2 Corinthians 1:1-7 NIV

Grace be to you and peace. On this pregnant synthesis of the Greek and Hebrew greetings, see 1 Corinthians 1:3 ; Romans 1:7 . 2 Corinthians 1:3 . Blessed be God ( Ephesians 1:3 ). This outburst of thanksgiving was meant to repress the relief brought to the overcharged feelings of the apostle by the arrival of Titus, with news respecting the mixed, but on the whole good, effect produced at Corinth by the severe remarks of his first letter. It is characteristic of the intense... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:3-5

The God of Christianity. "Blessed he God, even the Father," etc. The God of nature is revealed in nature as the Almighty and the All-wise. "The invisible things of the world are clearly seen, being made visible by the things that are seen, even his eternal power and Godhead." But God in Christianity appears in three aspects. I. AS THE FATHER OF THE WORLD 'S REDEEMER . "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Jesus Christ is the world's Redeemer, and... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:3-7

True comfort. I. ITS SOURCE . God. Some seek comfort in reflecting that their case is no worse than that of others, that things will improve, that "it can't be helped;" in attempted forgetfulness; in exciting and dissipating pleasures; in unmeasured complaint and repining. But the child of God goes to his Father. God is the god of comfort; he is "the God of all comfort" ( 2 Corinthians 1:3 ). All mercies are of him, and this great mercy of comfort amongst others. Comfort is a ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:3-11

Thanksgiving in the midst of tribulation; uses of sorrow; comforting others; personal references. The ascription begins with "blessed," the strongest term the apostle could employ as representing the highest and strongest emotions, the head-word in the vocabulary of gratitude and praise, found in the Old and New Scriptures, and common to Jews and Gentile Christians. "Blessed;" the best in us acknowledging the God of grace, an anthem in a single utterance, and embodying the whole nature of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:4

Who comforteth us. The "us" implies here, not only St. Paul and Timothy, but also the Corinthians, who are one with them in a bond of Christian unity which was hitherto undreamed of, and was a new phenomenon in the world. St. Paul always uses the first person in passages where he is speaking directly of individual feelings and experiences. In other passages he likes to lose himself, as it were, in the Christian community. The delicate play of emotion is often shown by the rapid interchanges... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:4

Comforted, and therefore comforters. It may seem strange that the Bible, and Christian ministers following its example, should deal so frequently and so largely with troubles and afflictions. You sometimes half suspect that Christian people must have a larger share of earthly sorrow than fails to the lot of others. We may admit a sense in which this is true. The higher susceptibilities of the Christian man, his clearer vision of unseen things, and his separateness from the world, do seem... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:5

As the sufferings of Christ abound in us; rather, unto us . "The sufferings of Christ" are the sufferings which he endured in the days of his flesh, and they were not exhausted by him, but overflow to us who have to suffer as he suffered, bearing about with us his dying, that we may share his life ( 2 Corinthians 4:10 ). The idea is, not that he is suffering in us and with us, but that we have "a fellowship in his sufferings" ( Philippians 3:17 ); Galatians 2:20 , "I have been... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:5

Christian suffering. It is correct to say that Christ suffered in order that we may not suffer, died that we may never die. "Christ suffered for us." But it is also correct to say that Christ suffered in order that we may suffer with him, and, following him in the path of self denial and patience, may be with him in his kingdom and glory. The apostles Paul and Peter regarded sufferings for Christ as continuations of the sufferings of Christ, and always looked, and taught their brethren to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:5

Christ's sufferings renewed in his disciples. "For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us." We have expressed here a characteristic and familiar thought of the apostle's—the one which brought to him the fullest and deepest consolations. It is true, but it is too easily apprehended to be all the truth, that St. Paul's sufferings, borne in fulfilling his ministry, were Christ's sufferings because a part of his service; but the apostle evidently reached the unspeakably precious and... read more

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:1-24

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:2

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:3-5

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:3-7

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:3-11

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:4

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:4

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:5

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:5

The Pulpit Commentary - 2 Corinthians 1:5

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