King James Version
2 Corinthians 10
18 verses with commentary
Paul Defends His Ministry
Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ, who in presence am base among you, but being absent am bold toward you: in presence: or, in outward appearance
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<strong>Now I Paul myself beseech you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ</strong> (παρακαλῶ δὲ ὑμᾶς διὰ τῆς πραΰτητος καὶ ἐπιεικείας τοῦ Χριστοῦ)—Paul begins this defense of his apostleship by grounding his appeal in Christ's character, not his own authority. <em>Prautēs</em> (πραΰτης, "meekness") denotes strength under control, while <em>epieikeia</em> (ἐπιείκεια, "gentleness") suggests for...
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**X.**
(1) **Now I Paul myself beseech you.**—His thoughts, as has been said, have travelled back to Corinth. The stinging words which Titus had reported to him (see Note on 2Corinthians 10:10) vex his soul. He speaks in the tone of the suppressed indignation which shows itself in a keen incisive irony. The opening formula is one which he reserves as emphasising an exceptionally strong emotion (Ga...
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**12. For--**reason why he may confidently look for their prayers for him.
**our rejoicing--**Greek, "our glorying." Not that he glories in the testimony of his conscience, as something to boast of; nay, this testimony is itself the thing in which his glorying consists.
**in simplicity--**Most of the oldest manuscripts read, "in holiness." English Version reading is perhaps a gloss from Ep 6:5...
Read full commentary →But I beseech you, that I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some, which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh. think: or, reckon
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<strong>That I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence</strong> (τὸ μὴ παρὼν θαρρῆσαι)—Paul hopes to avoid confrontation but will not shrink from it if necessary. <em>Tharrēsai</em> (θαρρῆσαι, "to be bold/confident") appears four times in this chapter (vv. 1-2, 7), showing the tension between pastoral gentleness and apostolic authority.<br><br><strong>Which think of us as if we walk...
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(2) **But I** **beseech you . . .**—There is, of course, an implied warning, almost a menace, in the entreaty. He would fain be spared the necessity for boldness when he and those of whom he speaks meet face to face; but if the necessity comes it will be the worse for them. They “reckon” him as walking “after the flesh,” with low and selfish aims and tortuous arts. (Comp. 2Corinthians 1:17; Romans...
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13. We write none other things (in this Epistle) than what ye read (in my former Epistle [Bengel]; present, because the Epistle continued still to be read in the Church as an apostolic rule). Conybeare and Howson think Paul had been suspected of writing privately to some individuals in the Church in a different strain from that of his public letters; and translates, "I write nothing else to you bu...
Read full commentary →For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
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<strong>For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh</strong> (ἐν σαρκὶ γὰρ περιπατοῦντες οὐ κατὰ σάρκα στρατευόμεθα)—Paul distinguishes between inevitable human embodiment (<em>en sarki</em>, "in flesh") and sinful methods (<em>kata sarka</em>, "according to flesh"). <em>Strateuometha</em> (στρατευόμεθα, "we wage war") introduces the military metaphor that dominates verses 3-6. ...
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(3) **For though we walk in the flesh.**—The phrase is generally used by St. Paul for the simple fact of bodily existence, with all its incidental infirmities and trials, but, commonly, without implying sin, as “*after* the flesh” does (Galatians 2:20; Philippians 1:22-24; 1Timothy 3:16). The thought of participating in the sin of which the body is the occasion is, however, very close to that of s...
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**14. in part--**In contrast to "even to the end": the testimony of his life was not yet completed [Theophylact and Bengel]. Rather, "in part," that is, some of you, not all [Grotius, Alford]. So in 2Co 2:5; Ro 11:25. The majority at Corinth had shown a willing compliance with Paul's directions in the first Epistle: but some were still refractory. Hence arises the difference of tone in different p...
Read full commentary →(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) through God: or, to God
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<strong>For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God</strong> (τὰ γὰρ ὅπλα τῆς στρατείας ἡμῶν οὐ σαρκικὰ ἀλλὰ δυνατὰ τῷ θεῷ)—<em>Hopla</em> (ὅπλα, "weapons") denotes both offensive and defensive armament (cf. Eph 6:13-17). These weapons are <em>dunata tō theō</em> (δυνατὰ τῷ θεῷ, "powerful to/through God")—their efficacy derives entirely from divine power, not human skill....
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(4) **For the weapons of our warfare . . .**—We learn from the earlier words of 1Thessalonians 5:8, yet more from the later ones of Ephesians 6:11-16, what these were—the energies of spiritual powers given by the Eternal Spirit.
