³ I’m not saying this to condemn you. I said before that you are in our hearts, and we live or die together with you.

¹¹ Oh, dear Corinthian friends! We have spoken honestly with you, and our hearts are open to you. ¹² There is no lack of love on our part, but you have withheld your love from us.

⁸ We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too.

⁸ God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.

⁹ I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding.

¹⁰ I am writing this to you before I come, hoping that I won’t need to deal severely with you when I do come. For I want to use the authority the Lord has given me to strengthen you, not to tear you down.

¹⁵ I will gladly spend myself and all I have for you, even though it seems that the more I love you, the less you love me.

¹¹ Why? Because I don’t love you? God knows that I do.

¹² My purpose, then, was not to write about who did the wrong or who was wronged. I wrote to you so that in the sight of God you could see for yourselves how loyal you are to us.

² The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our^[a] hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you.

⁴ I wrote that letter in great anguish, with a troubled heart and many tears. I didn’t want to grieve you, but I wanted to let you know how much love I have for you.

Forgiveness for the Sinner

⁵ I am not overstating it when I say that the man who caused all the trouble hurt all of you more than he hurt me.