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2 Corinthians 2
New American Standard Bible

Reaffirm Your Love

2 But I decided this [a]for my own sake, that I (A)would not come to you in sorrow again. 2 For if I (B)cause you sorrow, who then will be the one making me glad but the one who is made sorrowful by me? 3 This is the very thing I (C)wrote you, so that (D)when I came, I would not have sorrow from those who ought to make me rejoice; having (E)confidence in you all that my joy was the joy of you all. 4 For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I (F)wrote to you with many tears; not so that you would be made sorrowful, but that you might know the love which I have especially for you.

5 But (G)if anyone has caused sorrow, he has caused sorrow not for me, but in some degree—[b]not to say too much—for all of you. 6 Sufficient for such a person is (H)this punishment which was imposed by the majority, 7 so that on the other hand, you should rather (I)forgive and comfort him, otherwise such a person might be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 For to this end (J)I also wrote, so that I might [c](K)put you to the test, whether you are (L)obedient in all things. 10 But one whom you forgive anything, I also forgive; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did so for your sakes (M)in the presence of Christ, 11 so that no advantage would be taken of us by (N)Satan, for (O)we are not ignorant of his schemes.

12 Now when I came to (P)Troas for the (Q)gospel of Christ and when a (R)door was opened for me in the Lord, 13 I (S)had no rest for my spirit, not finding (T)Titus my brother; but (U)saying goodbye to them, I went on to (V)Macedonia.

14 (W)But thanks be to God, who always (X)leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us reveals the (Y)fragrance of the (Z)knowledge of Him in every place. 15 For we are a (AA)fragrance of Christ to God among (AB)those who are being saved and among those who are perishing: 16 (AC)to the one an [d]aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is (AD)adequate for these things? 17 For we are not like the many, [e](AE)peddling the word of God, but (AF)as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ (AG)in the sight of God.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 2:1 Or as far as I am concerned
  2. 2 Corinthians 2:5 Lit so that I not be burdensome
  3. 2 Corinthians 2:9 Lit know the proof of you
  4. 2 Corinthians 2:16 Or odor
  5. 2 Corinthians 2:17 Or diluting
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2 Corinthians 2
International Standard Version

Paul’s Painful Visit

2 Now[a] I decided not to pay you another painful visit. 2 After all, if I were to grieve you, who should make me happy but the person I am making sad? 3 This is the very reason I wrote you, so that when I did come I might not be made sad by those who should have made me happy. For I had confidence that all of you would share the joy that I have. 4 I wrote to you out of great sorrow and anguish of heart—along with many tears—not to make you sad but to let you know how much love I have for you.

Forgive the Person who Sinned

5 But if anyone has caused grief, he didn’t cause me any grief. To some extent—I don’t want to emphasize this too much—it has affected[b] all of you. 6 This punishment by the majority is severe enough for such a man. 7 So forgive and comfort him, or else he will drown in his excessive grief. 8 That’s why I’m urging you to assure him of your love. 9 I had also written to you to see if you would stand the test and be obedient in every way. 10 When you forgive someone, I do, too. Indeed, what I have forgiven—if there was anything to forgive—I did[c] in the presence of the Messiah[d] for your benefit, 11 so that we may not be outsmarted by Satan. After all, we are not unaware of his intentions.

Paul’s Anxiety and Relief

12 When I went to Troas on behalf of the gospel of the Messiah,[e] the Lord opened a door for me, 13 but my spirit could not find any relief, because I couldn’t find Titus, my brother. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.

14 But thanks be to God! He always leads us triumphantly by the Messiah[f] and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of knowing him. 15 To God we are the aroma of the Messiah[g] among those who are being saved and among those who are being lost. 16 To some people we are a deadly fragrance,[h] while to others we are a living fragrance.[i] Who is qualified for this? 17 At least we are not commercializing God’s word like so many others. Instead, we speak with sincerity in the Messiah’s[j] name,[k] like people who are sent from God and are accountable to God.[l]

Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 2:1 Other mss. read For
  2. 2 Corinthians 2:5 The Gk. lacks much—it has affected
  3. 2 Corinthians 2:10 The Gk. lacks I did
  4. 2 Corinthians 2:10 Or Christ
  5. 2 Corinthians 2:12 Or Christ
  6. 2 Corinthians 2:14 Or Christ
  7. 2 Corinthians 2:15 Or Christ
  8. 2 Corinthians 2:16 Lit. a fragrance of death to death
  9. 2 Corinthians 2:16 Lit. a fragrance of life to life
  10. 2 Corinthians 2:17 Or Christ’s
  11. 2 Corinthians 2:17 The Gk. lacks name
  12. 2 Corinthians 2:17 Lit. as from God and before God
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2 Corinthians 1
2 Corinthians 3
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