Translation & Sermon by
Nate Wilson for Christ The Redeemer Church, Manhattan, KS, 22
Feb
2026
Underlined
words in Scripture quotes indicate words that are in common with the
Greek text
of the sermon
passage.
Otherwise, underlining indicates words to emphasize when reading this
transcript out
loud.
Read my translation of the passage, starting at 2
Corinthians 7:9-16
Now I rejoice, not that y’all were
grieved, but rather that y’all were grieved to the point of
repentance, for y’all were grieved with respect to God, in
order that y’all might be penalized in nothing as a result of us.
For grief with respect to God works out repentance unto salvation
without regret, whereas the grief of the world works out death. For
see, what this very thing – your grieving with respect to God –
worked out in y’all: how much diligence, even defending, even
indignation, even fear, even longing, even zeal, even vengeance! In
everything y’all proved yourselves to be holy in this matter. So,
although I wrote to y’all, it was not for the sake of the unjust
one, or for the sake of the one who was treated unjustly, but rather
for the sake of your diligence concerning us being brought to light
before God toward y’all. On account of this we have been
comforted. And in addition to our comfort we rejoiced even more
abundantly over Titus’ joy, that his spirit has been refreshed by
all of you. For though I had bragged about something to him
concerning y’all, I was not ashamed, but rather, just as we
uttered all things in truth to y’all, thus also it was with our
bragging: for Titus it was realized to be the truth, and his
affections are more abundantly with y’all as he remembers the
obedience of all of you – how with fear and trembling y’all
received him. I rejoice that I am encouraged by y’all in
everything!
For the third time in as many verses, this phrase occurs: “grieved with respect to God/made sorry after a godly manner/godly grief/godly sorrow” – it gets translated a lot of different ways in different English versions, but it’s in verses 9, 10, and 11.
In verse 10, Paul wrote that this “godly grief” (which had been prompted in the Corinthian church by his letter and Titus’ counsel), has led the church in the right direction to “repentance unto salvation without regret.”
But what is repentance? What does it look like? How do you know if you have repented enough for it to be valid? And what are the results? In 2 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul has recorded for us an example of repentance in a church.
The thing which they sorrowed over and repented of was the “matter” mentioned at the end of v.11. It matches the church discipline against the immoral man in 1 Corinthians 5:
1 Corinthians 5:1-2 “Immorality is totally being heard of among y'all, and such immorality as is not even among the nations – such as a man to have his father's wife! And y'all? Y'all are puffed up. Yet shouldn't you rather have mourned, in order that the man who committed this deed might be taken away out of your midst?” (NAW)
The fact that the church was “puffed up” about tolerating this man’s sin meant that not only did that immoral man need to repent of mistreating his step-mother, but the whole church needed to repent of being proud and boastful about tolerating his sin. So Paul had instructed them in 1 Corinthians to excommunicate the immoral man from membership in the church.
They apparently did what he had instructed them to do, because in 2 Corinthians 2, Paul wrote that that it was time to end the church discipline because the man had repented.
In this case, repenting from being “puffed up” included “clear[ing] yourselves of this suspicion... not only by not praising, but also by rebuking and being indignant.” ~Chrysostom
In verse 11, Paul lists seven characteristics of this church’s godly grief and repentance:
Two of them were just mentioned in verse 7, namely, “longing” and “zeal” - “...Titus... related to us your longing, your weeping, your zeal concerning me…” (NAW)
Three of the other words listed in v.11 describing the results of repentance do not appear anywhere else in the history sections of the New Testament, so we don’t know specifically how they played out with the Corinthians. Those three words are: ἀπολογίαν (translated “clearing/vindication/defense”), ἀγανάκτησιν (translated “indignation”), and ἐκδίκησιν (translated “revenge/vindication/avenging/justice/punishment”).
John Calvin commented on these: “[I]t is a kind of ‘defense’ that consists rather in supplication for pardon, than in extenuation of sin. As a son, who is desirous to clear himself to his father, does not enter upon a regular pleading of his cause, but by acknowledging his fault excuses himself… [I]ndignation... also, is attendant on sacred sorrow – that the sinner is indignant against his vices, and even against himself, as also all that are actuated by a right zeal are indignant, as often as they see that God is offended. This disposition... is more intense than sorrow. For the first step is that evil be displeasing to us. The second is that, being inflamed with anger, we press hard upon ourselves, so that our consciences may be touched to the quick… [T]he wickedness which they had countenanced by their connivance and indulgence, they had afterwards shown themselves rigorous in avenging. They had for some time tolerated incest; but, on being admonished by Paul, they had not merely ceased to countenance him, but had been strict reprovers in chastening him.”
As for the last one, we are to leave vengeance to God, but consider Luke 18:7 “So God – will He not make vengeance on behalf of His elect ones who cry out toward Him day and night, even being long-suffering toward them?” (NAW) They could have prayed for God to bring justice against offenders and to defend Paul’s reputation.
That could be combined with doing what is right and renouncing wrong ways and associations. 19th Century author Marvin Vincent wrote in his Word Studies Of The New Testament, “Revenge [is] An unfortunate rendering, because of the personal feeling of vindictiveness which attaches to the popular usage... It is rather meting out of justice; doing justice to all parties... requital… Exculpation or self-defense from complicity with the incestuous person...” (Matthew Henry added that it could describe “endeavours to make all due satisfaction for injuries.”)
