7:6-16). Most of the church had responded to Paul's directives and the church had disciplined the troublemakers (2:5-11). Unfortunately some in the congregation still refused to acknowledge Paul's authority over them (10:1-13:10).

Paul rejoiced at the repentance of the majority. However his concern for the unrepentant minority and his desire to pick up the money the Corinthians had begun to collect for their poorer brethren in Jerusalem led him to write 2 Corinthians. Along with these primary motives Paul also felt compelled to refute the charge of fickleness leveled at him by his critics. He had changed his travel plans and had not come to see them as he had said he would.

The whole situation provided him an opportunity to clarify the nature of Christian ministry.

Paul wrote the Second Epistle to the Corinthians from Macedonia, perhaps Philippi, Thessalonica, or Berea, probably in the fall or winter of 56 A.D. A date a year earlier or later is possible.

Some commentators believe Paul wrote 1 Corinthians after his painful visit and after he wrote the severe letter.² I believe it is more probable that he wrote 1 Corinthians before these two events.³ It is very difficult to reconstruct the details of Paul's activities since the data available to us is incomplete.

Paul's Corinthian Contacts
Paul's founding visit	His "former letter"	The Corin-thians' letter to him	First Corin-thians	Paul's "painful visit"	His "severe letter"	Second Corin-thians	Paul's antici-pated visit

"2 Corinthians is very different from the letters between which it was written, 1 Corinthians and Romans. Whereas each of those letters is, in its own way, systematic and orderly, 2 Corinthians is, on the face of it, uneven and digressive. It is no surprise, therefore, that many scholars have suggested that 2 Corinthians is really a collection of letters put together later as a single letter."⁴

"Second Corinthians presents many inspiring texts and passages to the reader and teacher of God's Word. A quick survey reveals approximately eighty individual verses lending themselves to extended meditation and exposition, apart from the sixty or so constituent paragraphs of the letter. This letter is a rich lode for the edification of God's people."⁵

Message⁶

The subject of 2 Corinthians is ministry, the church's work of service in the world. This is the central concept Paul dealt with in this epistle. What did he say about ministry?

He spoke of ministry in two ways. There is ministry per se (philosophy of ministry), and there is ministry to the world (practice of ministry).

Let's consider first what Paul revealed about the ministry of the church per se. This is the way Paul spoke of ministry most often in 2 Corinthians. In 1 Corinthians there is more emphasis on the practice of ministry than on the philosophy of ministry.

Paul had a lot to say about the authority of the church's ministry. Jesus Christ is the church's authority. He is the One who assigns each believer particular ministry within the body of Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 12:11, 18, 28; Eph. 4:11-13). The Corinthian church was having a major problem because some in its company were failing to accept Paul's appointment by Christ as an apostle and their own appointment as non-apostles. This was a practical repudiation of Jesus Christ's authority in the church. We must bow to the authority of Christ in the church by recognizing and responding appropriately to those He has appointed to various roles in the body. We identify these people by their gifts (divinely given abilities) and by their offices (divinely given positions).

Paul also had a lot to say in this epistle about the resources of the church's ministry. He emphasized three primarily.

One important resource is the encouragement of God. Paul spoke of this in the first part of the epistle especially. We read "comfort" in our texts, but the Greek word paraklesis means comfort through encouragement. The same Greek root describes the Holy Spirit as our Paraclete in John 14-16. Paul both taught and demonstrated in this letter that God's encouraging comfort always exceeds our discouragement and distress in ministry. The secret to finding it sufficient is taking God's view of how our ministry is really proceeding. This viewpoint Paul revealed, too.

A second resource is divine revelation. Paul did not preach himself or a message that he had concocted. He preached what God had revealed. Thus, revelation constituted both Paul's public message and his personal encouragement. We, too, have received the same message to communicate as ambassadors of Christ. It is a message of reconciliation, and it is the source of our encouragement.

A third resource is the prayers of the saints. Paul called for and counted on the prayers of God's people to bring God's power into play through him as he ministered (1:11). He realized that his own prayers would not move God to work as well as the concerted prayers of many of God's children (cf. James 4:2). Lack of prayer is often a sign of confidence in self rather than confidence in God.

In addition to the authority and resources of our ministry, Paul also had a lot to say in this epistle about experience in ministry. Three features mark experience in ministry.

First, one thing that marks ministry is tribulation. Paul spoke extensively in 2 Corinthians about the afflictions he experienced during his ministry. Furthermore he revealed that these are part of ministry, anyone's ministry who is carrying it out as God has directed. Some people do not welcome the gospel. To them it is a death scent. We should expect to experience tribulation in ministry. We have all experienced this in witnessing to some extent.

Second, another thing that should mark our ministry is hope. God has revealed the end of our ministry. We will all stand before Jesus Christ and receive a reward one day (5:10). This hope is a certainty. The Christian who loses sight of his or her hope is going to drift and suffer discouragement rather than press toward the mark. The end of our ministry is constantly in view in this epistle.

Third, a mark of Christian ministry is triumph. Paul revealed and illustrated by his own attitude that no matter how response to our ministry may appear to us our ministry is always triumphant. The reason for this is that God is at work through His ministers. One of the problems Paul's critics in Corinth had and that we have is that they were evaluating ministry superficially rather than realistically. We need to evaluate ministry on the basis of what God has revealed is happening, not what appears to be happening.

Paul not only revealed much about ministry per se in 2 Corinthians, he also revealed a lot about the ministry of the church to the world. Three emphases predominate.

First, Paul revealed what the message of the church is: the Word of God. Ours is a ministry of the Word. By "the Word" Paul meant the revelation God has given us. In his day it consisted of the Old Testament Scriptures plus the revelations that he and the other New Testament prophets had received that were for all Christians. Paul contrasted his message and ours with the message of Moses and exulted in its superiority. God has removed the veil and we can now see His glory clearly revealed in the face of Jesus Christ.

Second, Paul revealed the church's equipment to carry on its ministry to the world. We are ready to minister only when we separate from the world's sins and conform to God's will. Paul contrasts with his critics in this letter in all these respects. As these characteristics mark us we, too, will be ready to minister.

Third, Paul revealed the exercise of the church's ministry to the world. In exercising its ministry the church does three things according to this epistle.

1. It exercises discipline to restore the erring to effective ministry. Paul's great concern in this epistle was the restoration of the rebellious critics in the Corinthian church to unity and usefulness.

2. The church also is to give no occasion of stumbling to others. Paul's concern was that the behavior of the Corinthian Christians would be an encouragement to other believers and a base from which the gospel could proceed even farther into unevangelized regions beyond.

3. Third, the church exercises the grace of giving. It seeks to facilitate the principle of equality that God has demonstrated throughout history, namely that those who have should share with those who have not. This applies not only to the gospel message but to the physical necessities of life (chs. 8-9).

From these emphases the message of the book emerges. The church needs to submit to revealed authority, to draw upon supernatural resources and equipment, and to experience triumph through tribulation as it executes its mission. As it does so it will effectively carry out its ministry of proclaiming the message of reconciliation to the world.

