2 Corinthians - Chapter 1
Verses 1-2
v1 From Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by God’s choice, and our brother Timothy. This letter is to the church of God in Corinth. It is also to the saints in Achaia. v2 I pray that God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ will show you kindness. And I pray that they will make you calm.
Commentary
Paul greets the Christians at Corinth. He introduces himself as an apostle and Timothy as his brother in Christ. Timothy is like a brother to Paul because they are both in God’s family. Paul did not send himself. God sent him. He was not like the false apostles whom God did not send. Timothy was not an apostle but a Christian leader. Paul writes to the church in Corinth. ‘Church’ here does not mean a building but a group of people. They met together to hear God’s word. The Greek Old Testament uses ‘church’ to describe the Israelites as they gathered in front of God. ‘Saint’ means a person who belongs to God. The people at Corinth were God’s special people. Paul wanted them to behave in the way that God desired. They did not do so. ‘Achaia’ means the country called Greece except for the region called Macedonia. As Paul greets the people, he prays that God will make them ‘calm’ (the Hebrew greeting). He also prays for ‘kindness’ for them. This is a Greek word. It means that God gives his love to us freely.
Verses 3-7
v3 Praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! He is the Father who cares about our pains. He is the God from whom all comfort comes. v4 He comforts us in all our troubles. Then we can comfort other people who have troubles. We give them the comfort that God has given us. v5 As we share the pains of Christ, so by him we can share God’s comfort. v6 When we have pain, we can give you comfort and salvation. But when we receive comfort, you also will receive comfort. This will help you to suffer with patience the same difficult experiences that we have suffered. v7 Our hope for you is firm. You have suffered troubles as we also have done. We are sure about this. You will share in the comfort that we have received.
Commentary
Paul had an experience of great pain. He praised God because God understands. And God cares about our pains. God comforts us in them. ‘Comfort’ here is more than mere sympathy. It means to give them help and hope. God comforts us so that we can comfort other people. This is the result of what God has done for us. To ‘share the pains of Christ’ does not mean that His pains were not enough. It means that we suffer because we follow him. He also gives us God’s help. Paul’s pain helped him to give comfort to other people. If he received comfort, he could pass it on to other people. They were suffering pain for their trust in Christ as Paul was. Paul was confident. The people of Corinth had to suffer troubles like him. They would also receive the comfort that he had received.
Verses 8-11
v8 We want you to know, brothers, about our great pains. We suffered them in the district called Asia. We had great difficulty. We could not deal with it. We gave up all hope that we would remain alive. v9 It was as if someone said that we must die as a punishment. However, this happened so that we should not trust ourselves but God. He brings people back alive from a state of death. v10 He rescued us from a terrible death and he will rescue us. We trust that he will keep us safe in the future. v11 You will help us as you pray for us. Many who help us will give thanks for God’s kindness. He has shown us this in answer to the prayers of many people.
Commentary
Where Paul uses ‘we’ in this book he refers to himself. He felt crushed (completely destroyed) like someone whom a judge would punish with death. We are not sure what this trouble was. Some people think that it was a feeling of despair without any hope. Other people think that it was a physical danger from his enemies. However, Paul learned from this not to trust himself but God. God is more powerful even than death. God had rescued Paul from that terrible situation. God would free Paul from anything. So God could even bring Paul back from death. There would still be dangers in the future. Paul asked the Christians at Corinth to pray for him. As God answered their prayers, they could give thanks to God.
Verses 12-14
v12 This is something of which we are proud. Our conscience tells us this. We behaved with the holiness and sincerity that God gives. We have done this in the world and in our relationships with you. We did not follow the wisdom of the world, but the kindness of God. v13 We do not write so that you cannot read or understand the meaning. v14 You have partly understood us. I hope that you will understand us completely. Then you will be proud of us. We will be proud of you on the day of Jesus Christ.
Commentary
Some of the Christians at Corinth said bad things about Paul. He had promised to visit them but he had not done so. After he had written 1 Corinthians, he made a ‘painful visit.’ He had not intended to make that visit. As a result of the visit, he wrote them a severe letter. He did not visit them again. The Christians at Corinth said that he was only like any other man. He kept on changing his mind. They also said that they did not understand his letters. They thought that he wrote one thing but he meant something else. They could not trust him to visit them. Therefore, they said that they could not trust his message about God.
In his reply, Paul said that his conscience was calm. He had behaved in a good and honest way when he was with them. He had not done anything that other people had not known about. There were no hidden meanings in his letters. He hoped that the Christians at Corinth would understand this. If so, when Jesus returns as Judge, they and Paul would be proud of each other.
Verses 15-24
v15 I was so sure of this that I intended to visit you first. Then you could benefit twice. v16 I would visit you on my way to Macedonia. Then I would visit you on the way back from Macedonia. So you could help me on my way to Judea. v17 I did not make plans like someone who is always changing his mind. I am not like a person in the world who says ‘yes’ and ‘no’ at the same time. v18 As certainly as we can trust God, our message to you is not ‘yes’ and ‘no’. v19 Timothy, Silas and I preached about Jesus Christ the Son of God to you. Jesus is not a ‘yes’ and ‘no’ person. It is always ‘yes’ with him. v20 However many promises God has made, Christ is always the ‘yes’ to them. That is why by him we can say ‘Amen.’ In this way, we give glory to God. v21 God makes you and I stand firm in Christ. We belong to him. v22 He has marked us to show that he owns us. He put his Spirit deep inside us. This is a certain promise of all that he will give us. v23 God is my witness. I did not return to Corinth in order to save you from a difficult situation. v24 We are not trying to control what you believe. We want to work with you so that you will have joy. What you believe helps you to stand firm.
Commentary
Paul explained that he had intended to visit them twice. The first visit would have been on his way from Ephesus to Macedonia. The second visit would have been on his return journey. He did not intend to change his mind when he made those plans. He did not make promises that he did not intend to keep. God is trustworthy. The good news is true. Jesus is not a person who keeps changing his mind. He was the Person about whom Timothy, Paul and Silas had preached. God says that Jesus is the ‘yes’ to all his promises. Jesus proves that all God’s promises are true.
So when we pray by Jesus Christ we can say ‘Amen’. This is a Hebrew word that means ‘firm, steady, trustworthy’. We use it at the end of prayers. It shows that we agree with them. We are sure that God will answer them. In this way, we give glory to God. People who sold things used the words ‘to stand firm’ in business. This meant that they would keep their promises. The mark of possession was a ‘seal.’ This was a piece of wax that they put on an official piece of paper. It showed who owned it. A ‘guarantee’ (certain promise) was a payment of part of a sum of money. This was a sign that the full amount would be paid in the future. God gives us the Holy Spirit to show that we belong to him. One day we will share the glory of heaven if we stand firm in Christ.
(Verses 23 to 24 really belong to chapter 2. The original writers of the Bible did not divide it into chapters and verses. Other people did this much later on.)
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