This repentance was not pretending that the problem never happened, nor was it simply resolving to move on and do better; it was a change of thinking to hate the sin rather than indulge it, then to punish the sin and to defend those harmed by the sin.
As for the other two characteristics of “diligence/earnestness/carefulness/σπουδήν” and “fear,” there are quite a few passages of Scripture which speak of those things:
Sometimes sorrow will lead a person into despair, so that they give up and stop trying to do anything. Godly sorrow over sin does the opposite: it inspires to action. The Greek word spoudein has to do with doing things “quickly” – making a speedy resolution.
Later on in chapter 8, verse 7, Paul would commend this church that “...you abound in everything – in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us...” (NKJV)
The same things can happen as a result of “fear”: either paralysis or decisive action.
“[S]o long as there is no apprehension of sin, we lie drowsy and inactive. Hence drowsiness or carelessness, or unconcern, stands opposed to that ‘earnest desire’ that he makes mention of. Accordingly, ‘earnest desire’ means simply an eager and active assiduity in the correcting of what is amiss, and in the amendment of life... ‘Fear’ is what arises from an apprehension of divine judgment, while the offender thinks, ‘Mark it well, an account must be rendered... and what wilt thou advance in the presence of so great a judge?’ For, alarmed by such a consideration, he begins to tremble.” ~J. Calvin, 1546 AD
(That “fear” is mentioned again in v.15, describing how the church treated Titus with respect for his spiritual authority as a pastor associated with Paul.)
But fear is only healthy if it is rooted in respect for God (as Paul said in 2 Corinthians 7:1 “...let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” ~NAW, cf Acts 9:31) and if it is held in balance with love for God and His people (As Chrysostom put it “neither for fear dimming love, nor for love relaxing fear” – notice that “fear” is right next to a loving “longing” in the list here).
18th Century Lutheran Bible commentator Johan Bengel remarked that the results of godly sorrow then fall into pairs in relation to three objects in verse 11:
“Clearing” and “indignation” relating to the disgrace of the Church;
“Fear” and “longing” toward the apostle; and
“Zeal” and “avenging” toward the offender.
Are there any “matters” that remain unresolved in your relationships with other people in your life?
Could you bring some diligence, clearing, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and requital to bear on it to restore the relationship?
Revelation 3:19 “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.” (NKJV)
It should be noted, however, that “there is a difference in the case of an individual sinning secretly before God, or openly before the world. If a person’s sin is secret, it is enough if he has this disposition [inwardly] in the sight of God; on the other hand, where the sin is open, there is required an additional, open manifestation of repentance. Thus the Corinthians, who had sinned openly and to the great offense of the good, required to give evidence of their repentance by these tokens.” ~Calvin
But what if you’re not the offender? What if you are trying to get someone else to repent? Paul touches on this in the next verse.
The idea of verse 12 is complex. But if you think of First Corinthians as a letter of complaint, there is more than one reason why someone might write a letter of complaint: usually it is because a product was defective or a company did not fulfill its promises, or maybe the waitress at the restaurant got your order wrong and overcharged you and then spilled hot coffee on you to boot.
Usually we complain about the offender: “You sold me a defective product,” “You were negligent in your duty,” or “You stained my favorite shirt. I demand resitution.” We want to see unjust people punished for their wrongdoing.
Sometimes, however, we might complain on behalf of someone else who isn’t powerful enough to be heard: “How dare you say such a thing to my daughter!” “I won’t let you treat my customer (or my friend) like that! You apologize right now and make it right!” We want to see justice provided for the people we care about who have been unjustly treated.
But Paul says in v.12 that neither one of those was the case in his letter. Instead, this is an interesting case where Paul’s letter of complaint was designed to give the addressees something positive to channel their energies toward, so that when they followed his recommendation, they would come off looking good. He wasn’t finding fault; he was giving them a way to improve their reputation!
Remember, the reputation of Corinth in the world at that time was that they are all drunks and sex addicts!
He wanted both God and the church to see the Corinthians exercising “earnestness/ care/devotion/diligence” in a good way so that he could brag on them!
The Geneva and King James Bibles followed the ancient Latin Vulgate in switching the pronouns to say that it was to show “our care for you” (and it is certainly true that Paul cared about the Corinthians), but every compilation of the Greek New Testament ever made (including the Textus Receptus) reads “your care for us,” based on the vast majority of Greek manuscripts – including the oldest ones, so that’s what I’m going with. Paul wanted the church to realize that they cared for him, and he wanted them to show it in the sight of God and be blessed.
It is parallel to what he already wrote in 2 Corinthians 2:3 “And I wrote this very thing to y'all in order that, when I come, I might not have grief from those whom I should be causing to rejoice, having become confident concerning all of y'all that my own joy is that of you all… 9 And it was for this purpose that I wrote, in order that I might know y’all’s dependability, whether y’all are obedient in all things.” (NAW)
Now, “Clearly, Paul does not mean that he had no concern for the offender (2.5) or for the one who had suffered the wrong...4 but that this was not the primary purpose in writing to them. Here Paul exhibits a common Hebrew mode of thought, in which one of two alternatives is negated ‘without meaning that it is negated absolutely, but only in comparison with the other alternative, which is much more important. [For instance,] “I will have mercy and not sacrifice” (Hos 6.6), does not prohibit sacrifice; it affirms that mercy is much the better of the two...’” ~A. Plummer, 1915 AD
“He acts as persons are wont to do, that are desirous of a reconciliation. He wishes all past things to be buried, he does not any more reproach them, he does not reprove them for any thing, he does not expostulate as to any thing; in fine, he forgets every thing, inasmuch as he was satisfied with their simply repenting. And, certainly, this is the right way – not to press offenders farther, when they have been brought to repentance. For if we still call their sins to remembrance, (1 Kings 17:18) it is certain that we are actuated by malevolence, rather than by pious affection, or a desire for their welfare.” ~Calvin
We have a phrase, “bury the hatchet” meaning, “to make peace and resolve our differences.” According to the British History Extra magazine, the first English mention of this phrase comes from Judge Samuel Sewall ... writing in 1680: “I writt to you of the Mischief the Mohawks did… they came to an agreement and buried two Axes in the Ground; one for the English, another for themselves; which ceremony to them is more significant & binding than all Articles of Peace, the hatchet being a principal weapon with them.5” Is there anyone you need to ‘bury the hatchet’ with, so that you can delight in making them look good before God?