Constable: 2 Corinthians (Outline)

Outline

I. Introduction 1:1-11

A. Salutation 1:1-2

B. Thanksgiving for comfort in affliction 1:3-11

1. Thanksgiving for comfort 1:3-7

2. Thanksgiving for deliverance 1:8-11

II. Answers to insinuations about the sincerity of Paul's commitment to the Corinthians and to the ministry 1:12-7:16

A. Defense of his conduct with regard to his promised visit and the offender 1:12-2:17

1. The postponement of the intended visit 1:12-2:4

2. The treatment of the offender and the result of the severe letter 2:5-17

B. Exposition of Paul's view of the ministry 3:1-6:10

1. The superiority of Christian ministry to Mosaic ministry 3:1-11

2. The great boldness of the new ministers 3:12-4:6

3. The sufferings and supports of a minister of the gospel 4:7-5:10

4. The life of a minister of Christ 5:11-6:10

C. Appeal for restoration of the Corinthians' confidence in him 6:11-7:16

1. An appeal for large-heartedness and consistency 6:11-7:4

2. The encouraging response of the Corinthians so far 7:5-16

III. Instructions concerning the collection for the poor saints in Judea 8:1-9:15

A. The example of the Macedonians 8:1-7

B. The supreme motive for giving 8:8-15

C. The delegates of the churches 8:16-24

D. The anticipated visit of Paul 9:1-5

E. The benefits of generous giving 9:6-15

IV. Appeals concerning Paul's apostolic authority 10:1-13:10

A. Replies to charges made against Paul 10:1-18

1. Reply to the charge of cowardice 10:1-6

2. Reply to the charge of weakness 10:7-11

3. Reply to the charge of intrusion 10:12-18

B. Claims made by Paul 11:1-12:18

1. Paul's reasons for making these claims 11:1-6

2. Freedom to minister without charge 11:7-15

3. Paul's service and sufferings 11:16-33

4. Special revelations Paul received 12:1-10

5. Paul's supernatural miracles and paternal love 12:11-18

C. Exhortations in view of Paul's approaching visit 12:19-13:10

1. Paul's concerns 12:19-21

2. Paul's warnings 13:1-10

V. Conclusion 13:11-14

A. The exhortation 13:11-12

B. The salutation 13:13

C. The benediction 13:14

Constable: 2 Corinthians

2 Corinthians

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

THE SECOND

EPISTLE OF ST. PAUL, THE APOSTLE,

TO THE CORINTHIANS.

INTRODUCTION.

The subject and design of this second Epistle to the Corinthians, is much the same as of the former. He comforts and congratulates with those who were now reformed by his admonitions. He blames the faulty with apostolical liberty; and being forced to justify himself and his proceedings against the upstart false teachers, he gives an ample account of his sufferings, and also of the favours and graces, which God had bestowed upon him. This Epistle was written not long after the first, (an. 57. [in the year 57.]) some months before that to the Romans, from some place in Macedonia, perhaps from Philippi, as marked at the end of divers Greek copies, though it is observed, that those subscriptions are not much to be relied upon. (Witham) --- In this Epistle St. Paul comforts those who are now reformed by his admonitions to them in the former, and absolves the incestuous man on doing penance, whom he had before excommunicated for his crime. Hence he treats of true penance, and of the dignity of the ministers of the New Testament. He cautions the faithful against false teachers, and the society of infidels. He gives an account of his sufferings, and also of the favours and graces which God hath bestowed on him. (Challoner) --- St. Paul, not being able to come to the Corinthians as soon as he had promised, writes this Epistle to inform them, that it was not through inconstancy, but on account of several weighty reasons, which had hitherto hindered him. Several other reasons, likewise, compelled him to write. For during his absence, several false teachers of the Jews had come amongst them, teaching them that it was necessary to observe the law of Moses, in order to be saved. St. Paul, therefore, first excuses himself, by saying, that the afflictions and troubles he had met with, had hindered him from coming to them. He next orders the fornicator to be restored to favour; after which, he extols his apostleship, forming a comparison between the law of Christ, and of Moses, wherein he blames the false teachers. He then subjoins an exhortation to a pious and holy life, with liberality in their alms, after the example of the Macedonians. As the false teachers had been very industrious in establishing their own reputation, by detracting from that of St. Paul, he enumerates his own sufferings, and the favours he had received from God, shewing that he had much more reason to glory than they; and concludes by exhorting them to correct those faults with which they still remained infected. (Estius) --- This letter may be justly appreciated as a perfect masterpiece of that animated and solid eloquence, which all interpreters so much admire in St. Paul. (Bible de Vence)

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Gill: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 2 CORINTHIANS

This epistle, according to the subscription at the end of it, was written from Philippi of Macedonia; and though the subscriptions annexed to the epistles are not always to be depended on, yet it seems very likely that this was written from thence; for the apostle not finding Titus at Troas, as he expected, went into Macedonia, where he met with him, and had an account from him of the success of his first epistle; of the state and condition of the church, and of the temper and disposition of mind in which the members of it were, and which gave him great satisfaction; upon which he immediately wrote this second epistle, and sent it by the same person to them; see 2Co 2:12, 2Co 7:5. It is very probable it might be written the year after the former; and so it is placed by Dr. Lightfoot in the year 56, as the former is in the year 55; though some place this in the year 60, and the other in 59. The occasion of this epistle was partly to excuse his not coming to them according to promise, and to vindicate himself from the charge of unfaithfulness, levity, and inconstancy on that account; and partly, since what he had wrote about the incestuous person, had had a good effect both upon him and them, to direct them to take off the censure that had been laid upon him, and restore him to their communion, and comfort him; likewise to stir them up to finish the collection for the poor saints they had begun; as also to defend himself against the calumnies of the false teachers, who were very industrious to sink his character and credit in this church; which he does by observing the doctrines of the Gospel he preached, which were far more glorious than, and abundantly preferable to, the ministration of the law of Moses, which those men desired to be teachers of; as likewise the success of his ministry in every place; the many sufferings he had underwent for the sake of Christ, and his Gospel; the high favours and privileges he had received of the Lord, as well as the signs, wonders, and miracles done by him in proof of his apostleship; and in which are interspersed many things useful and instructive.

Gill: 2 Corinthians 7 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO 2 CORINTHIANS 7

This chapter begins with an inference deduced, from what is said in the latter part of the foregoing chapter, engaging to holiness of heart and life, in opposition to filthiness of flesh and spirit, 2Co 7:1 and the apostle, in order to prevail upon the Corinthians kindly to receive his exhortations, observes his own conduct, and that of his fellow ministers towards them; as that they had done them no injury by the advice they had given them, nor had they corrupted them by unsound doctrine, or had coveted their worldly substance, 2Co 7:2 not that by so saying he would insinuate as if they had been guilty of injury, corruption, and covetousness; it was far from his thoughts to suggest anything of that kind concerning them, for whom he had so great an affection, as never to separate from them, but living and dying to continue the same regards unto them, 2Co 7:3 and which he expresses, and had shown everywhere, by the freedom of speech he had used concerning them, and his boasting of them, and the joy and comfort he had in the midst of his troubles, by the good news he had received of them, 2Co 7:4, which he had in the following manner; for though when in Macedonia he had no rest, partly through outward troubles, and partly through inward fears, 2Co 7:5 yet meeting with Titus, who had been with them, and had brought an account of their state, it was a means God made use of for the comfort of him, 2Co 7:6 and it was not merely the sight of Titus that yielded him this consolation, but the comfortable reception he had met with at Corinth; and also the good effect the apostle's letter written to them had upon them, as related by Titus; what a desire they had to see him, what grief that they should sin, and by it distress him, and what a fervent affection they had for him 2Co 7:7 for which reason he did not repent of the letter he sent them, though it did produce sorrow in them, since that was of the right kind, and was but for a time, 2Co 7:8 yea, he was so far from it, that he was glad, not merely on account of their sorrow, but because their sorrow was a godly one, and issued in repentance; and so they were no losers, but gainers by the epistle, it producing such good effects, 2Co 7:9 which leads him to distinguish between a true right godly sorrow, and a worldly one, and that by their consequences; repentance and salvation following upon the one, and death upon the other, 2Co 7:10 the fruits and evidences of which godly and true repentance he makes mention of in seven particulars, by which it appeared that their sorrow and repentance were sincere and genuine, 2Co 7:11 when the apostle proceeds to observe to them the end he had in view in writing to them, upon the account of the incestuous person, in which he had used great plainness and faithfulness; and this was not merely on account of him that offended, nor only on account of the person injured by him, but chiefly to testify his care of, and concern for their welfare, as a church of Christ, 2Co 7:12 and inasmuch as though they had been grieved, yet were now comforted, it added to the consolation of the apostle and his companions, and the more delighted they were, when they understood what a reception Titus had among them, what reverence he was had in, what respect was shown him, and care was taken of him, 2Co 7:13 and the rather, seeing the apostle had boasted of the liberality, generosity, and affectionate regard of the Corinthians to the ministers of the Gospel, Titus found it to be all true what he had said; so that he had no reason to be ashamed, as he must have been, had they behaved otherwise, 2Co 7:14 and still it gave him further pleasure, that by their behaviour to Titus, they had gained his heart, and increased his affection towards them; which he could not but express, whenever he called to mind, or made mention of the great respect, veneration, and obedience, they yielded to him, 2Co 7:15 and indeed it was not only in this instance, but in all others, the apostle had confidence concerning them, which heightened his joy and pleasure in them, 2Co 7:16.

College: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION

Studying 2 Corinthians plunges the modern reader back to the real, tumultuous world of early Christianity. The simple ideals of sharing and goodwill described in Acts 2:42-47 seem to have little place among the diverse converts from this boomtown of Corinth where Paul chooses to anchor his Greek mission. Rather, this microcosm of the early church bickers and accuses, revels in disorder and confusion, reeks of unrenounced pagan practices, and uncritically pursues self-promotion and even disloyalty to Paul, its founder.

When we speak of restoring the NT church, the Corinthian church is not what we have in mind. But maybe this is where we should really start: a real community of believers struggling to understand and implement their Christian faith against the helter-skelter backdrop of values and principles they desired to leave behind. As we understand what Paul teaches this troubled church, we will learn badly needed principles to help bring to maturity our own, real churches which inherit the same struggle.

Second Corinthians stands in stark contrast to Paul's other NT writings in a number of ways. Other letters, like 1 Corinthians, Romans, Galatians, and Colossians are carefully ordered, easily outlined, logical, controlled, as Paul confidently responds to carefully gauged concerns. Methodically, he establishes crucial, theological principles as the basis for practical, behavioral appeals.

By contrast, 2 Corinthians is chaotic and disjointed. Digressions lead the reader far afield before returning to the point. So uneven is 2 Corinthians, that many scholars suggest it is a composite of four or five writings, even a number of conservative scholars admitting two. Intensity, emotion, defensiveness, and second-guessing rather than controlled reasoning bind this epistle together. We see Paul at his weakest, basest, most human. Yet seeing him work through the truth of the gospel in the midst of exasperating difficulties is enlightening.

To a certain extent, it is healthy for our lofty ideals of this giant to be punctured and brought down to reality, even as the Corinthian church does so for our view of the early church. Paul's relationship with the Corinthians at this historical juncture is ugly, and readers deserve to be warned about how disconcerting seeing this can be.

These features of 2 Corinthians make studying and understanding the text much more dependent than usual on grasping the historical circumstances behind and leading up to its writing. Without a clear grasp of the historic story, hopeless confusion will engulf efforts to interpret the text at a number of points.

So, study of 2 Corinthians must begin by seeking to understand the Corinth of Paul's day and Paul's relationship to the local church there before preceding to a reliable interpretation of the text.

THE CITY OF CORINTH

Fortunately, Corinth is a NT city we know a great deal about. It has been heavily excavated and was minutely described by classical writers like Strabo and Dio Chrysostom.

The city that Paul entered in A.D. 50 had been resurrected from the ashes of the old city burned to the ground by the Romans in 146 B.C. Having laid in ruins for 100 years, two years before his death in 44 B.C., Julius Caesar decreed that Corinth (and also Carthage) should be rebuilt. Although located just 60 miles from Athens on the narrow isthmus strategically joining the Greek mainland to the Peloponnesus, the new Corinth was built and organized as a Roman city. Its colonists were gleaned from freedmen, former slaves originating from Syria, Egypt, Judea, Greece, and from retiring Roman soldiers.

The city's layout and its buildings were Roman, as was its governmental organization and law. Its official language was Latin, although Greek was the common language for business and conversation. The people prized Roman articles, importing them in great quantities. In addition to the four magistrates elected each year and its city council, it was administrated by a proconsul appointed annually by the Roman senate.

Corinth's dominance over the five-mile wide isthmus insured economic vitality. Ships traveling between Italy and Asia Minor were happy to pay the fee to cross the isthmus rather than sail the extra 200 miles south around treacherous Cape Malae. Besides, Corinth had even constructed a grooved pavement, called the Diolkos, between the ports on either side of the isthmus on which smaller ships could be hauled in wheeled vehicles. For a larger ship, the goods were loaded on transport carts and reloaded onto another ship waiting at the other harbor.

Julius Caesar dreamed of increasing Corinth's stock by constructing a canal across the isthmus. Not until Nero, A.D. 67., was such a project begun. Actual completion, however was not achieved until modern times, in 1893.

With the two ports, Laechaeum, on the Corinthian Gulf, and Cenchraea, on the Saronic Gulf, Corinth thrived as a center for trade. The major land route between the Greek mainland and the Peloponnesus also went through it. Besides shipbuilding and repair, it hosted bronze, tile, and pottery factories, as well as the necessary warehousing for transportable goods. Corinth's market areas boasted hundreds of stalls filled with craftsmen plying their trade, locals selling merchandise and food, as well as visitors from throughout the empire hawking imported items. They even had places which sold drinks cooled by underground water systems. Paul himself, we know, took up a leather-working stall in this area for eighteen months (Acts 18:1-3).

