2 Corinthians 7:7

7:7 We were encouraged ¹  not only by his arrival, but also by the encouragement ²  you gave ³  him, as he reported to us your longing, your mourning, ⁴  your deep concern ⁵  for me, so that I rejoiced more than ever.

2 Corinthians 7:1

Self-Purification

7:1 Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves ⁶  from everything that could defile the body ⁷  and the spirit, and thus accomplish ⁸  holiness out of reverence for God. ⁹ 

Colossians 1:25

1:25 I became a servant of the church according to the stewardship ¹⁰  from God – given to me for you – in order to complete ¹¹  the word of God,

Titus 3:8

Summary of the Letter

3:8 This saying ¹²  is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on such truths, ¹³  so that those who have placed their faith in God may be intent on engaging in good works. These things are good and beneficial for all people.

[7:7]  ¹ tn Because of the length and complexity of this Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the phrase “We were encouraged.”

[7:7]  ² tn Or “comfort,” “consolation.”

[7:7]  ³ tn Grk “by the encouragement with which he was encouraged by you.” The passive construction was translated as an active one in keeping with contemporary English style, and the repeated word “encouraged” was replaced in the translation by “gave” to avoid redundancy in the translation.

[7:7]  ⁴ tn Or “your grieving,” “your deep sorrow.”

[7:7]  ⁵ tn Or “your zeal.”

[7:1]  ⁶ tn Or “purify ourselves.”

[7:1]  ⁷ tn Grk “from every defilement of the flesh.”

[7:1]  ⁸ 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.

[7:1]  ⁹ tn Grk “in the fear of God.”

[1:25]  ¹⁰ tn BDAG 697 s.v. οἰκονομία 1.b renders the term here as “divine office.”

[1:25]  ¹¹ tn See BDAG 828 s.v. πληρόω 3. The idea here seems to be that the apostle wants to “complete the word of God” in that he wants to preach it to every person in the known world (cf. Rom 15:19). See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 82.

[3:8]  ¹² sn This saying (Grk “the saying”) refers to the preceding citation (Titus 3:4-7). See 1 Tim 1:15; 3:1; 4:9; 2 Tim 2:11 for other occurrences of this phrase.

[3:8]  ¹³ tn Grk “concerning these things.”