^6:1Now because we are fellow workers, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain.¹^6:2For he says, “I heard you at the acceptable time, and in the day of salvation I helped you.”² Look, now is the acceptable time; look, now is the day of salvation! ^6:3We do not give anyone³ an occasion for taking an offense in anything,⁴ so that no fault may be found with our ministry. ^6:4But as God’s servants,⁵ we have commended ourselves in every way,⁶ with great endurance, in persecutions,⁷ in difficulties, in distresses, ^6:5in beatings, in imprisonments, in riots,⁸ in troubles,⁹ in sleepless nights, in hunger, ^6:6by purity, by knowledge, by patience, by benevolence, by the Holy Spirit,¹⁰ by genuine¹¹ love, ^6:7by truthful¹² teaching,¹³ by the power of God, with weapons of righteousness both for the right hand and for the left,¹⁴^6:8through glory and dishonor, through slander and praise; regarded as impostors,¹⁵ and yet true; ^6:9as unknown, and yet well-known; as dying and yet—see!—we continue to live; as those who are scourged¹⁶ and yet not executed; ^6:10as sorrowful, but always rejoicing, as poor, but making many rich, as having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

^6:11We have spoken freely to you,¹⁷ Corinthians; our heart has been opened wide to you. ^6:12Our affection for you is not restricted,¹⁸ but you are restricted in your affections for us. ^6:13Now as a fair exchange—I speak as to my¹⁹ children—open wide your hearts to us²⁰ also.

Unequal Partners

^6:14Do not become partners²¹ with those who do not believe, for what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship does light have with darkness? ^6:15And what agreement does Christ have with Beliar?²² Or what does a believer share in common with an unbeliever? ^6:16And what mutual agreement does the temple of God have with idols? For we are²³ the temple of the living God, just as God said, “I will live in them²⁴ and will walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”²⁵^6:17Therefore “come out from their midst, and be separate,” says the Lord, “and touch no unclean thing,²⁶ and I will welcome²⁷ you,²⁸^6:18and I will be a father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters,”²⁹ says the All-Powerful Lord.³⁰

Self-Purification

^7:1Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves¹ from everything that could defile the body² and the spirit, and thus accomplish³ holiness out of reverence for God.⁴^7:2Make room for us in your hearts;⁵ we have wronged no one, we have ruined no one,⁶ we have exploited no one.⁷^7:3I do not say this to condemn you, for I told you before⁸ that you are in our hearts so that we die together and live together with you.⁹

A Letter That Caused Sadness

^7:4I have great confidence in you; I take great pride¹⁰ on your behalf. I am filled with encouragement;¹¹ I am overflowing with joy in the midst of¹² all our suffering. ^7:5For even when we came into Macedonia, our body¹³ had no rest at all, but we were troubled in every way—struggles from the outside, fears from within. ^7:6But God, who encourages¹⁴ the downhearted, encouraged¹⁵ us by the arrival of Titus. ^7:7We were encouraged¹⁶ not only by his arrival, but also by the encouragement¹⁷ you gave¹⁸ him, as he reported to us your longing, your mourning,¹⁹ your deep concern²⁰ for me, so that I rejoiced more than ever. ^7:8For even if I made you sad²¹ by my letter,²² I do not regret having written it²³ (even though I did regret it,²⁴ for²⁵ I see that my letter made you sad,²⁶ though only for a short time). ^7:9Now I rejoice, not because you were made sad,²⁷ but because you were made sad to the point of repentance. For you were made sad as God intended,²⁸ so that you were not harmed²⁹ in any way by us. ^7:10For sadness as intended by God produces a repentance that leads to salvation, leaving no regret, but worldly sadness brings about death. ^7:11For see what this very thing, this sadness³⁰ as God intended, has produced in you: what eagerness, what defense of yourselves,³¹ what indignation,³² what alarm, what longing, what deep concern,³³ what punishment!³⁴ In everything you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter. ^7:12So then, even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did wrong, or on account of the one who was wronged, but to reveal to you your eagerness on our behalf³⁵ before God. ^7:13Therefore we have been encouraged. And in addition to our own encouragement, we rejoiced even more at the joy of Titus, because all of you have refreshed his spirit.³⁶^7:14For if I have boasted to him about anything concerning you, I have not been embarrassed by you,³⁷ but just as everything we said to you was true,³⁸ so our boasting to Titus about you³⁹ has proved true as well. ^7:15And his affection for you is much greater⁴⁰ when he remembers the obedience of you all, how you welcomed him with fear and trembling. ^7:16I rejoice because in everything I am fully confident in you.

