Translation
& Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church,
Manhattan, KS, 27 July 2025
Underlined words in Scripture quotes
indicate words that are in common with the Greek text of 2 Cor.
1:3-7. Otherwise, underlining indicates words to emphasize when
reading this transcript out loud.
As we saw in the heading of 2 Corinthians, The Apostle Paul blessed God for being “the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort.” In verses 4-7, we’re going to see that word “comfort” show up in the Greek text nine more times (in its noun and verb forms), so that is clearly the main topic. We’ll also see that “comfort” in this passage comes in the context of “suffering” and “tribulation/affliction/trouble.”
As we mature, we realize that merely avoiding stress and seeking our own personal comfort is not what life is all about. As we age, we make disciples, we marry a spouse, we have children, we come into leadership of a local church, we care for aging parents, and each experience ties us into a growing web of relationships with others, the sufferings and joys of whom often affect us as much as if we ourselves were experiencing those joys and sorrows.
What parent has not put forth difficult labor to benefit their child, and what parent has not grieved over watching their own child suffer, readily willing to suffer in their place if it would take away their suffering?
As Paul and Timothy drill down into a theology of comfort, they show us that suffering is a gift from God which must be stewarded for the comfort and salvation of His people.
Read my translation of the passage, starting at v.3:
May
the God and Father of our Lord Jesus the Anointed One be blessed! He
is the father of mercies and the God of all comfort - the One Who
comforts us in all our stress in order for us to be empowered to
comfort those in any stress, by means of the comfort by which we
ourselves are being comforted by God, because, inasmuch as the
sufferings of the Anointed One are abounding among us, so our
comfort also abounds through the Anointed One. So, whether we are
distressed for the sake of y’all’s comfort and salvation, or
whether we are comforted on account of y’all’s comfort (and
salvation), the exertion is in the enduring of the same sufferings
which also we are suffering. So our hope concerning y’all is
confirmed, knowing that, even as y’all are partners of the
sufferings, thus y’all
also are of the comfort.
Please remember that the word for “mercy” at the end of v.3 consistently means “forgiveness of sins” in the Bible, so that focuses the meaning of “comfort” in a different direction than that of our contemporary culture.
These days we mostly think of “comfort” in terms of physical soothing, such as eating “comfort food,” or relaxing on a “comfortable” couch – and maybe we even associate “comfort” with “luxury” and “style,”
but, as I pointed out in the last sermon, here in 2 Corinthians 1 (and also in other Bible passages such as Hebrews 6:17-20 & 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17), this Biblical comfort, although it doesn’t leave the body out, it is focused on the soul, and is defined as
“hoping” in God’s “promise” of salvation,
“trusting Jesus” to make us “right” with God,
and having a “heart” that is at rest in God’s “eternal life.”
So, in verse 4, the Apostle Paul opens with the statement that God the Father is “the One Who comforts us in all our affliction.”
The Greek word for “tribulation/affliction/trouble”
is not necessarily describing any kind of special religious experience,
nor does it necessarily mean that you did something wrong and are being punished for it;
it literally means “pressure1,” so I would prefer to use the word “stress” as a translation.
From the books of Acts and Corinthians, we can form an idea of some of the stresses that those Christians in first century Greece faced4:
There were economic pressures.
In chapter 8, Paul mentions neighboring Macedonian Christians in “deep poverty,”
and in chapters 11 (v.9) and 12 (v.16) Paul mentions that, when he was planting the church in Corinth, he worked a full-time job because he thought it would be too much of an economic “burden” to place on the little church to ask them for a salary.
Do you find yourself wondering how you are going to pay all your bills plus the rent and the car repairs? God the Father will “comfort” you under that stress.
There was also the stress of temptation:
The temple of Aphrodite in Corinth reportedly kept thousands of male and female prostitutes busy, and Paul mentioned the problem of “burning” with lust in 1 Corinthians 7 and of sexual immorality in the church in 1 Corinthians 5.
We also know from secular historians that alcoholism was rampant in Corinth. (It is said that whenever someone from Corinth showed up in one of the ancient Greek plays, he was portrayed as drunk!)
