2 Corinthians 1:3

Thanksgiving for God’s Comfort

1:3 Blessed is ¹  the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

2 Corinthians 1:21

1:21 But it is God who establishes ²  us together with you in Christ and who anointed us, ³ 

2 Corinthians 11:11

11:11 Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! ⁴ 

2 Corinthians 6:16

6:16 And what mutual agreement does the temple of God have with idols? For we are ⁵  the temple of the living God, just as God said, “I will live in them ⁶  and will walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” ⁷ 

2 Corinthians 1:18

1:18 But as God is faithful, our message to you is not “Yes” and “No.”

2 Corinthians 5:5

5:5 Now the one who prepared us for this very purpose ⁸  is God, who gave us the Spirit as a down payment. ⁹ 

2 Corinthians 7:6

7:6 But God, who encourages ¹⁰  the downhearted, encouraged ¹¹  us by the arrival of Titus.

2 Corinthians 9:7-8

9:7 Each one of you should give ¹²  just as he has decided in his heart, ¹³  not reluctantly ¹⁴  or under compulsion, ¹⁵  because God loves a cheerful giver. 9:8 And God is able to make all grace overflow ¹⁶  to you so that because you have enough ¹⁷  of everything in every way at all times, you will overflow ¹⁸  in every good work.

2 Corinthians 10:13

10:13 But we will not boast beyond certain limits, ¹⁹  but will confine our boasting ²⁰  according to the limits of the work to which God has appointed us, ²¹  that reaches even as far as you.

2 Corinthians 11:31

11:31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is blessed forever, knows I am not lying.

2 Corinthians 12:3

12:3 And I know that this man (whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows)

2 Corinthians 13:11

Final Exhortations and Greetings

13:11 Finally, brothers and sisters, ²²  rejoice, set things right, be encouraged, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.

2 Corinthians 4:4

4:4 among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe ²³  so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel ²⁴  of Christ, ²⁵  who is the image of God.

2 Corinthians 4:6

4:6 For God, who said “Let light shine out of darkness,” ²⁶  is the one who shined in our hearts to give us the light of the glorious knowledge ²⁷  of God in the face of Christ. ²⁸ 

2 Corinthians 5:19

5:19 In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people’s trespasses against them, and he has given us ²⁹  the message of reconciliation.

2 Corinthians 12:2

12:2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago (whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows) was caught up to the third heaven.

2 Corinthians 12:21

12:21 I am afraid that ³⁰  when I come again, my God may humiliate me before you, and I will grieve for ³¹  many of those who previously sinned and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and licentiousness that they have practiced.

¹ tn There is no verb in the Greek text; either the optative (“be”) or the indicative (“is”) can be supplied. The meaning of the term εὐλογητός (euloghtos) and the author’s intention at this point in the epistle must both come into play to determine which is the preferred nuance. εὐλογητός as an adjective can mean either that one is praised or that one is blessed, that is, in a place of favor and benefit. The meaning “blessed” would be more naturally paired with an indicative verb and would suggest that blessedness is an intrinsic part of God’s character. The meaning “praised” would be more naturally paired with an optative verb and would suggest that God ought to be praised. Pauline style in the epistles generally moves from statements to obligations, expressing the reality first and then the believer’s necessary response. When considered as a whole, although a decision is difficult, the general Pauline style of beginning with statements and moving to obligations argues for the indicative. Cf. also Eph 1:3; 1 Pet 1:3.

² tn Or “strengthens.”

³ tn Grk “But he who establishes us together with you in Christ and anointed us is God.”

³ tn Grk “God knows!” The words “I do” are supplied for clarity. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

⁴ tc Most witnesses, including some important ones (Ì⁴⁶ א² C D² F G Ψ 0209 Ï lat sy Tert), read ὑμεῖς…ἐστε (Jumei"…este, “you are”) instead of ἡμεῖς…ἐσμεν (Jhmei"…esmen, “we are”) here, but several other early and important mss (א* B D* L P 0243 6 33 81 326 365 1175 1739 1881 2464 co Cl Or) have ἡμεῖς…ἐσμεν. The external evidence is somewhat in favor of the first person pronoun and verb; the internal evidence weighs in even stronger. In light of the parallel in 1 Cor 3:16, where Paul uses ἐστε (“you are the temple of God”), as well as the surrounding context here in which the second person verb or pronoun is used in vv. 14, 17, and 18, the second person reading seems obviously motivated. The first person reading can explain the rise of the other reading, but the reverse is not as easily done. Consequently, the first person reading of ἡμεῖς…ἐσμεν has all the credentials of authenticity.

⁵ tn Or “live among them,” “live with them.”

⁶ sn A quotation from Lev 26:12; also similar to Jer 32:38; Ezek 37:27.

⁵ tn Grk “for this very thing.”

⁶ tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit” (see the note on the phrase “down payment” in 1:22).

⁶ tn Or “comforts,” “consoles.”

⁷ tn Or “comforted,” “consoled.”

⁷ tn Or “must do.” The words “of you” and “should give” are not in the Greek text, which literally reads, “Each one just as he has decided in his heart.” The missing words are an ellipsis; these or similar phrases must be supplied for the English reader.

⁸ tn Or “in his mind.”

⁹ tn Or “not from regret”; Grk “not out of grief.”

¹⁰ tn Or “not out of a sense of duty”; Grk “from necessity.”

⁸ tn Or “abound.”

⁹ tn Or “so that by having enough.” The Greek participle can be translated as a participle of cause (“because you have enough”) or means (“by having enough”).

¹⁰ tn Or “abound.”

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 “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:8.

¹¹ tn Or “of unbelievers.”

¹² tn Grk “the gospel of the glory”; δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

¹³ tn Or “so that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ would not be evident to them” (L&N 28.37).

¹² sn An allusion to Gen 1:3; see also Isa 9:2.

¹³ tn Grk “the light of the knowledge of the glory”; δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

¹⁴ tc ‡ Most witnesses, including several early and important ones (Ì⁴⁶ א C H Ψ 0209 1739^c Ï sy), read ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ (Ihsou Cristou, “Jesus Christ”), while other important witnesses, especially of the Western text (D F G 0243 630 1739* 1881 lat Ambst), have Χριστοῦ ᾿Ιησοῦ. The reading with just Χριστοῦ is found in A B 33 {sa} Tert {Or Ath Chr}. Even though the witnesses for the shorter reading are not numerous, they are weighty. And in light of the natural scribal proclivity to fill out the text, particularly with reference to divine names, as well as the discrepancy among the witnesses as to the order of the names, the simple reading Χριστοῦ seems to be the best candidate for authenticity. NA²⁷ reads ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ with ᾿Ιησοῦ in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

¹³ tn Or “he has entrusted to us.”

¹⁴ tn The words “I am afraid that” are not repeated in the Greek text from v. 20, but are needed for clarity.

¹⁵ tn Or “I will mourn over.”