Discovery Box2 Corinthians 2:14--6:10
Context2:14 But thanks be to God who always leads us in triumphal procession 1 in Christ 2 and who makes known 3 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 4 from death to death, but to the former a fragrance from life to life. And who is adequate for these things? 5 2:17 For we are not like so many others, hucksters who peddle the word of God for profit, 6 but we are speaking in Christ before 7 God as persons of sincerity, 8 as persons sent from God.
3:1 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? We don’t need letters of recommendation to you or from you as some other people do, do we? 9 3:2 You yourselves are our letter, 10 written on our hearts, known and read by everyone, 3:3 revealing 11 that you are a letter of Christ, delivered by us, 12 written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets 13 but on tablets of human hearts.
3:4 Now we have such confidence in God through Christ. 3:5 Not that we are adequate 14 in ourselves to consider anything as if it were coming from ourselves, but our adequacy 15 is from God, 3:6 who made us adequate 16 to be servants of a new covenant 17 not based on the letter but on the Spirit, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
3:7 But if the ministry that produced death – carved in letters on stone tablets 18 – came with glory, so that the Israelites 19 could not keep their eyes fixed on the face of Moses because of the glory of his face 20 (a glory 21 which was made ineffective), 22 3:8 how much more glorious will the ministry of the Spirit be? 23 3:9 For if there was glory in the ministry that produced condemnation, 24 how much more does the ministry that produces righteousness 25 excel 26 in glory! 3:10 For indeed, what had been glorious now 27 has no glory because of the tremendously greater glory of what replaced it. 28 3:11 For if what was made ineffective 29 came with 30 glory, how much more has what remains 31 come in glory! 3:12 Therefore, since we have such a hope, we behave with great boldness, 32 3:13 and not like Moses who used to put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites 33 from staring 34 at the result 35 of the glory that was made ineffective. 36 3:14 But their minds were closed. 37 For to this very day, the same veil remains when they hear the old covenant read. 38 It has not been removed because only in Christ is it taken away. 39 3:15 But until this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds, 40 3:16 but when one 41 turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 42 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is present, 43 there is freedom. 3:18 And we all, with unveiled faces reflecting the glory of the Lord, 44 are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another, 45 which is from 46 the Lord, who is the Spirit. 47
4:1 Therefore, since we have this ministry, just as God has shown us mercy, 48 we do not become discouraged. 49 4:2 But we have rejected 50 shameful hidden deeds, 51 not behaving 52 with deceptiveness 53 or distorting the word of God, but by open proclamation of the truth we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience before God. 4:3 But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing, 4:4 among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe 54 so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel 55 of Christ, 56 who is the image of God. 4:5 For we do not proclaim 57 ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves 58 for Jesus’ sake. 4:6 For God, who said “Let light shine out of darkness,” 59 is the one who shined in our hearts to give us the light of the glorious knowledge 60 of God in the face of Christ. 61
4:7 But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that the extraordinary power 62 belongs to God and does not come from us. 4:8 We are experiencing trouble on every side, 63 but are not crushed; we are perplexed, 64 but not driven to despair; 4:9 we are persecuted, but not abandoned; 65 we are knocked down, 66 but not destroyed, 4:10 always carrying around in our body the death of Jesus, 67 so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible 68 in our body. 4:11 For we who are alive are constantly being handed over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible 69 in our mortal body. 70 4:12 As a result, 71 death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. 72 4:13 But since we have the same spirit of faith as that shown in 73 what has been written, “I believed; therefore I spoke,” 74 we also believe, therefore we also speak. 4:14 We do so 75 because we know that the one who raised up Jesus 76 will also raise us up with Jesus and will bring us with you into his presence. 4:15 For all these things are for your sake, so that the grace that is including 77 more and more people may cause thanksgiving to increase 78 to the glory of God. 4:16 Therefore we do not despair, 79 but even if our physical body 80 is wearing away, our inner person 81 is being renewed day by day. 4:17 For our momentary, light suffering 82 is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison 4:18 because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.
