Book of 2nd Corinthians
Commentary
Commentary
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Author: Christopher J. E. Johnson Published: Oct 30, 2020 Updated: Oct 19, 2024 |
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Introduction
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
-Matthew 28:19-20
But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
-1 John 2:27
If you would like more information on these topics, I recommend the following resources here at creationliberty.com:
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The second epistle (letter) of Corinthians is not the second letter ever sent by Paul to Corinth, as indicated in chapter five of 1st Corinthians (i.e. Paul had sent letters prior to 1st Corinthians), but is a follow-up letter sent after the epistle of 1st Corinthians, which was written while he was in the region of Macedonia, with the help of Titus and Lucas. This letter intended to explain why he did not come to visit them as he had promised, to answer his critics who falsely accused him for their own gain, to encourage the church that they were a great comfort to him, to report the many sufferings he had undertaken, as well as the many mercies and miracles God had done, and to urge the faithful in the church to remember their ministry to the Lord Jesus Christ, that they would do good unto one another, and to the poor and needy.
Chapter 1
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[v1] Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints which are in all Achaia:
Paul opens this letter by describing his calling to the readers, not giving himself a fancy title such as "Apostle Paul," but speaking of the calling to apostleship given to him by the Lord Jesus Christ, according to the will of God the Father. Paul also mentions Timothy, his close companion and friend who helped Paul with all his needs, which is not to say that Timothy was authoring the letter, because this letter was authored by Paul via the Holy Spirit, but rather, Timothy had been previously sent to Corinth and returned, confirming that Timothy was with him, and Timothy may have even dictated the letter for Paul, since Paul's eye sight began to fail later in his life. Whereas Corinth was the metropolis of the region, Achaia was another large city in Greece, located west of Corinth.(Read "Titles Are Unbiblical in the Church" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v2] Grace be to you and peace from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
This is a common phrase Paul used in his letters (Rom 1:7, 1Co 1:3), which is his desire that they would grow in the grace of God, not only for the expansion of Christ's gospel of grace unto the people, and for the growth of the church, but also that they would receive the blessings of grace from God. This grace is not meant for the salvation of their souls, which was already presumed since they were members of the church in Corinth, but that they would be blessed with the grace of God in terms of wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, that they might be better servants of Christ, and that God might bless them with as much peace as possible while they do their work.[v3] Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
Paul speaks of God being blessed, not in the sense that mankind has anything that we can bless God with, for God has no need of anything, let alone from His creation, but that God is blessed in the only way we know how, which is through our praise and worship of who He is, and the wonderful things He has done. Paul continues to point out that God is "the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ," saying "even," meaning "likewise," in the sense that all the blessings and comforts we receive come through the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the son of God in nature, power, and glory, being one with the Father. (John 10:30)[v4] Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
The Lord God is the comforter of His people, who are the children of faith, that when they suffer tribulation and persecution, He brings us comfort in those times, not just for our sakes, but also that we would be able to comfort others in their times of trouble, which Paul adds "by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted," meaning that the source of the comfort we bring to others is not of ourselves, but only through God which first comforts us. This is not to say that we have positive words for every person we come in contact with, as modern church buildings tend to do by always having a "good word" for those around them, never rebuking anyone of their sins, but rather, Paul specifically points out that these are words of comfort in times of trouble that come from tribulation, which most lukewarm church buildings today do not suffer. (Acts 14:22)[v5] For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.
This is not to say that Christ's sufferings on the cross are attributed to our own efforts, meaning that we somehow, by default, we have right to take credit for the workings of the cross, but rather, He suffered for our sakes, having our sins washed clean in everlasting abundance, so we, being not greater than our master, have "abounded" (i.e. overflowing in us, like a fountain) the love to suffer for His sake (John 15:20), and for the sake of the brethren. This is a reminder that Christ has not abandoned us, although many abandoned Him; rather, He comes to us to comfort us (via the Holy Ghost) in our times of suffering with an endless consolation.[v6] And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation.
Despite the fact that we have many who bring unreasonable criticisms against us in hypocrisy, and despite the fact that many curse us, speak evil of us, and threaten us with harm (Luke 6:22), we preach the truth of Christ with cheerfulness and boldness, without fear (Heb 13:6), which is a great encouragement to others in the faith of Christ, by which their faith is strengthened that they serve the will of the Almighty God in truth. This is not only for the consolation and comfort of the faithful in the church, but also as a testimony to those who are lost, that through the demonstration of patience, reason, gentleness, and temperance (Gal 5:22-23), even unto our enemies (Mat 5:43-45), they might come to know the nature of Christ, hear the law, and repent (i.e. have grief and godly sorrow) of their sins. (Luke 24:47)[v7] And our hope of you is stedfast, knowing, that as ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation.
That is, the hope Paul and the other apostles, along with the other elders and deacons who often worked with him, was consistant and unwavering because of the knowledge that those Christians who were dedicated students and servants of the Lord Jesus Christ were suffering their own afflictions due to their preaching the truth of Christ's gospel, and therefore, knowing the great mercies of God, it was a certain conclusion that they would also receive His comforts in their time of trouble.[v8] For we would not, brethren, have you ignorant of our trouble which came to us in Asia, that we were pressed out of measure, above strength, insomuch that we despaired even of life:
Paul mentions the potential ignorance of the church in Corinth concerning his many sufferings, and those who he traveled with, which could be due to the false teachers and false converts in Corinth not wanting others to hear of the sufferings of the apostles of Christ, lest it be an embarrassment to expose their lofty state of living, that they did not preach the truth in Christ as the apostles did, and perhaps even accused Paul, falsely claiming that he had no desire to keep his word to come visit them in Corinth, or their ignorance might have been due to them not receiving word of the events, so Paul's persecutors would not be exposed for their wicked deeds, and that they had falsely accused Paul and his companions, claiming that they committed crimes that they did not commit, in attempt to justify their actions against the apostles of Christ. Paul did not want them to be ignorant of these things, which was not to lift himself up among them for any reason, but so they would understand the afflictions he and his companions suffered was more than any normal man could bear (i.e. that a normal man's strength could endure), so much so that they had, many times, thought that their life was at an end, that their lives could not be saved, and yet, God gave them endurance, even pulling them out from under their burden, saving them from the brink of death.[v9] But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:
Paul goes on to point out that it was not by their own power or abilities that they had survived, but rather, they forsook all confidence in themselves, their own reasoning, wisdom, and strength. Their faith had to be solely placed into God, who can raise the dead at His will.[v10] Who delivered us from so great a death, and doth deliver: in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us;
Paul will make mention of some of these sufferings later in chapter eleven, in which he was in danger of drowning, threatened by thieves, shipwrecked, and beaten violently by the Jews. (2Co 11:23-26) Paul reassures the brethren that Christ does not forget the children of faith, and that He is with us in the spirit at all times, so we need only trust in Him, and He will deliver us.[v11] Ye also helping together by prayer for us, that for the gift bestowed upon us by the means of many persons thanks may be given by many on our behalf.
Though the brethren in Corinth were not present to witness the sufferings of Paul and his companions, they did help by their prayers unto God, which shows us that our prayers do help others, whether we see the results of them or not. The gift Paul is referring to is the grace of God to deliver them out of their sufferings, and therefore, those in Corinth who prayed for such things ought to also give thanks for God's mercy to answer their prayers.[v12] For our rejoicing is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom, but by the grace of God, we have had our conversation in the world, and more abundantly to you-ward.
They rejoiced in the fact that they had done no wrong or crime, doing good unto all men, even unto their enemies, which was itself a testimony of Christ, the words and actions coming from a conscience given to them by the grace of the Holy Ghost, demonstrating the good fruits of the spirit, reflecting a heart of repentance. (Acts 26:20) The evidence of that good conscience was seen by the world, even the enemies of Paul who persecuted him and his companions, thereby those wicked men and women, who operate according to the false wisdom of this world, know their own words and deeds were evil, bringing fraudulent charges against the Christians who taught them the truth in love, and moreso, this fact was known to the faithful among the church in Corinth, since Paul spoke to them plainly, and provided the testimony of his conscience among them more abundantly, since he had been with them in much fellowship.[v13] For we write none other things unto you, than what ye read or acknowledge; and I trust ye shall acknowledge even to the end;
What Paul is writing to Corinth correlates perfectly with the Word of God, and therefore, by the testimony which Paul has shown them while in their company, and by the Word of God which they read and acknowledge to be the truth, that despite what false accusations come out of the mouth of wicked men, that they would acknowledge the truth of the matter, trusting in God's Word to discern the good from the evil. (Heb 5:12-14)[v14] As also ye have acknowledged us in part, that we are your rejoicing, even as ye also are ours in the day of the Lord Jesus.
The phrase "in part" is added here because some of those who had been added to the church in Corinth had to hear of Paul second hand, meaning that they had not witnessed all his words or deeds for themselves, so some of them had to rely on the testimony of those who had provided evidence of their good consciences, and likewise, that charitable mindset goes both ways, meaning that whereas they rejoiced unto the Lord concerning Paul's deliverance from his sufferings, so Paul and his companions rejoiced unto the Lord concerning the church's deliverance from their sufferings in Corinth.[v15] And in this confidence I was minded to come unto you before, that ye might have a second benefit;
That is, Paul had confidence in their affection for him, the other brethren with them, and their prayers for deliverance from sufferings, and through that faith, he had mind to come and visit them prior to the time of this letter. It appears that he had previously gave them his word that this was his intention, and the fact that he did not show confused them, resulting in some falsely accusing him of unfaithfulness to his word, while others held confidence that he was delayed for an important reason; the latter being the case. The second benefit is described more in the next verse.[v16] And to pass by you into Macedonia, and to come again out of Macedonia unto you, and of you to be brought on my way toward Judaea.
As Paul traveled east into the region known as Macedonia, to preach and gather alms for the needs of the Christians in Judaea who were suffering under heavy persecution from the Jews, he passed through Corinth on his way, but he also intended to stop in again on his return after making his rounds and traveling west out of Macedonia, but the persecution of evil men interrupted his plans.[v17] When I therefore was thus minded, did I use lightness? or the things that I purpose, do I purpose according to the flesh, that with me there should be yea yea, and nay nay?
In the first epistle to Corinth, Paul had made mention of his intention to come visit them soon, but he added in the phrase "if the Lord will" (1Co 4:19), meaning that he could not forsee unknown circumstances which would prevent him from his desire to see them. Paul is questioning them to remind them of the things which he had said, and to remind them that he did not say these things lightly, meaning that he took his word very seriously, which is not something that churchgoers today often do, in that they often give their word and do not take their word seriously, casually blowing off the things they have said they would do, while refusing to acknowledge that giving one's word and not keeping that word is a lie.(Read "God Does Not Justify Lies" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
When Paul speaks of the things he purposes, he is referring to the reasons for which he says and does things, and questions the church in Corinth if by the evidence they have seen and heard from Paul, would they reason that he does things after the spirit or the flesh? In other words, has Paul provided evidence to them that he does things for their spiritual benefit, being charitable unto their needs? Or, has Paul operated according to his own selfish wants, being covetous, seeking fame and fortune? If a man has often demonstrated himself to be charitable, thinking of others, loving with selfless sacrifice, and he suddenly does not show up and do the thing he said he intended to do, it would be reasonable and charitable to draw a favorable conclusion about what happened to him, presuming that some emergency had taken place, and therefore, those who were faithful unto God and charitable in their hearts would have prayed for his good, that the Lord would protect him from whatever evil may have come upon him.
Paul ends his questioning with yea, yea (i.e. yes, yes) and nay, nay (i.e. no, no), which is not to be taken in the sense that Jesus Christ did not command our yea to be yea, and our nay to be nay, for that commandment is sure, meaning that we should do according to the things we have said we would do when we give our word, either a "yes, I will do this," or "no, I will not do this," anything more added to such simple phrasing (e.g. pinky swears, special promises, etc) come of evil, not of good. (Mat 5:37) Rather, Paul is saying this in the sense that he might use his "yea" and "nay" in the same sentence, or in the same context, meaning that they should realize, by their own reasoning through the evidence they have seen from Paul, that he does not give his word and go back on his word, he does not speak of plans lightly, without the seriousness that should be given to the things he says, and therefore, knowing that man can keep his word only if the Lord wills (as Paul prefaced in his previous letter), Corinth should have come to the conclusion that God willed for something otherwise, leaving Paul unable to complete the tasks he purposed to do.
[v18] But as God is true, our word toward you was not yea and nay.
Paul knew that there were false apostles, false teachers, and false converts among the church in Corinth, which is why he warned them (and other churches) so fervently that wolves were going to come in to infiltrate the church after he departed (Acts 20:28-31), and therefore, to fight against the rumors of wicked men, Paul turned back to God's Word, reminding them that the power/gifts of the Holy Ghost was upon the apostles in that day, and so as the Word of God was taken as true, Paul's words should have been taken as true also, meaning that he would not tell them "yes, I will do this," but then turn around later, changing his mind to say "no, I will not do this."[v19] For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us, even by me and Silvanus and Timotheus, was not yea and nay, but in him was yea.
Though I have emphasized Paul for the purpose of highlighting the author of this letter, he has consistently used the words 'we' and 'us' and 'our' to indicate that it was a group of Christians who had suffered along with him, and had preached the same truth Paul had preached, naming Silvanus and Timotheus as examples. All these men had preached the same truth of Jesus Christ, and none of them had contradicted themselves by saying both 'yea' and 'nay', that one should go back on his word, because the promises of Jesus Christ are based on 'yea', in that He came to bring us better promises in a new covenant (Heb 8:6), and has kept, is keeping, and will continue to keep those 'yea' promises. (Num 23:19)[v20] For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.
All the promises concerning the coming of Jesus Christ, His work in this world, and His second coming, are all 'yea', meaning that are assured to come by the will of God, whereas our 'yea' can also only be assured by God, which is why we must say things like "if the Lord will," knowing that only by His allowance can we fulfill our word, but He has full power over all which He says. Therefore, knowing that God cannot lie, and that His promises were sure before the world began (Tts 1:2), and that Jesus Christ was 'Amen', that is, the truth destined before mankind was created, when we uphold our faith in Him, that He will certainly fulfill His promises to us through our Lord Jesus Christ, we give glory to God the Father.[v21] Now he which stablisheth us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God;
That is, we are established in Christ the same as Paul, Silvanus, and Timotheus were established in Christ, meaning that we are settled with a foundation, having a condition in which we have received the eternal love and grace of Christ, by which we will never be separated from Him under any circumstance. (Rom 8:38-39) Though a sheep might stray, God will bring him back to repentance. (Mat 18:12-14, Luke 15:4-7) There is no contradiction with God because a contradiction between two statements means that one (or both) of the statements is a lie, and therefore, it is impossible for God to contradict himself, which also means that when a child of God, speaking in honesty, expresses his purpose to do something with his 'yea', and God diverts him from accomplishing that 'yea', it does not mean that God has made His child into a liar, but that His child spoke with limited understanding, not knowing that he would not be able to accomplish that which he purposed at the time he said it, not yet knowing the will of God for him in that time.[v22] Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
When the Bible refers to the children of faith being "sealed," it has more than one meaning. It means that God has confirmed us and protected us, as a seal on a jar or can, and it also means that he has marked us as His children, as a king might put his special symbol in the wax seal of a letter, and therefore, a seal hides things away, protects them, distinguishes them, and separates them from other things, as we are hidden by God's mercy from those who seek to do us harm, and sanctified from the world for His special purpose.The word 'earnest' is typically used as an adjective, but here, it is used as a noun, and in that context, it is referring to the first fruits of something, which is not necessarily the best of the harvest, but it is the beginning of a harvest, which promises more to come. The first fruits is essentially a pledge of good things to come from the Lord God, having His favor, and therefore, we have received from Him the 'earnest' or 'pledge' of the Spirit, which is God's assurance of the great reward, peace, and rest that is to come at the end of our time in this world, sealing that hope of assurance within our hearts.
[v23] Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.
Paul is stating most solemnly (i.e. seriously) that the Lord God can look upon Paul and read his words, to testify that everything that he is about to say is the truth, namely, that God delayed him for a particular reason, not allowing him to come to Corinth for the sake of the church in Corinth. The reason Paul was not permitted to come, and that Paul ended up delaying his visit, was because if he had shown up in the timely manner he first desired, he would be forced to come in with the rebuke of the Holy Spirit, which we have seen in Scripture is a very serious matter, even punishing some by death (Acts 5:1-11), and so Paul, by the grace of God, hoping to spare those in the church from the punishments issued by the Holy Ghost, avoided visiting them for a time.[v24] Not for that we have dominion over your faith, but are helpers of your joy: for by faith ye stand.
Though the bishops (i.e. elders) were overseers, as were the apostles, they were not heavy-handed rulers (even though, sadly, many pastors act in such a brutal manner), but rather, they are servants, seeking the good of the church, that all would be joyful in the blessings of God. It is a wretched thing that the church would stand or fall based on the whims of a preacher, but rather, knowing that we are sealed in Christ, it is our faith in Christ alone that makes us stand, and therefore, Paul did not want them to see him as a dictator, but as someone who cared for their well-being, and through the evidence he provided to them of his charity towards them, that they should not think negatively when he did not show up in the manner in which they expected him.Chapter 2
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[v1] But I determined this with myself, that I would not come again to you in heaviness.
Paul was determined in himself that he no longer wanted to come to them with heaviness of heart, in which he knew he would have to sharply rebuke their sins, and that his coming would be grievous to them. Such grief is understandable to those who have had a duty to bring rebuke, correction, and instruction to those who it will hurt, and to those who would be angered by it, knowing the reaction of the listeners is backlash in many cases; therefore, it is better if a man judges himself, so we would not have to judge his iniquity. (1Co 11:31)[v2] For if I make you sorry, who is he then that maketh me glad, but the same which is made sorry by me?
The original intent in visiting Corinth a second time on his trip was to fellowship with the brethren, in which they would enjoy one another's company, since in the wicked city of Corinth, there was nothing much to enjoy. If Paul came to Corinth and had to issue rebuke and reproof for transgressions, then it would bring them grief, by which Paul would also grieve, and therefore, no one would have any joy by which to be made glad, which would only add to Paul's many afflictions. Paul's only joy in Corinth is the church, and if the church is sorrowful, then there would be no respite in his visitation with them.[v3] And I wrote this same unto you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all.
This is not to say that Paul wrote the previous verse in another letter, but rather, he wrote of that which would cause him (and the rest of the church) grief, namely, that those who would not repent (i.e. have godly sorrow) of their sins, from fornication to covetousness to idolatry, should be removed from the church (1Co 5:9-13), which typically results in hurt feelings and anger from the those who are forced to depart, and thus, it causes much grief for all involved. Therefore, he had no desire to increase his own sorrow, let alone their sorrows, in that they should have already removed the offending members of the church, but having not done so, Paul would have to rebuke them along with removing the rebellious members; rather, Paul would prefer they do those things of their own obedience to the instructions God had given them, and then, when he came to visit them, they would demonstrate that Paul's confidence in them was not misplaced, and that they would rejoice together that the church flourished because of their diligence to perform their duties unto the Lord.[v4] For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.
It was hurtful and heavy for Paul to have to write the first epistle to Corinth to them as he did, but being led by the Holy Spirit, he had to write those things for their sakes. Paul points out that his purpose was not to grieve them, even though he knew they would be grieved, but rather, Paul wanted them to know that he cared for them, loving them enough to tell them the truth.[v5] But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all.
Those who cause grief in this passage is referring to the sinful persons who the rebuke is directed towards, which is the source of everyone's grief. However, if that person heard the words of Paul's rebuke and instruction in the first letter, and repented of his sin, then the grief was only partial, meaning that Paul could now rejoice and be comforted in the fact that the offending person was humbled to grief of his own sin, accepting Paul's reproof. Therefore, if the offender repents, then there is no need for Paul to come to Corinth and rebuke the entire church for not doing what they were supposed to do.[v6] Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many.
That is, the discipline to rebuke the sin was taken up by many in the church, not just the pastors, teachers, elders, prophets, and evangelists (Eph 4:11-12), but all who assembled together, that all would be like-minded in one accord. (Phil 2:2) When all are not in one accord together, the offender may want to excuse the matter by claiming that one man just did not like him, bringing charges against the man issuing rebuke of sin, and so it is important that, if the evidence of the matter is clear, all those in the church be in agreement together. However, if the offender repents of his sin, then such a punishment, that is, his own grief of his wrongdoing, where he is afflicted because of his own conduct, is sufficient punishment for the wrongdoing, whereby we can then show him grace and understanding, and thereby, the church can rejoice together.[v7] So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow.
This is to reassure the church that, if a man shows genuine repentance of his wrongdoing, we can forgive him, and give him words of comfort. Religious institutions which have issued punishments more than this have led people into a works-based doctrine because, being overcome with grief of their wrongdoing, the offender is then led to believe that in order to be right with God and receive His grace (and likewise, to be right with the church and receive their grace), he must do certain deeds or suffer certain punishments, therefore being unable to overcome the grief and rejoice in the Lord for His great mercy.[v8] Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him.
That is, Paul is encouraging Corinth to express their love and kindness towards the offender when he repents of his wrongdoing, to treat him as brethren, forgiving completely, as God has done for us, as if no wrong had ever been done.[v9] For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things.
