2 Corinthians 4:6

4:6 For God, who said “Let light shine out of darkness,” ¹  is the one who shined in our hearts to give us the light of the glorious knowledge ²  of God in the face of Christ. ³ 

2 Corinthians 12:9

12:9 But ⁴  he said to me, “My grace is enough ⁵  for you, for my ⁶  power is made perfect ⁷  in weakness.” So then, I will boast most gladly ⁸  about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may reside in ⁹  me.

[4:6]  ¹ sn An allusion to Gen 1:3; see also Isa 9:2.

[4:6]  ² tn Grk “the light of the knowledge of the glory”; δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

[4:6]  ³ tc ‡ Most witnesses, including several early and important ones (Ì⁴⁶ א C H Ψ 0209 1739^c 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.

[12:9]  ⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” because of the contrast implicit in the context.

[12:9]  ⁵ tn Or “is sufficient.”

[12:9]  ⁶ tc The majority of later mss (א² A^c D¹ Ψ 0243 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï) as well as some versional witnesses include the pronoun “my” here, but the omission of the pronoun has excellent external support (Ì^46vid א* A* B D* F G latt). Scribes probably added the pronoun for clarity, making the obvious referent explicit. This would also make “power” more parallel with “my grace.” Though the original text probably did not include “my,” scribes who added the word were following the sense of Paul’s statement.

[12:9]  ⁷ tn Or “my power comes to full strength.”

[12:9]  ⁸ tn “Most gladly,” a comparative form used with superlative meaning and translated as such.

[12:9]  ⁹ tn Or “may rest on.”