A Message of Hope to a Church with Many Problems
An EasyEnglish Commentary (2800 word vocabulary) on Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians
Les Painter
A word list at the end explains words with a *star by them.
This commentary has yet to go through Advanced Theological Checking.
Paul wrote his second letter to the church at Corinth less than a year after the first one. After he had sent the first letter, Paul went to Troas. There he hoped that he would meet Titus. Then Titus would be able to speak to Paul. A previous letter from Paul had contained strong words. These words might not have been welcome to the Corinthians. So, Titus would tell Paul how the words had affected the church. However, Titus was not in Troas, so Paul went to Macedonia.
He found Titus there. Titus then told him what he wanted to know. Some of the news was good and some was bad. When Paul first came to Corinth, he taught the true *gospel. But now some *believed a different *gospel. However, some had changed their behaviour. Paul had requested this in his first letter. But some of them opposed Paul’s authority and teaching.
This second letter explains Paul’s reasons for writing in such a severe way. Paul thinks that it was right for him to write like that. He tells them why he thinks that. He tells them too that God gave him the authority to write these things. He tells them also of all the work that he has done. He speaks too of the many dangers that he has met on his travels. The letter also gives advice. It is about having a *collection for the poor people in Jerusalem.
The letter is about how people should live together as a family. The Corinthians were not perfect people. But they wanted to live better lives. Paul had started the church in the first place. But the people had left him. Now they did not want to know him as a friend. Paul showed them the kind of person that a leader should be. He did not use his own strength and power. He knew that he was weak. He knew that he needed God’s help. But there was a great danger in this teaching. The people could have said, ‘You are a weak person. We do not want a weak person as our leader’. But Paul was not afraid of what they thought. Paul was able to show how God used his weakness. God used it to show his own *glory.
1:1-2 Greeting
1:3-11 *Thanksgiving
1:12-2:4 Paul’s change of travel plans
1:12-14 Paul defends his good name
1:15-2:4 Paul defends his change of travel plans
2:5-11 The Christians at Corinth should forgive the man who *sinned
2:12-13 Paul waits for Titus
2:14-17 The march that tells that Christ is the winner
3:1-3 Does Paul need to send a letter to approve himself?
3:4-6 *Ministers of the new *covenant
3:7-18 Two different *ministries
3:7-11 Paul explains Exodus 34:29-32
3:12-18 Paul explains Exodus 34:33-35
4:1-6 Paul describes his work
4:7-12 Things of great value in pots of *clay
4:13-15 The spirit of *faith
4:16-5:10 The purpose of *faith
4:16-18 We are not anxious
5:1-10 The house in heaven
5:11-7:4 Paul works for the return of healthy *fellowship
5:11-15 Paul replies to those who do not agree with him
5:16-21 God makes us right with himself through Christ
6:1-13 A request to the Corinthians to be friends again with each other
6:14-7:1 An appeal for holy lives
7:2-4 A further appeal to be friends again with each other
7:5-16 Paul’s joy that the trouble is over
8:1-6 The example of the Macedonians
8:7-15 Paul asks the Corinthians to be the best they can
8:16-24 Paul desires that those who receive the *collection will approve
9:1-5 Be ready and avoid shame
9:6-15 Paul asks the Corinthians to give as much as they can
10:1-6 A strong request
10:7-11 Paul replies to those who do not approve of his actions
10:12-18 The right and wrong way to speak with pride
11:1-6 The Corinthians should not *believe everything without question
11:7-15 Why Paul refuses payment for his work
11:16-12:13 The ‘fool’s talk’
11:16-21a Accept me as a fool
11:21b-33 Paul’s *Jewish parents and his troubles as an *apostle
12:1-10 Dreams and *visions
12:11-13 The evidence of a true *apostle
12:14-18 Paul refuses to put a load on the Corinthians
12:19-21 The purpose of the ‘fool’s talk’
13:1-10 Paul will come again with strong action
13:11-13 Final requests and greeting
13:14 The *blessing
Verses 1-2 This is the way that they used to write letters in Greece. First, came the name of the writer. Then came the name of the one who would receive the letter. Then followed a greeting.
Paul calls himself ‘an *apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God’. An *apostle was one who had seen the risen *Lord (1 Corinthians 15:3-10). That was how Paul understood it. God told Paul to *preach the *gospel (Galatians 1:11-12; 2:7). This happened when Paul was on the road to Damascus. Paul met with Jesus then (Acts 9:1-9). So Paul became an *apostle. Paul did not choose this himself. It was by God the Father’s will. The purpose of this choice was that Paul should *preach to the *Gentiles (Galatians 1.12, 16).
Other *ministers had come to Corinth. They did not agree with Paul’s teaching. So, Paul needs to tell the Corinthians that God had chosen him. Paul was a true *apostle. But this was only by the will of God.
Paul includes ‘Timothy our brother’ in this greeting. Paul met Timothy at Lystra. It was while he was on his second *missionary journey (Acts 16:1-3). Timothy’s mother was a *Jew and his father was a Greek.
Paul sends the letter ‘to the church of God that is at Corinth’. The Greek word for church means a gathering of people. This is the word used for a meeting of the people of Ephesus (Acts 19: 39, 41).
A church in the *Old Testament was a large gathering. It was a large gathering of the people of God. They met to hear God’s word (Judges 20:2). The Christians of Corinth would have understood the word ‘church’ in this way. A church is a group of people. They know God in a special way. Paul often tells us that churches belong to God. Paul wants the best for them because they belong to God.
Paul refers to his readers as ‘*saints’. The word ‘*saints’ means ‘holy ones’. They may not have been very good people. This is how we would think of the word today. The truth was that they were not good people. They were not good in their *sexual behaviour. Even so, Paul addresses them as God’s ‘holy ones’. That is how God sees them. They should behave as God sees them. That is Paul’s desire. Achaia would be the larger area of country surrounding Corinth.
Paul wishes health and happiness to his readers. This was the usual practice in those times. Paul writes like this in six other letters. He changes the common Greek word for ‘greetings’ to a Greek word like it - ‘*grace’. ‘Peace’ is the same as the common *Jewish greeting ‘*shalom’. Paul brings the two together as a *blessing and a prayer. *Grace is free. We cannot earn it. It is not a reward for all the good things that we do.
Paul prays that his readers may know the free *blessing of God the Father and the *Lord Jesus Christ. This peace is with God and with each other. We have this peace with God through the death of Christ (Ephesians 2:13-18). Those who *believe then feel healthy and well. Peace is not just the absence of trouble. That is how the Greeks understood it. However hard our life might be, we can still know God’s peace. We have this peace when we do right and not wrong.
Verse 3 ‘Praise be to the God and Father of our *Lord Jesus Christ’. The *Jews prayed ‘Praise be to God’ or ‘Blessed be God’. This was how praises to God started in the *Jewish *synagogue. They prayed ‘You are blessed, *Lord our God and God of our fathers’. Now Paul describes God as ‘the Father of our *Lord Jesus Christ’. He shows a new understanding of God. God is our Father. We have this understanding through his Son whom he sent into the world (Galatians 4:4).
Paul had suffered much (1:8-9) and God had comforted him. Therefore, he blesses God as the Father. God is kind. He is the God of all comfort. God sent Jesus to rescue us from our *sins (Romans chapters 1-11). This is how God showed his kindness towards us.
Paul describes God as the God of all comfort. These are verses of *thanksgiving. This is Paul’s main subject here. The gods of the Greeks did not have feelings towards people. Our God is a personal God. He feels for us. We see this in Jesus (Hebrews 4:15). The *Old Testament uses the same word ‘comfort’. It says ‘Comfort, comfort my people’ (Isaiah 40:1). The *Holy Spirit is the *Comforter. It is the same Greek word. Between verses 3 and 7, Paul uses the word ‘comfort’ 9 times. It means more than being kind. It means being strong or bold. The God of all comfort gives us strength. He helps us to deal with the problems in our lives.
Verse 4 Paul certainly had many troubles. He speaks about many in this letter (1:8-10; 4:7-12; 11:23-29). God comforts us in different ways. He may remove the troubles (8-11). God took away Paul’s worry. That was when Titus joined him in Macedonia. But more often, God gives us the strength that we need. He gives us strength to get through our troubles. Comfort is the help and strength that God gives Paul in his troubles. That is Paul’s understanding of comfort.
Paul gives another reason why God comforts us in trouble. First God comforts us. Then we can use that comfort. We can comfort another person who is in trouble. God first helps us in our troubles. We can then help to make another person strong. So, in verse 6, Paul says to his readers, ‘if we are comforted, it is for your comfort’.
So comfort is a *blessing. We must not keep it to ourselves. We receive a *blessing from God. We then pass it to someone else. So, as we receive comforts from God, we pass them to other people.
Verse 5 Here Paul teaches unity between Christ and his *disciples. Christ knew that his *disciples would suffer (Mark 14:27). There was a time when Paul punished the Christians. Then the risen *Lord asked him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you cause me to suffer so much? Why are you against me?’ (See Acts 9:4.) So Christ’s *disciples share with Christ when they suffer. They also share in the comforts of Christ. All *blessings come from God. They then flow through Christ. These *blessings are like a glass with too much water in it. The water flows over the top.
Verse 6 The *Jews expected that one day God would comfort his people (Isaiah 40:1-11). This would happen when Christ came to the earth. So, Paul sees that this day has come. Now people will receive comfort and *salvation.
Paul adds to the thought in verse 4. Paul and his friends have had many troubles. God has comforted them. Then they pass this comfort to the Corinthians. The Corinthians will recognise this comfort. It produces good results in their lives. It helps them to be patient in their troubles. It helps them to continue and not to give up. We do not know what they suffered. They may have had troubles in their families. They may have had troubles in the church. Like us, they lived as Christians in an evil world. They suffered and had difficulties. Paul’s word would help them to understand their troubles. Now they would know that they could look to God for help. He would give them the *grace to win over their troubles.
Verse 7 Paul had many troubles with the church at Corinth. We see this in his first letter to them. But Paul could still say, ‘our hope for you is firm’. Paul had written them a severe letter. But still he has great hope for them. God himself will make them strong. This is the reason for their hope. We might ask how God will make them strong. As they suffer with Paul, God will comfort them. That is why Paul’s hope for them is so strong.
Verse 8 Paul writes further about his troubles. We do not know what these troubles were. He may have been very ill and nearly died. He had been in prison. He had been in a *riot in Ephesus (Acts 19:23-41). He could have been writing about these events. However, we know one thing. Wherever Paul went, the *Jews opposed him. It was like this when he was in Ephesus. This may be what Paul writes about here. Paul’s troubles are like a heavy weight on him. The weight is so great that he cannot carry it any longer. Paul wants the Corinthians to know about all these troubles. We do not know what they were. But they were as great as anyone could imagine. The Corinthians must understand this. He thought that he could even have died. His troubles were so heavy.
Verse 9 Paul is trying to describe his feelings. Inside, he felt that he was about to die. God had given Paul a job. It was to tell the good news of Jesus to the *Gentiles. It now seemed that this work would end. To Paul this felt like death.
Abraham had felt like this when he nearly killed his son Isaac. But Abraham *believed that God could raise people from death (Hebrews 11:19). It was the same with Paul. This was Paul’s lesson. He must not depend on himself. He must depend on God. ‘God raises people from death’. Paul knew that God had raised Christ from death. So, God would raise Paul from his experience of death. He would also raise up with Christ all those who trusted him (1 Corinthians 15:20-23). Paul understood more and more the meaning of death. So he learned a new, deep trust in God.
This is true of us. The weaker we feel, the more we shall experience the power of God. He is the one who raises us from death. Our God is a living God. He acts now as he has always acted. The God who raised the *Lord Jesus will raise us with him.
Verse 10 God has rescued us through the death of his Son, Jesus Christ. He died for us upon the *Cross. One day he will free us. It will be when God raises us to be with Jesus. Paul hopes in God’s final and sure promise.