Which is to say that First Corinthians was written as a test to the church to see if they would do the things they were instructed to do by the Holy Ghost. Certainly, the epistle was written by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit for the reproach of the offenders, and for the church to know the will of the Lord, but it was also a trial of the church's obedience in all these matters.So, for example, when Paul wrote these things in the fifth chapter of First Corinthians, he mentioned men who were railers, which is a person that uses contemptuous language in an insulting manner, and that those who do such things without repentance should be removed from the church. In a teaching I did exposing a hateful, warmongering, false preacher named Steven L. Anderson, I demonstrated that he is a railer, but the church congregation he oversees will not rebuke and remove him from the church, which then demonstrates that they are disobedient to the Word of God, and through that, much leaven is created and spread among them (1Co 5:6), leaving them unfit for ministry of any kind.
(Read "Wolves in Costume: Steven L. Anderson" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v10] To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ;
Even without knowing a particular offense, or that any man had done anything sinful in the church, he is willing to forgive that person, so long as the church had overseen the matter and forgiven it. This is not only coming from the desire of Paul to forgive them, but that, under the power of the Holy Ghost, that such a thing is also remitted by the Lord God, who gives grace to the repentant. (Jms 4:6) Paul continues on to point out that he does such things in charity, trusting them to their word that they have handled the matter and forgiven the sin, and not only would this give Paul reason to rejoice, but for their sakes, he would be confident to forgive the offender the same in the sight of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.[v11] Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.
Wicked men who live after the flesh do whatever is necessary to gain a selfish advantage, to get ahead of everyone else, to seek his own gain, as the Bible has often described false preachers and corrupt pastors as greedy dogs which can never have enough (Isa 56:11), and likewise, Satan is always on the lookout to find those who he can devour (1Pe 5:8), seeking to gain an advantage over his prey. Therefore, knowing Satan's general intellect and strategies, that he can deceive us even by transforming himself to appear as an angel of light (2Co 11:14), having his focus set on destroying as many souls in hell as possible, we should be vigilant, not allowing the bitterness of hatred and contempt to overtake the church (1Co 11:16), which results in the formation of traditions in many corrupt religious institutions, by which they excommunicate members permenantly, no matter how much sorrow a man expresses over his error, simply because he did not follow a false prophet or did not perform a ritual.[v12] Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ's gospel, and a door was opened unto me of the Lord,
At first glance, this verse seems to be a complete shift away from the context of this chapter, but upon careful consideration, Paul is still addressing the false accusations made against his conduct and ministry, particularly by those who had brought grievous sins and spread rumors, which the Bible calls 'busybodies' (i.e. the definition of which can include things like gossip). These men had claimed Paul was supposed to receive word of Corinth by Titus in the city of Traos (formerly called Troy, southeast of Macedonia), which was true, but then claimed that Paul ignored their communication with him and went another way.Paul is now revealing the truth of what happened. First, a great opportunity was granted to him by the Lord God, in which he was able to preach to many people there, and so he stayed a while preaching to them, which also caused a delay in his journey; in fact, Paul spent so much time there, he had amassed a number of books and documents that he had to leave behind, and the season had changed so much that he did not need his cloke for traveling. (2Ti 4:13)
[v13] I had no rest in my spirit, because I found not Titus my brother: but taking my leave of them, I went from thence into Macedonia.
While staying at Troas, Paul was very worried, despite the wonderful opportunity he was given to preach to those who would hear, because he knew he was supposed to meet Titus there, which was his initial reason for visiting the city, but Titus never showed up. Paul writes "Titus my brother," not to declare him a Christian, which many in Corinth already knew of Titus and his works, but because Titus was a close friend and fellow-laborer in traveling and preaching. Therefore, after a time, Paul decided to leave Troas in the hands of the disciples who were there, and traveled back into Macedonia in search of Titus, who he did end up finding, as he points out later in chapter seven. (2Co 7:5-7)[v14] Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
Paul is giving praise to God for His many wonderful opportunities, guiding us to that which we cannot see, to the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, to save souls and add them to the kingdom of heaven, which is the church. The Lord makes known to us the "savour of his knowledge," which is meant to be the good smell and taste of His knowledge, which is gladly accepted by his disciples, most espeically by those babes in Christ who have been recently born again, having never tasted the sweetness of His wisdom, absorbing in the new flavors of God's understanding, finding them most agreeable and valuable to their souls; this is done so by God through the servants of Jesus Christ, that, by us, the manifestation of His savour is known unto men.[v15] For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
The sweet smell and taste of the knowledge of God is given off by those who have been born again in Christ, which is not due to our own nature as men because those who are converted unto Christ have the same corrupt hearts of flesh that all mankind has, but rather, it is because we have been given the gifts of grace, charity, knowledge, and wisdom by God the Father, that we then demonstrate that savour by how we live as servants of Christ, bringing peace and understanding to the world, which is pleasing to both those who are saved and those who are not, though the savours can be different depending on the circumstances, which is why Paul goes on to explain this further.[v16] To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?
Though we preach the same message to all men, which is repentance and faith towards Christ for the remission of sins, and though we are called to do good works, even unto our enemies (Mat 5:43-45), that sweet smell and taste is like a heap of fiery coals on the head of those who reject the Gospel of Jesus. (Pro 25:22-23, Rom 12:20) The Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches us that we are to give the laws of God to lost sinners, that they might hear it, know their guilt, and be brought to the humility of repentance (Mat 19:16-21, Psa 19:7, Gal 3:24), and that humility is brought about by the law "slaying" the hearer, as Paul wrote in Romans 7:9-11, that the commandments of God bring us to the knowledge of our wretched, corrupt state of being, knowing we are condemned to hell and the lake of fire for our transgressions, and that the law "slew us," by which we were converted unto Jesus Christ, and that His Gospel became to us "life unto life," in that we hear the sweet savour of Christ's message, and He gives us eternal life. However, for those who perish, or in other words, to those who reject God's gifts of repentance and faith, who refuse the mercy and longsuffering of Jesus Christ to save their souls, the same message is the savour of death unto them, by which they will not receive grace, and they will suffer eternal death in the fires of hell.Paul adds the question for the reader to consider "who is sufficient for these things," or in other words, who would be qualified or capable of comprehending the infinite mind of God, to know the fullness of His judgments, to know the reasons for why one has his understanding opened unto eternal life, while another has his understanding locked away unto eternal death? Mankind, in our weak and ignorant form, does not have the capacity to understand the infinite things of God, and therefore, we have no right or reason to judge His judgments, especially considering that we are saved by His mercy.
[v17] For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.
Even in the days of Paul, there were many who corrupted the Word of God, being false apostles, false evangelists, false prophets, and false pastors, which is what we still experience to this day. True teachers in Christ speak plainly, openly, and faithfully, without want for a paycheck or popularity, but the reason they changed the truth of God into a lie (Rom 1:18) was to serve their own belly (Rom 16:17-18), rejecting the truth of Christ because, to them, the savour of Christ's Gospel was "death unto death," and therefore, they seek their own gain. (Isa 56:11) Paul separated himself from them, and decalred that all sincere teachers of Christ are separate from them, being known by God, whereby the Lord can testify of their sincerity and good works, rewarding those things which are done in secret. (Mat 6:4-7, Mat 6:18)Chapter 3
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[v1] Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?
At the end of the last chapter, Paul had separated himself from false apostles and teachers, who worked corruption and deceit, but this was not to commend himself, which means he was not lifting himself up on a pedestal above all others, thinking of himself more highly than he thought of others. This is a rebuke against the wicked practice of corrupt preachers, by which they love to receive favorable letters of praise from other corrupt preachers, or were sending out letters of praise to gain special favor from others, maintaining a pretense that only positive words are to be spoken, never rebuke, which is a facade that is still practiced religious leadership in modern-day church buildings. The sincere preachers of the Gospel, who are the true disciples of Christ, cannot be bought with money or praise, and therefore, they have no need for such displays of vanity.[v2] Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:
Again, the word 'epistle' means "letter," and so Paul is not referring to an epistle in the sense of a book of the Bible, but in the context of the letters which are written by false teachers to lift themselves up in the pride of the hearts. The Christian brethren who stood unmovable on the truth were a living reproach to such deceptive practices, and that which encouraged the apostles most were the fruits of their labor, which are the converts unto Christ, and those which accept the sweet savour of the Gospel to learn more from it and improve their lives in service unto the Lord Jesus Christ, and therefore, they have no need to be commended by men with fancy letters to impress others because the sincere teachers of Christ have provided evidence of their sincerity through those who have been converted to Christ, and further evidence by those who have grown in Christ, turning from sin (e.g. idolatry, fornication, dishonesty, etc) to God, and that fruit is a testimony unto all men.[v3] Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
This is to distinguish that the fruit of their labor was the work of Christ, the foundation of repentance, faith, and grace all established by Him, whereby the apostles were servants to labor in planting and watering the ground work that God had laid. The "epistle" of their testimony was not written by the physical means man uses, with ink and paper, but it was written by the Holy Spirit, not in tables of stone, as the Ten Commandments were written (Exd 32:16), but a spiritual authorship was written to turn the heart of stone into a heart of flesh (Eze 11:19), meaning that one would be given a new spirit, having the conscience of the heart awakened, that the emotions of the heart would coincide with the truth of God's Word.[v4] And such trust have we through Christ to God-ward:
That is, knowing that those in the church of Corinth that were true disciples, being made a sweet savour of life unto life, would be a testimony for Christ, and through their testimony of Christ, they would also provide evidence to the good works and teachings of the apostles, that others would have no excuse to falsely accuse them, as corrupt preachers in Corinth had falsely accuse Paul.[v5] Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;
Paul is saying that he is not capable by his own means or knowledge to do these good works or teach proper wisdom and understanding to others, but rather, the "sufficiency," or in other words, the 'capability' to do such things only comes from God the Father, and cannot be done by any other means. This is the answer the question posed in the previous chapter, "Who is sufficient for these things?" and the answer to that question is "No man; only God who raises men up to do," as Paul goes on to explain the next verse.[v6] Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
Only God can make a man able to be a minister (i.e. servant) of the New Testament Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is not of words written physically, but spiritually. Even the law itself is not of the letter, for it has a spiritual component, which is why it is written on the hearts of mankind (Rom 2:15), and therefore, the letter of God's Word slays men in their hearts (Rom 7:9-11), which can bring a man to repentance, but it is the Spirit of God which gives life.There is a common phrase I have heard many times from pastors and churchgoers, namely, "the letter of the law," but such a phrase does not exist in Scripture; rather, that phrase exists in modern-day, corrupt bible versions that pervert the truth of God's Word. (e.g. NLT, NASV, etc) The letter that is being spoken of in this passage is that which is stringent and rigorous in religious institutions, by which they become superstitious (just as the heathen) in their observance of rituals, times, and strictly religious (non-spiritual) duties.
(Read Why Christians Should Study The King James Bible here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
It should be noted that this does not mean that there is a difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament in a sense of the Gospel of Salvation because the New Testament is the fulfillment of the Old Testament, and both should be preached (as contextually applicable) to know the will of God. The New Testament contains the New Covenant, which is why we Christians put heavy emphasis on it, but that does not make the Old Testament/Covenant irrelvent in any sense. A teacher/author that has been called to teach by the Lord God should bring things from both the Old and New Testaments for the edification of the children of faith, which is what Jesus taught in Matthew 13:52.
[v7] But if the ministration of death, written and engraven in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not stedfastly behold the face of Moses for the glory of his countenance; which glory was to be done away:
That is, that which is administering death in the sense that men are slain in their hearts, and so those commandments, which were written on stone tablets, were very glorious. The evidence of this glory was the splendor in which the stones came down the mountain in the hands of Moses, whose face shined so brightly, onlookers would not look directly at his face due to the brightness of his countenance. (Exd 34:30) The glory was "done away," meaning the splendor of brightness that shown on Moses' face was temporary, just a small sample of the glory which came with the delivering of God's Word, and that temporary brightness paled in comparison to the brightness of Christ that was to come.[v8] How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?
If the law brought with it glory that was so bright that men could not look upon it, surely the administration of the Holy Spirit, with the grace, forgiveness, joy, and comfort that His Spirit brings to us, and our baptism and cleansing by him, should also be glorious in a similar way on the day of Christ's return.[v9] For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in glory.
The law is called "the ministration of condemnation" because it is essentially a service (i.e. ministration) to mankind which issues proof of wrongdoing (i.e. condemnation), which is why Jesus taught "he that believeth not is condemned already" (John 3:18), and that because mankind is already condemned by the law, He did not come to condemn the world (John 3:17), unnecessarily repeating what the Holy Spirit has already declared in the Old Testament. God revealed a mere drop of His glory upon Moses delivering His Word unto the children of Israel, and so much more glory is to be revealed in the ministration (or service) of righteousness by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, even a glory which we cannot yet see with our physical eyes.[v10] For even that which was made glorious had no glory in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth.
That is, the glory of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which administers the mercy, love, comfort, and charity of the Holy Ghost, excels so far greater than the law in this respect. Whereas the law was written on stone tablets by the finger of God (Exd 31:18), the fullness of the Gospel was revealed on the Day of Pentecost to the children of faith, fulfilling all the law and prophets (Mat 7:12), and therefore, that glory will outshine the former glory of the law, in that the message of repentance and remission of sins through faith in Christ gives more glory than condemnation.[v11] For if that which is done away was glorious, much more that which remaineth is glorious.
This does not just refer to the law only, but to the entire priesthood of Aaron, and the ministry given by Moses, which was temporary, whereas the finished work of Jesus Christ is eternal. Even though the promises in the Old Covenant were glorious, the promises of the New Covenent are far more glorious (Heb 8:6), and though the summation of the law and prophets (Mat 22:37-40) was taught in the Old Covenant (Lev 19:18), the New Covenant is "that which remaineth," demonstrating that the law is only temporary, meaning that at the end of this world, there will be no more need for the law, and those who have been born again in Christ will live forever in the perfect glory of God and His kingdom.[v12] Seeing then that we have such hope, we use great plainness of speech:
The hope we have in God the Father and Christ the Son comes from our confidence (i.e. faith and trust) in His promises, whereby He has not only given us His glorious mercy and saved our souls, but He has made us ministers (i.e. servants) of Christ's Gospel. Because of this, we use "great plainness of speech," which means that we use words that reflect a straight-forward and simple understanding, that all hearers would understand (Psa 119:130), with wisdom and knowledge given to us by the Lord Jesus Christ, but also without the pretentious speech of men who deceive with lofty and complex words and terms. We also speak the truth of Christ boldly to the face of men who threaten and oppose us, knowing that our spirits are eternally secure in Christ (Rom 8:35-39), having no fear of what man or devils might do unto us. (Heb 13:6)[v13] And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:
This indicates that the glory shown in the face of Moses was part of the glory of Christ, which if a man was able to look upon, he might see the end of the law and prophets, giving them knowledge that was hidden, which is the fullness of Christ's Gospel, and that was not to be revealed until a certain time. Because the glory of Christ was shown in the face of Moses, he had to put on a vail (veil) to cover his face while he spoke to the children of Israel. (Exd 34:33-35)[v14] But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which vail is done away in Christ.
The minds of the Jews are still blinded by their own pride, in which they read the Scriptures of the Old Covenent daily and weekly, but there is a spiritual veil between the truth of God's Word and their understanding, and only through Jesus Christ can that understanding be unlocked, which He did for His disciples on the day He returned to the right hand of God the Father. (Luke 24:44-47) The veil can still be taken away from the Jews if they would come to repentance (i.e. godly sorrow of their sin) and faith in Christ, but while they resist Christ, their veil will remain.[v15] But even unto this day, when Moses is read, the vail is upon their heart.
The veil remains over the eyes, ears, and understanding of the Jews, even though they read the law and prophets in Jewish synagogues every week, and that their blindness is, in part, come unto them that the fullness of the Gentiles would come to repentance and faith in Christ and be brought into the church. (Rom 11:25)[v16] Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
By 'it', it is mean the nation of Israel, or the entirety of the Jewish nation, wherever they are around the world. This may be the veil that is referred to in Isaiah 25:7, that takes place in the final days when Christ shall defeat the final enemy, which is death. (Isa 25:8, 1Co 15:26) However, in a general sense, it should be noted that a veil does not cover everything, and that they are blinded "in part" (Rom 11:25), meaning that if a Jew would be humbled to inquire into the part that he can see, the Lord would show him mercy. (Jms 4:6)[v17] Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.
This is to say that the Lord God, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, are three distinct entities, but one God. Since the Holy Spirit is the Lord, therefore, where that Spirit is, there is liberty, which means that where the Holy Ghost has baptized the children of faith, they receive grace, forgiveness of sins, eternal life, wisdom, understanding, and knowledge of His Word, by which they have freedom in the sense that they are no longer bound by the wages of sin and death (Rom 6:23) through the condemnation of the law, but those who do not have that liberty are in a constant state of labor, trying to work and earn their place in the kingdom of heaven, which can never be done. (Rom 11:6-7)[v18] But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
By the phrase "open face," it is meant that we do not wear a veil, in the sense that we do not have a veil blinding our eyes to the truth, whereas the Jews continue to walk in darkness. We see not through a veil, but as if we looked through a window, to see clearly what is on the other side, not in the sense that we can see all spiritual things, for we see through a glass darkly (1Co 13:12), but that we can understand Christ through the Holy Spirit. The image that Adam was created in was a divine image that reflected God's own image, but that image was corrupted when sin entered into the world, and so through Christ's resurrection from the dead, we are also spiritually raised from the dead, being made a new creature (2Co 5:17), and upon death, we will be translated into His glorious kingdom, which means that it is "from glory to glory," or in other words, from the glory of Christ to our glory in Him, by the Holy Ghost.Chapter 4
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[v1] Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;
The ministry being referred to here is the New Testament Gospel of Jesus Christ because the context in the previous chapter was the difference between the Old Law versus the New Gospel. We have received the mercy of Jesus Christ in the New Covenant (Heb 12:24), and so we rely on His promises which will not pass away (Mat 24:35), and therefore "we faint not," which is not in the sense that we weaken, but faint is used here in the context of decay, in which there will be no need for the law in the day Christ returns to this world, and it will decay in the sense that there will be no more need for it, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ will abide forever.[v2] But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
The Holy Spirit works within us, not only regenerating our spirits with the saving blood of Jesus Christ, but giving us knowledge and understanding, and teaching us charity and temperance, by which we deny false teachers (2Pe 2:1) and science falsely so-called (1Ti 6:20-21), exposing those fraudulent men and ideals with the light of God's Word. (Eph 5:11-13, Psa 119:130) In order to do that without hypocrisy and contradiction, we must live according to the things of honesty, and because we have been given the gifts of the Holy Ghost, we ought not to deceive nor manipulate others, preaching deceitfully for our own satisfaction and gain (Isa 56:11), but rather, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the truth will be made manifest in our words and actions, by which we commit ourselves to persuade men of the truth, that they might come to see the law of God written on their hearts (Rom 2:15), triggering the consciences of those who have not had their conscience seared (1Ti 4:1-2), and be brought to repentance towards God and faith in Christ. (Acts 20:21)[v3] But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
The words "our gospel" is not to say that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was authored by the saints, but rather, the Gospel of Jesus Christ was given to us by His grace, as Paul stated in the first verse, meaning that the knowledge and understanding of it was put into our minds and hearts. The mysteries of the Gospel were hid for a time, but with the coming of Jesus Christ, He has unlocked our understanding and shown us that which was hid (Luke 24:45), which also means that it is the will of God that mankind would know the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and therefore, after hearing it, if they do not understand it, it is because they are lost (Mat 13:23) because the Holy Ghost has not opened their understanding. (1Co 2:14)[v4] In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
The word 'god' is used in this passage to refer to a ruler, the prince of this world (John 12:31), which is Satan. It is not to be said that Satan has any ruling authority over this world in the sense of a governor, nor has he any supreme authority over this world as Christ does, but rather, he is a ruler of darkness, overseeing the shadowy places of this world. (Eph 6:12)It should also not be said that he is solely responsible for blinding the minds of people, in the sense that if Satan were destroyed, all sin would disappear, but rather, Satan is the overseer of the sinful, in which those who have rejected Christ and turn to the lust of their flesh choose Satan as their father (John 8:43-47), whether they want to admit it or not. As a minister of darkness, Satan does whatever he can to shield his children of corruption from the glorious light of Christ, lest at any time they might be converted and healed (Mat 13:15), but the path of destruction is one they have chosen for themselves out of pridefulness of heart and lust of the flesh.
[v5] For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.
