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Scripture Reading: 2 Cor. 7:2-16
In 7:2 and 3 Paul says, “Make room for us; we wronged no one, we corrupted no one, we took advantage of no one. I do not say this to condemn you, for I have said before that you are in our hearts to die together and to live together.” Paul’s word here reveals his deep, intimate concern for the Corinthians. This utterance is not merely something ethical, religious, spiritual, or even loving. It is possible to say a word of love and feel love for others, but still not have much concern for them. Our love for others must become our concern for them. Paul had such a concern for the believers at Corinth.
A mother has not only love for her child; she also has a deep concern. Only a woman with such a concern is qualified to be a proper mother. A woman may be lacking in education, but if she has a deep concern for her children, she is qualified to be a good mother. Of course, knowledge and ability are helpful, but they are not prerequisites. The unique prerequisite for being a good mother is concern. The same principle is true regarding caring for the church. It is not adequate for the elders simply to love the church. This love must become a deep concern, a concern for all the young ones and weaker ones. This concern causes our labor to be fruitful. We all need this kind of intimate concern for others.
Not long ago, when I was working on this chapter, I was wondering what word I could use to describe Paul’s feeling. I realized that Paul’s word here is not something that is merely ethical, moral, religious, or spiritual. What he says here is a matter of intimate concern, of deep, tender, affectionate concern for the believers. In verse 2 Paul says, “Make room for us,” and in verse 3 he declares, “You are in our hearts to die together and to live together.” These are not ordinary human words. Rather, they are words from the heavens, words from the heart of God. Paul’s longing was that just as he had the Corinthians in his heart, so he would be in their heart. The believers at Corinth were in Paul’s heart both to live together and to die together. This surely is a word expressing an intimate concern.
In verse 8 Paul goes on to say, “Because even if I caused you sorrow by the letter, I do not regret it, even if I did regret it; because I see that that letter, even if for an hour, caused you sorrow.” By the word “letter” Paul refers to his first Epistle to the Corinthians. His word concerning regret indicates that he was not only bold and frank in rebuking the believers in his first Epistle, but also tender and soft toward them. The words “caused you sorrow” in verse 8 show that the apostle’s first Epistle to the believers at Corinth was effective in regard to them.
In verse 8 Paul uses the expression “even if” three times. He says “even if I caused you sorrow,” “even if I did regret it,” and “even if for an hour.” Why does Paul keep saying “even if”? According to my understanding, if the words “even if” were removed, Paul’s word in this verse would be too hard. Adding in the phrase “even if” has the effect of softening his word. Furthermore, without the use of this phrase Paul in verse 8 would be strongly vindicating himself and arguing on his own behalf. By adding “even if” three times, he reduces the impression that he is vindicating himself.
Married brothers may wish to learn of Paul in order to avoid arguments with their wives. As a brother is talking to his wife, he may find that by inserting the words “even if” he may soften his word to her and thereby keep from offending her.
Moreover, by the phrase “even if” Paul gives a sweet taste to his words. Paul’s use of “even if” in verse 8 may be compared to adding honey to a cup of tea. Just as the taste of tea may be too strong without honey, so Paul’s words may have been too strong to receive without the repeated use of “even if.” By using this phrase three times, Paul softens his word and sweetens it.
As Paul was writing to the Corinthians, all the facts and the arguments were on his side. The Corinthians had no case whatever. Because Paul had won the case, he could easily have written something that would have been very hard for the Corinthians to accept. Therefore, in writing to them he was both wise and tender.
If we have an intimate concern, we shall be tender with others. A crude, insensitive person does not have an intimate concern. If a husband does not have a proper concern for his wife, he may be very strict and demanding of her. But having an intimate concern will cause him to be tender. Once we become tender, our way of speaking will be soft and sweet.
Verse 8 definitely has the element of softness. Paul says, “Even if I caused you sorrow by the letter, I do not regret it, even if I did regret it.” There is softness here. But suppose Paul had said, “In writing you the first Epistle I did not do anything wrong and I had no regrets about it.” Surely that way of speaking would have been offensive. Paul, however, did not express himself in such a manner. He softened his words by adding the phrase “even if.” In this way Paul expressed his tender feeling for the believers.
We need to be impressed by the fact that Paul’s way of speaking in this verse is soft and sweet. Therefore, no matter what he says, he does not cause any offense. The kind of expression Paul uses in verse 8 does not offend others. Instead of being hard and bitter, it is soft and sweet.
In writing to the Corinthians, Paul did not speak in a hasty manner. Often when we speak in haste we express anger. For example, if a sister complains to her husband about something he has done, he may hastily reply, “What’s wrong with me? Prove to me that I am mistaken!” This kind of word provokes anger. It is better for a brother not to be hasty in speech in order to calm down the situation with his wife. He needs to speak in a soft, pleasant manner. This is the way Paul wrote to the Corinthians in chapter seven.