Do you experience stress from having to fight against impure desires and sometimes even losing to them? God the Father will comfort you under the stress of fighting sin.
In fact in 1 Corinthians 10:13, we are assured that He will do more than merely comfort you in the stress of temptation; he will sovereignly keep your temptations from being more than you can withstand, and He will provide the way out: “… God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tested above what you are able, but rather He will make together with the test also the way out for the ability to undergo [it].” (NAW)
We also know that many Christians throughout the Mediterranean world of the New Testament suffered the stress of persecution as a result of their faith in Jesus.
Hebrews 10:32-34 mentions when Christians were “... made a public spectacle (with insults and oppressions), and… robbery of possessions…”
Later on in 2 Corinthians 11:24-25, Paul lists some of his own experiences of persecution: “From the Jews five times I received 39 lashes from a whip. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was almost put to death by stoning...”
Are you suffering some form of discrimination or ridicule or ostracism as a result of your choice to follow Jesus?5 God your Father will “comfort” you through that.
HOW does God comfort us? I can think of three ways, and they are all personal:
He brings comfort/encouragement to us through visits and talks with other Christians:
Acts 14:21-22 describes how Paul and Barnabas “...returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith…” (cf. 16:40 & 20:2),
and in 2 Corinthians 7:6, Paul wrote, “...God, who comforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of Titus…”
and in Ephesians 6:21-22 and Colossians 4:7-8, Paul says that he “sent… Tychichus” to “comfort the hearts” of the Christians in Ephesus and in Colossae,
and in 1 Thessalonians 3:2, Paul says that he sent Timothy to the church in Thessalonica “to establish you and encourage you concerning your faith.” (NKJV)
In Acts 15:32 “...Judas and Silas... comforted and strengthened the brethren [in Antioch] with many words.” ~NKJV (although sometimes “many words” can be more annoying than comforting, be sensitive to that!)
Any Christian can minister to other Christians in this way with a personal visit or a written word of encouragement!6
In addition to comforting us through other Christians, God also speaks comfort directly to us through His word.
David speaks of that especially in Psalm 119: “Remember thy words to thy servant, wherein thou hast made me hope. This has comforted me in mine affliction: for thine oracle has quickened me… I remembered thy judgments of old, O Lord; and was comforted... Thine ordinances were my songs in the place of my sojourning.” (LXX Psalm 118/Brenton, Psalm 119:49-54)
Jesus’ own preaching is described with this same Greek word for “comfort/encouragement” in Luke 3:18 “...with many other encouragements He announced good news to the people.” (NAW)
God has also recorded promises of future blessings for us in the Bible which comfort us. Consider what Jesus said in the Beatitudes of Matthew 5:4-12: What are the parallel statements to “they shall be comforted”? “… they will inherit the earth… they will be satisfied… they will receive mercy… they shall see God… they will be called the sons of God… the kingdom of heaven is theirs…. and... your reward is bountiful in heaven…” (NAW, cf. Luke 16:25)
This is true of all the word of God written in the Holy Bible. Your heart may be troubled and you can’t sleep, and then you do a little devotional or Bible reading, or a scripture verse previously memorized (or a song that puts the Word of God to music) comes to mind, and it profoundly changes the way you were thinking about things, so that peace comes to you.
We should make it our regular habit to go to the Bible to be comforted by God!
Finally, in addition to the comfort of God’s Word and the comfort of Christian fellowship, God also sends the Holy Spirit to bring comfort personally to our hearts7.
In the Gospel of John, the Spirit is called “The Comforter” – using this same Greek root for “comfort” - John 14:16-17 “And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper[Comforter], that He may abide with you forever – the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.” (NKJV)
In 1 Corinthians 2:11-16 Paul explained that the Holy Spirit works primarily through our minds: “...no one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. Now, as for us, we received – not the spirit of the world, but rather – the Spirit Who [came] out of God, in order that we might know the things freely given to us by God…. for who knew the mind of the Lord? Who will instruct Him? Yet we, we have the mind of Christ!” (NAW)
And here’s something else about God’s comfort: it is teleological, that is, it has a purpose beyond simply making you feel better.
When God touches your life to bring comfort to your heart and soul, Paul tells us here in v.4 that it is “in order for us to be empowered/that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble/stress/affliction...”
