Discovery Box2 Corinthians 1:12--2:17
Context1:12 For our reason for confidence 1 is this: the testimony of our conscience, that with pure motives 2 and sincerity which are from God 3 – not by human wisdom 4 but by the grace of God – we conducted ourselves in the world, and all the more 5 toward you. 1:13 For we do not write you anything other than what 6 you can read and also understand. But I hope that you will understand completely 7 1:14 just as also you have partly understood us, that we are your source of pride just as you also are ours 8 in the day of the Lord Jesus. 9 1:15 And with this confidence I intended to come to you first so that you would get a second opportunity to see us, 10 1:16 and through your help to go on into Macedonia and then from Macedonia to come back 11 to you and be helped on our way into Judea by you. 1:17 Therefore when I was planning to do this, I did not do so without thinking about what I was doing, did I? 12 Or do I make my plans 13 according to mere human standards 14 so that I would be saying 15 both “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? 1:18 But as God is faithful, our message to you is not “Yes” and “No.” 1:19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the one who was proclaimed among you by us – by me and Silvanus 16 and Timothy – was not “Yes” and “No,” but it has always been “Yes” in him. 1:20 For every one of God’s promises are “Yes” in him; therefore also through him the “Amen” is spoken, to the glory we give to God. 1:21 But it is God who establishes 17 us together with you in Christ and who anointed us, 18 1:22 who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a down payment. 19
1:23 Now I appeal to God as my witness, 20 that to spare 21 you I did not come again to Corinth. 22 1:24 I do not mean that we rule over your faith, but we are workers with you for your joy, because by faith you stand firm. 23 2:1 So 24 I made up my own mind 25 not to pay you another painful visit. 26 2:2 For if I make you sad, who would be left to make me glad 27 but the one I caused to be sad? 2:3 And I wrote this very thing to you, 28 so that when I came 29 I would not have sadness from those who ought to make me rejoice, since I am confident in you all that my joy would be yours. 2:4 For out of great distress and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears, not to make you sad, but to let you know the love that I have especially for you. 30 2:5 But if anyone has caused sadness, he has not saddened me alone, but to some extent (not to exaggerate) 31 he has saddened all of you as well. 2:6 This punishment on such an individual by the majority is enough for him, 2:7 so that now instead 32 you should rather forgive and comfort him. 33 This will keep him from being overwhelmed by excessive grief to the point of despair. 34 2:8 Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. 35 2:9 For this reason also I wrote you: 36 to test you to see 37 if you are obedient in everything. 2:10 If you forgive anyone for anything, I also forgive him – for indeed what I have forgiven (if I have forgiven anything) I did so for you in the presence of Christ, 2:11 so that we may not be exploited 38 by Satan (for we are not ignorant of his schemes). 2:12 Now when I arrived in Troas 39 to proclaim the gospel of Christ, even though the Lord had opened 40 a door of opportunity 41 for me, 2:13 I had no relief in my spirit, 42 because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said good-bye to them 43 and set out 44 for Macedonia.
2:14 But thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession 45 in Christ 46 and who makes known 47 through us the fragrance that consists of the knowledge of him in every place. 2:15 For we are a sweet aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing – 2:16 to the latter an odor 48 from death to death, but to the former a fragrance from life to life. And who is adequate for these things? 49 2:17 For we are not like so many others, hucksters who peddle the word of God for profit, 50 but we are speaking in Christ before 51 God as persons of sincerity, 52 as persons sent from God.
[1:12] 1 tn Or “for boasting.”
[1:12] 2 tc Two viable variants exist at this place in the text: ἁγιότητι (Jagiothti, “holiness”) vs. ἁπλότητι (Japlothti, “pure motives”). A confusion of letters could well have produced the variant (TCGNT 507): In uncial script the words would have been written agiothti and aplothti. This, however, does not explain which reading created the other. Overall ἁπλότητι, though largely a Western-Byzantine reading (א2 D F G Ï lat sy), is better suited to the context; it is also a Pauline word while ἁγιότης (Jagioth") is not. It also best explains the rise of the other variants, πραότητι (praothti, “gentleness”) and {σπλάγχνοις} (splancnoi", “compassion”). On the other hand, the external evidence in favor of ἁγιότητι is extremely strong (Ì46 א* A B C K P Ψ 0121 0243 33 81 1739 1881 al co). This diversity of
[1:12] 3 tn Grk “pure motives and sincerity of God.”