**To the pulling down of strong holds.**—The phrase is essentially military, used in the LXX. for the capture and destruction of fortresses (Lamentations 2:2; Proverbs 21:...
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**15. in this confidence--**of my character for sincerity being "acknowledged" by you (2Co 1:12-14).
**was minded--**I was intending.
**before--**"to come unto you before" visiting Macedonia (where he now was). Compare Note, see on 1Co 16:5; also see on 1Co 4:18, which, combined with the words here, implies that the insinuation of some at Corinth, that he would not come at all, rested on the f...
Read full commentary →Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; imaginations: or, reasonings
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<strong>Casting down imaginations</strong> (καθαιροῦντες λογισμοὺς)—<em>Logismous</em> (λογισμοὺς, "reasonings/arguments") denotes sophisticated intellectual constructs, philosophical systems, or rationalistic arguments. Paul targets not ignorance but educated rebellion—the mind's pretensions to autonomous authority apart from divine revelation. The verb <em>kathaireō</em> (καθαιρέω, "cast down/de...
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(5) **Casting down imaginations.**—The participle is in agreement with the “*we* war not” of 2Corinthians 10:3. In the Greek word rendered “imaginations,” we have the noun derived from the verb rendered “think,” or *reckon,* in 2Corinthians 10:2. It would be better, perhaps, to carry on the continuity by rendering it *thoughts,* or even *reckonings.*
**Every high thing that exalteth itself.**—The ...
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**16. This intention of visiting them on the way to Macedonia, as well as after having passed through it, must have reached the ears of the Corinthians in some way or other--**perhaps in the lost Epistle (1Co 4:18; 5:9). The sense comes out more clearly in the Greek order, "By you to pass into Macedonia, and from Macedonia to come again unto you."
And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.
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<strong>And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled</strong> (καὶ ἐν ἑτοίμῳ ἔχοντες ἐκδικῆσαι πᾶσαν παρακοήν, ὅταν πληρωθῇ ὑμῶν ἡ ὑπακοή)—<em>Ekdikēsai</em> (ἐκδικῆσαι, "to avenge/punish") denotes judicial retribution, not personal revenge. Paul stands ready to exercise apostolic discipline against false teachers, but only after the congregation demonstr...
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(6) **And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience.**—The idiom, *having in a readiness,* is perhaps, somewhat too archaic, and it might be better to render *being ready,* or *holding ourselves ready.* The words that follow imply the thought that those with which the verse opens were somewhat too unqualified. When he spoke of “avenging all disobedience,” he was not thinking of those to wh...
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**17. use lightness--**Was I guilty of levity? namely, by promising more than I performed.
**or ... according to the flesh, that with me there should be yea, yea ... nay, nay?--**The "or" expresses a different alternative: Did I act with levity, or (on the other hand) do I purpose what I purpose like worldly (fleshly) men, so that my "yea" must at all costs be yea, and my "nay" nay [Bengel, Wine...
Read full commentary →Paul's Authority
Do ye look on things after the outward appearance? If any man trust to himself that he is Christ's, let him of himself think this again, that, as he is Christ's, even so are we Christ's.
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<strong>Do ye look on things after the outward appearance?</strong> (τὰ κατὰ πρόσωπον βλέπετε)—Paul challenges superficial evaluation of ministry. <em>Kata prosōpon</em> (κατὰ πρόσωπον, "according to face/appearance") critiques judging by external credentials, rhetorical polish, or physical presence rather than spiritual fruit and divine appointment. The Corinthians valued what impresses the eye; ...
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(7) **Do ye look on things after the outward appearance?**—The Greek sentence may be taken either as interrogative, imperative, or indicative. The latter “ye look on things . . .” gives the most satisfactory meaning, as pressing home the charge on which he proceeds to dwell. He has, of course, the party of resistance in his thoughts, but he writes to the whole community, as influenced—some more an...
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18. He adds this lest they might think his DOCTRINE was changeable like his purposes (the change in which he admitted in 2Co 1:17, while denying that it was due to "lightness," and at the same time implying that not to have changed, where there was good reason, would have been to imitate the fleshly-minded who at all costs obstinately hold to their purpose).
**true--**Greek, "faithful" (1Co 1:9)...
Read full commentary →For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority, which the Lord hath given us for edification, and not for your destruction, I should not be ashamed:
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<strong>For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority, which the Lord hath given us for edification, and not for your destruction</strong> (ἐάν τε γὰρ περισσότερόν τι καυχήσωμαι περὶ τῆς ἐξουσίας ἡμῶν, ἧς ἔδωκεν ὁ κύριος εἰς οἰκοδομὴν καὶ οὐκ εἰς καθαίρεσιν ὑμῶν)—<em>Exousia</em> (ἐξουσία, "authority") denotes delegated power from Christ. Paul's authority is not self-assumed but <em>edō...
