Introduction to 2nd Corinthians Chapter 12
THIS chapter is a continuation of the same general subject which
was discussed in the two previous chapters. The general design of
the apostle is to defend himself from the charges brought against
him in Corinth; and especially, as would appear, from the charge
that he had no claims to the character of an apostle. In the previous
chapters he had met these charges, and had shown that he had just
cause to be bold towards them; that he had in his life given evidence
that he was called to this work; and especially that by his
successes and by his sufferings he had shown that he had evidence
that he had been truly engaged in the work of the Lord Jesus.
This chapter contains the following subjects :--
(1.) Paul appeals to another evidence that he was engaged in the
apostolic office--an evidence to which none of his accusers could
appeals that he had been permitted to behold the glories of the
heavenly world, 2 Corinthians 12:1-10. In the previous chapter he had
mentioned his trials. Here he says, (2 Corinthians 12:1) that as they had
compelled him to boast, he would mention the revelation which he had had
of the Lord. He details, therefore, the remarkable vision which he
had had several years before, (2 Corinthians 12:2-4,) when he was caught up
to heaven, and permitted to behold the wonders there. Yet he says,
that lest such an extraordinary manifestation should exalt him above
measure, he was visited with a sore and peculiar trial--a trial from
which he prayed earnestly to be delivered, but that he received
answer that the grace of God would be sufficient to support him,
2 Corinthians 12:5-9. It was in view of this, he says, (2 Corinthians 12:10,) that
he had pleasure in infirmities and sufferings in the cause of the
Redeemer.
(2.) He then (2 Corinthians 12:11,12) sums up what he had said; draws
the conclusion that he had given every sign or evidence that he was
an apostle; that in all that pertained to toil, and patience, and
miracles, he had shown that he was commissioned by the Saviour;
though with characteristic modesty he said he was nothing.
(3.) He then expresses his purpose to come again and see them,
and his intention then not to be burdensome to them, 2 Corinthians 12:13-15.
He was willing to labour for them, and to exhaust his strength in
endeavouring to promote their welfare without receiving support
from them; for he regarded himself in the light of a father to them,
and it was not usual for children to support their parents.
(4.) In connexion with this, he answers another charge against
himself. Some accused him of being crafty; that though he did
not burden them, yet he knew well how to manage so as to secure
what he wanted without burdening them, or seeming to receive
anything from them, 2 Corinthians 12:16. To this he answers by an appeal to
fact. Particularly he appeals to the conduct of Titus when with
them, in full proof that he had no such design, 2 Corinthians 12:17-19.
(5.) In the conclusion of the chapter he expresses his fear that
when he should come among them he would find much that would
humble them, and give him occasion for severity of discipline,
2 Corinthians 12:20,21. This apprehension is evidently expressed in order that
they might be led to examine themselves, and to put away whatever
was wrong.
Verse 1. It is not expedient. It is not well; it does not become me.
This may either mean that he felt and admitted that it did not become him
to boast in this manner; that there was an impropriety in his doing it,
though circumstances had compelled him--and in this sense it is
understood by nearly, or quite, all expositors; or it may be taken
ironically: "Such a man as I am ought not to boast. So you say, and so it
would seem. A man who has done no more than I have; who has suffered
nothing; who has been idle and at ease as I have been, ought surely not
to boast. And since there is such an evident impropriety in my boasting
and speaking about myself, I will turn to another matter, and inquire
whether the same thing may not be said about visions and revelations. I
will speak, therefore, of a man who had some remarkable revelations, and
inquire whether he has any right to boast of the favours imparted to
him." This seems to me to be the probable interpretation of this passage.
To glory. To boast, 2 Corinthians 10:8,13; 11:10. One of the charges
which they alleged against him was, that he was given to boasting
without any good reason. After the enumeration in the previous
chapter of what he had done and suffered, he says that this was
doubtless very true. Such a man has nothing to boast of.
I will come. Marg., "For I will." Our translators have omitted the
word (\~gar\~) for in the text, evidently supposing that it is a
mere expletive. Doddridge renders it, "nevertheless." But it seems to me
that it contains an important sense, and that it should be rendered by
THEN: "Since it is not fit that I should glory, then I will refer to
visions, etc. I will turn away, then, from that subject, and come to
another." Thus the word (\~gar\~) is used in John 7:41, "Shall,
THEN, (\~mh gar\~) Christ come out of Galilee?" Acts 8:31, "How can I,
THEN, (\~pwv gar\~) except some man should guide me" See also
Acts 19:35; Romans 3:3; Philippians 1:18.
To visions. The word vision is used in the Scriptures often to
denote the mode in which Divine communications were usually made to men.
This was done by causing some scene to appear to pass before the mind as
in a landscape, so that the individual seemed to see a representation
of what was to occur in some future period. It was usually applied to
prophecy, and is often used in the Old Testament.
See Barnes "Isaiah 1:1", and also See Barnes "Acts 9:10".
The vision which Paul here refers to was that which he was permitted to
have of the heavenly world, 2 Corinthians 12:4. He was permitted to see
what perhaps no other mortal had seen, the glory of heaven.
And revelations of the Lord. Which the Lord had made. Or it may mean
manifestations which the Lord had made of himself to him. The word
rendered revelations means, properly, an uncovering, \~apokaluqeiv\~,
from \~apokaluptw\~, to uncover; and denotes a removal of the vail of
ignorance and darkness, so that an object may be clearly seen; and is
thus applied to truth revealed, because the obscurity is removed, and the
truth becomes manifest.
{1} "I will come" "For I will"
Verse 2. I knew a man in Christ. I was acquainted with a Christian;
the phrase, "in Christ," meaning nothing more than that he was
united to Christ, or was a Christian. See Romans 16:7. The reason
why Paul did not speak of this directly as a vision which he had
himself seen, was probably that he was accused of boasting, and he
had admitted that it did not become him to glory. But though it
did not become him to boast directly, yet he could tell them of a man
concerning whom there would be no impropriety evidently in boasting. It
is not uncommon, moreover, for a man to speak of himself in the third
person. Thus Caesar in his Commentaries uniformly speaks of himself. And
so John in his Gospel speaks of himself, John 13:23,24; 19:26; 21:20.
John did it on account of his modesty, because he would not appear to put
himself forward, and because the mention of his own name, as connected
with the friendship of the Saviour in the remarkable manner in which he
enjoyed it, might have savoured of pride. For a similar reason Paul may
have been unwilling to mention his own name here; and he may
have abstained from referring to this occurrence elsewhere because it
might savour of pride, and might also excite the envy or ill-will of
others. Those who have been most favoured with spiritual enjoyments will
not be the most ready to proclaim it. They will cherish the remembrance
in order to excite gratitude in their own hearts, and support them in
trial; they will not blazon it abroad as if they were more the favourites
of Heaven than others are. That this refers to Paul himself is evident
for the following reasons:
(1) His argument required that he should mention something that had
occurred to himself. Anything that had occurred to another would not
have been pertinent.
(2.) He applies it directly to himself, (\\@Co 12:7\\,) when he says that
God took effectual measures that he should not be unduly exalted in view
of the abundant revelations bestowed on him.
About fourteen years ago. On what occasion, or where this occurred,
or why he concealed the remarkable fact so long, and why there is no
other allusion to it, is unknown; and conjecture is useless. If this
epistle was written, as is commonly supposed, about the year 58, then
this occurrence must have happened about the year 44. This was several
years after his conversion, and of course this does not refer to the
trance mentioned in Acts 9:9, at the time when he was converted.
Dr. Benson supposes that this vision was made to him when he was praying
in the temple after his return to Jerusalem, when he was directed to go
from Jerusalem to the Gentiles, (Acts 22:17,) and that it was intended
to support him in the trials which he was about to endure. There can be
little danger of error in supposing that its object was to support him in
those remarkable trials, and that God designed to impart to him such views
of heaven and its glory, and of the certainty that he would soon be
admitted there, as to support him in his sufferings, and make him
willing to bear all that should be laid upon him. God often gives
to his people some clear and elevated spiritual comforts before
they enter into trials, as well as while in them; he prepares them for
them before they come. This vision Paul had kept secret for fourteen
years. He had doubtless often thought of it; and the remembrance
of that glorious hour was doubtless one of the reasons why he bore
trials so patiently, and was willing to endure so much. But before
this he had had no occasion to mention it. He had other proofs in
abundance that he was called to the work of an apostle; and to
mention this would savour of pride and ostentation. It was only
when he was compelled to refer to the evidences of his apostolic
mission that he refers to it here.
