2 Corinthians 1

Greeting

1Paul, ^aan apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and ^bTimothy our brother,

To the church of God which is at Corinth, ^cwith all the saints who are in all Achaia:

^2dGrace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Comfort in Suffering

^3eBlessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, ⁴who ^fcomforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any ¹trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. ⁵For as ^gthe sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our ²consolation also abounds through Christ. ⁶Now if we are afflicted, ^hit is for your consolation and salvation, which is effective for enduring the same sufferings which we also suffer. Or if we are comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. ⁷And our hope for you is steadfast, because we know that ⁱas you are partakers of the sufferings, so also you will partake of the consolation.

Delivered from Suffering

⁸For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of ^jour ³trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. ⁹Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should ^knot trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead, ^10lwho delivered us from so great a death, and ⁴does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us, ¹¹you also ^mhelping together in prayer for us, that thanks may be given by many persons on ⁵our behalf ⁿfor the gift granted to us through many.

Paul’s Sincerity

¹²For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience that we conducted ourselves in the world in ⁶simplicity and ^ogodly sincerity, ^pnot with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God, and more abundantly toward you. ¹³For we are not writing any other things to you than what you read or understand. Now I trust you will understand, even to the end ¹⁴(as also you have understood us in part), ^qthat we are your boast as ^ryou also are ours, in the day of the Lord Jesus.

Sparing the Church

¹⁵And in this confidence ^sI intended to come to you before, that you might have ^ta second benefit—¹⁶to pass by way of you to Macedonia, ^uto come again from Macedonia to you, and be helped by you on my way to Judea. ¹⁷Therefore, when I was planning this, did I do it lightly? Or the things I plan, do I plan ^vaccording to the flesh, that with me there should be Yes, Yes, and No, No? ¹⁸But as God is ^wfaithful, our ⁷word to you was not Yes and No. ¹⁹For ^xthe Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me, ^ySilvanus, and ^zTimothy—was not Yes and No, ^abut in Him was Yes. ^20bFor all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us. ²¹Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and ^chas anointed us is God, ²²who ^dalso has sealed us and ^egiven us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.

²³Moreover ^fI call God as witness against my soul, ^gthat to spare you I came no more to Corinth. ²⁴Not ^hthat we ⁸have dominion over your faith, but are fellow workers for your joy; for ⁱby faith you stand.