The reason God comforts us by His Spirit, His Word, and His people is to make us “able” to comfort other people.
But, you may say, “I am drowning in stressful circumstances. How can I possibly comfort anybody else?” Paul answers that question at the end of v.4: “Who comforts us in all our stress in order for us to be empowered to comfort those in any stress, [HOW?] with/by means of the comfort by which we ourselves are being comforted by God.”
First off, God comforts us in order to give us the “power/ability to comfort” others.
The Greek word for “can/be able [to comfort]” is the same word from which we get the English word “dynamite;” it means “power.”
When God “comforts” us with His Spirit and Word and church, He is giving us His “power” to comfort others. You may not feel very “able” in yourself, but God is saying that He will “enable” you by His power to comfort others.
You may feel like there are certain circumstances that would be beyond your ability to share comfort in, for instance, I have never experienced a murder in my family, so I don’t know experientially how to comfort someone whose loved ones have been murdered, but according to God’s word, God comforts me so that I will be able “to comfort others in ANY affliction” whatsoever, and that means potentially, I can because He will supply the power for me to accomplish His will to comfort others!
And, according to this verse, the comfort God gives us is the very thing God wants us to share with others. He is not asking you to give anything more than what He has given you to give away. You don’t have to work up anything or make up anything to share; every comfort we share with others is simply passing along a message God has given us.
In the present tense, Paul declares that, even now, “we are being comforted by God.” That process is ongoing.8 (Simply because you haven’t noticed it doesn’t mean it is not there!)
At any given moment in your life, God is comforting you to equip you with a comfort you can share with somebody else.
The correlation in v.5 between the sufferings of Christ among us and the comfort through Christ is stated as a fact. There always has been and always will be the same amount of comfort from God for us as there is suffering for God among us.
What are “the sufferings of Christ among us”?
Paul is talking about a suffering which is “ours,” which “we [share] abundantly in,” “which is abounding in/among us,” and “flows over into our [lives].” This must mean the suffering which the apostles – and any Christian, by extension – face as a result of following Jesus as the Anointed Messiah.
Paul uses the synonymous phrase “afflictions/distresses of Christ” in this way in Colossians 1:24 “I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church” (NKJV)
This is not to say that Christ didn’t suffer enough on the cross to pay for our sins. What this is saying is that, in God’s providence, there will be hardships which Christians must suffer for the sake of the church between Christ’s resurrection and Christ’s return, and Paul is happy to take some of those on himself.9
And we know from the book of Acts that Paul did indeed suffer persecution from Jews who tried to stop him from preaching the Gospel around the world.
They beat him up;
they weaponized the court system against him,
and they tried to assassinate him,
but Paul was confident that
“inasmuch as the sufferings
of the Anointed One flow over/abound among us,
so
our comfort also overflows/abounds through Christ.”
Also, because of our mystical union with Christ, He Himself suffers when His people suffer.
Before Paul was converted and changed his name, he was persecuting Christians in Jerusalem, and when Jesus confronted him about it on the road to Damascus, Jesus said, “Why are you persecuting me?” (Acts 9:4)
So the suffering of Christians for Christ is also felt as suffering by Christ Himself.10
And that truth is not only true for the Apostles, it is also true for you.
How can I be sure that I will always have comfort to share with anybody in trouble? Because I am suffering for Christ, and God always sees to it that there is as much comfort through Christ as there is suffering for Christ.
Psalm 94:19 “According to the multitude of my sorrows in my heart, thy comforts have given joy to my soul.” (Douay)
This flows back to v.3: We “bless” God because He has sovereignly arranged for this to be true, and so He is “the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort.”
1 Peter 4:1 & 13 “Therefore, since Christ suffered for y'all in flesh, y'all also must start arming yourselves with the same resolution... just as y'all have fellowship with the sufferings of Christ, keep rejoicing, in order that also in the unveiling of His glory, y'all may rejoice...” (NAW, cf. 2 Cor. 4:10, Phil. 3:10)
In verse 6, the indicative moods of the verbs “we are distressed/afflicted” and “we are comforted” tells us that the apostles have actually experienced both “stress” and “comfort” in their Gospel ministry.
