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15 I was so sure of all this that I made plans to visit you first so you could ·be blessed twice [L have a second grace]. 16 I planned to visit you on my way to Macedonia [C the northern part of present-day Greece; Acts 19:21; 20:1, 2] and again on my way back [C the visit anticipated in 1 Cor. 16:5]. I wanted to ·get help from you for my trip [L be sent by you] to Judea. 17 [L So; Therefore] Do you think that I made these plans ·without really meaning it [lightly; with vacillation]? Or maybe you think I make plans ·as the world does [or using only human standards/reason; L according to the flesh], so that I say yes, yes and at the same time no, no.

18 But ·since you can believe God [L God is trustworthy/faithful], you can believe that what we tell you is never both yes and no. 19 [L For] The Son of God, Jesus Christ, that Silas and Timothy and I preached to you, was not yes and no. [L But; Rather] In ·Christ [L him] it has always been yes. 20 The yes to all of God’s promises is in ·Christ [L him], and through Christ we say ·yes [L amen; C from a Hebrew term meaning “yes,” or “it is true”] to the glory of God. 21 Remember, God is the One who makes you and us ·strong [stand firm; established] in Christ. God ·made us his chosen people [or commissioned us; L anointed us]. 22 He put his ·mark on us to show that we are his [L seal on us; C of ownership], and he put his Spirit in our hearts ·to be a guarantee for all he has promised [L as a pledge/deposit/downpayment].

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15 It was with this confidence that I planned at first to visit you, so that you might receive twice a token of grace; 16 that is, [I wanted] to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and [then] to come back to you [on my return] from Macedonia, and have you send me on my way to Judea. 17 So then, was I indecisive or capricious when I was [originally] planning this? Or the things I plan, do I plan [a]in a self-serving way like a worldly man, ready to say, “Yes, yes” and “No, no” [at the same time]? 18 But [as surely as] God is faithful and means what He says, our message to you is not “Yes” and “No” [at the same time]. 19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us, by me, Silvanus, and Timothy, was not “Yes” and “No,” but has proved to be “Yes” in Him [true and faithful, the divine “Yes” affirming God’s promises]. 20 For as many as are the promises of God, in Christ they are [all answered] “Yes.” So through Him we say our “Amen” to the glory of God. 21 Now it is God who establishes and confirms us [in joint fellowship] with you in Christ, and who has anointed us [empowering us with the gifts of the Spirit]; 22 it is He who has also put His seal on us [that is, He has appropriated us and certified us as His] and has given us the [Holy] Spirit in our hearts as a pledge [like a security deposit to guarantee the fulfillment of His promise of eternal life].

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 1:17 Lit according to the flesh.