Many times God rescued Paul and his friends from dangerous situations. Once Paul escaped. Priscilla and Aquila helped him then. They, with Paul, were workers for Christ. They lived in Ephesus at the time of Paul’s troubles (Acts 18:24-19:1). The couple later moved to Rome. Paul writes about these dangers in his letter to the Romans. He thanks Priscilla and Aquila. They had risked their lives for him. All the churches of the *Gentiles were grateful. They were grateful to Paul and his friends (Romans 16:3-4).
We know that there were other times when the *Jews tried to kill Paul (Acts 20:3; 21:10-14; 23:12-15). So, Paul is confident that God will rescue him many times. We shall always have troubles. Paul tells us how we can win over them. Our rescue from death will one day be complete. It will come only through the *resurrection of Jesus Then we shall have peace for ever.
Verse 11 The prayers of Paul’s friends helped him in his troubles. ‘Many prayers’ in the Greek language means ‘many faces’. The idea could be of many faces looking up in prayer to God. So, many people will be able to thank God. This will be through the many faces turning to him in prayer. We may not be very rich. We may have little to give to our friends. But we can help them by lifting up our faces to God. We can work together with them through our prayers.
The prayer ends with thanks to God. When we pray, we should thank God. We should thank him for what he has done. We should also thank him for what he will do.
Verse 12 To *boast is to give an opinion about yourself and what you *believe. There is a wrong kind of *boasting. This is to speak with a wrong understanding of who you are. You also speak with a wrong understanding of what you can do. You depend on your own strength. However, there is a right kind of *boasting. It is to have an honest opinion about yourself. Your opinion comes from your relationship with God. It is about what God has done in you and for you. You are confident of what God can do through you (Romans 15:17-19).
There is something inside a person. It tells him what is right or wrong. That is how Paul understood conscience. It is an internal guide to behaviour. It comes from the highest understanding a person can have of right and wrong. *Sin has affected all human nature. *Sin has also affected this internal guide or conscience.
The understanding of right and wrong could be different for different people. Therefore, conscience cannot be the final judge of right and wrong. Someone may do something wrong. However, his conscience might tell him that it is right. Or someone may do something right. But his conscience might tell him that it is wrong. It may even be something that God says is right. The final judge of our actions is God himself. Paul did judge himself by his conscience. It told him that he was right. But that did not make it right. Only God can judge what is right (1 Corinthians 4:2-5). This does not mean that we should not listen to the voice of conscience. It is important to listen to your conscience (1 Timothy 1:19). It is possible to lose your *faith if you do not listen.
Paul had promised to visit the Corinthians. But for some reason, he had not done so. So, the Corinthians said that they could not trust him. Paul’s conscience tells him that his behaviour is right. His behaviour has been correct ‘in the world’. That means in every place that he has lived. On his first visit, Paul had spent 18 months among the Corinthians. So, he can say that his behaviour has been correct even more with them. This is because he was among them for so long. It was important that they did not doubt his behaviour. Paul brought the message. If they doubted Paul, they would doubt his message too.
Paul points to the difference between the world’s understanding and God’s *grace. The wisdom of the world depends on human thinking and understanding. It depends on the thoughts of clever people. Paul acts by the *grace of God. He trusts in the *Holy Spirit and the power of God. The *Holy Spirit told Paul what to do. It was not his human understanding.
Verses 13-14 The Corinthians said that they did not understand Paul. They did not understand why he wrote to them as he did. Paul did not agree with this. They should understand what he said. He says that there is no reason why they should not understand.
The Corinthians do not understand everything now. But one day they will understand. That will be ‘in the day of the *Lord Jesus’ That will be the day of final judgement. Then they will understand everything. Then they will be able to *boast in truth of Paul and his friends. Paul will also *boast of them. All will become clear.
Verses 15-16 Paul explains why he is certain that he was right. He was right to change his plans. His plan now is to visit them before he goes to Macedonia. Then he can visit them again. This will be on his return from Macedonia. His new plan meant that he would visit them more than once. He would visit them twice. So, he would bless them not once but twice. Further, they would be able to pray for him. They could bless him on his way to Judea.
Verse 17 The Corinthians thought that Paul was weak. They thought this because he changed his plans so easily. Paul asks them, ‘Do you think that I change my plans without thinking?’ ‘Do I make my plans like a man of the world?’ ‘Do I say yes and no at the same time?’ Paul expects the Corinthians to answer, ‘No, we would not expect you to act in that way’.
Verse 18 In *Old Testament times, a man might do something wrong towards his neighbour. He might steal a sheep. Perhaps no-one except God saw it. So the man would make an *oath. He would ask God to do something bad to him if he was lying. Paul is here making an *oath before God. What Paul says is true. That is what the oath is about. He had not said one thing to the Corinthians and then done something different. Jesus said something about making *oaths (Matthew 5:33-37). He did not say that a person should not make an *oath. He said that a person should not make an *oath wrongly. Paul makes *oaths often in his letters. What Paul is saying is important. He wants people to understand that it is important. That is why he makes an *oath.
Verse 19 This was a serious matter for Paul. Paul was telling the truth about his travel plans. It was important for the Corinthians to *believe this. The truth about the message of the *gospel was so important. Paul was telling the truth about it. Therefore, it was important that they knew this. So Paul reminds them of the message that Silas, Timothy and Paul himself *preached. It was the truth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Jesus Christ is not ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ at the same time. He is ‘Yes’ and he has always been ‘Yes’. Jesus Christ does not change. He is the same yesterday, today and for ever (Hebrews 13:8). The message of Jesus and the *Cross never changes.
Silas was one of the leaders of the Jerusalem church. There, at a meeting, they made decisions. Silas took these decisions to Antioch (Acts 15:22). He was with Paul on the second *missionary journey. Timothy was the son of a *Jewish Christian mother. His father was a Greek. He joined the team at Lystra (Acts 16:1-3).
Verse 20 God makes many promises in the *Old Testament. God keeps these promises in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the ‘Yes’ of all God’s promises. Everything that the *Old Testament says will happen. It will happen in Jesus Christ. The *Old Testament is about Christ. It makes sense only when we understand it like that. The *Old Testament points us to Christ. God is saying this about Jesus Christ, his Son. He is his ‘Yes’ to every promise he has ever made.
We agree with what God has said. We agree when we say ‘*Amen’. We say, ‘Yes, it is true’. Jesus is the ‘Yes’. He is also the ‘*Amen’. Everything will come true through him in the end. This will be to the *glory of God. God’s promises will happen in our lives. It will be when we say ‘*Amen’ to them. We may then *glorify God for his *grace to us. We can approach God only in Christ and through Christ. There is no other way. *Sin keeps us away from God. But Christ brings us near to God.
Verses 21-22 Paul explains further why the Corinthians should trust him. He had changed his travel plans. He had not given a reason. However, this was no reason for them not to trust him. Paul had said one thing and done something different. But it was not very important in the circumstances. We might arrange to do something or to see someone. We should then keep that arrangement. Sometimes, however, we may not be able to do that. We do not always know all the facts. Our friends may seem not to keep their promise. But we must not become hard and bitter towards them.
‘Now it is God who makes both us and you stand firm in Christ’ (verse 21). God himself says that he can trust Paul and those working with him. God himself puts Paul in the right place in Christ. He puts us there too. It is a good place to be.
Next Paul says that God has *anointed them. God chooses a person for a special work. He then *anoints that person. There is an example of this in the *Old Testament. God chose Samuel to *anoint Saul as king of Israel (1 Samuel 9:16). In the same way, the *Holy Spirit *anointed Paul and his friends. He *anointed them to *preach the *gospel.
Next, God had put his *seal on Paul and his friends. This showed that he was their owner. In those days a *seal was a person’s personal sign. If a letter was important, the writer would put his *seal on it. The *seal would show that the letter came from him. It did not come from someone else. The *seal would show that no-one had broken into the letter.
This *seal showed that Paul and his friends belonged to God. We belong to God. We do not own ourselves (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). It is the same for all Christians. God puts the *seal of the *Holy Spirit upon us. A child will know that he has a father and mother. He will know that he belongs to the family. It is the same for a *believer. The *Holy Spirit tells a *believer that God is his Father. He also belongs to God’s family. The *seal of the *Holy Spirit shows that we are *believers.
Someone might buy something from another person. But he may not pay the full amount. He will pay part of the full payment. He will promise to pay the full amount later. This promise is a *guarantee. It means that the rest of the payment will come later. Paul says that the *Holy Spirit is the *guarantee. God has given this *guarantee to all *believers. One day God will give us everything that he has promised. That is the *guarantee. There will be a day when God will raise all *believers from death. We shall then see Jesus. God gives us the *seal (*guarantee) of the *Holy Spirit. He promises that he will keep us safe until that day. What God promises will happen.
Paul is certain that God has chosen him to *preach the *gospel. He is certain that God has given him his *Holy Spirit. The *Holy Spirit will help Paul to do God’s work. Paul’s trust in God is real.
Verses 23-24 ‘I call God as my witness’. This again is an *oath. Paul had not visited the Corinthians. There was a reason for this. It could have been anything. Yes, there was a reason. But it was not the right one. It was that he might save them from pain. We do not know how he might have caused them pain. He does not tell us that. It does not seem to worry him. We see this in other verses (13:1-4, 10). It might be punishment for something that they had done wrong.
However, there is something that Paul does not want the Corinthians to think. He does not want them to think that he is giving them orders. Jesus tells us that ‘the kings of the *Gentiles want to rule over you. They want to give you orders. But it is different for you. Anyone who wants to become great among you, let him be your servant’ (Matthew 20:25-26). An *apostle or any *minister should be one who serves people. He does not give them orders. This does not mean that he should never speak. He should speak if they do wrong.
It is sometimes necessary to tell people that they are wrong. But that need not be a sad thing. Paul works to give the Corinthians joy. He wants to increase their joy. He wants to make them happy people.
Paul wants the Corinthians to be firm in their *faith. That is why he does not rule over them. The Corinthians came to *faith in Jesus Christ through Paul’s work. Now they have their own personal *faith. They keep their *faith by the power of God. Every *believer has his own personal *faith in God. He is responsible only to God. Paul does not want to separate himself from the Corinthians. He does not want to seem to be distant from them. He wants to be one with them. They need him to help them. He needs them to help him.
Verse 1 So Paul decided not to visit the Corinthians again. For that would cause them pain. Paul had planned to visit the Corinthians twice. The first visit was on his way to Macedonia. The second was on his return from Macedonia (1:15-16). The first visit was painful. Therefore, he did not make the second visit. He wrote them a severe letter instead. The next few verses say something about the pain.
Verse 2 Maybe it was only one man who had caused Paul’s pain (5-8). This man had *sinned. So, Paul had asked the Corinthians to punish him for it. They had not wanted to do this. That had caused pain for both Paul and the Corinthians. They must deal with this situation. Only then can Paul be happy.
Verse 3 Paul writes about the previous letter. He refers to the one that contained severe words. Paul had expected the Corinthians to do as he asked. But they had not agreed with him. They did not agree with the punishment that Paul recommended. Paul worried about this. If they had obeyed him, he would have been glad. They too would be glad because he was glad. He felt sure of this. So, when he visited them he would be better able to deal with their problem.
Verse 4 Paul had great trouble and felt much pain. He may have been referring to his troubles in Asia (1:8-9). He felt pain now about the difficulties in Corinth. We can understand why he cried about this.
Paul had written a severe letter. But his purpose was not to make the Corinthians sad. It was to let them know his love for them. True love does not avoid dealing with difficulties. We must not act as if they are not there. True love faces the difficulty and deals with it.
In the end, the Corinthians did as Paul asked in his letter. When Paul heard of this, he was glad. But still this worried him. He cared for the man who had done the wrong. He was afraid that the man might have too much regret. Then *Satan might get some advantage. So, Paul asked the Corinthians to show the man that they still loved him.
Verse 5 Bad results follow when someone does wrong. It is not just that person who suffers. Everyone in the church feels the pain. The church is a body. It is like the human body. It has many parts. If one part is ill, other parts will be ill. Then the whole body will suffer. Someone in the church at Corinth had done wrong. It was not that person only who was sad. All the people in the church were sad.