That is, the apostles preached the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ, not the glory of themselves, meaning that they did not preach according to their own thoughts and feelings, they did not set up for themselves lofty positions to have preeminence over others, they did not create burdens for others so that they would become the source of faith and conscience for how others should live, nor did they do or say anything to gain filthy lucre (Tts 1:11), but rather, they served the Christian church in humility for the sake of Christ, preaching the truth despite the anger and hatred they would receive for it because they were not in the business of satisfiying men. (Col 3:22)[v6] For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Christ commanded that we Christians are to "let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works" (Mat 5:16), as He has shined in our hearts by the working of the Holy Spirit within us, giving us wisdom, knowledge, and understanding (Pro 9:10), and by His Spirit, we give glory to God in our words and actions, being servants of the Gospel for Jesus Christ, doing these things "in the face of Jesus Christ," meaning that there is no veil to cover our eyes from the truth, which emphasizes the clearness by which the knowledge of Christ is communicated unto lost sinners.[v7] But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
This is not to say that God has put the treasure of His gifts of charity and wisdom into vessels created by the hands of men, but into us, who are vessels in the sense that we are objects designed to hold something within them, which in this instance is meant our bodies, that are vessels made of the earth (i.e. the dust of the ground, Gen 2:7), so that no man would ever have reason to take credit for his own charity, wisdom, knowledge, or mercy because all things were created by God, and all things exist because of His will. This means that those who minister for the sake of Jesus Christ have been given gifts to do so, and therefore, all praise should go to the Lord Jesus Christ, and not to ourselves.[v8] We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
That is, Paul and the other apostles were afflicted with grief, harassed, molested, and persecuted constantly for nothing other than preaching the law to sinners that they might come to repentance and faith in Christ, and yet, they were not distressed, which is not to say that they did not feel grief over such matters, but they were not distressed in the normal manner that mankind would be distressed at such things because they knew that their victory in Christ was certain, and eternal life in Him is guaranteed to the children of faith, so that one day, all suffering and tears will end forevermore. This is not just for the apostles, but for all those born again in Christ. In like manner, we are often perplexed, meaning that we often do not know what we are supposed to do in a given situation, or what way God would have us to go, but unlike the lost sinners of this world, we are secure in Christ, knowing that He will never leave us or forsake us (Heb 13:5), and therefore, we do not grieve in tears of hopelessness and doubt.[v9] Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
We suffer harassment and unjust punishments because we teach the truth of repentance and remission of sins (Luke 24:47), but we know that there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God through Jesus Christ. (Rom 8:38-39) We are cast down physically in the sense that we are thrown to the ground, suffering injury and death (Rom 8:36), and not just in the physical sense, but also verbally, in which men speak unjust evils against us and threaten our lives (Mat 5:11, 1Pe 3:16), and yet, we are not destroyed by their threats, nor are we destroyed even if they kill us, for we will live forever with Christ. (John 14:2-3, 1Th 4:17)[v10] Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
We continually bear the sufferings of the Lord Jesus Christ, not that we continually bear the literal pain He suffered on the cross, but in the sense that we suffer in our ministries in the same way He suffered, being falsely accused of wickedness and deception for His righteous teachings and good deeds, and suffering the troubles of this world, especially from those who would persecute and harass us. Therefore, if we live according to the Word of God, the sufferings of our life and ministry will reflect that of our Master's life and ministry. (John 15:20)[v11] For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
This is not to say that we are continually put to a literal death, because we are not literally killed daily, but rather, we are continually delivered unto the results of Christ's death in His ministry, as the previous verses clearly defined, being troubled, perplexed, persecuted, cast down, etc. This is what it means to bear the cross of Christ (Mat 16:24), which is misinterpreted by many foolish churchgoers to mean that they must purchase a golden necklace with a cross symbol hanging on it (which is also a contradiction to Christ's commandments. Acts 17:29) Once we are born again in Jesus Christ, we have our eyes opened when studying His Word, and the Holy Ghost changes the way we live and speak, so that our mortal flesh reflects the life of Christ, in that He suffered for the sake of others, rebuked false doctrines of lofty and self-righteous men, and showed charity and mercy to the poor and needy.(Read "Christian Symbols Are Not Christian" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v12] So then death worketh in us, but life in you.
This is not meant that the apostles did not of have the life of Christ working in them, but in the context of the previous verses, Paul is saying that we have gained through Christ's death and suffering in His ministry, that through suffering in ministry and death on the cross, we have gained knowledge of God's Word, eternal life, and joy in the Lord, and likewise, we the church gain through the suffering and death of the apostles, and so even we who are elders, scribes, and teachers of Christ suffer and die to this day for the gain of the church, that they might understand the Scriptures and do good works for His sake.[v13] We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak;
That is, we have the same spirit of faith as a whole, that all the church has their faith established by the same Author (Heb 12:2), which means that all of us should suffer and speak the same in likemindedness. (Phil 2:2) Paul referenced to Psalm 116:10, which says, "I believed, therefore have I spoken," which gives us a more clear understanding of Rom 10:10, which says, "For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation," which is not to say that a series of scripted words must be spoken for saving grace, but that all Christians who have a tongue which can speak will confess the truth of Christ with their mouths, and that is a normal reaction for those who have repentance and faith in their hearts. This is most common with those who are ministers of God's Word, by teachers, pastors, prophets, and evangelists, speaking the truth of God's Word to all those who would hear, but for all believers, after they have grown beyond a babe in Christ, studying and learning the truth of Christ's Gospel, it would be a normal thing for them to speak up about the truth of God's Word and rebuke the sins of men, whether it be family, friends, or neighbors, because it is impossible for a man to have the Spirit of God within him and not eventually speak the truth of Christ to the lost, which is why confession is synonymous with salvation.[v14] Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.
So because we know that God raised the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead, we also know that Christ's promise to raise us from the dead in the final day of this world is certain, whereby we have comfort, even in times of trouble. Paul adds that, once we have been raised from the dead, we will be forever with the Lord Jesus Christ, and He will present the apostles together with us, meaning that we will be able to talk one with another, or in other words, one day I can meet Paul, and the two of us can speak face to face, for I faithfully consider him my friend and brother in Christ, even though we have not met in the flesh.[v15] For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
This is not to say "all things" as in "everything in existance," as some tend to take the phrase "all things" to mean, for example, that every invention of men is for our sakes, because the Word of God rebukes such inventions, specifically those which corrupt the sound doctrine and the philosophy of Christ. (Psa 106:39) The phrase "all things" in this passage refers to those things which were listed out in the context of this chapter, namely, those things which Jesus Christ and the servants of God have done for the church, whether it was edification and comfort, or suffering affliction and persecution; all was done for the sake of the church, that through the abundance of grace given to us by the Lord Jesus Christ, the thanksgiving of the church would redound (or contribute) to the glory of God.[v16] For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
In typical corrupt church buildings, I have seen many preachers who have given up on ministry, and furthermore, many so-called "pastors" in many evangelical church buildings have been surveyed, and it was discovered that the majority were so depressed, they wanted to quit, but they had no other way of making a living, meaning that their motivation is popularity and a paycheck, not Jesus Christ. This is not to say that minister will not slow down in his old age, nor is this to say that a man should not have any rest from his work, but once we are called to minister the Gospel of Jesus, we faint not, meaning that we are not weakend to the point that we give up, but rather, though our bodies are broken, and though we are harassed, troubled, and afflicted daily, the inward man (i.e. our spirits) are renewed daily by the Holy Spirit and promises of God's Word.(Read "Tithe is Not a Christian Requirement" here at creationliberty.com for more details on research studies done on pastoral ministries in modern-day evangelical church buildings.)
[v17] For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
This is not to say that the affliction of the apostles was trivial, because Paul has said that his affliction was great, being attacked during his travels, whipped by magistrates, deceived by false converts in the church, and even stoned to death at one point, but God raised him back from the dead to continue his work of ministry. (2Co 11:24-27) What is meant in this passage is that in comparison to eternal life in the kingdom of God, our suffering is but a passing breath in the wind, lasting only for a short time, and that those sufferings work a reward, not earned by our own merits, but a gift of reward far greater than anything we could fear in this world. (Heb 13:6, 1Co 2:9)[v18] While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
If we were only to look at what we can see with our eyes, we would faint in the face of such heavy persecution, but because we look to the eternal things which are unseen, which is what we hope for by faith in the promises of God (Heb 11:1), we become conquerers through the love of Jesus Christ over the temporary sufferings from the spiritual darkness of this world. (Rom 8:37, Eph 6:12)Chapter 5
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[v1] For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
Based on the context of the following verses, it seems 'tabernacle', 'building', and 'house' is not referencing to a structure, but rather, this is referring to our bodies. Once our flesh dies, it begins the process of decay, returning back to the dust of the ground from which we came. (Gen 2:7) However, the children of God will be given a new name (Isa 56:5), with a new spiritual body that is not physically made with hands, which will be everlasting, never grow old, never decay, and will always be together with the Lord in heaven. (1Th 4:17)[v2] For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:
We groan in the sense that we sigh in a longing sadness, desiring to be translated into God's Kingdom. (Col 1:13) The 'house' referred to here is the spiritual clothing we receive from heaven, and though we cannot yet understand this to its fullest extent, we are given the analogy of clothing, as when John prophesied that His servants would be clothed in white raiment after death. (Rev 3:3-5)[v3] If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.
This is referring to those who will have not seen death when Christ returns, or in other words, those Christians who still remain alive in the world on the final day when Christ comes back. Still being clothed with physical clothing, they will be immediately raptured up, but shall not be found naked, being clothed with the spiritual clothing, the glory of Christ.[v4] For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.
While we remain in our physical bodies, we long for the spiritual things to come, and we are burdened with the pains of this world, not only suffering persecution, but also suffering the internal pains that come with age, having our functions and senses deteriorate over time, and also with the temptations to fulfill the sinful lusts of the flesh, which are a constant hindrance to our spiritual thoughts and work, wherefore we hate our lives in this world, and greatly desire the eternal life to come. (John 12:25) This is not to say that we long for death itself because God has put into living things the general principle of nature to avoid death, which is what Paul meant when he said "not for that we would be unclothed," but that corruption and decay of this mortal body would be consumed and overwhelmed with the infinite glory of God, who grants us eternal life by His grace, that we would never have to experience destruction, death, decay, or any such miserable thing ever again.[v5] Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.
This verse seems to be taken from the beginning of this epistle, 2 Corinthians 1:21-22, which not only helps us understand the meaning intended in chapter one, but also expounds on the idea in the context of chapter five. It is God the Father who established us in Christ, and it is therefore His will that we are given the earnest, or great desire, for the spiritual things to come, that we have a hope by which we should not faint, knowing that while our body decays, our spirit is strengthened. (2Co 4:16)[v6] Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord:
That is, we are faithful in our knowledge, which was given to us by God in His Word, trusting in His promises, without doubt in the surety that we will only be absent from the Lord for a short time while we are in this earthen vessel. This is not to say that we are absent from God's general presence (Psa 51:11), which oversees all things in this world, recording all which happens from His throne outside of time, nor is this to say that we are absent from the Holy Spirit, which lives within us (John 14:16, 1Th 4:8), but rather, we are absent from the fullness of His glorious presence, which no man would be able to stand in by his own ability. (Hos 10:8, Luke 23:30)[v7] (For we walk by faith, not by sight:)
This is not to say that we do not use our eye sight in this world, to perform our daily tasks, but this is meant in the spiritual sense, that we see this world through the spiritual glasses that we were given by the Holy Ghost. Our spiritual sight is not clear yet (1Co 13:12), but our faith is the evidence of the things we cannot yet see (Heb 11:1), hoping for the things God has promised us in His Word.[v8] We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord.
Though we are content in our present condition (Heb 13:5), as faithful servants unto our Master, who gave us our bodies and put us in the circumstances we are in for His good purposes, we would rather be absent from our bodies. The pains of death are certainly abhorant, and though we do not look favorably on corruption (in the sense of decay) of the flesh, because of the faith which Jesus authored in us (Heb 12:2), we would rather die so we can go be present with the Lord Jesus Christ.[v9] Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
This is another supporting verse that disproves the works-based philosophies of false religions, in which they believe that you must do good works to enter heaven, for we do not labor for our salvation, because salvation is a gift that comes by grace through faith in Christ. (Rom 11:6) As Paul stated, our labor is done for the glory of Jesus Christ, that we might be acceptable in the sight of God, whether we are currently living and preaching the Gospel, or if they have died and gone to be with the Lord.[v10] For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
Christ will judge all people of this world, regardless of age, rank, gender, or nationality; everyone will be made to appear before the judgement seat in which Christ will judge this world, and all things we have said, thought, or done will be revealed openly in the sight of angels and men. The saints in particular will be given clothing of the glory of Christ, destined for eternal life for their repentance and faith in Him, while their works will be judged for the purpose of reward in heaven (1Co 3:8), but those who are children of destruction, of which Christ said there would be many (Mat 7:13-14), and though many will claim to be of Christ, but were never humbled to repentance of their sin (Mat 7:21-23), will be sentenced to eternity in hell and the lake of fire (Rev 20:15), and their works will be irrelevant at that point because a man cannot be justified by the works of the law. (Rom 3:20, Gal 2:16)[v11] Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.
By His Word, we know the terror of the Lord, in that we have been given the gifts of understanding to fear Him as a Father and Judge over men, and that the wrath of God is going to pour out onto all sinners who rejected His mercy. With this knowledge, knowing that angels will one day throw the spirits of mankind into the lake of fire for all eternity, we persuade them of the truth as much as we are able, to all those who will hear, and the renewal of our spirits through the Holy Ghost is presented before God in His holy courtroom by the evidence of our deeds, and those deeds likewise present evidence unto the church, that by their consciences, they know Paul and the other apostles serve Christ in their perfection of sincerity and truth, once again disproving the false allegations from corrupt teachers within the church in Corinth.[v12] For we commend not ourselves again unto you, but give you occasion to glory on our behalf, that ye may have somewhat to answer them which glory in appearance, and not in heart.
Paul, his companions, and the other apostles had no need to speak of the kindness they had shown unto the church in Corinth, nor do they have need to prove their charity and service, for the evidence was clear, and by this letter, it was a reminder to the true Christians in Corinth that they had evidence to retort against the false allegations of corrupt men, who feigned to be apostles, that they might be ashamed of their venomous conversation against the servants of God, speaking lies in hypocrisy (1Ti 4:2), cleaning the outside for a show unto men instead of cleaning the inside (Mat 23:25) to be perfect (i.e. sincere, honest, charitable, etc) before God. (Mat 5:48)(Read "The Biblical Understanding of Perfection" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v13] For whether we be beside ourselves, it is to God: or whether we be sober, it is for your cause.
In this context, the adversaries of the true apostles were claiming that Paul had lost his temperance and reason (i.e. to "be beside" himself) because of the doctrine he preached, accusing him of being a madman, knowing that foolish men would hear the false accusations, by which they could increase their own reputation by converting that foolish audience. Paul is not saying that the apostles and their companions were beside themselves, but they patiently suffered such accusations for the glory of God. Meanwhile, the sobriety, or temperance (Gal 5:22-23), of the apostles is to put aside emotions and focus on the truth of a matter, and by doing so, the church benefits, proving what pleases God in both their words and demeanor. (Rom 12:2)[v14] For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:
Whereas men can only handle so much punishment before they depart from a station or duty that causes them much suffering, those who have been born again in Christ and received the gifts of mercy and protection from the Holy Ghost are constrained to their office, or in other words, the motivation to continue to serve in the ministry of their calling persists because of the love of Christ over us, knowing that we would have been lost and doomed to destruction if it were not for His selfless sacrifice for our sakes. Therefore, "we thus judge," meaning that we have compared the facts of the matter to reason the truth, that if it is true that Christ died once for all men (Heb 10:10), then it has to be true that all men are dead in the spiritual sense, having naturally inherited sinful condition from Adam (1Co 15:22) in which their souls are corrupt and are in need of restoration.[v15] And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.
Though Christ died for all, not all will come to repentance (i.e. grief and godly sorrow of wrongdoing) and believe the Gospel of Jesus (Mark 1:15), but for those few who do (Mat 7:14), having been given the merciful love, peace, and kindness of the Holy Spirit, they know they should not live to do according to their own will, after the lusts of their flesh, but rather, they should live according to the will of Christ, who bought them with a heavy price (1Pe 3:4), shedding His own blood at Calvary (Luke 23:33), and raising Himself from the dead. (John 2:19-21)[v16] Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.
In this sense, the word 'know' is being used in the spiritual sense, comparing it to knowing someone in the physical sense. When it says "know we no man after the flesh," it is not meant that we have no knowledge of other people living in this world, but rather, it means that we do not come to men to learn the will of God as men once had to do under the Old Testament, to go through the prophets in the nation of Israel, but now, instead of having to rely on the Holy Spirit residing in a tabernacle (i.e. a temple or church building), the Holy Spirit resides within those who have been born again in Christ, by which we have no need to know men to gain understanding. (1Jo 2:26-27) Paul continues to point out that "we have known Christ after the flesh," by which he is referring to the apostles, which did know Christ when He was in the flesh in this world, but now that He is risen from the dead and gone to sit in His throne on the right hand of God the Father, we do not know Him in that carnal manner, to be seen with the eyes, but now must be perceived (or known) in spirit and truth. (John 4:24, John 20:29)[v17] Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
This is reinforcing the reasons that our perception in Christ is spiritual in the truth of His Word, and that by understanding of His Word, we know Christ, for He and His Word are one (John 1:1), which is one of the many reasons why studying the Word of God is such a necessary practice for born again Christians (2Ti 2:15) because without it, we have no other way to know Christ and the will of God. Once a man has been born again (John 3:7), "he is a new creature" that interprets things by the Word, Will, and Spirit of God, and thus, the old things of this world, the ceremonies and traditions of the Old Covenant, have passed away, being consumed by the glory of Jesus Christ, and now we have become new creatures that worship and serve Him, being faithful in the surety of His promises (Heb 7:22), which can never pass away. (Luke 21:33)[v18] And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
All these things that Paul has mentioned are of God's will, like the establishment of the church, the Holy Spirit coming to Gentile believers, the better promises of Jesus replacing the Old Covenant (Heb 8:6, Heb 7:12), the passing away of the ceremonies and sacrifices, the destruction of Solomon's temple, and much more; all these are done by the will of God, who made a way that lost sinners could be reconciled to Himself, by the wonderful sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ, on the cross, by which Christ has given us the ministry (or service) of preaching the Gospel of Peace unto people, teaching them the amazing grace of the Holy Spirit, if they simply humble themselves in repentance and trust in Him.[v19] To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
This is not to say that God was only in Christ, that Christ was not God Himself, but rather, that the will of God to make new creatures was in Christ, and that it was God's intent to reconcile as many people unto Himself as possible, being so wonderful in His glorious mercy that, if they come to repentance and faith, He would not charge them with eternal punishment for their trespasses, and even transformed us in our spirits, giving us gifts of His great knowledge, understanding, and wisdom to be able (through faith in Him) to preach His gospel that a man can receive friendship with God, attaining the same thing that God gave to Abraham. (Jms 2:23)[v20] Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
As Christians (1Pe 4:16), we have taken on the name of Christ as ambassadors, which is a very serious matter because to take on the name of God without sincerity has grave consequences. (Exd 20:7) As an ambassador would come in peace to another country, so we come in peace to those who are lost, whether they be Jew or Gentile, and we pray for them in Christ's place, not in the sense of the wicked priests of Rome who claim to be Christ (i.e. Vicar) and to have His station, but rather, as servants, while Christ is not with us physically in this world, we pray in His stead, that as many as possible would be reconciled unto God, even for those who hate us, speak evil of us falsely, and spitefully use us and persecute us. (1Pe 3:16, Mat 5:44)[v21] For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
This is not to say that Christ was sinful in any way, but was made sin in the sense that he was born of the sinful flesh of a woman (even though He was sinless and sanctified), being raised in the manner that any other sinful man would have been raised, treated as a sinner by men, and then sacrificed as a sinner by those who He came to save. This is also not to say that Christ had no knowledge of sin, for He certainly saw it in men, hated it, and is the Almighty Judge over all mankind's sin, but rather, He had no intimate relation to it, meaning that it was not something he approved of, nor did he join together with any sinful thing. Christ was sinless, and sacrificed Himself for us, that He might impute His righteousness into us (Rom 4:22-25), not that we would be made the righteousness of God, which is not possible, but that we would be made righteousness "in him," which is to say, "in Christ," that it is not of ourselves; rather, God sees the righteousness of Christ in us by Christ imputing His righteousness into us by the Holy Ghost. Just as Christ became sin by us imputing our sins to Him, He has made the faithful righteous by imputing His righteousness to us, whereby, all praise, honor, and glory goes to the Lord Jesus Christ for His wonderful mercy.Chapter 6
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[v1] We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.