Whether in the body, I cannot tell. That is, I do not pretend to
explain it. I do not know how it occurred. With the fact he was
acquainted; but how it was brought about he did not know. Whether the
body was caught up to heaven; whether the soul was for a time separated
from the body; or whether the scene passed before the mind in a vision,
so that he seemed to have been caught up to heaven, he does not pretend
to know. The evident idea is, that at the time he was in a state of
insensibility in regard to surrounding objects, and was unconscious
of what was occurring, as if he had been dead. Where Paul confesses his
own ignorance of what occurred to himself, it would be vain for us to
inquire; and the question how this was done is immaterial. No one can
doubt that God had power, if he chose, to transport the body to heaven;
or that he had power for a time to separate the soul from the body; or
that he had power to represent to the mind so clearly the view of the
heavenly world, that he would appear to see it. See Acts 7:56.
It is clear only that he lost all consciousness of anything about him at
that time, and that he saw only the things in heaven. It may be added
here, however, that Paul evidently supposed that his soul might be
taken to heaven without the body, and that it might have separate
consciousness, and a separate existence. He was not, therefore, a
materialist, and he did not believe that the existence and consciousness
of the soul was dependent on the body.
God knoweth. With the mode in which it was done, God only could be
acquainted. Paul did not attempt to explain that. That was to him of
comparatively little consequence, and he did not lose his time in a vain
attempt to explain it. How happy would it be if all theologians were as
ready to be satisfied with the knowledge of a fact, and to leave the
mode of explaining it with God, as this prince of theologians was. Many
a man would have busied himself with a vain speculation about the way in
which it was done; Paul was contented with the fact that it had occurred.
Such an one caught up. The word which is here used (\~arpazw\~)
means, to seize upon, to snatch away as wolves do their prey,
(John 10:12;) or to seize with avidity or eagerness, Matthew 11:12;
or to carry away, to hurry off by force, or involuntarily. See
\\Joh 6:15 Ac 8:39 23:10\\. In the case before us there is implied the
idea that Paul was conveyed by a foreign force; or that he was suddenly
seized and snatched up to heaven. The word expresses the suddenness and
the rapidity with which it was done. Probably it was instantaneous, so
that he appeared, at once to be in heaven. Of the mode in which it was
done, Paul has given no explanations; and conjecture would be useless.
To the third heaven. The Jews sometimes speak of seven heavens, and
Mohammed has borrowed this idea from the Jews. But the Bible speaks of
but three heavens; and among the Jews in the apostolic ages, also, the
heavens were divided into three:
(1.) The aerial, including the clouds and the atmosphere, the heavens
above us, until we come to the stars.
(2.) The starry heavens--the heavens in which the sun, moon, and stars
appear to be situated.
(3.) The heavens beyond the stars. That heaven was supposed to be the
residence of God, of angels, and of holy spirits. It was this upper
heaven, the dwelling-place of God, to which Paul was taken, and whose
wonders he was permitted to behold--this region where God dwelt, where
Christ was seated at the right hand of the Father, and where the
spirits of the just were assembled. The fanciful opinions of the Jews
about seven heavens may be seen detailed in Schoettgen or in Wetstein,
by whom the principal passages from the Jewish writings relating to the
subject have been collected. As their opinions throw no light on this
passage, it is unnecessary to detail them here.
{a} "in Christ" Romans 16:7
{2} "fourteen years ago" "A.D. 46" Acts 22:17
Verse 3. And I knew such a man. It is not uncommon to repeat a
solemn affirmation in order that it may be made more emphatic.
This is done here. Paul repeats the idea, that he was intimately
acquainted with such a man, and that he did not know whether he
was in the body or out of the body. All that was known to God.
Verse 4. Into paradise. The word paradise (\~paradeison\~) occurs but
three times in the New Testament, Luke 23:43; Revelation 2:7; and in this
place. It occurs often in the Septuagint, as the translation of the
word garden, Genesis 2:8-10,15,16; 3:1-3,8,10,23,24; 13:10; Numbers 24:6;
Ezekiel 28:13; 31:8,9; Joel 2:3. And also Isaiah 1:30; Jeremiah 29:5;
and of the word Pardes \^HEBREW\^ in Nehemiah 2:8; Ecclesiastes 2:5; Song of Solomon 4:13.
It is a word which had its origin in the language of eastern Asia, and
which has been adopted in the Greek, the Roman, and other western
languages. In Sanscrit, the word paradesha means a land elevated and
cultivated; in Armenian, pardes denotes a garden around the house
planted with trees, shrubs, grass, for use and ornament. In Persia, the
word denotes the pleasure-gardens and parks with wild animals around
the country residences of the monarchs and princes. Hence it denotes in
general a garden of pleasure; and in the New Testament is applied to the
abodes of the blessed after death, the dwelling-place of God and of
happy spirits; or to heaven as a place of blessedness. Some have
supposed that Paul here, by the word "paradise," means to describe
a different place from that denoted by the phrase "the third heaven;"
but there is no good reason for this supposition. The only difference is,
that this word implies the idea of a place of blessedness; but the same
place is undoubtedly referred to.
And heard unspeakable words. The word which is here rendered
"unspeakable," (\~arrhta\~) may either mean what cannot be spoken, or
what ought not to be spoken. The word means unutterable, ineffable;
and whichever idea we attach to it, Paul meant to say that he could
not attempt by words to do justice to what he saw and heard. The
use of the word "words" here would seem to imply that he heard
the language of exalted praise; or that there were truths imparted
to his mind which he could not hope to convey in any language
spoken by men.
Which it is not lawful for a man to utter. Marg., "possible."
Witsius supposes that the word \~exon\~ may include both,
and Doddridge accords with the interpretation. See also Robinson's
Lexicon. The word is most commonly used in the signification of
lawful. Thus, Matthew 14:4, "It is not lawful for thee to have her;"
Acts 16:21, "Which it is not lawful for us to observe;"
Acts 22:25, "Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman,"
etc. In the same sense of lawful it is used in Matthew 12:2,10,12;
Matthew 20:15; Mark 2:26; 10:2. When it refers to possibility, it
probably means moral possibility; that is, propriety, or it means
that it is right. It seems to me, therefore, that the word here rather
means that it was not proper to give utterance to those things; it
would not be right to attempt it. It might be also true that it would
not have been possible for language to convey clearly the ideas connected
with the things which Paul was then permitted to see; but the main thought
is, that there was some reason why it would not be proper for him
to have attempted to communicate those ideas to men at large. The
Jews held that it was unlawful to pronounce the Tetragrammaton,
i.e., the name of four letters, (\^HEBREW\^,) JEHOVAH; and whenever
that name occurred in their Scriptures, they substituted the name
Adonai in its place. They maintain, indeed, that the true
pronunciation is utterly lost, and none of them to this day attempt to
pronounce it. But this was mere superstition; and it is impossible
that Paul should have been influenced by any such reason as this.
The transaction here referred to is very remarkable. It is the
only instance in the Scriptures of any one who was taken to heaven,
either in reality or in vision, and who returned again to the earth,
and was then qualified to communicate important truths about the
heavenly world from personal observation. Enoch and Elijah were
taken to heaven; but they returned not to converse with men.
Elijah appeared with Moses in conversation with Jesus on the
mount of transfiguration; but they conversed with him only about
his decease, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem,
Luke 9:31. There would have been no propriety for them to have
spoken to Jesus of heaven, for he came down from heaven and was
in heaven, (John 3:13,) and they were not permitted to speak to
the disciples of heaven. Lazarus was raised from the dead, (John 11),
and many of the saints which had slept in their graves arose at
the death of Jesus, (Matthew 27:52,) but there is no intimation
that they communicated anything to the living about the heavenly
world. Of all the millions who have been taken to heaven, not one
has been permitted to return to bear his testimony to its glories; to
witness for God that he is faithful to his promises; to encourage his
pious friends to persevere; or to invite his impenitent friends to
follow him to that glorious world. And so fixed is the law, so
settled is the principle, that even Lazarus was not permitted to go,
though at the earnest request of the rich man in hell, and warn his
friends not to follow him to that world of woe, Luke 16:27-31.