Not only does repentance include burying the hatchet and returning to neutrality with a party that offended you, in the church, it means returning to the positive ways in which church members should relate to one another. One of the ways Paul models that is by speaking honest praise of the Corinthians in verses 13-16.
Look at the words of affirmation in v.13: “You encouraged us! – and not only us, you did a great job of blessing Titus too! We are so delighted with you!”
“Titus must have entertained serious misgivings as to the kind of reception he would be accorded in Corinth where schisms, self-glorying, and false teaching had been disrupting the life of the church. Indeed, it had been necessary for Paul to admonish the Corinthians to see that Timothy should, if he came to Corinth, be permitted to do so without fear and that no man should despise him (I Cor. 16:10f.)… [But] Titus, so far from meeting with hostile rebuffs, was refreshed in spirit by the whole church – a dénouement which brought the Apostle Paul intense joy.” ~P. E. Hughes, 1962 AD
Paul wrote similar words of praise in 1 Corinthians 16:17-18 “I am delighted over the visit of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because these men filled up the lack of y'all, for they refreshed my spirit – and that of yours, so get to know such men!” (NAW)
Use your words and your attitude to refresh and bless brothers and sisters in Christ, to show them love and honor, to demonstrate that they are dear to you and that you delight in them6.
Paul even says in v.14 that he had bragged on them to Titus, and that, after Titus had visited them, he had confirmed to Paul that those boasts had all been true!
Later on in chapters 8 and 9, Paul will say that he bragged on the Corinthians to the church in Macedonia too!7
Is there anybody in the church that you struggle to say anything good about? Ask God to help you see the good things which that person brings to the body of Christ and talk them up.
“So confident was [Paul] that the [Corinthians] had been the recipients of a work of divine grace that, no matter what their failings and aberrations for the moment, he did not hesitate to assure others that at heart they were right towards himself and towards God. On this he had, as it were, staked his good faith, and with this commendation of them ringing in his ears Titus had ventured to come to Corinth. The event had not proved Paul wrong; their conduct had not put him to shame.” ~Phillip Hughes, 1962 AD
“[A]t the very time that they seemed to be unworthy of commendation, he still promised much that was honorable on their behalf. [Paul sets before us a great example of] reproving to their face those that you love, and yet hoping well, and giving others good hopes respecting them.” ~John Calvin, 1546 AD
Verse 15 brings in the fact that repentance restores respect as well.
Paul had said in chapter 2 verse 9 that he had written his letter to see if the Corinthian church would obey him, and now Titus has confirmed that they have obeyed him. Their obedience must have been based on recognizing the spiritual authority which Paul and Titus had as their pastors to “punish disobedience” (as Paul puts it in chapter 10 verse 6)8.
Titus recounted to Paul how the church in Corinth had “obeyed” him with “fear and trembling,” which I think are intended to mean the positive graces of respect and deference rather than any kind of unhealthy fear. Ultimately, such fear and respect in the church is based on respect for God and fear of His judgment rather than fear of man (Ps. 2:11, Phil. 2:12).
Consider these words written by a French pastor several hundred years ago: “[V]oluntary trembling, that proceeds from genuine shame, is a sign of repentance… [T]his passage teaches, what is a right reception for the ministers of Christ. Assuredly, it is not sumptuous banquets, it is not splendid apparel, it is not courteous and honorable salutations, it is not the plaudits of the multitude, that gratify the upright and faithful pastor. He experiences, on the other hand, an overflowing of delight, when the doctrine of salvation is received with reverence from his mouth, when he retains the authority that belongs to him for the edification of the Church, when the people give themselves up to his direction, to be regulated by his ministry under Christ’s banners.” (John Calvin)
Could it be said of you that you obey your church elders with fear and trembling in this way?
An American pastor about a century ago added: “The obedience of Christian men before those whom God has set over them as pastors and teachers is something of vital importance for the well-being and prosperity of the Church of Christ… [It] carries no suggestion [how]ever of subjection to... tyranny or authoritarianism … [E]very true minister, [i]s a man under authority, owing allegiance to the Supreme Lord (Acts 22:10)…” (Phillip Hughes)
God could have chosen any metaphor for the realationship between church elders and church members. (He could have chosen the metaphor of a vendor and a customer to represent that relationship, but He didn’t.) The metaphor God chose is that of shepherding sheep. Sheep don’t choose their shepherd. Sheep don’t switch from one flock one day to another flock another day based on their preferences. Sheep are not their own; they were bought with a price. And sheep die when they don’t follow their shepherd. Now, all analogies break down at some point (after all, you aren’t actually sheep, you’re human beings made in the image of God), but are we relating in the way God intended?
Matthew Henry commented: “It is a great comfort and joy to a faithful minister to have to do with a people whom he can confide in, and who he has reason to hope will comply with every thing he proposes to them that is for the glory of God, the credit of the gospel, and their advantage.” ~M. Henry, 1714 AD
That confidence is the subject of the last verse in chapter 7.
However, most everywhere else in the Greek Bible that this word θαρρῶ occurs, it is translated “bold/corageous,” so I am inclined to translate it “I am encouraged by you...” (or “I am of good courage,” like the RSV and ASV did), rather than “I am confident...”
It is true, however, that Paul was “confident” concerning the Corinthian church, because he said so in 2 Corinthians 2:3, but he used different Greek words to say that.9
Here, Paul says in effect, “Should need require me to rebuke, I have no apprehension of your being alienated; or [if I should] boast, I fear not to be convicted of falsehood; or [if I should] praise you as obeying the rein, or as loving, or as full of zeal, I have confidence in you. I bade you cut off, and ye did cut off; I bade you receive, and ye did receive. I said before Titus that ye were great and admirable kind of people and knew to reverence teachers: ye proved these things true by your conduct…” (Chrysostom)
May God work such grace in our church:
that we may apply diligence, clearing, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and requital to restore relationships,
that we may encourage one another so that we will look good before God,
that we may speak honest praise of one another,
and that we may show godly respect and confidence toward one another!
ByzantineB |
NAW |
KJVC |
RheimsD |
MurdockE |
CopticF |
9 νῦν χαίρω, οὐχ ὅτι ἐλυπήθητεG, ἀλλ᾿ ὅτι ἐλυπήθητε εἰς μετάνοιαν· ἐλυπήθητε γὰρ κατὰ ΘεόνH, ἵνα ἐν μηδενὶ ζημιωθῆτεI ἐξJ ἡμῶν. |
9 Now I rejoice, not that y’all were grieved, but rather that y’all were grieved to the point of repentance, for y’all were grieved with respect to God, in order that y’all might be penalized in nothing as a result of us. |
9 Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye X sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing. |
9 Now I am glad: not because you were made sorrowful, but because you were made sorrowful unto penance. For you were made sorrowful according to God, that you might suffer damage by us in nothing. |
9
|
9 [but] now I rejoice, not that ye were grieved, but that ye were grieved unto [a] repentance: for ye were grieved according to God, that ye might not suffer any loss from us. |
10 ἡ γὰρ κατὰ Θεὸν λύπη μετάνοιαν εἰς σωτηρίαν ἀμεταμέλητονL Mκατεργάζεται· ἡ δὲ τοῦ κόσμου λύπη θάνατον κατεργάζεται. |
10 For grief with respect to God works out repentance unto salvation without regret, whereas the grief of the world works out death. |
10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death. |
10
For the sorrow
that
is according to God worketh
penance,
X |
10 For, sorrowing on account of God, worketh a conversion [of the soul which is] not reversed, and a turning unto life: but the sorrowing of the world worketh death. |
10 For the grief according to God worked [a] repentance unto salvation not to be repented of: but the grief of the world worketh death. |
11 ἰδοὺN γὰρ αὐτὸ τοῦτο, τὸO κατὰP Θεὸν λυπηθῆναι ὑμᾶςQ, πόσην κατειργάσατο ὑμῖν σπουδήν, ἀλλὰR ἀπολογίανS, ἀλλὰ ἀγανάκτησινT, ἀλλὰ φόβονU, ἀλλὰ ἐπιπόθησινV, ἀλλὰ ζῆλον, ἀλλὰ ἐκδίκησινW. ἐν παντὶ συνεστήσατε ἑαυτοὺς ἁγνοὺς εἶναι ἐνX τῷ πράγματι. |
11 For see, what this very thing – your grieving with respect to God – worked out in y’all: how much diligence, even defending, even indignation, even fear, even longing, even zeal, even vengeance! In everything y’all proved yourselves to be holy in this matter. |
11 For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing [of yourselves], yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all thing[s]Y ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter. |
11 For behold this selfsame thing, that you were made sorrowful according to God, how great carefulness it worketh in you: yea defence, yea indignation, yea fear, yea desire, yea zeal, yea revenge. In all thing[s] you [have] shewed yourselves to be undefiled in the matter. |
11 For behold this same thing, that ye were distressed on account of God, what solicitude it wrought in you, and apologizing and indignation, and fear, and love, and zeal, and revenge? And in all thing[s] ye [have] shown, that ye are now pure in that matter. |
11
For behold the X grief
which ye [did]
according to God worked
for you X much earnestness,
yea a defence, yea an
indignation, yea a fear, yea a hearty
love, yea a zeal, yea a revenge;
[and] in everything ye established
yourselves pure |
12
ἄρα εἰ καὶZ
ἔγραψα ὑμῖν, οὐχ AAεἵνεκεν
τοῦ ἀδικήσαντος
οὐδὲ εἵνεκεν τοῦ ἀδικηθέντος,
|
12 So, although I wrote to y’all, it was not for the sake of the unjust one, or for the sake of the one who was treated unjustly, but rather for the sake of your diligence concerning us being brought to light before God toward y’all. |
12
Wherefore,
though I wrote unto you, I
did it not for his cause that
had done the wrong, nor for his
cause that
suffered wrong, but that X
X Xour
care
for |
12
Wherefore
although I wrote to you, it was not for his sake that
did the wrong, nor for X
X him
that suffered |
12
And |
12 X X If I wrote to you, [I wrote] not for his sake who did wrong, nor for his sake to whom wrong was done, but that X X your diligence should be manifested which ye [do] for our sakeS/ to youB before GodAD. |
Byzantine |
NAW |
KJV |
Rheims |
Murdock |
Coptic |
13 Διὰ τοῦτο παρακεκλήμεθα. ἐπὶAE δὲAF τῇ παρακλήσει ἡμῶνAG περισσοτέρως AHμᾶλλον ἐχάρημεν ἐπὶ τῇ χαρᾷ Τίτου, ὅτι ἀναπέπαυται τὸ πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸAI πάντων ὑμῶν· |
13 On account of this we have been comforted. And in addition to our comfort we rejoiced even more abundantly over Titus’ joy, that his spirit has been refreshed by all of you. |
13 Therefore we were comforted in your comfort: yea, [and] exceedingly the more joyed we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all. |
therefore we were comforted. But in our consolation we did the more abundantly rejoice for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all. |
13 Wherefore we were comforted; and with our consolation, we were the X more joyful for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all: |
13 Therefore we were consoled: but about your comfort, we rejoiced more excessively about the joy of Titos, because his spirit was rested for you all. |
14 ὅτι εἴAJ τι αὐτῷ ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν κεκαύχημαι, οὐ κατῃσχύνθην, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς πάντα ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ἐλαλήσαμεν ὑμῖν, οὕτως καὶ ἡ καύχησις ἡμῶν ἡ ἐπὶAK Τίτου ἀλήθεια ἐγενήθη. |
14 For though I had bragged about something to him concerning y’all, I was not ashamed, but rather, just as we uttered all things in truth to y’all, thus also it was with our bragging: for Titus it was realized to be the truth, |
14
For if I have boasted any thing to him of you, I |
14
|
14
so that X I
was not ashamed of that in which I had gloried
to him, respecting
you; but as in every thing we spoke the truth to you, so also our
glorying
before
Titus, is |
14
Because X |
15 καὶ τὰ σπλάγχναAL αὐτοῦ περισσοτέρως εἰς ὑμᾶς ἐστιν ἀναμιμνῃσκομένου τὴν πάντων ὑμῶν ὑπακοήν, ὡς μετὰ φόβου καὶ τρόμου ἐδέξασθε αὐτόν. |
15 and his affections are more abundantly with y’all as he remembers the obedience of all of you – how with fear and trembling y’all received him. |
15 And his inward affection is more abundant toward you, whilst he remembereth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him. |
15 And his bowels are more abundantly towards you: remembering the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling you received him. |
15 and also his bowels are the more enlarged towards you, while he remembereth the submission of you all, [and] how ye received him with fear and trembling. |
15 And his compassions being more abundantly [turnedB] toward you, while he remembereth the obedience of you all, how ye accepted him in fear and trembling. |
16 χαίρω ὅτι ἐν παντὶ θαρρῶAM ἐν ὑμῖν. |
16 I rejoice that I am encouraged by y’all in everything. |
16 I rejoice [thereforeAN] that I have confidence in you in all things. |
16 I rejoice that in all thing[s] I have confidence in you. |
16 I rejoice, that in every thing I have [full] confidence in you. |
16 I rejoice that I am confident in you in every thing. |
1Calvin: “...meaning, that every one, with great fervor of zeal, aimed to give evidence of his repentance...”
2M. Henry: “It wrought vehement desires after a thorough reformation of what had been amiss, and of reconciliation with God whom they had offended.”
3Hughes, G. Wilson, Bengel.
4“The offender in question is then the man guilty of incest and the person offended his outraged father. Until modern times this was how the universal Church understood Paul's words – with the exception of Tertullian who, because of his rigorist view that no fornicator could ever be restored to the communion of the Church, held that the Apostle must have been referring to some offence less serious than that of incest. The opinion of Tertullian and also the modern theories that the person offended was Paul himself or Timothy... [are] lacking the support either of the exegesis or of the tradition of the historic Church.” ~P. Hughes (1962)
5https://www.historyextra.com/period/early-modern/bury-the-hatchet-why-say-phrase-meaning-origins/
6Romans
12:10 “Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly
love, in honor giving preference to one another...” (NKJV)
1
Thess. 2:8 “So, affectionately longing for you, we were
well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also
our own lives, because you had become dear to us.” (NKJV)
72
Cor. 8:24 “Therefore show to them, and before the churches the
proof of your love and of our boasting on your behalf.”
(NKJV)
2 Cor. 9:2 “for I know your willingness, about
which I boast of you to the Macedonians, that Achaia was
ready a year ago; and your zeal has stirred up the majority.”
(NKJV)
82
Cor. 10:6 “and being ready to punish all disobedience
when your obedience is fulfilled.” (NKJV)
2 Cor.
2:9 “And it was for this purpose that I wrote, in order that I
might know y'all's dependability, whether y'all are obedient
in all things.” (NAW)
92 Cor. 2:3 “And I wrote this very thing to y'all in order that, when I come, I might not have grief from those whom I should be causing to rejoice, having become confident concerning all of y'all (πεποιθὼς ἐπὶ πάντας ὑμᾶς) that my own joy is that of you all.” (NAW) (Compare with 7:16 ...θαρρῶ ἐν ὑμῖν.)