Read in Logos

Footnotes

1 Or “receive the grace of God uselessly.”
2 A quotation from Isa 49:8.
3 The word “anyone” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context.
4 Other interpretations of the first part of 2 Cor 6:3 are possible. The phrase could also mean, “not putting an obstacle in the way of anyone” (L&N 22.14), or “giving no one in anything a cause to sin” (L&N 88.307).
5 Or “ministers.”
6 Or “we have commended ourselves by all things.”
7 Or “in trouble and suffering.”
8 Or “rebellions” (uprisings in open defiance of civil authority).
9 Usually κόποις (kopois) has been translated as “labors” or “hard work,” but see Matt 26:10 where it means “trouble”; “distress” (L&N 22.7). In this context with so many other terms denoting suffering and difficulty, such a meaning is preferable.
10 Or “by holiness of spirit.”
11 Or “sincere.”
12 Grk “by the word of truth”; understanding ἀληθείας (alētheias) as an attributive genitive (“truthful word”).
13 Or “speech.” In this context it is more likely that λόγος (logos) refers to Paul’s message (thus “teaching”) than to his speech in general.
14 The phrase “for the right hand and for the left” possibly refers to a combination of an offensive weapon (a sword for the right hand) and a defensive weapon (a shield for the left).
15 Or “regarded as deceivers.”
16 Grk “disciplined,” but in this context probably a reference to scourging prior to execution (yet the execution is not carried out).
17 Grk “our mouth has been open to you,” an idiom for openness in communication.
18 Grk “You are not restricted by us.”
19 The word “my” is not in the Greek text but is implied.
20 The words “to us” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
21 Or “Do not be mismatched.”
22 The Greek term Βελιάρ (Beliar) is a spelling variant for Βελιάλ (Belial, see Judg 20:13 ). It occurs only here in the NT. Beliar is a reference to Satan.
23 Most witnesses, including some important ones (𝔓46 א2 C D2 F G Ψ 0209 𝔐 lat sy Tert), read ὑμεῖς … ἐστε (humeis … este, “you are”) instead of ἡμεῖς … ἐσμεν (hēmeis … esmen, “we are”) here, but several other early and important (א* B D* L P 0243 6 33 81 326 365 1175 1739 1881 2464 co Cl Or) have ἡμεῖς … ἐσμεν. The external evidence is somewhat in favor of the first person pronoun and verb; the internal evidence weighs in even stronger. In light of the parallel in 1 Cor 3:16, where Paul uses ἐστε (“you are the temple of God”), as well as the surrounding context here in which the second person verb or pronoun is used in vv. 14, 17, and 18, the second person reading seems obviously motivated. The first person reading can explain the rise of the other reading, but the reverse is not as easily done. Consequently, the first person reading of ἡμεῖς … ἐσμεν has all the credentials of authenticity.
24 Or “live among them,” “live with them.” I will live in them. The OT text that lies behind this passage (Lev 26:11–12) speaks of God dwelling in the midst of his people. The Greek preposition en in the phrase en autois (“in them”) can also have that meaning (“among” or “with”). However, Paul appears to be extending the imagery here to involve God (as the Spirit) dwelling in his people, since he calls believers “the temple of the living God” in the previous clause, imagery he uses elsewhere in his writings (1 Cor 3:16; Eph 2:21–22).
25 A quotation from Lev 26:12; also similar to Jer 32:38; Ezek 37:27.
26 A quotation from Isa 52:11.
27 Or “will receive.”
28 A paraphrased quotation from Ezek 20:41.
29 A paraphrased quotation from 2 Sam 7:14 and Isa 43:6.
30 Traditionally, “the Lord Almighty.” παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God … κύριος π. (oft. ) 2 Cor 6:18.”
1 Or “purify ourselves.”
2 Grk “from every defilement of the flesh.”
3 Grk “accomplishing.” The participle has been translated as a finite verb due to considerations of contemporary English style, and “thus” has been supplied to indicate that it represents a result of the previous cleansing.
4 Grk “in the fear of God.”
5 The phrase “in your hearts” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.
6 “We have ruined no one” may refer to financial loss (“we have caused no one to suffer financial loss”) but it may also refer to the undermining of faith (“we have corrupted no one’s faith,”). Both options are mentioned in L&N 20.23.
7 Or “we have taken advantage of no one.”
9 The words “with you” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
10 Grk “great is my boasting.”
11 Or “comfort.”
12 Grk “I am overflowing with joy in all our suffering”; the words “in the midst of” are not in the Greek text but are supplied to clarify that Paul is not rejoicing in the suffering itself, but in his relationship with the Corinthians in the midst of all his suffering.
13 Grk “our flesh.”
14 Or “comforts,” “consoles.”
15 Or “comforted,” “consoled.”
16 Because of the length and complexity of this Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the phrase “We were encouraged.”
17 Or “comfort,” “consolation.”
18 Grk “by the encouragement with which he was encouraged by you.” The passive construction was translated as an active one in keeping with contemporary English style, and the repeated word “encouraged” was replaced in the translation by “gave” to avoid redundancy in the translation.
19 Or “your grieving,” “your deep sorrow.”
20 Or “your zeal.”
21 Grk “if I grieved you.”
22 My letter. Paul is referring to the “severe” letter mentioned in 2 Cor 2:4.
23 Grk “I do not regret”; direct objects in Greek must often be supplied from the context. Here one could simply supply “it,” but since Paul is referring to the effects of his previous letter, clarity is improved if “having written it” is supplied.
24 Grk “I did regret”; the direct object “it” must be supplied from the context.
25 A few important (𝔓46c B D* it sa) lack γάρ (gar, “for”), while the majority of witnesses have it (א C D1 F G Ψ 0243 33 1739 1881 𝔐 sy bo). Even though 𝔓46* omits γάρ, it has the same sense (, a subordinate clause) because it reads the participle βλέπων (blepōn, “seeing”; the does the same). A decision is difficult because although the overwhelming external evidence is on the side of the conjunction, the lack of γάρ is a significantly harder reading, for the whole clause is something of an anacoluthon. Without the conjunction, the sentence reads more harshly. This would fit with Paul’s “vehemence of spirit” (A. T. Robertson, A Grammar of the Greek New Testament, ) that is found especially in 2 Corinthians and Galatians. However, the that omit the conjunction are prone to such tendencies at times. In this instance, the conjunction should probably stand.
26 Grk “my letter grieved you.”
27 Grk “were grieved” (so also twice later in the verse).
28 Grk “corresponding to God,” that is, corresponding to God’s will (κατὰ θεόν, kata theon). The same phrase occurs in vv. 10 and 11.
29 Grk “so that you did not suffer loss.”
30 Grk “this very thing, to be grieved.”
31 The words “of yourselves” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
32 What indignation refers to the Corinthians’ indignation at the offender.
33 Or “what zeal.”
34 That is, punishment for the offender.
35 Grk “but in order that your eagerness on our behalf might be revealed to you.”
36 Or “all of you have put his mind at ease.”
37 Grk “I have not been put to shame”; the words “by you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
38 Grk “just as we spoke everything to you in truth.”
39 The words “about you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
40 Or “is all the more.”

Cross references

8 See 2 Cor 1:4–7.