That is, Paul is addressing those who are workers of ministry, as he has already addressed the many other members of the church. When Paul is speaking of "the grace of God" in the passage, he is not referring to the saving grace of salvation because that is never received in vain; either a man receives the grace of his salvation or he does not because to say that the grace of salvation is received in vain (i.e. without a purpose) would be to blame the Holy Ghost for making a mistake by bestowing eternal life unto a man without a proper cause. What Paul is referring to in this context is the grace of blessings, in which God gives men gifts and skills to do particular work, that they should not receive those gifts in vain, meaning that they would use those gifts to extort men, and therefore, they should not make the gifts of God a vain thing by using those gifts for their own greedy gains. (Isa 56:10-12)[v2] (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)
This is referring back to Isaiah 49:8, which is God speaking to Christ of the fulfillment of prophecy. God heard Christ at an appointed time, which was in John 17, when Jesus prayed to the Father for the sake of the born again elect. The day of salvation is not speaking of when we were saved by grace through faith, but rather, in the time when Christ had fulfilled the law and prophets by His promise, and that God "succored" (i.e. quickly came to the aid of) Jesus Christ in that accepted time, and Paul adds the words of the Holy Ghost, that we should behold (or look in front of us) that the day of salvation is here, or in other words, the dispensation of grace is now upon all men by blessings of Jesus Christ, offered to many, but only given to a few. (Mat 7:13-14)[v3] Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed:
This is not to say that ministers must become flawless because such a thing is not acheivable by fallen man, but rather, the offence spoken of would be to do any thing that would give the enemies of Christ a reason to accuse. The enemies of the apostles often falsely accused them, and though wicked men will lie and falsely accuse to get their way, they would rather have real evidence for their accusations so their words will carry more weight with the public. Therefore, in correlation with verse one ("that ye receive not the grace [i.e. gifts] of God in vain"), Christians should consider their words and actions that they would not give the enemies of their ministry a reason to accuse, for the sake of Jesus Christ, that the work of the ministry would not have a blemish put on it, which would result in others turning their ears away from Christ's doctrine preached through that ministry.[v4] But in all things approving ourselves as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,
To "approve" ourselves in this sense would be to liken ourselves to the office of a servant of God, knowing that He is the owner of our office of service, and that we minister according to His doctrine. We cannot avoid scandals and attacks on our ministries, but we can speak and act in a way that is proper as a minister of the Lord God and the Lord Jesus Christ, setting a proper example to others despite our sufferings; showing patience and longsuffering in all things, as God has done for us, whether in afflictions (i.e. grief of this world and grief from those who seek to do us harm, Mat 5:11-12) or necessities (i.e. a want of food, drink, clothing, or shelter, Mat 6:30-33).[v5] In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings;
A minister of God should show the patience of God even in stripes (i.e. beatings and whippings, of which Paul had experienced a number of times - 2Co 11:23-25), in imprisonments (i.e. bondage and jail time, which the disciples often suffered for simply being charitable and preaching Christ), in tumults (i.e. danger of being harmed or killed due to the uproar of a crowd), in labours (i.e. doing the works of preaching and charity), in watchings (i.e. vigilance to watch for the infiltration of false converts and corrupt teachers - Acts 20:29-31), and in fastings. (i.e. to temporarily cease the eating of food through voluntary means; not of necessity)[v6] By pureness, by knowledge, by longsuffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,
The sufferings that a minister of God takes upon himself should be done by pureness (i.e. in singleness of heart without ulterior motives, seeking gain for oneself), by knowledge (i.e. having a good understanding of the Scriptures and making wise decisions based on the doctrines of Christ), by longsuffering (i.e. not easily being provoked to anger and wrath, but showing much patience), by kindness (i.e. a gentle and tempered spirit), by the Holy Ghost (i.e. our assistant for all understanding and grace, and the giver of all gifts, whether they are ordinary or miraculous, whereby we use our gifts with dedication of duty to God), and by love unfeigned. (i.e. without hiding behind a false appearance in pretensiousness and hypocrisy; feigning to be what one is not)[v7] By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
The sufferings that a minister of God takes upon himself should also be done by the word of truth, which means that a minister of God should have a good understanding of the Bible, being guided by the Holy Spirit to understand the truth of a matter in all charity and wisdom. There are many men who assume the role of a minister of God, and do things that seem to be the workings of a minister, but he has not done them by the word of truth; rather, he did them according to the doctrines of devils and traditions of men.For example, a minister of God might choose to fast for the purpose of cleansing the flesh from sin, or to pray for the benefit of another, but a false preacher might choose to fast to be seen among men and give himself standing in the view of others, so they will consider him to be "holy" and respect his person. (Jms 2:9, 3Jo 1:9-10) Therefore, a minister of God will operate under the power (i.e. authority) of God in all things, whereas a false minister will do things under the authority of himself, appearing to do good for the purpose of ministering unto himself, while claiming with his mouth to minister unto God. (Mat 15:8)
The armor of righteousness is not just referring to the worn protection, but specifically, Paul is referring to that which goes in the right and left hands, which is the sword of the Spirit and the shield of faith. (Eph 6:16-17) These indicate both offense and defense, having the Spirit of truth by the Word of God as our sharp, twoedged sword (Heb 4:12), and the shield of faith, trusting in what Christ has promised us to maintain patience, wisdom, and charity in defense against the wicked deeds and false accusations of our enemies.
[v8] By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;
This means that some people will speak and act honorably towards us, receiving us kindly and reasonably, and wishing us well in our endeavors, while others speak and act contentious towards us, speaking and acting with strife and contempt, cursing us as we depart. Whether we receive one or the other, our patience should be the same, showing us to be the children of our Heavenly Father, who shows patience and kindness even to those who hate Him. (Mat 5:44-45)At times, people will report that we have done good things for them, and at other times, people will report that we have done evil, even if we have done no wrong whatsoever. Nonetheless, we maintain consistency in truth of Christ and charity unto all mankind, being labeled as "deceivers," meaning that we are falsely accused of lies and deception, and yet, we stand as true ministers of Christ, as the facts will demonstrate if we exhibit the fruits of the Holy Spirit. (Gal 5:22-23)
[v9] As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and, behold, we live; as chastened, and not killed;
We are "unknown," not in the sense that God does not know us, because the born again elect are known of God (Gal 4:9), and Jesus Christ holds them dear, but rather, we are unknown in the sense that the world does not know who we are. The children of God hold great significance, being blessed with God's great mercy, wisdom, and understanding, having eternal life, and can show the way for others to find it. Such a thing should be of the highest value, and yet, the world scoffs at the truth of God's Word, not willing to know or understand that there are children of God in their presence who can show them the way to Jesus Christ, while at the same time, we are known of God.Though we die in the flesh, we have eternal life in Jesus Christ. So while the world judges according to the appearance instead of judging righteous judgment (John 7:24), seeing those of us who are injured, elderly, and/or feeble on the outside, inwardly, we have the Holy Spirit and the power of God for our spiritual strength forever.
The Lord Jesus Christ has told us that those who He loves, He rebukes and chastens (Rev 3:19), and so this is not speaking of the chastening of the Lord, but rather, this is the chastening of the world, in which they try to punish us for true teaching of Jesus Christ. We are chastened, but God does not allow the Devil to have his way, and the Lord preserves our lives that we may continue His good work according to His Word.
[v10] As sorrowful, yet alway rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.
We are sorrowful, not only having repentance of our own sins in the flesh, but also sorrowful because of the state of the world, in which many suffer and die without Jesus Christ for their salvation. We are sorrowful that people curse us and hate us for teaching them the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but inwardly, we rejoice in those afflictions because we are blessed by God for them. (Mat 5:10-12, Heb 11:25)Though we do not have a lot in this world, because we give unto others, and yet, in the spiritual sense, we show people the way to have eternal life in Jesus Christ, which is infinite in its value, being exceedingly more precious than the riches of the most wealthy men in this world. Though it appears we do not have very much at all, we not only inherit the glorious Kingdom of Heaven (Mat 5:3), but we will rule and reign with Christ on this world for a thousand years (Rev 20:6), which means that even though we are weak and lowly in this world, in the world to come, we will possess all things together with Jesus Christ.
[v11] O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged.
Paul is prefacing what he is going to say in the next verse. The mouth opened is referring to the good things that have been spoken to the church in Corinth, both in the preaching of Christ and edification of the church, and the heart enlarged means they have been given much charity and patience.[v12] Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels.
Paul uses the term 'straightened' in this passage in the sense of being on a straight and narrow path, in which one would be adjusted to walk in a manner befitting a disciple of Jesus Christ. We are typically straightened by the convictions of the Holy Ghost to depart from evil and do what is good, but in this instance, despite the fact that Paul preached to them with much charity and patience, they were not convicted by his words (though they should have been); rather, they were convicted by observing those among them who turned their ears away from the truth and lived according to their sin, and followed them instead. Such people were to be removed from the church (as Paul pointed out in the previous letter, 1Co 5:9-13), but instead of removing them, they kept them around, which left a lot of contention and strife, and therefore, the distresses and griefs to conviction they felt were coming from within, from the bowels of the church which they had not yet cleaned and sanctified as Christ had instructed them. (Mat 18:15-17)[v13] Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged.
Meaning that, as Paul had been charitable and patient with them, as a father might speak unto his child with temperance and understanding, they might return that to him, being willing to hear Paul's good advice to them with the same charity and patience.[v14] Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
Paul is making reference to the yoke of oxen, which is a device used to link animals together for the purpose of plowing a field.
yoke (n): a piece of timber, hollowed or made curving near each end, and fitted with bows for receiving the necks of oxen; by which means two are connected for drawing
(See 'yoke', American Dictionary of the English Language, Noah Webster, 1828, retrieved June 23, 2021, [webstersdictionary1828.com])
If an oxen, with its strong body, pulls the plow in one direction, the donkey will end up wanting to go its own way, which will end up steering the plow slightly off course, forcing the farmer to stop, reverse and reset the plow, as well as the animals, and start again to fix the error. This will happen repeatedly, which slows down progress and prevents the farmer from getting the job done. If the donkey is removed, and another oxen takes its place, then the field will get plowed in straight lines with much more speed and efficiency.
Therefore, we should not be yoked together with unbelievers in the same manner, and for the same reasons. Furthermore, fellowship is close, intimate friendship, so why would those who follow Jesus Christ be in close, intimate friendship with those who follow the world?
(Read "The Biblical Understanding of Fellowship" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
Churchgoers often hate sanctification and the common argument they make to reject this notion is that Jesus ate meals with sinners, but that is not the subject matter here because the context is referring to intimacy, which is a deep, personal relationship, and so why would the light, which is Jesus Christ, sit down and share that intimate friendship with the darkness of Satan and the world? Those who have been humbled to repentance and regenerated by the Holy Ghost do not find kinship with those who have not had those things given to them, and we know that God will bring His children into heaven, while casting out those who reject His mercy into darkness, so what communion (i.e. close friendship in philosophical agreement) can there be between those two parties?
[v15] And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?
The word 'Belial' is a Hebrew term that generally characterizes something that is wicked, or worthless in the sense that no good fruit is produced from it, and it is commonly used to refer to Satan and/or the children of darkness in this world. Therefore, the question could be read, "What harmony does Christ have with the Devil?"Therefore, if a father has no agreement with someone, then what agreement should the children have with that person? This is what is meant by the follow up question, which could be read, "What portion of inheritance do the children of God share with those who do not believe His Word?"
Obviously, none. These are questions that should be easy for a child to answer, let alone adults.
[v16] And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
The saints of God are the temple of the Living God, which is one of the reasons why there was never any commandments to build a temple in the New Testament, and it is also why we never find the phrase "go to church," which is impossible because we do not go into ourselves. (i.e. People who use the phrase "go to church" are leavened with worldly, false doctrines because they do not understand that the church is not a building.) We who worship the Living God serve Him only, and we know that idolatry is vanity and offense against God, so therefore, what philosophical (i.e. way of thinking) agreement do we (who are the people of God) have with idols, or those who worship them?(Read "The Church is Not a Building" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v17] Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
This seems to refer to Isaiah 52:11-12. This was not meant in the sense that we have no conversation with unbelievers, nor does it mean we should have no interaction with sinners of any kind, because that would require us to depart from this world completely, as Paul pointed out in his previous letter. (1Co 5:9-10) However, when it concerns the church, we are not to yoke together in fellowship and ministry with those who believe things that are contrary to the doctrine we have learned from the Lord Jesus Christ. (Rom 16:17-18)(Read "The Biblical Understanding of Sanctification" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v18] And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
To remove someone who is contentious can be a grievous task, especially knowing what some of them do upon departing, with railing, backbiting, gossiping, and sometimes, even an attempt to draw away disciples after themselves for their own justification. (Acts 20:30) However, if we put our trust solely in God, to do what is right (i.e. removing the unrepentant offender) over what is convenient (i.e. avoiding conflict), then God will be our guide and our "rereward" as it says in Isaiah 52:12, which refers to a rear guard of an army, always protecting us and watching our backs for us, as a father would do for his sons and daughters.Chapter 7
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[v1] Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Therefore, since we have the promise of God that He will receive us, be a father to us, and dwell within us if we turn from evil and sanctify the church, then we ought to cleanse ourselves from all things that are known to be filthy according to Scripture, that we may become a merciful people who demonstrate the fear of God, to show an example of Him in manner, so the world can see the reflection of His grace. It is the divine will and authority of God who saves us from sin and guides us to success in our duties, and therefore, turning from the filthiness and removing it from the church will result in God's grace upholding the church to the holy standards God has set for us, and the filthiness spoken of in this passage is put into two categories, which is the flesh and the spirit.The cleansing of flesh represents anything that is of the spoken word or physical deed (Gal 5:19-21), which would include things like foolish words, vile or derogatory communication (i.e. words used for the purpose of offense and disgust, or things which only tend towards lessening the merit or reputation of a person or thing, Eph 4:29), fornication and adultery (i.e. any sexual violations and immodesty, which also encompasses sodomy/homosexuality, pedophilia, and incest), idolatry, drunkeness, drugs (i.e. sorcery), smoking, or any other related things that are not of God. (Gal 5:24) The cleansing of spirit represents anything that is non-physical, concernings the thoughts and philosophies of the mind, which would include things like pride, hatred, covetousness, fear, etc.
[v2] Receive us; we have wronged no man, we have corrupted no man, we have defrauded no man.
This is not said in the sense of a prayer for God to receive Paul and his companions, but rather, a plead for the church to receive the preaching of Paul in this letter. This is not meant just as a general acceptance, as leavened church buildings often do by simply saying they have "accepted Jesus," as if they simply acknowledged the information, but rather, this is meant to be an acceptance with affection, in which the words would weigh heavy on their hearts with faithfulness to God and meekness that is becoming of the Holy Ghost.Paul goes on to point out the reasons for why they should be received. These arguments are not to say that Paul had not sinned in his life, but rather, these arguments are made in the specific context of the church in Corinth. Paul and the other apostles did no one in the church any harm to their person or property, nor did he bring any deceitful charge or false accusation to anyone in particular to ruin their good name with their neighbors (despite the fact that other leavened people in the church of Corinth had done these things to him and his companions).
Paul and the other apostles taught no wrong thing to bring leaven into the church by their doctrines and principles, having only brought the truth of the Word of God, and lived by it in charity and meekness, thereby setting a good example to others. They also never demanded money, nor took advantage of anyone's charity; never feigning words to make merchandise of the people as so many corrupt preachers have done. (2Pe 2:3)
[v3] I speak not this to condemn you: for I have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die and live with you.
Meaning that Paul was not saying that the church in Corinth was in complete error in all matters, nor was he saying that there were no brethren in the church, nor was he saying, in this context, that they were all guilty of having communion with idolaters and unbelievers, but rather, Paul is exhorting those who are doing what is right, and rebuking those who are doing what is wrong, and those who were doing what was wrong in Corinth were generally the false teachers and false apostles. Paul goes on to remind the church in Corinth that those who have the foundation of repentance and faith in Christ in their hearts are brethren, and that their friendship is such that neither life nor death can separate them, that he desires to live with them, or die for them, according to the will of God.[v4] Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying of you: I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation.
Paul's boldness of speech, to simply speak directly to them on the issues concerning him, was also a demonstration of how close he was with them, knowing that he can speak his mind freely with them, and because of that relationship with them, he frequently boasts of them to the other churches, in the sense of their great love and faith towards Jesus Christ and the ministers of Christ's Gospel. Paul was comforted by the good news (brought by Titus) that his previous letter had a positive effect on the hearers in the church, and so he was joyful in hearing about the tribulations that came against the church because they did what was right by Christ's commandments, which would have brought them many blessings from God. (Mat 5:11-12, Acts 14:22)[v5] For, when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears.
In the beginning of the letter, specifically in chapter 2, Paul had already made it known to the church in Corinth that he was delayed in coming to see them for many reasons, one of those being that they had no rest from the moment they entered into the region of Macedonia because they were not only preaching, but having to fight against false teachers and defend themselves against violent persecutors the whole way. When Paul says they were troubled on every side, it means from every aspect of society, whether it be from those who professed Jesus Christ, from those who denied Jesus Christ, from the governments, from businesses (by which they would have to obtain their basic living needs like food, clothing, and shelter), and others inbetween.The phrase "without were fightings, within were fears" is an interesting phrase because it seems to be a proverb that comes from Deuteronomy 32:25, which says, "The sword without, and terror within, shall destroy both the young man and the virgin, the suckling also with the man of gray hairs." Essentially, when good men are full of fear, they lose their boldness, which ends with them succumbing to the whims of dark forces, and the end result is that wicked men will then become more bold, ultimately leading to more violence. Such a society will destroy their young men and women before they even have enough understanding to know what is happening to them, which will then lead to the down fall of the elderly and little children, who rely on the youthful to defend them, and therefore, to preach the truth of Christ in such a society is a taxing and dangerous work because there will be enemies on all sides.
[v6] Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus;
As Christ has promised us that those who mourn, not only in godly sorrow, but also those who are cast down in the afflictions of the world for their faith in Christ, shall be comforted. (Mat 5:4) In this instance, news that Corinth was taking Paul's words to heart and working to correct matters of importance was a breath of fresh air, an encouragement to get back up and keep moving forward to do the works of evanglism; not to say that Paul would ever quit, but rather, the news from Corinth gave him a bit of relief from the constant barrage of attacks he suffered daily. Not only was Titus missing (2Co 2:13), who was a beloved friend of Paul's that was like a son to him (Tts 1:4), but Titus brought good news with him.[v7] And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more.
Paul's thoughts were comforted to know that the church in Corinth had not fallen away, but that the core members desired greatly for Paul to be with them, they repented (i.e. had godly sorrow) of their wrongdoings and the evil that was permitted to continue among their fellowship, and they wanted to help Paul in any way they could, which, at the time, was mostly through prayer. Not only was this by their concern for him, but also for their gracious treatment of Titus, whereby he reported that he was greatly comforted in their presence.[v8] For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season.
The previous letter that Paul had written to Corinth, in which he had to address the fornication and incestuous relationships that existed among the church, was written with sorrow, in that he was grieved in his heart for having to write it. This is a grief I know very well in which I am forced to write letters that I know will make the receiving party angry, but I have to do it for their sake and for the sake of Christ. I have also addressed topics I did not want to address because of their vulgarity, but I had to do so because of false teachers spreading false doctrine, so I understand where he was coming from on this point. However, Paul was pleased that he no longer repented (i.e. he no longer had sorrow in his heart over the matter) because the church had shown genuine repentance of their wrongdoing, even if it was just for a short time. (i.e. They repented, but many returned to their previous ways after a time.)[v9] Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing.
The understanding of this verse is that a man can be made sorry of a thing he has done, but what caused Paul to rejoice was when someone was sorry after a godly manner, which is the core concept behind repentance. As Paul is going to go on to talk about in the next verse, there are two different kinds of sorrow, and we Christians need to have the same discernment of the Holy Spirit that Paul had, to tell the difference between the two, and the result of godly sorrow, or in other words, true repentance.True repentance had an effect in their speech and behavior as a result of the letter he had sent them, and this teaches us that when godly sorrow works in a man, it moves him to eventually love such a letter, that once the grief of the realization settles, he is well pleased with the rebuke, moving himself to correction. Those who forsake the way of Christ end up grieving over the correction itself (Pro 15:10), instead of properly grieving over the wrongdoing which they have committed, and the end result is typically much different, leading to remarks of contention, railing, and strife.
[v10] For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
Paul is providing the reasoning behind his previous statement, to demonstrate the core foundation of why they had not been hurt by his letter and received it willingly. They had not come to godly sorrow out of any self-acheived abilities or intellectual prowess, nor was it from any natural conscience that God had instilled into the minds and hearts of men, but rather, it was repentance of a godly sort, in which a child of God is humbled before Him and brought to grief of the grief he/she has caused God by his/her actions.This core humility is a foundation that God lays within His children (Heb 6:1) upon their salvation in Jesus Christ. Those who do not have the repentant foundation of a broken heart and contrite spirit will not be saved. (Psa 34:18) This is the reason that false doctrines, like the common pastoral teaching that the word 'repent' means "to turn from sin" or "to change one's mind," is so dangerous because by changing the Biblical definition of the word 'repentance', they are effectively destroying the Gospel of Salvation in Jesus Christ, and creating a works-based doctrine that keeps people in the blindness of their pride, only to be rejected by Jesus Christ in the end because they placed their hopes in a self-serving false doctrine. (Mat 7:21-23)
(Read There is No Saving Grace Without Repentance & Why Millions of Believers on Jesus Are Going to Hell here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
This type of repentance (i.e. godly sorrow) is a gift (2Ti 2:25) that is not of worldly sort. The worldly type is when a man has sorrow of his wrongdoing in a common manner, where a man sees himself in contradiction and violation to his own selfish set of principles and worldviews, which is most often triggered by a loss of material wealth, personal relationships, or personal liberty.
For example, a woman might have been abusive to her children when they were young, and when they are older, they do not have any close relationship with her, or she does not see them at all. Therefore, she sorrows of her wrongdoing for the sake of her loss, but not for the sake of the wrongdoing itself, and this is where Christians can be decieved if they do not have their senses exercised to discern between worldly sorrow and godly sorrow. (Heb 5:14)
In the case of loss of personal liberty, jail time does bring some men to sorrow, but in most cases, it is a worldly grief because if they were not in jail, they would not be sorrowful. The time in prison is supposed to be an attempt to bring them to sorrow for their wrongdoing, which is why it is called the "penal system," because the word 'penal' comes from the same origin as the word 'penitent', which means to have sorrow of sin.
Therefore, Paul pointed out that it was the gift of godly sorrow within them that produced the contrite spirit in which they had grief over their wrongdoing against God (like the publican who beat upon his chest because of his inward pain of his wrongdoing against God, Luke 18:9-14), and that sorrow of a godly sort is "not to be repented of," meaning that we should not grieve over the fact that man comes to grief of his wrongdoing, like in the manner of a friend greiving over the loss of a loved one and we come to comfort them, but rather, the Holy Ghost should be the Comforter in such situations (John 14:26), and we should quietly rejoice when a man comes to godly sorrow.
The phrase "the sorrow of the world worketh death" is not to say that worldly sorrow is sin of any kind. For man to have sorrow for his wrongdoing in any sense is a good thing, but in the spiritual sense, worldly sorrow is fruitless, meaning that it is not sorrow over the root of the problem (i.e. the corruption of man's own soul and offenses against God), and therefore, a man who has worldly sorrow has not acknowledged truth. If a man has not acknowledged the truth of his sin, and repented in a godly manner over the sin itself, that he has caused God grief over his sin, then it will only lead to death and destruction in hell because a man cannot be repentant of something he does not yet understand, which is why Jesus said that those who are born again in Christ have understanding given to them. (Mat 13:23, 2Th 2:10)
[v11] For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.
