5:11 Therefore, because we know the fear of the Lord, 4 we try to persuade 5 people, 6 but we are well known 7 to God, and I hope we are well known to your consciences too.
7:4 I have great confidence in you; I take great pride 8 on your behalf. I am filled with encouragement; 9 I am overflowing with joy in the midst of 10 all our suffering.
12:11 I have become a fool. You yourselves forced me to do it, for I should have been commended by you. For I lack nothing in comparison 21 to those “super-apostles,” even though I am nothing.
13:11 Finally, brothers and sisters, 24 rejoice, set things right, be encouraged, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.
1 tn Grk “so that thanks may be given by many.” The words “to God” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. The passive construction has been converted to an active one for clarity, in keeping with contemporary English style.
2 tn Grk “that we are your boast even as you are our boast.”
3 tc ‡ On the wording “the Lord Jesus” (τοῦ κυρίου ᾿Ιησοῦ, tou kuriou Ihsou) there is some variation in the extant witnesses: ἡμῶν (Jhmwn, “our”) is found after κυρίου in several significant witnesses (א B F G P 0121 0243 6 33 81 1739 1881 2464 al lat co); the pronoun is lacking from Ì46vid A C D Ψ Ï. Although in Paul “our Lord Jesus Christ” is a common expression, “our Lord Jesus” is relatively infrequent (cf., e.g., Rom 16:20; 2 Cor 1:14; 1 Thess 2:19; 3:11, 13; 2 Thess 1:8, 12). “The Lord Jesus” occurs about as often as “our Lord Jesus” (cf. 1 Cor 11:23; 16:23; 2 Cor 4:14; 11:31; Eph 1:15; 1 Thess 4:2; 2 Thess 1:7; Phlm 5). Thus, on balance, since scribes would tend to expand on the text, it is probably best to consider the shorter reading as authentic. NA27 places the pronoun in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.
3 tn Or “because we know what it means to fear the Lord.”
4 tn The present tense of πείθομεν (peiqomen) has been translated as a conative present.
5 tn Grk “men”; but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is generic here since clearly both men and women are in view (Paul did not attempt to win only men to the gospel he preached).
6 tn Or “clearly evident.” BDAG 1048 s.v. φανερόω 2.b.β has “θεῷ πεφανερώμεθα we are well known to God 2 Cor 5:11a, cp. 11b; 11:6 v.l.”
4 tn Grk “great is my boasting.”
5 tn Or “comfort.”
6 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.
5 tn Or “all of you have put his mind at ease.”
6 tn Or “is all the more.”
7 tn This verb has been translated as an epistolary aorist.
8 tn That is, ready with the collection for the saints.
8 tn The word “us” is not in the Greek text but is supplied. Indirect objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context, and must be supplied for the modern English reader.
9 tn Grk “I will not be put to shame,” “I will not be ashamed.” The words “of doing so” are supplied to clarify for the reader that Paul will not be ashamed of boasting somewhat more about the authority the Lord gave him (beginning of v. 8).
9 tn Or “boast excessively.” The phrase εἰς τὰ ἄμετρα (ei" ta ametra) is an idiom; literally it means “into that which is not measured,” that is, a point on a scale that goes beyond what might be expected (L&N 78.27).
10 tn The words “will confine our boasting” are not in the Greek text, but the reference to boasting must be repeated from the previous clause to clarify for the modern reader what is being limited.
11 tn Grk “according to the measure of the rule which God has apportioned to us as a measure”; for the translation used in the text see L&N 37.100.
10 tn Grk “with the gospel of Christ,” but since Χριστοῦ (Cristou) is clearly an objective genitive here, it is better to translate “with the gospel about Christ.”
11 tn Or “I am in no way inferior.”
12 tc The reading “all this time” (πάλαι, palai) is found in several early and important Alexandrian and Western witnesses including א* A B F G 0243 6 33 81 365 1175 1739 1881 lat; the reading πάλιν (palin, “again”) is read by א2 D Ψ 0278 Ï sy bo; the reading οὐ πάλαι (ou palai) is read by Ì46, making the question even more emphatic. The reading of Ì46 could only have arisen from πάλαι. The reading πάλιν is significantly easier (“are you once again thinking that we are defending ourselves?”), for it softens Paul’s tone considerably. It thus seems to be a motivated reading and cannot easily explain the rise of πάλαι. Further, πάλαι has considerable support in the Alexandrian and Western witnesses, rendering it virtually certain as the original wording here.
13 tn Or “for your strengthening”; Grk “for your edification.”
13 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:8.
14 tc Most witnesses, especially later ones (א2 D Ψ Ï lat sy bo), conclude this letter with ἀμήν (amhn, “amen”), while several early and important