¹ tn Grk “we ourselves had the sentence of death within ourselves.” Here ἀπόκριμα (apokrima) is being used figuratively; no actual official verdict had been given, but in light of all the difficulties that Paul and his colleagues had suffered, it seemed to them as though such an official verdict had been rendered against them (L&N 56.26).

² tn Or “might not put confidence in ourselves.”

³ sn The expression the tent we live in refers to “our earthly house, our body.” Paul uses the metaphor of the physical body as a house or tent, the residence of the immaterial part of a person.

⁴ tn Or “destroyed.”

⁵ tn Grk “if I grieved you.”

⁶ sn My letter. Paul is referring to the “severe” letter mentioned in 2 Cor 2:4.

⁷ tn Grk “I do not regret”; direct objects in Greek must often be supplied from the context. Here one could simply supply “it,” but since Paul is referring to the effects of his previous letter, clarity is improved if “having written it” is supplied.

⁸ tn Grk “I did regret”; the direct object “it” must be supplied from the context.

⁹ tc A few important mss (Ì^46c B D* it sa) lack γάρ (gar, “for”), while the majority of witnesses have it (א C D¹ F G Ψ 0243 33 1739 1881 Ï sy bo). Even though Ì^46* omits γάρ, it has the same sense (viz., a subordinate clause) because it reads the participle βλέπων (blepwn, “seeing”; the Vulgate does the same). A decision is difficult because although the overwhelming external evidence is on the side of the conjunction, the lack of γάρ is a significantly harder reading, for the whole clause is something of an anacoluthon. Without the conjunction, the sentence reads more harshly. This would fit with Paul’s “vehemence of spirit” (A. T. Robertson, A Grammar of the Greek New Testament, 435) that is found especially in 2 Corinthians and Galatians. However, the mss that omit the conjunction are prone to such tendencies at times. In this instance, the conjunction should probably stand.

¹⁰ tn Grk “my letter grieved you.”

¹¹ tn Grk “I have not been put to shame”; the words “by you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

¹² tn Grk “just as we spoke everything to you in truth.”

¹³ tn The words “about you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

¹⁴ tn Or “be disgraced”; Grk “be put to shame.”

¹⁵ tn 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.

¹⁶ tn The phrase is close to a recognized idiom for judging based on outward appearances (L&N 30.120). Some translators see a distinction, however, and translate 2 Cor 10:7a as “Look at what is in front of your eyes,” that is, the obvious facts of the case (so NRSV).

¹⁷ tn 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.

¹⁸ tn 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).

¹⁹ sn Unskilled in speaking means not professionally trained as a rhetorician.

²⁰ tn Or “am foolish.”

²¹ tn The word “anyone” is not in the Greek text but is implied.

²² tn Or “unless indeed you are disqualified.”