1 Paul, an ^aapostle of Christ Jesus ^bby the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia:

2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 ^cBlessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of ^dmercies and ^eGod of all ^fcomfort, 4 who ^gcomforts us in ^hall our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as we ⁱshare abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.¹ 6 If we are afflicted, ^jit is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. 7 Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.

8 For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers,² of ^kthe affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. 9 Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God ^lwho ^mraises the dead. 10 He ⁿdelivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him ^owe have set our hope that he will deliver us again. 11 ^pYou also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.

12 For our boast is this, the testimony of our ^qconscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity³ and godly ^rsincerity, not by ^searthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. 13 For we are not writing to you anything other than what you read and understand and I hope you will fully understand— 14 just as you did partially understand us—that on the ^tday of our Lord Jesus you will ^uboast of us as we will ^vboast of you.

15 Because I was sure of this, ^wI wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a second ^xexperience of grace. 16 ^yI wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you send me on my way to Judea. 17 Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans ^zaccording to the flesh, ready to say “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? 18 As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. 19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. 20 For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. 21 And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has ^aanointed us, 22 and who has also ^bput his seal on us and given us his Spirit ^cin our hearts as a ^dguarantee.⁴

23 But ^eI call God to witness against me—^fit was to spare you that I refrained from coming again to Corinth. 24 Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, for you ^gstand firm in your faith.

1 For I made up my mind not to make another painful visit to you. 2 For ^hif I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained? 3 And ⁱI wrote as I did, so that when I came I might not suffer pain from those who should have made me rejoice, for ^jI felt sure of all of you, that my joy would be the joy of you all. 4 For I wrote to you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to cause you pain but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.

5 Now if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure—not to put it too severely—to all of you. 6 For such a one, this ^kpunishment by the majority is enough, 7 so ^lyou should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 So ^mI beg you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 For this is why I wrote, that I might test you and know whether you are ⁿobedient in everything. 10 Anyone whom you forgive, I also forgive. Indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, 11 so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs.

12 When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, even though a ^odoor was opened for me in the Lord, 13 my spirit was ^pnot at rest because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia.

14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always ^qleads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the ^rfragrance of the ^sknowledge of him everywhere. 15 For we are the ^taroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16 to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? 17 For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word, but as men of ^usincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.

1 ^vAre we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, ^wletters of recommendation to you, or from you? 2 ^xYou yourselves ^yare our letter of recommendation, written on our⁵ hearts, to be known and read by all. 3 And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on ^ztablets of stone but on ^atablets of ^bhuman hearts.⁶

4 Such is the ^cconfidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a ^dnew covenant, ^enot of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but ^fthe Spirit gives life.

7 Now if the ^gministry of death, carved in letters on stone, came with such glory that ^hthe Israelites could not gaze at Moses’ face because of its glory, which was being brought to an end, 8 will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory? 9 For if there was glory in the ministry of condemnation, the ministry of righteousness must far exceed it in glory. 10 Indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it. 11 For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory.

12 Since we have such a hope, we are very ⁱbold, 13 not like Moses, ^jwho would put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not gaze at the outcome of what was being brought to an end. 14 But their ^kminds were ^lhardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. 15 Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. 16 But when one⁷ turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord⁸ is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is ^mfreedom. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, ⁿbeholding ^othe glory of the Lord,⁹ are being ^ptransformed ^qinto the same image from one degree of glory to another.¹⁰ For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

1 Therefore, having this ministry ^rby the mercy of God,¹¹ we do not ^slose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. ^tWe refuse to practice¹² cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth ^uwe would commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even ^vif our gospel is veiled, it is veiled ^wto those who are perishing. 4 In their case the ^xgod of this world has ^yblinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the ^zimage of God. 5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but ^aJesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your ^bservants¹³ for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, ^c“Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts ^dto give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. 8 ^eWe are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 ^falways carrying in the body the death of Jesus, ^gso that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our bodies. 11 For we who live are ^halways being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So ⁱdeath is at work in us, but life in you.

