2 Corinthians 3:3

3:3 revealing¹ that you are a letter of Christ, delivered by us,² written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets³ but on tablets of human hearts.

2 Corinthians 4:4

4:4 among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe⁴ so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel⁵ of Christ,⁶ who is the image of God.

2 Corinthians 7:9

7:9 Now I rejoice, not because you were made sad,⁷ but because you were made sad to the point of repentance. For you were made sad as God intended,⁸ so that you were not harmed⁹ in any way by us.

2 Corinthians 9:4

9:4 For if any of the Macedonians should come with me and find that you are not ready to give, we would be humiliated¹⁰ (not to mention you) by this confidence we had in you.¹¹

2 Corinthians 10:8

10:8 For if I boast somewhat more about our authority that the Lord gave us¹² for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will not be ashamed of doing so.¹³

2 Corinthians 10:14

10:14 For we were not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach as far as you, because we were the first to reach as far as you with the gospel about Christ.¹⁴

2 Corinthians 12:7

12:7 even because of the extraordinary character of the revelations. Therefore,¹⁵ so that I would not become arrogant, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to trouble¹⁶ me – so that I would not become arrogant.¹⁷

¹tn Or “making plain.”

²tn Grk “cared for by us,” an expression that could refer either to the writing or the delivery of the letter (BDAG 229 s.v. διακονέω 1). Since the following phrase refers to the writing of the letter, and since the previous verse speaks of this “letter” being “written on our [Paul’s and his companions’] hearts” it is more probable that the phrase “cared for by us” refers to the delivery of the letter (in the person of Paul and his companions).

³sn An allusion to Exod 24:12; 31:18; 34:1; Deut 9:10-11.

⁴tn Or “of unbelievers.”

⁵tn Grk “the gospel of the glory”; δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

⁶tn Or “so that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ would not be evident to them” (L&N 28.37).

⁷tn Grk “were grieved” (so also twice later in the verse).

⁸tn Grk “corresponding to God,” that is, corresponding to God’s will (κατὰ θεόν, kata qeon). The same phrase occurs in vv. 10 and 11.

⁹tn Grk “so that you did not suffer loss.”

¹⁰tn Or “be disgraced”; Grk “be put to shame.”

¹¹tn Grk “by this confidence”; the words “we had in you” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied as a necessary clarification for the English reader.

¹²tn The word “us” is not in the Greek text but is supplied. Indirect objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context, and must be supplied for the modern English reader.

¹³tn Grk “I will not be put to shame,” “I will not be ashamed.” The words “of doing so” are supplied to clarify for the reader that Paul will not be ashamed of boasting somewhat more about the authority the Lord gave him (beginning of v. 8).

¹⁴tn Grk “with the gospel of Christ,” but since Χριστοῦ (Cristou) is clearly an objective genitive here, it is better to translate “with the gospel about Christ.”

¹⁵tc Most mss (Ì⁴⁶ D Ψ 1881 Ï) lack διό (dio, “Therefore”), but the widespread distribution and quality of mss which include it (א A B F G 0243 33 81 1175 1739 pc) argues for its authenticity. Internally, its case is equally strong in that its inclusion is grammatically rough (διό is hardly necessary to convey purpose, especially since Paul uses ἵνα [{ina, “so that”] next).

¹⁶tn Or “to harass.”

¹⁷tn The phrase “so that I might not become arrogant” is repeated here because it occurs in the Greek text two times in the verse. Although redundant, it is repeated because of the emphatic nature of its affirmation.