Verse 6 The Corinthians understand what Paul is saying. They have punished the man. Paul is now happy. The punishment given to this man is enough.
Verses 7-8 Paul asks the Corinthians to welcome the man back into the church. They should *forgive him and comfort him. They should tell him that they love him. If they do not do this, too much regret could overcome him.
Verses 9-11 Paul had tried to persuade the Corinthians to punish this man. That was why he had written his letter. Now he is testing them. He wants to know how they will obey him in everything. It does not matter so much that they obey Paul or anyone else. What does matter is that they obey the *gospel. For the *gospel demands good and correct behaviour. The Bible has many instructions about behaviour. It is important that we obey them.
Paul gives a promise to his readers. This is the promise. If the Corinthians *forgive anyone, Paul will agree with them. He too will *forgive that person.
There was something that Paul needed to *forgive. There seems little doubt about that. We see this from the previous verses. But then Paul adds, ‘if there was anything to *forgive’. This seems strange. Someone may have hurt Paul. But that was not important. This is what he is trying to say. If the Corinthians know that Paul forgives, they will feel free to *forgive the man. Everyone in the church will feel better. They will love each other more.
Paul adds, ‘in the sight of Christ’. This again could be an *oath. The *oath would be ‘I stand in the company of Christ (with Christ). Therefore I have *forgiven the man’. It could also mean that Christ agrees with Paul in this. If Christ forgives, then Paul forgives. This is because Paul knows Christ so well. So he too is able to *forgive. It could be that Paul had no opportunity to *forgive the man. He had never met him. But, in agreement with Christ, he had *forgiven him.
The man who had done wrong belonged to Christ. He was one of Christ’s own people. He was in Christ’s church. The work of *Satan was to steal him from the other Christians. So, Paul says, ‘It is not as if we do not know about *Satan’s plans. We do know about them. So we will not allow this to happen’. The way to prevent *Satan’s plan is to love the man and keep him in the church.
The church is the Body of Christ. Sometimes members do wrong or hurt each other. It is important that the church deals with *sin. Paul shows how we should do this. He sets the example for us all. He shows how important it is for us to be right with each other. We should *forgive each other and love each other.
Verses 12-13 Paul came to Troas to *preach the *gospel. There he found that God had ‘opened a door’ for him (1 Corinthians 16:9). The words ‘an open door’ mean that God had already prepared the way for Paul. God showed Paul that it was right for him to *preach the *gospel there. The door was open and God told Paul to enter.
Titus went with Paul on his journeys. Paul had asked Titus to do certain things in Crete. He asked him to choose leaders for the church there (Titus 1:5).
Paul knew that it was right for him to go to Troas. But it worried him that he could not find Titus there. Paul hoped that Titus would give him a report on the church. He wanted to know what the Corinthians thought about his letter. He was afraid that the letter might have upset the Corinthians. They may have been unkind to Titus because of it. He certainly must have worried quite a lot. In fact, it caused him to leave the ‘open door’ in Troas. He said goodbye to the Christians there. He went on to Macedonia. However, Paul did visit Troas a year later. He stayed there 7 days (Acts 20:6). We could say that God did keep the door open.
These verses show that Paul was honest. This is a help to leaders in the church. Paul does not give the Corinthians a wrong impression. He does not want them to think that he is a strong man. He sometimes made mistakes. Sometimes he worried. He did not want them to have wrong ideas about him. He wanted people to know him in his true character. Always we see God’s strength coming through Paul’s weakness.
These verses give us a rather sad picture of Paul’s work. He has had troubles in Asia. The Corinthians suggest that he may not be honest. The one who had *sinned caused him pain. Also, he left the work that God told him to do in Troas.
Verse 14 However, Paul is able to thank God for all that God is doing. Paul speaks about a great march for winners. Paul and those working with him are at the front of the march. The Roman soldiers often marched like this through the streets of Rome. They did this on their return from winning a war. But this march is not about war. Paul is glad. He is happy about his successes. With God’s help, he is the winner over all his troubles.
When soldiers marched like this, they burnt *incense. It gave out a sweet smell. They offered this sweet smell to their gods. Many people would be watching the march. The smell would spread all over them. So Paul speaks like this about his march. A sweet smell went out from it. The sweet smell was everywhere. It was the sweet smell of the knowledge of God.
Verses 15-16 In the march of the Roman soldiers, the smell of the *incense blew over everyone. But it would not smell the same for everyone. To the Romans, it would have been a sweet smell. They had won the war. But it was different for those who had lost. It would be a nasty smell to them. It was the smell of death. The same applied to the *believers. To them, the *preaching of the *gospel was a sweet smell. It was the smell of life from death. To those who would not obey the *gospel it was different. It was a smell from death to death.
In the Roman march, the smell made by the *incense was for their gods. For Paul, the sweet smell was for God. Paul and his friends offered this sweet smell of Christ to God.
There is a connection between the message and the one who brings it. On the one hand, Paul says, ‘We speak ... like men sent from God (verse 17)’. On the other hand, he writes, ‘because we are to God the sweet smell of Christ (verse 15)’. Then, it is God who ‘through us spreads everywhere the sweet smell of the knowledge of him (verse 14)’. When Jesus was on this earth, he lived and died for us. The one who brings the message of Jesus should be like him. People will either agree or not agree with the message. They will see difference in the character of the one who brings the message. This is the test.
This is why Paul felt so responsible for his work of *preaching the *gospel. So he asks, ‘and who is equal to this work?’ Later, in chapter 3 verse 5, Paul gives the answer, ‘Not that we are able in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves. But through God we are able’. Paul’s strength for him to do anything comes only from God.
Verse 17 A *peddler could be someone in the wine trade. He made his wine weaker by adding water to it. He did this to cheat those who bought his goods. But Paul will not use methods like that in *preaching the *gospel. The word of God is the *gospel spoken by the *apostles. It is that Christ died for our *sins. God then raised him from death on the third day. This is the *gospel, the word of God.
Sometimes God’s word says hard and difficult things. But Paul will not make the word weaker. Those who use it for gain do this (4:2). There are people who do make God’s word weaker. We hear of people like that later in this letter. They do this for profit (11:20). Paul talks too of those who tell of another Jesus. They speak a different *gospel (11:4). He may be referring to these people.
Paul is not like these men. An *apostle is one whom God sends out to *preach the *gospel. God gave Paul this task (Acts 9:1-19). It was after Paul had met with Jesus on the road to Damascus. He is always aware that God is watching him as he speaks. Some might have said that Paul spoke only his own opinions. Paul says that he spends every day before God. He spends every day in the sight of God. Some other people are different. That is why they do not speak truth. The test of Paul’s work is its results. He must always speak the truth from a pure heart.
A person from another town might arrive at a church. Usually he would bring a ‘letter of recommendation’. It would recommend the person to the new church. The content of the letter was this. ‘Here is someone that you can honour. Here is an honest person. Here is someone that you can trust’. But there were people who claimed to be *apostles. They had come to the church at Corinth. They brought letters of recommendation. So, Paul asks whether there is any value in their letters. We do not know who gave them these letters. They could have come from the leaders of other churches. They could have come from those who agreed with the teaching of the false *apostles.
Verse 1 Paul asks a question. Are Paul and his friends approving of themselves again? People say false things about Paul (1:12-14). Sometimes Paul speaks for himself against these people. He finds that this is necessary. But he does not like doing this. After all, he was the *apostle who formed the church at Corinth. Other people had come to Corinth with letters. So, Paul asks whether he should copy these people. Are these letters of recommendation necessary? Do the Corinthians need to write them? Do they need to receive them from other churches? Clearly, he expects the answer to be ‘No’.
Verse 2 Paul encourages the Christians. He tells them to remember that they are here, a Christian church in Corinth. That is the answer. It is through my work that you are here. People only need to look at the changes in your lives. You are people whom the *Holy Spirit has changed from the inside to the outside. So, you are the letter that everyone can read. Everyone can understand it. You want to prove that I am an *apostle. Just look and see who and what you are. There is no value in a letter written on a piece of paper. You (Corinthians) are the letter. That letter comes from our hearts.
Verse 3 A *covenant is an agreement made between two people. In the Bible, the *covenants were between God and his people. A *covenant is God’s idea and not man’s idea. When God makes a *covenant he will never break it. It will last for ever. There is an old *covenant and a new *covenant. God wrote the old *covenant on pieces of stone (Exodus 34:28). He did this through Moses. The *prophets speak about a new *covenant (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Ezekiel 36:24-32). God would not write the new *covenant on stones. He would write them in the minds and hearts of people.
The Corinthians are Paul’s letter of recommendation. The letter came to them through Paul’s *preaching of the *gospel. The Corinthians are a living letter. It comes from Christ and Paul is the writer.
Paul goes further. The *Holy Spirit gives Paul the power he needs. There had been changes in the lives of the Corinthians. These came by the power of the *Holy Spirit.
Paul goes still further. God did not write the letter on pieces of stone. He wrote it on the stones (soft ones) of human hearts. God’s *Holy Spirit wrote the letter. The ink was the Spirit of the living God.
Now Paul answers the question of chapter 2 verse 16, (‘and who is equal to this work?’). Paul’s *opponents were sure of themselves. They did God’s work in their own strength. They thought that Paul was weak. He was not strong enough to be a good *minister. Paul agrees that he is weak. However, he is able to be a *minister of the new *covenant. But it is only because God gives him strength.
Verse 4 God gives strength to his servants to do his work. God gives them his Spirit through Christ. God’s *Holy Spirit helps the *believer to be sure of his *faith. He helps him not to be afraid (2 Timothy 1:7).
Verse 5 Paul does not ask for the agreement of men. He is doing God’s work in the right way. Before God, Paul is sure of this. God has changed the lives of the Corinthians. That is the evidence. Paul is saying that we cannot do anything in our own strength. It is only in the strength that God gives.
Verse 6 God gives his servants strength to be *ministers of a new *covenant. Paul uses the words ‘new *covenant’ only in one other place (1 Corinthians 11:25). That was when he spoke about the *Lord’s Supper (‘this cup is the new *covenant in my blood’). The death of Christ set up the new *covenant. ‘New’ here means a different kind of *covenant. It is a *covenant of a new quality. God wrote the old *covenant on stone. The new *covenant is a *covenant of the Spirit who gives life. The work of the Spirit in the new *covenant changes people’s hearts. The new *covenant takes away a heart of stone. It puts a new soft heart in its place.
In the two *covenants, there are different kinds of relationships with God. Under the old *covenant, God is the judge and I am the criminal. The new *covenant is a *covenant of love. It is between a father and his children.
The new *covenant is not of the letter. It is not about words. It is a new *covenant of the Spirit (verse 3). There had been a change in the lives of the Corinthians. That was the evidence. God had brought his new *covenant into their lives. And it came through the work of Paul.
The law that God gave to Moses was about right and wrong behaviour. God gave these laws for our good. They set standards for us to live by. There are many verses in the *Old Testament that show this. Paul explains the difference between the old law and the new one. Moses wrote the old one on stone. The other one was the work of the *Holy Spirit.
Paul goes further to show the difference. He says that the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. Paul never says that the law is wrong. In the letter to the Romans, Paul wrote, ‘The law is holy, and the *commandment is holy, *righteous and good’ (Romans 7:12). So how can he say that the letter (the law) kills? The answer is that the law kills when we use it wrongly. We sometimes use its rules to prove that we are good people. That is wrong (Romans 3:20). We can be right in God’s sight only by trusting in Jesus. He died to rescue us from *sin and death.
Maybe we keep the law to make ourselves right with God. That can lead only to death. If we try to be right by keeping all the rules, we can only fail. Then we will die. That way is impossible. That way means that we must keep all the laws. We must never once fail. It is in this sense that the letter kills.
The new *covenant does not end the law. It puts the law in its right place. People did not have the strength or the power to keep the *commandments. That was under the old *covenant. Also, there was no provision for *forgiveness when they failed. The way of the Spirit is different. It takes place in the heart of the *believer. Under the new *covenant, God forgives our *sins. He then forgets them. God writes his laws on our hearts. We will then want to keep God’s laws. We will then want to please him. The reason for this is that he has *forgiven us.