When a man is brought to understanding of his sin, and he has godly sorrow (i.e. repentance) of his wrongdoing, it bears fruit, or in other words, the evidence of his words and actions will reflect a repentant heart. The godly sorrow in their hearts led them to carefulness, which is not meant in the sense of adopting the cares of this world (Phil 4:6), but rather, it is the care that is had for the church, in which they would not only provide for the needs of one another, but also to guard the brethren and recognize the dangers of sin within the church (like the incestuous relationships Paul mentions in First Corinthians), and therefore rebuke and remove the unrepentant offenders.The clearing of themselves is not meant in the sense that they would provide excuses and justifications for their wrongdoing, to try to give reasoning why they should not be accused, but rather, they acknowledged the negligence of their duties and made it right. Indignation is extreme anger mixed with contempt and disgust, and Paul is not using it in the sense that they should have such an attitude against the offender, but rather, they have indignation against the sinful and corrupt actions, which leads them to purge out the leaven. (1Co 5:7)
The fear mentioned is not fear of damnation in hell because nothing can separate us from Jesus Christ once we are born again in Him (Rom 8:38-39), but rather, the fear is that they had grieved God, as well as the ministers of God who are set for the service and overseeing of the church. The vehement desire refers to their passions to see their friend and brother, and to help him and the other saints with their needs.
The zeal mentioned is similar to the vehement desire, having nearly the same meaning, but perhaps more generalized as passions suited to a born again Christian, that they would be passionate for the things of God, for the glory of Jesus Christ, for the preaching of sound doctrine, and to take a stand against the doctrine of false teachers. The revenge mentioned is not in the sense that they would seek personal payback to those who had done them wrong, for such things God does not permit of his children (Rom 12:19), as a good father would not permit a child to take revenge on a matter of wrongdoing (i.e. the father would handle the matter himself), but rather, this is meant in the sense to see proper, lawful justice done for any criminal activity, especially if the crminals had taken advantage of the poor and needy.
Therefore, the Corinthians who had heard Paul's reasonable rebuke and acted on that had cleared themselves already, and there was no need for them to try and justify themselves. The evidence of them removing the offending parties involved in the church, and grieving over their own negligence, was proof enough that they had a heart of repentance given to them by God.
[v12] Wherefore, though I wrote unto you, I did it not for his cause that had done the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered wrong, but that our care for you in the sight of God might appear unto you.
The main purpose of Paul's letter was not to rebuke the offenders, not to bring justice to anyone who had suffered at the hand of the offenders. This is not to say that Paul did not have those things in mind when he wrote this letter, because he often must rebuke offenders and try to set matters right in various churches where he traveled, but his primary goal was to show that he cared for them, and he was not against them in any sense, where false teachers had tried to convince them of a lie to corrupt them and to turn away disciples to themselves. (Acts 20:30, 3Jo 1:9)[v13] Therefore we were comforted in your comfort: yea, and exceedingly the more joyed we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all.
If the church in Corinth had no repentance for their wrong, then Paul and his companions would not have been comforted by the news they had received, either because it would have been bad news, or if there had been positive news, it would have been given under false pretences. However, because they had godly sorrow, and they did what was right over what might have been convenient to avoid controversy, the apostles who suffered were given a bit of respite through the comfort they had knowing that the brethren were like-minded together, and that their beloved friend was overjoyed by their dedication, courage, and convictions for the Lord Jesus Christ.[v14] For if I have boasted any thing to him of you, I am not ashamed; but as we spake all things to you in truth, even so our boasting, which I made before Titus, is found a truth.
Paul had boasted to Titus of the Corinthian church, that their members were faithful, vigiliant, and charitable in all matters, and so when Titus had visited them, his expectations were hopeful. Therefore, when they heard the truth preached by Paul in his letter, they were convicted in themselves, they were repentant of their lack of diligence, and they corrected the situation, which was not only encouraging to Titus, but confirmed that what Paul spoke of them was true.[v15] And his inward affection is more abundant toward you, whilst he remembereth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him.
Though we Christians are commanded unto charity, not just in commandment, but that we would be transformed to have a charitable heart, we often run into situations in which our charity is not pleasant to perform, and that even among the saints, there are some who grieve us and make our burdens harder to bear. When the saints do what is right by Jesus Christ, affection is increased among those other saints who witness it, which results in a lighter burden, especially for those of us who serve in ministry, making it easier to be charitable with one another, and therefore, Titus's inward affection grew abundantly because of Corinth's obedience to the commandments of Jesus Christ, and that they feared God just as the apostles do.[v16] I rejoice therefore that I have confidence in you in all things.
All things is meant in the context of this letter, meaning that Paul had confidence that he could speak boldly with them, to reprove them with the wisdom of God, without them becoming offended by his words. Paul was no stranger to offense by his words, but as it is with any of us who teach for the Lord Jesus Christ, it is a great burden to have to suffer the hatred, railing, and backbiting that comes with rebuke and reproof, and so in the uncommon cases which our words are heard with a sound mind and a repentant heart, it is joyful that we are heard, not just with openness, but also with results, in which the hearer makes the necessary changes to obey God in all things.Chapter 8
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[v1] Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia;
The phrase "to wit" generally means "to know," and so Paul is saying that in addition to the information he had given to Corinth in this letter concerning the delays both for himself and other people involved, and his efforts to reconcile the matter with understanding, he further desired to inform them of the generousity of churches in Macedonia.[v2] How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.
This was no ordinary generousity because when things are going well for a man, and he has received an abundance from God, it is easy to give to others. When it is very difficult to give is when a man suffers great trials of affliction, in which he is hit with loss and financial strain time and time again. Under such great trials of affliction, which would be the thefts, scams, persecutions, imprisonments (which would involve the confiscation of their property by the government), leaving them in deep poverty, being poor in those things which are needful for the body, and yet, when it came to providing for the needs of the church in other areas, those who they may never have met or understand the fullness of their situations, they gave cheerfully and joyfully (2Co 9:7) because of the spirit of liberty that "the grace of God bestowed" on them.[v3] For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves;
In this context, the word 'power' means "ability," which refers to the little wealth they had. Paul had personally witnessed these things, allowing him to document (i.e. "bear record") not only their willingness to give, but joyfulness to give beyond what they were capable, not that they did so (because one cannot give more than one has), and yet, they would have given more than they had if it was available to them.[v4] Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.
The word 'prayer' here is not used in the same sense as it is with the Lord, in which we pray unto him for blessings, but it is used in a similar manner because the word generally means "a humble request." Therefore, the Christians in the churches of Macedonia, in various locations, humbly requested Paul to take the few gifts they could offer and relieve the poor in Jerusalem. (Rom 15:25-26)[v5] And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.
Meaning that the Macedonian Christians had sought them out to give for the relief of the poor, despite the fact that they themselves were poor and needed relief, to which Paul would have done for them if he had the power to do so. Instead of being first concerned with their own condition, they gave themselves completely to the Lord, trusting in Him to provide for them in the near future. They gave themselves over to the apostles as well, not in the same sense as submission to God, as if to be ruled over by them as priests rule over laity in false religions, but rather, the Macedonians knew that Paul and the other apostles served the Lord Jesus Christ and cared deeply for the saints, and therefore, knowing that they were set to oversee the church in such matters, and that they had sacrificed much, even their very lives, to the bring Christ's doctrine into the Macedonian region that the people there could be saved, which resulted in they themselves hearing the gospel and coming to repentance and faith in Christ to have eternal life, they gave all they had in submission to the will of God through the apostles.[v6] Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also.
It was not only that the Macedonians prayed that Paul would take their liberality in giving unto the churches in Jerusalem, but also, they prayed that Titus would take their liberality to Corinth. Paul believed it was important for the church in Corinth to hear about these matters because they could not see what was going on behind the scenes, to know how much they were cared for by their brethren.[v7] Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.
Paul is referring back to his previous letter in this verse (1Co 1:5-7), and this is to remind them of how much God had given them. They abounded (i.e. were plentiful) in faith (i.e. the doctrine of faith, having a good understanding of the Scriptures), in utterance (i.e. in confession of Christ, in teaching of God's Word, or in speaking of tongues/languages, whether ordinary or miraculous), in knowledge (i.e. to know and be able to explain the fullness of Christ's gospel), in all diligence (i.e. consistency in their duties of work, study, and preaching), and in their love to the apostles, and knowing their duties to do all these things, Paul also wanted them to be abundant in the spirit of giving.(Read "Speaking in Tongues vs Charismatic Gibberish" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v8] I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love.
That is, there was no direct commandment from God in which He had decreed that the Corinthians should give a lump sum of money for this purpose. The demonstration of the love of the saints in Macedonia was proved by the sacrifice they made, and therefore, Paul called upon them to do the same as their brethren, not in a demand of force or manipulation, but being inspired by their great love for the poor saints in Macedonia, that the light of Christ might shine from Corinth for others to see. (Mat 5:16)[v9] For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
The favor, goodwill, and kindness of Christ, which surpasses our full understanding, in which He willingly came down from His heavenly throne, a place of such wonder and glory that we cannot even imagine in our hearts (1Co 2:9), to live as a lowly man without a home (Mat 8:20), suffering and dying in a brutal manner, that we might have eternal life and inherit the kingdom of God together with Him. This is not speaking in the riches of material wealth, but that by Christ's amazing sacrifice and grace, He paid all other debts on our behalf, to give us white robes of righteousness (Rev 6:11), and opens our eyes and ears to hear and understand the spiritual truths of His Word, that we would be blessed richly in our knowledge of the Gospel, which in turn blesses all those around us.[v10] And herein I give my advice: for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago.
Paul emphasizes this to be advice, and not a commandment, for true love can only be found in liberty, in which we would look to Christ and His perfect example, and would walk (i.e. live and act) accordingly as children of our Father. (Eph 5:8-10) The last part of this verse seems to indicate that Paul was giving them some praise for having already done these good works of charity a year prior to this time, meaning that they "have begun before" to do the same things in the spirit of liberality that was over the church of Macedonia, but due some leaven that had entered into the church in Corinth, it also seems it had some effect to the point that now, the liberty of giving had been ignored, not that they were required to give anything, but the evidence of their dedication to God was lacking because they had not continued in the good work they had started. (Jms 2:22)[v11] Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.
Again, this is not a commandment, but an exhortation (i.e. encouragement) to do the right thing and finish the work they started with cheerfulness and singleness of heart, not of necessity, understanding the suffering of the saints in other cities and making charitable effort to give them some comfort. For those who have a willingness of heart, having their inward person transformed by the Holy Ghost to reflect the charity and grace of Christ, there should be the result to perform those charitable deeds as they have ability, which is what Paul meant when he said that they should perform (or give) "out of that which ye have," not to say that they should give of everything they possess, but that the poor should not give more than they are able, that their families would have their needs met first, nor should the rich give more than they are able, that they may provide for their homes, familes, and businesses (i.e. to pay those who they have hired to do work, that the employees may also provide for their families), and once those things have been taken care of, we are free to be charitable with what we have left.[v12] For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.
That is, if there is a charitable spirit, who is willing to give, the Lord God finds it acceptable, as does mankind find it acceptable, that the person who is giving should do so according to that which he has available to give, and not according to that which he does not have to give. This is why Jesus pointed out that the widow who gave of the last two small coins she had to her possession had given more than all the riches given by the wealthy men (Luke 21:1-4), not that she had given that which was more of material value, but what she had given was more important from a spiritual perspective because she had given willingly and cheerfully from the heart. This is why the modern-day "storehouse tithe" corrupt doctrines are not only violating the New Testament commandments, but they are dangerous; they burden the poor into giving more than they are able at times, and setting a standard for their giving, which does not allow them the liberty of charity to give with "a willing mind."(Read "Tithe is Not a Christian Requirement" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v13] For I mean not that other men be eased, and ye burdened:
Paul was not saying that the Christians in Corinth needed to bear the burdens of everyone else, while they had to bear not burden, or in other words, he was not placing the responsibility on Corinth alone.[v14] But by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there may be equality:
All the churches in every city and region should share the burdens equally. In this instance, Corinth had abundance which God had blessed them with, and therefore, they had the capability to help those in Jerusalem or in Macedonia if they had the willing mind to do so, while at the same time, with their burden eased, they could gain more abundance through the blessings of God that, when the time comes, they would be able to supply for the needs in Corinth. Therefore, all Christians ought to supply for one another as there is need, according to the abundance of his own blessings, and then everyone is cared for equally.It should be noted that these verses are, at times, misused by those who are pushing a communist agenda, meaning that they believe that "equality" of income should be even among all people, but that is not the message that is being given here. This is a message that is being preached under liberty through charity, not by government regulation, because there will always be inequality of income through variety of circumstance and differing philosophies, but through kindness and charity, in the liberality of giving, all may have their needs met, and this is speaking specifically to the church, not to say that the church did not give to the poor unbelievers (because they did), but rather, the church cannot provide the needs of the entire world by ourselves, and so our duty is first to the brethren, and then to the world, and the world would do good to heed the doctrine we teach and follow our example, that God would have mercy on them.
[v15] As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack.
Paul is referring to Exodus 16:14-18, in which the children of Israel were in the wilderness, and in the morning, they had found small, bite-sized pieces of bread on the ground, to which Moses commanded them to gather up as much as they could. Those who gathered a lot were able to share their excess with others, while those who gathered little had more abundance from those who gathered much, and there was just enough for everyone to have their fill. Thus, "he that gathered much had nothing over," meaning that those with plenty gave of their excess, while "he that gathered had no lack," meaning that those who had little were charitably provided the extra from those who God had blessed to find much, and the lesson is that we should do the same with one another.[v16] But thanks be to God, which put the same earnest care into the heart of Titus for you.
All praise of worship goes to God, not only for providing the abundance among the churches, but also for putting in them a heart of charity to give unto others who were not given the same abundance. There may even be times where God does not give unto one church who is obedient for the express purpose of testing another church, to prove who has a heart of charity, and who does not; we cannot know for sure when He is testing us because we do not know the mind of God. (Rom 11:34, Rom 12:2) In this instance, Paul was giving praise to God for giving Titus a heart of charity, not just for the sake of the poor and needy saints, but also of charity for the saints in Corinth, in which he exhorted them to action to help other Christians in need.[v17] For indeed he accepted the exhortation; but being more forward, of his own accord he went unto you.
Although this is admittedly worded in some complexity, essentially, Titus had already planned on paying Corinth another visit because there was more work he had to do there (which had been interrupted by his need to communicate with Paul), and furthermore, he was treated with so much kindness and respect there, he was drawn to go back to Corinth because of the great love they showed him, which he had relayed to Paul. However, being drawn to go to a place where there is much love and respect is an easy thing to do, and sometimes, we can mistake the calling of the Holy Spirit with a feeling of the flesh if we are not careful.Titus had fully intended to return to Corinth, but he got confirmation because the Christians in Macedonia pleaded with him to go visit them again, to finish the work he started there. Even though he did not need their exhortation to do something he already intended to do by his own convictions, he accepted their prayers, taking it as a message from God to go do that work.
[v18] And we have sent with him the brother, whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches;
This "brother" is not named in this letter, but it would be someone who, likely, would have not been readily known to Corinth specifically, otherwise, his name would have been mentioned as if it were common knowledge. This was written as if it were another Christian man that they were not familiar with, but Paul wrote of his credibility to them to ensure them that he was as trustworthy as Titus. Some have taken the phrase "whose praise is in the gospel" as an indication that it was an author of one of the Gospel books, such as Mark or Luke, but the phrase "throughout all the churches" seems to contradict that because the Gospel books are automatically throughout all the churches, which would make the statement redundant, and therefore, the best interpretation of this is that this Christian man was known in the churches of other regions, as he had preached among them many times, but he was not known to the Corinthians in the same way.[v19] And not that only, but who was also chosen of the churches to travel with us with this grace, which is administered by us to the glory of the same Lord, and declaration of your ready mind:
It was not only Paul who desired for this brother to travel with him and the other apostles on their journey, but he was chosen by the churches to do this work, and even to come to Corinth with Titus. The "grace" Paul mentions here is referring to the relief to the poor, which is administered (or handed out to the poor) by Titus and the other "brother," for a "declaration of [their] ready mind," meaning that they had within them a heart of charity given to them by God, and the two ministers sent to Corinth would distribute that for them, which would prove their charity unto others. (Jms 2:18-20)[v20] Avoiding this, that no man should blame us in this abundance which is administered by us:
This was a wise strategy by Paul because we need to remember that part of the reason these letters were written to the church in Corinth was to remind them of the evidence against the false teachers and false apostles among them, and so knowing that he had many enemies from within who sought to falsely accuse him, Paul sent some of the most well-known men among the churches, even those who were chosen by churches (i.e. not just by the apostles), so that by their abundance of the gifts they brought for the poor and needy, they would not be falsely accused of mismanagement or selfish gains, by which those false accusers would attempt to draw away disciples after themselves to do the very things they falsely accused the apostles of doing. (2Pe 2:1-3)[v21] Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.
These Christian men are providing the abundance they have received in honesty, doing that which is good and would result in good reports among others, that they might see the good works and know that these men harbor no ill will or intent; only to do the good things that are pleasant in the sight of God, but as is mostly a natural result of charity, also in the sight of men.[v22] And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have oftentimes proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, upon the great confidence which I have in you.
Because Paul said he had sent "with THEM our brother," this indicates a third person would have been sent with Titus and the other brother. This was another person who had proven himself many times over to the service of the apostles and the church, and he accepted this duty with the highest of diligence among all that was put into his care, being eager to see the matter through to the end, leaving Paul with great confidence in them for the sake of the work given to them by the Holy Spirit.[v23] Whether any do enquire of Titus, he is my partner and fellowhelper concerning you: or our brethren be enquired of, they are the messengers of the churches, and the glory of Christ.
After edifying and praising the good deeds of the two other Christians, Paul goes on to do the same for Titus, to appease the concerns of anyone who might question his credibility. Titus is one of Paul's closest companions and workers in all that had been said and done concerning the ministry in Corinth, which should be more than enough reason for them to know that Titus only had the intent of serving the Lord Jesus Christ and the church with a charitable heart. If anyone else had any question concerning these men, Paul said they should be referred to as messengers of the churches in various regions, not just the apostles, and all for the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ.[v24] Wherefore shew ye to them, and before the churches, the proof of your love, and of our boasting on your behalf.
Paul concludes by exhorting the Corinthians, not by commandment, but by a challenge to them, to demonstrate the truth of their great love and charity by their deeds. Paul wanted them to demonstrate through their works the sincerity of their charity to the poor and needy members of the church, and to prove that the boasting of Paul on their behalf was not misplaced.Chapter 9
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[v1] For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you:
This sentence seems to indicate that Paul is addressing a new topic, but it seems to be similar to the topic he was just addressing, namely, the ministering (i.e. service) of the saints in the context of the ministers (i.e. Titus and the two brothers in Christ with him) to take collections for the poor and needy and to oversee the distribution of them. Paul believed it was superfluous (i.e. more than wanted or needed) to write to them about that topic because he had already made so many sound Scriptural, spiritual, and reasonable arguments with them in the previous chapter.[v2] For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many.
Paul once again expressed his confidence that the church in Corinth was ready and willing to assist however they could, as they had in other times past, and he had also expressed that confidence in Corinth to those in Macedonia, so they would hear of the charitable nature that God had blessed the Christians with in Corinth. The region of Achaia included Greece, and Corinth was a part of that, so Paul was relating the zeal (i.e. great passion) of many in the churches in the region of Achaia (of which, Corinth was a part) that they had been ready for the past year to help out concerning the needs of the saints, which had led to the churches in other regions to do the same, emphasizing their initial leading by example in this matter.[v3] Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf; that, as I said, ye may be ready:
So, with Corinth being ready a year ago, and that Paul and Titus had already reported this fact to the others on their behalf, they sent these three Christians to them for the ministry of the poor and needy in confidence that the work would be fulfilled by the liberality of the Corinthians. Otherwise, his boasting was only said in vain because if they would not step up to do as they had said, then Paul's words on their behalf would have been meaningless, which may have possibly given false preachers more opportunity to backbite against Paul. So, knowing the boasting of them, and the trust he had placed in them, they should prepare themselves for the coming messengers.[v4] Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting.
The word 'haply' means "by chance," which is not to say that the providence of God was not overseeing the matter, but that, from the perspective of mankind, in which we do not have foreknowledge of a thing, we leave open multiple contingencies, and the possibility of any of them happening is what is known as "chance." Therefore, if by chance others from Macedonia were to decide to travel with Paul and the others to Corinth, and would find them unprepared for the collection to be given to the poor and needy saints, it would not be Corinth that would suffer the consequences, but rather, the consequences of shame would fall on Paul and his companions for putting faith into the word of the church in Corinth.(Read "God Does Not Justify Lies" here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v5] Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.
The word 'bounty' is used here, which indicates a blessing of gifts given liberally, but not all gifts are given liberally. There are many men who would keep their goods to themselves, and hang on to them as long as possible, before they would finally give, but only for a show, waiting until the last moment so they could hang on to their wealth as long as possible, only departing with it when they could get the most benefit out of it, that as many as possible would see their giving. (Mat 6:1-4)This is one of the reasons that Paul thought it was a necessity to encourage and build up Titus and the other two brethren for their journey to Corinth to collect for the poor and needy, so that they would collect according the bountiful giving as the Corinthians had capability, not beyond their means. In other words, it showed the Corinthians that these men could be trusted with their liberal giving, and also that Paul would not have suffered pompous giving for clout if he was tehre personally, therefore, neither would His companions. This prevented those in Corinth from trying to give extra for a call to impress, rather than giving according to how the Lord purposed them to do in their hearts. (1Co 16:2)
[v6] But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.