Mohammed, indeed, feigned that he had made a journey to heaven,
and he attempts to describe what he saw; and the difference between
true inspiration and false or pretended inspiration is strikingly
evinced by the difference between Paul's dignified silence--verba
sacro digna silentio (Horace)--and the puerilities of the prophet of
Mecca. See the Koran, chap. xvii. As the difference between the true
religion and imposture is strikingly illustrated by this, we may recur to
the principal events which happened to the impostor on his celebrated
journey. The whole account may be seen in Prideaux's Life of
Mohammed, p. 43, seq. He solemnly affirmed that he had been
translated to the heaven of heavens; that on a white beast, less
than a mule, but larger than an ass, he had been conveyed from the
temple of Mecca to that of Jerusalem; had successively ascended
the seven heavens with his companion Gabriel, receiving and returning
the salutations of its blessed inhabitants; had then proceeded alone
within two bow-shots of the throne of the Almighty, when he felt a cold
which pierced him to the heart, and was touched on the shoulder by the
hand of God, who commanded him to pray fifty times a day, but with the
advice of Moses he was prevailed on to have the number reduced to five;
and that he then returned to Jerusalem and to Mecca, having performed a
journey of thousands of years in the tenth part of a night.
The fact that Paul was not permitted to communicate what he had seen is
very remarkable. It is natural to ask why it is so? Why has not God sent
down departed saints to tell men of the glories of heaven? Why does
he not permit them to come and bear testimony to what they have seen and
enjoyed? Why not come and clear up the doubts of the pious; why not come
and convince a thoughtless world; why not come and bear honourable
testimony for God that he is faithful to reward his people? And
especially why did he not suffer Paul, whom he had permitted to
behold the glories of paradise, to testify simply to what he had seen,
and tell us what was there ?
To these questions, so obvious, it is impossible to give an answer
that we can demonstrate to be the true one. But we may suggest
some reasons which may furnish a plausible answer, and which may
serve to remove some of the perplexity in the case. I would, therefore,
suggest that the following may have been some of the reasons
why Paul was not permitted to communicate what he saw to men:
(1.) It was designed for the support of Paul himself, in view of the
very remarkable trials which he was about to endure. God had
called him to great toils and self-denials. He was to labour much
alone; to go to foreign lands; to be persecuted, and ultimately put
to death; and it was his purpose to qualify him for this work by
some peculiar manifestation of his favour. He accordingly gave
him such views of heaven that he would be supported in his trials
by a conviction of the undoubted truth of what he taught, and by
the prospect of certain glory when his labours should end. It was
one instance when God gave peculiar views to prepare for trials,
as he often does to his people now, preparing them in a peculiar
manner for peculiar trials. Christians, from some cause, often have
more elevated views and deeper feeling before they are called to
endure trials than they have at other times--peculiar grace to prepare
them for suffering. But as this was designed in a peculiar manner for
Paul alone, it was not proper for him to communicate what he saw to
others.
(2.) It is probable that if there were a full revelation of the glories
of heaven, we should not be able to comprehend it; or even if we did,
we should be incredulous in regard to it. So unlike what we see; so
elevated above our highest comprehension; probably so unlike what we
now anticipate, is heaven, that we should be slow to receive the
revelation. It is always difficult to describe what we have not seen,
even on earth, so that we shall have any very clear idea of it: how
much more difficult must it be to describe heaven! We are often
incredulous about what is reported to exist in foreign lands on earth,
which we have not seen, and a long time is often necessary before we
will believe it. The king of Siam, when told by the Dutch ambassador
that water became so hard in his country that men might walk on it,
said, "I have often suspected you of falsehood, but now I know that you
lie." So incredulous might we be, with our weak faith, if we were told
what-actually exists in heaven. We should not improbably turn away from
it as wholly incredible.
(3.) There are great truths which it is not the design of God to reveal
to men. The object is to communicate enough to win us, to comfort us,
to support our faith--not to reveal all. In eternity there must be
boundless truths and glories which are not needful for us to know now,
and which, on many accounts, it would not be proper to be revealed to
men. The question is not, do we know all, but have we enough safely
to guide us to heaven, and to comfort us in the trials of life.
(4.) There is enough revealed of heaven for our guidance and comfort
in this world. God has told us what it will be in general. It will be a
world without sin; without tears; without wrong, injustice, fraud, or
wars; without disease, pestilence, plague, death; and it is easy to
fill up the picture sufficiently for all our purposes. Let us think of a
world where all shall be pure and holy; of a world free from all that we
now behold that is evil; free from pain, disease, death; a world where
"friends never depart, foes never come;" a world where all shall be
harmony and love--and where all this shall be ETERNAL; and we shall see
that God has revealed enough for our welfare here. The highest hopes of
man are met when we anticipate AN ETERNAL HEAVEN; the heaviest trials
may be cheerfully borne when we have the prospect of EVERLASTING
REST.
(5.) One other reason may be assigned why it was not proper for
Paul to disclose what he saw, and why God has withheld more full
revelations from men about heaven. It is, that his purpose is that we
shall here walk by faith and not by sight. We are not to see the
reward, nor to be told fully what it is. We are to have such
confidence in God that we shall assuredly believe that he will fully
reward and bless us, and under this confidence we are to live and act
here below. God designs, therefore, to try our faith, and to furnish an
abundant evidence that his people are disposed to obey
his commands, and to put their trust in his faithfulness. Besides,
if all the glories of heaven were revealed; if all were told that might
be; and if heaven were made as attractive to mortal view as possible,
then it might appear that his professed people were influenced
solely by the hope of the reward. As it is, there is enough to support
and comfort; not enough to make it the main and only reason why
we serve God. It may be added,
(a.) that we have all the truth which we shall ever have about heaven
here below. No other messenger will come; none of the pious dead will
return. If men, therefore, are not willing to be saved in view of the
truth which they have, they must be lost. God will communicate no more.
(b.) The Christian will soon know all about heaven. He will soon
be there. He begins no day with any certainty that he may not
close it in heaven; he lies down to rest at no time with any assurance
that he will not wake in heaven, amidst its full and eternal
splendours.
(c.) The sinner will soon know fully what it is to lose heaven. A moment
may make him fully sensible of his loss--for he may die; and a moment
may put him for ever beyond the possibility of reaching a world of glory.
{a} "and hear unspeakable words" Luke 23:43; Revelation 2:7
{1} "lawful" "possible"
Verse 5. Of such an one will I glory. Of such a man it would be right
to boast. It would be admitted that it is right to exult in such a
man, and to esteem him to be peculiarly favoured by God. I will
boast of him as having received peculiar honour from the Lord.
Bloomfield, however, supposes that the words rendered "of such an
one" should be translated "of such a thing," or of such a transaction;
meaning, "I can indeed justly boast of my being caught up to heaven, as
of a thing the whole glory of which pertains to him who has thus exalted
me; but of myself, or of anything in me, I will not boast." So
Rosenmuller explains it. But it seems to me that the connexion requires
that we should understand it of a person, and that the passage is partly
ironical. Paul speaks in the third person. He chooses to keep himself
directly out of view. And though he refers really to himself, yet he
would not say this directly, but says that of such a man they would admit
it would be proper to boast.
Yet of myself. Directly. It is not expedient for me to boast of
myself. "You would allow me to boast of such a man as I have
referred to; I admit that it is not proper for me to boast directly of
myself."
But in mine infirmities. My weaknesses, trials, pains,
sufferings; such as many regard as infirmities.
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 11:30".
{a} "of myself" 2 Corinthians 12:9,10; 11:30
{*} "infirmities" "me weakness"
Verse 6. For though I would desire to glory. I take this to be a
solemn and serious declaration of the irony which precedes; and that Paul
means to say seriously, that if he had a wish to boast as other men
boasted, if he chose to make much of his attainments and privileges,
he would have enough of which to make mention. It would not be
mere empty boasting without any foundation or any just cause, for
he had as much of which to speak in a confident manner pertaining
to his labours as an apostle, and his evidence of the Divine favour,
as could be urged by any one. "I might go on to speak much more than I
have done, and to urge claims which all would admit to be well-founded."
I shall not be a fool." It would not be foolish boasting; for it
would be according to truth. I could urge much more than I have done; I
could speak of things which no one would be disposed to call in question
as laying the foundation of just claims to my being regarded as eminently
favoured of God; I could seriously state what all would admit to be
such."
For I will say the truth. That is, "Whatever I should say on this
subject would be the simple truth. I should mention nothing which has not
actually occurred. But I forbear, lest some one should form an
improper estimate of me." The apostle seems to have intended to
have added something more, but he was checked by the apprehension
to which he here refers. Or perhaps he means to say, that if
he should boast of the vision to which he had just referred, if he
should go on to say how highly he had been honoured and exalted
by it, there would be no impropriety in it. It was so remarkable,
that if he confined himself strictly to the truth, as he would do, still
it would be regarded by all as a very extraordinary honour, and one
to which no one of the false teachers could refer as laying a foundation
for his boasting.