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(8) **For though I should boast somewhat more of our authority.**—Literally, *somewhat too much*—perhaps as quoting a word that had been used of him. In referring to his “authority,” it scarcely admits of question that he claims—as in 1Corinthians 5:5; 1Timothy 5:20, and by implication in 2Corinthians 10:6—the power to enforce that authority by a supernatural chastisement, as, *e.g.,* in the case ...
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19. Proof of the unchangeableness of the doctrine from the unchangeableness of the subject of it, namely, Jesus Christ. He is called "the Son of God" to show the impossibility of change in One who is co-equal with God himself (compare 1Sa 15:29; Mal 3:6).
**by me ... Silvanus and Timotheus--**The Son of God, though preached by different preachers, was one and the same, unchangeable. Silvanus is ...
Read full commentary →That I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters.
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<strong>That I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters</strong> (ἵνα μὴ δόξω ὡς ἂν ἐκφοβεῖν ὑμᾶς διὰ τῶν ἐπιστολῶν)—<em>Ekphobein</em> (ἐκφοβεῖν, "to frighten/terrify") suggests his opponents accused Paul of using harsh letters to intimidate from a safe distance. Paul's "severe letter" (2:3-4, 7:8-12) had caused grief but produced godly repentance. He now defends this—not terrorizing but...
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(9) **That I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters.**—The logical sequence of thought is: “I say this” (*i.e.,* that my sentence of delivery to Satan will not be a hollow form) “in order that I may not seem to frighten you as with a bug-bear.” This, it is clear from what follows, had been said. (Comp. the sneer in the next verse.) The use of the plural in this verse and that which foll...
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20. Rather, How many soever be the promises of God, in Him is the "yea" ("faithfulness in His word": contrasted with the "yea and nay," 2Co 1:19, that is, inconstancy as to one's word).
**and in him Amen--**The oldest manuscripts read, "Wherefore through Him is the Amen"; that is, In Him is faithfulness ("yea") to His word, "wherefore through Him" is the immutable verification of it ("Amen"). As...
Read full commentary →For his letters , say they, are weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible. say they: Gr. saith he
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<strong>For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible</strong> (ὅτι αἱ ἐπιστολαὶ μέν, φησίν, βαρεῖαι καὶ ἰσχυραί, ἡ δὲ παρουσία τοῦ σώματος ἀσθενὴς καὶ ὁ λόγος ἐξουθενημένος)—Paul quotes his critics directly. <em>Bareiai</em> (βαρεῖαι, "weighty") and <em>ischyrai</em> (ἰσχυραί, "powerful") acknowledge the force of Paul's written w...
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(10) **For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful.**—Allusive references to what had been said of him at Corinth have already appeared frequently. Here, for the first time, we have the very words quoted. The scorn conveyed in them had wounded the Apostle’s sensitive nature like a poisoned arrow; and we have here the nearest approach which the New Testament presents to the passionate compl...
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**21. stablisheth us ... in Christ--**that is, in the faith of Christ--in believing in Christ.
**anointed us--**As "Christ" is the "Anointed" (which His name means), so "He hath anointed (Greek, "chrisas") us," ministers and believing people alike, with the Spirit (2Co 1:22; 1Jo 2:20, 27). Hence we become "a sweet savor of Christ" (2Co 2:15).
Let such an one think this, that, such as we are in word by letters when we are absent, such will we be also in deed when we are present.
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<strong>Let such an one think this, that, such as we are in word by letters when we are absent, such will we be also in deed when we are present</strong> (τοῦτο λογιζέσθω ὁ τοιοῦτος, ὅτι οἷοί ἐσμεν τῷ λόγῳ δι' ἐπιστολῶν ἀπόντες, τοιοῦτοι καὶ παρόντες τῷ ἔργῳ)—<em>Logizesthō</em> (λογιζέσθω, "let him reckon/consider") is imperatival: Paul commands sober reflection. <em>Logos</em> (λόγῳ, "word") by ...
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(11) **Such will we be also.**—As a verb of some kind must be supplied, it would be better to give the present: *Such are we.* It is not so much a threat of what will happen in a particular instance as a statement of the general consistent character of his life.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**22. sealed--**A seal is a token assuring the possession of property to one; "sealed" here answers to "stablisheth us" (2Co 1:21; 1Co 9:2).