This is another verse that is often abused by corrupt preachers, quoting it to the people to get them to give the false teacher and his organization more money, which is not the purpose of this verse. Paul was not saying this for any benefit of himself because he was not the recipient of those collections.The Bible gives us simple proverbs which teach us that if we honor the Lord God with our substance, which is our increase over that which we need for ourselves, then He will bless us all the more. (Pro 3:9-10) This is not said for the purpose of us becoming rich, because that is false wisdom of men (Pro 23:4), but rather, this is God reassuring us that those who are charitable in their giving will receive more to do good works with it (Luke 19:17), or in other words, those who invest the money they are given into the poor and needy, will be given more because they have shown themselves to be cheerful givers and profitable for the Kingdom of Heaven. (Mat 25:14-30)
Therefore, this verse makes an analogy to farmers in the sense that those who plant a lot of seeds will reap more fruit (Pro 11:24-25), not in the sense of what is commonly referred to as "tithes and offerings" because those were done away with the New Covenant, but rather, in the sense of charity to those who are in need, in which the charitable should have motivation by considering how he would like to be treated if he were in the circumstances of the poor. (Mat 7:12) There are spiritual blessings that come with gifts given to the poor and needy, most especially for the poor and needy who are the children of God. (Gal 6:7-10)
[v7] Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.
In the New Testament, God never commands any of us to give anything, or in other words, we have no direct commandment saying we have to give any specific sum for a particular purpose, and therefore, we have no necessity (by divine commandment) to give anything. Under the New Covenant, we have liberty in Christ to give as we have purpose in our hearts to give, and so if we clean out the inside of our hearts and minds, then the outside (i.e. the works we do) will reflect that automatically. (Mat 23:25-26) By doing so, we provide evidence that we are the children of our Heavenly Father who gives good gifts not only to His children, but also His enemies (Mat 5:43-48) because He does not give "grudgingly" (i.e. unwillingly with reluctance or discontent) as if He is forced to do something He does not desire to do, but rather, He is faithful to His promises because He is the standard of all goodness, holiness, and righteousness according to His own nature, and therefore, God desires for His children to reflect the same heart that He has. (Luke 6:36)[v8] And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
In other words, we ought to have faith in God that not only is He able to make all graces plentiful towards us, and not only will He do it, but that it is His desire to do that for us, as a father does for His children. Therefore, knowing that He will give us that which is sufficient for our needs as well as a graceful bounty, we should also abound graceful bounty to others, without thought to receive anything from them in return. (Luke 6:35)[v9] (As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever.
Paul is referring to Psalm 112:9, in which God tells us that He has spread His riches abroad to all men whether out of necessity or not, and He has given much to the poor of this world. The righteousness of God remaining forever is not meant in the sense of His justification unto salvation, but rather, it is the righteousness of His grace and mercy, which is a testimony against the unbelieving, and a testimony of his lovingkindness, the seeds of which will bear fruit for His purposes in due time.[v10] Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)
This seems to be somewhat taken from Isaiah 55:9-10, meaning that God gives us seeds every year, which grows the plants by which we make our bread to eat and live, which in turn multiplies more seed to produce more food the following year, by which we can then give to others from our bountiful harvest, which increases our confidence in the promises of God, to faithfully go forward to give charitably to those in need.[v11] Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.
This seems to be a summarization of the previous two verses. God gives us not only what we need, but beyond what we need, which then leads us to give to others of the bounty that was given to us, and that causes more people to give thanksgiving to God by our charity in giving them what was abundantly given to us, completing the understanding of the phrase from verse nine, "his righteousness remaineth for ever."[v12] For the administration of this service not only supplieth the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God;
By "this service," Paul is referring back to the giving of those in Corinth for the poor and needy saints, pointing out to them that their giving is not just for providing their necessities, but also moving the churches to give thanks to God for those things, which in turn encourages more churches to give gifts of their abundance and thanks to God for His mercies, or in other words, they would be leading by example.[v13] Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men;
The word 'experiment' is used here in the sense of finding evidence by a trial, and so the evidence of their service to the poor and needy saints was a show of them subjecting themselves to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in His commandments of grace and charity unto our neighbors (Mat 22:37-40), and therefore, they give thanks to God for the wonderful blessings bestowed upon them by other Christians' faithfulness and obedience to His Word.[v14] And by their prayer for you, which long after you for the exceeding grace of God in you.
The lesser is blessed by the better (Heb 7:7), meaning that those who do not have abundance cannot bless (give abundance and make prosperous) those who have, and so their petition is unto God, praying that He would richly bless the giver of gifts for their charity and obedience, and that they would continue in those prayers long after the gifts had been given.[v15] Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.
This is said to bring the thoughts of the reader back to the source of all blessing, which flows downline. Those who are poor and needy receive blessings from God through those who have abundance and are charitable, while those who are charitable receive blessings from the Lord for their obedience and good work, and all these things are made possible through Jesus Christ our Lord, who suffered and died on the cross to save us, which is not a gift which cannot be spoken, but is called "unspeakable" in the sense that His glory and grace goes beyond our full understanding, and that there are not words in our language to describe His wonderful gifts.Chapter 10
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[v1] Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am base among you, but being absent am bold toward you:
In the previous chapters, Paul was addressing charity for the poor and needy saints, but now he is switching back to addressing the corrupt preachers who spoke falsely against him. He says "I Paul myself" for the purpose of reminding them that he was speaking for himself, as opposed to false teachers who would arrogantly and deceptively speak on Paul's behalf.When he was among them in Corinth (i.e. "in presence") he was lowly and meek, being humble and doing all that he could to avoid offense so the people would hear the truth of Christ's doctrine. However, when he wrote letters to them, he spoke more boldly with authority, warning or threatening to come to Corinth to cast some out of the church if the members of the church in Corinth did not handle the matter themselves, and by the example set with Ananias and Sapphira, in which God had killed them for lying (Acts 5:1-11), the last thing the children of God want to see is the anger of their Father through the Holy Ghost.
[v2] But I beseech you, that I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some, which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh.
To 'beseech' is to plead with a humble request of urgency, in which Paul wanted them to fix these problems so that, when he came to Corinth, he would not have to come down with a hammer of justice to protect the church, but could come in the meek and humble manner he preferred. If Paul were to come to them with the hammer, it might have resulted in the Holy Ghost striking people down with disease, infirmities, or death, and for those of us who have been given the heart of Christ, we do not want to see that anymore than Paul or the Corinthian church. However, knowing the lies and corruption that were spreading among the church through false teachers, and despite the fact that we (just like our Heavenly Father) take no pleasure to see the wicked punished for their evil deeds (Eze 33:11), Paul still had it in his mind to come to Corinth to solve this problem swiftly, to silence the mouth of the wicked (Tts 1:11), who lie against Paul and the other apostles, falsely accusing them of doing evil deeds of the flesh, as if Paul only sought his own worldly gain for his work for the Lord Jesus Christ. (i.e. Today, it is sometimes known as "projection," in which a man accuses his opponent of the very thing that he himself is guilty of doing.)[v3] For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
Paul is reminding the Corinthians that he and the other apostles live in the same flesh as everyone else, which is corrupt, weak, and suffers affliction. However, the battle we are fighting is a spiritual battle, in which one who serves Christ in ministry knows that he is in a war, a battle for the minds and hearts of the people, fighting against the corrupt philosophies of Satan and his minions, and so we do not fight such a battle in the same manner that men typically fight wars, having selfish motivations, and yet, it is a still a war that must be fought.[v4] (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
We are fighting an irregular type of warfare, in the sense that it is not like a normal battle because we fight against philosophies and principals that come from spiritual wickedness. (Eph 6:12) We do not pull out swords or guns to fight our battles because the true enemy of mankind (i.e. the Devil) is not affected by such things, nor do we Christians use such things in war against wicked men because the Kingdom of God is not here on earth (John 18:36), but rather, our weapon is the Word of God that is a sword of spirit and truth that pierces deeper than any physical weapon. (Heb 4:12)An allusion could be easily made here to the walls of Jericho, in which instruments were played around the wall of the city, and after a time of marching and playing instruments around the city, the walls collapsed all at once, which obviously was not any power that resided within the instruments themselves, as if they were artifacts to be worshipped, nor was there any special mystical power in the vocal cords of those who shouted to bring down the wall (Jos 6:20), but rather, it was the power of God through the obedience of His children that brought down those walls. (Jos 6:16) In similar fashion, we go to war against the corrupt philosophies (i.e. ways of thinking) of this world (Col 2:8), so the preaching of the law of God (Gal 3:24), and the message of repentance (i.e. grief and godly sorrow of wrongdoing) and remission (i.e. pardon/forgiveness) of sins (Luke 24:47), would prick the heart of men (Acts 2:37) and bring them to humility before the cross of Christ. (Jer 4:19)
[v5] Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
We use the Word of God to cast down imaginations, which would be anything that would be thought of that is in opposition to that which is good. Such imaginations lead people to do corrupt deeds, which is one of the major reasons that God had to destroy the world with a flood. (Gen 6:5)Such imaginations fill the heart with pride (which keeps him from salvation, Jms 4:6), in which a man puffs himself up (1Co 5:2) in the vanity of his own perceptions and self-admiration. We are not taking captives as men typically do in warfare, but rather, we are taking thoughts captive, wrestling down wicked imaginations and correcting them with the Word of God, that a man might see his broken and wretched state (Rev 3:17), and come to the godly grief of his sin so Jesus Christ would regenerate him with the Holy Spirit.
[v6] And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.
Paul is not saying this in the sense of "getting back" at someone in an eye-for-an-eye situation, but rather, revenge is meant in the sense of justice for a wrongdoing, meaning that those who have done evil in the church, and have no repentance of it, should be called out on it, and then actions taken to remove that wicked person from among the church, as Paul had previously instructed them to do. (1Co 5:9-13) So when Paul said "obedience is fulfilled," he meant that they are the obedient children of God, and as such, they do as they are instructed, being ready to punish those wicked among the church with removal from the church, even though it is not a pleasant thing to do. We remove offenders not for ourselves, but for Jesus Christ, and for the church, most especially the young and humble Christians, that they would not be afflicted by the leaven of those who were removed, and for the offender, that he would have God's discipline, a discipline which God withholds (while the offender is among the church) so the church would not be afflicted by those punishments because the Lord does not want His innocent children to suffer collateral grief and damages for the punishment of one who is disobedient.[v7] Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? If any man trust to himself that he is Christ's, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ's, even so are we Christ's.
The question Paul posed is to get the Corinthians to consider what they were seeing and judging righteous judgment. (John 7:24) Paul and his companions were meek, humble, and did not seek after material wealth, being charitable in all things, but Paul's opponents, who falsely preached against them, lifted themselves up with riches and prestige, and sadly, many men admired them for it, which is not becoming of those who profess Jesus Christ; neither should we lift ourselves up in such prideful vanity, nor ought we admire those who do the same. (Jms 2:1-9, Luke 16:15)If any man believes himself to be born again in the Lord Jesus Christ, then he should use discernment to see if the same evidence of his own demeanor, testimony, preaching, and works is seen in the man who claims to be a minister of Christ. If he does not see a reasonable, modest, patient man who balances boldness of speech and humility of spirit, then he should not trust that man. This could be said in the same respect of repentance, meaning that if a man had a repentant heart (i.e. he is humbled to godly sorrow of his own wrongdoing), then he should be able to see that same heart in other people who claim to be of Jesus Christ, and if they do not show any evidence of it, it is likely that they are not of Christ because they were not given that repentance. (2Ti 2:25)
[v8] For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority, which the Lord hath given us for edification, and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed:
That is, the authority which Paul had, he received directly from Jesus Christ, which he was honored to be chosen by Christ for this office and duty, and he had more reason to boast than those false teachers boasted of their imagined authority. Christ did not give it to Paul because Paul was to be lifted up, but rather, it was for the work of edification, to build up the church in various locations, and so he boldly spoke of his authority without shame, whereas the false teachers should have been ashamed of their boldness without spiritual authority, being actors who deceive for material gain. (Isa 56:11)[v9] That I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters.
Through the preaching of edification, and the fact that he was humble and meek in their presence, he would not seem like someone who would come in to do the horrifying things that were heard of in various places in which the Holy Ghost had punished certain in the churches for their deceptions. Perhaps it could be said that the false teachers were claiming that Paul was all talk and no action.[v10] For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible.
Or in other words, the false teachers were claiming that Paul was a skilled writer who made sound arguments, but when they met him face-to-face, he seemed to be nothing more than a feeble old man, and his speech should only be scoffed at. In context, the false teachers were arguing that his appearance did not match the boldness of his words, and so instead of judging righteous judgment, as Jesus Christ had commanded (John 7:24), they were judging according to the appearance, and so Paul is addressing that point to the Corinthians, namely, that they should not judge according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment according to the truth of God's Word, comparing spiritual things with spiritual. (1Co 2:13)[v11] Let such an one think this, that, such as we are in word by letters when we are absent, such will we be also in deed when we are present.
Or in other words, if a man judges righteous judgment, he will judge a man's works to see if that which he does matches that which he teaches. This is the premise of the argument to the conclusion Paul will provide in the next chapter (2Co 11:4), namely, that if one preaches a gospel that diverts from what Jesus Christ taught, then he does not preach Christ, and they should not suffer him to be among them in the church.[v12] For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.
Paul is saying that he would never even think to make himself like unto those false teachers in their long fancy robes (Luke 20:46), to carry themselves in the pride of their conceit for their own selfish gains, nor would he consider to compare himself to them in the way that they compare themselves to one another. (2Co 6:14) Instead of listening and learning from others, showing a heart that accepts correction of their errors (Pro 15:10), the false teachers only compared themselves to themselves, meaning that they thought they were great in stature, having great wisdom within themselves, but when the truth behind their words is revealed, they are small in stature, having no understanding (1Co 2:14), similar to a Chihuahua (i.e. a tiny dog) thinking he is a big dog with his bark, but in reality, he has a very small bite.[v13] But we will not boast of things without our measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us, a measure to reach even unto you.
As indicated in the last verse, it is not wise to compare oneself to oneself, otherwise, there is a rubber-ruler problem where you cannot see any of your own wrongdoing. So when our words and actions come into question, we compare them with God's Word as the standard of measurement, which is why the old saying was, "The Bible is our final authority in all matters of faith and practice."Having the direct miraculous blessings of the Holy Spirit, Paul was far stronger than any of those false teachers, but he came to them in meekness, following the example that Jesus Christ set for us, able call down armies of angels to His aid at any time, and yet, He came to us meek and lowly, riding on a donkey (John 12:14-15), suffering persecution and tribulation for our sakes. These gifts, whether miraculous or ordinary, are distributed to us (i.e. the church as a whole) in measures, in different places at different times for different purposes according to God's will, pleasure, and plan, even a measure to reach unto Corinth, that they might set right the wrongs done by corrupt preachers among them.
[v14] For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though we reached not unto you: for we are come as far as to you also in preaching the gospel of Christ:
Paul is saying that he did not go beyond his station, meaning that Paul is an apostle, who is set to start up new churches and establish them, not a pastoral ministry, to consistently oversee Corinth, as if he was set to keep returning to the Corinthians to babysit them, which was obviously not his office of station, and therefore, he trusted the Holy Spirit that the measure God had gifted to Corinth would be seen through by them to do the right thing, only having to send a letter of reproof and exhortation to point them in the right direction and help them in their confidence to be obedience unto Jesus Christ, so he would not have to come back with a hammer of justice to punish the wicked.[v15] Not boasting of things without our measure, that is, of other men's labours; but having hope, when your faith is increased, that we shall be enlarged by you according to our rule abundantly,
Paul is now pointing out that the false teachers would "boast of things without their measure," meaning that they would come into a city like Corinth, where the hard work of laying a foundation of faith had already been established by Paul and his companions, and then they would see the opportunity to build up profit and prestige for themselves, so they would boast of Corinth as if they had done the work in the Corinthian church, when they had actually done nothing. Instead, Paul expressed his hope in them, through the work he had begun in them by the Holy Ghost, that once they had increased their faith to the things that were obedient to Christ, and to stand up against the false teachers, no matter what position of authority they claimed for themselves, to remove them from the church, they will be blessed by God and "enlarged," to grow in number of saints who have come to true repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, and subsequently, leading them to submission to the authority given to Paul and the other apostles as well, which is a Biblical requirement for church (2Th 3:14), to accept the doctrine of the apostles in their epistles as the Word of the Living God to His children.[v16] To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man's line of things made ready to our hand.
This trust in the measure of gifts and calling that God gave to all regions, including Corinth, is what freed up Paul and the other apostles to preach in various regions. When Paul entered a region, he did not come in to take over what had already been established by another man's work, but rather, he moved on to an area where the work (i.e. the foundations of the church) had not been established, and therefore, he would only take credit to boast of the Christians in the areas where he had done the work, and would not boast of things he had not overseen. It is a common tactic by false preachers to take credit for things they did not do, in order to profit from them, whether it is to fool people by prophecies falsely so called (i.e. information that is not well-known to the people is claimed to be "prophetic"), or by plagiarism of another preacher's hard work for the Lord Jesus Christ, by which he appears to have knowledge, but he has no understand. (2Ti 3:7)[v17] But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
Paul is saying that those who boast of anything, they should boast of Jesus Christ. This is not to say that his boasting of the good faith and repentance of Corinth was wrong, but that in the end, no man is capable of any work unless the Lord God would allow him to be capable, and therefore, all gifts, whether they are physical or spiritual, are gifts from the Lord Jesus Christ, who imparts to all men wisdom, righteousness, and salvation, of which we cannot attain for ourselves without His help.[v18] For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.
The word 'commend' means to speak in favor of a person or thing with praise of worth. Thus, a man who commends himself, and speaks highly of himself and all his accomplishments (which is very common of modern-day preachers with all their worldly accomplishments on their website "About" profiles instead of a testimony of salvation through the Gospel of Jesus Christ) is NOT approved, meaning that man is prideful, and has not received the gift of repentance, so he is not proven to be as worthy as he thinks himself to be; rather, it is the Lord that declares who is worthy, and as Paul so aptly stated in his first espitle to Corinth, God chooses the weak to overwhelm the strong, and the foolish to confound the wise, so that no flesh would glory in His presence. (1Co 1:26-29)Chapter 11
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[v1] Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me.
Paul is abasing himself to the church in Corinth in this verse, speaking in opposition to the false teachers who spoke to the people in a prideful and selfish manner, lifting up their own stations and titles, commending their accomplishments, and boasting of their works, while condemning Paul in his lowly state. Therefore, Paul embraces what is intended to be an insult, namely, that he is just a foolish and feeble old man, knowing that God chooses the foolish and feeble to confound the wise and strong (1Co 1:26), and pleads in humility, with emphasis that they show him mercy to bear with him for a moment to understand his argument, knowing that those who are the true children of God will listen.[v2] For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
jealous (adj): suspicious; apprehensive of rivalship; uneasy through fear that another has withdrawn or may withdraw from one the affections of a person he loves, or enjoy some good which he desires to obtain
(See 'jealous', American Dictionary of the English Language, Noah Webster, 1828, retrieved July 13, 2021, [webstersdictionary1828.com])
[v3] But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.
Again, this fear through the jealousy is not one of the flesh, but is of charitable concern, for the goodwill and safety of those Paul cared deeply for, and did not want them to be persuaded to follow men who looked to fool them for their own profit. Just as the devil had mislead Eve by the craftiness of his words to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge (Gen 3:1-6), so the false preachers and false apostles of Corinth attempted to mislead the church to yoke together with false doctrines and faulty wisdom of the world.[v4] For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.
This is not to say that they ought to turn their ears to a false teacher, but rather, if another teacher came to preach a Christ that was better than the Lord Jesus Christ, offering them a better salvation and a better sacrifice, or another Holy Spirit which offered them better peace, joy, and comfort, who Paul and the other apostles did not teach them, then they ought to listen to the other teacher and embrace that other gospel. However, we know, just as the Corinthians knew, that it is impossible for a better Christ and Spirit to be presented to mankind, that it was absurd that a better redemption could be made, and that nothing can surpass the grace and eternal life which Jesus Christ offers.[v5] For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles.
Among the churches, the names of John, Peter, and James, just to name a few, were more well-known and highly respected than the name of Paul, and for obvious reasons, being that Paul was a former Pharisee that hunted Christians to bring them to their deaths, while the "very chiefest of the apostles" had directly walked and talked with Jesus Christ in the flesh, being chosen by Him while He was in the world. However, despite the fact that they were more honored, Paul did not come "whit behind," or a short distance behind them in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and humbly "supposes" this (i.e. it was a suggested thought), rather than declaring it to be a fact.[v6] But though I be rude in speech, yet not in knowledge; but we have been throughly made manifest among you in all things.
Paul confessed that his speech was "rude," meaning that it was rough, uneven, and unpolished, in the sense that he compared himself with the false teachers, who were considered by society to be great speakers. This is not to say that Paul was not well-versed in his speech in a general sense because we can see the evidence of his education and intellectual capability by his writing, but rather, this was said to explain to Corinth that the greatest speaker in the world can speak in ignorance, while the worst speaker in the world can present knowledge, and therefore, the false teachers used good words and fair speeches while deceiving the hearts of the simple (Rom 16:17-18), whereas Paul preached the simplicity of Christ's gospel with plainness of speech to save the souls of men.In order for us Christians to understand the difference between the two, we need to analyze the teachings, words, and actions of the preacher in question, which is why Paul said that he and the other apostles had been "made manifest among you in all things," meaning that they had all the evidence they needed to compare the Scripture with the lives of those who taught God's Word, and so anyone could see (if their heart had been prepared by the Holy Spirit to do so, 1Co 2:14), Paul lived a life reflective of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, in humility, patience, and charity, while the false teachers made every effort they could to cover up their private practices and secret conversations. (John 3:19-21)
[v7] Have I committed an offence in abasing myself that ye might be exalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely?
