2 Corinthians 1:3-11

God Both Afflicts And Comforts All Who Are His For Their Salvation (2 Corinthians 1:3).

The verses that follow lay the foundation of what he will say throughout the letter. At first sight they might appear to contain simply a message of comfort and strengthening in the face of suffering. And if it were so it would be an important message. And it would especially bring out that Paul and his fellow-workers were appointed as strengtheners of the churches. But deeper consideration brings out that it very much has reference to the ‘salvation' that God has brought in ‘the last days' (that is, the days following the coming and death and resurrection of Jesus, which were seen as the final days before the end), and the need in the light of it to share in the sufferings of Christ for the fulfilling of His purposes, and to be kept by God in the right way to the end.

In LXX ‘comfort' (encourage, strengthen) is a word directly connected with the coming in of the last days, and of God's deliverance. When those come God will comfort (encourage, strengthen) His people (LXX - Isaiah 35:4; Isaiah 40:1; Isaiah 40:11; Isaiah 41:27; Isaiah 49:10; Isaiah 49:13; Isaiah 51:3; Isaiah 51:12; Isaiah 61:2; Isaiah 66:12 compare Exodus 15:13; Psalms 126:1). This is why Jesus called the Holy Spirit ‘the Comforter' (John 14:16; John 14:26; John 15:26; John 16:7). And His ‘mercies' as mentioned here very much have in mind His great salvation (2 Corinthians 1:6) and deliverance (2 Corinthians 1:10), the resurrection from the dead (2 Corinthians 1:9), and the coming day of our Lord Jesus (2 Corinthians 1:14). And these constantly lie in the background to this passage. So all he says here has these ideas in mind and leads up to them. His final concern for the Corinthians is not so much their comfort in suffering, although that is important to him, but their salvation through it, although their comfort and encouragement play an important part within that. It is about comfort and encouragement and strengthening with a view to final deliverance.