2 Corinthians 10:1-2

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!) – 10:2 now I ask that when I am present I may not have to be bold with the confidence that (I expect) I will dare to use against some who consider us to be behaving ⁷  according to human standards. ⁸ 

2 Corinthians 10:10

10:10 because some say, “His letters are weighty and forceful, but his physical presence is weak ⁹  and his speech is of no account.” ¹⁰ 

2 Corinthians 13:10

13:10 Because of this I am writing these things while absent, so that when I arrive ¹¹  I may not have to deal harshly with you ¹²  by using my authority – the Lord gave it to me for building up, not for tearing down!

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 “consider us as walking.”

⁸ tn Grk “according to the flesh.”

⁹ tn Or “unimpressive.”

¹⁰ tn Or “is contemptible”; Grk “is despised.”

¹¹ tn Grk “when I am present,” but in the context of Paul’s third (upcoming) visit to Corinth, this is better translated as “when I arrive.”

¹² tn The words “with you” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.