Lest any man should think of me, etc. The idea in this part of the
verse I take to be this: "I desire and expect to be estimated by my
public life. I expect to be judged of men by my deeds, by what they see
in me, and by my general reputation in respect to what I have done in
establishing the Christian religion. I am willing that my character and
reputation, that the estimate in which I shall be held by mankind, shall
rest on that. I do not wish that my character among men shall be
determined by my secret feelings; or by any secret extraordinary
communication from heaven which I may have, and which cannot be subjected
to the observation of my fellow-men. I am willing to be estimated by
my public life; and however valuable such extraordinary manifestations
may be to me as an individual, or however much they may comfort me, I do
not wish to make them the basis of my public reputation. I expect to
stand and be estimated by my public deeds; by what all men see and hear
of me; and I would not have them form even a favourable opinion of me
beyond that." This is the noble language of a man who was willing to
enjoy such a reputation as his public life entitled him to. He wished to
have the basis of his reputation such that all men could see and examine
it. Unlike enthusiasts and fanatics, he appealed to no secret impulses;
did not rest his claims for public confidence on any peculiar
communications from heaven; but wished to be estimated by his public
deeds.
And the important truth taught is, that however much communion we may
have with God; however much comfort and support in prayer, and in our
favoured moments of fellowship with God; or however much we may fancy in
this way that we are the favourites of Heaven; and however much this may
support us in trial, still this should not be made the foundation of
claim to the favourable opinions of our fellow-men. By our public
character; by our well-known actions; by our lives as seen by men, we
should desire to be estimated, and we should be satisfied with such a
measure of public esteem as our deportment shall fairly entitle us to. We
should seldom, perhaps, refer to our moments of secret, happy, and most
favoured communion with God. Paul kept his most elevated joys,
in this respect, secret for fourteen years: what an example to those
who are constantly blazoning their Christian experience abroad,
and boasting of what they have enjoyed! We should never refer to
such moments as a foundation for the estimate in which our character
shall be held by our fellow-men. We should never make this the foundation
of a claim to the public confidence in us. For all such claims, for all
the estimate in which we shall be held by men, we should be willing to
be tried by our lives. Paul would not even make a vision of heaven--
not even the privilege of having beheld the glories of the upper
world, though a favour conferred on no other living man--a ground of
the estimate in which his character should be held! What an example to
those who wish to be estimated by secret raptures, and by special
communications to their souls from heaven! No. Let us be willing to be
estimated by men by what they see in us; to enjoy such a reputation
as our conduct shall fairly entitle us to. Let our communion with God
cheer our own hearts; but let us not obtrude this on men as furnishing a
claim for an exalted standing in their estimation.
{+} "say" "speak"
Verse 7. And lest I should be exalted. Lest I should be spiritually
proud; lest I should become self-confident and vain, and suppose that I
was a special favourite of Heaven. If Paul was in danger of spiritual
pride, who is not? If it was necessary for God to adopt some special
measures to keep him humble, we are not to be surprised that the
same thing should occur in other cases. There is abundant reason
to believe that Paul was naturally a proud man. He was by nature
self-confident; trusting in his own talents and attainments, and
eminently ambitious. When he became a Christian, therefore, one
of his besetting sins would be pride; and as he had been peculiarly
favoured in his call to the apostleship; in his success as a preacher;
in the standing which he had among the other apostles, and in the
revelations imparted to him, there was also peculiar danger that he
would become self-confident, and proud of his attainments. There
is no danger that more constantly besets Christians, and even eminent
Christians, than pride. There is no sin that is more subtle,
insinuating, deceptive; none that lurks more constantly around the heart,
and that finds a more ready entrance, than pride. He who has been
characterized by pride before his conversion, will be in special danger
of it afterwards; he who has eminent gifts in prayer, or in conversation,
or in preaching, will be in special danger of it; he who is eminently
successful will be in danger of it; and he who has any extraordinary
spiritual comforts will be in danger of it. Of this sin he who lives
nearest to God may be in most special danger; and he who is most
eminent in piety should feel that he also occupies a position where
the enemy will approach him in a sly and subtle manner, and where
he is in peculiar danger of a fall. Possibly the fear that he might
be in danger of being made proud by the flattery of his friends may
have been one reason why Paul kept this thing concealed for fourteen
years; and if men wish to keep themselves from the danger this sin, they
should not be forward to speak even of the most favoured moments of their
communion with God.
Through the abundance of the revelations. By my being raised thus to
heaven, and by being permitted to behold the wonders of the heavenly
world, as well as by the numerous communications which God had
made to me at other times.
There was given to me. That is, God was pleased to appoint me. The
word which Paul uses is worthy of special notice. It is that this
"thorn in the flesh" was given to him, implying that it was a favour.
He does not complain of it; he does not say it was sent in cruelty; he
does not even speak of it as an affliction; he speaks of it as a
gift, as any man would of a favour that had been bestowed. Paul had
so clear a view of the benefits which resulted from it, that he regarded
it as a favour, as Christians should every trial.
A thorn in the flesh. The word here used (\~skoloq\~) occurs nowhere
else in the New Testament. It means, properly, anything pointed or sharp,
e.g., a stake or palisade, (Xen. Anab. 5,2,5;) or the point of a hook.
The word is used in the Septuagint to denote a thorn or prickle, as a
translation of \^HEBREW\^, (sir) in Hosea 2:6, "I will hedge up thy
way with thorns;" to denote a pricking briar in Ezekiel 28:24, as a
translation of \^HEBREW\^, (sillon,) meaning a thorn or prickle, such
as is found in the shoots and twigs of the palm-tree; and to denote
"pricks in the eyes," Numbers 33:55, as a translation of \^HEBREW\^,
(sikkim,) thorns or prickles. So far as the word here used is
concerned, it means a sharp thorn or prickle; and the idea is, that the
trial to which he refers was as troublesome and painful as such a thorn
would be in the flesh. But whether he refers to some infirmity or pain
in the flesh or the body is another question, and a question in which
interpreters have been greatly divided in opinion. Every one who has
become familiar with commentaries knows that almost every expositor has
had his own opinion about this, and also that no one has been able to
give any good reason for his own. Most of them have been fanciful; and
many of them eminently ridiculous. Even Baxter, who was subject himself
to some such disorder, supposes that it might be the stone or gravel;
and the usually very judicious Doddridge supposes that the view which he
had of the glories of heavenly objects so affected his nerves as to
produce a paralytic disorder, and particularly a stammering in his
speech,
and perhaps also a ridiculous distortion of the countenance. This opinion
was suggested by Whitby, and has been adopted also by Benson, Macknight,
Slade, and Bloomfield. But though sustained by most respectable names,
it would be easy to show that it is mere conjecture, and perhaps quite
as improbable as any of the numerous opinions which have been maintained
on the subject. If Paul's speech had been affected, and his face
distorted, and his nerves shattered by such a sight, how could he doubt
whether he was in the body or out of it when this occurred? Many of the
Latin Fathers supposed that some unruly and ungovernable lust was
intended. Chrysostom and Jerome suppose that he meant the headache;
Tertullian, an earache; and Rosenmuller supposes that it was the gout in
the head, (kopfgicht,) and that it was a periodical disorder such as
affected him when he was with the Galatians, Galatians 4:13. But all
conjecture here is vain; and the numerous strange and ridiculous opinions
of commentators is a melancholy attestation of their inclination to
fanciful conjecture, where it is impossible, in the nature of the
case, to ascertain the truth. All that can be known of this is, that it
was some infirmity of the flesh, some bodily affliction or calamity, that
was like the continual piercing of the flesh with a thorn,
Galatians 4:13; and that it was something that was designed to prevent
spiritual pride. It is not indeed an improbable supposition that it was
something that could be seen by others, and that thus tended to humble
him when with them.
The messenger of Satan. Among the Hebrews it was customary to
attribute severe and painful diseases to Satan. Comp. Job 2:6,7,
See Barnes "Luke 13:16". In the time of the Saviour, malignant spirits
are known to have taken possession of the body in numerous cases, and to
have produced painful bodily diseases; and Paul here says that Satan was
permitted to bring this calamity on him.