Paul is suggesting that rather than listening to the rumors of hypocritical men who only serve themselves, they should look at the evidence in front of them. Paul did not speak highly of himself. He abased himself, or in other words, he spoke lowly of himself, so that they might be lifted up, not in the sense that they would think higher of themselves than they ought (Rom 12:3), but rather, in the sense that they would more easily accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that He would lift them up on the Day of Judgment. (Luke 18:13-14)Paul also emphasizes that it was not his own teaching that he taught them, but it was God's teaching that he taught them. Though Paul could have asked for things from them when he first came to preach to them, and such a thing would have been Biblically sound for the purpose of supplying his needs (1Ti 5:18, 1Co 9:9-14), however, he did not ask anything of them, and taught them freely, giving away all things he had, whether it was his time in the labor of preaching doctrine, in documentation, or in the working of miracles to heal the sick. (Mat 10:8)
[v8] I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service.
Paul did not mean that he was robbing in the sense of stealing from them because he had already testified that they had given freely from what little they had, but rather, he saw the poor Christians in Macedonia giving what little they could to help those in Corinth who already had much wealth, and so in Paul's heart, it felt this way, although he was not guilty of doing any wrong because the money was given freely. So in summary, Paul is pointing out to Corinth that they received the Gospel of Jesus Christ, with all the hard work involved, for free, and then furthermore, were also receiving collections taken from the poor to service their every need, which was meant to prick the church of Corinth in their hearts, in hope to spur them into action.[v9] And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from Macedonia supplied: and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself.
That is, when Paul was in Corinth preaching, he obviously had need of food, clothing, and shelter, but he was not beholden to any man in Corinth to provide those things for him because he would work for for them himself, which is what Luke testified that Paul did during his stay in Corinth (Acts 18:1-5), and anything else he could not earn for himself was made up by the charity of those in Macedonia. Paul did everything he could to make sure that he did not cost the Corinthians anything, so they would have no reason to accuse him of being greedy of gain for their wealth, that they would more readily receive the doctrines of Christ.[v10] As the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the regions of Achaia.
Paul reaffirms his confident stance that he preached the truth of Christ, despite what false teachers might say about him, and that none of those men were going to stop him from boasting of the work he had done in Corinth, referring to the charitable sacrifice he made on their behalf, in which he showed great love for them in all things, being in full obedience to Christ, and it resulted in many faithful and strong Christians who operated in the region of Achaia, of which Corinth was the chief city. To clarify, it was not his charity that he boasted of, but it was the result of it, which was the faithful Christians who loved the Lord Jesus Christ, boasting of the great work that the Holy Ghost had done in the region.[v11] Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth.
In other words, Paul is asking them to consider why he did these things. Why is it that he took nothing for their sake? Paul is reasoning with them that what false teachers might say about him is ridiculous when they simply consider the evidence. Some might even go so far as to say that he refused to take anything from them because he looked down on them or despised them in some way, but as Paul said, "God knoweth," meaning that God not only knows the purity of intent in the heart of Paul, knowing all his thoughts and the imaginations therein, but also that of the false accusers working against Him and the church in Corinth, that damnation is prepared for them if they will not come to repentance and faith in Christ. (2Pe 2:1-3)[v12] But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we.
That is, Paul determined to continue his work in Achaia as he had always done, taking nothing from them, and preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ freely among the people, not that he was unwilling to accept gifts of charity from them, but rather, because he cared for them, and so he wanted to protect them from false apostles and false teachers. The wicked men of Achaia wanted to have preeminence (i.e. superiority of rank and dignity in excellence, honor, and virture, 3Jo 1:9-10) as the apostles of Jesus Christ received from the church, but instead of humbling themselves in the sight of God and men to do His good and charitable works to receive it (Luke 18:14), they try to take it forcefully or manipulatively through strife. (Pro 16:28) Therefore, to prevent the teachers of corruption from taking opportunity to influence the minds of the saints of God, Paul continued to suffer and work to protect his brethren, that such wicked men would not be seen as (or counted among) the apostles of Christ, but rather, if they were to be found as the apostles, they should do so in the same manner, having nothing and taking nothing, which the false teachers rejected because they were greedy of gain. (Isa 56:10-12)[v13] For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
These false teachers present themselves as pastors and apostles of Christ by transforming their outward appearance to reflect what one might expect from a disciple of Christ, but inwardly, they are deceitful workers, meaning they do only those things which will benefit themselves. Even if the work they do might seemingly, in the moment, be for the benefit of others in the church, they do so not for that person's help as much as they do it to build up preeminence among the people present in their company, to give themselves more rank, more honor, and thereby, more money (1Ti 6:10), while speaking evil of the good things Paul had done (1Pe 3:15-17), even though he took no rank, no honor, and no money.[v14] And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
By the phrase, "no marvel," Paul means that we should not be surprised that those wicked men would do such things because they are of their father the Devil (John 8:44), and the Devil, who is Satan, does the exact same thing. Satan transforms his appearance to make himself seem like he a messenger of God, but inwardly, he is as crafty as he was at the beginning in Eden with Adam and Eve, which is why Jesus Christ taught us not to judge according to the appearance (John 7:24), and that we should judge righteous judgment by what a person says and teaches because what comes out of their mouths is reflective of what is in their hearts. (Mat 15:18)[v15] Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Therefore, since spiritual beings of evil can do these things in a manner not well understood to mankind in the physical world, it should not take any great leap of logic to understand that men can do the same thing. This is not to say that the devil's ministers become ministers of righteouesness, but contextually, it is meant that they transform their outer person, so that others will perceive them to be something they are not. This means that they will appear to be kind people, blending in with the church, to cover themselves with excuses, pointing to external (instead of internal) sources for their faults (Rev 3:17), while pretending to be friends with those who do good works, and preaching with great passion and charimsa that others should do those good works with all their might, while leading people away from the doctrines of repentance and grace.[v16] I say again, Let no man think me a fool; if otherwise, yet as a fool receive me, that I may boast myself a little.
In this passage, Paul is being forced to speak in his own defense against the false accusations of corrupt preachers, which is something typically less effective than others standing up to speak in his defense, and therefore may consider him nothing more than a fool, having no credit to his own name, but as he said, it was his desire that they not consider him a fool for doing so, and that, despite the fact that God had granted Paul much wisdom, he is willing to play the part of a fool in order to help them understand. The last part, in which Paul says that "I may boast myself a little," was said to expose the corrupt preachers for what they were, namely, that they boasted of themselves often, just as we see today with the average so-called "ministry" and their "About" pages in which, instead of testifying of Jesus Christ, they boast of themselves, their worldy degrees, and their fleshly accomplishments, and so Paul is requesting that he might speak of himself a little, but only a very small degree in comparison to grand productions of false preachers to boast of themselves.[v17] That which I speak, I speak it not after the Lord, but as it were foolishly, in this confidence of boasting.
That is, Paul did not speak the following out of any obligation directly from the Lord, nor from any Old Testament commandment, but what he was about to say was in agreement with the grace and liberty that God had given him to speak more freely to the Corinthians. Paul's letters were normally quite formal, and often written with much tact, which is not to say that he would throw off formality and tactfulness, but rather, he will speak more boldly to put to shame the false preachers. Paul was very confident in his position because the evidence is all on his side. He is not saying that he is speaking foolishly, but that it would appear to be that way to corrupt preachers, and to those who follow their wicked doctrines.[v18] Seeing that many glory after the flesh, I will glory also.
Today, this is often done by those who have a seminary degree, but in that day, it was often done by the Jews, who boasted of their Hebrew heritage, and thought themselves a superior breed that was blessed by God. Many such men with froward tongues boasted of themselves, and Paul is pointing out that he had the same heritage (being born of the tribe of Benjamin), and he had the same upbringing, perhaps even moreso because he was formerly a Pharisee who served under the well-known and highly-respected Gamaliel (Acts 22:3), as well as being a free-born Roman citizen because he came out of Tarsus, which gave him other special privileges that many others did not have.[v19] For ye suffer fools gladly, seeing ye yourselves are wise.
It should be no great thing to suffer one coming in the manner of a fool since the Corinthians were suffering fools to preach among them. They accepted foolish preaching with gladness of heart, and perceived themselves to be wise for it, but it is a wonder that those who had been born again in Christ and received the Holy Ghost, to have understanding of the revelations of Christ, could tolerate such men among them.[v20] For ye suffer, if a man bring you into bondage, if a man devour you, if a man take of you, if a man exalt himself, if a man smite you on the face.
By the word 'suffer', Paul means that they were putting up with these people, accepting them, and tolerating their vain speech. If the wicked pastors oppressed the church by lording over them with a heavy hand, the church tolerated it. If they oppressed them by giving them a schedule they have to keep, the church tolerated it. If they oppressed them by leading them into the keeping of ceremonial laws, the church tolerated it. If they oppressed them by demanding funding, the church tolerated it. If they oppressed them by demanding they respect their person in sin (i.e. being lifted up with their fancy titles and prestigious education), the church tolerated it. The oppression would even go so far that if these corrupt pastors were to smack them across the face, the church, in their willful blindness, would tolerate it, and in 2,000 years, nothing has changed because there are many who still do the same today, fearing the pastors more than fearing God. (Pro 29:25)[v21] I speak as concerning reproach, as though we had been weak. Howbeit whereinsoever any is bold, (I speak foolishly,) I am bold also.
Paul spoke these things "concerning reproach," or rather, he used severe language to find fault, which we would have to assume was the manner in which the false teachers were speaking, in that they accused Paul and the other apostles of doing all these things, when the false preachers were the ones guilty of the very thing they accused others of doing, so Paul used their own language against them. The purpose was to demonstrate the fact that Paul and the other apostles had never done such things to the church, and so he did not want the church of Corinth to confuse patience and liberty with weakness and fear, or in other words, Paul did not want the church to think that the apostles were weak simply because they allowed the church liberty, which Christ had afforded them.Paul ends by pointing out that the false teachers speak boldly, meaning they pride themselves in the vanities of their accomplishments, titles, and prestige. To use their own vain arguments against them (i.e. "I speak foolishly"), Paul can also point out his own credentials, and when comparing the two side-by-side, Paul has better credentials than they do, only he does not boast of such things because he knows the vanity of it. (Eph 5:6)
[v22] Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I.
Paul asserts himself to be of the line of Abraham, who was called a Hebrew (Gen 14:13), having both his father and mother of Jewish lineage. Paul also asserts himself to be an Israelite, a title that the Jews found to be more honorable because God had given them the law, granted them a special covenant, and from which the seed of the Messiah was said to have come. (Rom 9:4-5) No matter what they called themselves out of the pride in their hearts, Paul was called the same because he came from the same lineage, only Paul did not boast these things because he came to the church in humility.[v23] Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool ) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft.
Again, Paul is emphasizing that he is using the false preachers' own arguments against them (i.e. "I speak as a fool"), in which they boast themselves to be ministers of Christ, but Paul has proven himself to be a minister of Christ far more than they ever have. Paul had taken on "labours more abundant" in that he had traveled much with many persecutions and tribulations along the way, being whipped by his enemies, frequently being arrested on no lawful charges, and often being a hair's width away from certain death. (2Co 1:8-10)[v24] Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.
As far as I am aware, there are no other places in Scripture that describe these instances, but this punishment (i.e. 39 whippings) was one less than the maximum punishment that was allowed according to God's law. (Deut 25:2-3) It was up to the judges to decide how many stripes to issue, between 1 and 40, but the reason for 39 is not because they had mercy on Paul and saved him one lashing, because they could have reduced the amount to far less, and they typically did for men of Paul's older age. As far as I understand, the elderly in Israel were beaten with less lashes, otherwise they could die; only the young and strong were given greater lashings, but they ignored that concerning Paul, and I would add that it was likely that they wanted him to die in the process. They chose to beat him with the full extent of the law, but they used a whip with three cords on it (i.e. 3 x 13 = 39), so they gave him "forty stripes save one," because if they whipped him with the final lash, it would have added to 42, which would have put them in voilation of God's commandment. This is yet another example where the Jews are blinded to understanding and charity (i.e. the fulfillment of the law) because they are so "hell-bent" on the letter of the law. (Gal 3:23-25) Furthermore, if they gave him 40 lashes, that was the highest punishment available to them under the law, which would be given to a man with the most extreme crime, and so to avoid giving Paul a punishment that might make them look bad in the public eye, they gave him 39, so they could say they did not give him the worst punishment they could have, to make themselves appear more benevolent.[v25] Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
The Jews used cords (i.e. whips), so it was likely that the three instances of rods were a form of Roman punishment. Paul was also stoned (Acts 14:19) and left for dead.The shipwrecks Paul mentioned in this passage were different than the shipwreck he suffered when he was captive and being taken to Rome to stand before Caesar because this letter was written before that time. (See Acts 27) Paul also spent a full day cycle stranded in the middle of a large body of water, meaning that he was possibly thrown into the sea and abandoned there, but by the grace of God, he was protected, presumably rescued by another ship or carried to shore by the waves.
[v26] In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
Paul traveled through many countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe. The "perils of waters" is not the same as being in the sea, as Paul mentions that separately, but would refer to smaller water problems such as a flood, which can be very dangerous to those who are traveling on foot. The "perils of robbers" would not be in peril of losing anything of value because Paul traveled without any money, but if he were taken by robbers, they might try to use him for their own gains, or if they find that he has nothing, beat him or kill him. The "perils by mine own countrymen" would be the Jews who sought to whip him and kill him.The "perils by the Heathen" were those angered by the preaching of Paul, to turn people away from their idols, which also costed them their livelyhood in some instances, like with Demetrius the silversmith at Ephesus, who riled up the craftsman and worshipers of the false goddess Diana against Paul and the other disciples. (Acts 19:23-41) The "perils in the city" are different than those in the country because, even today, law enforcement gets involved at the slightest complaint of a citizen, and even if the one making the complaint has ill intent, the threat of jail time is always looming. The "perils in the wilderness" could encompass many things, such as dehydration, hunger, violent weather, wild animals, etc. The "perils in the sea" is not necessarily by shipwreck, because Paul already mentioned that, but rather, by poor decisions by the sailors which would leave them without basic needs for survival, violent weather, or even by pirates.
Paul also includes the phrase "in perils among false brethren," which indicates people who claimed to be of Christ, but were not. Such people pretended to be disciples, but they hated Paul because he rebuked them, and so they would make him their enemy, and would cause him much trouble, through lies and deceptions, using manipulation through religious entities or legal means to hinder him and lead others astray.
[v27] In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
By "weariness and painfulness," it would not be meant in the context of the unjust punishments he suffered at the hands of governments, robbers, and religious institutions because that would be automatically implied, but rather, this is meant in the sense of his work. Not all work is painful, and depending on the job, sometimes work can be enjoyable, especially when one sees the fruits of his labor, but in the context of ministry, it is often tiring and painful to continue day after day.Paul would sometimes have to keep watch when he or his companions might be in danger, staying up late to pray, while having to get up early the next morning to work to supply his own food. When he was in the wilderness, or at sea during his travels, he would go hungry and thirsty, without any access to those basic needs.
Paul would fast often, not out of necessity or commandment, but out of discipline, to keep his body in subjection to the will of God and the spirit of his mind. (1Co 9:27, Eph 4:22-24) The "cold and nakedness" does not mean that people were stealing his clothes, or that he could not provide clothing for himself, but rather, the winter months were harsh on him because he did not have proper winter attire, and he had no residence to keep himself warm.
[v28] Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.
Paul suffered all those things in addition to his giving to the church, which was part of his duty. Also, Paul suffered those things while continuing in his daily prayer, study, and teaching, while attending to the various requests he received from the many churches in various regions who sought his help and counsel, while he tried his best to watch over them and prevent false apostles from leading them astray.[v29] Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not?
The question, "who is weak, and I am not weak?" is said in the sense of a weak Christian, one who is new to the faith of Christ, that would be weak in their understanding and faith. Paul appeared weak to those who were weak, showing extra patience, mercy, and understanding to them, adjusting his habits around them that he would not become a stumblingblock to them. (1Co 8:9-11)The question, "who is offended, and I burn not?" is meant in the sense of Christian brethren who have had wrong done to them, and Paul is "burning," or rather, suffering inwardly in grief over the matter. He was continually troubled over the matter, made sick to his stomach in grief, until the matter was resolved, and the offender either removed by the church to restore the peace, or reconciled to the church and the Lord by his repenting of the offense he caused. (Luke 15:4-7)
[v30] If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities.
Paul is saying that if he found it necessary to boast of these things, as he did in response to false preachers and corrupt pastors, he would only glory in the sufferings he endured for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ and His church. As he suffered with patience and mercy, Paul was able to give an example of the patience and mercy of Christ, to glorify Him in that glorying as opposed to the false teachers that tried to use such things to glorify themselves only, and that the Holy Spirit had saved Paul not just in the spirit, but also rescued him from many dire circumstances, further strengthening the faith of the church and turning the lost to Christ.[v31] The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not.
The evidence of Paul's testimony is backed up by the knowledge of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Paul said this in no casual manner, as to call upon the Lord God as a witness to the truth of a matter is very serious, and can come with dire consequences if God is offended by such a statement, but knowing that his testimony is true, he had no fear to make such a statement, which God will show in the Day of Judgement to be true.[v32] In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king kept the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desirous to apprehend me:
Aretas was the king of Arabia at the time, and Damascus was a large city in the Arabic region back then, so Paul is referring to the governor appointed to the management of the city under Aretas. Paul is referring to the instance that Luke also described in Acts 9:22-25, in which the Jews were confounded by Paul's preaching, unable to answer his doctrine, and so they sought to kill him, falsely accusing him and calling upon the governor to have the guard watch the gates to apprehend him.[v33] And through a window in a basket was I let down by the wall, and escaped his hands.
The city of Damascus had similar design to Jericho (in which Rahab hid the two Hebrew spies and let them down by a cord along the outer wall that night, Jos 2:15), having residences built along the outer wall, and provided a way for Paul to bypass the guards at the gate to avoid being captured.Chapter 12
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[v1] It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.
Though Paul was well within justification to boast of these things, for he suffered much that went unseen by the church, it was not suitable to the purpose at hand for him to boast of these things without doubt of how effective that might be in his service to others. This is for many reasons, but most notably, that Paul would be viewed as being prideful in his accomplishments, and furthermore, some of those Christians who would read this might think it good to boast of their own accomplishments as well, not understanding the reason for Paul's boasting, which was to counter the false narrative preached by false pastors. Therefore, Paul states that he would return to preaching the Word of God in this letter, specifically on the visions and revelations that he had received, and that, hopefully, the Corinthians would receive these revelations and visions with the understanding that he gave these with no selfish intent, and the only purpose of them is to help them to have more understanding of the doctrines and philosophy of Christ.[v2] I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
As Paul indicates in verse seven, the man he is referring to is himself, but he is speaking in the third person, as if he is a witness testifying of something he is watching take place, which, based on the the subsequent verses, seems to be a manner of speech to indicate humility, that he is not boasting of himself and his own experiences, and simply testifying of the truth. The timing of this event was fourteen years prior, which indicates that this happened around the time of his conversion on the road to Damascus, and though we do not have enough details to know when this occurred, we can confidently say that this happened sometime after his conversion, since a man is not brought to conversion and salvation in Christ by revelations and visions. (Gal 3:24)The vision he had was so real to Paul, he was unable to tell if he was taken up while still in his body, or if he had been in a trance of sorts, in which he was taken out of his body temporarily. (In my personal opinion, I would suspect it was out of body, only because to bring corrupt flesh into the Kingdom of God seems contradictory, but I am not sure one way or another.) Paul was given understanding that what he was being shown was the "third heaven," which is one of three heavens mentioned in the Scripture, (i.e. the first heaven is the sky or atmosphere, Gen 1:20, and the second heaven is outer space where the stars reside Deut 4:19) so Paul was being shown the Kingdom of God where He lives with the angels and saints.
[v3] And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;)
This verse seems to be a repetition of part of the previous verse in the manner in which we tend to repeat a word or phrase more than once to draw emphasis to what we are saying. In this instance, Paul is drawing emphasis to this point that he dumbfounded with the awe and marvel of what he witnessed when he was raptured into heaven.[v4] How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.
Paul was brought to the heavenly paradise, where he would have seen and heard things, such as the throne of God, to the angels in their natural forms, to the words spoken and music sung, as well as many other mysteries which we cannot comprehend. As opposed to those false prophets who claim to have seen such things in visions and speak openly about many details, Paul taught that such things are not lawful for a man to speak of, not only that it is likely impossible that such things could be fully described in our limited language and understanding, but that they were not permitted by God to be spoken of; so that what Paul had seen was meant only for him to know, perhaps for his own motivation and encouragement in the dark days he faced during his ministry as an apostle, or perhaps just for the purpose writing this testimony for our Scriptural study.[v5] Of such an one will I glory: yet of myself I will not glory, but in mine infirmities.
Remember that Paul is referring to himself in the third person, and so the concept here is that he might boast of this man, who was so honored and lifted up to see heaven itself in all of its glory, but because he dared not boast of himself in such a manner, to think more highly of himself than ought (Rom 12:3), he only spoke of himself in the third person to stay away from any self-glorification. The only thing he would boast in were the infirmities, which is not to say that he boasted of sin because Paul had the same humility and grief of his own sin as all those who are born again in Christ. The word 'infirmity' in this passage is meant in the sense of frailty and weakness, or in other words, Paul is boasting of his sufferings, afflictions, and persecutions for the sake of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is something that men would not normally boast of, finding it contradictory to be joyful for things which bring grief, but because of knowledge, understanding, and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and knowing what is to come for those who love Him (1Co 2:9), he boasted of those things which the world despises.[v6] For though I would desire to glory, I shall not be a fool; for I will say the truth: but now I forbear, lest any man should think of me above that which he seeth me to be, or that he heareth of me.