**the earnest of the Spirit--**that is, the Spirit as the earnest (that is, money given by a purchaser as a pledge for the full payment of the sum promised). The Holy Spirit is given to the believer now as a first instalment to assure him his full inheritan...
Read full commentary →For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise. are: or, understand it not
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<strong>For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves</strong> (οὐ γὰρ τολμῶμεν ἐγκρῖναι ἢ συγκρῖναι ἑαυτούς τισιν τῶν ἑαυτοὺς συνιστανόντων)—<em>Tolmōmen</em> (τολμῶμεν, "we dare") is ironic: Paul "dares not" engage in the self-commendation his opponents practice. <em>Synistanontōn</em> (συνιστανόντων, "commending themselves") appears through...
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(12) **We dare not make ourselves** **of the number.**—The last five words give the meaning of one Greek verb (*enkrînai = *to insert), the sound of which seems immediately to suggest the cognate verb (*synkrînai =* to compare). It is, of course, hard to convey the half-playful assonance in English. In “some that commend themselves” we note a reference to the charge of self-commending, which he ha...
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**23. Moreover I--**Greek, "But I (for my part)," in contrast to God who hath assured us of His promises being hereafter fulfilled certainly (2Co 1:20-22).
**call God--**the all-knowing One, who avenges wilful unfaithfulness to promises.
**for a record upon my soul--**As a witness as to the secret purposes of my soul, and a witness against it, if I lie (Mal 3:5).
**to spare you--**in order n...
Read full commentary →But we will not boast of things without our measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us, a measure to reach even unto you. rule: or, line
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<strong>But we will not boast of things without our measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us</strong> (ἡμεῖς δὲ οὐκ εἰς τὰ ἄμετρα καυχησόμεθα, ἀλλὰ κατὰ τὸ μέτρον τοῦ κανόνος οὗ ἐμέρισεν ἡμῖν ὁ θεὸς μέτρου)—<em>Ametra</em> (ἄμετρα, "unmeasured/boundless things") contrasts with <em>metron</em> (μέτρον, "measure") and <em>kanon</em> (κανών, "rule/standard")....
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(13) **But we will not boast of things without our measure.**—The words imply, of course, that his opponents were doing this. He refers in it to the *concordat* established between himself and Barnabas, on the one hand, and Peter, James, and John on the other, to which he refers in Galatians 2:9. He had not transgressed the terms of that *concordat* by thrusting himself upon a Church which had bee...
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**24. Not for that--**that is, Not that. "Faith" is here emphatic. He had "dominion" or a right to control them in matters of discipline, but in matters of "faith" he was only a "fellow helper of their joy" (namely, in believing, Ro 15:13; Php 1:25). The Greek is, "Not that we lord it over your faith." This he adds to soften the magisterial tone of 2Co 1:23. His desire is to cause them not sorrow ...
Read full commentary →For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though we reached not unto you: for we are come as far as to you also in preaching the gospel of Christ:
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<strong>For we stretch not ourselves beyond our measure, as though we reached not unto you</strong> (οὐ γὰρ ὡς μὴ ἐφικνούμενοι εἰς ὑμᾶς ὑπερεκτείνομεν ἑαυτούς)—<em>Hyperekteinomen</em> (ὑπερεκτείνομεν, "overextend/stretch beyond") refutes the charge of overreaching. Paul didn't invade someone else's mission field—he founded the Corinthian church, so ministering there is entirely legitimate. <em>Ep...
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(14) **For we stretch not ourselves . . . as though we reached not unto you.**—Some of the better MSS. omit the negative, and then the sentence must be taken as a question: “Are we over-reaching” (*i.e.,* transgressing boundaries), “as though you were not within the limit assigned to us?”
**For we are come as far as to you also.**—The word for “come” (not the usual verb) is one which almost always...
Read full commentary →Not boasting of things without our measure, that is, of other men's labours; but having hope, when your faith is increased, that we shall be enlarged by you according to our rule abundantly , enlarged: or, magnified in you
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<strong>Not boasting of things without our measure, that is, of other men's labours</strong> (οὐκ εἰς τὰ ἄμετρα καυχώμενοι ἐν ἀλλοτρίοις κόποις)—<em>Allotriois kopois</em> (ἀλλοτρίοις κόποις, "other men's labors") exposes the false teachers' method: invading established churches and claiming credit for others' work. <em>Kopois</em> (κόποις, "labors/toils") emphasizes exhausting work—Paul's pioneer...
