The big picture
The delayed visit still needs explaining. Paul, the messenger addressing this church, says another painful meeting would serve neither side. His earlier letter had brought tears to him as well as grief to them. Now he urges the believers to forgive a man they have punished. Jesus Christ, the Lord whom Paul serves, stands at the centre of that restored bond. Paul also recalls an anxious search for news and the weight of carrying God’s message.
In this chapter
- Love Behind a Painful Letter 2 Corinthians 2:1-4
Paul explains why he chose to write instead of making another sad visit.
- Punishment Gives Way to Forgiveness 2 Corinthians 2:5-11
A man has caused grief, and many in the church have punished him.
- An Open Door and Unease 2 Corinthians 2:12-13
Paul recalls reaching Troas, a city where he had room to preach about Christ.
- An Honest Message with Great Weight 2 Corinthians 2:14-17
Thanks to God interrupts Paul’s account of travel.
Central truth
Paul seeks restored love after painful discipline and describes the grave responsibility of speaking God’s message with an honest heart.
Scripture beside the summary
2 Corinthians · King James Version · 172 Corinthians 2:1-4
Love Behind a Painful Letter
Paul explains why he chose to write instead of making another sad visit. The people he would upset are also the people who bring him joy. He wanted them to deal with the trouble before he arrived. That would let them share gladness at their next meeting. His stern letter came from deep distress and many tears. He did not write because he enjoyed their pain. He wanted them to know how deeply he loved them, even while he addressed what had gone wrong.
In everyday life
An injured choir leader folds a letter before rehearsal begins. She has named a breach of trust that the singers need to face. She writes through tears, hoping the next rehearsal can bring them together again. Her aim is repair, though the words hurt. Paul’s letter concerns a church’s shared life in Christ.
Notice
2 Corinthians 2:4 Tears belong to the writer as well as the recipients. Paul presents his hard words as costly care, not cold distance from their pain.
2 Corinthians 2:1-4
King James Version1But I determined this with myself, that I would not come again to you in heaviness.
2For if I make you sorry, who is he then that maketh me glad, but the same which is made sorry by me?
3And I wrote this same unto you, lest, when I came, I should have sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice; having confidence in you all, that my joy is the joy of you all.
4For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you.
2 Corinthians 2:5-11
Punishment Gives Way to Forgiveness
A man has caused grief, and many in the church have punished him. Paul does not name him or spell out the offence here. He says the punishment has now gone far enough. They must forgive and comfort the man so that sorrow does not overwhelm him. Paul wants their love made plain. He joins in their forgiveness in Christ’s presence. Otherwise Satan, the evil opponent of God’s work, can gain through the breach. Discipline must not become an endless refusal to welcome him back.
In everyday life
Three allotment members walk over to a grower whose key was taken after a serious rule breach. They return it and show him the plot they have kept clear. The penalty has ended, and they make his welcome visible. A silent return would leave him unsure. Paul also warns of Satan exploiting unhealed grief.
Notice
2 Corinthians 2:7 Paul sees a danger in too much sorrow after punishment. Forgiveness includes comfort, so the offender is not left alone with crushing shame.
2 Corinthians 2:5-11
King James Version5But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all.
6Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many.
7So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow.
8Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him.
9For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things.
10To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ;
11Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices.
2 Corinthians 2:12-13
An Open Door and Unease
Paul recalls reaching Troas, a city where he had room to preach about Christ. He regarded that opening as help from the Lord. Yet he could not settle because Titus, a trusted fellow worker, was absent. The opportunity did not remove his concern about his missing companion. Paul therefore said farewell to the people there. He moved on to Macedonia, the region he next visited. These brief travel details show how concern for another worker weighed on him while his public work continued.
In everyday life
A railway volunteer scans the platform while passengers gather around her information table. The train brings plenty of people who need her help. Still, the partner carrying urgent family news has not arrived. She hands over the table and goes to meet him. Paul leaves a real opening to preach Christ’s message.
Notice
2 Corinthians 2:13 Room to preach does not mean Paul feels calm. The absence of Titus troubles him enough to change where he works next.
2 Corinthians 2:12-13
King James Version12Furthermore, when I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, and a door was opened unto me of the Lord,
13I had no rest in my spirit, because I found not Titus my brother: but taking my leave of them, I went from thence into Macedonia.
2 Corinthians 2:14-17
An Honest Message with Great Weight
Thanks to God interrupts Paul’s account of travel. He describes God spreading the knowledge of Christ through his workers like a scent. Their work is pleasing to God, yet it does not bring the same result to everyone. Some receive life; others remain on the path to death. Paul asks who is equal to such a task. He rejects those who spoil God’s message for their own ends. He and his coworkers speak honestly, knowing that God sees them and that Christ is their master.
In everyday life
The flood courier knocks at a cottage and hands the resident an evacuation notice. One neighbour packs at once; another throws the notice aside. The same warning meets sharply different responses. The courier keeps the wording clear rather than changing it to please either household. Paul’s message concerns life and death through Christ.
Notice
2 Corinthians 2:17 Honesty is tied to the audience Paul cannot escape: God himself. His message is not a product he feels free to alter for gain.
2 Corinthians 2:14-17
King James Version14Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
15For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
16To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?
17For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.
Details worth noticing
The opening image
2 Corinthians 2:1 begins with “But I determined this with myself, that I would not come again to you in heaviness.”
Where the chapter turns
2 Corinthians 2:5 forms a natural hinge: “But if any have caused grief, he hath not grieved me, but in part: that I may not overcharge you all.”
The final note
2 Corinthians 2:17 leaves the reader with “For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.”
A word trail through the chapter
The words Christ, savour, forgave, forgive, lest, death help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
KJV words made clear
- savour
- A smell or scent, used here for the effect of Christ’s message.
Music and video connected to the passage
No exact media match is cataloged for this passage yet. New material can be connected when it becomes available.