To buffet me. To buffet, means to smite with the hand; then to
maltreat in any way. The meaning is, that the effect and design of this
was deeply to afflict him. Doddridge and Clarke suppose that the
reference is here to the false teacher whom Satan had sent to Corinth,
and who was to him the source of perpetual trouble. But it seems more
probable to me that he refers to some bodily infirmity. The general truth
taught in this verse is, that God will take care that his people shall
not be unduly exalted by the manifestations of his favour, and by the
spiritual privileges which he bestows on them. He will take measures to
humble them; and a large part of his dealings with his
people is designed to accomplish this. Sometimes it will be done,
as in the case of Paul, by bodily infirmity or trial, by sickness, or by
long and lingering disease; sometimes by great poverty, and by an
humble condition of life; sometimes by reducing us from a state of
affluence, where we were in danger of being exalted above measure;
sometimes by suffering us to be slandered and calumniated, by suffering
foes to rise up against us who shall blacken our character, and
in such a manner that we cannot meet it; sometimes by persecution;
sometimes by want of success in our enterprises, and, if in the
ministry, by withholding his Spirit; sometimes by suffering us to
fall into sin, and thus greatly humbling us before the world. Such
was the case with David and with Peter; and God often permits us
to see in this manner our own weakness, and to bring us to a sense
of our dependence and to proper humility by suffering us to perform
some act that should be ever afterward a standing source of our
humiliation; some act so base, so humiliating, so evincing the deep
depravity of our hearts, as for ever to make and keep us humble.
How could David be lifted up with pride after the murder of Uriah?
How could Peter after having denied his Lord with a horrid oath?
Thus many a Christian is suffered to fall by the temptation of Satan,
to show him his weakness and to keep him from pride; many a fall
is made the occasion of the permanent benefit of the offender. And
perhaps every Christian who has been much favored with elevated
spiritual views and comforts can recall something which shall be to
him a standing topic of regret and humiliation in his past life. We
should be thankful for any calamity that will humble us; and we
should remember that clear and elevated views of God and heaven
are, after all, more than a compensation for all the sufferings which
it may be necessary to endure in order to make us humble.
{a} "in the flesh" Ezekiel 28:24; Galatians 4:14
{b} "messenger of Satan" Job 2:7; Luke 13:16
Verse 8. For this thing. On account of this; in order that this
calamity might be removed.
I besought the Lord. The word "Lord" in the New Testament, when it
stands without any other word in connexion to limit its signification,
commonly denotes the Lord Jesus Christ. See Barnes "Acts 1:24".
The following verse here shows conclusively that it was the Lord Jesus to
whom Paul addressed this prayer. The answer was, that his grace was
sufficient for him; and Paul consoled himself by saying that it was a
sufficient support if the power of Christ, implied in that answer, should
rest on him. He would glory in trials if such was their result. Even
Rosenmuller maintains that it was the Lord Jesus to whom this prayer was
addressed, and says that the Socinians themselves admit it. So
Grotius (on 2 Corinthians 12:9) says that the answer was given by Christ. But
if this refers to the Lord Jesus, then it proves that it is right to go
to him in times of trouble, and that it is right to worship him.
Prayer is the most solemn act of adoration which we can perform;
and no better authority can be required for paying Divine honours
to Christ than the fact that Paul worshipped him, and called upon
him to remove a severe and grievous calamity.
Thrice. This may either mean that he prayed for this often, or
that he sought it on three set and solemn occasions. Many commentators
have supposed that the former is meant. But to me it seems probable that
Paul, on three special occasions, earnestly prayed for the removal of
this calamity. It will be recollected that the Lord Jesus prayed three
times in the garden of Gethsemane that the cup might be removed from
him, Matthew 26:44. At the third time he ceased, and submitted to
what was the will of God. There is some reason to suppose that the
Jews were in the habit of praying three times for any important
blessing, or for the removal of any calamity; and Paul in this would
not only conform to the usual custom, but especially he would be
disposed to imitate the example of the Lord Jesus. Among the Jews
three was a sacred number, and repeated instances occur where an
important transaction is mentioned as having been done thrice. See
Numbers 22:28; 24:10; 1 Samuel 3:8; 20:41; 1 Kings 18:34; Proverbs 22:20; Jeremiah 7:4; 22:29;
John 21:17. The probability therefore is, that Paul on three
different occasions earnestly besought the Lord Jesus that this calamity
might be removed from him. It might have been exceedingly painful; or it
might, as he supposed, interfere with his success as a preacher; or it
might have been of such a nature as to expose him to ridicule; and he
prayed, therefore, if it were possible that it might be taken away. The
passage proves that it is right to pray earnestly and repeatedly for the
removal of any calamity. The Saviour so prayed in the garden; and Paul
so prayed here. Yet it also proves that there should be a limit to such
prayers. The Saviour prayed three times; and Paul limited himself to the
same number of petitions, and then submitted to the will of God. This
does not prove that we should be limited to exactly this number in our
petitions; but it proves that there should be a limit; that we should
not be over anxious; and that when it is plain from any cause that the
calamity will not be removed, we should submit to it. The Saviour in the
garden knew that the cup would not be removed, and he acquiesced. Paul was
told indirectly that his calamity would not be removed, and he submitted.
We may expect no such revelation from heaven, but we may know in other
ways that the calamity will not be removed; and we should submit. The
child or other friend for whom we prayed may die; or the calamity, as,
e.g., blindness, or deafness, or loss of health, or poverty, may become
permanent, so that there is no hope of removing it; and we should then
cease to pray that it may be removed, and we should cheerfully acquiesce
in the will of God. So David prayed most fervently for his child when it
was alive; when it was deceased, and it was of no further use to pray
for it, he bowed in submission to the will of God, 2 Samuel 12:20.
{a} "thing" Deuteronomy 3:23-27; Psalms 77:2; Lamentations 3:8; Matthew 26:44
Verse 9. And he said unto me. The Saviour replied. In what way this
was done, or whether it was done at the time when the prayer was
offered, Paul does not inform us. It is possible, as Macknight supposes,
that Christ appeared to him again, and spake to him in an audible manner.
Grotius supposes that this was done by the \^HEBREW\^ (Bath-qol--
"daughter of the voice") so frequently referred to by the Jewish writers,
and which they suppose to be referred to in 1 Kings 19:12, by the phrase,
"a still small voice." But it is impossible to determine in what way it
was done, and it is not material. Paul was in habits of communion with
the Saviour, and was accustomed to receive revelations from him. The
material fact here is, that the request was not granted in the exact form
in which he presented it, but that he received assurance of grace to
support him in his trial. It is one of the instances in which the fervent
prayer of a good man, offered undoubtedly in faith, was not answered in
the form in which he desired, though substantially answered in the
assurance of grace sufficient to support him. It furnishes, therefore,
a very instructive lesson in regard to prayer, and shows us that we
are not to expect as a matter of course that all our prayers will be
literally answered, and that we should not be disappointed or disheartened
if they are not. It is a matter of fact that not all the
prayers even of the pious, and of those who pray having faith in
God as a hearer of prayer, are literally answered. Thus the prayer
of David (2 Samuel 12:16-20) was not literally answered: the child
for whose life he so earnestly prayed died. So the Saviour's request
was not literally answered, Mark 14:36. The cup of suffering
which he so earnestly desired should be taken away, was not re-
moved. So in the case before us. Compare also Deuteronomy 3:23-27;
Job 30:20; Lamentations 3:8. So in numerous cases now, Christians
pray with fervour and with faith for the removal of some calamity
which is not removed; or for something which they regard as desirable
for their welfare, which is withheld. Some of the reasons why
this is done are obvious:
(1.) The grace that will be imparted if the calamity is not removed,
will be of greater value to the individual than would be the direct
answer to his prayer. Such was the case with Paul; so it was doubtless
with David; and so it is often with Christians now. The removal of the
calamity might be apparently a blessing, but it might also be attended
with danger to our spiritual welfare; the grace imparted may be of
permanent value, and may be connected with the development of some of the
loveliest traits of Christian character.
(2.) It might not-be for the good of the individual who prays that the
exact thing should be granted. When a parent prays with great earnestness
and with insubmision for the life of a child, he knows not what he is
doing. If the child lives, he may be the occasion of much more grief to
him than if he had died. David had far more trouble from Absalom than he
had from the death of the child for which he so earnestly prayed. At the
same time, it may be better for the child that he should be removed. If
he dies in infancy he will be saved. But who can tell what will be
his character and destiny, should he live to be a man? So of other
things.
(3.) God has often some better thing in store for us than
would be the immediate answer to our prayer. Who can doubt that
this was true of Paul? The promised grace of Christ as sufficient to
support us, is of more value than would be the mere removal of any
bodily affliction.
