the Week of Proper 22 / Ordinary 27
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THE MESSAGE
2 Corinthians 3:1
Bible Study Resources
Concordances:
- Nave'sDictionaries:
- BakerEncyclopedias:
- InternationalDevotionals:
- MyParallel Translations
Does is seem like we are tooting our own horns so that y'all will believe we are who we say we are? Do we really need some letter of introduction or endorsement concerning the things we've done?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you?
Do we seem to be again attempting to put ourselves in the right? or have we need, as some have, of letters of approval to you or from you?
Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or do we need, as some, commendatory letters to you, or [commendatory] from you?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some, letters of recommendation to you or from you?
Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as do some, letters of commendation to you or from you?
Do we again begin to recommend ourselves? Unless we need, as some do, recommendatory letters to you, or recommendatory letters from you?
Do you say that this is self-recommendation once more? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you or from you?
Doe wee begin againe to commend our selues? or need wee, as some others, Epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?
Do we begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we, as some, need commendatory letters to you, or commendatory ones from you?
Begynne we then agayne to prayse or selues? Or nede we (as some other) of pistles of commedacion vnto you or letters of commedacion from you?
Do I begin again to commend my self? or need I, as some others, commendatory letters to you, or from you?
Are we starting to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some [false teachers], letters of recommendation to you or from you? [No!]
Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? or need we, as do some, epistles of commendation to you or from you?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you?
We begyn to prayse oure selves agayne. Nede we as some other of pistles of recommendacion vnto you? or letters of recomendacion from you?
Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? or do we need, as do some, epistles of commendation to you or from you?
Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some [others], epistles of commendation to you, or [letters] of commendation from you.
Do we begin again to recommend ourselves, except we need, as some, letters of recommendation unto you, or from you?
Are we starting to brag about ourselves again? Do we need letters of introduction to you or from you, like some other people?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? We don't need letters of recommendation to you or from you as some other people do, do we?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you?
Are we once again bragging about ourselves? Do we need letters to you or from you to tell others about us? Some people do need letters that tell about them.
Are we starting to recommend ourselves again? Or do we, like some, need letters of recommendation either to you or from you?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you?
Doe we begin to praise our selues againe? or neede we as some other, epistles of recommendation vnto you, or letters of recommendation from you?
DO we begin again to commend our selves? Or do we need, as some other people, epistles of commendation concerning us written to you, or that you should write commending us?
Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as do some, letters of commendation to you or from you?
Are we beginning to recommend ourselves again? Unlike some people, we do not need letters of recommendation to you or from you, do we?Acts 18:27; 2 Corinthians 5:12; 12:11;">[xr]
Do we begin again anew to show who we are? or do we need as others to write epistles of commendation to you concerning ourselves, or that you should write to commend us ?
Do we begin again to show you who we are? Or do we, like others, need that letters recommendatory of us should be written to you? Or, that ye should write recommendations of us?
Jeremiah 31:31-34">[xr] Do we begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as some others, epistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you?
Are we beginning to praise ourselves again? Are we like others, who need to bring you letters of recommendation, or who ask you to write such letters on their behalf? Surely not!
Are we making it sound as if we think we are so important? Other people write letters about themselves. Do we need to write such a letter to you?
Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? or need we, as do some, epistles of commendation to you or from you?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Surely we do not need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you or from you, do we?
Are we to begin again, ourselves, to commend? or have we need, like some, of commendatory letters unto you, or from you?
Do we begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we need (as some do) epistles of commendation to you, or from you?
Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we, like some, need letters of recommendation to you or from you?
Do we begyn to prayse our selues agayne? Or neede we [as some other] of epistles of recomendation vnto you? or [letters] of recommendation from you?
Why are we beginning again to tell you all these good things about ourselves? Do we need letters of introduction to you or from you, like some other people?
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you?
Does this sound as if we were again boasting about ourselves? Could it be that, like some other people, we need letters of recommendation to you or from you?
Bigynnen we therfor eftsoone to preise vs silf? or whether we neden, as summen, pistlis of preisinge to you, or of you?
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
begin: 2 Corinthians 2:17, 2 Corinthians 5:12, 2 Corinthians 10:8, 2 Corinthians 10:12, 2 Corinthians 12:11, 2 Corinthians 12:19, 1 Corinthians 3:10, 1 Corinthians 4:15, 1 Corinthians 10:33
epistles: Acts 18:27, 1 Corinthians 16:3
Reciprocal: Romans 15:18 - which Romans 16:1 - commend 1 Corinthians 9:2 - for 2 Corinthians 10:14 - we stretch not 2 Corinthians 10:18 - not 2 Corinthians 13:3 - which Galatians 1:1 - but
Cross-References
"The serpent seduced me," she said, "and I ate."
