2 Corinthians 1:4

1:4 who comforts us in all our troubles ¹  so that we may be able to comfort those experiencing any trouble ²  with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

2 Corinthians 1:19

1:19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the one who was proclaimed among you by us – by me and Silvanus ³  and Timothy – was not “Yes” and “No,” but it has always been “Yes” in him.

2 Corinthians 3:3

3:3 revealing ⁴  that you are a letter of Christ, delivered by us, ⁵  written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets ⁶  but on tablets of human hearts.

2 Corinthians 5:1

Living by Faith, Not by Sight

5:1 For we know that if our earthly house, the tent we live in, ⁷  is dismantled, ⁸  we have a building from God, a house not built by human hands, that is eternal in the heavens.

2 Corinthians 5:11

The Message of Reconciliation

5:11 Therefore, because we know the fear of the Lord, ⁹  we try to persuade ¹⁰  people, ¹¹  but we are well known ¹²  to God, and I hope we are well known to your consciences too.

2 Corinthians 9:8

9:8 And God is able to make all grace overflow ¹³  to you so that because you have enough ¹⁴  of everything in every way at all times, you will overflow ¹⁵  in every good work.

2 Corinthians 9:13

9:13 Through the evidence ¹⁶  of this service ¹⁷  they will glorify God because of your obedience to your confession in the gospel of Christ and the generosity of your sharing ¹⁸  with them and with everyone.

2 Corinthians 12:19

12:19 Have you been thinking all this time ¹⁹  that we have been defending ourselves to you? We are speaking in Christ before God, and everything we do, dear friends, is to build you up. ²⁰ 

2 Corinthians 12:21

12:21 I am afraid that ²¹  when I come again, my God may humiliate me before you, and I will grieve for ²²  many of those who previously sinned and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and licentiousness that they have practiced.

2 Corinthians 13:7

13:7 Now we pray to God that you may not do anything wrong, not so that we may appear to have passed the test, ²³  but so that you may do what is right ²⁴  even if we may appear to have failed the test. ²⁵ 

2 Corinthians 13:11

Final Exhortations and Greetings

13:11 Finally, brothers and sisters, ²⁶  rejoice, set things right, be encouraged, agree with one another, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.

[1:4]  ¹ tn Or “our trials”; traditionally, “our affliction.” The term θλῖψις (qliyi") refers to trouble (including persecution) that involves direct suffering (L&N 22.2).

[1:4]  ² tn Or “any trials”; traditionally, “any affliction.”

[1:19]  ³ sn Silvanus is usually considered to be the same person as Silas (L&N 93.340).

[3:3]  ⁵ tn Or “making plain.”

[3:3]  ⁶ tn Grk “cared for by us,” an expression that could refer either to the writing or the delivery of the letter (BDAG 229 s.v. διακονέω 1). Since the following phrase refers to the writing of the letter, and since the previous verse speaks of this “letter” being “written on our [Paul’s and his companions’] hearts” it is more probable that the phrase “cared for by us” refers to the delivery of the letter (in the person of Paul and his companions).

[3:3]  ⁷ sn An allusion to Exod 24:12; 31:18; 34:1; Deut 9:10-11.

[5:1]  ⁷ sn The expression the tent we live in refers to “our earthly house, our body.” Paul uses the metaphor of the physical body as a house or tent, the residence of the immaterial part of a person.

[5:1]  ⁸ tn Or “destroyed.”

[5:11]  ⁹ tn Or “because we know what it means to fear the Lord.”

[5:11]  ¹⁰ tn The present tense of πείθομεν (peiqomen) has been translated as a conative present.

[5:11]  ¹¹ 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).

[5:11]  ¹² 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.”

[9:8]  ¹¹ tn Or “abound.”

[9:8]  ¹² 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”).

[9:8]  ¹³ tn Or “abound.”

[9:13]  ¹³ tn Or “proof,” or perhaps “testing” (NRSV).

[9:13]  ¹⁴ tn Or “ministry.”

[9:13]  ¹⁵ tn Or “your partnership”; Grk “your fellowship.”

[12:19]  ¹⁵ tc The reading “all this time” (πάλαι, palai) is found in several early and important Alexandrian and Western witnesses including א* A B F G 0243 6 33 81 365 1175 1739 1881 lat; the reading πάλιν (palin, “again”) is read by א² D Ψ 0278 Ï sy bo; the reading οὐ πάλαι (ou palai) is read by Ì⁴⁶, making the question even more emphatic. The reading of Ì⁴⁶ could only have arisen from πάλαι. The reading πάλιν is significantly easier (“are you once again thinking that we are defending ourselves?”), for it softens Paul’s tone considerably. It thus seems to be a motivated reading and cannot easily explain the rise of πάλαι. Further, πάλαι has considerable support in the Alexandrian and Western witnesses, rendering it virtually certain as the original wording here.

[12:19]  ¹⁶ tn Or “for your strengthening”; Grk “for your edification.”

[12:21]  ¹⁷ tn The words “I am afraid that” are not repeated in the Greek text from v. 20, but are needed for clarity.

[12:21]  ¹⁸ tn Or “I will mourn over.”

[13:7]  ¹⁹ tn Or “that we may appear to be approved.”

[13:7]  ²⁰ tn Or “what is good.”

[13:7]  ²¹ tn Or “even if we appear disapproved.”

[13:11]  ²¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:8.