Paul has shown the difference between the two *covenants. The first was the old *covenant of the law. The second was the new *covenant of the Spirit (3:6). Paul refers to two passages in Exodus chapter 34. They are verses 29-32 and verses 33-35. These passages explain the difference between the two *covenants. Paul shows that the new *covenant is so much better than the old one.
Paul first explains Exodus 34:29-32 (in verses 7-11). The second part explains Exodus 34:33-35 (in verses 12-18). Both these events brought great fear to the *Israelites.
Verses 7-8 Paul now explains Exodus chapter 34 verses 29-32. These verses tell how God gave the ten *commandments (the law). The hand of God wrote it on two stones. There was a wonderful display of God’s greatness. Moses then came down from the mountain. God had shown Moses a small part of his *glory and greatness. The impression was so great that Moses’ face shone. It shone like the sun. Therefore, Moses had to cover his face. The *Israelites could not look at his face. Itshone so much.
But as Moses went down the mountain, the impression slowly disappeared. The *Israelites saw just this small impression of God’s *glory. They were very afraid.
The law written on stones is ‘the work that brought death’. That is how Paul described it. Paul explained this in Romans chapter 7 verse 10. The purpose of God’s *commandments was to give life. Instead, the *commandments brought death. The *Old Testament does promise life. The promise is to those who keep the law (Deuteronomy 5:33). But Paul knew that no one can keep the law and never break it. When someone broke the law under the old *covenant, there was no provision for *forgiveness. That person had no peace. When could he know peace? Only when he knew that God had *forgiven him.
All that the *Israelites knew was the law of Moses. It was like a hard letter of stone. It brought death. It kept them apart from God (verse 6). That is the explanation of how the law brought death. Jeremiah says, ‘They broke my *covenant’ (Jeremiah 31:32).
The ten *commandments are of the old *covenant. It is not possible for anyone always to obey them. But, under the new *covenant, God has given his *Holy Spirit. By the strength of the *Holy Spirit, it is possible to walk in God’s way. It is possible to please him. It is no use trying to obey God’s *commandments in our own strength. Nor can we use the power of our will. We may still break the *commandments. But we trust in the blood of Jesus. He *forgives us and makes us clean. We are then in a right relationship with God. The work of the Spirit is a work of life. It is far better than the old *covenant. That brings death. The work of the letter of the law brings death. The work of the Spirit brings life.
Verse 9 This *covenant blames men. But Paul says that this *covenant is wonderful. We may ask how this can be. Certainly there is blame for anyone who fails to keep the law under that *covenant. Paul says that the new *covenant is better than the old. Under the new *covenant we still fail to keep God’s law. But now God makes us right with himself. But it is not keeping the law that makes us right. Being right with God comes to all who *believe. It is through *faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 3:21-26). This new *covenant is about the *grace of God working in our lives. God *saves us. He *cleanses us from our *sins. This is what he wants to do. This is what *grace is.
We do not have to work for this. The old *covenant said, ‘You are *guilty and must die’. Paul says in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21, ‘God made him who had no *sin to be *sin for us. This is so that in him we might become the *righteousness of God’. The new *covenant puts the *righteousness of God upon the *sinner. It is like putting on new clothes.
God says, ‘You are not *guilty. Go free’. Paul says in Romans chapter 5 verse 1, ‘God makes you right by *faith’. He also says in Galatians 3:2, ‘Did you receive the Spirit by keeping the law, or by believing what you heard?’ We become right with God and we receive the Spirit. This happens when we *believe in Jesus Christ. We see this truth again in Romans chapter 8 verse 10. ‘But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of *sin. Yet your spirit is alive because of God’s *righteousness’. That is why the new *covenant is more wonderful than the old.
Verse 11 Paul says that a false trust in the law is disappearing. But that does not mean that we no longer need the law. God’s instruction is still that we should obey his laws. That instruction (to obey the law) has not disappeared. What is disappearing is a false trust in the law. That false trust is this. If we obey the law, it will make us right with God. Under the old *covenant we did not have the power to obey God. This is the point. Those who walk by the Spirit can obey God (Romans 8:4). The old *covenant way of obeying God has now ended (Romans 10:4; Galatians 3:19-25).
The old *covenant disappeared. The new *covenant will never disappear. It will last for ever. It is therefore better and more wonderful than the old. The new *covenant is permanent. In that way, it is superior to the one that has disappeared.
Paul now explains Exodus chapter 34 verses 33-35. He explains the difference between himself and Moses. First, Paul is able to come to God in a new way. Moses did not know that way. Second, Paul could see and understand the *glory of God. The *Jews read the law of Moses. But they did not see or understand God’s *glory. The way of Jesus Christ is far better than the way of Moses. Some of the *Jewish teachers did not understand this. The old *covenant of Moses prepared the way for the new *covenant of Jesus. They could not understand that.
Verses 12-13 Therefore, since we have a hope like that, we are very bold. We are not like Moses. Moses had to cover his face. He did this so that the *Israelites could not see God’s *glory. God’s *glory shone in Moses’ face. The impression of God’s *glory was slowly disappearing. But even then, they could not look at it. Paul is very bold to come near to God. He is sure that the new *covenant will last for ever (verse 11). That is the reason. He knows that there will never be a *covenant to replace this one. That is how Paul is not like Moses. Moses could not be as bold as Paul could be in approaching God. This is how Moses explains Exodus 34:33-35.
The disappearing impression of God’s *glory shone in Moses’ face. But the *Israelites were not able to see it. This was not Moses’ fault. The reason was that their hearts were hard. It was still the same when Paul wrote this letter. The hearts of the *Jews at this time were hard. Paul could see this. They could not see that the old *covenant had ended. They could not see that the new *covenant had begun.
It is only through Christ that God takes away the cover over people’s minds. It is like a fence. When we *believe in Jesus Christ, God takes the fence away. It is the fence of not knowing the truth. It is also the fence of doubt. This fence held back the *Jews from understanding the truth. The *Old Testament looks forward to the time when Christ would come and to a new *covenant.
Verses 15-16 Paul repeats what he has said in verse 14. He comes again to Exodus chapter 34 verse 34. Moses went before God to speak to him. Then Moses took the cover off his face. Moses came down from the mountain. He spoke God’s message to the people. Then he put the cover on again. This was because some of the impression and *glory of God was still in his face. This impression was so great that the *Jews could not look at it. So, when Moses went to speak to God, he took off the cover. When he spoke to the people, he put it on again. Paul explains this to the *Jews of his time. A person comes to Christ. God then takes away the cover over that person’s mind.
It is, however, only through Christ that we can come to God. Now we see the light of the *glory of God. We see it in the face of Jesus Christ (4:6).
Verse 17 There is an understanding of God that we call the *Trinity. By this, we understand that God is one person. But he is also three persons in one person. He is God the Father, God the Son and God the *Holy Spirit. Paul says, ‘Now the *Lord is the Spirit’. Here he is not referring to the *Trinity. He does not mean that the Father and the Spirit is the same person. Nor does he mean that Jesus and the Spirit is the same person.
The *Jews of Paul’s day knew God through the law. There is now a new way for *believers come to God. They come through Jesus and the Spirit. ‘The *Lord’ in verse 16 is God. He is God also in verse 17. When people turn to God, he takes the cover from their minds. They recognise that a new age has come. The time of the old *covenant of the law has ended. The new *covenant of the Spirit has begun. Now they know the *Lord (God) as the Spirit. Under the new *covenant the *Lord (to us) is the Spirit.
‘And where the Spirit of the *Lord is, there is freedom’. Under the new *covenant, the power in our lives is the Spirit. This means that we are free from the chains that hold us. The old *covenant of the law is like being in chains and in prison.
People were not free under the old *covenant. They tried to be right with God by keeping the laws. It is not possible to obey all God’s laws. So, you cannot be right with God in that way. It is no use trying to do what is impossible. You are therefore in chains. But under the *covenant of the Spirit you are free of your chains. God does not remember your *sins any more (Romans 4:6-8). God tells you that you are now right with him (Romans 8:1). The Spirit of God tells our spirits that we are children of God (Romans 8:15-16). The old *covenant asks us to do what we cannot do. Now the *Holy Spirit does for us what we cannot do (Romans 8:3-4). This is what it means to be free.
Verse 18 To cover the face is a way to show shame. There is no longer shame to those who *believe in Jesus. God allowed Moses to come to him with no cover over his face. It is the same for Paul and all *believers. We are free to come close to God. We do not need to cover our faces. We can come to him with no shame. We can come with perfect trust. Like Moses we see the *glory of the *Lord. We look at God with no cover on our faces. We then see and understand God better. The more we look at God the more our minds become free. We see more clearly the truth of the *gospel.
God’s *glory is everything about himself that he chooses to show us. It is everything about God that we are able to receive. We have many false ideas. These come from our earlier years. We receive truth as our minds become free of all these false ideas. The *glory of God and the *glory of Christ are the same. We look at the *glory of Christ. We then understand the *gospel. We see ‘the light of the knowledge of the *glory of God. It is in the face of Christ’ (2 Corinthians 4:3-6).
God is changing us into his image. All this comes from the *Lord. He is changing us to become like himself. A Greek word explains this change. It is the same as when a *caterpillar becomes a *butterfly. In the same way God changes the *believer. He changes him from one kind of life to another. The change comes little by little. It gets better and better. The speed of change becomes faster and faster. The *Holy Spirit changes the *believer on the inside. The *believer becomes more and more like God.
We see God in the face of Jesus Christ. In that way, we can see God. This thought is also in Galatians chapter 5 verses 22-23. God is growing inside us the fruit of the *Holy Spirit. All the fruit is in Jesus Christ. We are growing to become like him. This comes from the *Lord, who is the Spirit. The image of God appears in the life of the *believer. It is through the work of the *Holy Spirit. (Please see note on verse 17.)
Life in the Spirit is a new and wonderful life. It is a good life. God gives it to those who *believe the *gospel. This new life brings a change of character. Paul explains his own behaviour as he *preaches this *gospel. Paul writes about this in chapter 4 verses 1-6. Paul has not changed the truth of the message. He explains why some people cannot understand the *gospel. He does this by teaching the *gospel message. This message is that Christ is *Lord. It is also that the *glory of God shines in the face of Christ. This is the Christ whom Paul *preaches.
Verse 1 Paul has described the *glory and wonder of the new *covenant. He did this in chapter 3 verses 7-18. He is very aware that he is able *preach this *gospel. But he knows that it is only through God’s *mercy. He was an enemy of the church. He can never forget that (1 Corinthians 15:9-10). As he remembers, God asks him to be bold. But he still has many difficulties and much pain.
Verse 2 Paul’s plan is not to do things in secret. He will not use false ways of *preaching the *gospel. This was how the snake cheated Eve. To change the word of God is to make it weaker. It is like making wine weaker. You add water to it. Paul will not do this. He will not add false teaching to God’s word. The same idea is in chapter 2 verse 17.
On the other hand, Paul speaks the truth clearly. He wants the agreement of every man’s conscience. Conscience is something that we all have. By it, we know the difference between right and wrong. So, Paul speaks to the consciences of everyone. He is speaking the truth. Their consciences will tell them this. He knows that his work is right. Paul is sure of it. It is right in God’s sight. That is the most important thing. What God thinks is more important than what people think. That is Paul’s understanding.
Verses 3-4 Paul talks about the *Jews. They have a cover over their eyes. It prevents their understanding of the *gospel. Therefore, they do not *believe it. They cannot see:
the *glory of Christ;
how bright and wonderful Christ is;
that in Christ we have a perfect image of God.
They will not *believe. Paul says that they are dying.
‘The god of this age’ is *Satan. ‘This age’ is the time that began with Adam’s *sin. *Satan hates God and is against him. God is love, goodness, *mercy, *grace and much more. *Satan is trying to destroy God and everything that God is. There is a war. It is between *Satan and God. Everyone on the earth is in this war. They may not even know it. *Satan blinds our minds. *Sins such as pride are in the mind. The thoughts of men and women have become foolish (Romans 1:21).