At that time God will unsheathe his sword, his merciless, massive, mighty sword. He'll punish the serpent Leviathan as it flees, the serpent Leviathan thrashing in flight. He'll kill that old dragon that lives in the sea.
"Stay alert. This is hazardous work I'm assigning you. You're going to be like sheep running through a wolf pack, so don't call attention to yourselves. Be as cunning as a snake, inoffensive as a dove.
Pseudo-Servants of God Will you put up with a little foolish aside from me? Please, just for a moment. The thing that has me so upset is that I care about you so much—this is the passion of God burning inside me! I promised your hand in marriage to Christ, presented you as a pure virgin to her husband. And now I'm afraid that exactly as the Snake seduced Eve with his smooth patter, you are being lured away from the simple purity of your love for Christ. It seems that if someone shows up preaching quite another Jesus than we preached—different spirit, different message—you put up with him quite nicely. But if you put up with these big-shot "apostles," why can't you put up with simple me? I'm as good as they are. It's true that I don't have their voice, haven't mastered that smooth eloquence that impresses you so much. But when I do open my mouth, I at least know what I'm talking about. We haven't kept anything back. We let you in on everything. I wonder, did I make a bad mistake in proclaiming God's Message to you without asking for something in return, serving you free of charge so that you wouldn't be inconvenienced by me? It turns out that the other churches paid my way so that you could have a free ride. Not once during the time I lived among you did anyone have to lift a finger to help me out. My needs were always supplied by the believers from Macedonia province. I was careful never to be a burden to you, and I never will be, you can count on it. With Christ as my witness, it's a point of honor with me, and I'm not going to keep it quiet just to protect you from what the neighbors will think. It's not that I don't love you; God knows I do. I'm just trying to keep things open and honest between us. And I'm not changing my position on this. I'd die before taking your money. I'm giving nobody grounds for lumping me in with those money-grubbing "preachers," vaunting themselves as something special. They're a sorry bunch—pseudo-apostles, lying preachers, crooked workers—posing as Christ's agents but sham to the core. And no wonder! Satan does it all the time, dressing up as a beautiful angel of light. So it shouldn't surprise us when his servants masquerade as servants of God. But they're not getting by with anything. They'll pay for it in the end. Let me come back to where I started—and don't hold it against me if I continue to sound a little foolish. Or if you'd rather, just accept that I am a fool and let me rant on a little. I didn't learn this kind of talk from Christ. Oh, no, it's a bad habit I picked up from the three-ring preachers that are so popular these days. Since you sit there in the judgment seat observing all these shenanigans, you can afford to humor an occasional fool who happens along. You have such admirable tolerance for impostors who rob your freedom, rip you off, steal you blind, put you down—even slap your face! I shouldn't admit it to you, but our stomachs aren't strong enough to tolerate that kind of stuff. Since you admire the egomaniacs of the pulpit so much (remember, this is your old friend, the fool, talking), let me try my hand at it. Do they brag of being Hebrews, Israelites, the pure race of Abraham? I'm their match. Are they servants of Christ? I can go them one better. (I can't believe I'm saying these things. It's crazy to talk this way! But I started, and I'm going to finish.) I've worked much harder, been jailed more often, beaten up more times than I can count, and at death's door time after time. I've been flogged five times with the Jews' thirty-nine lashes, beaten by Roman rods three times, pummeled with rocks once. I've been shipwrecked three times, and immersed in the open sea for a night and a day. In hard traveling year in and year out, I've had to ford rivers, fend off robbers, struggle with friends, struggle with foes. I've been at risk in the city, at risk in the country, endangered by desert sun and sea storm, and betrayed by those I thought were my brothers. I've known drudgery and hard labor, many a long and lonely night without sleep, many a missed meal, blasted by the cold, naked to the weather. And that's not the half of it, when you throw in the daily pressures and anxieties of all the churches. When someone gets to the end of his rope, I feel the desperation in my bones. When someone is duped into sin, an angry fire burns in my gut. If I have to "brag" about myself, I'll brag about the humiliations that make me like Jesus. The eternal and blessed God and Father of our Master Jesus knows I'm not lying. Remember the time I was in Damascus and the governor of King Aretas posted guards at the city gates to arrest me? I crawled through a window in the wall, was let down in a basket, and had to run for my life.
