2 Corinthians 10:1

Paul’s Authority from the Lord

10:1 Now I, Paul, appeal to you ¹  personally ²  by the meekness and gentleness ³  of Christ (I who am meek ⁴  when present among ⁵  you, but am full of courage ⁶  toward you when away!) –

2 Corinthians 10:11

10:11 Let such a person consider this: What we say ⁷  by letters when we are absent, we also are in actions when we are present.

2 Corinthians 13:2

13:2 I said before when I was present the second time and now, though absent, I say again to those who sinned previously and to all the rest, that if I come again, I will not spare anyone, ⁸ 

Colossians 2:5

2:5 For though ⁹  I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, rejoicing to see ¹⁰  your morale ¹¹  and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

Colossians 2:1

2:1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you, ¹²  and for those in Laodicea, and for those who have not met me face to face. ¹³ 

Colossians 2:17

2:17 these are only ¹⁴  the shadow of the things to come, but the reality ¹⁵  is Christ! ¹⁶ 

¹ tn The Greek pronoun (“you”) is plural.

² tn The word “personally” is supplied to reflect the force of the Greek intensive pronoun αὐτός (autos) at the beginning of the verse.

³ tn Or “leniency and clemency.” D. Walker, “Paul’s Offer of Leniency of Christ (2 Corinthians 10:1): Populist Ideology and Rhetoric in a Pauline Letter Fragment (2 Cor 10:1-13:10)” (Ph.D. diss., University of Chicago, 1998), argues for this alternative translation for three main reasons: (1) When the two Greek nouns πραΰτης and ἐπιείκεια (prauth" and ejpieikeia) are used together, 90% of the time the nuance is “leniency and clemency.” (2) “Leniency and clemency” has a military connotation, which is precisely what appears in the following verses. (3) 2 Cor 10-13 speaks of Paul’s sparing use of his authority, which points to the nuance of “leniency and clemency.”

⁴ tn Or “who lack confidence.”

⁵ tn Or “when face to face with.”

⁶ tn Or “but bold.”

⁷ tn Grk “what we are in word.”

⁸ tn The word “anyone” is not in the Greek text but is implied.

⁹ tn The conditional particle εἰ (ei) together with καί (kai) here indicates a first class condition in Greek and carries a concessive force, especially when seen in contrast to the following phrase which begins with ἀλλά (alla).

¹⁰ tn Grk “rejoicing and seeing.”

¹¹ tn The Greek word τάξις can mean “order,” “discipline,” or even “unbroken ranks” (REB).

¹² tn Or “I want you to know how hard I am working for you…”

¹³ tn Grk “as many as have not seen my face in the flesh.”

¹⁴ tn The word “only,” though not in the Greek text, is supplied in the English translation to bring out the force of the Greek phrase.

¹⁵ tn Grk “but the body of Christ.” The term body here, when used in contrast to shadow (σκιά, skia) indicates the opposite meaning, i.e., the reality or substance itself.

¹⁶ tn The genitive τοῦ Χριστοῦ (tou Cristou) is appositional and translated as such: “the reality is Christ.”