*Satan also attacks our feelings. He attacks our determination to live the Christian life.
*Satan is always trying to prevent the work of God. We see this in 2 Corinthians. God allows *Satan to do this. But God can and will bring light into the minds of people. They will then understand and *believe the *gospel. This should always be our prayer. Paul himself had been blind to the *gospel. Then God took the cover from his eyes. He then *believed (Acts 9:1-19).
The *gospel tells us about the light of the *glory of Christ. The *glory of Christ and the *glory of God are the same. God created man (the first Adam) in his own image (Genesis 1:26). He created him to be like God. The image was perfect. But *sin damaged that image.
We cannot see God. But Christ shows us what God is like (Colossians 1:15-20). Paul speaks about Christ as the ‘last Adam’ (1 Corinthians 15:45-49). God made the first Adam to be like himself. Adam was God’s first and perfect image of himself. *Satan damaged that image. Jesus Christ is the last Adam. He is perfect. He represents man and woman as God wants them to be.
Verse 5 *Preaching sends out an important message. The *gospel is the important message. *Preaching means speaking this message to people. We do not change the message.
Paul explains further what the *gospel is. It is the truth of ‘Jesus Christ as *Lord’. This truth comes by the side of another truth. This is in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 23. Here Paul says, ‘We *preach Christ who died on a *cross’. The one who is master of all is the one who died for us. We should hold together these two truths of the *gospel. We kneel to a master. God allowed people to kill Jesus. It was for our *salvation. This is the *gospel (good news).
Jesus came to us as a servant. Paul came to the Corinthians also as a servant. The Corinthians were not Paul’s masters. It does not mean that. Paul had only one master. He was Jesus Christ.
Verse 6 God’s *glory is
in everything that he is
in everything that he has made
in everything that he does
the wonder, the greatness, the image and the beauty of God
everything about himself that he chooses to show us.
God had shown Paul his *glory. Therefore, Paul could never *preach about himself. He could not bring attention to himself.
In the book of Genesis God said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness’. Genesis tells us how God created everything out of nothing. At one time, all was dark. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’ (Genesis 1:3). Our hearts were dark before we knew Christ. In the beginning, God turned the darkness into light. In the same way he gave the light of the *gospel. He brought it into the darkness of our hearts. God gives us light. It is the light of the knowledge of the *glory of himself. God’s *glory is in the face of Christ. We find the same thought in Isaiah 9:2. A Christian is one who has received the light of the *gospel. Like Paul, we can know the wonder and *glory of God. God shows us that this is in the face of Jesus Christ.
We see the *glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. Paul describes it here. He gives a very wonderful description of the *glory of God. Paul explains it more completely in Colossians chapter 1 verses 15-20. That passage compares Christ with God. But there is more than that. God created everything in heaven and on earth. Christ was with God then. Moreover, Christ made everything for himself. He holds everything together and keeps it all going. Everything of God is in Christ. We cannot see God. But we can see him when we see Christ.
One day God will bring everything together and make it right. He has done this through the blood of Christ,
Paul has been speaking about the wonderful light of the *gospel. Now he speaks about the weakness of those who *preach it.
Verse 7 In those days people made pots of *clay. They were cheap and broke easily. Once broken, the pot would be of no use. People would throw it away. When we have no problems, it is easy for us to be proud. We might be proud of how well we are doing. Our lives can easily break like pots of *clay. The end for all of us will be death. Our lives are like pots of *clay.
Paul would have seen the cheap oil lamps in the market. ‘The light of the *gospel’ would be the thing of great value. The weak *apostles would be the lamps in pots. These lamps (the weak *apostles) held this thing of great value. It was the light of God. God’s light would shine in the world.
There is no greater power than the power of God. By his power, he created the heavens and the earth. By his power, he raises us from death (1:9). Paul knows that he cannot trust in his own power. The thing of great value is in weak pots of *clay. The power is from God and not from us. The weak pots show this.
Verses 8-9 Paul here gives four statements. On the one hand, he shows how weak he and his friends are. On the other hand, he shows the power of God. This gives them strength. Troubles come from every direction. But no damage comes to them. They are not sure what to do. But they know that God knows what to do. People deal badly with them. But God does not leave them. They are like the cheap pots of *clay. But no one can break them.
Life can sometimes be very hard. But we have a strong *faith in God. It is like a rock beneath our feet. However bad life may seem, we look to the truth. Whatever happens, God is at work. And God is good. This is true. The circumstances of life bring us trouble and difficulty. But always, we look to the *Cross. When Jesus died, that was darkness and *evil. It was greater than ever has been or ever will be. But out of it came the most wonderful *victory. It was the best that the world has ever known. Through the *Cross, we know that God has a purpose. He has a purpose for good in everything. When we fall, God will always lift us up again.
Paul wrote a wonderful verse in his letter to the Romans. ‘We know this. In all things God works for the good of those who love him’. God will make us to be like his Son (Romans 8:28-29). That is God’s purpose. One day we shall be able to look back on our lives. We shall see all the things that have happened. There will be both good and bad. We shall look at our life as whole. Then we shall see that God’s plan for us was good. God’s purpose was to make us like Jesus.
Verses 10-11 Jesus brought life to us through his death. Paul experiences trouble and pain. Wherever he goes, it is there. It is with him all the time. Any Christian will know this kind of experience. It is an experience of the new *covenant. Most people oppose the Christian message. We live in that kind of world.
The life and work of a Christian is not cheap. It costs a lot. Sometimes it costs even death. So, when we suffer, we ‘carry in our body the death of Jesus’. This is how Paul understands it. The glad truth is this. Paul shares the pain and death of Jesus. But he also shares the life of Jesus. For God raised Jesus from death (6:9). On the one hand, Paul experiences the death of Jesus. This is in his troubles and pains. On the other hand, he always wins. This is through the life of Jesus. So, in his daily life he is a winner.
Paul writes like this in his letter to the Philippians. Paul wants to experience God’s power. With that same power, God raised Jesus from death. But Paul knows that there is a price to pay. He must also share in the troubles and pains of Jesus (Philippians 3:10-11). Then he will know this power. We have the life of Jesus in us. But we also share his troubles and pain.
Verse 12 ‘So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you’. Death is at work in Paul. And there is the promise of life for the Corinthians. There is a connection between the two. Paul experiences the death of Jesus daily. He also experiences the life of Jesus. The life of Jesus is in him all the time. Thathelps both him and other people.
Paul has many troubles. But he is certain that he will win in the end. He knows that God raised Jesus from death. He will raise Paul too. He will also raise other people. Those other people *believe as Paul does. God will bring them together. Together they will stand before God. This will be for their good. They will see God’s *grace. It will work in the lives of more people. This will bring *glory to God.
Verse 13 Paul says that we *believe with a spirit of *faith. With that same spirit of *faith we therefore speak. The writing Paul speaks about is Psalm 116 verse 10. It is, ‘I *believed; therefore I said, “I am in great trouble”.’ God had rescued the writer of the psalm from death. He therefore gave thanks to God. In the same way, God had rescued Paul from death. Paul says the same as the writer of the psalm. He says, ‘We too *believe, and so we speak’. His troubles will not stop him. He will still speak what he *believes. That is the truth of God’s Word.
Verse 14 What Paul is saying is true. Paul knows that. God raised Jesus from death. He will also raise Paul. He will raise all *believers. God raised Jesus from death. That was the first fruit of the harvest. It was the harvest of all the *believers who had died (1 Corinthians 15:20-23). It was a promise of future *blessing. The full harvest will come later. Then Paul will stand before God. He will stand with the other *believers at Corinth.
Verse 15 The *grace of God will reach more and more people. This is the immediate good thing. It has come through Paul’s work. Then comes the final good thing. It is that people will give thanks to God. That will be like a flood. It will bring *glory to God. Everyone should give *glory to God. It is God’s final purpose for the world. That is the reason why he has put us upon this earth.
Paul knows that God’s work is important. That is what helps him to carry on doing it (4:1). Paul will not stop doing the work. He now gives another reason for this. He knows two things. He is becoming weaker in his body. But he is becoming stronger in his spirit. Further, there is the *glory that lasts for ever. He knows that one day he will experience that. Compared with that, his troubles are light. He is certain of this.
Verse 16 On the one hand Paul’s body is wearing away. This is because of his troubles. On the other hand, he is becoming strong. Something is happening in his heart. The heart is the inside part of a person. The inside becomes strong when the *Holy Spirit lives there. The inside has its roots in the love of God, as a plant has its roots in the ground. It finds its strength in God (Ephesians 3:14-19).
We are all getting older. We know that our bodies are wearing away. This could make us sad. But growing older is not all bad. It is a comfort to know that. Yes, our body gets weaker. But our character grows as the body dies. Inside, God is making a new person out of the old. One day there will be a complete new person. We may not see or feel the change that is taking place. We receive this by *faith.
Verses 17-18 No-one could say that Paul’s troubles were light. They were certainly very heavy. He compares his troubles with the future *glory. Then they seem light. The troubles last only a short time. A short period of trouble would come. Then there would come a time of *glory. There would be no end to that time.
It is difficult to describe *glory. We cannot see God. He is great and powerful. He cannot allow us to see him. There is too much of him. We would die if we saw all that he is. However, God’s ‘*glory’ is what God allows us to see of himself. We can see some of God’s *glory. We see it in his *creation. We see it in the sun, the moon and the stars. We see it everywhere in the world round us.
God showed his *glory to Moses. We see the *glory of God in the life and death of Jesus. On the mountain, the three *disciples saw the *glory of God. It rested upon Jesus (Mark 9:2-8). Paul saw the *glory of God. It was when he was on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:3-5). He saw God in the face of Jesus Christ.
When we receive the *gospel, God shines his light into our dark hearts (4:6). A knowledge and understanding of God grows inside us (3:18). This comes through the *Holy Spirit in us. The body is wearing away. We can see that. But what God has put in us grows and grows. That we cannot see. The ‘here and now’ part of us dies. But the ‘for ever’ part of us gets brighter and brighter.
There are the difficult experiences of life. There is also the future *glory. There is a connection between the two. In Romans chapter 8 verse 17, Paul writes this. If we share in Jesus’ pain we shall also share in his *glory. That is how we shall become like him.
There is another thing that the *Jews *believed. Jesus the *Messiah would return to this earth. He would return as king. But before that, there would be a time of pain and trouble. It would be like the birth pains of a mother. These are the pains that she has before her baby is born. The whole earth and all Christians cry with pain. It is a pain inside them. They are waiting for the time when they will be like Jesus (Romans 8:22-23). We need to share Christ’s pains in order to share his *glory.
We do not enjoy troubles. However, they do help us to look at Jesus. Something more helps Paul to continue God’s work. He tries not to look on the events that trouble him now. He looks rather on what he will be able to see in the future. Further, events of this life do not last. He is sure about future events. The present world will not last. The new world will last for ever. The Christians in it will last for ever.
The writer of the letter to the Hebrews says this of Moses. ‘He saw him whom we cannot see. So he kept on’. The one whom we cannot see is God. Moses kept doing God’s work. He did not stop. In the present, he could not see God. But in the end, he would meet the God whom now he cannot see. Paul says in verse 18, ‘So we look with our eyes not on what we can see. We look with our eyes on what we cannot see. For what we can see is in the present time. But what we cannot see is *eternal.
Paul has spoken about the death of the outer body. He has also spoken about his present troubles. These are only little ones. He has spoken about a weight of *glory. This will last for ever. You cannot compare the little troubles with the weight of *glory. Paul explains how he sees his future life after his death. We find this in the next ten verses.
Verse 1The *earthly tent is the physical body. It is a temporary place. It will end when we die. Then we will receive a new body. There is a connection between the two. The old body dies. The new body will last for ever. It will not be like our human body. Human hands have made that. The *earthly body dies. Then God will raise the *believer from death. He will give him a new *heavenly body.