New Corinth was an eclectic, international city from its inception. In Paul's day, it was a bustling, wide open, boomtown, with over 80,000 inhabitants, and growing every day. It had already outstripped Athens politically, replacing it as the capital of Achaia.

Corinth's prestige was further enhanced by its hosting of the Isthmian Games, second only in significance to the Olympics. Held every two years in Corinth since A.D. 3, these games drew thousands of tourists and lots of business. The city's most prestigious political official was the one responsible for administering the games, occupying a prominent year-round governmental office. The games were dedicated to the Greek sea god, Poseidon, and featured oratory, music, and drama, as well as athletic contests. A dramatic theater as well as a 20,000 seat stadium were used for these events.

Corinth's eclecticism revealed itself in an array of religious choices established by its multicultural inhabitants. Egyptians promoted the cults of Isis and Osiris. Isis was worshiped as a god for sailors because the myth tells of her enduring search on the seas for her betrayed and lost husband Osiris. Osiris is a god of afterlife, who after his death was resurrected to become head of the underworld.

Greeks and Romans honored Poseidon, god of the sea; Athena, goddess of war, the sea, cities and the arts; Aphrodite, goddess of love and fertility; Apollo, god of prophecy; Asklepios, god of healing; and emperors beginning with Julius Caesar. Prominent temples and statues are dedicated to all of these. Apollos often features prominently in colonized cities as an ode of good fortune. His famous Delphic oracle is only some 30 miles from Corinth. The much publicized report that Old Corinth's temple to Aphrodite housed over 1,000 sacred prostitutes is regarded as Athenian slander and is not so certain to still be functioning this way in Paul's day, although this does not mean to imply that Corinth was any more sexually pristine than any other seaport.

One of the busiest religious centers in Paul's day was the Asklepium. Comparable to a modern-day health club, people came here to bathe in its fountain, sleep (healing in their dreams), excercise, read, and dine (on sacrificial meat, cf. 1 Cor 8:10; 10:21). Replicas of body parts found in excavations were offered to the Asklepios by thankful beneficiaries of his healing.

Though not a god, Sisyphus, was considered one of the founding kings of ancient Corinth. Noted for his craftiness, in Greek mythology he was banished to Hades with the everlasting task of pushing a rock up a hill only to have it slip back down. For the Corinthian in Paul's day, he stands for successful cunning in business, but behind the temporary luster, perhaps, he signifies the emptiness of life's ambitions that lurked in the background of people's thoughts.

Judaism came with the early Jewish colonists and seems to have thrived. A dynamic synagogue certainly was functioning when Paul arrived, according to Acts 18:4-17. Also, a building inscription reading "Synagogue of the Hebrews" has been found by archaeologists along the Lechaeum road. Although the inscription is somewhat later than Paul's day, its location in the city center suggests the prominence of Judaism from the early days of New Corinth. Significant increases to the Jewish population likely occurred in A.D. 19 and in the late 40s when Tiberius and then Claudius expelled Jews from Rome. According to Acts 18:2, the latter purge is what brought Aquila and Priscilla and their tentmaking business to Corinth for the eighteen months Paul evangelized there. As Acts 18:8,17 indicate, the Jewish community probably had a certain amount of freedom to manage its own affairs and to appoint its own officials.

Due to Roman influence, Corinthians banded together into self-governing clubs and societies of 10 to 15 people which met in homes around the city. These clubs were delineated by individual trades or professions. Something like small unions, they provided vital social interaction and shared meals but even underwrote members' burial expenses from their kitty of dues. Although each had its sponsoring god, they were not religious in nature.

Most likely, the Corinthian church of Paul's day took on the pattern of these clubs as they met in various homes throughout the city. This helps explain the household factions decried in 1 Cor 1:10-12 and even the food-related problems of 1 Corinthians 8 and 11:17-34.

Corinth in the time of Paul was a city of wealth and prosperity. The families who had come a generation or two previously had worked hard. They had carved out successful lives by their own sweat and ingenuity. Like American immigrants, they were proud of their accomplishments, which they demonstrated in their proliferation of self-commending inscriptions around the city. But like the grandchildren of immigrants today, the Corinthians of Paul's day were noted for their superficial materialism and moral perversity. Such traits are epitomized by the fact that before the century was over, Corinth would become the first Greek city in the Roman Empire to hold bloodthirsty gladiatorial shows.

PAUL AND THE CORINTHIANS

Paul's rocky, seven-year relationship with the Corinthians begins in the fall of A.D. 50 as he enters Corinth on what becomes the last stop of his second missionary journey. Already on the road for a year, he had established churches in Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, and Athens, despite opposition from Gentiles, Jews, and intellectuals (Acts 16-17). As Acts 18 describes, he enters the din of Corinth alone but is quickly befriended by Aquila and Priscilla, who were probably already Christians when they came to Corinth from Rome. For eighteen months the three of them lived, worked, and spread the gospel together there, eventually joined by Silas and Timothy.

At first, Paul shared the gospel and fielded questions in the Jewish synagogue. It wasn't too long, however, before stiff opposition to his presence arose, and he was ejected. However, he took with him many new Christians from among the God-fearing Gentiles who attended the synagogue, as well as Jews including the head of the synagogue, Crispus. Boldly, they set up shop for the first church right next door in the home of Titius Justus. Presumably, they continued to meet there and in other homes around the city for the next eighteen months, since God had instructed Paul to remain in Corinth despite the risks of conflict.

Sparks did fly, and at one point the Jews pressed charges against Paul for breaking Jewish law before Gallio, the Roman proconsul. Quite rightly, Gallio rebuffed the Jewish accusations as being outside any Roman concern. Although this may seem like a relatively minor incident in the life of Paul, the mention of Gallio in Acts 18:14 emerges as the single most important event enabling us to date Paul's life with accuracy. The reason for this is that archaeologists have discovered a datable inscription about a boundary dispute from Emperor Claudius to Gallio which places Gallio's one-year term between A.D. 51 and 52. Anchored by Paul's encounter with Gallio being A.D. 51, the rest of Paul's life can be dated backward and forward from time periods provided in the Acts and his letters.

Upon leaving Corinth, Paul sailed to Syria, probably Antioch, before quickly setting out over land to revisit the previously established churches in Asia Minor and then settling in Ephesus for three years. While in Ephesus, he sent the Corinthians three letters and slipped across the Aegean Sea in a vessel for a brief, surprise visit.

The first letter, commonly known as the "previous letter," is mentioned in 1 Cor 5:9-11. Given the wild immorality of Corinth, it is not surprising that Paul emphasized separation from such people in this letter. However, it has never been found, although a few scholars believe 2 Cor 6:14-7:1 may have originally been part of it.

Next, Paul received a letter from the Corinthians asking various specific questions about Christian life and practice. He is also informed verbally from members of Chloe's household (1 Cor 1:11) about the factionalism that is hurting the church's witness. He responded with the letter we know of as 1 Corinthians. During this period, Timothy was dispatched to Corinth for a brief time (1 Cor 4:17; 16:10) as Paul's personal ambassador, perhaps to give further voice to Paul's teaching in 1 Corinthians or to other issues Paul anticipated. We have no indication as to how long Timothy stayed.