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(15) **Not boasting of** **things without our measure . . .**—The words are not merely defensive. He presses home the charge of intrusion. They, not he, were finding ground for their boasts in other men’s labours. The context leads, however, to the conclusion that it was a charge that had been brought against him. They had spoken of him as pushing on from point to point, as with a measureless ambi...
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CHAPTER 2
2Co 2:1-17. Reason Why He Had Not Visited Them on His Way to Macedonia; the Incestuous Person Ought Now to Be Forgiven; His Anxiety to Hear Tidings of Their State from Titus, and His Joy When at Last the Good News Reaches Him.
**1. with myself--**in contrast to "you" (2Co 1:23). The same antithesis between Paul and them appears in 2Co 2:2.
**not come again ... in heaviness--**"sorr...
Read full commentary →To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man's line of things made ready to our hand. line: or, rule
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<strong>To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you</strong> (εἰς τὰ ὑπερέκεινα ὑμῶν εὐαγγελίσασθαι)—<em>Hyperekeina</em> (ὑπερέκεινα, "beyond") reflects Paul's pioneering missionary vision. He consistently sought unreached regions (Rom 15:20, 23), driven by the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations (Matt 28:19). Corinth, properly matured, could launch Paul's mission to Spain (Rom 1...
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(16) **To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you.**—It is clear, from Romans 15:19-24, that he is thinking (1) of Western Greece, (2) of Rome, (3, and chiefly) of Spain. There, apparently, he could hope to preach the gospel without even the risk of its being said that he was building on another man’s foundation.
**And not to boast in another man’s line . . .**—The words, like those of 2Corint...
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**2. For--**proof that he shrinks from causing them sorrow ("heaviness").
**if I--**The "I" is emphatic. Some detractor may say that this (2Co 2:1) is not my reason for not coming as I proposed; since I showed no scruple in causing "heaviness," or sorrow, in my Epistle (the first Epistle to the Corinthians). But I answer, If I be the one to cause you sorrow, it is not that I have any pleasure in...
Read full commentary →But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.
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<strong>But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord</strong> (ὁ δὲ καυχώμενος ἐν κυρίῳ καυχάσθω)—Paul quotes Jeremiah 9:23-24, the same text cited in 1 Corinthians 1:31. <em>Kauchōmenos</em> (καυχώμενος, "boasting/glorying") is inevitable—humans will boast in something. The question is object: self (wisdom, strength, riches) or God (grace, calling, power). <em>En kyriō</em> (ἐν κυρίῳ, "in the ...
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(17) **He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.**—Better, *He that boasteth,* the English translators having again yielded to their besetting weakness for variation. On the general meaning of the phrase, which has been used before, see Note on 1Corinthians 1:31. Here it has a more special force. “To boast in the Lord” was to boast as in the sight of Christ of that of which the boaster thought ...
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**3. I wrote this same unto you--**namely, that I would not come to you then (2Co 2:1), as, if I were to come then, it would have to be "in heaviness" (causing sorrow both to him and them, owing to their impenitent state). He refers to the first Epistle (compare 1Co 16:7; compare 1Co 4:19, 21; 5:2-7, 13).
**sorrow from them of whom I ought to rejoice--**that is, sorrow from their impenitence, wh...
Read full commentary →For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth.
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<strong>For not he that commendeth himself is approved, but whom the Lord commendeth</strong> (οὐ γὰρ ὁ ἑαυτὸν συνιστάνων, ἐκεῖνός ἐστιν δόκιμος, ἀλλ' ὃν ὁ κύριος συνίστησιν)—<em>Synistanōn</em> (συνιστάνων, "commending") ties back to the self-commendation throughout the chapter (vv. 12, 13, 18). <em>Dokimos</em> (δόκιμος, "approved/tested") denotes what passes scrutiny—genuine versus counterfeit....
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(18) **For not he that commendeth himself is approved.**—Again, as in 2Corinthians 10:12 and five earlier passages (see reference there), we trace the impression which the stinging taunt had left on St. Paul’s mind. In the word “approved” there is possibly a reference to what had been said in 1Corinthians 11:19. He had meant something more by it than meeting with men’s approval.
Ellicott's Comment...
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4. So far from my change of purpose being due to "lightness" (2Co 1:17), I wrote my letter to you (2Co 2:3) "out of much affliction (Greek, 'trouble') and anguish of heart, and with many tears."
**not that ye should be grieved--**Translate, "be made sorry," to accord with the translation, 2Co 2:2. My ultimate and main object was, "not that ye might be made sorry," but that through sorrow you mig...
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