Though Paul had a desire in his heart to boast of those things which he had seen and experienced because they were the good, holy, and glorious things of God, he refused to become a fool in such manner as the false apostles and false preachers had done, in which they lifted themselves up to high status, like Diotrephes for example, who loved to have preeminence (i.e. honor, respect, and high station) among the people. (3Jo 1:9) Instead, Paul elected to simply speak the truth of the matter, which is a humble and wise position, allowing the Lord God to work by the Holy Spirit through men to bring them to repentance (i.e. grief and godly sorrow of their sins) to the acknowledging of the truth (2Ti 2:25), which is the only way they can be saved. (2Th 2:10)The word 'forbear' means to stop or cease, which means that Paul is declaring that he will stop in his description of these things, so that no one else will think that he himself is divine in some manner, as it is the tendency of the Gentiles and heathen to believe such things. Paul had seen this many times, like when he had been bitten by a viper and suffered no poisonous effects; the locals thought him to be a god (Acts 28:3-6), lifting him up to a divine status, and though he might have rebuked them for thinking such a thing inappropriate to his status as just a man, word would have spread and others who heard the story may have adopted the ridiculous notion that he had achieved godhood, thereby thinking Paul to be "above that which he seeth me," or in other words, he is no different than the rest of us, other than the gifts God had given him.
[v7] And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure.
Like all Christians still living in this world, Paul was a saved soul that still lived in his flesh in this world, and the flesh is still vunerable to the vanity of pride. So that Paul would not lift himself up in pride because he had been shown so many great and wonderful things which nearly all men could never imagine to see, a thorn of the flesh was given to him, which is a figure of speech that refers to infirmity of the flesh (Hos 2:5-7), specifically the gradual decay of his eyesight.The "messenger of Satan" does not seem to be used in any figurative sense, but rather, it is meant literally, that Satan and his devils would be used by God to further His purposes for mankind. This is similar to the way in which God used Satan to give thorns of the flesh to Job, but did not permit the Devil to take his life. (Job 1:12) Just as Satan's messengers brought a thorn in the flesh for the purpose of God to humble Job, the same can be said of Paul, according to his own testimony.
[v8] For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
Paul had times he prayed daily, but this seems to be special times that he sought the Lord on this matter, that his eyesight might healed by the messenger of the Devil being sent away from him.[v9] And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
This was not used in the sense that is commonly used by lukewarm churchgoers who follow the emotions of their heart (Jer 17:9, Pro 28:26), in which they have an inner feeling and claim it was the Holy Spirit, but rather, this was an extraordinary circumstance in which Paul was told these things by the Holy Ghost. The grace of the Living God is sufficient for any man, no matter what his circumstance, and that this infirmity given to Paul was not only for his benefit, but also for that of many others around him, that we would rejoice in the salvation of our souls, that the struggles of this life are less than a fleeting memory in comparison to the eternal life that has been prepared for us in heaven.This verse is not saying that our weakness adds to the strength of God, nor that God's might is completed through such weakness, as if He only has strength in part, but rather, the glory and perfection of Christ in strengthening His saints can be more clearly seen by men when we are weak, that men would not glorify us for strength. Therefore, as Paul said, we much more gladly boast of our weaknesses, frailty, and persecutions, that the authority of Christ might rest upon us and be seen in us by all men, that they might know the way to eternal life. (1Jo 5:13)
[v10] Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.
This is not to say that Paul enjoyed being starved, robbed, or beaten, but rather, he is taking pleasure in the fact that every time these things happen, he is protected by Jesus Christ, and His grace upon Paul and the rest of the church is made manifest. "In reproaches," meaning the false reproaches of the Devil in which he projects the guilt of false preachers onto Paul and the other apostles, accusing them of being selfish hypocrites to ruin their good reputations, "in necessities," meaning hunger, thirst, nakedness, and shelter, "in persecutions," meaning the whippings, beatings, imprisonments, theft, and other such sufferings from men, "in distresses," meaning those of the mind in which there was seemingly no way out of a course, or that he did not know what choice to make in a difficult situation, and through all of these, Paul rejoiced knowing that he suffered these for the sake of Christ. (Mat 5:10-12)[v11] I am become a fool in glorying; ye have compelled me: for I ought to have been commended of you: for in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though I be nothing.
When he says that he has "become a fool in glorying," it seems that Paul is summarizing his glorying to help them understand that he acted as a fool is describing these things to build up his own character, that they might see the foolishness in it, and therefore, when the false preachers in Corinth would do the same, they would not only see the vanity of their selfishness, but they would be rebuked for it. Paul did not want to do it that way, but because of the acceptance of fools (i.e. corrupt pastors and false apostles) among the Corinthians, Paul was compelled, or forced, to use this argument to help them see the truth.Paul then points out that he should have been commended by the church in Corinth for his good works among them, which is not said to persuade them to bring glory to his own character, but that the good works of one who serves Jesus Christ should be commended to the edification of the church, that they might be persuaded to do the same. All the work Paul had done was for their benefit, and he took nothing from them, meaning that it ought to be a natural thing that they would want to stand up and defend him against the wayward tongues of wicked men, but instead of defending the man who acted the part of a father to them, they remained silent and let evil words pour out among them.
Paul then adds that his reputation put him alongside the most well-known and highly-respected apostles, such as James, Peter, or John, although slightly behind them because they walked and talked with Christ while He was in the world. However, that being said, he adds that he is "nothing," noting the perspective he has of himself, that he is a worthless, vile, wretched sinner who persecuted the church, even holding the coats of the very men who stoned Stephen to death (Acts 7:57-60), and so even though Paul could have agreed that the treatment he received from the false preachers was well-deserved, it should not have been so among the church in Corinth because Paul was like a caring, loving, hard-working father to them.
[v12] Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds.
The signs of an apostle means that the evidence of a true apostle of Jesus Christ was shown to them clearly. "In all patience," meaning that Corinth was shown a lot of longsuffering by Paul to help them in their understanding of the principles of Christ, and "in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds," meaning that Paul healed the sick, cast out devils, spoke with diverse tongues, and many other such things to prove to the Corinthians that the power of the Spirit of God was with Paul.[v13] For what is it wherein ye were inferior to other churches, except it be that I myself was not burdensome to you? forgive me this wrong.
Paul poses this question for their consideration that they were not burdened in any way by Paul, and that they were not prohibited from the receiving of any gifts, whether from Paul or the Holy Ghost, in any way. Paul then says, "forgive me this wrong," not in the sense that he thought he had done any wrong to them, because he had put no burden on them whatsoever, which they all knew, but rather, this is spoken ironically in the sense that it would be foolish, absurd, and cruel for them to cause Paul to apologize for such charitable and selfless acts.[v14] Behold, the third time I am ready to come to you; and I will not be burdensome to you: for I seek not yours, but you: for the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.
This is not to say that this is the third visit Paul made to Corinth, but rather, this is the third time he purposed himself to come to them. The first time he visited them, he preached the gospel and taught the church to establish it, and he intended to visit them a second time, but was hindered from doing so by circumstances beyond his control (1Co 16:5, 2Co 1:15), which is why Paul typically added "if God will" to statements of future intent. (Acts 18:21, 1Co 4:19, Jms 4:15) Paul is now stating that he purposes a third time to come to them, and reassures them that, as opposed to the false teachers they were so used to hearing, he would once again not come to them seeking their money or great honors, and would not burden them in any way, but would make a sacrifice on their behalf, as a good parent would do for any young child. This is not to say that a child will not take care of his/her parents in their old age, nor does it mean that the church has no responsibility to help faithful ministers who are preaching Christ (1Co 9:9-14), but this was done for the church in Corinth out of love for them, giving freely without expectation (Mat 10:8), that they would be well-established in the philosophy (i.e. way of thinking) of Christ in charity. (Mat 7:12)[v15] And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.
Paul would spend all that he had, which would have to be his time and energy, since he had no money, and would even be willing to expend his very life, to be completely spent for them. This is sad in the sense that he more abundantly loved them, making selfless sacrifices on their behalf, and when it came time for them to stand up against false preachers on his behalf, he was loved less, meaning they were, at the very least, showing indifference toward him in exchange for the great love they received.[v16] But be it so, I did not burden you: nevertheless, being crafty, I caught you with guile.
This is said in the manner of forming the argument of the false pastors and false apostles among the Corinthians, in which they would be forced to agree with Paul on the basis of the obvious evidence, having no choice to agree with the truth to try and gain the favor of the people, but then, weaving a narrative to claim an absurdity, that through the greatest acts of selflessness and charity, Paul was being crafty in some larger scheme to deceive them all by sending other people to take from them in a manipulative ponzi scheme. (i.e. A ponzi scheme is a form of fraud that misleads victims to believe that money is going to one place, when it actually going to another place.)[v17] Did I make a gain of you by any of them whom I sent unto you?
This question is posed to get the Corinthians to consider if they could recall any messengers that were sent to them on behalf of Paul who had attempted in any way to take money or resources from them for Paul's gain. Obviously, they will not be able to find any who can testify of such things honestly, and so they should be disgusted that any man would slander Paul's good name on this matter.[v18] I desired Titus, and with him I sent a brother. Did Titus make a gain of you? walked we not in the same spirit? walked we not in the same steps?
Paul had sent Titus and another Christian to Corinth to help them in his place, since he could not make it to them as he had originally intended. Titus never attempted to extort the Christians in Corinth or take advantage of them in any way. Titus and his companion did the same as Paul had done, taking nothing from the church in Corinth, but teaching and serving them while they supplied for their own needs, proving themselves to be true ministers of Christ.[v19] Again, think ye that we excuse ourselves unto you? we speak before God in Christ: but we do all things, dearly beloved, for your edifying.
Paul did not want the Corinthian church to misunderstand the last two chapters of this letter as a justification of himself in some way, meaning that he had to apologize for his conduct, or that he had to apologize for not coming to them when they expected him to do so. Rather, he is pointing out to them that he was genuine and sincere in his work on their behalf, and that all things he did, whether it was sending someone in his stead, or delaying his arrival, it was all for their benefit, and so they should trust this to be true based on the evidence they have been presented, and turn away their ears from false teachers.[v20] For I fear, lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I would, and that I shall be found unto you such as ye would not: lest there be debates, envyings, wraths, strifes, backbitings, whisperings, swellings, tumults:
Paul feared that when he arrived in Corinth, he would see many professing Christ without proper repentance (i.e. godly sorrow) of their wrongdoings, not loving one another in truth, and therefore, when he came, they would not find it a pleasant situation because he would have to come to the church in Corinth with zealous rebukes and corrections, even to the point of using the spiritual authority he had received from the Holy Spirit to punish certain offenders. Therefore, he sent them this warning, and a gentler rebuke in letter, that he would not find among them "debates," which is not to say that debate itself is wrong, just as we might debate to contend earnestly for the faith (Jude 1:3), but the wrong was that the church was struggling for intellectual superiority among one another in the pride of heart, "envyings," in which the false preachers desired to have the respect that the apostles received, or certain members harbored jealousy of the gifts given to another, "wraths," which is speaking words and showing actions that carry malicious intent, "strifes," which can be seen in the efforts the Corinthians made to file lawsuits against one another in the worldly government courts (1Co 6:6) instead of handling the matter among brethren, "backbitings," speaking in a wicked manner to falsely accuse in way that would hurt or detract from someone's good name and character, "whisperings," which are private suggestions of evil things about one another in secret, or to sow discord among brethren (Pro 6:16-19), "swellings" which is to puff up oneself in conceit because of their status, education, wealth, or any other such vain and worldly accomplishment, and "tumults," which are unruly gatherings, either through celebrations, or even in church meetings that are conducted with people talking or yelling over one another.[v21] And lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and that I shall bewail many which have sinned already, and have not repented of the uncleanness and fornication and lasciviousness which they have committed.
Paul once again expressed that if he came to them as they are now, he would be "humbled," not in the sense of having to be brought low from a state of pride, but that he would be very grieved in his heart, not just at the state of what he would witness, but of those professed to believe and had no foundation of repentance in their hearts. (Heb 6:1) There were some in Corinth who had come to repentance of their sins, but there were others who had not.There were many that had done many evil deeds in secret, of which we could guess what those deeds were, not only based on the context of the letters of First and Second Corinthians, but also by the fact that Corinth was well known for their prostitutes, since it was home to the Temple of Venus, in which there were supposedly around 1,000 whores on staff at any given time. Having to witness the world do these things was grievous enough, but it is far worse to witness people professing faith in Jesus Christ do such things.
Chapter 13
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[v1] This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.
This is not to say that Paul had visited them two other times, because he had only gone once so far, but that it was his intent to go to Corinth when he traveled through Macedonia. He had likely prepared to go, and set himself to do so, but was hindered from coming, and therefore, he writes that he is coming to them for a third time.The second half of this verse is a reference to Deuteronomy 19:15, which is used in the sense of a courtroom and jury trial, and is meant that in the same seriousness that two or three witnesses must be established for the evidence of a matter to be taken seriously by the judge, so also the witness of Paul's testimony can be taken with the same weight because there are multiple eye witnesses to the events that hindered his travel to Corinth, which would also have stood against the deception and strife of false teachers against him.
[v2] I told you before, and foretell you, as if I were present, the second time; and being absent now I write to them which heretofore have sinned, and to all other, that, if I come again, I will not spare:
Paul is writing them this letter as if he were present with them for the second time as they had anticipated, that he has rebuked their sins and exhorted them to do the right thing according to the commandments of Jesus Christ, as he would have done if he were physically there. This first part is meant for the faithful in the church, and the second part (i.e. "to all other") are those unrepentant in the church who continue to live according to their sin, which includes the corrupt teachers and false apostles, which Paul says he "will not spare" meaning that, even though they railed against him in their arrogance, thinking themselves strong while he was weak, he would bring the severity of the Holy Spirit to them with terrifying punishment.[v3] Since ye seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, which to you-ward is not weak, but is mighty in you.
Paul was not promising supernatural discipline because he desired it for them, but rather, these conceited false preachers and other scoffers were demanding of him proof that he was of Christ (because they were attempting to usurp authority in the church for their own selfish gains), and so out of a sense of duty to their request, he would demonstrate the proof of Christ in him, even though they had already seen the power of Christ working mightly in them, both in a postivie manner (i.e. through the saving of souls and gifts of the Holy Ghost), and a negative manner (i.e. through punishments of sickness and death).[v4] For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you.
The Lord Jesus Christ appeared weak unto men because He humbled Himself for the purpose of being a sacrifice on the cross at Calvary. (Luke 23:33) By the power of God, Christ is alive, namely, because Christ is God (John 10:30, John 14:8-9), and He raised Himself from the dead. (John 2:19-21) Therefore, in like manner to Christ, so we Christians appear weak in humility of service to Jesus Christ and loving our neighbor as ourselves (Mat 7:12), being subjected to the same sufferings, afflictions, reproaches, and evils for His name sake (Luke 21:17), which is not only for the sake of Christ, but also for others who look on us and see Christ's example in us, which is why Paul said that this power of God would be exhibited "towards you," meaning to the Corinthians.[v5] Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
To these false teachers and those who follow them, Paul challenges them to prove themselves first before demanding proof of others. He told them that they should examine themselves, their own lives, and their speech before they begin to examine others (Mat 7:1-5, 1Co 11:31), which is not to say it is wrong to examine others when we judge righteous judgment (John 7:24), however, in the case of these hypocrites, they were speaking evil of things they did not understand, while doing evil behind closed doors. Paul is not saying that all those in Corinth were reprobates, because it is impossible to be of Christ and be a reprobate (i.e. abandoned to sin without grace, having not stood the test of trial), but rather, Paul is explaining that if they were not truly saved, and they did not have Christ, then they were automatically reprobates, having need of repentance and faith as any other lost soul.[v6] But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.
If they judged righteous judgment, looking at the evidence of Paul and his companions, they would see that they were not reprobates, but rather, they were well versed in the doctrines of Scripture, had a good understanding of them, acted in accordance to the commandments of Christ, even further beyond what would be required of them as ministers in charity, and were fruitful in their efforts to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, even without the miraculous gifts given to them.[v7] Now I pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved, but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as reprobates.
Paul's earnest prayer was that the Corinthians would judge themselves in righteous judgment, and follow the commandments of Christ. This is not to say that the Corinthians would never do evil in the sense that they would never sin, because such a thing is impossible for men who live in the flesh, but that they keep themselves from evil as much as is possible, and look to the things of God in all matters, hating the evil with a repentant heart, which leads them to abandon evils ways and rebuke those who continue in them.Because Paul just finished arguing in his own defense, he wanted to make sure the Corinthians understood that he did not say these things so they would set a better example on his behalf, or as he put it, "not that we should appear approved" unto the false teachers and false converts who despised the apostles, but rather, that they should do what is honest in the sight of the Lord for Christ's sake, despite the fact that other prideful scoffers and scorners falsely accused them of being reprobates, to make them appear (with their corrupt words) to be reprobates, when it was not true.
[v8] For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.
Following up on what Paul just said, that they "should do that which is honest," he then reminds them that, if they spoke honestly (as they did), they could do or say no thing against those who walked as children of light (Eph 5:8-14), doing what is good and honest in the sight of all men. Paul and the other apostles could do and say what is in the benefit of those who walk upright in the commandments of Jesus Christ in charity, and therefore, if they do what is good, they should have nothing to fear from Paul's visit, but if they do evil, there should be fear of the Holy Spirit.[v9] For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.
As Paul said he boasted of his infirmities, and therefore, he was joyful when his infirmities would strengthen others in the faith of Christ, just as Christ had given Himself in all things that we might benefit. (2Co 8:9) It was Paul's desire that the Corinthians would be strenghtened, to boldly preach the truth of Christ with their mouths, and do the charitable works with a cheerful heart, to be perfect (i.e. merciful, kind, patient, charitable, Luke 6:36) in all things pertaining to God and their neighbors. (Mat 22:37-40, 1Jo 5:1-3)[v10] Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not to destruction.
Paul wrote this letter while he was not physically with them to exhort them to do the good works of God and keep the commandments of Christ for their benefit, to edify them and build them up, that they would be seen to be an honorable church, having the comforts of the Holy Ghost and blessings of God in all their work. Otherwise, Paul would have to bring a sharp rebuke and disposition against them with severe punishments, which was not the original intention of Christ giving Paul the gifts and authority of the Holy Ghost; rather, they were to be used to build up, strengthen, and unify the church together. (Rom 12:16, 1Pe 3:8, Eph 4:1-6)[v11] Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
The word 'farewell' consists of two words, 'fare' meaning the state of their circumstances, and 'well' meaning that goodness would spring forth abundantly on them. Paul instructed them to be perfect, which is to live according to the good fruits of the Holy Ghost in love, peace, gentleness, faith, meekness, temperance, etc. (Gal 5:22-23) The instruction of good comfort means that they would comfort one another in their times of need and distress. The instruction of one mind means that they would come to agreement and support of one another in the doctrines and commandments of Christ. The instruction to live in peace is to have union together with those who have been born again, and as much as possible to live in peace with neighbors. (Rom 12:18) The Lord God blesses all those who live in such ways, most especially those who are the children of God.[v12] Greet one another with an holy kiss.
This is an allusion (i.e. an indirect reference) to the custom of a kiss greeting, as is practiced in some countries, but is not meant literally to kiss one another, as some false religious cults have practiced (e.g. the early Adventists), taking these verses out of their context. In some countries, it is customary to greet with a kiss, while in other countries, such a thing is seen as offensive. If this action is done (i.e. in a culture in which it is customary), it should be done with "holiness," meaning that one should do it with the full intention of kindness and charity, with wishes of blessings from a pure heart, not with any lustful or malicious intent, as might have been done by some of the fornicating or incestuous members of the Corinthian church.There are deceitful intentions in kisses that were given in Scripture; for example, when Joab kissed Amasa on the cheek, only to get close enough to stab him to death. (2Sa 20:9-10) In another example, Judas kissed Jesus on the cheek, only betray him into the hands of the enemy. (Mat 26:49-50) Therefore, Paul is alluding to doing all things with a charitable heart, as Christ has commanded us. (Mat 7:12)
(Read Corruptions of Christianity: Seventh-day Adventism here at creationliberty.com for more details.)
[v13] All the saints salute you.
This is not meant in the sense of a typical, common greeting of saying "Hello," as if to acknowledge one's presence, but rather, this is meant in the sense of wishes of good will and blessings upon all those in the church of Corinth, in case they were not aware of the desire of other churches for them, that they wished for the good health of those in Corinth, their blessings of prosperity, their increase in knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, and that God would protect them in all things.[v14] The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.
This is not just meant concerning the grace of salvation, which those Corinthians who were born again in Christ already had, but that Christ would give them grace in all matters, that they would be furnished with all their needs, both physically and in their understanding. The love of God concerns all things that come from God, in which He selflessly gives all graces, both material (e.g. food, clothing, shelter, etc) and immaterial (e.g. wisdom, knowledge, understanding, discernment, etc), and the communion of the Holy Ghost is the "supply of the Spirit" (Phil 1:19), which is for our comfort and guidance in all matters. Paul ends this letter by praying for their good in all these things, with all blessings of the Godhead upon each one, and 'Amen' (i.e. "truly"), which is a confirmation both of the truth of his teaching, and to his desire for them to have it in abundance.
