2 Corinthians ~ Part 1

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As I emphasized in my previous posts, we are delving into the profound significance of Sha’ul’s Letters to the Corinthians, a crucial cornerstone of our faith.

Introduction

Sha’ul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians is the sleeper among the four traditional ‘chief letters’ of the apostle: Romans, Galatians, and the Corinthian correspondence. It does not have quite the contemporary feel of 1 Corinthians, with its issues of unity, sex, lawsuits, men and women in the Kehilah, and tongues, or the theological profundity of Romans, or the nearly uncontrollable passion of Galatians. But 2 Corinthians is more than a sleeper; it is something of a sleeping giant.

In this letter (or, as some think, a collection of letters), Sha’ul bares his soul, and the soul of his Gospel, to the Corinthian community of Believers he ‘fathered.’ He does this to effect a reconciliation between them and him, and, ultimately, he believes, between them and God. In doing so Sha’ul takes the considerable risk of sounding entirely self-promotional and of further alienating the Kehilah. However, what Sha’ul is up to in explaining and defending his apostleship—and in asking the Corinthians to fulfill a financial commitment to the Jerusalem Kehilah—is a defense of the Spirit-filled and life-giving cruciform shape of Messianic life and ministry, whether his or that of his recipients.

Reconstructing the events that occurred in the relationship between Sha’ul and the Corinthians leading to the writing of 2 Corinthians is a complex task. The challenge is especially complicated by the contents of the letter itself since various parts seem to have distinct agendas and tones, referring to different past events and reflecting different contemporary situations. Many scholars have, therefore, concluded that 2 Corinthians is a composite of several letters. They suggest that a later editor pieced together fragments of several communications from Sha’ul to the Corinthians. Their theories range from the simple to the moderately complex to the unwieldy.

Most interpreters do agree, however, that there are three distinct components to 2 Corinthians: chapters 1–7, 8–9, and 10–13. We shall return to the question of how these components are connected, but for now, we can offer a brief, tentative summary of the events behind each of these sections. On almost any reconstruction these events and the letter(s) they generated are to be dated to the mid-50s (54–57 CE), and the correspondence was almost certainly sent from Macedonia (see 7:5).^[1]

This letter is sent with Titus and others who are returning to Corinth to receive funds for the relief of the brethren in Judea who need financial assistance.

Salutation

1¹ From: Sha’ul, by God’s will, an emissary of the Messiah Yeshua and Brother Timothy,

To: God’s Messianic community in Corinth, along with all God’s people throughout Achaia:

² Grace to you and shalom from God our Father and the Lord Yeshua the Messiah.

Gratitude for God’s Comfort

³ Praised be God, Father of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, compassionate Father, God of all encouragement and comfort; ⁴ who encourages us in all our trials, so that we can encourage others in whatever trials they may be undergoing with the encouragement we ourselves have received from God. ⁵ For just as the Messiah’s sufferings overflow into us, so through the Messiah, our encouragement also overflows. ⁶ So if we undergo trials, it is for your encouragement and deliverance; and if we are encouraged, that should encourage you when you have to endure sufferings like those we are experiencing. ⁷ Moreover, our hope for you remains staunch because we know that as you share in the sufferings, you will also share in the encouragement. ^[2]

 

Praised be God, Father of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, compassionate Father, God of all encouragement and comfort, who.… This follows the liturgical formula for a Jewish b’rakhah (blessing); see Ephesians 1:3–14, 1 Kefa 1:3–4. Notice that the praise is directed to God the Father, not to Yeshua the Messiah; Messianic faith does not “substitute Yeshua for God.” Encouragement and comfort. Both words are used in v. 3 to translate one Greek word, “paraklêsis,” in vv. 4–7, only one is used as shorthand (see Yochanan 14:16, Acts 4:36). God encourages and comforts those who suffer. The Messiah called His followers to share in His sufferings (Luke 9:23, Romans 8:17–18, Colossians 1:24). Brit Hadasah Believers, both Messianic Jews and Gentile Believers, are promised persecution and suffering (Mark 10:30, Yochanan 16:33); Westerners often find this hard to appreciate. Jews, both non-Messianic and Messianic, will suffer too, for Jeremiah 30:7 speaks of “the time of Jacob’s trouble”; Gentile Believers must stand with them in their suffering, encouraging and comforting them. Messianic Jews share with Gentile Believers God’s encouragement and comfort; it gives them supernatural strength to encourage others (vv. 4–7).

 

 

In our next post, we will continue to dig into Sha’ul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. Stay tuned for more insights and revelations.

 

Click here for the PDF version.

^[1] Michael J. Gorman, Apostle of the Crucified Lord: A Theological Introduction to Paul & His Letters, Second Edition.

^[2] 2 Corinthians 1:1-7.