In 2 Corinthians 6:4, Paul mentions how he had endured “stress, deprivations, and restrictions” in order to carry out his ministry11.
“His afflictions tended to promote the comfort of believers, as furnishing them with occasion of confirmation, on their perceiving that he suffered willingly, and endured with fortitude so many hardships for the sake of the gospel… His personal consolation flowed out to the whole Church, inasmuch as they concluded, that God who had sustained and refreshed him in his emergency, would, in like manner, not be wanting to them. Thus their welfare was promoted in both ways…” ~J. Calvin, 1546 AD
Everyone who has been involved in ministry knows that highs and lows like this come with the territory of working with people, but, in the church-planting ministry of the apostles, it was all “for the sake of the comfort and salvation” of the people in the churches.
Later on in 2 Corinthians, Paul and Timothy wrote, “For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.” (2 Cor. 4:15) ... “And I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls...” (2 Cor. 12:15, NKJV)
2 Timothy 2:10 “Therefore I endure all things for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” (NKJV)
It didn’t matter whether it was making Paul and Timothy feel good or not; what mattered was whether people were finding comfort in the good news about Jesus and getting saved.
Now, as I’ve mentioned before,
there was stress from Jewish proselytizers who wanted Christians to convert back to earning standing with God through following the law of Moses (Galatians),
there was stress from the sinful lifestyles of pagans who wanted Christians to join with them in “the same flood of dissipation” in which they were engaged (1 Pet. 4:4),
there was stress from their own old sinful nature that bucks against God’s authority and wants to chase fleshly whims,
and there was stress from the supernatural world of unclean spirits that put lies and fears and lusts into our minds.
Christians are harrassed from all sides, and, combine that with living in a world which has been broken by human sin – and in a church community composed of saved sinners who are not entirely sanctified yet, stress and suffering is an inevitable result.
This matches what Paul said to other churches: Acts 14:21-22 “...They returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, bracing-up the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, ‘It is necessary that through many stresses we are to enter the kingdom of God.’” (NAW, cf. Eph. 3:13, Rom.. 5:3)
But Paul and Timothy believed in Jesus despite opposition, and appropriated God’s comfort throughout persecution, and persevered in sharing the Gospel. And now, these people who heard Paul’s preaching must themselves cling to faith in Jesus, and appropriate God’s comfort in whatever afflictions they face, and persevere in spreading the Good news about Jesus’ salvation to still others.
And that very salvation and comfort, according to v.6, is what is “effective” in “producing” “the energy” behind “enduring suffering” for the sake of Christ.
Paul uses a Greek word from which we get our English word “energy” to describe the connection between “salvation-comfort” and “enduring suffering” –
it emphasizes the effort of the work (and for that reason, I am not enthusiastic about translating it “experience,” as if it were a passive thing happening to them.) It takes mental effort on our part to connect God’s comfort and salvation with enduring suffering.
If the Apostles had not been willing to put out effort and suffer in gospel ministry, the Corinthians would not have heard the gospel and been saved.”12
If the Corinthians had not been saved, they would have no willingness to endure suffering for Christ, but since they believed that Jesus is the Christ and were therefore “saved,” and since God gave “comfort” commensurate with suffering, they were willing (and able) to endure persecution alongside the Apostles, and, within 40-odd years of the writing of this letter (that is, by the year 100 AD), 18% of the world had heard the gospel, and there were Christians in every province of the Roman empire!
So, since the church in Corinth is “suffering” persecution, Paul and Timothy reckon that things are all right, because it means the “consolation/comfort” of God will surely also be with them.
Paul and Timothy saw that as a foregone conclusion – it is already “stedfast/firmly grounded/unshaken,” no question about it.
But it goes against our natural way of thinking. We tend to think that we are best-off when we are rich and carefree. The Biblical mindset, however, is that you’re better-off in the midst of stress, trusting Jesus and receiving God’s comfort.
And notice once again the absolute correlation of “partaking/sharing in suffering” with getting the “comfort.” If the suffering for Christ is there, the comfort will be too.