(4.) It would not be well for us, probably, should our petition be
literally answered. Who can tell what is best for himself? If the thing
were obtained, who can tell how soon we might forget the Benefactor, and
become proud and self-confident? It was the design of God to humble
Paul; and this could be much better accomplished by continuing his
affliction, and by imparting the promised grace, than by withdrawing the
affliction, and withholding the grace. The very thing to be done was to
keep him humble; and this affliction could not be withdrawn without also
foregoing the benefit. It is true, also, that where things are in
themselves proper to be asked, Christians sometimes ask them in
an improper manner, and this is one of the reasons why many of
their prayers are not answered. But this does not pertain to the
case before us.
My grace is sufficient for thee. A much better answer than it would
have been to have removed the calamity; and one that seems to have been
entirely satisfactory to Paul. The meaning of the Saviour is, that he
would support him; that he would not suffer him to sink exhausted under
his trials; that he had nothing to fear. The affliction was not indeed
removed; but there was a promise that the favour of Christ would be shown
to him constantly, and that he would find his support to be ample. If
Paul had this support, he might well bear the trial; and if we have
this assurance, as we may have, we may welcome affliction, and rejoice
that calamities are brought upon us. It is a sufficient answer to our
prayers if we have the solemn promise of the Redeemer that we shall be
upheld, and never sink under the burden of our heavy woes.
My strength is made perfect in weakness. That is, the strength which
I impart to my people is more commonly and more completely manifested
when my people feel that they are weak. It is not imparted to those who
feel that they are strong, and who do not realize their need of Divine
aid. It is not so completely manifested to those who are vigorous and
strong, as to the feeble. It is when we are conscious that we are feeble,
and when we feel our need of aid, that the Redeemer manifests his power
to uphold, and imparts his purest consolations. Grotius has collected
several similar passages from the classic writers, which may serve to
illustrate this expression. Thus Pliny, vii. Epis. 26, says, "We are best
where we are weak." Seneca says, "Calamity is the occasion of virtue."
Quintilian, "All temerity of mind is broken by bodily calamity." Minutius
Felix, "Calamity is often the discipline of virtue." There are few
Christians who cannot bear witness to the truth of what the Redeemer
here says, and who have not experienced the most pure consolations which
they have known, and been most sensible of his comforting presence and
power, in times of affliction.
Most gladly therefore, etc. I count it a privilege to be afflicted,
if my trials may be the means of my more abundantly enjoying the favour
of the Redeemer. His presence and imparted strength are more than a
compensation for all the trials that I endure.
That the power of Christ. The strength which Christ imparts; his
power manifested in supporting me in trials.
May rest upon me. \~episkhnwsh\~. The word properly means to pitch a
tent upon; and then to dwell in or upon. Here it is used in the sense
of abiding upon; or remaining with. The sense is, that the power which
Christ manifested to his people rested with them, or abode with them in
their trials, and therefore he would rejoice in afflictions, in order
that he might partake of the aid and consolation thus imparted. Learn
hence,
(1.) that a Christian never loses anything by suffering and
affliction. If he may obtain the favour of Christ by his trials, he is a
gainer. The favour of the Redeemer is more than a compensation for all
that we endure in his cause.
(2.) The Christian is a gainer by trial. I never knew a Christian
that was not ultimately benefited by trials. I never knew one who did not
find that he had gained much that was valuable to him in scenes of
affliction. I do not know that I have found one who would be willing to
exchange the advantages he has gained in affliction for all that the most
uninterrupted prosperity and the highest honours that the world could
give would impart.
(3.) Learn to bear trials with joy. They are good for us. They
develop some of the most lovely traits of character. They injure
no one, if they are properly received. And a Christian should
rejoice that he may obtain what he does obtain in affliction, cost
what it may. It is worth more than it costs; and when we come to die,
the things that we shall have most occasion to thank God for will
be our afflictions. And, oh, if they are the means of raising us to a
higher seat in heaven, and placing us nearer the Redeemer there,
who will not rejoice in his trials ?
{*} "strength" "power"
{b} "glory in my" 1 Peter 4:14
{+} "infirmities" "weaknesses"
{c} "power of Christ" 1 Peter 4:14
Verse 10. Therefore I take pleasure. Since so many benefits result
from trials; since my afflictions are the occasion of obtaining the
favour of Christ in so eminent a degree, I rejoice in the privilege of
suffering. There is often real pleasure in affliction, paradoxical
as it may appear. Some of the happiest persons I have known are those who
have been deeply afflicted; some of the purest joys which I have
witnessed have been manifested on a sick bed, and in the prospect
of death. And I have no doubt that Paul, in the midst of all his
infirmities and reproaches, had a joy above that which all the wealth
and honour of the world could give. See here the power of religion.
It not only supports--it comforts. It not only enables one to bear
suffering with resignation, but it enables him to rejoice. Philosophy
blunts the feelings; infidelity leaves men to murmur and repine in
trial; the pleasures of this world have no power even to support or
comfort in times of affliction; but Christianity. furnishes positive
pleasure in trial, and enables the sufferer to smile through his tears.
In infirmities. In my weaknesses. See Barnes "2 Corinthians 11:30".
In reproaches. In the contempt and scorn with which I meet as a
follower of Christ. See Barnes " :".
In necessities. In want. See Barnes "2 Corinthians 6:4",
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 6:4,5".
In distresses for Christ's sake. See Barnes "2 Corinthians 6:4".
In the various wants and difficulties to which I am exposed on account
of the Saviour, or which I suffer in his cause.
For when I am weak, then am I strong. When I feel weak; when
I am subjected to trial, and nature faints and fails, then strength
is imparted to me, and I am enabled to bear all. The more I am
borne down with trials, the more do I feel my need of Divine assistance,
and the more do I feel the efficacy of Divine grace. Such was
the promise in Deuteronomy 33:25, "As thy days, so shall thy strength
be." So in Hebrews 11:34, "Who out of weakness were made strong."
What Christian has not experienced this, and been able to say that
when he felt himself weak, and felt like sinking under the accumulation
of many trials, he has found his strength according to his day,
and felt an arm of power supporting him? It is then that the Redeemer
manifests himself in a peculiar manner; and then that the excellency of
the religion of Christ is truly seen, and its power appreciated and felt.
{*} "infirmities" "weaknesses"
Verse 11. I am become a fool in glorying. The meaning of this
expression I take to be this: "I have been led along in speaking of
myself until I admit I appear foolish in this kind of boasting. It is
folly to do it, and I would not have entered on it unless I had been
driven to it by my circumstances, and the necessity which was imposed on
me of speaking of myself." Paul doubtless desired that what he had
said of himself should not be regarded as an example for others to
follow. Religion repressed all vain boasting and self-exultation;
and to prevent others from falling into a habit of boasting, and then
pleading his example as an apology, he is careful to say that he
regarded it as folly; and that he would by no means have done it if
the circumstances of the case had not constrained him. If any one,
therefore, is disposed to imitate Paul in speaking of himself, and
what he has done, let him do it only when he is in circumstances
like Paul, and when the honour of religion and his usefulness
imperiously demand it; and let him not forget that it was the deliberate
conviction of Paul that boasting was the characteristic of a fool!
Ye have compelled me. You have made it necessary for me
to vindicate my character, and to state the evidence of my Divine
commission as an apostle.
For I ought to have been commended of you. By you. Then this boasting,
so foolish, would have been unnecessary. What a delicate reproof! All
the fault of this foolish boasting was theirs. They knew him intimately.
They had derived great benefits from his ministry, and they were bound
in gratitude, and from a regard to right and truth, to vindicate him.
But they had not done it; and hence, through their fault, he had been
compelled to go into this unpleasant vindication of his own character.
For in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles. Neither in
the evidences of my call to the apostolic office, 1 Corinthians 9:1, seq.;
nor in the endowments of the Spirit; nor in my success; nor in the
proofs of a Divine commission in the power of working miracles.
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 11:5".
Though I be nothing. This expression was either used in sarcasm or
seriously. According to the former supposition it means that he was
regarded as nothing; that the false apostles spoke of him as a mere
nothing, or as having no claims to the office of an apostle. This is the
opinion of Clarke, and many of the recent commentators. Bloomfield
inclines to this. According to the latter view, it is an expression of
humility on the part of Paul, and is designed to express his deep sense
of his unworthiness in view of his past life--a conviction deepened by
the exalted privileges conferred on him, and the exalted rank to which
he had been raised as an apostle. This was the view of most of the early
commentators. Doddridge unites the two. It is not possible to determine
with certainty which is the true interpretation; but it seems to me that
the latter view best accords with the scope of the passage, and with
what we have reason to suppose the apostle would say at this time.
