2 Corinthians 7:2-11

Christian Standard Bible

Joy and Repentance

² Make room for us in your hearts. We have wronged no one, corrupted^(A) no one, taken advantage of no one. ³ I don’t say this to condemn you, since I have already said that you are in our hearts, to die together and to live together. ⁴ I am very frank with you; I have great pride in you. I am filled with encouragement; I am overflowing with joy in all our afflictions.

⁵ In fact, when we came into Macedonia,^(B) we^[a] had no rest. Instead, we were troubled in every way: conflicts^(C) on the outside, fears^(D) within. ⁶ But God, who comforts the downcast,^(E) comforted us by the arrival of Titus, ⁷ and not only by his arrival but also by the comfort he received from you. He told us about your deep longing, your sorrow, and your zeal^(F) for me, so that I rejoiced even more. ⁸ For even if I grieved you with my letter,^(G) I don’t regret it. And if I regretted it—since I saw that the letter grieved you, yet only for a while— ⁹ I now rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to repentance. For you were grieved as God willed, so that you didn’t experience any loss from us. ¹⁰ For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly grief produces death.^{(H) 11} For consider how much diligence this very thing—this grieving as God wills—has produced in you: what a desire to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what deep longing, what zeal, what justice! In every way you showed yourselves to be pure^(I) in this matter.