There is, however, a balance to be kept:
The wisdom literature in the Biblical teaches us not to seek suffering – not to bring suffering upon ourselves through doing what is foolish,
but, at the same time, passages like this in 2 Corinthians teach us not to avoid suffering for the sake of Christ, but to see it as a blessing when God allows it into our lives.
Matthew 5:10 Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” (NAW)
James 1:12 “A man who is steadfast in a trial is blessed, because, after he has proved himself genuine, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord promised to those who love Him.” (NAW)
1 Peter 5:10 “And after y'all have suffered a few things, the God of all grace who called y'all into His eternal glory in Christ Jesus will Himself renew y'all, He will confirm, strengthen, and establish.” (NAW, cf. Rom. 8:17, 2 Tim. 2:12)
This “hope” of which Paul writes in v.7 is more than just the confidence that you will be comforted during your trials in this life; this “hope” extends into the age to come, when we will be glorified in eternity with our Savior in heaven.
1 Thessalonians 2:19 “For what is our hope...? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus...?” (NKJV)
Colossians 1:27 “...Christ in you [is] the hope of glory.” (NKJV, cf. Eph. 1:28, Rom. 5:1-5, 8:23-24)
“So then grieve not when thou art in affliction; considering with Whom thou hast fellowship, and how thou art purified by trials; and how great gain is thine.” ~J. Chrysostom, c. 400AD
Draw in God’s comfort:
through reading and listening to God’s word,
through welcoming the work of the Holy Spirit in your life, praying for the Spirit’s help and comfort (Luke 11:13),
and through encouraging and being encouraged by the community of the church:
1 Thessalonians 5:11 “Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.” (NKJV)
Hebrews 3:13 “...encourage one another throughout each day – as long as it is called ‘today’ ...” (NAW)
And then share out the comfort which God gives you, with a personal visit or a written word of encouragement to someone.
God is comforting you in your stresses to equip you with comfort to share with somebody else.13
ByzantineB |
NAW |
KJVC |
RheimsD |
MurdockE |
3 Εὐλογητὸς ὁ Θεὸς καὶ πατὴρ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν ᾿Ιησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὁ πατὴρ τῶν οἰκτιρμῶν καὶ Θεὸς πάσης παρακλήσεως, |
3 May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus the Anointed One be blessed! He is the father of mercies and the God of all comfort - |
3 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; |
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort: |
3 Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus the Messiah, the Father of mercies, and the God of all consolation; |
4 ὁ παρακαλῶν ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ πάσῃF τῇ θλίψει ἡμῶν, εἰς τὸ δύνασθαι ἡμᾶς παρακαλεῖν τοὺς ἐν πάσῃ θλίψει διὰ τῆς παρακλήσεως ἧς παρακαλούμεθα αὐτοὶ ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ· |
4 the One Who comforts us in all our stress in order for us to be empowered to comfort those in any stress, by means of the comfort by which we ourselves are being comforted by God, |
4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. |
4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we [also] may be able to comfort them who are in all distress, by the exhortation wherewith we also are exhorted by God. |
4 who comforteth us in all our affliction[s], that we [also] might be able to comfort those who are in all affliction[s], with the consolation wherewith we XG are comforted by God. |
5 ὅτιH καθὼς περισσεύει τὰ παθήματα τοῦI Χριστοῦ εἰς ἡμᾶς, οὕτω διὰJ Χριστοῦ περισσεύει καὶ ἡ παράκλησις ἡμῶν. |
5 because, inasmuch as the sufferings of the Anointed One are abounding among us, so our comfort also abounds through the Anointed One. |
5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ. |
5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us: so also by Christ doth our comfort abound. |
5 For, as the sufferings of the Messiah abound in us, so also our consolation aboundeth by the Messiah. |
6 εἴτεK δὲ θλιβόμεθα, ὑπὲρ τῆς ὑμῶνL παρακλήσεως καὶ σωτηρίας Mτῆς ἐνεργουμένηςN ἐν ὑπομονῇ τῶν αὐτῶν παθημάτων ὧν καὶ ἡμεῖς πάσχομεν· Oεἴτε παρακαλούμεθα, ὑπὲρP τῆς ὑμῶν παρακλήσεως καὶ σωτηρίαςQ· |
6 So, whether we are distressed for the sake of y’all’s comfort and salvation, or whether we are comforted on account of y’all’s comfort (and salvation), the exertion is in the enduring of the same sufferings which also we are suffering. |
6 And whether we be afflicted, it is for your consolation and salvation, which is effectual in the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation and salvation. |
6 Now whether we be in tribulation, it is for your exhortation and salvation: or whether we be comforted, it is for your consolation: [or whether we be exhorted, it is for your exhortation] and salvation, which worketh X the enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer. |
6
And whether we be
afflicted, it is for your
consolation
and for [your]
|
7 καὶ ἡ ἐλπὶς ἡμῶν βεβαία ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν· εἰδότες ὅτι ὥσπερR κοινωνοί ἐστε τῶν παθημάτων, οὕτω καὶ τῆς παρακλήσεως. |
7 So our hope concerning y’all is confirmed, knowing that, even as y’all are partners of the sufferings, thus y’all also are of the comfort. |
7 And our hope of you is stedfast, knowing, that as ye are partakers of the sufferings, so shall ye be also of the consolation. |
7 That our hope for you may be steadfast: knowing that as you are partakers of the sufferings, so shall you be also of the consolation. |
7
And our hope concerning
you is steadfast:
for we know, that |
1Θλῖψις
- Definitions in Greek-English Lexicons:
Thayer
(1889): “properly, a pressing, pressing
together, pressure… metaphor, oppression, affliction,
tribulation…”
Liddel/Scott/Jones
(1925):
(noun
form not listed, so this is
the listing for the
verb form):
“to press, squeeze, pinch… 2. metaph. to oppress, afflict,
distress...”
Arndt
& Gingrich
(1957):
“lit. pressing, pressure…
fig. sense
oppression , affliction, tribulation…
1. of distress that is brought about by
outward circumstances… 2. fig. Of mental and spiritual states of
mind..”
Louw &
Nida (1989):
“trouble involving direct suffering - 'trouble and suffering,
suffering, persecution… that which causes pain.”
Friberg
(2000):
“literally pressure, pressing together; figuratively... suffering
brought on by outward circumstances affliction, oppression,
trouble”
Bauer/Danker
(2000): “pressing, pressure’ ... metaph. sense
‘distress that is the result of outward circumstances’ ... W.
focus on inward anguish, trouble, distress…”
2Robert Hanna, A Grammatical Aid To The Greek New Testament, in loc.
3Note how often Isaiah spoke of God’s comfort in his prophecies: Isaiah 40:1, 49:13, 51:3 & 12, 66:13, etc.
4cf. P. Hughes “Whether the [Corinthians] were in need of comfort because of some specific affliction which they had been called upon to endure is not clear. Plummer suggests that ‘Paul is here thinking of the affliction which the Corinthians had recently been experiencing in their agony of self-reproach and remorse [at] the severe letter of the Apostle…’” [but that seems unlikely to me.]
5“To follow Christ is to follow Him into suffering. In this also the disciple must expect to be identified with the Master. Hence our Lord's admonition: ‘Remember the word that I said unto you, A servant is not greater than his lord. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you (Jn. 15:20). Those who are one with Christ must be prepared to drink His cup (Mt. 20:23). As with Him suffering was the prelude to glory, so also those who wish to share in His glory must first be willing to share in His sufferings (cf. Rom. 8:17f.; Acts 14:22; II Tim. 2:12)… But Christ, let it be remembered, is no longer suffering in humiliation, for He is now exalted in glory. If we are called to fellowship in the sufferings of the Christ of humiliation, it is the Christ of glory who mediates an abundance of comfort to us--one and the same Christ.” ~P. Hughes
6cf. Heb. 3:13, 1 Thess. 5:11, Rom. 12:8, 1 Cor. 14:31, 2 Cor. 2:7, 1 Thess. 4:18, Isa. 40:1
7In John Owens’ 17th century devotional classic, Communion with God, he devoted an entire section to how to have fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Two years ago, a pastor named Mike McKinley published a digest of Owen’s book in contemporary language, called Fellowship with God, and I highly recommend it. Here is how he summarized how “to commune with the Spirit in His comfort: Faith considers the work that the Spirit was sent to do. We don’t respond to the difficulties in our life as if we were orphans (John 14:18), but we remember and trust that we have been sent a wonderful source of comfort. Faith prays for the Spirit’s help and comfort (Luke 11:13). This asking God for the Spirit to give us the help and consolation we need ‘is the chief work of faith in this world.’ [And] Faith cherishes the Spirit by being sensitive to his work and influence. When we love the Spirit, we are careful to walk in the ways that please him (Gal. 5:25) and believe the truths about God’s love that he brings to bear on our soul (Rom 5:5).”
8“The present tense of the verb shows that this God of ours comforts us constantly and unfailingly, not spasmodically and intermittently; and He does so in all our affliction, not just in certain kinds of affliction.” ~P. Hughes, 1962 AD
91 Peter is the only other place in the Bible where we meet with this phrase “sufferings of Christ” 1 Peter 1:11 ...the Spirit of Christ in them [the prophets] ... pre-testified the sufferings [destined] for Christ and the glories after those [sufferings]…” and 5:1 “[I,] the fellow-elder, and witness of the sufferings of Christ…” (NAW) There it seems to mean the the sufferings that Jesus endured on the cross for our sin, which is expounding on a different topic than the one on which Paul is expounding.
10“...their
sufferings... are called ‘the sufferings of Christ,’ because
Christ sympathized with his members when suffering for his sake...”
~M. Henry
Vincent (and ATR to a lesser degree) stated it too
extremely, “Not things suffered for Christ's sake, but Christ's
own sufferings...”
11“But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses” (NKJV)
12“[I]f through lack of spirit and fear of danger we had not preached unto you the word whereby ye learned the true knowledge, your situation had been desperate.” ~Chrysostom
13“[U]nquestionably, when the Lord confers upon us any favor, he in a manner invites us by his example to be generous to our neighbours. The riches of the Spirit, therefore, are not to be kept by us to ourselves, but every one must communicate to others what he has received.” ~J. Calvin, 1546 AD
AWhen
a translation adds words not in the Greek text, but does not
indicate it has done so by the use of italics or greyed-out text, I
put the added words in [square brackets]. When one version chooses a
wording which is different from all the other translations, I
underline it. When a version chooses a translation which, in my
opinion, either departs too far from the root meaning of the Greek
word or departs too far from the grammar form of the original text,
I use strikeout. And when a version omits a word
which is in the original text, I insert an X. I also place an X at
the end of a word if the original word is plural but the English
translation is singular. I occasionally use colors to help the
reader see correlations between the various editions and versions
when there are more than two different translations of a given word.
NAW is my translation. My original chart includes annotated copies
of the NKJV, NASB, NIV, and ESV, but I erase them from the online
edition so as not to infringe on their copyrights.
BThis Greek New Testament is the 1904 "Patriarchal" edition of the Greek Orthodox Church. As published by E-Sword in 2016. The Robinson-Pierpont Byzantine majority text of the GNT and the Textus Receptus are very similar. The Westcott-Hort, Nestle-Aland, and UBS editions, however, are a slightly-different family of GNTs developed in the modern era, focusing on the few manuscripts which are older than the Byzantine manuscripts. Even so, the practical differences in the text between these two editing philosophies are minimal.
C1769 King James Version of the Holy Bible; public domain. As published by E-Sword in 2019.
DRheims New Testament first published by the English College at Rheims, A.D. 1582, Revised and Diligently Compared with the Latin Vulgate by Bishop Richard Challoner, Published in 1582, 1609, 1752. As published on E-Sword in 2016.
EJames Murdock, A Literal Translation from the Syriac Peshito Version, 1851, Robert Carter & Brothers, New York. Scanned and transcribed by Gary Cernava and published electronically by Janet Magierra at http://www.lightofword.org, and published on E-Sword in 2023.
FReferencing Robertson’s Grammar p. 772, and Blass & DeBrunner’s Grammar p. 275[3], Robert Hanna noted,“Sometimes a distinction of content can be traced between πας with and without the article (actually with the noun) in the same passage. In this verse the sense seems to be ‘in all our affliction… in any affliction’...”