The same goes for you husbands: Be good husbands to your wives. Honor them, delight in them. As women they lack some of your advantages. But in the new life of God's grace, you're equals. Treat your wives, then, as equals so your prayers don't run aground.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
Do we begin again to commend ourselves?.... The apostle having asserted that he and his fellow ministers always triumphed in Christ, and made manifest the savour of his knowledge in every place; were a sweet savour of Christ to God, did not corrupt the word of God, as some did, but sincerely and faithfully preached Christ; some might insinuate from hence, that he was guilty of arrogance and vain glory; wherefore to remove such a charge, or prevent its being brought, he asks, "do we begin again to commend ourselves?" we do not; what we say, we say honestly, sincerely, in the simplicity of our hearts, without any view to our own glory and applause among men, or for any worldly profit and advantage, or to ingratiate ourselves into your affections; we have no such views: some read these words without an interrogation, "we do begin again to commend ourselves"; as we have done already, in this and the former epistles; and as it is but just and right that we should vindicate our characters, support our good name and reputation, and secure and maintain our credit, which some would maliciously deprive us of:
though we have no need, as some others, of epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you; our persons, characters, and usefulness are too well known, to require commendatory letters front others to you, or from you to others. The false apostles are here struck at, whose practice it was to get letters of commendation from place to place; which they carried about and made use of for their temporal advantage, having nothing truly good and excellent in them to recommend them to others. The apostle does not hereby condemn letters of recommendation, which in proper cases may be very lawfully given, and a good use be made of them; only that he and other Gospel ministers were so well known, as to stand in no need of them.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
Do we begin again - This is designed evidently to meet an objection. He had been speaking of his triumph in the ministry 2 Corinthians 2:14, and of his sincerity and honesty, as contrasted with the conduct of many who corrupted the Word of God, 2 Corinthians 2:17. It might be objected that he was magnifying himself in these statements, and designed to commend himself in this manner to the Corinthians. To this he replies in the following verses.
To commend ourselves? - To recommend ourselves; do we speak this in our own praise, in order to obtain your favor.
Or need we, as some others - Probably some who had brought letters of recommendation to them from Judea. The false teachers at Corinth had been originally introduced there by commendatory letters from abroad. These were letters of introduction, and were common among the Greeks, the Romans, and the Jews, as they are now. They were usually given to persons who were about to travel, as there were no inns. and as travelers were dependent on the hospitality of those among whom they traveled.
Of commendation from you - To other congregations. It is implied here by Paul, that he sought no such letter; that he traveled without them; and that he depended on his zeal, and self-denial, and success to make him known, and to give him the affections of those to whom he ministered - a much better recommendation than mere introductory letters. Such letters were, however, sometimes given by Christians, and are by no means improper, Acts 18:27. Yet, they do not appear to have been sought or used by the apostles generally. They depended on their miraculous endowments, and on the attending grace of God to make them known.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
CHAPTER III.
The apostle shows, in opposition to his detractors, that the
faith and salvation of the Corinthians were sufficient
testimony of his Divine mission; that he needed no letters of
recommendation, the Christian converts at Corinth being a
manifest proof that he was an apostle of Christ, 1-3.
He extols the Christian ministry, as being infinitely more
excellent than that of Moses, 4-12.
Compares the different modes of announcing the truth under the
law and under the Gospel: in the former it was obscurely
delivered; and the veil of darkness, typified by the veil which
Moses wore, is still on the hearts of the Jews; but when they
turn to Christ this veil shall be taken away, 13-16.
On the contrary, the Gospel dispensation is spiritual; leads to
the nearest views of heavenly things; and those who receive it
are changed into the glorious likeness of God by the agency of
his Spirit, 17, 18.
NOTES ON CHAP. III.
Verse 2 Corinthians 3:1. Do we begin again to commend ourselves — By speaking thus of our sincerity, Divine mission, c., is it with a design to conciliate your esteem, or ingratiate ourselves in your affections? By no means.
Or need we - epistles of commendation — Are we so destitute of ministerial abilities and Divine influence that we need, in order to be received in different Churches, to have letters of recommendation? Certainly not. God causes us to triumph through Christ in every place and your conversion is such an evident seal to our ministry as leaves no doubt that God is with us.
Letters of commendation — Were frequent in the primitive Church; and were also in use in the apostolic Church, as we learn from this place. But these were, in all probability, not used by the apostles; their helpers, successors, and those who had not the miraculous gifts of the Spirit, needed such letters and they were necessary to prevent the Churches from being imposed on by false teachers. But when apostles came, they brought their own testimonials, the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit.
