For even if I grieved you with my letter,(A) I don’t regret it. And if I regretted it—since I saw that the letter grieved you, yet only for a while— 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.(B) 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(C) in this matter. 12 So even though I wrote to you, it was not because of the one who did wrong, or because of the one who was wronged, but in order that your devotion to us might be made plain to you in the sight of God. 13 For this reason we have been comforted.

In addition to our own comfort, we rejoiced even more over the joy Titus(D) had, because his spirit was refreshed by all of you.

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For if indeed I grieved you by my letter, I do not regret it. Even if I did regret it (I see[a] that that letter grieved you, even though for a short time[b]), now I rejoice, not that you were grieved, but that you were grieved to repentance. For you were grieved according to the will of God, so that you suffered loss in no way through us. 10 For grief according to the will of God brings about a repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted, but worldly grief brings about death. 11 For behold how much diligence this very thing, being grieved according to the will of God, has brought about in you: what defense of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! In everything you have demonstrated yourselves to be innocent in this matter. 12 Consequently, even if I wrote to you, it was not because of the one who did wrong or because of the one who had been wronged, but in order that your diligence on our behalf[c] might be revealed to you before God. 13 Because of this we have been encouraged, and in addition to our encouragement, we rejoiced much more over the joy of Titus, because his spirit had been refreshed by all of you.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 7:8 Some manuscripts have “for I see”
  2. 2 Corinthians 7:8 Literally “an hour”
  3. 2 Corinthians 7:12 Literally “on behalf of us”