It is true that in this discussion (2 Corinthians 10, seq.) there is much
that is sarcastic. But in the whole strain of the passage before us he
is serious. He is speaking of his sufferings, and of the evidences that
he was raised to elevated rank as an apostle, and it is not quite natural
to suppose that he would throw in a sarcastic remark just in the midst
of this discussion. Besides, this interpretation accords exactly with
what he says in 1 Corinthians 15:9, "For I am the least of all the apostles,
that am not meet to be called an apostle." If this be the correct
interpretation, then it teaches,
(1.) that the highest attainments in piety are not inconsistent with the
deepest sense of our nothingness and unworthiness.
(2.) That the most distinguished favours bestowed on us by God are
consistent with the lowest humility.
(3.) That those who are most favoured in the Christian life, and most
honoured by God, should not be unwilling to take a low place, and
to regard and speak of themselves as nothing. Compared with God,
what are they? Nothing. Compared with the angels, what are they?
Nothing. As creatures compared with the vast universe, what are
we. Nothing: an atom, a speck. Compared with other Christians,
the eminent saints who have lived before us, what are we?
Compared with what we ought to be, and might be, what are we?
Nothing. Let a man look over his past life, and see how vile and
unworthy it has been; let him look at God, and see how great and
glorious he is; let him look at the vast universe, and see how
immense it is; let him think of the angels, and reflect how pure they
are; let him think of what he might have been, of how much more
he might have done for his Saviour; let him look at his body, and
think how frail it is, and how soon it must return to the dust; and
no matter how elevated his rank among his fellow-worms, and no
matter how much God has favoured him as a Christian or a minister,
he will feel, if he feels right, that he is nothing. The most elevated
saints are distinguished for the deepest humility; those who are
nearest to God feel most their distance; they who are to occupy the
highest place in heaven feel most deeply that they axe unworthy of
the lowest.
{a} "in nothing" 2 Corinthians 11:5
{b} "I be nothing" Luke 17:10; 1 Corinthians 3:7; Ephesians 3:8
Verse 12. Truly the signs of an apostle. Such miracles as the
acknowledged apostles worked. Such "signs" or evidences that they were
Divinely commissioned. See Barnes "Mark 16:16";
See Barnes "Mark 16:17"; See Barnes "Romans 15:19".
Were wrought among you. That is, by me. See Barnes "1 Corinthians 9:2".
In all patience. I performed those works notwithstanding the
opposition which I met with. I patiently persevered in furnishing the
evidence of my Divine commission. There was a succession of miracles
demonstrating that I was from God, notwithstanding the unreasonable
opposition which I met with, until I convinced you that I was called to
the office of an apostle.
In signs, and wonders. In working miracles. See Barnes "Acts 2:22".
What these miracles at Corinth were, we are not distinctly informed.
They probably, however, were similar to those wrought in other
places, in healing the sick, etc.; the most benevolent, as it was one of
the most decisive proofs of the Divine power.
{a} "signs of an apostle" 1 Corinthians 9:2
Verse 13. For what is it, etc. This verse contains a striking mixture
of sarcasm and irony, not exceeded, says Bloomfield, by any example
in Demosthenes. The sense is, "I have given among you the most
ample proofs of my apostolic commission. I have conferred on you
the highest favours of the apostolic office. In these respects you
are superior to all other churches. In one respect only are you
inferior--it is in this, that you have not been burdened with the
privilege of supporting me. If you had had this, you would have
been inferior to no others. But this was owing to me; and I pray
that you will forgive me this. I might have urged it; I might have
claimed it; I might have given you the privilege of becoming equal
to the most favoured in all respects. But I have not pressed it, and
you have not done it, and I ask your pardon." There is a delicate
insinuation that they had not contributed to his wants,
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 11:8"; an intimation that it was a privilege to
contribute to the support of the gospel, and that Paul might have been
"burdensome to them," See Barnes "1 Corinthians 9:1"; and Barnes on
1 Corinthians 9:2-12 and an admission that he was in part to blame for this,
and had not in this respect given them an opportunity to equal other
churches in all respects.
Was not burdensome to you. See Barnes "2 Corinthians 10:8".
Forgive me this wrong. "If it be a fault, pardon it. Forgive me that
I did not give you this opportunity to be equal to other churches. It is
a privilege to contribute to the support of the gospel, and they who are
permitted to do it should esteem themselves highly favoured. I pray you
to pardon me for depriving you of any of your Christian privileges."
What the feelings of the Corinthians were about forgiving Paul for this,
we know not; but most churches would be as ready to forgive a minister
for this as for any other offence.
{b} "I, myself" 2 Corinthians 11:9
Verse 14. Behold, the third time I am ready to come to you. That is,
this is the third time that I have purposed to come and see you, and
have made preparation for it. He does not mean that he had been
twice with them, and was now coming the third time; but that he
had twice before intended to go, and had been disappointed. See
1 Corinthians 16:5; 2 Corinthians 1:15,16. His purpose had been to visit them
on his way to Macedonia, and again on his return from Macedonia.
lie had now formed a third resolution, which he had a prospect of
carrying into execution.
And I will not be burdensome to you. I resolve still, as I have done
before, not to receive a compensation that shall be oppressive to you.
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 11:9,10".
For I seek not your's, but you. I desire not to obtain your
property, but to save your souls. This was a noble resolution; and it
is the resolution which should be formed by every minister of the
gospel. While a minister of Christ has a claim to a competent
support, his main purpose should not be to obtain such a support.
It should be the higher and nobler object of winning souls to the
Redeemer. See Paul's conduct in this respect explained in the.
See Barnes "Acts 20:33".
For the children, etc. There is great delicacy and address in this
sentiment. The meaning is, "It is not natural and usual for children to
make provisions for their parents. The common course of events and of
duty is for parents to make provision for their offspring. I, therefore,
your spiritual father, choose to act in the same way. I make provision
for your spiritual wants; I labour and toil for you as a father does for
his children. I seek your welfare, as he does, by constant self-denial.
In return, I do not ask you to provide for me, any more than a father
ordinarily expects his children to provide for him. I am willing to
labour as he does, content with doing my duty, and promoting the welfare
of those under me." The words rendered "ought not" (\~ou ofeilei\~)
are to be understood in a comparative sense. Paul does not mean
that a child ought never to provide for his parents, or to lay
anything up for a sick, a poor, and an infirm father; but that the duty
of doing that was slight and unusual compared with the duty of a
parent to provide for his children. The one was of comparatively
rare occurrence; the other was constant, and was the ordinary course
of duty. It is a matter of obligation for a child to provide for an
aged and helpless parent; but commonly the duty is that of a parent
to provide for his children. Paul felt like a father toward the
church in Corinth; and he was willing, therefore, to labour for them
without compensation.
{c} "I seek not your's" 1 Corinthians 10:33; 1 Thessalonians 2:8
Verse 15. And I will very gladly spend. I am willing to spend my
strength, and time, and life, and all that I have for your welfare, as
a father cheerfully does for his children. Any expense which may
be necessary to promote your salvation I am willing to submit to.
The labour of a father for his children is cheerful and pleasant.
Such is his love for them that he delights in toil for their sake, and
that he may make them happy. The toil of a pastor for his flock
should be cheerful. He should be willing to engage in unremitted
efforts for their welfare; and if he has any right feeling he will find
a pleasure in that toil. He will not grudge the time demanded; he
will not be grieved that it exhausts his strength, or his life, any
more than a father will who toils for his family. And as the
pleasures of a father who is labouring for his children are among the
purest and most pleasant which men ever enjoy, so it is with a
pastor. Perhaps, on the whole, the pleasantest employment in life
is that connected with the pastoral office; the happiest moments
known on earth are in the duties, arduous as they are, of the
pastoral relation. God thus, as in the relation of a father, tempers
toil and pleasure together; and accompanies most arduous labours
with present and abundant reward.
Be spent. Be exhausted and worn out in my labours. So the Greek word
means. Paul was willing that his powers should be entirely exhausted and
his life consumed in this service.
For you. Marg., as in the Greek, for your souls. So it should
have been rendered. So Tindal renders it. The sense is, that he was
willing to become wholly exhausted if by it he might secure the salvation
of their souls.
Though the more abundantly I love you, etc. This is designed
doubtless as a gentle reproof. It refers to the fact that notwithstanding
the tender attachment which he had evinced for them, they had not
manifested the love in return which he had a right to expect. It is
possible that there may be an allusion to the case of a fond, doting
parent. It sometimes happens that a parent fixes his affections with
undue degree on some one of his children; and in such cases it is not
uncommon that the child evinces special ingratitude and want of love.