5:1 For we know that if our earthly house, the tent we live in, 83 is dismantled, 84 we have a building from God, a house not built by human hands, that is eternal in the heavens. 5:2 For in this earthly house 85 we groan, because we desire to put on 86 our heavenly dwelling, 5:3 if indeed, after we have put on 87 our heavenly house, 88 we will not be found naked. 5:4 For we groan while we are in this tent, 89 since we are weighed down, 90 because we do not want to be unclothed, but clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5:5 Now the one who prepared us for this very purpose 91 is God, who gave us the Spirit as a down payment. 92 5:6 Therefore we are always full of courage, and we know that as long as we are alive here on earth 93 we are absent from the Lord – 5:7 for we live 94 by faith, not by sight. 5:8 Thus we are full of courage and would prefer to be away 95 from the body and at home with the Lord. 5:9 So then whether we are alive 96 or away, we make it our ambition to please him. 97 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, 98 so that each one may be paid back according to what he has done while in the body, whether good or evil. 99
5:11 Therefore, because we know the fear of the Lord, 100 we try to persuade 101 people, 102 but we are well known 103 to God, and I hope we are well known to your consciences too. 5:12 We are not trying to commend 104 ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to be proud of us, 105 so that you may be able to answer those who take pride 106 in outward appearance 107 and not in what is in the heart. 5:13 For if we are out of our minds, it is for God; if we are of sound mind, it is for you. 5:14 For the love of Christ 108 controls us, since we have concluded this, that Christ 109 died for all; therefore all have died. 5:15 And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised. 110 5:16 So then from now on we acknowledge 111 no one from an outward human point of view. 112 Even though we have known Christ from such a human point of view, 113 now we do not know him in that way any longer. 5:17 So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; what is old has passed away 114 – look, what is new 115 has come! 116 5:18 And all these things are from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation. 5:19 In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people’s trespasses against them, and he has given us 117 the message of reconciliation. 5:20 Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making His plea 118 through us. We plead with you 119 on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God!” 5:21 God 120 made the one who did not know sin 121 to be sin for us, so that in him 122 we would become the righteousness of God.
6:1 Now because we are fellow workers, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 123 6:2 For he says, “I heard you at the acceptable time, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” 124 Look, now is the acceptable time; look, now is the day of salvation! 6:3 We do not give anyone 125 an occasion for taking an offense in anything, 126 so that no fault may be found with our ministry. 6:4 But as God’s servants, 127 we have commended ourselves in every way, 128 with great endurance, in persecutions, 129 in difficulties, in distresses, 6:5 in beatings, in imprisonments, in riots, 130 in troubles, 131 in sleepless nights, in hunger, 6:6 by purity, by knowledge, by patience, by benevolence, by the Holy Spirit, 132 by genuine 133 love, 6:7 by truthful 134 teaching, 135 by the power of God, with weapons of righteousness both for the right hand and for the left, 136 6:8 through glory and dishonor, through slander and praise; regarded as impostors, 137 and yet true; 6:9 as unknown, and yet well-known; as dying and yet – see! – we continue to live; as those who are scourged 138 and yet not executed; 6:10 as sorrowful, but always rejoicing, as poor, but making many rich, as having nothing, and yet possessing everything.
[2:14] 1 tn Or “who always causes us to triumph.”
[2:14] 2 tn Or “in the Messiah.”
[2:16] 4 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] 5 sn These things refer to the things Paul is doing in his apostolic ministry.
[2:17] 6 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.
[2:17] 7 tn Or “in the presence of.”
[2:17] 8 tn Or “persons of pure motives.”
[3:1] 9 tn The Greek construction anticipates a negative reply (“No, we do not”) which is indicated in the translation by the ‘tag’ at the end, “do we?”
[3:2] 10 tn That is, “letter of recommendation.”
[3:3] 11 tn Or “making plain.”
[3:3] 12 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] 13 sn An allusion to Exod 24:12; 31:18; 34:1; Deut 9:10-11.
[3:6] 17 sn This new covenant is promised in Jer 31:31-34; 32:40.