Paul's brief trip to Corinth in A.D. 54 and the letter on its heels upon his return are chief events which underlie Paul's writing of 2 Corinthians in A.D. 56. We don't know why Paul went. Maybe Timothy reported that Paul's personal presence was needed. Possibly, conservative agitators had followed Paul to Corinth as they previously had to Galatia and were stirring up trouble, causing the Corinthians to second-guess Paul's credibility (2 Cor 11:13). What we do know is that this trip, usually described as "the painful visit" (2 Cor 2:1), was a complete disaster. Paul left angry and humiliated. Apparently, he confronted the ringleader of the trouble (perhaps someone in the church who had been influenced by the outsiders) face to face but when the man insulted him, no one in the church came to Paul's defense.

Speculation regarding the accusations hurled at Paul include the illegitimacy of his authority over the Corinthians and his misuse of funds collected for the Jerusalem offering (1 Cor 16:1-4; 2 Cor 7:2; 8:11). This was not a theological issue so much as one of personal integrity. Paul speaks of his being hurt emotionally most by the fact that the church did not side with him (2 Cor 2:5-11).

Upon his return, Paul wrote a third letter to the Corinthians, "the severe letter" (2 Cor 2:4; 7:8). Although not existing today, as described in 2 Cor 2:4-11 and 7:5-13, it was undoubtedly the most emotional and strident of any of Paul's letters. Apparently, he unleashed his anger and disappointment, scolding the church for not supporting him and demanding that the majority of the church take charge and discipline the offender as well as apologize to him. The letter is so harsh that Paul seems genuinely afraid ("fears within" - 2 Cor 7:5) that it will drive the church farther away from him and from Christ. But he sees no choice; this situation can't be left like it is.

Titus received the formidable task of delivering this explosive letter into the charged atmosphere of the Corinthian church and carrying out its demands. Paul's anxieties over Titus's success seem to overwhelm him as he waits for news. Apparently, the arrangements with Titus were that they would meet in Troas after a set period of time, maybe as long as six months. Second Corinthians 2:12 tells us that Paul went by land up to Troas, probably in A.D. 55 but was crushed to find Titus was not there. Remaining for some time evangelizing, maybe a month or so, he crossed over to Macedonia, probably Philippi, desperate to find Titus there. Finally, Titus arrived with the great news that the Corinthians - or most of them - were back in the fold. Genuinely remorseful over their hurtful behavior toward Paul, they had, indeed, dealt with the offender and expressed their renewed devotion to him (2 Cor 7:7,11,12).

The letter we call 2 Corinthians historically comes as Paul's fourth letter to Corinth. Buoyed by Titus's positive report, Paul writes this highly emotional letter, sending it back with Titus (2 Cor 7:17), probably A.D. 56. The letter interacts over and over with the events of the Painful Visit and the Severe Letter. Paul gushes with joy over the Corinthians' response (2 Cor 7:7,13-16), even recommending that they lift the punishment on the person who offended him (2 Cor 2:7). However, the tone of the letter is extremely defensive as Paul squirms under pressure from the Corinthians (most likely as advised by Titus) to toot his own horn regarding his own apostolic credentials. Out of his love for them, but against his own convictions against boasting, he is willing to explain the superiority of his apostleship in terms the Corinthians seem to require. These terms - such as providing letters of recommendation (2 Cor 3:1) and lists of accomplishments (2 Cor 6:3-13; 11:16-12:10) - Paul regards as superficial and unnecessary (2 Cor 3:2-3; 10:7) and probably reflect the influence of the conservative agitators upon the Corinthians. Paul seems to know he must respond, however uncomfortable it is for him, in order to block any further inroads from these outsiders and thus reinforce his renewed relationship with the Corinthians.

Titus brought 2 Corinthians to Corinth armed with Paul's commendation within the letter to spur the church to complete its collection of the offering for the Jerusalem Christians (1 Cor 16:1-4; 2 Cor 8:10-24). Paul followed a few months later (2 Cor 12:14; Acts 20:3) and remained in Corinth three months. During this period, he wrote Romans, but we know nothing of his interaction with the Corinthian church. Presumably, he finalized the Corinthian offering, but he must have worked diligently to solidify this troubled church and contend personally with the outside agitators and their remaining pockets of influence. At any rate, once the various representatives from the Greek and Asian churches arrived in Corinth with their offerings (Acts 20:1-6), he tried to set sail with them to Syria but, discovering treachery from the Jewish community in Corinth, he and the others traveled first to Troas, and, then, set sail from there.

We have no certainty of further communication or visitation between Paul and the Corinthian church after this. Possibly, following release from his first Roman imprisonment, he returned to Corinth and other churches in Greece and Asia Minor, as the Pastoral epistles suggest (1 Tim. 1:3; 2 Tim. 4:20).

THE UNITY OF 2 CORINTHIANS

One may rightly comment that the literary unity of 2 Corinthians "cannot just be presupposed." Analyses which question whether various sections of 2 Corinthians are original to it have come long and hard during the past two centuries of critical scholarship. Second Corinthian's sharp shifts in content and uneven tone make it the most susceptible of all the NT books to patchwork theories despite the fact that none of the Greek manuscripts (dating back to the third century) give the slightest hint that 2 Corinthians was ever anything different than what we read today. Although the ebb and flow of research has sidelined many conjectures, questions still remain regarding some parts of 2 Corinthians. As many as nine sections of 2 Corinthians have been scrutinized. However, just five will be discussed here.

First, 2 Cor 2:14-7:4 has been noted as at one time existing separately from 2 Corinthians. Even a casual reader is jolted at the jump between the travelogue commentary in 2:12-13 and the military parade description of the gospel in 2:13-17 which opens a five-chapter philosophy of apostolic ministry. It is all the more noticeable when, beginning at 7:5, the travelogue picks up again and continues on until 7:16. However, upon closer perusal, scholars are increasingly reluctant to name this as part of a separate letter. Despite the abruptness between 2:13 and 2:14, the theme of human weakness and divine power in 2:12-17 connects to 1:8-10, and the theme of divine ownership connects 1:22 and 2:14. Despite the change of subject between 7:4 and 7:5, the verbal links supplied by "encouragement" (7:4,13), "joy" (7:4,7) and "troubles" (7:4,5) supply sturdy connections. Besides, the efforts to postulate yet another letter between 1 and 2 Corinthians or to connect this to the Severe Letter are unwarranted. More recent efforts to anaylze 2 Corinthians 1-7 through the eyes of Roman rhetoric as well as chiastic structure loudly confirm separation of 2:14-7:4 as ill-conceived. Certainly, it is a digression but not without purpose and point to the context as a whole.

Second, perhaps less obvious to the casual reader because it is such a short section is 2 Cor 6:14-7:1. Here, again, though, the careful reader observes an interruption between 6:13 ("Open wide your hearts also") and 7:2 ("Make room for us in your hearts"). Scholarly analysis of these six verses suggests that not only are they out of place, they don't sound like Paul, using six words he never uses elsewhere in his writings nor used by anyone else in the NT ( hapax legomenae ). Is this a snippet of something someone else said or wrote that Paul has adapted into his material, or is it something Paul wrote or spoke at another time and place that he decides to use here?

