Глава VI

The exploits of the ap. Paul (1–10). Exhortation to the Corinthians to withdraw from fellowship with the pagans (11–18). 2 Corinthians 6:1–10. Ap. is proud that he was chosen by God to take part in the salvation of people. The time for this salvation has now come. Ap. at the same time, in the form of a hymn, he depicts those feats that he had to accomplish to save people by the grace of Christ. 2Cor.6:1. We, as companions, beg you so that the grace of God will not be received by you in vain. 2 Corinthians 6:2. For it is said: in an acceptable time I heard you and on the day of salvation I helped you 5. Behold, now is the favorable time, behold, now is the day of salvation. The Apostle exhorts the Corinthians, as fellow workers with God (cf. 1 Cor 3:9), so that they do not accept the grace of Christ in vain, but use it for their improvement in virtue. Now is the most favorable, convenient time for this, because the Servant of Jehovah (cf. Isa 49:8), i.e., our Lord Jesus Christ, has been heard by Jehovah the Father in His intercessions for people, and people have the full opportunity to do godly deeds. The Lord Jesus Christ prayed for us, and the heavenly Father, through His prayer, opens before us the treasures of His grace (cf. interpretation on Isaiah 49:8). 2 Corinthians 6:3. We do not cause anyone to stumble in anything, so that our service may not be reproached, 2Cor.6:4. but in everything we show ourselves as servants of God, in great patience, in adversity, in need, in difficult circumstances, 2 Cor.6:5. under blows, in prisons, in exiles, in labors, in vigils, in fasts, Everything that the Apostle lists here represents only varieties of one virtue - “patience”. The first type of “patience” is enduring “disasters,” i.e., external persecution, the second is enduring “needs,” i.e., the hardships that accompany or result from persecution. In third place are “difficult circumstances,” which depress mainly the soul of the persecuted. Then he mentions the “strikes” he received (Acts 16 et seq.), his imprisonment “in prison,” and the need to frequently move from one place to another (“exiles.” According to another translation: popular unrest). Finally, the Apostle showed his patience in his intense “works” for the good of the Church (1 Cor 3:8), “in vigils” at night when it was necessary (Acts 20:31) and “in fasting” (Acts 13:2–3, 14:23 et seq.). 2 Cor.6:6. in purity, in prudence, in generosity, in goodness, in the Holy Spirit, in unfeigned love, 2 Corinthians 6:7. in the word of truth, in the power of God, with the weapon of righteousness in the right and left hand, At the head of the virtues listed here is “purity” or integrity of heart and will (cf. 1 Peter 1:22). – “Benevolence” is a disposition towards people, a desire to do good to them. - The Holy Spirit is not the Third Person of the Holy Trinity - if the Apostle had already mentioned Him, he would have done so earlier - but that life-giving power of the Spirit that manifested itself in the Apostle’s preaching in Corinth (1 Cor 2:4) and in other places. – “The power of God” is the ability to confirm one’s teachings with miracles. “Weapons of righteousness” are all the words and deeds of Paul aimed at establishing the right faith. 2 Cor.6:8. in honor and dishonor, with reproach and praise: we are considered deceivers, but we are faithful; 2 Corinthians 6:9. we are unknown, but we are recognized; we are considered dead, but behold, we are alive; we are punished, but we do not die; 2 Corinthians 6:10. we are saddened, but we always rejoice; We are poor, but we enrich many: we have nothing, but we possess everything. In a variety of situations in life, Ap. Paul appeared in all the majesty that befits a true servant of God. He is evidenced as a servant of God by both the respect that the listeners of his sermon showed towards him (“in honor”) and the shame to which he was subjected by his opponents (“dishonor”). He, like Christ (cf. Matthew 27:63), was called a deceiver, a deceiver of the people, but on the contrary, he always behaved as a befitting honest figure. Many looked at him as a person who did not deserve the fame to which he claimed (“we are unknown”), and yet he was well known in those places that he announced with his preaching. – The following contrasts develop the idea that no persecution, no persecution can weaken the Apostle’s zeal for his ministry and interfere with the success of his work. He, the Apostle, has too much inner strength and consciousness of his useful significance for all humanity. He has everything that only a person striving for true happiness could wish for! 2 Corinthians 6:11–18. Ap. now explains what he said in the first verse about the proper use of the grace of God. – This grace may remain in vain if the Corinthians do not renounce the habits of pagan life. But before this new admonition of Ap. speaks of his sincere affection for the Corinthians and asks them to be also disposed towards him. The exhortation itself is then offered in the form of questions in which the idea is raised about the inconsistency of the Christian state of those vices that the Corinthians borrowed from the pagans. 2 Corinthians 6:11. Our lips are open to you, Corinthians, our hearts are enlarged. The apostle speaks to his readers quite frankly. His heart is so wide that the need of every Corinthian will find a place in it. 2 Corinthians 6:12. You are not cramped in us; but your hearts are tight. The Apostle was reproached for allegedly oppressing the Corinthians and treating them tyrannically (cf. 2 Cor. 1:24). But this is not so: they themselves are too narrow in their views in order to understand the magnanimous course of action of the Apostle Paul. 2 Corinthians 6:13. In equal retribution, I say, as to children, you too will spread. Seeing in the Corinthians his children in spirit, the Apostle asks them with the hope that his request will be fulfilled, so that they will pay him with love for his love for them. 2 Corinthians 6:14. Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers, for what fellowship has righteousness with iniquity? What does light have in common with darkness? 2 Corinthians 6:15. What agreement is there between Christ and Belial? Or what is the complicity of the faithful with the infidel? In the Law of Moses it was forbidden to harness a clean and an unclean animal together (Deut. 22:10). This is a prohibition by Ap. applies to the position of the Corinthians as having a typical meaning. – The five questions that follow are generally clear: they all point to the impropriety for a Christian to maintain communication with pagans in the vices to which they indulge. But what does the name "Velial" mean? In the Old Testament, this name corresponds to the word “Beliar,” which denotes a thing or deed that is completely useless, worthless for anything: but here, as can be seen from the contrast of “Beliar” with Christ, the word Belial denotes a person. This word also had this meaning in later Judaism. Here, according to the context of speech, it can mean the Antichrist or the devil. 2 Corinthians 6:16. What is the relationship between the church of God and idols? For you are the church of the living God, as God said: I will dwell in them and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people 6 . Ap. bases his admonition on Old Testament sayings. That believers are the church of God - he proves this on the basis of Lev. 26:11 et seq. Here God promises Israel a reward if they remain faithful to God's law. And Christians are the new Israel. 2 Corinthians 6:17. Therefore, come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord, and do not touch the unclean; and I will receive you 7. 2 Corinthians 6:18. And I will be a Father to you, and you will be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty 8 . Just as the prophet Isaiah called on the Jews to leave sinful Babylon (Isaiah 52:11), so the Apostle convinces the Corinthian Christians to break off communication with the pagan world. – Where did the expression come from: “and I will be a Father to you”? According to our Russian text, the source in this case for the Apostle was the books of Jeremiah and Hosea, but this is hardly the case, because in these books there is no such expression. The newest interpreters believe that Ap. here I slightly modified the expression 2 Samuel 7:14, referring to a descendant of David. Some critics consider passage VI:14-VII:1 to be inauthentic for the following reasons: 1) it deals with a subject that is not spoken of anywhere else in the entire epistle, 2) the style of this passage is not very elegant and does not generally correspond to the way of expression used by Ap. Paul, 3) these verses disrupt the connection of speech and with their elimination a completely coherent speech is obtained: the second verse of the VIIth chapter will be a natural continuation of the 13th verse of the VIth chapter. – But these considerations are not serious enough. Firstly, there is a hint about the Corinthians’ passion for pagan vices in 2 Cor. 13:2. Secondly, interpolated reasoning is often found in the Apostle’s other epistles and, thirdly, the style, strictly speaking, here does not at all contain anything unusual for the works of the Apostle. 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