2 Corinthians 6–7

Afflictions of God’s Servants

6Now because we^* are fellow workers, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain. ²For he says,

“At the acceptable time I heard you,

and in the day of salvation I helped you.”^a

Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation! ³We are giving no one an occasion for taking offense in anything, in order that our ministry will not have fault found with it, ⁴but commending ourselves as servants of God in every way, in much endurance, in afflictions, in distresses, in difficulties, ⁵in beatings, in prisons, in disturbances, in troubles, in sleepless nights, in going hungry, ⁶in purity, in knowledge, in patience, in kindness, in the Holy Spirit, in love without hypocrisy, ⁷in the word of truth, in the power of God, with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and left hand, ⁸through glory and dishonor, through slander and good repute, regarded as deceivers and yet truthful, ⁹as unknown and yet known completely, as dying, and behold, we go on living, as disciplined, and yet not put to death, ¹⁰as grieving, but always rejoicing, as poor, but making many rich, as having nothing, and possessing everything.

¹¹We have spoken freely and openly^b to you, Corinthians; our heart is open wide. ¹²You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your affections. ¹³Now the same way in exchange (I am speaking as to children), you open wide your hearts also.

Do Not Become Unevenly Yoked with Unbelievers

¹⁴Do not become unevenly yoked with unbelievers, for what participation is there between righteousness and lawlessness? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness? ¹⁵And what agreement does Christ have with Beliar? Or what share does a believer have with an unbeliever? ¹⁶And what agreement does the temple of God have with idols? For we are the temple of the living God, just as God said,

“I will live in^c them and will walk about among them,

and I will be their God and they will be my people.”^d

¹⁷Therefore “come out from their midst

and be separate,” says the Lord,

“and do not touch what is unclean,^e

and I will welcome you,^f

¹⁸and I will be a father to you,

and you will be sons and daughters to me,”^g

says the all-powerful Lord.

Paul’s Joy at the Corinthians’ Repentance

7Therefore since we^* have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of body and spirit, accomplishing holiness in the fear of God. ²Make room for us in your hearts^a. We have wronged no one, we have ruined no one, we have defrauded no one. ³I do not say this to condemn you^b, because I have already said that you are in our hearts, so that we die together and we live together. ⁴Great is my confidence toward you; great is my boasting on your behalf; I am filled with encouragement; I am overflowing with joy in all our affliction.

⁵For even when^* we arrived in Macedonia, our body had no rest, but we were afflicted in every way—quarrels outside, fears within. ⁶But God, who comforts the humble, comforted us by the coming of Titus, ⁷and not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted among you, because he^* reported to us your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced even more. ⁸For if indeed I grieved you by my letter, I do not regret it. Even if I did regret it (I see^c that that letter grieved you, even though for a short time^d), ⁹now 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. ¹⁰For grief according to the will of God brings about a repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted, but worldly grief brings about death. ¹¹For 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. ¹²Consequently, 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^e might be revealed to you before God. ¹³Because 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. ¹⁴For if I have boasted anything to him about you, I have not been put to shame, but as I have spoken everything to you in truth, thus also our boasting to Titus has proven to be true^f. ¹⁵And his affection for you is all the more when he^* remembers the obedience of all of you as you welcomed him with fear and trembling. ¹⁶I rejoice, because in everything I am completely confident in you.