2 Corinthians 7:8

7:8 For even if I made you sad ¹  by my letter, ²  I do not regret having written it ³  (even though I did regret it, ⁴  for ⁵  I see that my letter made you sad, ⁶  though only for a short time).

2 Corinthians 3:2

3:2 You yourselves are our letter, ⁷  written on our hearts, known and read by everyone,

[7:8]  ¹ tn Grk “if I grieved you.”

[7:8]  ² sn My letter. Paul is referring to the “severe” letter mentioned in 2 Cor 2:4.

[7:8]  ³ tn Grk “I do not regret”; direct objects in Greek must often be supplied from the context. Here one could simply supply “it,” but since Paul is referring to the effects of his previous letter, clarity is improved if “having written it” is supplied.

[7:8]  ⁴ tn Grk “I did regret”; the direct object “it” must be supplied from the context.

[7:8]  ⁵ tc A few important mss (Ì^46c B D* it sa) lack γάρ (gar, “for”), while the majority of witnesses have it (א C D¹ F G Ψ 0243 33 1739 1881 Ï sy bo). Even though Ì^46* omits γάρ, it has the same sense (viz., a subordinate clause) because it reads the participle βλέπων (blepwn, “seeing”; the Vulgate does the same). A decision is difficult because although the overwhelming external evidence is on the side of the conjunction, the lack of γάρ is a significantly harder reading, for the whole clause is something of an anacoluthon. Without the conjunction, the sentence reads more harshly. This would fit with Paul’s “vehemence of spirit” (A. T. Robertson, A Grammar of the Greek New Testament, 435) that is found especially in 2 Corinthians and Galatians. However, the mss that omit the conjunction are prone to such tendencies at times. In this instance, the conjunction should probably stand.

[7:8]  ⁶ tn Grk “my letter grieved you.”

[3:2]  ⁷ tn That is, “letter of recommendation.”