13 Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, ^j“I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, 14 ^kknowing that ^lhe who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and ^mbring us with you into his presence. 15 For ⁿit is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self¹⁴ is wasting away, our ^oinner self is being ^prenewed day by day. 17 For ^qthis light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look ^rnot to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

1 For we know that if the ^stent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a ^thouse not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this tent we ^ugroan, longing ^vto put on our heavenly dwelling, 3 if indeed by putting it on¹⁵ we may not be found naked. 4 For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a ^wguarantee.¹⁶

6 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, 7 for ^xwe walk by faith, not by sight. 8 Yes, we are of good courage, and ^ywe would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. 9 So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. 10 For ^zwe must all appear before the ^ajudgment seat of Christ, so that ^beach one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

11 Therefore, knowing the ^cfear of the Lord, we persuade others. But ^dwhat we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. 12 ^eWe are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause ^fto boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward ^gappearance and not about what is in the heart. 13 For ^hif we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died ⁱfor all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for ^jall, that those who live might ^kno longer live for themselves but ^lfor him who for their sake died and was raised.

16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one ^maccording to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a ⁿnew creation.^{17 o}The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ ^preconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling¹⁸ the world to himself, not ^qcounting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ^rambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake ^she made him to be sin ^twho knew no sin, ^uso that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

1 Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God ^vin vain. 2 For he says,

Behold, ^xnow is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 3 We put no ^yobstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God ^zwe commend ourselves in every way: ^aby great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; 7 by truthful speech, and the ^bpower of God; with the ^cweapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as ^ddying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet ^ealways rejoicing; as poor, yet making many ^frich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.

11 We have spoken freely to you,¹⁹ Corinthians; our heart is wide open. 12 You are not restricted by us, but ^gyou are restricted in your own affections. 13 In return (I speak as to children) widen your hearts also.

14 Do not be ^hunequally yoked with unbelievers. For ⁱwhat partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or ^jwhat fellowship has light with darkness? 15 ^kWhat accord has Christ with Belial?²⁰ Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? 16 What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For ^lwe are the temple of the living God; as God said,

1 Since we have these promises, beloved, ^qlet us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body²¹ and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the ^rfear of God.

2 ^sMake room in your hearts²² for us. ^tWe have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of no one. 3 I do not say this to condemn you, for ^uI said before that you are ^vin our hearts, to die together and to live together. 4 I am acting with great ^wboldness toward you; I have great ^xpride in you; ^yI am filled with comfort. In ^zall our affliction, I am ^aoverflowing with joy.

5 For even when we came into Macedonia, our bodies had ^bno rest, but we were afflicted at every turn—fighting without and fear within. 6 But God, who ^ccomforts the downcast, comforted us by the coming of ^dTitus, 7 and not only by his coming but also by the comfort with which he was comforted by you, as he told us of your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced still more. 8 For ^eeven if I made you grieve with ^fmy letter, I do not regret it—though I did regret it, for I see that that letter grieved you, though only for a while. 9 As it is, I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because you were grieved into repenting. For you felt a godly grief, so that you suffered no loss through us.

10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death. 11 For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter. 12 So although I wrote to you, it was not for the sake of the one who did the wrong, nor for the sake of the one who suffered the wrong, but in order that your earnestness for us might be revealed to you in the sight of God. 13 Therefore we are ^gcomforted.

And besides our own comfort, we rejoiced still more at the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all. 14 For whatever boasts I made to him about you, I was not put to shame. But just as ^heverything we said to you was true, so also our boasting before Titus has proved true. 15 And his affection for you is even greater, as he remembers the ⁱobedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling. 16 I rejoice, because ^jI have complete confidence in you.

1 We want you to know, brothers,²³ about the grace of God that has been given ^kamong the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their ^labundance of joy and ^mtheir extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For they gave ⁿaccording to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor²⁴ of taking part in the ^orelief of the saints— 5 and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us. 6 Accordingly, ^pwe urged Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you this ^qact of grace. 7 But ^ras you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you²⁵—see that you excel in this act of grace also.

8 ^sI say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is ^tgenuine. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, ^uyet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might ^vbecome rich. 10 And in this matter I give my judgment: this benefits you, who ^wa year ago started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. 11 So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. 12 For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. 13 For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that as a matter of fairness 14 your abundance at the present time should supply their ^xneed, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. 15 As it is written, ^y“Whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack.”