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, UBS, and Tregelles editions, however, are a slightly-different family of GNTs developed since the 1850’s, 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.
FThis is my conflation of the English translations of the Northern Bohairic and Southern Sahidic versions of Corinthians published by Oxford Clarendon Press in 1905 and 1920 respectively, neither volume of which names the translator or editor. The beginnings and ends of multiple-word variants are marked out with brackets, with a superscript “S” for Sahidic or “B” for Bohairic. The editor of the Sahidic compilation did not have manuscripts for vs. 8-11 or 13-15, and it does not appear that subsequently-discovered manuscripts have been translated into English and published, so variants in that section for that tradition are not listed.
GAll three instances of this word “y’all were grieved” in this verse are identical in all the Greek manuscripts (including the three manuscripts dated before the year 500 and the Textus Receptus edition of the Greek New Testament first published in 1516), but the Peshitta (the oldest manuscript of which is dated at around 500 AD) spells all three differently ( ܕܟܪܝܬ ... ܕܟܪܝܘܬܟܘܢ … ܟܪܝܬ ). Surprisingly, only the RV, ASV, NASB, and NET followed the Greek on this. Robertson suggested that the aorist tense connoted inceptive action (“began to be grieved/became grieved”), but that might be reading more into the text than is actually there.
HThis
phrase, which literally renders “according to God,” and which
occurs once each in verses 9, 10, and 11, occurs 3-5 more times in
the Greek Bible, depending on which one you read:
4
Ma. 15:3 “the pious woman instead
loved the salvation into eternal life κατὰ θεόν.”
(Apocrypha)
Rom. 8:27
“...that κατὰ θεὸν He interceeds on behalf of
saints.”
Eph. 4:24 ...the new man which is created κατὰ
θεὸν in righteousness and holiness…”
1 Pet. 4:6
“...that they might live κατὰ θεὸν in spirit.”
1
Pet. 5:2 “Shepherd… not compulsively but rather voluntarily κατὰ
θεόν…” (Contemporary
critial editions)
Many English
versions (NASB, NIV, NET, NLT,
supported by commentators like Henry,
Plummer,
Robertson, Hodge, and
Hughes)
add the word
“will/intended”
between “according to” and “God,” which doesn’t make
nonsense of the above passages, but isn’t demanded by them either.
This is according to Louw & Nida
semantic domain #89.8 for this word (“a marker of a relation
involving similarity of process - ‘in accordance with, in relation
to.’” – which is the AGNT’s
label for this instance of kata).
However, if
it be argued that this is an abbreviated form of κατὰ τὸ
θέλημα τοῦ θεου” found in 1 Peter 4:19 and Gal.
1:4, I
counter-argue
that the supposed
unabbreviated
form should not be
found only twice, and that in later books, while
the supposed
abbreviation is found up to 8x, and in earlier books. And if
this is an abbreviation, it must be demonstrated why none
of the
other prepositional phrases in the
Greek Bible which begin with kata
and end with theou
should
be meant by this supposed abbreviation, as many of them could fit
just as well (“according
to the foreknowledge
of God”
1 Pet. 1:23, “according
to the power of God”
2 Tim. 1:8, “according
to the grace of God”
2 Thess. 1:12 & 1 Cor. 3:10, “against
the knowledge of God”
2 Cor. 10:5, “according
to the election of God”
Rom. 8:33, “before
the face of the Lord God”
Dan. 4:33, “according
to the word of the Lord God”
2 Kings 14:25, “according
to the blessing of God”
Deut. 12:15 16:17, plus more in the apocrypha).
Every
instance of kata
theon
makes
just as much sense describing the orientation
of the subject
as “oriented toward/in respect to” God (which is another
recognized meaning of kata
- L&N#89.4 “a marker of a specific element bearing a relation
to something else - ‘in relation to, with regard to.’”) rather
than the subject’s conformance
to an
unstated
standard of God’s. This removes the need for inserting
a made-up
word to distinguish the supposed standard which is not in the
original
text. I
see no reason to depart from the tradition of the KJV “godly,”
nor
did Moule or
Calvin (“an
eye to God”).
IAlthough
the one occurrence of this verb in Philippians 3:8 certainly weighs
in favor of translating it “suffer loss,” all the other
occurrences of this verb in the Greek Bible are in punitive
contexts: Exod. 21:22 (punishment for a murderer of an unborn
child); Deut. 22:19 (punishment for a man who falsely accused his
wife of fornication); 1 Es. 1:34 (punishment of a group of
political rebels); Prov. 17:26; 19:19; 21:11; 22:3 (punishments
inflicted upon wicked men); Matt. 16:26; Mk. 8:36; Lk. 9:25
(parallel passages speaking of final judgment, associating gaining
the world with the result to one’s soul. Since our soul can’t be
separated from us, we can’t lose it, but it can suffer in hell.
Matthew’s addendum on offering an exchange for one’s soul also
describes a component of the justice system in which a convicted
criminal might offer to pay a fee to avoid bodily punishment or
execution); and 1 Cor. 3:15 (speaking of suffering on Judgment Day).
Most commentators, however, interpreted this as “harm” instead
of prosecution:
Henry: “...they had received damage by
him in nothing.”
Vincent: “The epistle which won them to
repentance was no damage to them.”
Hughes: “...suffer
loss, by which he means the loss not of salvation but of reward (I
Cor. 3:10-15).”
JAGNT labeled this preposition with Louw & Nida semantic domain #89.25 (“markers of cause or reason, with focus upon the source - ‘because of.’”) following Robertson’s Grammar. Most English versions, however, rendered it in terms of agency “by/through,” which is L&N#89.77. But, considering the judicial and punitive connotation of the verb, I think causality is the better choice.
KThis extra word came from Murdock as part of his English translation; it is not in the Peshitta (and it is not in Etheridge’s or Lamsa’s English versions of the Peshitta).
LBased on Paul’s use of the same word in the previous verse referring to his own deliberation concerning the letter, and based on the lack of an explicit subject to this action in this verse, Phillip Hughes suggested that the person who was “not-regretting” here was Paul, not those who repent unto salvation, but no other commentator I read took that position, and the word is so gramatically connected to “repentance unto salvation” and so unconnected with Paul that it seems too far-fetched.
MThis compound verb (kata + ergazw) is the reading of the majority of Greek manuscripts (the oldest of which dates to the 9th century AD, although it is also found in an undated corrective note in the 4th Century Sinaiticus) and is the reading of the Textus Receptus and Greek Orthodox editions of the GNT, but all 5 of the oldest-known Greek manuscripts (dating from the 3rd to the 6th centuries – plus one from the 15th century), followed by all the contemporary critical editions (CCE’s) spell this verb in its simple form (ergazw). The manuscripts and editions are agreed, however, that this verse ends with the compound form of this same verb. Although the compound form might provide a little more emphasis to the verb, it doesn’t make a practical difference in English translation, as evidenced by the fact that every English version, whether it followed the traditional or contemporary editions’ spelling, used the same English word for both. (The Peshitta and Vulgate also used the same Syriac or Latin word in both places in their versions.)
N“The exclamation ‘Behold!’ with which the Apostle introduces this sentence carries the ring of his exultation...” ~Hughes
OHanna quoted Blass & DeBrunner’s Grammar, “το with the infinitive is in apposition to the pronoun τουτο (cf. 2:1), ‘that you sorrowed.’”
PThis is the third time this phrase has occurred in as many verses. See Endnote L in v. 9.
Q“Y’all” (given as the subject of the verb “to sorrow”) is the reading of the majority of Greek manuscripts (the oldest ones dating back to the 6th century AD – although it is also in a correction to the 4th century Sinaiticus and is the reading of all the ancient Latin, Coptic, and Syriac versions dating back to the 3rd century), and thus it is the reading of the Textus Receptus and Greek Orthodox editions. But 10 Greek manuscripts (including the four oldest-known dating back to the 3rd and 4th centuries AD) and all the contemporary critical editions of the the GNT do not have this pronoun and therefore have no explicit subject for the infinitive “to sorrow” (thus the NASB, NIV, NET, ESV, and NLT changed it to a noun “sorrow/grief/sadness”). This does not change the meaning, however, because the subject can be inferred from the second person plural pronouns further into the sentence, and so no English translation has suggested any other subject to the verb “grieve” than “you/ye.”
RLouw & Nida appear to have created a whole semantic domain just to accommodate this unusual use of alla: 89.96 “coordinate relations which are contrastive with a previously identified event or state.” But I don’t see any reason why the somewhat-less-unusual 91.11 “marker of contrastive emphasis” couldn’t apply here. Nigel Turner’s Grammar labeled this use “empatic,” and translated it, “yes, indeed,” and A.T. Robertson’s Word Pictures asserted that it is “Not adversative use of alla, but copulative…” P. E. Hughes commented, “The repeated ‘yea what’ before each noun powerfully conveys the impression that Paul is at this moment writing in a mood of exalted delight.”
SCf.
1 Cor. 9:3 “My defense to my judges is this…” Jerome
(c.400 AD) = “defensionem,”
Wycliffe (1380 AD) = “defendynge,” Erasmus (1516 AD) =
“satisfaction,” Calvin (1546) = “defense”
THapex legomenon, but the word occurs without the ag- prefix in the Gospels, where it is also translated “indign-” (e.g. in Matt. 20:24 and Mark 10:14).
U“fear” - cf. Acts 9:31, 2 Cor. 5:11; 7:1, & 15.
V“longing” cf. v.7. The next word “zeal” is also in v. 7.
WThere’s no Biblical record of Christians being vengeful (although Moses’ intervention in Acts 7:24 is called “vengeance”); everywhere in the New Testament, it is emphasized that vengeance belongs to God. (But consider Luke 18:7) “Vindication from wrong as in Luke 18:7, to secure punishment (1 Pet. 2:14).” ~A. T. Robertson
XThis preposition “in” is the reading of the majority of Greek manuscripts (the oldest ones dating back to the 9th century AD – although it is also in a correction to the 6th century Bezae), and thus it is the reading of the Textus Receptus and Greek Orthodox editions. But 10 Greek manuscripts (including the four oldest-known dating back to the 4th and 5th centuries AD) and all the contemporary critical editions of the the GNT do not have this preposition. This does not change the meaning, however, because the case of the ensuing phrase is dative which requires the English preposition “in” anyway, so all the English versions read the same. The Vulgate esse negotio is a paraphrase which doesn’t follow either Greek manuscript tradition, but the Peshitta (which dates to the 3rd century AD), has an independent prepositional particle instead of a prepositional prefix, supporting the majority of the Greek manuscripts.
YKJV appears to have followed the Vulgate here which is plural, but no Greek manuscript uses a plural form.
ZMost English versions interpret ei kai as a concessive “although,” which is in the Supplement to Louw & Nida’s lexicon as #89.73a.
AAThis is the reading of the majority of Greek manuscripts (the oldest dating to the 9th century) and of the Textus Receptus and Greek Orthodox editions of the GNT, but 28 Greek manuscripts abbreviate this word by dropping the first iota (or dropping the final nun or dropping both). Contemporary critical editions of the GNT use the abbreviated form because that’s the way it’s spelled in the four oldest-known manuscripts predating the 9th century. This dispute is merely over spelling conventions which changed over time, not over the meaning of the word.
ABThe Latin Vulgate follows 8 Greek manuscripts (dating from the 9th - 16th centuries) which read as though the pronouns in this phrase were switched (“our care for you” instead of “your care for us”). The 4th century Sinaiticus and 6th century Bezae (and perhaps the Bohairic Coptic version) lend partial support to this by switching the second pronoun but not the first (“your care for yourselves”). None of the standard editions of the Greek New Testament (not even the original Textus Receptus!) followed that variant (although, significantly, Chrysostom did), but the KJV decided to use it (and therefore is is in Scrivner’s backtranslation of the KJV into Greek). Even as early as the mid-1500’s, Calvin favored “your care for us,” not only because of the manuscript support but also beause it fits Paul’s logical flow better.
ACAll the versions and commentators I read interpreted this as a directional “to/for” (L&N#89.60), but Vincent advocated for a locative “among” (L&N#83.9).
ADThe Sahidic manuscripts referenced here do not contain the rest of this verse, so what follows is only the Bohairic reading until v.15.
AELiterally “upon,” Vincent = “in addition to,” Stanley = “with,” Robertson = “On the basis of.”
AFThis conjunction is the reading of the majority of Greek manuscripts (including 4/5 of the manuscripts from before the 9th century) and thus of the Robinson-Pierpont Byzantine edition, the Greek Orthodox editions, and all the contemporary critical editions. Erasmus, however, omitted it from his Textus Receptus, following about 28 Greek manuscripts (including the oldest-known). Its removal has the effect of making the second phrase of the Greek sentence a prepositional phrase modifying “we were comforted,” instead of making it a separate clause, as all the ancient versions did.
AG“Our” comfort – This is the reading of 9 Greek manuscripts (including all 5 of the ones dated before the 9th century AD), and it is found in the ancient Vulgate and Peshitta versions and in all the contemporary critical GNT editions. On the other hand, the majority of Greek manuscripts (the oldest dating back to the 9th century AD) read “your comfort.” The St. Spyridon Greek Orthodox edition follows the majority reading, as does the Textus Receptus, thus the different reading in the KJV. The ancient Bohairic Coptic version supports the majority.
AH25 miniscule Greek manuscripts between the 11th and 16th century inserted the conjunction δε (“and”) here, triggering its insertion into the Textus Receptus and the KJV, but the insertion is not in the majority of Greek manuscripts nor in any of the oldest-known ones, nor it is supported by the ancient Latin, Syriac, or Coptic versions.
AIHanna quoted Turner’s Grammar, “Απο is used for ‘υπο with an agent after a passive verb...”
AJLiterally “if,” but dropped out of the NIV, ESV, and NLT. Since this is a first class conditional grammar structure in Greek (Robertson), it indicates that Paul thinks the condition is true, so I translated it consessively (“though”).
AKThis phrase he epi Titou could be an adjectival phrase describing “our boasting” or it could be describing the noun “truth,” both of which are nominative, feminine, and singular. All the English versions I consulted interpreted it in the former sense, requiring epi to be the linking preposition between “boasting” and “Titus.” The KJV, NASB, ESV (and Chrysostom and A.T. Robertson) rendered it “before” (L&N#83.35), but the rest rendered it “to Titus,” which isn’t a standard meaning for epi, although perhaps it could be construed under L&N#90.57. I think that L&N’s #90.57 “to the experiencer” meaning of epi could work better with the phrase describing “truth” – especially since “truth” is a noun (and in this case would be a definite noun “the truth”), not the adjective that most English versions made it out to be.
ALCf. 6:12 “...your affections are constricted.”
AMThis verb is found 8 other places in the Greek Bible. In 4 Macc. 13:11, 17:4, Dan. 6:17, 2 Cor. 5:6, 8 and 10:1-2, it is translated “bold” in all the English versions. Only in 2 Cor. 7:16 and Heb. 13:6 do some English versions translate it “confidence.” Calvin, Henry, and G. Wilson interpreted it as “confidence,” but Vincent went so far as to say that “confident” is the “wrong” translation and that the RV (and ASV) “I am of good courage” is “correct.” Robertson seemed to agree, not even using the word “confiden-” in his commentary. Nevertheless, the NASB and ESV changed their parent translations back to the Geneva/KJV tradition of “confidence.” If we use the more meaning (“emboldened”), then the following preposition en could be translated instrumentally (“by you”), although Vincent translated it locatively still (“in/among”).
ANThe KJV followed half a dozen Greek manuscripts dated between the 11th and 16th centuries which inserted ουν (“therefore”), but that insertion is not in any standard edition of the Greek New Testament – not the Majority Text, the Greek Orthodox, the Textus Receptus, or any of the contemporary critical editions. (The only one in which one may find it is Scrivner’s, which is just a back-translation of the KJV from English into Greek and so not a true Greek edition.) It is also not to be found in any of the ancient versions. However, the presence or non-presence of a “therefore” doesn’t significantly change the meaning.