Despite some of the unusual language, Pauline themes do appear here: the church as the temple of God, the polarization of righteousness and unrighteousness as well as between light and dark. Also, plenty of characteristic Pauline language occurs: "living God" (2 Cor 3:3; 1 Thess 1:9), "unbeliever" (twelve other occurrences in 1 and 2 Cor), and "holiness" (Rom 1:4; 1 Thess 3:13). Although conclusions vary, many today incline toward this section being from Paul.

Eyeing the language of separation from unrighteousness, some have been tempted to conclude that 6:14-7:1 is part of the "previous" letter mentioned in 1 Cor 5:9. However, the point is explicitly different. Paul emphasizes that in the previous letter he urged separation from the immorality of believers not dissociation from unbelievers as emphasized in 6:14-7:1.

Most likely, then, Paul himself has inserted this pre-formed, self-contained unit of material from previous teaching, either oral or written, perhaps influenced by others. Interesting comparisons to Qumran materials as well as writings of Philo have been made. The placement exactly here in 2 Corinthians is so awkward as to be unlikely to come from anyone other than Paul. However, two points should be kept in mind. One is that Paul dictated this letter as he did all his letters. This fact enhances the potential for distraction, interruption, and loose digressions such as this. A second point is that although the section's relationship to the immediately previous verses is not obvious, as one backs up to 6:1 and reads of Paul's concern about receiving "God's grace in vain" or to 5:19 to see Paul's emphasis on people "no longer living for themselves but for him who died for them," Paul's emphasis on separation and holiness in 6:14-7:1 fits well.

Probably inconceivable to the casual reader is the suggestion that 2 Corinthians 8 and 2 Corinthians 9 both were not originally part of 2 Corinthians. Arguments regarding 2 Corinthians 8 - repetition of information about Titus (7:13-15; 8:16-17), presumption of knowledge about the two brothers coming with him (8:18,22), or even evidence that 2 Corinthians 8 as well as 2 Corinthians 9 are formal business letters - do not convince many. Arguments regarding 2 Corinthians 9, first proposed by Semler 200 years ago, that 2 Corinthians 9 was originally a letter sent to Christians outside Corinth, are more formidable, and give scholars more pause.

What pulls them up short is the language Paul uses to refer to the collection ("service") in 9:1, which, in Greek, reads like a first mention of the collection. In addition to that, the regional reference to Achaia in 9:2 and the repetition of information from chapter 8 in chapter 9 regarding the collection give added support to the idea of chapter 9 being originally independent.

On the other side of the question is the fact that Paul's reference to the collection in 9:1 is modified by ( men gar , "and for") which suggests a resumption of a previous subject perhaps after a brief pause in dictation. The repetition of details regarding the collection is probably emphatic, and the regional reference to Achaia seems unlikely to exclude Corinth. Tipping the scale against an independent chapter 9, as noted by Furnish, are two references in chapter 9 which presume information from chapter 8: the mention of the brothers (9:3; 8:18) and the emphasis on their completing the collection (9:4-5; 8:7-15).

Admittedly, this is a close call. However, the evidence does not demand that chapters 8 and 9 are two separate letters about the collection, one to Corinth, and one to Achaia. Rather, these are interdependent chapters in 2 Corinthians, chapter 8 dealing with the details of the collection project and chapter 9 emphasizing motivation for the project, as noted by Danker.

Fourth, without a doubt the most serious challenge to the unity of 2 Corinthians comes from chapters 10-13. As long ago as 1870, Hausrath broadcast his belief that in these chapters, he had discovered the missing "severe" letter to the Corinthians. No doubt, in chapters 10-13 Paul erupts into harsh tones of anger and disappointment which seem to undercut completely the exuberance and joy which he builds up to by chapters 7, 8, and 9.

But Hausrath looked closer and pointed to evidence that chapters 10-13 were written previous to chapters 1-9. Particularly he saw passages in chapters 1-9 written in the past tense which appear to allude to passages from chapters 10-13 written in future tenses, such as 1:23 which says that Paul "did not return" to them in order to spare them, corresponding to 13:2 in which Paul asserts that he "will not return" in order to spare them or when Paul says in 2:3-4 that he "wrote" them out of great distress and in 13:10 when he says "I write" so that I may not have to be harsh. Hausrath also contends that Paul's reference to Rome (west of Corinth) as "regions beyond you" in 2 Cor 10:16 makes much better sense if he is in Ephesus (east of Corinth), where he wrote the Severe Letter, rather than Macedonia (north of Corinth), where he wrote 2 Corinthians.

Criticism against Hausrath's identification of 2 Cor 10-13 with the "severe" letter has withered its persuasiveness among scholars. Primarily, chapters 10-13 do not contain something we know specifically was in the Severe Letter: Paul's demand that an individual who offended him be punished (2:5-6; 7:12). Also, chapters 10-13 promise a visit (12:14; 13:1), but the Severe Letter was sent in place of a Painful Visit (1:23; 2:1). Regarding "regions beyond you," the language need not be taken so literally and the Macedonian region should be recognized as much more culturally distinct from Achaia than it looks like on a map.

More appealing to scholars of all stripes, including many conservatives, is to view 2 Cor 10-13 as a separate, fifth letter, written after Titus returns with new, bad news after delivering 2 Corinthians 1-9. This position still takes into account Hausrath's future tense passages. It helps make sense of 2 Cor 12:18 which refers to Titus's visit in the past tense when it was in the planning stage in 2 Corinthians 7-9. Also, it explains the increased strident tones of chapters 10-13 as Paul's response to new, outside influences claiming some kind of rival apostolic authority to Paul's (11:13; 12:11) rather than to internal problems which seem to be his concern in chapters 1-9.

This way of viewing chapters 10-13 is attractive but is not demanded by the evidence. As Witherington points out, the past (aorist) tenses describing Titus's visit in 12:17-18 need not be real. Especially as Paul reaches the end of the book, they could well be epistolary (spoken from the standpoint of the audience reading the letter). The mention of the unnamed brother traveling with Titus does correspond with 2 Cor 8:18,22. Reading 12:17-18 this way opens up the very real possibility that Paul could have received new information about problems in Corinth before sending 2 Corinthians but after writing chapters 1-9. This could explain the gulf between chapters 10-13 as well as an entirely separate letter.

Other ways which account for the change of tone in chapter 10-13 have to do with how one reads the letter. Perhaps chapters 1-9 are directed to the majority of the church which has fallen into line with Paul after the Painful Visit, the Severe Letter, and Titus's hard work while chapters 10-13 are to the minority who are still under the sway of outside opposition to Paul. After all, 2 Cor 2:6 does speak of "the majority" which imposed discipline upon the offender named in the Severe Letter.