Such may be the allusion here--that Paul had fixed his affections on them
like a fond, doting father, and that he had met with a return by no means
corresponding with the fervour of his attachment; yet still he was
willing, like such a father, to exhaust his time and strength for their
welfare. The doctrine is, that we should be willing to labour and toil
for the good of others, even when they evince great ingratitude. The
proper end of labouring for their welfare is not to excite their
gratitude, but to obey the will of God; and no matter whether others
are grateful or not; whether they love us or not; whether we can
promote our popularity with them or not, let us do them good
always. It better shows the firmness of our Christian principle to
endeavour to benefit others when they love us the less for all our
attempts, than it does to attempt to do good on the swelling tide of
popular favour.
{1} "for you" "your souls"
Verse 16. But be it so. This is evidently a charge of his enemies; or
at least a charge which it might be supposed they would make.
Whether they ever in fact made it, or whether the apostle merely
anticipates an objection, it is impossible to determine. It is clearly
to be regarded as the language of objectors; for,
(1.) it can never be supposed that Paul would state as a serious matter
that he had caught them with deceit or fraud.
(2.) He answers it as an objection in the following verse. The
meaning is, "We admit that you did not burden us. You did not exact a
support from us. But all this was mere trick. You accomplish the same
thing in another way. You professed when with us not to seek our
property but our souls. But in various ways you contrived to get our
money, and to secure your object. You made others the agents for doing
this, and sent them among us under various pretexts to gain money
from us." It will be remembered that Paul had sent Titus among
them to take up the collection for the poor saints in Judea,
2 Corinthians 8:6; and it is not at all improbable that some there had charged
Paul with making use of this pretence only to obtain money for his
own private use. To guard against this charge was one of the
reasons why Paul was so anxious to have some persons appointed
by the church to take charge of the contribution. See 1 Corinthians 16:3,
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 8:19", also 2 Corinthians 8:20-21.
Being crafty. Being cunning. That is, by sending persons to obtain
money on different pretences.
I caught you with guile. I took you by deceit or fraud. That is,
making use of fraud in pretending that the money was for poor and
afflicted saints, when in reality it was for my own use. It is
impossible that Paul should have ever admitted this of himself; and
they greatly pervert the passage who suppose that it applies to him,
and then plead that it is right to make use of guile in accomplishing
their purposes. Paul never carried his measures by dishonesty, nor
did he ever justify fraud. See Barnes "Acts 23:6".
Verse 17. Did I make a gain, etc. In refuting this slander, Paul
appeals boldly to the facts, and to what they knew. "Name the man, says
he, who has thus defrauded you under my instructions. If the
charge is well-founded, let him be specified, and let the mode
in which it was done be distinctly stated." The phrase "make a
gain," (from \~pleonektew\~,) means, properly, to have an advantage;
then to take advantage, to seek unlawful gain. Here Paul asks
whether he had defrauded them by means of any one whom he had
sent to them.
Verse 18. I desired Titus. To go and complete the collection which
you had commenced. See 2 Corinthians 8:6.
And with him I sent a brother. See Barnes "2 Corinthians 8:18".
Did Titus make a gain of you? They knew that he did not. They had
received him kindly, treated him with affection, and sent him away with
every proof of confidence and respect. 2 Corinthians 7:7. How then could
they now pretend that he had defrauded them?
Walked we not in the same spirit? Did not all his actions resemble
mine? Was there not the same proof of honesty, sincerity, and love which
I have ever manifested? This is a very delicate turn. Paul's course of
life when with them they admitted was free from guile and from any
attempt to get money by improper means. They charged him only with
attempting it by means of others. He now boldly appeals to them, and asks
whether Titus and he had not in fact acted in the same manner; and
whether they had not alike evinced a spirit free from covetousness and
deceit?
{a} "Titus, and with him" 2 Corinthians 7:2
{b} "Did Titus" \\2Co 8:6\\
Verse 19. Again, think ye that we excuse ourselves unto you?
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 5:12". The sense is, do not suppose that this is
said from mere anxiety to obtain your favour, or to ingratiate ourselves
into your esteem. This is said doubtless to keep himself from the
suspicion of being actuated by improper motives, he had manifested great
solicitude certainly in the previous chapters to vindicate his
character; but he here says that it was not from a mere desire to show
them that his conduct was right; it was from a desire to honour Christ.
We speak before God in Christ. We declare the simple and
undisguised truth as in the presence of God. I have no mere desire to
palliate my conduct; I disguise nothing; I conceal nothing; I say
nothing for the mere purpose of self-vindication; but I can appeal to
the Searcher of hearts for the exact truth of all that I say. The phrase
"before God in Christ" means, probably, "I speak as in the presence
of God and as a follower of Christ, as a Christian man." It is the
solemn appeal of a Christian to his God for the truth of what he said,
and a solemn asseveration that what he said was not for the mere
purpose of excusing or apologizing for (Greek) his conduct.
But we do all things, dearly beloved, for your edifying. All that I
have done has been for your welfare. My vindication of my character, and
my effort to disabuse you of your prejudices, have been that you might
have unwavering confidence in the gospel, and might be built up in
holy faith. On the word edify, See Barnes "Romans 14:19",
See Barnes "1 Corinthians 8:1"; See Barnes "1 Corinthians 10:23".
{*} "excuse" "defend"
{c} "ourselves" 2 Corinthians 5:12
Verse 20. For I fear, lest, when I come. 2 Corinthians 12:14.
I shall not find you such as I would. That is, walking in the truth
and order of the gospel, he had feared that the disorders would not be
removed, and that they would not have corrected the errors which prevailed,
and for which he had rebuked them. It was on this account that
he had said so much to them. His desire was that all these disorders
might be removed, and that he might be saved from the necessity
of exercising severe discipline when he should come among them.
And that I shall be found unto you such as ye would not. That is,
that I shall be compelled to administer discipline, and that my visit
may not be as pleasant to you as you would desire. For this reason
he wished all disorder corrected, and all offences removed; that
everything might be pleasant when he should come. See 1 Corinthians 4:21.
See Barnes "2 Corinthians 10:2".
Lest there be debates. I fear that there may be existing there
debates, etc., which will require the interposition of the authority of
an apostle. On the meaning of the word debate, see
See Barnes "Romans 1:29".
Envyings. See Barnes "1 Corinthians 3:3".
Wraths. Anger or animosities between contending factions, the usual
effect of forming parties.
Strifes. Between contending factions. See Barnes "1 Corinthians 3:3".
Backbitings. See Barnes "Romans 1:30".
Whisperings. See Barnes "Romans 1:29".
Swellings. Undue elation; being puffed up,
See Barnes " :"; such as would be produced by
vain self-confidence.
Tumults. Disorder and confusion arising from this existence of
parties. Paul, deeply sensible of the evil of all this, had endeavoured
in this correspondence to suppress it, that all things might be pleasant
when he should come among them.
{d} "when I come" 1 Corinthians 4:21; 2 Corinthians 13:2,10
{+} "debates" "contentions"
Verse 21. And lest, when I come again, my God will humble me, etc.
Lest I should, be compelled to inflict punishment on those whom I
supposed to have been converted under my ministry. I had rejoiced in
them as true converts. I had counted them as among the fruit of
my ministry. Now to be compelled to inflict punishment on them
as having no religion would mortify me and humble me. The infliction of
punishment on members of the church is a sort of punishment to him who
inflicts it as well as to him who is punished. Members of the church
should walk uprightly, lest they overwhelm the ministry in shame.
And that I shall bewail many, etc. If they repented of their sin, he
could still rejoice in them. If they continued in their sin, till he came,
it would be to him a source of deep lamentation. It is evident from the
word "many" here, that the disorders had prevailed very extensively in
the church at Corinth. The word rendered "have sinned already" means,
"who have sinned before;" and the idea is, that they were old offenders,
and that they had not yet repented.
The uncleanness. See Barnes "Romans 1:24".
And fornication, and lasciviousness, etc.
See Barnes "1 Corinthians 5:1"; See Barnes "1 Corinthians 6:18". This was the sin
to which they were particularly exposed in Corinth, as it was the sin for
which that corrupt city was distinguished. See the Introduction to the
First Epistle. Hence the frequent cautions in these epistles against it;
and hence it is not to be wondered at that some of those who had become
professing Christians had fallen into it. It may be added, that it is
still the sin to which converts from the corruptions and licentiousness
of paganism are particularly exposed.
{a} "humble me" 2 Corinthians 2:1
{b} "repented of the uncleanness" Revelation 2:21
{c} "fornication and lasciviousness" 1 Corinthians 5:1
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