Verse 2 Here again is the same thought as Romans chapter 8 verses 18-23. *Believers cry with pain. It is the inner pain of a deep hurt. There is a reason for this inner pain. They cry out to God. They desire to be God’s sons and daughters. They do not want to wait a long time for this. God has rescued their bodies from death. They wear the clothes of their *heavenly house. You put on a new place to live in. It is like putting on new bodies. We put them on as we would put on a coat.
Verse 3 Paul is thinking here of the idea of his *soul not having a body. The *Jews did not separate body and *soul. A person is one person, body and *soul together. That is how they understood it. A *Jew would not recognise the idea of a *soul without a body. To him it was like being naked. But it will not be like that when we have our *heavenly bodies. That is Paul’s understanding.
Verse 4 Paul is aware of the troubles and pain in his body. This is like a heavy weight upon him. He has many pains in his present body. Still, he does want to have only a *soul and no body. He wants a new and better body. This body would be the clothes on his *soul. He does not want his present life to be final. He does not want it to stop completely.
It is like two fish. One is a large fish (the new life). The other is a smaller fish (his present body). The large fish takes the smaller fish whole into its stomach. His new life will swallow up his present life. He wants new clothes. They will cover what he already wears (his present life). The result will be something new and better. This life is the old tent. It is the life that we have now. It will die at death. The new body is the *heavenly one. It will burst out with new life.
It is not that Paul is tired of life and wants to die. He wants a new and much better life. It will be in a new body. It will be in heaven. He wants a body that lasts for ever.
Verse 5 Paul adds to the idea that he spoke about in chapter 4 verse 17. The light weight of his present troubles was nothing. It was nothing compared with the future *glory. God has made us for this very purpose. This future *glory was God’s first purpose. It was his purpose when he created us. The present troubles are all part of that purpose (please see Romans chapter 8 verse 17).
Paul is certain of a wonderful future. He knows that this is God’s purpose for him. He is certain of this. This is because God has given him his *Holy Spirit. The *Holy Spirit helps him in his daily life. God has given the Spirit as a first payment. It is a promise. God promises to make the final payment later. God, by his Spirit, raised Jesus from death. He gave him a new body. God has given us the same *Holy Spirit. It is a *guarantee that he will also raise us from death. He will dress us too with a new body. (Please see chapter 1 verse 22 for explanation of ‘*guarantee’.)
Verses 6-7 Life may not have been easy for Paul. But he is sure that God agrees with him. He knows that God is on his side. Difficulties will not prevent Paul from doing God’s work. He is now ‘at home in the body’. That means that he is living on this earth. He is unable to see God. He is ‘away from the *Lord’. We live our lives on this earth. We cannot see God. In that way ‘we are away from the *Lord’. We live by *faith and not by sight. That is how we must live. Now we can see God only by *faith.
Verse 8 Paul is confident. But things could be better. He would rather leave behind his physical body. Then he would really be able to see God. He would see him not only by *faith but also by sight. Paul does not desire a state where he has no body. He is now ‘at home in the body but away from the *Lord’. That is his present state. He may die before the return of Christ. He would then have a new position. His new state would be far better. What he wants most is to leave this earth and to be with Christ (Philippians 1:23).
These verses do raise difficult questions. What happens if we die before the return of Jesus to this earth? Where will we be? Is the *believer ‘asleep’ (1 Thessalonians 4:14, 17)? Or is he ‘with the *Lord’? Where will we be? What form will our bodies take? We do not know. Moreover, the Bible does not give us complete answers.
Paul says that to be with Christ is ‘better by far’ (Philippians 1:23). We shall enter the new body (building). These verses suggest this. We shall enter it immediately on leaving the old body (verse 1). There are two events. The first is the coming of the *Lord (1 Corinthians 15:23). The second is when we ‘go to be with Christ’ (Philippians 1:21-23). In both these events, we can be certain of this. It is that we shall be ‘at home with the *Lord’. We are safe in God’s hands. We can be certain of that. It does not make any difference whether we live or die.
Verse 9 One day Paul will be ‘away from the body’. He will then be ‘at home with the *Lord’. But he does not know when that will be. Neither he nor we can know that. Neither can we decide when it will be. We should live good lives now. That is the important thing. Paul’s purpose in life is to please the *Lord. It should be ours too.
Verse 10 Paul desires to please the *Lord. He is like a child who loves his parents. He will want to please them. It is the same with us. We should want to please our *heavenly Father. But there is another reason for pleasing the *Lord. One day we must all appear before the *judgement seat of Christ.
In Corinth was a stone seat. The judges used it. The Greek name for this stone seat was the ‘bema’. The *Jews at Corinth brought Paul himself before a court like this (Acts 18:12-17). The *Jewish leaders brought Jesus to the *judgement seat of Pilate. Paul is saying that we should all be careful how we live. There is a day fixed for all of us. Then God will bring each one of us before the ‘bema’. The judge will be Jesus Christ.
We will all receive payment from God. Payment will depend on whether our actions have been good or bad. This does not mean that God accepts us only for our good behaviour. We do good things. We do bad things. God accepts us as we are. It is not the things that we do. It is not the things that we do not do. If it were, God could not accept any of us. We all *sin and fall short of God’s *glory (Romans 3:23). God has made a new way for us to be right with him (Romans 3:21-26). Our good works did not *save us. God *saved us so that we may do good works to please him.
We will all receive payment from God. Payment will depend on whether our actions have been good or bad. God will examine the lives and work of his children. He will then reward those who have been *faithful. Those who have not been *faithful will lose their reward. Paul makes this clear in 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verses 10-15. God will either give or not give rewards for our work. But we will not lose our *salvation.
What we do ‘in the body’ (in this life) is important. In the next section, Paul tells us how serious a matter this is.
Paul asks the Corinthians to get right again with God. This is the subject ofthis section of the letter. Paul also wants them to be friends again with him. They find fault with the way he works (5:11-15). He deals with this. He gives the reasons why they should get right again with God (5:16-21). He then makes the appeals (6:1-13; 7:2-4). He then asks them to live holy lives (6:14-7:1).
Verse 11 Paul has been teaching about the *judgement seat of Christ (verse 10). He follows on from that. Paul is not afraid of the *Lord. However, he does respect him. He wants to please him. God sees us all the time. Paul is aware of that. For that reason, he feels that he must warn people. He asks people to turn back to God. However, fear is not the best reason. It is, however, necessary to warn people. There will be a future day of judgement. It would be wrong not to warn a child of the danger of fire. That is an example. Every one of us must appear before the *judgement seat of Christ. We must never forget that truth.
Paul knows that what he does is from God. But he is aware that some do not agree with his work. Therefore, he hopes that their consciences will help them to know the truth.
Verse 12 Paul is a leader. He has an important position. He does not care about that. He does not want people to think more of him because of his position. Paul serves the *Lord. He wants the Corinthians to have right thoughts of the *Lord. That is his great desire for them. It does not matter much to Paul what they think of him.
There was, however, a reason why Paul wanted the Corinthians to think well of him. Some people had opposed him. They would be much better able to answer those people. Those people were proud of outer show. They carried letters of recommendation with them (3:1). They were proud of these. God looks on the heart. He does not look on outer show. Paul is a man whose heart is right. That is how Paul would like the Corinthians to see him. What people see from the outside does not matter to him.
Verse 13 There are two ways of looking at this verse. The Corinthians could have thought that Paul was mad. In a similar way, Festus thought that Paul was mad (Acts 26:22-24). Maybe we are mad, says Paul. But we are mad because of what we do for God. We *preach a pure *gospel. That is what we do for him. Maybe we are not mad. That too is for your profit. Because we are speaking the truth.
Some people opposed Paul’s work. They said that he did not have *spiritual experiences. That was one reason why they opposed him. These experiences could be dreams and *visions. They could be speaking in tongues. Paul did in fact have experiences like that (Acts 22:17). He did speak in tongues (1 Corinthians 14:18). People do have experiences like that. But that is something between them and God. You do not need to have experiences like that to prove yourself. That is how it is with Paul and his friends. They are *apostles. But they do not need these experiences to prove it. They are Christ’s *apostles. But they are not mad. They speak in an ordinary and natural way. That profits those who hear.
Verse 14 Paul explains why he must continue with his work. There could be two things that help him to continue. It could be Paul’s love for Christ. It could be Christ’s love for him. Paul says that one man died for all. Christ died in place of all. Therefore, Christ died the deaths of all of us. Christ’s love for Paul caused him to carry on. That is probably what Paul is saying.
At one time Paul hated the Christians. That was before Christ met him on the road to Damascus. Now love and not hate is at the centre of his life. The love of Christ is his reason for living. Christ died in place of all. This knowledge controlled Paul’s life. It gave him the strength to carry on. That is how much it controlled him.
To know that someone loves you brings great comfort. There is no greater comfort than that. There is no greater force than that. Jesus loved us enough to die for us. That is the best possible comfort. While we were still *sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8). That is how much God loved us. This is the *gospel.
Verse 15 Here Paul speaks about Christ’s death and *resurrection. He speaks about the effect that it should have on us. It should be full of meaning for us. It will change the way that we live. Our own happiness and comfort will not be so important.
To follow Jesus is not cheap. There is a price to pay. The price is the death of our *self life. We love him. We want to live for him and please him. We realise how much he loved us. He gave himself for us (Galatians 2:20). Then we give our lives to him. But we should always be careful. We must not go back to a life of *self-pleasing.
The death and *resurrection of Christ has a great effect upon Paul and his friends. They must tell other people about it. Christ died and God raised him to life. This gives us a right relationship with God. We are no longer enemies of God. We are now his friends.
Verse 16 Paul now understands the meaning of the death of Christ. He is aware of Christ’s love for him. It gives him comfort and strength. He sees everything in a new way. He no longer sees things from a human point of view. There were things that he had once thought important. Now they have little value. He once saw Christ from a human point of view. He no longer holds this view. His new understanding comes from a new knowledge of Christ.
Jesus showed himself to Paul on the road to Damascus. Before that, Paul saw Jesus as a false Christ. Moreover, Paul tried to kill those who followed Jesus. Paul sees Christ now in a new way. Now he knows Jesus as the one who makes everything new. He sees him too as the one whom everyone must obey. Now everyone needs to come to Jesus in *faith.
Verse 17 The effect of Adam’s *sin touched all God’s *creation. All God’s *creation was upset. It waits to be free from its troubles and pains. One day God will give all *believers their new bodies (Romans 8:18-25). Then they will be free.
A *believer is ‘in Christ’ (Ephesians 1:10; 2:6). He or she shares in God’s new *creation. We can now say that the old has gone. The new has come. There will be a time when God will raise all *believers from death. The whole of God’s *creation waits for that time. He will raise *believers to a new life that lasts for ever. While we are on this earth, the old is still a part of us. We have to live with it. There is always a war going on between the old and the new.
In the meantime, we see life in a new way. We are ‘in Christ’ and we always try to please him. Certain things are no longer true when a person is ‘in Christ’. He no longer lives for *self (verse 15). He no longer sees Christ in the way that the world sees him (verse 16). That is part of the old way. We now see Christ in a different way. The old has gone. The new has come!
Verse 18 It can happen that a husband and wife stop talking to each other. They will no longer respect each other. They will no longer trust each other. They were once friends. Now they are enemies. They want to separate from each other. This is what has happened between people and God. They no longer talk to God. They no longer respect and trust him. In this way they becomes enemies of God.
God is the one whom we have hurt. It is *sin that has caused the hurt. ‘But your *sins have separated you from your God. Your *sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear’ (Isaiah 59:2). In the marriage example there is fault on both sides. Often a third person comes in to help. But with God and us, only one side is at fault. Only we have done wrong. We have hurt God. And it is he who acts to put things right.
God is holy. That means that he is different and separate from us. God is completely good and pure. There is nothing wrong or bad in him. He is like fire. Fire will burn up and destroy. It will destroy anything that is not pure. ‘Because our God is a fire that burns everything’ (Hebrews 12:29).
The Bible word for this is God’s *wrath (or anger) (Romans 1:18; 5:9-11). It is not possible for anyone to stand close to God. He is holy. Our *sin would destroy us. He could not prevent it because he is a *righteous God.