Perhaps, as a growing group of scholars are showing, Paul's heightened criticism of the Corinthians in chapters 10-13 concludes a calculated rhetorical plan employing counterattack ( synkrisis ) or strong emotional appeal ( peroratio ) to win his defense against the charges being leveled at him by the Corinthians. One must admit that Paul never relaxes from a defensive posture in 2 Corinthians from the beginning to the end. While Paul's harsh tones in chapters 10-13 following the lead up in chapters 7, 8, and 9 may seem abrupt, his concerns from early in the letter haven't really changed, just his emotionalism. The issue of his character raised in chapter 1 and of the legitimacy of his apostleship raised in chapter 3 remain the object of his defense in chapters 10-13.

The correspondence of these issues is enough to suggest that even though outside influence of "false apostles" (11:13) is not named earlier, they influence the minority of the Corinthian church and provide the ammunition against Paul observed in the earlier chapters. Who else would have brandished "letters of recommendation" (3:1)? Their earliest influences could even be in the background of Paul's problems associated with the Painful Visit.

As evident from 2 Cor 7:8-13, the offending individual merely became the pretext for the whole church failing to rally behind Paul until after the Severe Letter. Although Paul can be ecstatic that most of the church has recommitted themselves to him and to the gospel by the time he writes 2 Corinthians, nevertheless, pockets of opposition likely remain under the growing influence of the outside agitators. With chapters 10-13 Paul intends to level a decisive blow against this opposition not only to bring the remainder of the church back to the true gospel but also to shore up any lingering doubts from those who have pledged their loyalty.

Paul's transition to chapter 10 indeed is rocky but, as Danker points out, no more so than Phil 3 or Rom 9. In this commentary, therefore, we will treat 2 Corinthians as a unity and will treat chapters 10-13 as primarily aimed at responding to a vocal minority of the church who remain mesmerized by the outsiders' criticisms of Paul.

PAUL'S OPPONENTS

Second Corinthians resounds with the echo of outside voices filling the Corinthians' heads with notions geared to sever their relationship with Paul. Since Paul originally brought the gospel to Corinth and made it possible for people there to be reconciled with God through Christ and begin a vibrant church meeting in homes throughout the city, others have come to Corinth presenting themselves as superior in authority to the apostle Paul himself. Presuming the opponents in 2 Cor 10-13 and 1-9 are the same, they supposedly have letters of authentication from Jerusalem (3:1-3), Paul blasts them as "false apostles" (11:13) and sarcastically as "super apostles" in 12:11. Nevertheless, they have influenced and confused the Corinthians enough to force Paul to write 2 Corinthians and fill it with self-commendation regarding his integrity and his "superior" apostolic credentials over theirs. He does this because he feels he must in order to win the Corinthians back, but he finds doing so personally disturbing and repugnant.

Whereas Paul finds it difficult to boast about himself, self-commendation seems to be the chief characteristic of these outsiders. Clues from 2 Corinthians indicate that they were proud of their Jewish heritage (11:22), their "Christian" service (11:23), their oratorical skill (11:6), their self-confidence (1:15-17), and their charismatic experiences (12:12). They preached a different gospel than Paul's (11:4). They also accepted money from the Corinthians, unlike Paul who refused it (12:16). They may have viewed Paul's effort to collect money from the Corinthians for the Jerusalem Christians as cutting off their own purse strings and threatening their prosperity in Corinth.

Their heated, personalized efforts to undercut Paul sound like Paul's opposition in Galatians, commonly called Judaizers (Gal 4:17). However, no mention of the law or circumcision in 2 Corinthians clouds this identification and requires that, if these are the same people, they have changed their tune considerably since Galatians. The fact that they tout letters of recommendation - where else but from Jerusalem - makes it difficult to lay aside the picture of a band of renegade, conservative Jewish Christians who first followed Paul to Galatia and now to Corinth with the expressed purpose of replacing Paul's gospel and his authority to represent true Christianity (Gal 1:6-7).

It is going too far to say that their credentials were currently legitimate or that they were actual apostles since Acts 15:24 reports that a faction of Jewish Christians had gone out falsely representing the church to new, Gentile congregations. It is possible, though, that they do have apostolic credentials - perhaps even knew Jesus before his crucifixion - but now are misusing these credentials to subvert Paul's successful mission to Gentiles in Galatia and now also in Corinth and other churches as well.

The picture of these Corinthian opponents as ultraconservative Jewish Christians clashes with a considerable amount of the evidence which points to their Greek or even gnostic origins. Their connection to revelations and wonders, rhetorical skills, "worldly" wisdom, and just their overall egotistical posture must be reckoned with. Undermining at least the gnostic element is the positive use of "knowledge" in 2 Corinthians. Nevertheless, a typical result when these ingredients are combined emerges with a conclusion that they were "Hellenistic Jews who were propagating . . . a 'spiritual gnosticism.'"

However, it seems inconceivable that ultraconservative Jewish Christians coming out of Jerusalem could be pushing a gospel so infiltrated with Greek ideas as to be outside the bounds of Paul's own radicalized message which had stripped unnecessary Jewish elements. Could these Jewish agitators be so clever as to be able to manipulate the Corinthians against Paul by successfully incorporating elements from Greek culture into their opposition to Paul which they themselves don't believe? It doesn't seem likely, but then no identification satisfactorily combines the paradoxical elements of these opponents as currently gleaned from the information we have from 2 Corinthians and the first century. As one commentator astutely points out, any final resolution is also hampered considerably by the fact that 2 Corinthians provides no information about the doctrine or theology of these opponents. Most current discussion recognizes the limitations involved in this discussion and offers no more than conjectures as has been done here.

It's best, then, to keep in mind the characteristics of Paul's opponents available from reading 2 Corinthians without any adamant historical identification until better information becomes available. They were Jewish. They were Greek. They considered themselves Christians. They hated Paul. They hurt Paul, and he feared what more they could do. It was up to him to marshal all the strength and the skills he had to prevent them from doing any further damage. They had backed him into a corner, and he responds with ferocity and emotion in 2 Corinthians, compelled out of his deep love for the Corinthians and his commitment to true, saving Christianity and humble, self-sacrificing leadership.

RELEVANCE

Christians treat 2 Corinthians like the ugly twin sister of 1 Corinthians. First Corinthian's poignant theology about challenging issues attracts everyone's constant attention. Meanwhile, 2 Corinthians sits in the corner waiting for someone to ask it to dance. Yet, once we make some effort to get to know 2 Corinthians, we will be pleasantly surprised.

Today, as in the days of the early church, various outside forces threaten to sever people's loyalty to Christ and cut away at the fabric of the church. It might be a cult like Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses. It might be cultural forces like the challenges of postmodernism or the mind-set of the so-called Generation X which questions absolutes like God and salvation in Christ alone. It might just be an obstinate person who envies the authority of the minister, elders, or deacons and questions their integrity and decision-making at every turn and who draws around him or her an anti-faction.

If you are someone who cares deeply about your local church and would do almost anything to maintain its success and its integrity as a body of Christian believers, then 2 Corinthians will speak to your heart and nourish your soul. You will relate to Paul's agony over this church , feel his compassion, and be engulfed by his intense emotion in this letter. You will take in the principles of genuine church leadership and apply them to your life responsibly to enable you to enrich the quality of your local church.