GLamsa’s translation “we ourselves” is more accurate to the Peshitta (and the GNT) than Murdoch’s “we.”
HAbernathy noted in his Exegetical Summaries that R. Lenski was the only one of the commentators he surveyed who connected this causal back to v.3: “God is to be blessed for his mercy and comfort, êti ‘seeing that’ he makes comfort abound where suffering abounds.” All the others saw it as the reason (M. Harris, C. Hodge, M. Thrall, P. Barnett) or the means (V. Furnish, S. Kistemaker) by which the comfort in v.4 is bestowed.
IThis definite article is omitted in one 11th century manuscript and in the Textus Receptus, but it doesn’t affect the meaning at all, since “Christ” in this context is a unique person.
JAGNT tagged this with Louw & Nida semantic domain number 90.4 “a marker of intermediate agent, with implicit or explicit causative agent.”
K“Erasmus
[followed by most English versions] has conceived the idea, that
some word must be understood… ‘whether we are afflicted, IT IS
for your consolation.’ I think it, however, more probable, that
the connecting particle… is used here as meaning: ‘Thus also,’
or ‘in both cases.’ He had already stated, that he received
consolation in order that he might communicate it to others.” ~J.
Calvin
Since the verbs are not in the subjunctive mood, Paul
is not speaking of hypotheticals.
LHanna noted that, according to Turner’s Grammar of N.T. Greek (p.190), the attributive position of ‘υμων is emphatic.
M5
of the 12 oldest-known manuscripts (and about a dozen of the total
thousands of manuscripts) insert here the clause beginning with eite
which occurs later in this verse in this edition, but this shouldn’t
change the meaning; it just switches the order of the clauses in the
verse.
An articular
participle
like this is usually substantive in Greek grammar, so I have
translated it as a noun instead of as an adjective like most English
versions did. It is also a
genitive absolute. Both
“salvation” and
“comfort” match this participle in gender, number, and case, so
either could be the subject of this participle, or perhaps both are,
and “comfort and
salvation” can be treated
as a hendiadys.
NJ. Calvin: “Erasmus takes the participle... in an active sense, but a passive signification is more suitable, as Paul designed simply to explain in what respect everything that befell him was for their salvation.” Pringle (Calvin’s English editor) added in a footnote: “Dr. Bloomfield, in his Notes on 1 Thessalonians 2:13, explains ἐνεργεῖται, to mean — ‘is made effectual,’ or ‘shews itself in its effects,’ and adds: ‘This view I find supported by the opinion of Schott, who maintains that ἐνεργεῖσθαι, is never in the New Testament used as a middle form, with an active sense; but always (especially in St. Paul’s writings) as a passive. Indeed, Bp. Bull, Exam. p. 9, goes yet farther, and asserts, that it is scarcely ever so used, even in the Classical writers (I believe he might have said never) but always in a passive sense.”
OByzantine manuscripts insert here the clause which, in this edition, is at the beginning of v.7. This doesn’t change the meaning; it just switches the order of the sentences.
P“...the object at which one is aiming… ‘with a view to…’” ~Hanna, citing Blass & DeBrunner p. 231[2].
QThis additional “and salvation,” found in the Vulgate, Geneva Bible, KJV and NKJV, is not in the Majority of Greek Manuscripts, nor is it in any of the oldest-known manuscripts (hence its omission in contemporary English versions), and it is not in the ancient Syriac version, but it is in all the editions of the the Textus Receptus, in the Patriarchal editions of the Greek Orthodox Church, in the Robinson & Pierpont Byzantine priority edition, and in the 2009 Tregelles edition of the Greek New Testament.
RHalf of the 12 manuscripts dating before the year 1,000 AD read with this word abbreviated to ως, The majority of Greek manuscripts follow the reading of a quarter of those 12 (including Ψ, 049, 1900, and a correction in Bezae) with ωσπερ, which is also the reading of the Textus Receptus and Patriarchal editions. The other quarter of the oldest-known manuscripts (including the oldest one, P46) omit this comparative word altogether. None of these variants change the meaning because there is a second comparative later in the verse which makes clear that the two phrases are compared, whether or not there is a comparative before the first of the two phrases.