2 Corinthians 1:1-24

God shows his Power when we are Weak

2 Corinthians

Philip Smith

About 2 Corinthians

Author

Paul wrote the letter called 2 Corinthians. See 2 Corinthians 1:1 and 2 Corinthians 10:1. The letter contains information and language that are in the style of Paul. The letter tells us about his life and the things that he did. No other letter that he wrote has so much information about Paul. Early church leaders like Polycarp (156 A.D.) say that Paul wrote it.

The city called Corinth

The city was on a narrow piece of land between northern and southern Greece. It was an important city for trade. All the goods that went by land from north to south, passed through it. It had two ports. One was on the east side and the other was on the west side. People often emptied the goods from their ships at one port or the other. Then they took them by land to the port on the other side. This was only four miles. The journey by sea was 200 miles. About 750 000 people lived in the city. It was the one of the chief cities in Greece. The *Roman writer Strabo wrote: ‘*Corinth was always great and wealthy.’

There was a large rock in the centre of the city. The *temple of the *Greek *goddess Artemis (or Diana) stood on this rock. She was the *goddess of love. People praised this *goddess by having sex with male or female priests. ‘To behave like a *Corinthian,’ meant to have sex with a person whom you had not married. In his first letter, Paul explained to the Christians there why such behaviour is wrong.

The church was large. Most of its members were *Gentiles (not *Jews). They came from the middle and lower social classes. Many had lived evil lives before they became Christians. It was difficult for them to free themselves from their past *sins.

Paul and the church at Corinth

We read about Paul’s first visit to Corinth in Acts 18. We know that this was about the year *AD 50 from a book by Gallio. He was the *Roman *governor (Acts 18:12). He was there for one year in the year *AD 51. Paul stayed for about 18 months. Then he left to go to Ephesus with Aquila and Priscilla. Whilst he was at Ephesus, he wrote a letter to the Christians at Corinth. He told them not to be good friends with immoral people. (Immoral people have sex with a person whom they have not married.) We do not have a copy of that letter. (Some people think that it was 2 Corinthians 6:11–7:1. If it is not, perhaps Paul repeated part of the letter in that passage. We do not know.)

After this, some people brought messages to Paul from Corinth. People from the family of Chloe told him about the church at Corinth. They said that it had divided into groups. Each group followed a different teacher. Other people told him that there was bad *sexual behaviour among the church members. Then they asked Paul to answer some of their questions. Some questions were about marriage and divorce. Other questions were about the food that they should eat. They also asked questions about how they should use *spiritual gifts. They asked as well, about what happened after death. Paul wrote 1 Corinthians as a reply to these questions.

Paul then visited Corinth again. The people’s reaction to his letter was not what he had hoped for. The visit was a painful one for both Paul and the Christians at Corinth.

When he got back to Ephesus Paul wrote them a severe letter. He wrote about this letter in 2 Corinthians 2:1-4. He did not write it to make them sad. He wrote it to show that he loved them. Some people think that 2 Corinthians Chapter s 10-13 is this severe letter. (Nobody can prove this, however.) Titus took this letter to Corinth. He returned to Paul with the good news that the Christians at Corinth had changed their ways.

Paul then wrote the letter called 2 Corinthians. In it, he explained why he had not come to visit them for the third time. He had promised to do this in 1 Corinthians 16:5. He told them to collect (ask people to give) money for the church in Jerusalem. In his letter, he also opposed those who did not think him to be a real *apostle. (An *apostle is a person whom someone sends to do a special task. In *New Testament times, they were people who had also met the *risen Jesus.) People thought that Paul was not a real *apostle. He was not one of Jesus’ 12 *disciples. He did not behave like the other *apostles who came to Corinth. He did not ask for money. But Paul was an *apostle because God chose him.

People opposed Paul at Corinth

Most of the Christians at Corinth had changed their ways. Some still opposed Paul. They thought that Paul was not a powerful person. He could write powerful letters but he was not a great speaker. He did not look attractive. He had some kind of illness (2 Corinthians 10:10; 2 Corinthians 12:7). He refused to accept money from them for his work. There were false *apostles. They said that they were better than Paul was. We cannot be sure who these people were. In 2 Corinthians 11:21-24, Paul refers to ‘*Hebrews, *Israelites, Christ’s servants…’ Perhaps the false *apostles said that they were Christian *apostles. However, they wanted the *Jews and *Greeks in the church to obey all the laws of *Moses. So they *preached a ‘different good news’ (2 Corinthians 11:4). But their message was not really God’s good news.