[3:7] 18 tn Grk “on stones”; but since this is clearly an allusion to the tablets of the Decalogue (see 2 Cor 3:3) the word “tablets” was supplied in the translation to make the connection clear.
[3:7] 19 tn Grk “so that the sons of Israel.”
[3:7] 20 sn The glory of his face. When Moses came down from Mt. Sinai with the tablets of the Decalogue, the people were afraid to approach him because his face was so radiant (Exod 34:29-30).
[3:7] 21 tn The words “a glory” are not in the Greek text, but the reference to “glory” has been repeated from the previous clause for clarity.
[3:7] 22 tn Or “which was transitory.” Traditionally this phrase is translated as “which was fading away.” The verb καταργέω in the corpus Paulinum uniformly has the meaning “to render inoperative, ineffective”; the same nuance is appropriate here. The glory of Moses’ face was rendered ineffective by the veil Moses wore. For discussion of the meaning of this verb in this context, see S. J. Hafemann, Paul, Moses, and the History of Israel (WUNT 81), 301-13. A similar translation has been adopted in the two other occurrences of the verb in this paragraph in vv. 11 and 13.
[3:8] 23 tn Grk “how will not rather the ministry of the Spirit be with glory?”
[3:9] 24 tn Grk “the ministry of condemnation”; translated as an objective genitive, “the ministry that produced condemnation.”
[3:9] 25 tn Grk “the ministry of righteousness”; translated as an objective genitive, “the ministry that produces righteousness.”
[3:9] 26 tn Traditionally, “abound.”
[3:10] 27 tn Grk “in this case.”
[3:10] 28 tn The words “of what replaced it” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied to clarify the meaning.
[3:11] 29 tn Or “what was fading away.” See note on “which was made ineffective” in v. 7.
[3:11] 30 tn Or “through” (διά, dia).
[3:11] 31 tn Or “what is permanent.”
[3:12] 32 tn Or “we employ great openness of speech.”
[3:13] 33 tn Grk “the sons of Israel.”
[3:13] 34 tn Or “from gazing intently.”
[3:13] 35 tn Or “end.” The word τέλος (telos) can mean both “a point of time marking the end of a duration, end, termination, cessation” and “the goal toward which a movement is being directed, end, goal, outcome” (see BDAG 998-999 s.v.). The translation accepts the interpretation that Moses covered the glory of his face with the veil to prevent Israel from being judged by the glory of God (see S. J. Hafemann, Paul, Moses, and the History of Israel [WUNT 81], 347-62); in this case the latter meaning for τέλος is more appropriate.
[3:13] 36 tn Or “was fading away”; Grk “on the result of what was made ineffective.” The referent (glory) has been specified in the translation for clarity. See note on “which was made ineffective” in v. 7.
[3:14] 37 tn Grk “their minds were hardened.”
[3:14] 38 tn Grk “the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant”; the phrase “they hear” has been introduced (“when they hear the old covenant read”) to make the link with the “Israelites” (v. 13) whose minds were closed (v. 14a) more obvious to the reader.
[3:14] 39 tn Or “only in Christ is it eliminated.”
[3:15] 40 tn Grk “their heart.”
[3:16] 41 tn Or perhaps “when(ever) he turns,” referring to Moses.
[3:16] 42 sn An allusion to Exod 34:34. The entire verse may refer to Moses, viewing him as a type portraying the Jewish convert to Christianity in Paul’s day.
[3:17] 43 tn Grk “where the Spirit of the Lord is”; the word “present” is supplied to specify that the presence of the Lord’s Spirit is emphasized rather than the mere existence of the Lord’s Spirit.
[3:18] 44 tn Or “we all with unveiled faces beholding the glory of the Lord as in a mirror.”
[3:18] 45 tn Grk “from glory to glory.”
[3:18] 46 tn Grk “just as from.”
[3:18] 47 tn Grk “from the Lord, the Spirit”; the genitive πνεύματος (pneumato") has been translated as a genitive of apposition.
[4:1] 48 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.
[4:1] 49 tn Or “we do not lose heart.”