In this chapter we do not find theology, ethics, or religion. In a sense, we do not even find spirituality. Without adequate experience, we are not able to describe what is revealed in 2 Corinthians 7. I have begun to understand this chapter not only through study, but also through experience, even though my experience has been limited. From experience I have realized that what Paul is speaking here is not theology or doctrine, ethics or morality, religion or spirituality. He is conveying a deep, tender, and intimate concern for the Corinthians. His word is very touching.
Because Paul’s expression is tender and filled with intimate concern, it has power and impact. It is able to touch the believers deeply. Proverbs 25:15 says, “A soft tongue breaketh the bone.” Even a hard bone can be broken by a soft word of meekness. In speaking the truth to the Corinthians and presenting the facts, Paul knew it was difficult for him to avoid condemning the Corinthians. But his tender concern for them caused him to speak soft words and sweet phrases. May we all learn of him.
In verse 9 Paul says, “Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorrowful, but that you were made sorrowful to repentance; for you were made sorrowful according to God, that in nothing you might suffer loss from us.” The repentance mentioned here was the result the apostle sought in writing his first Epistle. The apostle’s first Epistle made them sorrowful according to God, not for anything else. This indicates that they have been brought back to God, reconciled to Him.
It seems that in verse 9 Paul has only a small point to make, yet he deliberately lengthens his expression. This also shows his tenderness, his intimate concern.
In this verse we see that Paul’s spirit was soft and that his entire being was filled with sweetness. You may wonder how we know this. By what Paul says in this verse we know that he is a tender person with a softened spirit and a sweet inner being. However, he is not political or even polite. To be tender, soft, and sweet is different from being polite. A person may be very polite, but may not be at all soft or sweet. That kind of politeness may be very uncomely. On the one hand, someone may be polite; on the other hand, at the same time he may be hard, haughty, and proud. Paul, on the contrary, was neither polite nor political, which is even worse. He was tender, soft, and sweet.
Verse 10 says, “For the sorrow according to God works repentance unto salvation, a repentance without regret; but the sorrow of the world works death.” Salvation here refers to being reconciled to God (5:20). This results in more life, which is versus death. By this the apostle sees the fruit of his first Epistle to the Corinthian believers.
In verse 11 Paul continues, “For behold this very thing, your being made sorrowful according to God, what earnestness it wrought in you, moreover, what defense, moreover, what indignation, moreover, what fear, moreover, what longing, moreover, what zeal, moreover, what avenging! In everything you commended yourselves to be pure in the matter.” Being made sorrowful according to God wrought, produced, earnestness in the Corinthians. The Greek word rendered earnestness may also be translated diligence. It refers to the earnest care of the repentant Corinthian believers toward the apostle because of his loving concern for their relationship with God and condition before God. Formerly they were careless with regard to the apostle’s concern. Now in repentance they became careful and earnest concerning it. All seven results produced by the repentant sorrow of the Corinthian believers, as listed in this verse, are a rich reaping that came out of the apostle’s first Epistle to them.
Verse 11 contains seven crucial words: earnestness, defense, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and avenging. The word “moreover” is used six times in this verse. Literally the Greek word means “but,” in the sense of “not only that, but also.” If we read this verse carefully, we shall see that earnestness stands by itself, whereas the last six results of the repentant sorrow according to God fall into three pairs: the first relating to the Corinthian believers’ feelings of shame, the second to the apostle, and the third to the offender (Bengel). Wuest’s translation also indicates this by the expression “Yes...in fact,” three times as follows: “Yes, verbal defense of yourselves, in fact, indignation, yes, fear, in fact, longing, yes, zeal, in fact, the meting out of disciplinary punishment.”
The word earnestness in verse 11 means earnest care. Here Paul seems to be saying, “Corinthians, you did not have any care for us apostles, especially for me. But in the first Epistle I wrote to you I rebuked you, and that caused you to be sorrowful according to God. Such a sorrow works repentance unto salvation. This produced in you an earnest care for us. Now your earnestness concerning us has been recovered. When I came to see you the first time, you did have an earnest care for me. But certain false teachers distracted you and misled you, causing you to forsake your earnest care for us. Now because of sorrow producing repentance unto salvation, you have an earnest care for us again.”
Actually, Paul was pointing out to the Corinthians their shortage, but he did this in a way that was tender, soft, and sweet. His way of presenting the facts was very tender. If I had been one of the Corinthian believers reading this word, I would have been full of shame at having been distracted and misled and having lost my earnest care for the apostle, the very one through whom I had been saved.
The Greek word for defense in verse 11 also means vindication. It refers to the Corinthian believers’ self-vindication, their clearing of themselves to Paul through Titus, their declaration of their innocence in the offense. After experiencing repentance unto salvation, the Corinthians realized that the situation of the church in Corinth was wrong. In his first Epistle Paul had rebuked them and charged them to humble themselves. An extremely serious evil had been present among them, but they did not feel ashamed. Rather, even with the existence of such a gross sin as incest, they had been proud. As a result, the entire church was rebuked. Because the believers at Corinth repented, they were reconciled to God and wanted to vindicate themselves. They were zealous to make the situation clear to the Apostle Paul.
In verse 11 Paul also refers to the Corinthians’ indignation. This was an indignation at the offense and against the offender. As they were endeavoring to vindicate themselves, the Corinthians were indignant. They were angered by the offense and with the one who had caused it. They knew that their situation was sinful, they repented of it, they wanted to vindicate themselves concerning it, and they were indignant because of it. Their feeling of indignation was present along with their defense, their vindication of themselves.
With respect to Paul, the Corinthians had both fear and longing. They had fear of the apostle, lest he come with a rod (1 Cor. 4:21). But they also had a longing for him. The repentant believers had a fear of the apostle, yet they also had a longing desire for him. They surely wanted to see him again.
In verse 11 Paul also speaks of zeal and avenging. The zeal was to mete out the punishment of justice to the offender, and the avenging was the meting out of justice, doing justice, to all parties, as disciplinary punishment (2:6).
Once again I would emphasize that Paul’s word concerning the situation at Corinth is full of tenderness, softness, and sweetness. To be sure, the Corinthians were exposed. Paul, however, was not harsh in writing to them. Verse 8 is full of the softening element, and verse 11 is full of wisdom. Verse 11 demonstrates Paul’s best writing. It is difficult to translate into any language the Greek expressions used by Paul. This is true in particular of the word used for “moreover,” or “yea” in the King James Version. As we have seen, this Greek word means “not only so, but also.”
In verse 11 we have a wonderful presentation of the situation at Corinth. By the use of seven words — earnestness, defense, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and avenging — Paul causes the believers at Corinth to know their actual situation. By speaking this way, he brings the situation to the surface and presents a full view of it. Here we see Paul’s tender wisdom. There is no roughness or harshness; instead, there is fineness, tenderness, softness, and sweetness. Paul’s word is full of intimate concern. Instead of offending the Corinthians, he mends them and heals their wounds. This is the ministering life.
It is not sufficient that we learn to preach the gospel or teach doctrine. Paul, of course, was an outstanding preacher of the gospel and a great theologian. He certainly knew all the doctrines of the Bible. But here he does not exercise his ability in preaching or display his knowledge of doctrine. Instead, he exercises in wisdom his tender and intimate concern for the church in Corinth.
In verse 12 Paul goes on to say, “So then, even if I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of him who did the wrong, nor for the sake of him who was wronged, but for the sake of manifesting to you your earnestness on our behalf before God.” Here Paul says that he wrote to the Corinthians not for the sake of the brother who had committed incest (1 Cor. 5:1), the one who did the wrong, nor for the sake of that brother’s father, the one who was wronged. Why then did Paul write? He wrote them for the purpose of manifesting to them their earnestness on the apostles’ behalf. The Corinthian believers did love the apostles and had earnest care toward them, but they had been turned aside by false teachers. Hence, the apostle wrote the first Epistle to bring them back, that their love and earnest care toward the apostles might be made manifest to them (2 Cor. 7:7). Who would have imagined that this was Paul’s reason for writing to the Corinthians? He wrote for the purpose of manifesting to them their earnestness for the apostles. What wisdom Paul displays in his writing! Here Paul seems to be saying, “Corinthian believers, there was in you an earnestness for us. But it was buried and thus was not manifested. I wrote the first Epistle in order to manifest to you the earnest care which you have for us.”
Verse 13 continues, “Therefore we have been encouraged. And in our encouragement we rejoiced more abundantly over the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by all of you.” Darby says that here it is impossible to render the Greek idiom exactly into English. Paul’s saying that he rejoiced more abundantly over the joy of Titus indicates that he was very human and emotional in his ministering of life. This major section, from 2:12 through 7:16, concerning the apostles’ ministry of the new covenant and themselves as the ministers of the new covenant, begins with the apostle’s being anxious to meet Titus because of his loving concern for the Corinthian believers (2:13) and ends with his being encouraged by the coming of Titus with positive news concerning them.
In verse 13 Paul says that the spirit of Titus had been refreshed by all the Corinthians. This indicates that even though the apostles were human and emotional, they still remained in their spirit in their ministering of life.
In verse 14 Paul says, “Because if I have boasted anything to him on your behalf, I was not put to shame; but as we spoke all things in truth to you, so also our boasting before Titus turned out to be truth.” It is certain that Paul had boasted to Titus concerning the Corinthians. Now Paul says that his boasting before Titus turned out to be truth.
Verse 15 says, “And his affections are abundantly toward you, remembering the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling.” The Greek word rendered “affections” here literally means bowels; it is the same word rendered “inward parts” in 6:12.
In verse 16 Paul concludes, “I rejoice that in everything I am of good courage concerning you.” The Greek words translated “of good courage concerning you” can also be rendered “confident in you.” The apostle was encouraged by the Corinthian believers and could now have confidence in them. What a deep, intimate concern Paul had for them!