There is a wall between God and us. Someone has to knock down this wall. That someone is God. God’s love for people is too great for us to understand. The wall divides us from him. Only God himself can break it.
Verse 19 God’s great desire is that everyone should return to him. He wants everyone to become his friend. Jesus made this possible through his death for us on the *Cross. There he took all our *sin upon himself. It is only right that God should punish us for our *sin. Christ took our place before God’s wrath (anger). ‘God was in Christ’ when Jesus was on the *Cross. Jesus took all our punishment upon himself in his own body. It would have been right for God to punish us. God can save us from his wrath (anger). But it is only if we accept what Jesus has done for us.
Jesus brings us back to God through his death. However, it is still necessary that everyone should know about it. Therefore, Paul says that God gave us a job. It is to tell people about the way back to God. Paul speaks about this in verses 19 and 21.
We are to help people to return to God and to be his friends. We tell them what God has done for us through Christ. The wall that separates us from God is our *sin. This is what hurts God more than anything does. God loves us. He is gentle and kind. So you might ask, ‘Why does he not *forgive us and forget our *sin?’ He cannot say, ‘It does not matter. I will forget your *sins’. That is because he is holy. There is this wall of *sin between God and us. Someone must remove it. God’s work through Christ has removed this wall. Now God does not count our *sins against us. That is the effect of the removal of this wall.
Paul repeats this in Romans chapter 4 verse 8. He says that God will *justify a person by *faith. That person then has peace with God. The *Lord will never count his *sin against him. We find this *blessing in Psalm 32 verse 2. It was a promise for the *Jews. However, this *blessing is not for *Jews only (Romans 4:9-12). It is for all who *believe. But it is different for those who do not *believe. God does count their *sins against them.
Our job is to tell people the good news. This was Paul’s work. Moreover, it is for all Christians. People will then understand. They will stop being God’s enemies. They will become his friends. This will give them great joy.
Verse 20 If you are an *ambassador, you represent your king in another country. This is your job. You tell them that yours is a good country. You explain this to the people of that country. Paul is Christ’s *ambassador. Paul’s job is to explain that Christ’s country is a good one. It is a country where Christ is king. Paul does this by *preaching the *gospel. God wants to bring people to himself. He has done this through the death of his Son. This is the message. Paul speaks for Christ to the Corinthians. He is desperate for them. He asks them to make themselves right again with God.
Verse 21 We are all *guilty. We all experience darkness and despair. This comes from being apart from God. We suffer pain because of *sin. God’s love for the world is very great. This verse helps us to understand this. Christ ‘had no *sin’. He was completely free from *sin. Every person in the world is a *sinner. But you cannot say that about Jesus. God caused Jesus to be *sin for us. However, God did not make Jesus a *sinner. He made Christ to be *sin for us.
A court would decide that a person should die. They would then hang him upon a tree. This was in *Old Testament times. God put a curse upon that person (Deuteronomy 21:23). Christ set us free from this curse (Galatians 3:13). He himself became that curse for us. That curse should have been upon us. But God put it upon Christ instead.
Jesus died on the *Cross. There God put all our *sin upon him. Christ never *sinned. Jesus Christ was always completely at one with his Father. He was on the *Cross for a short time. Then that unity ended. He was apart from God. His experience was that God had left him. To be apart from God is death. Jesus knew this experience in his death. He died and he was in Hades (a place for the *souls of dead people). This is hard to understand. It is a mystery.
Think of the Garden of *Gethsemane. Then we can perhaps begin to understand. There we read of Jesus’ pain. We can then perhaps understand his cry from the *Cross. He cried, ‘My God, my God, why have you left me?’ He knew no *sin. Yet he died in our place. He took upon himself the weight of our *sin. That is death. It means to be separate from God.
*Sin is an awful thing. We may think that we are not bad *sinners. We have not killed anyone. We do not steal. *Sin is the evil nature that is inside each one of us. We need the Holy Spirit to show this to us. It is like a huge debt that we owe. It is like a debt of a million pounds. Jesus told a story about this (Matthew 18:21-35). The man in the story had a huge debt. He could never pay this back to his master. It was more than his life’s wages. His master cancelled the debt. We could never pay our debt however long we lived. Jesus Christ paid it when he died on the *Cross. He set us free of this huge debt. It is a free gift. We receive it by God’s wonderful *grace.
It did not cost us anything. It cost him his life. On the one hand, God judged Christ for all our *sins. On the other hand, God judged us. His judgement made us free from our *sins. There is something else. We become the *righteousness of God. Everything that is right in God belongs to us. He is right and holy. We become the same. God makes us right with himself. All is well between God and us. He does not regard our *sins against us. Paul could never stop *preaching this message. It was the only thing that mattered to him.
Verse 1Paul is writing to the Corinthians. He is writing as one who works together with God. He asks again that they return to God. The Corinthians were *believers. They had received God’s *grace. But some of them ask questions about Paul. They ask about his position as an *apostle. Paul has a great desire. It is that they do not lose their experience of God’s *grace. They may have doubts about him. Doubts like those might cause them to lose that experience. He does not want that.
Verse 2 ‘The time for action is now. Now is the time when God will support us. Now is the day of God’s *salvation’. Isaiah spoke these words to the *Israelites (Isaiah 49:8). Paul uses them now for the Corinthians. God will help them. For Paul, every day is a day of decision. It is a day of decision for those who are not yet *believers. It is also for those who are having doubts.
Verses 3-5 Paul fears that the Corinthians will find something wrong with his work. They will make this an excuse for not listening to his message. Paul had asked them ‘not to receive God’s *grace in vain’. They could refuse to receive Paul’s message. Then they would be refusing God’s *grace. They might then say that it is Paul’s fault. Paul is putting difficulties in their way. Paul does not want them to think that.
Paul did not want to draw attention to himself. We saw that in chapter 3 verse 1 and chapter 5 verse 12. He is *preaching a wonderful message. All he wants is that the Corinthians accept it. It is the message of God’s *salvation in Christ. That is why Paul brings attention to himself. It is the only reason. God has given him the authority. The Corinthians must understand that. The authority is for Paul to be an *apostle. Therefore, the message comes through Paul. It comes straight from God. Those who hear the message must trust him. This is important. That is why he says, ‘As servants of God we praise ourselves in every way’.
Paul explains further his claim to be God’s *apostle. He writes about his troubles and pains. He gives these in more detail in chapter 11. The list has nine parts. They are in groups of three.
First, there are troubles, difficulties and worries.
Then there are beatings (people struck him many times), prison and *riots. For the *riots, see Acts 13:50, 14:19, 16:19 and 19:29.
Last, there was hard work, nights with no sleep and hunger.
Paul shares all these troubles with his master, Jesus Christ. As servants of Jesus Christ, we need to be ready to suffer (Matthew 10:24).
Verses 6-7 Paul now lists good things that help a person’s character. Purity is to act in a way that is pure and honest. God will bless the pure. Only they can stand before him (Matthew 5:8). Understanding is knowledge. It is knowing what to do and when to do it. Patience is to be calm and at peace. Perhaps we live with difficult people. We should not worry about it. Kindness is to be kind to people and to want to help them. A kind person puts himself in the place of another person. He tries to understand how another person is feeling.
The power in Paul’s life is the *Holy Spirit. He grows in Paul the fruit of true love. *Holiness is a desire to honour and to serve God. This was of first importance to Paul. True speech is always to tell the truth. Especially, we should tell the truth of the *gospel. Our *faith rests not on human understanding. It rests on God’s power. In 1 Corinthians, Paul wants that ‘your *faith might not rest on men’s wisdom. It should depend on God’s power’ (1 Corinthians 2:5).
‘With *weapons of *righteousness in the right hand and in the left’. The sword would be the *weapon of attack. It would be in the right hand. The *weapon of defence would be in the left hand. It would be the *shield. Paul in other letters uses the idea of *weapons. This makes his words clear. These *weapons are not the *weapons of war. They are *spiritual *weapons. They stand for God’s *righteousness. They are in fact stronger than the world’s *weapons. They will win the battle against the enemy. The enemy is *Satan (Romans 10:3-5). Paul uses the word *weapon also in Ephesians chapter 6 verses 10-20.
Verses 8-10 Paul now lists nine pairs of opposites. One part of each pair looks at his work. It looks at it from a human point of view. The other part is the true view. Paul is ‘in Christ’. The true view is of the work of one who is ‘in Christ’. Paul’s *opponents look upon him as an object of shame. They give him a bad name. But there are those who see him no longer from a human point of view. They honour him and think well of him. Some thought that Paul needed a letter of recommendation. They saw him as a false *apostle. Other people would see him as a true *apostle. They saw him no longer from a human point of view.
In the world, Paul was of no importance. But true *believers knew him well. Paul often came before the judges. He was often in danger and beaten. From an ordinary view, his was not a happy life. But God helped him again and again. God kept him alive. By God’s *grace, Paul was able always to be cheerful. To the world, Paul would appear to be a sad man. Paul *preached the *gospel to the Corinthians. But he did not look for payment. Neither would he make the *gospel weak for reward (2:17). Paul had little money. In that way, he was poor. But in *spiritual experience he was rich. He knew the *blessings of Christ. He was able to share these *blessings with other people. He was rich in that way.
Paul has been showing that there is no fault in his work. He now asks the Corinthians to be friends with him again (verses 11-13).
Verse 11 Paul tells the Corinthians that he has spoken to them clearly and in the open. He has not hidden anything. Further, he has a good heart. His heart is large and wide. He wants only the best for them.
Verse 12 Paul opens wide his mouth and opens wide his heart. In the same way, he opens his friendship to the Corinthians. He has warm feelings towards them. But the Corinthians are different. They oppose Paul. They have a narrow place in their hearts for Paul. It is almost as if they have no place at all for him. Their hearts are opposite to Paul’s wide and open heart.
Verse 13 The Corinthians owed their birth as Christians to Paul. He now sees himself as their *spiritual father. As a father loves his children, so Paul loves the Corinthians. In verse 11, he spoke to them as ‘Corinthians’. Now he speaks to them as ‘my children’. Paul comes to them with an open heart (verse 11). He comes as a father to his children. He appeals to them to show the same open heart to him.
Verses 14-16 *Believers should not join together with those who do not *believe. A man should not join together two kinds of animals. This is in Leviticus 19:19. He might want to join an *ox and a *donkey. The result would be the birth of another kind of animal. The law did not permit that. Neither should he plant two kinds of seeds in the field. Neither should he wear clothes made from different materials.
This law is also in Deuteronomy 22:10. A man should not tie together an *ox and a *donkey. This would be to plough a field together. These animals are of a different kind. They do not mix by nature. Mixing like that is wrong. Through Christ, the Christians are pure. Those who are not Christians do not have the same nature. There is a difference between the two types of people. They must not join in relationship. They must not live in close relationship.
Paul uses this law as an example for *believers. *Believers should not mix with those who do not *believe. Here is an example. A *believer should marry only a *believer. Paul teaches this (1 Corinthians 7:39). Here Paul advises that a widow may marry again. But he adds this. The husband ‘must belong to the *Lord’. So, Paul could be teaching here about husbands and wives in marriage.
There were, however, people near who were not Christians. They *worshipped in their *temples. They *worshipped devils. Probably Paul is requesting Christians not to mix with them. Christians should not join them in their *worship (1 Corinthians 10:14-22). Verses 15-16 help us to understand this. Christians should not separate from *unbelievers. Paul does not mean that. They will be among them in their day to day lives.
Those who are right with God will keep away from *evil. Light has nothing to do with darkness. God has nothing to do with *Satan. Paul describes *salvation in this way. It is the movement of a person from one *spiritual country to another (Colossians 1:12-14). In one country, a person comes under the authority of the king of darkness. He is *Satan. In the other country, a person comes under the authority of God’s son. He is King Jesus. A person becomes a Christian. He then moves from *Satan’s country into Jesus’ country. Christians are under the authority of the king of light. They must have nothing to do with the king of darkness, *Satan. Christ has nothing in common with *Satan. Those who do not *believe practise evil works. The *believer will keep away from people like that.
The ‘*temple of God’ was in Jerusalem. It was the place where the *Jews *worshipped. The ‘*temple of God’ is now the Christian church. People *worshipped in other *temples. They *worshipped devils. *Worship of God in the Christian church is not like that. It is just the opposite.
Christians are ‘the *temple of the living God’. A Christian’s body is God’s *temple. That is how Paul describes it (1Corinthians 6:16-20). All Christians together are also God’s *temple (1Corinthians 3:16-17). Here he speaks about the church in that way. It is a *temple of a living God. It is not the same as other *temples. Their gods are dead gods. As God has said: ‘I will live with them and walk among them. I will be their God. They will be my people’ (Leviticus 26:12; Jeremiah 32:38; Ezekiel 37:27).
Paul is giving promises from the *Old Testament. God will live with his people. He will walk with them. He will be their God. They too will be his people. The same promise is in Revelation 21:3. In the *Old Testament days God was present with his people. At first, he was with them in tents. Then he was with them in the *temple. Now he is present everywhere. He is also near at hand. He is present in the lives of his people. He is present in them through his *Holy Spirit
Verses 17-18 Paul uses words from Isaiah and Ezekiel. Babylon was a nation that did not know God. Isaiah appeals to the *Jews. He asks them to come away from these people. He appeals to them to return to Jerusalem. In the same way, Paul appeals to the Corinthians. The people near to them *worship in their *temple. They *worship the false gods of Corinth. Paul desires that they leave these false gods.
Ezekiel says, ‘And I will receive you’. In the same way, God will receive the Corinthians. The people near to them do not know God. The Corinthians must come away from these people. Then God will receive them. Paul then brings a promise from 2 Samuel chapter 7 verses 8 and 14. It is that God will be a father to them. They will be his sons and daughters. The *Lord God is our father and we are his children. We are the *temple of the living God. God lives in this *temple. These are precious promises. Life with God is far better than death with other gods.
Verse 1The Corinthians have all the wonderful promises of chapter 6 verses 16-18. Paul writes to them as his ‘dear friends’. Or it could be ‘the ones whom I love’. False *worship is like dirt on your body. Paul appeals to them. They should clean themselves from this dirt and *evil. What touches the body touches the spirit. What touches the spirit touches the body. Therefore anything to do with false *worship touches the whole body. You touch what is not clean. Then the outside (body) or the inside (spirit) will be dirty. Paul gives further understanding of this in his first letter (1 Corinthians 6:15-18; 10:19-21). Paul says, ‘Let us make ourselves pure’. He includes himself and his friends in everything he says.
For the meaning of ‘*reverence or fear of God’ please see the note on chapter 5 verse 11. Paul is not afraid of the *Lord. But he does respect him and wants to please him. In this whole section, Paul appeals to the Corinthians. They must have nothing to do with false *worship. They need to make their *holiness perfect. This comes from a healthy fear of God.
Paul is asking Christians to live holy and pure lives. They live in a dark world. False gods have made it a dirty world. They should stay away from those who *worship false gods. In that sense, Christians should be separate from the world. But that does not apply to normal daily life. They cannot nor should they be separate from ordinary life.
They should be careful about the kind of work that they do. There may be connections with *evil. They should avoid these. They should not marry someone who is not a *believer. Maybe they are already in a marriage like that. They should not try to separate from it (1 Corinthians 7:12-15). Each person should make decisions like that himself.
Verse 2 There were many wrong things in Corinthian society. Here are some examples:
Wrong use of sex
*Worship of false gods
Wrong use of money
People often made false charges against the early church. One related to the *communion supper. People accused them of killing their babies. This was during the supper. Therefore, people could have doubted Paul. They could have said that he had taken part in *sinful practices.
So, Paul appeals to the Corinthians again. He asks them to make room in their hearts for him and his friends. He appeals to the Corinthians to open their hearts. He lists three points:
He and his friends have done no wrong to anyone. In fact, the Corinthians had done wrong to him.
They had not led anyone into evil practices.
They had not themselves gained at cost to other people. Paul may be thinking about the *collection of money. It was for the *believers in Jerusalem. Perhaps the Corinthians are saying that Paul was not honest in this. Paul is honest in his use of money.
Verse 3 Paul has spoken strong words. The attacks against him and his friends are not true. This is why he uses strong words. He has, however, a purpose in speaking as he does. His purpose is not to blame them. Most of the Corinthians were on Paul’s side. Only a few opposed him. So, this is why he speaks as he does. Their friendship is of high quality. It is true friendship. They now live together in peace. If necessary, they would also die together. Their friendship is like that. When we suffer, it is not the end. Even when Christians die, it is not the end. Life always follows. Paul often writes about this truth. He has already spoken about this in 2 Corinthians 4:8-12.
Verse 4 Paul has written severe words against the Corinthians. But he still *believes in them. He is still proud of them. Moreover, they are a help to him. Paul still has many troubles. The Corinthians, however, have acted upon his ‘severe letter’. That knowledge gives him great joy.
Paul has been defending his behaviour and his work. He now returns to the description of his travels (2:13).
Verse 5 Paul had hoped to find Titus in Troas. But he did not find him. So he went on to Macedonia. Here he still met troubles. There was no rest for his body. The troubles he refers to are arguments. The arguments were with those people who did not *believe. The arguments were also with *believers. These too opposed him. His inner fears could have been about his safety. He had also written his severe letter. He did not know how the Corinthians might receive it. That could have worried him.
Verses 6-7 Paul knew God’s comfort in all his troubles (1:3-11; Isaiah 49:13). Titus had come to him. That too was a comfort. Paul was glad to see him. The Corinthians had comforted Titus. Paul was also glad to hear about that. Titus told Paul what the Corinthians thought of him. They had great love for him. They had deep feelings for him. They knew about Paul’s difficulties. Paul’s joy was therefore greater than ever.
We as Christians should take God’s comfort to other people. There are always people who need comfort. They are in any church. Our hearts need to be open to help them. Many people are in trouble. We feel that we want to keep away from them. We feel that that we cannot do much to help. We do not know how to help them. This may be true. But we can always be by their side. We can pray for them and support them.
Verses 8-9 As a father is to his children, so Paul is to the Corinthians. Sometimes he knows that he must be hard on them. But it will be for their good. That is how it was with Paul’s letter. It was a severe letter. Paul says that he is sorry for that. But he knows that it was for their good. He knew that his letter hurt them. It made them sorry only for a while.
You write someone a severe letter. You feel that it is for their good. Still it is difficult to write it. It might hurt them when they read it. You know that. So, Paul was not happy about the pain that he caused. But the letter brought good results. He was happy about that. The Corinthians had regret. But it was the kind of regret that God wanted for them. That kind of regret led them to turn away from their *sin.
Verse 10 There is *godly regret and *worldly regret. Paul explains the difference. *Godly regret leads to a change of mind and heart. It then leads to a change of behaviour. By *faith, these lead to *salvation. So, instead of regret, there is a new joy. *Godly regret hates the *sin. There is a strong desire not to *sin again.
*Worldly regret is just the opposite. Someone has discovered your *sin. That is why you are sorry. Pain may follow the wrong action. You are sorry about that. But there is no change of mind or heart. There is no desire to change your behaviour. You might think that no-one will discover your *sin. Then you would repeat the *sin. There is no *faith in God in this kind of regret. The result is not *salvation. It is death.
David is an example in the Bible of *godly regret (Psalm 51). Peter is another (Mark 14.72). Then there is Paul himself (Acts 9:1-22). Esau is an example of *worldly regret (Genesis 27:1-40 and Hebrews 12:15-17). There is also Judas (Matthew 27:3-5).
Verse 11 Paul was pleased with the result of his severe letter. It had produced *godly regret in the Corinthians. He now lists some of the good things produced in them. They wanted to make themselves right again with Paul. Earlier they had not accepted Paul. They had not recognised him as God’s *apostle. Now they realise the damage that they might have caused. They fear God because of this.
They would now punish the man who had done wrong. Now they can say that they are without *guilt. They have taken the right action about the *guilty person.
Verses 12-13 Paul now gives his main reason for writing the severe letter. He wanted the Corinthians to act against the *guilty person. That was true. But that was not the main reason for the letter. It was not about Paul’s position with the Corinthians. He was not looking again for a place of honour with them. The letter brought *godly regret. They now realised how important Paul was to them. This could be only for their good.
Moreover God had called Paul to be his *apostle. It was important that the Corinthians understood this. To turn against Paul was to turn against Christ. Paul’s enemies were *preaching ‘a different *gospel’ (11:4). The Corinthians had acted in a way pleasing to God. The letter encouraged everyone. This was the good result of Paul’s letter.
Moreover, Paul had met Titus. This meeting brought him joy. Paul explains the reasons for his joy. Titus had fears. He wondered how the Corinthians would deal with him. But when he came to Corinth, he lost his fears. In fact, the Corinthians had given fresh life to his spirit.
14-16 Paul had spoken to Titus. He told him how good the Corinthians were. It was all true. Titus discovered this when he visited them. So Paul was not ashamed of the Corinthians. Titus now had greater love for them. Paul has great comfort in all this.
Paul’s feelings towards the Corinthians have changed a lot. We see this in this chapter. Paul thought he might even have died (1:8-9). This was because of his great troubles. Now Paul is full of joy for the Corinthians. This change has come through the power of God. There is no doubt about that. It comes through God’s Word and by his Spirit. At one time Paul’s work seemed to be at an end. Now he has new life and hope for the future.
Paul now writes about having a *collection. It will be among the *Gentile churches. It will be for the poor *Jewish *believers. They live in Jerusalem. There was little food there at that time. It was during the rule of the Roman Emperor Claudius. (An emperor is a very important ruler.)
Verses 1-2 Paul had already asked the Corinthians to give money. This was to help the *Jewish *believers in Jerusalem (1 Corinthians 16:1-4). He speaks to them again about this. God had given *grace to the Macedonian churches (Philippi, Thessalonica and Beroea). We have an account of Paul’s work in these churches (Acts 16:11-17:15). This *grace had given them a great desire. That desire was to give to other people. It was not easy for the Macedonian Christians to give. It was a time of great testing.
It was wonderful the way that these people gave. They were very poor people. A rich church should give to a poor church (verses 13-15). Paul says that this is right. But here we have a poor church giving to a poor church.
Paul also gives the reason why they gave so much. It was because of their great joy. They may not have had very much. They may not have given very much either. But they gave freely of what they had (Mark 12:41-44).
Verses 3-5 The Macedonians were very poor. So Paul did not expect them to give so much. However, they gave as much as was possible. In fact, they gave even more than that.
They gave because it pleased them to give. It was a benefit for them to give in this way. The word for gift is the same as the Greek word for ‘*grace’. They understood the truth of Jesus’ words. ‘You get more *blessing when you give than when you receive’ (Acts 20:35). The Greek word means ‘sharing’ (or *fellowship). It is the word used for Holy *Communion. The whole church shared in this act of love and care. They did it together. They did it for their *Jewish brothers and sisters. They saw this as an act to support the *saints. The word used for ‘support’ is the word used for a servant or *minister.
Paul was an *apostle ‘by the will of God’. He is now asking the Corinthians to give. It seems that he did not need to ask the same of the Macedonians. They gave because it was in their heart to give. They saw giving as a part of God’s will for them. That is why they gave. They lived to do God’s will. His will was that they gave everything of themselves. They gave their money, their time and everything. They gave all to Jesus Christ their *Lord. They gave also to Paul, his *minister. They gave their money. Their giving came out of love and care for other people. They gave it too in answer to God’s will for them.
God’s desire was that they recognise Jesus as their *Lord. Also his desire was that they would recognise Paul as God’s *minister. Paul compares the giving of the Corinthians with that of the Macedonians. Maybe this will cause shame to the Corinthians. He has another hope. It is that the Corinthians too will receive the gift of the *grace of giving (Romans 12:8).
Verse 6 Titus had already started to talk to the Corinthians. He spoke about the *collection. Their understanding of the *grace of giving had already begun. This was through Paul. So, Paul asks Titus to complete for them