[4:2] 50 tn L&N 13.156; the word can also mean “to assert opposition to,” thus here “we have denounced” (L&N 33.220).
[4:2] 51 tn Grk “the hidden things [deeds] of shame”; here αἰσχύνης (aiscunh") has been translated as an attributive genitive.
[4:2] 52 tn Or “not conducting ourselves”; Grk “not walking” (a common NT idiom for conduct, way of life, or behavior).
[4:4] 54 tn Or “of unbelievers.”
[4:4] 55 tn Grk “the gospel of the glory”; δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.
[4:4] 56 tn Or “so that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ would not be evident to them” (L&N 28.37).
[4:5] 58 tn Traditionally, “servants.” Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.
[4:6] 59 sn An allusion to Gen 1:3; see also Isa 9:2.
[4:6] 60 tn Grk “the light of the knowledge of the glory”; δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.
[4:6] 61 tc ‡ Most witnesses, including several early and important ones (Ì46 א C H Ψ 0209 1739c Ï sy), read ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ (Ihsou Cristou, “Jesus Christ”), while other important witnesses, especially of the Western text (D F G 0243 630 1739* 1881 lat Ambst), have Χριστοῦ ᾿Ιησοῦ. The reading with just Χριστοῦ is found in A B 33 {sa} Tert {Or Ath Chr}. Even though the witnesses for the shorter reading are not numerous, they are weighty. And in light of the natural scribal proclivity to fill out the text, particularly with reference to divine names, as well as the discrepancy among the witnesses as to the order of the names, the simple reading Χριστοῦ seems to be the best candidate for authenticity. NA27 reads ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ with ᾿Ιησοῦ in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.
[4:7] 62 tn Grk “the surpassingness of the power”; δυνάμεως (dunamew") has been translated as an attributed genitive (“extraordinary power”).
[4:8] 63 tn Grk “we are hard pressed [by crowds] on every side.”
[4:9] 66 tn Or “badly hurt.” It is possible to interpret καταβαλλόμενοι (kataballomenoi) here as “badly hurt”: “[we are] badly hurt, but not destroyed” (L&N 20.21).
[4:10] 67 tn The first clause of 2 Cor 4:10 is elliptical and apparently refers to the fact that Paul was constantly in danger of dying in the same way Jesus died (by violence at least). According to L&N 23.99 it could be translated, “at all times we live in the constant threat of being killed as Jesus was.”
[4:10] 68 tn Or “may also be revealed.”
[4:11] 69 tn Or “may also be revealed.”
[4:11] 70 tn Grk “mortal flesh.”
[4:12] 72 tn Grk “death is at work in us, but life in you”; the phrase “is at work in” is repeated in the translation for clarity.
[4:13] 73 tn Grk “spirit of faith according to.”
[4:13] 74 sn A quotation from Ps 116:10.
[4:14] 75 tn Grk “speak, because.” A new sentence was started here in the translation, with the words “We do so” supplied to preserve the connection with the preceding statement.
[4:14] 76 tc ‡ Several important witnesses (א C D F G Ψ 1881), as well as the Byzantine text, add κύριον (kurion) here, changing the reading to “the Lord Jesus.” Although the external evidence in favor of the shorter reading is slim, the witnesses are important, early, and diverse (Ì46 B [0243 33] 629 [630] 1175* [1739] pc r sa). Very likely scribes with pietistic motives added the word κύριον, as they were prone to do, thus compounding this title for the Lord.
[4:15] 77 tn Or “that is abounding to.”
[4:16] 79 tn Or “do not lose heart.”
[4:16] 80 tn Grk “our outer man.”
[4:16] 81 tn Grk “our inner [man].”
[4:17] 82 tn Grk “momentary lightness of affliction.”
[5:1] 83 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.
[5:2] 85 tn Or “dwelling place.”
[5:2] 86 tn Or “to be clothed with.”
[5:3] 87 tc ‡ Some
[5:3] 88 tn Grk “it”; the referent (the “heavenly dwelling” of the previous verse) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[5:4] 89 sn See the note in 5:1 on the phrase the tent we live in.
[5:4] 90 tn Or “we are burdened.”
