Beginning
1 Paul[a], an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, to the church of God being in Corinth, together-with all the saints being in all Achaia[b]: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Blessed Be God For Comforting Us In All Our Sufferings
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassions[c] and God of all comfort[d], 4 the One comforting us concerning[e] all our affliction so that we might be able to comfort the ones in every affliction with the comfort by which we ourselves are being comforted by God. 5 Because just as the sufferings of Christ are abounding in us, so our comfort also is abounding through Christ. 6 And if we are being afflicted— it is for the sake of your comfort and salvation. If we are being comforted— it is for the sake of your comfort, the comfort being at-work[f] in your endurance of the same sufferings which we also are suffering. 7 And our hope for you is firm[g], knowing that as you are sharers of the sufferings, so also of the comfort.
For We Despaired Even of Living, But God Delivered Us, And Will Deliver Us
8 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, with-reference-to our affliction having taken place in Asia[h], that we were burdened[i] extremely beyond our power, so that we despaired[j] even of living. 9 But we had[k] the sentence of death in ourselves in order that we should not be trusting in ourselves, but in God, the One raising the dead, 10 Who delivered us from so great a death[l], and will deliver us; in Whom we have put our hope that He will indeed[m] still deliver us— 11 you also joining-in-helping in your prayer for us— in-order-that thanks might be given on our behalf by many faces[n] as to the gift granted to us through many prayers.
Our Boast As We Endure Our Suffering Is Our Blameless And Forthright Behavior Toward You
12 For our boasting is this: the testimony of [o] our conscience that we conducted-ourselves in the world, and especially toward you, in simplicity[p] and purity[q] from God[r]; and not in fleshly wisdom, but in the grace of God. 13 For we are writing no other things to you other than the things which you read or indeed understand. And I hope that you will understand until the end[s]— 14 just as you also did understand us in part— that we are your boast, even as you also are ours, on the day of our Lord Jesus.
And In This Confidence I Was Intending To Come To You First, Then Go To Macedonia
15 And in this confidence, I was intending first[t] to come to you in order that you might have a second[u] benefit[v], 16 and[w] to go through you to Macedonia, and from Macedonia to come again to you, and to be sent-forward by you to Judea.
I Do Not Make My Plans Lightly, But I Changed My Plans In Order To Spare You
17 Therefore, while intending this, I did not then act with lightness, did I ? Or do I plan[x] the things which I plan according-to the flesh— so that[y] there is with me the yes, yes, and the no, no? 18 But as God is faithful[z], our message to you is not yes and no. 19 For God’s Son Jesus Christ, the One having been proclaimed among you by us— by me and Silvanus and Timothy— did not become[aa] yes and no, but has become yes in Him. 20 For as many as there are promises of God, in Him is the yes[ab]! Therefore also through Him is [spoken] the amen[ac] to God for His glory, through[ad] us. 21 And the One establishing us with you for[ae] Christ and having anointed us is God— 22 the One also having sealed us and given the pledge[af] of the Spirit in our hearts. 23 And I call-upon God as witness for my soul that sparing[ag] you I no longer came to Corinth— 24 not that we are lording-over your faith, but we are fellow-workers of [ah] your joy. For you stand in[ai] your faith[aj].
For I Did Not Want My Coming To Cause You Grief, So I Wrote To You Instead
2 For I determined this for myself: not to come to you again[ak] in grief. 2 For if I grieve you, who indeed is the one cheering me except the one being grieved by me? 3 And I wrote this very[al] thing in order that having come, I should not have grief from the ones of whom I ought-to-have rejoicing— having confidence in you all that my joy[am] is the joy of you all.
I Wrote To You In Anguish Not To Grieve You, But Out of Love For You
4 For I wrote to you through many tears, out of much affliction and anguish of heart— not that you might be grieved, but that you might know the love which I have especially for you. 5 But[an] if anyone has caused-grief, he has grieved not me, but in part[ao] (that I not be a burden[ap]), you all. 6 This[aq] punishment by the majority is sufficient[ar] for such a one, 7 so that on-the-contrary[as], instead you should forgive and comfort him, that such a one should not somehow be swallowed-up by more grief. 8 Therefore I urge you to confirm[at] your love for him.
I Also Wrote To Test Your Obedience To God
9 For I also wrote for this purpose: that I might know your approvedness, whether you are obedient in all things. 10 And to whom you are forgiving anything, I also. For indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, is for your sakes in the presence of Christ, 11 in order that we may not be exploited by Satan. For we are not unaware as to his schemes.
So Instead I Went To Macedonia First To Find Titus
12 Now[au] having come to Troas for the good-news of Christ, and a door having been opened for me by the Lord, 13 I had no rest in my spirit at my not finding Titus my brother. But having said-goodbye to them, I went forth to Macedonia.