[1:12] 4 tn Or “not by worldly wisdom.”
[1:12] 5 tn Or “and especially.”
[1:13] 6 tn Grk “than the things.”
[1:13] 7 tn Grk “to the end,” a Greek idiom for “fully,” “totally,” “completely.”
[1:14] 8 tn Grk “that we are your boast even as you are our boast.”
[1:14] 9 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.
[1:15] 10 tn Grk “a second grace,” “a second favor” (used figuratively of a second visit by Paul).
[1:16] 11 tn Grk “come again.”
[1:17] 12 tn The Greek construction anticipates a negative answer. This is indicated in the translation by the ‘tag’ question “did I?” at the end of the sentence.
[1:17] 13 tn Grk “the things that I plan, do I plan (them).”
[1:17] 14 tn Grk “according to the flesh.”
[1:17] 15 tn Grk “so that with me there should be.”
[1:19] 16 sn Silvanus is usually considered to be the same person as Silas (L&N 93.340).
[1:21] 17 tn Or “strengthens.”
[1:21] 18 tn Grk “But he who establishes us together with you in Christ and anointed us is God.”
[1:22] 19 tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit.”
[1:23] 20 tn Grk “I call upon God as witness against my soul.” Normally this implies an appeal for help (L&N 33.176).
[1:23] 21 tn Here φειδόμενος (feidomeno") has been translated as a telic participle.
[1:23] 22 sn Paul had promised to come again to visit (see 2 Cor 1:15, 24) but explains here why he had changed his plans.
[1:24] 23 tn Or “because you stand firm in the faith.”
[2:1] 24 tc Although usually δέ (de, “now”; found in א A C D1 F G Ψ 0285 Ï lat) should take precedent over γάρ (gar) in textually disputed places in the corpus Paulinum, the credentials for γάρ here are not easily dismissed (Ì46 B 0223 0243 33 1739 1881 al); here it is the preferred reading, albeit slightly.
[2:1] 25 tn Or “I decided this for myself.”
[2:1] 26 tn Grk “not to come to you again in sorrow.”
[2:2] 27 tn Or “to cheer me up.” L&N 25.131 translates this “For if I were to make you sad, who would be left to cheer me up?”
[2:3] 28 tn The words “to you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
[2:3] 29 sn So that when I came. Regarding this still future visit by Paul, see 2 Cor 12:14; 13:1.
[2:4] 30 tn Or “the love that I have in great measure for you.”
[2:5] 31 tn Or “(not to say too much)”; Grk “(not to burden you [with words]).”
[2:7] 32 tn Grk “so that on the other hand.”
[2:7] 33 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.
[2:7] 34 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.
[2:8] 35 tn Or “I urge you to show that your love for him is real.”
[2:9] 36 tn The word “you” is not in the Greek text, but is implied (as an understood direct object).
[2:9] 37 tn Grk “to know the proof of you,” that is, to know if the Corinthians’ obedience to Paul as an apostle was genuine (L&N 72.7).
[2:11] 38 tn Or “be taken advantage of.”
[2:12] 39 sn Troas was a city and region in the northwest corner of Asia Minor.
[2:12] 40 tn This has been translated as a concessive participle (“even though”). The passive construction (“a door of opportunity had been opened for me by the Lord”) has been converted to an active one in the translation for clarity.
[2:12] 41 tn Grk “a door”; the phrase ἀνοίγω θύραν (anoigw quran, “to open a door”) is an idiom meaning “to make possible some opportunity” (L&N 71.9).
[2:13] 42 tn Or “I had no peace of mind.”
[2:13] 43 tn Or “I took my leave of them.”
[2:13] 44 tn Since this refers to the outset of a journey, the aorist ἐξῆλθον (exhlqon) is taken ingressively.
[2:14] 45 tn Or “who always causes us to triumph.”
[2:14] 46 tn Or “in the Messiah.”
[2:14] 47 tn Or “who reveals.”
[2:16] 48 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).
[2:16] 49 sn These things refer to the things Paul is doing in his apostolic ministry.
[2:17] 50 tn The participle καπηλεύοντες (kaphleuonte") refers to those engaged in retail business, but with the negative connotations of deceptiveness and greed – “to peddle for profit,” “to huckster” (L&N 57.202). In the translation a noun form (“hucksters”) has been used in combination with the English verb “peddle…for profit” to convey the negative connotations of this term.