The contents of the book

2 Corinthians 1:1–7:16	Paul explains his behaviour and his work as an *apostle
• 2 Corinthians 1:1-2	Greeting
• 2 Corinthians 1:3-7	Paul gives thanks for God’s comfort
• 2 Corinthians 1:8-11	Paul’s escape from great danger
• 2 Corinthians 1:12-2:17	Why Paul changed his plans
• 2 Corinthians 3:1-18	The work of the Spirit is better than the work of the law
• 2 Corinthians 4:1-15	Human weakness and God’s power
• 2 Corinthians 4:16–5:10	The Christian’s hope
• 2 Corinthians 5:11–6:10	The work of making friendship between people and God
• 2 Corinthians 6:11–7:1	Paul warns against union with those who do not give honour to God
• 2 Corinthians 7:2-16	Paul’s joy about the change of attitude by the Christians at Corinth
2 Corinthians 8:1–9:15	The money for the Christians in Jerusalem
• 2 Corinthians 8:1-24	Arrangements to gather the money
• 2 Corinthians 9:1-15	How Christians should give
2 Corinthians 10:1–13:14	Paul’s authority as an *apostle
• 2 Corinthians 10:1-18	The qualities that make Paul an *apostle
• 2 Corinthians 11:1-33	Paul’s answers to those who oppose him
• 2 Corinthians 12:1-13	Paul’s experience of *glory and weakness
• 2 Corinthians 12:14–13:4	Paul answers his *opponents and promises a third visit
• 2 Corinthians 13:5-14	Paul prays that they will become better people. He prays that God will do good things for them

Chapter 1

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Roman ~ Rome was the capital city of the rulers at that time. That which belonged to Rome was Roman.'Corinth, Corinthian ~ Corinth is a city in the country called Greece. The people from Corinth are called Corinthians.
temple ~ a building where people praise God; or, a building where they praise false gods.
Greek ~ a thing or a person from Greece; or the language that Greek people speak; or a person who is not a Jew.
Jews ~ people of the Hebrew people or religion.
Hebrew ~ a member of a group of families originally from Israel; or, the language of the Hebrew people.
goddess ~ a female false god.'Corinth, Corinthian ~ Corinth is a city in the country called Greece. The people from Corinth are called Corinthians.
Gentiles ~ a name for all groups of people that are not Jewish.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything that belongs to a Jew.
Jews ~ people of the Hebrew people or religion.
Hebrew ~ a member of a group of families originally from Israel; or, the language of the Hebrew people.
Jews ~ people of the Hebrew people or religion.
Hebrew ~ a member of a group of families originally from Israel; or, the language of the Hebrew people.
sin ~ an evil deed; or what is in us that causes us to do sins; to sin means to do evil deeds.
AD ~ AD 50 means the year that was 50 years after Jesus came, and so on.
governor ~ a person who rules an area.
sexual ~ about sex.
spiritual ~ about the spirit, not physical things.
apostle ~ a person whom someone sends to do a special task. In the New Testament, an apostle was someone who had met the risen Jesus.

New Testament ~ the second part of the Bible with 27 books about the life of Jesus and the Christian message.

risen Jesus ~ Jesus, after he died and became alive again.

'New Testament ~ the second part of the Bible with 27 books about the life of Jesus and the Christian message.'risen Jesus ~ Jesus, after he died and became alive again.
disciples ~ the students of Jesus. Especially, the 12 men who became apostles.
apostle ~ a person whom someone sends to do a special task. In the New Testament, an apostle was someone who had met the risen Jesus.

New Testament ~ the second part of the Bible with 27 books about the life of Jesus and the Christian message.

risen Jesus ~ Jesus, after he died and became alive again.
Hebrew ~ a member of a group of families originally from Israel; or, the language of the Hebrew people.
Israelites ~ the people of Israel (Jews).
Jews ~ people of the Hebrew people or religion.
Hebrew ~ a member of a group of families originally from Israel; or, the language of the Hebrew people.
Moses ~ the leader of Israel who brought them out of Egypt and gave them their laws.
preach ~ speak in public, especially about religion.
glory ~ honour or greatness. Especially, God’s greatness. Or, a special cause for pride in something or someone.
opponent ~ someone who opposes you.
saints ~ people who belong to God. The Bible says that all Christians are saints.
Lord ~ a name that we call God or Jesus; we call God or Jesus Lord when we obey them.'Old Testament ~ the 39 books in the first part of the Bible.
salvation ~ when God frees a person’s spirit from sin.
sin ~ an evil deed; or what is in us that causes us to do sins; to sin means to do evil deeds.
Asia ~ the area of Asia Minor similar to modern Turkey.
holiness ~ the way that God wants us to live.
sincerity ~ a sincere attitude.
relationship ~ a link between people; or, between God and people.
Amen ~ a word at the end of a prayer to show that you agree with the prayer.
trustworthy ~ someone whom you can trust to be honest.
wax ~ a sticky substance that easily melts. People used wax to close envelopes and to complete letters.
sign ~ a sign shows that something is present or exists.
holy ~ all good with no bad in it; separate from sin; suitable for God.
sin ~ an evil deed; or what is in us that causes us to do sins; to sin means to do evil deeds.