I Praise God That He Is Always Spreading The Aroma of Christ Through Us Everywhere
14 But thanks be to God, the One always leading us in triumph[av] in Christ, and making the aroma of [aw] the knowledge of Him known through us in every place. 15 Because we are the fragrance of Christ for[ax] God among the ones being saved, and among the ones perishing— 16 to the ones an aroma from death to[ay] death, but to the others an aroma from life to life. And who is sufficient for these things? 17 For we are not like the many peddling[az] the word of God. But as from purity, but as from God, we are speaking in Christ before God.
You Yourselves Are Proof To Everyone That God Is Working Through Us
3 Are we[ba] beginning to commend ourselves again? Or we do not have-need of letters of recommendation[bb] to you or from you, like some, do we? 2 You are our letter— it having been inscribed in our hearts, it being known and being read by all people, 3 you being made-known[bc] that you are a letter from[bd] Christ having been served by us, having been inscribed not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not in tablets made-of-stone but in tablets[be] which are hearts made-of-flesh.
It Is God Who Makes Us Sufficient As Ministers of His New Covenant
4 And we have such[bf] a confidence through Christ toward God— 5 not that we are sufficient[bg] from ourselves to count anything as out of ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 Who indeed made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives-life.
And This Ministry Is More Glorious Than That of The Old Covenant
7 And if the ministry of death having been engraved in letters on stones came in glory (so that the sons of Israel could not look-intently at the face of Moses because of the glory of his face[bh]— the glory passing-away), 8 how shall the ministry of the Spirit not be more in glory! 9 For if in the ministry of condemnation there was glory, by much more the ministry of righteousness is abounding in glory. 10 For indeed the [ministry of the letter][bi] having been glorified has not[bj] been glorified in this respect— because of the surpassing glory! 11 For if the [ministry of the letter] passing-away was with glory, by much more the [ministry of the Spirit] remaining is in glory.
We Don’t Veil The Glory Like Moses. We Reflect It And Are Transformed By It
12 Therefore, having such a hope, we are using great boldness, 13 and are not like Moses. He was putting a veil on his face so that the sons of Israel might not look-intently at the end[bk] of the [face of glory][bl] passing-away. 14 But[bm] their minds were hardened[bn], for until this very day the same[bo] veil remains on the reading of the old covenant— it not being unveiled because[bp] it passes-away[bq] in Christ. 15 Indeed[br], until today whenever Moses is being read, a veil lies on their heart. 16 But whenever it[bs] turns to the Lord, the veil is taken-away. 17 Now the Lord[bt] is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom! 18 But[bu] we all with a face having been unveiled, while reflecting[bv] the glory of the Lord as a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from glory[bw] to glory, just-as[bx] from the Lord[by], the Spirit.
So We Don’t Lose Heart In This Ministry Or Its Reception; God Is Shining Through Us
4 For this reason, having this ministry even-as[bz] we received-mercy, we do not lose-heart. 2 But we renounced the hidden things of [ca] shame, not walking in craftiness[cb], nor handling-deceitfully[cc] the word of God, but by the open-disclosure of the truth, commending[cd] ourselves to every conscience of mankind[ce] in the sight of God. 3 And if indeed our good-news is veiled, it is veiled in the ones perishing, 4 in whose case the god of this age blinded the minds of the unbelievers so that they might not see[cf] the illumination of the good-news of the glory of Christ— Who is the image of God. 5 For we are not proclaiming ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for the sake of Jesus, 6 because God, the One having said “Light will shine out of darkness”, is He Who shined in our hearts for[cg] the illumination of [ch] the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
God Is Making Life Known Through Clay Vessels Handed Over To Death
7 But[ci] we have this treasure in vessels made-of-clay, in order that the excess[cj] of the power may be God’s and not from us— 8 in every way being afflicted[ck] but not restrained[cl], being perplexed but not utterly-perplexed, 9 being persecuted but not forsaken, being struck down but not perishing; 10 at-all-times carrying-around in our body the dying[cm] of Jesus in order that the life of Jesus may also be made-evident[cn] in our body. 11 For we the ones living are always being handed-over to death for the sake of Jesus, in order that the life of Jesus may also be made-evident in our mortal flesh. 12 So then, death is at-work in us, but life in you.
But We Believe And Speak Because We Know God Will Raise Us Up With Jesus
13 But having the same spirit[co] of faith in accordance with the thing having been written, “I believed, therefore I spoke” [Ps 116:10]— we also believe, therefore we also speak, 14 knowing that the One having raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus, and will present us with you. 15 For all things are for your sakes— in order that grace, having increased through the more people, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.
And Our Affliction Is Producing an Eternal Weight of Glory For Us In Heaven
16 Therefore we do not lose-heart. But even though our outer person is being destroyed[cp], nevertheless our inner person is being renewed day in and day out. 17 For the momentary lightness of our affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory extremely beyond measure, 18 while we are not looking-for[cq] the things being seen, but the things not being seen. For the things being seen are temporary, but the things not being seen are eternal.
Disciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing