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2Cor.2:1. So I decided within myself not to come to you again with grief. The word "again" shows that he was sad before. However, he did not say explicitly: “You have upset me before,” but in a different way: “I did not come so as not to upset you again,” which, however, has the same force (for he saddened them with reproaches because they saddened him with sins), but for them it was more bearable. 2Cor.2:2. For if I grieve you, who will make me happy if not the one who grieves me? Although I upset you, he says, with reproaches and indignation towards you, but thanks to this I rejoice, seeing that you respect me so much that my indignation and reproaches produce sorrow in you. For no one makes me so happy as someone who grieves so much at the sight of my indignation. This shows that he doesn't despise me. He makes me happy because in this way he gives me hope for his correction. 2Cor.2:3. This is exactly what I wrote to you, What? The fact that I did not come to you, sparing you. Where did you write? In this very message. so that when I come, I will not have grief from those about whom I should have rejoiced, For this reason, I have now written to you, so that you will correct yourself, and so that, having found you not corrected, I would not have sorrow from you, which should have given me occasions for joy. for I am confident in you all that my joy is joy for you all. I wrote, he says, hoping that you will improve and thereby make me happy. My joy is joy for all of you. And I said “so that when I come, I will not have grief” because I mean not my own benefit, but yours. For I know that if you see me rejoicing, you will rejoice, and if you see me grieving, you will grieve. 2Cor.2:4. Out of great sorrow and constricted heart, I wrote to you with many tears, Since he said above that he rejoices when they grieve, so that they do not say: that’s why you are trying to make us sad, so that you yourself can rejoice, he explains that he himself grieves greatly, grieves more than those who sin. Not only from sorrow, but “from great sorrow,” and not only with tears, but “with many tears,” I wrote. That is, sadness, squeezing and oppressing my heart, suppressed it, and therefore I wrote, like a father and at the same time a doctor, who, performing sections and cauterizations on his son, is doubly sad, both because his son is sick and because he himself must subject him to a section, but, on the other hand, he rejoices because he hopes for his son’s recovery. So, he says, when I insult you who sin, I grieve, but, on the other hand, I rejoice when you grieve, for I have hope for your correction. not to upset you, but so that you may know the love that I have in abundance for you. It should not be said “to grieve you,” but “to correct you”; however, he does not say this, but sweetens his speech, wanting to attract them with the assurance that he loves them more than other disciples, and that if he upsets them, he upsets them out of love, and not out of anger. For it is a sign of the greatest love that I grieve over your sins, and I hasten to reprimand you and thereby grieve you. If I did not love you, I would leave you without healing. 2Cor.2:5. If anyone upset, then he did not upset me, but partly, not to say much, and all of you. Through this he wants to establish love for the one who fell into fornication, about whom he wrote in the first epistle, for, by the order of Paul, they all turned away from him as one who inspires disgust. So, so that again by the command of the opposite, that is, to accept him and show him favor, they would not be tempted by Paul as fickle, he very prudently offers a word and makes them participants in forgiveness, saying: just as he saddened us all in general, so everyone in general should rejoice at his forgiveness. For not only, he says, did he sadden me, but also all of you “in part,” that is, he struck me with some small sorrow; I won’t say that he completely saddened you, as well as me, but still, so as not to aggravate him, who fell into fornication, “in part,” I say, he saddened you. 2Cor.2:6. For such a one, this punishment from many is enough. He does not say: for one who has fallen into fornication, but “for such a one,” as in the first letter. But there he didn’t even want to name him, but here, sparing him, he never remembers sin, teaching us to sympathize with those who are stumbling. 2Cor.2:7. So you better forgive him and console him already, Not only, he says, lift the prohibition, but also grant him something more, and console him, that is, revive him, heal him, just as someone who punished someone would not only let him go, but would also take care to heal his wounds. Well he said: “you better forgive.” For, so that he does not think that he receives forgiveness as having sufficiently confessed and sufficiently repented, he shows that he receives forgiveness not so much for repentance, but because of their condescension. lest he be consumed by excessive sadness, It is necessary, he says, to accept him, console him and heal him, “so that he is not swallowed up,” as if by some beast, or by waves, or by a storm, or so that out of despair he does not reach suicide, like Judas, or so that he does not become even worse, that is, being unable to endure the sorrows of excessive punishment, he does not indulge in greater wickedness. Notice how he is also curbed, so that, having received forgiveness, he does not become even more careless. I, he says, accepted you not because you were completely cleansed of filth, but because I was afraid that, due to your weakness, you could do something worse. Note also that punishments should be assigned not only according to the nature of sins, but also in accordance with the nature of the spirit of those who sinned. 2Cor.2:8. and therefore I ask you to show him love. He no longer orders as a teacher, but as a defender asks the judges to “show him love,” that is, with strong love, and not just and how it happened to accept him. It also shows their virtue, for those who formerly loved the man so much that they were proud of him, now, because of his sin, had such aversion to him that Paul himself intercedes for him. 2Cor.2:9. For this is why I wrote, to find out from experience whether you are obedient in everything. It frightens them so that, fearing condemnation for disobedience, they will be more willing to show leniency to the person. “That’s why I wrote,” he says, “to learn from experience” your virtue of obedience, whether you will show me obedience now, when he should be consoled, as you showed it when I punished him. For this is the meaning of the words: “Are you obedient in everything?” Although he did not write for this purpose, but having in mind the salvation of the sinner, he nevertheless says: “in order”, all the more so to position them in favor of the guilty one. 2Cor.2:10. And whoever you forgive for what, I too, This softens disagreement and stubbornness, for which they might not show leniency to a person. For here he represents them as the source of his forgiveness, and himself as agreeing with them, saying: “Whomever you forgive for anything, I also forgive him.” for if I have forgiven anyone for anything, I have forgiven you on behalf of Christ, So that they do not think that forgiveness is granted to their power, and therefore do not neglect the forgiveness of a person, it shows that he has already granted it to him, so that they cannot resist him. And so that they would not be offended as being neglected, he says: “for your sake” I granted him forgiveness, for I knew that you would agree with me. Then, so that it would not seem that he forgave him for the sake of people, he added: “from the face of Christ,” that is, he forgave according to the will of God, before the face of Christ and as if at His command, as representing His face, or: for the glory of Christ; for if forgiveness is accomplished for the glory of Christ, then how can one not forgive the sinner so that Christ may be glorified? 2 Corinthians 2:11. so that Satan does not harm us, for we are not unaware of his plans. So that, he says, there is no general harm and so that the number of the flock of Christ does not decrease. He perfectly called this matter an insult. For the devil not only takes what belongs to him, but also steals what is ours, mainly as a result of our own behavior, that is, because of immoderately imposed repentance. Therefore, he called the devil’s deceit and deception his intentions, and mentioned how he destroys under the guise of piety; for he plunges into destruction not only by drawing into fornication, but also by immeasurable sorrow. How is it not an insult when he catches us through ourselves? 2Cor.2:12. Having come to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, although the door was opened to me by the Lord, 2 Corinthians 2:13. I had no rest for my spirit, because I did not find my brother Titus there, Above, he mentioned the sorrow that happened to him in Asia, and showed how he freed himself from it; now he again announces that he is saddened by something else, because he did not find Titus. For when there is no comforter, it becomes harder. So why do you accuse me of being slow when I have experienced so many disasters that do not allow us to walk of our own free will? He says that he went to Troas not without intention, but “for the gospel,” that is, in order to preach. Why did you preach, but not for long? - because he didn’t find Titus. “I had no rest for my spirit,” that is, I was sad, grieved because of his absence. Is this why you abandoned the work of God? Not for this reason, but because, as a result of his absence, the work of preaching encountered an obstacle, for Paul strongly desired to preach, but the absence of Titus, who helped him a lot when he was with him, hindered him. but, having said goodbye to them, I went to Macedonia. That is, I haven’t been there for a long time due to difficult circumstances. For, although the great door was open, that is, there was a lot of work, but due to the absence of an assistant it met an obstacle. 2Cor.2:14. But thanks be to God, who always allows us to triumph (θριάμβευοντι) in Christ, Since he mentioned many sorrows, about sorrow in Asia, about sorrow in Troas, about sorrow because he did not come to them, so that it would not seem that he was listing the sorrows with sadness, he says: “Thanks be to God, who always allows us to triumph,” that is, who makes us glorious. For a triumph is the procession of a king or general through a city with victory and trophies. And in our victory over the devil, God makes us glorious. Because what appears to be dishonor constitutes our glory, for then the devil falls. Yet this happens in Christ, that is, through Christ and through preaching. Or: because we triumph in Christ, we are glorified; for, carrying Christ Himself like some kind of trophy, we are glorified by His radiance. and the fragrance of knowledge of Himself spreads by us in every place. The valuable ointment, he says, is the knowledge of God, which we reveal to all people; it would be better to say – not the ointment itself, but its fragrance. For real knowledge is not entirely clear, but “as through a glass darkly” (1 Cor. 13:12). So, just as someone, smelling a fragrance, knows that there is ointment somewhere, but does not know what it is in essence, so we know that there is a God, but we do not know who He is in essence. So, we are like a royal censer and, wherever we go, we bring the fragrance of the spiritual world, that is, the knowledge of God. Therefore, having said above that we always triumph, he now says: we impart a fragrance to people in every place. For every place and time is full of our instructions. So, we must endure courageously, since even now, even before receiving future benefits, we are glorified to such an extent. 2 Corinthians 2:15. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. He also says this because we sacrifice ourselves, dying for Christ, or because at the slaughter of Christ we also burn some incense. The meaning of his words is as follows: whether someone is saved or perishes, the Gospel retains its dignity and we continue to be what we are. Just as light, although it blinds the weak in sight, nevertheless remains light, or like honey, although it seems bitter to those suffering from jaundice, yet does not cease to be sweet, so the Gospel gives off a fragrance, although unbelievers perish. And we are “the fragrance of Christ,” but not just, but “to God.” And if God has determined this about us, who will contradict? 2 Corinthians 2:16. For some, the smell is deadly for death, and for others the smell is life-giving for life. Since he said: “We are a fragrance also among those who are perishing,” so that you would not think that those who are perishing are pleasing and pleasing to God, he added the following: by smelling this fragrance, some are saved, while others perish. Just as myrrh, they say, suffocates pigs and beetles, so Christ is laid as a stone of temptation and stumbling. Likewise, fire purifies gold and burns thorns. Since he said so much with the words “we are a fragrance” and “we triumph,” he again tries to moderate his speech. For this he says that we are insufficient on our own without God’s help; for everything belongs to Him and nothing is ours. 2 Corinthians 2:17. For we do not corrupt the word of God, as many do, Here he points to the false apostles who considered the grace of God to be their own work. Therefore, he says, I said: “Who is capable?” - and I learned everything to God that I am not like the false apostles, I do not damage or pervert the gift of God. It is hinted that they mix in the teachings of the Gospel the tricks of external wisdom and try to sell for money what should be given freely. But we are not like that. Therefore he adds the following. but we preach sincerely, as from God, before God, in Christ. That is, we speak from a pure and incapable of deception mind and as having received what we say from God, and not as something done by us. "In Christ" - not from our own wisdom, but inspired by His power; and “said before God” to show the truthfulness and openness of the heart: our heart is so pure that we open it to God. You might be interested in: