7:1 Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves 2 from everything that could defile the body 3 and the spirit, and thus accomplish 4 holiness out of reverence for God. 5
5:11 Therefore, because we know the fear of the Lord, 7 we try to persuade 8 people, 9 but we are well known 10 to God, and I hope we are well known to your consciences too.
4:1 Therefore, since we have this ministry, just as God has shown us mercy, 26 we do not become discouraged. 27
7:4 I have great confidence in you; I take great pride 36 on your behalf. I am filled with encouragement; 37 I am overflowing with joy in the midst of 38 all our suffering.
10:1 Now I, Paul, appeal to you 43 personally 44 by the meekness and gentleness 45 of Christ (I who am meek 46 when present among 47 you, but am full of courage 48 toward you when away!) –
1 tn Grk “our flesh.”
2 tn Or “purify ourselves.”
3 tn Grk “from every defilement of the flesh.”
4 tn Grk “accomplishing.” The participle has been translated as a finite verb due to considerations of contemporary English style, and “thus” has been supplied to indicate that it represents a result of the previous cleansing.
5 tn Grk “in the fear of God.”
3 tn Or “is all the more.”
4 tn Or “because we know what it means to fear the Lord.”
5 tn The present tense of πείθομεν (peiqomen) has been translated as a conative present.
6 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).
7 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.”
5 tn Grk “I fear lest somehow.”
6 tn Or “the snake.”
7 tn Or “craftiness.”
8 tn Or “corrupted,” “seduced.”
9 tc Although most
6 tn Grk “and I will be found by you.” The passive construction has been converted to an active one in the translation.
7 tn The words “I am afraid that” are not repeated in the Greek text, but are needed for clarity.
8 tn Or “intense anger, hostility.”
7 tn Grk “this very thing, to be grieved.”
8 tn The words “of yourselves” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
9 sn What indignation refers to the Corinthians’ indignation at the offender.
10 tn Or “what zeal.”
11 sn That is, punishment for the offender.
8 tn The words “I am afraid that” are not repeated in the Greek text from v. 20, but are needed for clarity.
9 tn Or “I will mourn over.”
9 tn Grk “just as we have been shown mercy”; ἠλεήθημεν (hlehqhmen) has been translated as a “divine passive” which is a circumlocution for God as the active agent. For clarity this was converted to an active construction with God as subject in the translation.
10 tn Or “we do not lose heart.”
10 tn Or “be absent.”
11 tn Grk “so that on the other hand.”
12 tn The word “him” is not in the Greek text but is supplied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted and must be supplied from the context.
13 tn Grk “comfort him, lest somehow such a person be swallowed up by excessive grief,” an idiom for a person being so overcome with grief as to despair or give up completely (L&N 25.285). In this context of excessive grief or regret for past sins, “overwhelmed” is a good translation since contemporary English idiom speaks of someone “overwhelmed by grief.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the difficulty of expressing a negative purpose/result clause in English, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
12 tn Or “do not lose heart.”
13 tn Grk “our outer man.”
14 tn Grk “our inner [man].”
13 tn Grk “we know that being at home in the body”; an idiom for being alive (L&N 23.91).
14 tn Grk “great is my boasting.”
15 tn Or “comfort.”
16 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.
15 tn Or “be disgraced”; Grk “be put to shame.”
16 tn Grk “by this confidence”; the words “we had in you” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied as a necessary clarification for the English reader.
16 tn The same Greek word (ὀσμή, osmh) translated “odor” here (in relation to the stench of death) has been translated “fragrance” in 2:14 and in the next phrase of the present verse. The word itself can describe a smell or odor either agreeable or disagreeable depending on the context (L&N 79.45).
17 sn These things refer to the things Paul is doing in his apostolic ministry.
17 tn The Greek pronoun (“you”) is plural.
18 tn The word “personally” is supplied to reflect the force of the Greek intensive pronoun αὐτός (autos) at the beginning of the verse.
19 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.”
20 tn Or “who lack confidence.”
21 tn Or “when face to face with.”
22 tn Or “but bold.”
18 tn The words “to you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
19 sn So that when I came. Regarding this still future visit by Paul, see 2 Cor 12:14; 13:1.
19 tn Or “speaking.”
20 tn Or “may think of.”