[5:5] 91 tn Grk “for this very thing.”
[5:5] 92 tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit” (see the note on the phrase “down payment” in 1:22).
[5:6] 93 tn Grk “we know that being at home in the body”; an idiom for being alive (L&N 23.91).
[5:9] 96 tn Grk “whether we are at home” [in the body]; an idiom for being alive (L&N 23.91).
[5:9] 97 tn Grk “to be pleasing to him.”
[5:10] 98 sn The judgment seat (βῆμα, bhma) was a raised platform mounted by steps and sometimes furnished with a seat, used by officials in addressing an assembly or making pronouncements, often on judicial matters. The judgment seat was a common item in Greco-Roman culture, often located in the agora, the public square or marketplace in the center of a city. Use of the term in reference to Christ’s judgment would be familiar to Paul’s 1st century readers.
[5:10] 99 tn Or “whether good or bad.”
[5:11] 100 tn Or “because we know what it means to fear the Lord.”
[5:11] 101 tn The present tense of πείθομεν (peiqomen) has been translated as a conative present.
[5:11] 102 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] 103 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.”
[5:12] 104 tn The present tense of συνιστάνομεν (sunistanomen) has been translated as a conative present.
[5:12] 105 tn Or “to boast about us.”
[5:12] 107 tn Or “in what is seen.”
[5:14] 108 tn The phrase ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ Χριστοῦ (Jh agaph tou Cristou, “the love of Christ”) could be translated as either objective genitive (“our love for Christ”) or subjective genitive (“Christ’s love for us”). Either is grammatically possible, but with the reference to Christ’s death for all in the following clauses, a subjective genitive (“Christ’s love for us”) is more likely.
[5:14] 109 tn Grk “one”; the referent (Christ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[5:15] 110 tn Or “but for him who died and was raised for them.”
[5:16] 112 tn Grk “no one according to the flesh.”
[5:16] 113 tn Grk “we have known Christ according to the flesh.”
[5:17] 114 tn Grk “old things have passed away.”
[5:17] 115 tc Most
[5:17] 116 tn Grk “new things have come [about].”
[5:19] 117 tn Or “he has entrusted to us.”
[5:20] 118 tn Or “as though God were begging.”
[5:20] 119 tn Or “we beg you.”
[5:21] 120 tn Grk “He”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[5:21] 121 sn The one who did not know sin is a reference to Jesus Christ.
[5:21] 122 sn That is, “in Christ.”
[6:1] 123 tn Or “receive the grace of God uselessly.”
[6:2] 124 sn A quotation from Isa 49:8.
[6:3] 125 tn The word “anyone” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context.
[6:3] 126 tn Other interpretations of the first part of 2 Cor 6:3 are possible. The phrase could also mean, “not putting an obstacle in the way of anyone” (L&N 22.14), or “giving no one in anything a cause to sin” (L&N 88.307).
[6:4] 128 tn Or “we have commended ourselves by all things.”
[6:4] 129 tn Or “in trouble and suffering.”
[6:5] 130 tn Or “rebellions” (uprisings in open defiance of civil authority).
[6:5] 131 tn Usually κόποις (kopois) has been translated as “labors” or “hard work,” but see Matt 26:10 where it means “trouble”; “distress” (L&N 22.7). In this context with so many other terms denoting suffering and difficulty, such a meaning is preferable.
[6:6] 132 tn Or “by holiness of spirit.”
[6:7] 134 tn Grk “by the word of truth”; understanding ἀληθείας (alhqeias) as an attributive genitive (“truthful word”).
[6:7] 135 tn Or “speech.” In this context it is more likely that λόγος (logos) refers to Paul’s message (thus “teaching”) than to his speech in general.
[6:7] 136 tn The phrase “for the right hand and for the left” possibly refers to a combination of an offensive weapon (a sword for the right hand) and a defensive weapon (a shield for the left).
[6:8] 137 tn Or “regarded as deceivers.”
[6:9] 138 tn Grk “disciplined,” but in this context probably a reference to scourging prior to execution (yet the execution is not carried out).