The comments which follow are intended to help you both to understand 2 Corinthians in its own historical context and to apply its key principles to your own personal context in the church today.

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

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-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

ABBREVIATIONS

1 Clem 1 Clement

1QH The Thanksgiving Hymns (Dead Sea Scroll)

1QM The War Scroll (Dead Sea Scroll)

1QS Rule of the Community (Dead Sea Scroll)

2 Clem 2 Clement

AJP American Journal of Philology

ANRW Aufstieg und Niedergang der römishen Welt, ed. Temporini and Haase

AusBR Australian Biblical Review

AUSS Andrews University Seminary Studies

BA Biblical Archaeologist

BBR Bulletin for Biblical Research

BSac Bibliotheca Sacra

BT Bible Translator

BTB Biblical Theology Bulletin

CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly

CD The Damascus Document (Dead Sea Scroll)

DPL Dictionary of Paul and His Letters, ed. Hawthorne, Martin, and Reid

Ebr. De Ebrietate (Philo)

EvQ Evangelical Quarterly

ExpTim Expository Times

HBT Horizons in Biblical Theology

Heres Qui Rerum Divinarum Heres sit (Philo)

HTR Harvard Theological Review

ICC International Critical Commentary

Int Interpretation

JB Jerusalem Bible

JBL Journal of Biblical Literature

JRH Journal of Religious History

JSNT Journal for the Study of the New Testament

JSOT Journal for the Study of the Old Testament

JTS Journal of Theological Studies

LB Living Bible

NAB New American Bible

NASB New American Standard Bible

NEB New English Bible

Neot Neotestamentica

NICNT New International Commentary on the New Testament

NIDNTT New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, ed. Brown

NIV New International Version

NLT New Living Translation

NovT Novum Testamentum

NovTSupp Novum Testamentum Supplements

NRSV New Revised Standard Version

NTS New Testament Studies

RB Revue Biblique

ResQ Restoration Quarterly

RSV Revised Standard Version

SCJ Stone-Campbell Journal

SJT Scottish Journal of Theology

Spec.Leg. Philo, De Specialibus Legibus

TDNT Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, ed. Kittel and Friedrich

TEV Today's English Version

T.Jos Testament of Joseph

T.Levi Testament of Levi

T.Naph Testament of Naphtali

TS Theological Studies

TynBul Tyndale Bulletin

WW Word and World

ZNW Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenshaft

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

College: 2 Corinthians (Outline)

OUTLINE

I. OPENING - 1:1-2

II. THANKSGIVING - 1:3-11

A. GOD COMFORTS - 1:3-7

B. GOD DELIVERS - 1:8-11

III. DEFENSE OF INTEGRITY - 1:12-2:13

A. CLARITY SOUGHT - 1:12-14

B. SECOND TRAVEL ITINERARY EXPLAINED - 1:15-17

C. CANDOR DEMANDED - 1:18-22

D. THIRD TRAVEL ITINERARY DEFENDED - 1:23-2:4

E. THE OFFENDER FORGIVEN - 2:5-11

F. ACTUAL TRAVEL DESCRIBED - 2:12-13

IV. DEFENSE OF APOSTOLIC MINISTRY IN PRINCIPLE - 2:14-7:4

A. SUFFICIENT FOR MINISTRY - 2:14-3:6

1. The Aroma of Christ Spread - 2:14-17

2. A Living Letter of Recommendation Sent - 3:1-3

3. A Personal Reference Provided - 3:4-6

B. SUPERIOR TO THE OLD COVENANT - 3:7-18

1. Glory Unsurpassed 3:7-11

2. Glory Unobstructed 3:12-18

C. TENACIOUS DESPITE SHORTCOMINGS - 4:1-5:10

1. Christ Preached Plainly - 4:1-6

2. Hardships Overcome because of Jesus' Death - 4:7-12

3. Increasing Multitudes Brought to Life - 4:13-15

4. Driven by Unseen, Eternal Reward - 4:16-18

5. Confident in Eternal Home - 5:1-10

a) Permanent Home Guaranteed - 5:1-5

b) Pleasing the Lord Prioritizes Life - 5:6-10

D. PREACHING RECONCILIATION THROUGH CHRIST - 5:11-6:2

1. Motivated by Christ's Love - 5:11-15

2. Christ's Message of Reconciliation Delivered - 5:16-6:2

E. HARDSHIPS IN MINISTRY - 6:3-10

F. AN APPEAL FOR OPENNESS AND RECONCILIATION - 6:11-7:4

1. Paul's Heart Opened - 6:11-13

2. Holiness Demanded - 6:14-7:1

3. Paul's Trust Expressed - 7:2-4

V. ENCOURAGING NEWS: RELATIONSHIP FULLY RESTORED - 7:5-16

A. TITUS REPORTS LOVE FOR PAUL - 7:5-7

B. TRUE REPENTANCE DEMONSTRATES INNOCENCE - 7:8-13a

C. TITUS EXPRESSED DEEP AFFECTION - 7:13b-16

VI. PREPARATION FOR THE COLLECTION - 8:1-9:15

A. INCENTIVES TOWARD GENEROSITY - 8:1-15

1. Excel Like the Macedonians - 8:1-7

2. Give Like Christ - 8:8-9

3. Complete Your Offering - 8:10-12

4. Achieve Equity - 8:13-15

B. TITUS PLUS TWO OTHERS SENT TO CORINTH TO HELP - 8:16-9:5

1. Criticism to Be Thwarted - 8:16-21

2. Measure Up to Expectations - 8:22-24

3. Follow Through on What Was Begun - 9:1-5

C. MORE INCENTIVE TO BE GENEROUS - 9:6-15

1. God Will Be Generous - 9:6-11

2. God Will Be Praised - 9:12-15

VII. FINAL DEFENSE OF MINISTRY - 10:1-13:10

A. LAUNCH OF A MASSIVE COUNTERATTACK - 10:1-18

1. Powerful Weapons Employed - 10:1-6

2. Forceful Personal Presence Warned - 10:7-10

3. God's Expansion of the Gospel Boasted - 10:12-18

B. COMPARISON TO FALSE APOSTLES MADE - 11:1-15

1. True Message of Jesus Preached - 11:1-6

2. No Money Accepted - 11:7-12

3. The False Apostles Serve Satan - 11:13-15

C. BOASTING AS A "FOOL" - 11:16-33

1. Rationale Provided - 11:16-21a

2. Ancestry and Hardships Listed - 11:21b-29

3. Weakness Boasted - 11:30-33

D. MORE BOASTING - 12:1-10

1. A Vision Divulged - 12:1-6

2. An Irremovable Thorn Remains - 12:7-10

E. "BOASTING" RETROSPECTIVE - 12:11-13

F. PREPARATION FOR THE THIRD VISIT - 12:14-13:10

1. No Exploitation Tactics Employed - 12:14-18

2. More Trouble Feared - 12:19-21

3. Harsh Treatment for Sinners Warned - 13:1-4

4. Faith-testing Evidences Paul's Strength - 13:5-10

VIII. CLOSING REMARKS - 13:11-14

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV