2 Corinthians 1
New Catholic Bible
Address
Chapter 1
Greeting to the Church. 1 Paul, an apostle[a] of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the Church of God in Corinth, and to all the saints throughout Achaia: 2 grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Sufferings and Consolation.[b] 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercy and the God of all consolation.[c] 4 He consoles us in all our afflictions and thereby enables us to console others in their tribulations, offering them the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God.
5 For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so too, through Christ, do we receive our consolation. 6 If we are being afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation. If we are being consoled, it is to help us to console you and give you the patience and the strength to endure the same sufferings that we endure. 7 Our hope for you is unshaken, because we know that as you share in the sufferings, you also share in the consolations.
8 Brethren, we do not want you to be unaware of the hardships we experienced[d] in Asia. The burden we endured was far too heavy for us to bear, to such an extent that we even despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, in our hearts we felt that we were under a sentence of death. This was so that we not put our trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead.
10 He delivered us from this deadly peril, and he will continue to so deliver us. He on whom we have set our hopes will deliver us again, 11 as you assist us with your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many to God on our behalf for the blessing granted to us through the prayers of so many.
Apostle by the Power of Jesus and for Jesus[e]
A Visit Not Made[f]
12 You Are Our Boast. Indeed, this is our boast: the testimony of our conscience that in our dealings with the world, and especially with you, we have conducted ourselves with simplicity and godly sincerity, depending not on worldly wisdom but on the grace of God. 13 For we write nothing to you that you cannot read and comprehend. It is my hope that you will come to understand fully, 14 as you have already understood in part, that on the day of the Lord Jesus we will have as much reason to boast of you as you will have reason to boast of us.
15 Our Language Is Not “Yes” and “No.”[g] So certain am I of this that I had originally intended to come to you first of all and thereby reward you with a double benefit. 16 I planned to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and then to come to you again on my return from Macedonia and have you send me forth to Judea.
17 Since that was my original intention, was I being impulsive, or do you believe that my plans are based on human considerations, ready to say “Yes, Yes” and “No, No” at the same time? 18 As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been “Yes” and “No.” 19 The Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was proclaimed to you by us, that is, by Silvanus[h] and Timothy and me, was not a mixture of “Yes” and “No.” He was never anything but “Yes.”
20 In him is the “Yes” to every one of the promises of God. Indeed, it is through him that we say “Amen” to give glory to God. 21 However, it is God who enables both us and you to stand firm in Christ. He has anointed us 22 and marked us with his seal and given us the Spirit in our hearts, as a down payment of what is to come.
23 The Delay Was Intended Merely To Spare Them.[i] I call upon God as a witness that it was only to spare you that I did not come again to Corinth. 24 We do not wish to lord it over your faith, but to work together with you for your joy, because you are standing firm in your faith.
Footnotes
- 2 Corinthians 1:1 Apostle: a person specially commissioned by Christ (see notes on Mk 6:30; 1 Cor 1:1-9; Heb 3:1). Timothy: a fellow worker of Paul (see Acts 18:5) and his companion on the second and third missionary journeys. Brother: a fellow believer, a brother in Christ (see Acts 9:17; Heb 2:11). Church of God in Corinth: the community of believers at Corinth, the local representative of the universal Church. “Church of God” is an expression used only by Paul and solely in Acts 20:28, 1 Cor 1:2, and here. It corresponds to the Old Testament expression “assembly (or community) of the Lord” (see Deut 23:2; see also Num 16:3; 20:4; 1 Chr 28:8). Saints: another term for God’s people, those who have been set apart as holy to the Lord (see note on Rom 1:7). Achaia: Greece as distinct from Macedonia. Although the Letter was written specifically for the situation in Corinth, it was also intended for Christians elsewhere in Greece. Copies would doubtless be made and circulated to them.
- 2 Corinthians 1:3 The Gospel is the power of liberation not only in time of exaltation when the gifts of the Spirit carry the whole community along but also in the most difficult trials of an apostle’s life. Paul has known sickness and the fear of an approaching death, he has suffered persecution, and he has experienced misunderstanding and rejection at the hands of his own communities. Discouraged and weighed down, he discovers the weakness of an apostle, whose evidence is inscribed forever in his life. However, another certitude—one even more profound—imposes itself upon him: the joy of being in the hand of the Lord and imitating Jesus himself!
The word “consolation” occurs in some form ten times in these lines, not as a facile formula but as a term that expresses inner freedom, strength renewed, the reversal of a situation, the experience of being blessed by God who triumphs over evil and death. In addition, the solidarity of Christians is deepened in trials and in joy, for they all belong to the one Body of Christ. Paul’s safety serves as a source of comfort for his followers, and their prayer is a means of sustenance for him. - 2 Corinthians 1:3 Consolation: i.e., comfort and encouragement.
- 2 Corinthians 1:8 We experienced: throughout the Letter, Paul uses the editorial plural (we, us, our, ourselves). These terms should be taken as referring to Paul alone—except where the context demonstrates otherwise. Asia: Asia Minor, with its capital at Ephesus, which was a Roman province.
- 2 Corinthians 1:12 Paul recalls recent events. There must be a full understanding between himself and the Corinthians; let them no longer have any doubt of his sincerity and intentions. The preaching of Christ is not a teaching that can be accommodated to each person’s taste. The apostle exists only by the power of Jesus and for Jesus, who calls every human being to salvation. To take sides for or against the apostle is to take a position on the Gospel and on Jesus himself. At the same time, Paul describes the way he thinks of his own life: an apostle not only comes in the name of Jesus but is so bound to his Master and his message that he shares the lot and imitates the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.
- 2 Corinthians 1:12 Paul had promised to come to Corinth twice: once from Ephesus before going on to Macedonia in the north and then on his return from Macedonia when going on to Ephesus. However, because of a situation that had arisen, he had canceled one or both of these visits. He has been criticized for this and here gives his explanation.
- 2 Corinthians 1:15 Paul insists that his dialogue with the Corinthians is not one of “Yes” and “No” at the same time—just as Jesus, the Son of God, did not simultaneously say “Yes” and “No.” Indeed, God fulfilled his promises by sending his Son among us, and Christ also did what his Father wanted. Thus, Christ is a “Yes,” consenting to the Father’s plan. Similarly, we say “Yes” to Christ, first at our Baptism when we receive the first outpouring of the Spirit and then at every Eucharist when we say “Amen” (which means, “Yes, it is true”). When we sin, on the other hand, we say “No” to Christ.
- 2 Corinthians 1:19 Silvanus: another fellow worker of Paul. The Hebrew name was Silas, but this was romanized to Silvanus (see Acts 18:5).
- 2 Corinthians 1:23 Paul explains why he has substituted a severe Letter for the announced visit. The details of the incidents escape us, but we know that Paul was attacked by an agitator who was opposed to the Apostle’s coworkers. Paul estimated that an immediate visit would inflame the situation whereas a letter would foster reflection, an examination of conscience, and ultimately peace and harmony. The Letter of which he speaks has been lost; according to some, however, it is to be found in the last chapters of the present Letter.
