2 Corinthians 3:5

Contextual Overview

¹Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? ¹ Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? ¹ 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? ¹ Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? ¹Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some, letters of commendation to you or from you? ¹ 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? ¹ Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or do we need, as some, commendatory letters to you, or [commendatory] from you? ¹ Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some, letters of recommendation to you or from you? ¹ Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as do some, letters of commendation to you or from you? ¹ Do we again begin to recommend ourselves? Unless we need, as some do, recommendatory letters to you, or recommendatory letters from you?

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

that: 2 Corinthians 2:16, 2 Corinthians 4:7, Exodus 4:10, John 15:5

but: 2 Corinthians 12:9, Exodus 4:11-16, Jeremiah 1:6-10, Matthew 10:19, Matthew 10:20, Luke 21:15, Luke 24:49, 1 Corinthians 3:6, 1 Corinthians 3:10, 1 Corinthians 15:10, Philippians 2:13, Philippians 4:13, James 1:17

Reciprocal: Genesis 41:16 - It is not Exodus 3:11 - General Deuteronomy 1:12 - General Judges 11:11 - uttered Judges 16:20 - the Lord 1 Samuel 17:45 - in the name 1 Kings 3:9 - who is able 1 Chronicles 15:26 - God 1 Chronicles 29:14 - who am I 2 Chronicles 1:10 - for who can Nehemiah 7:5 - put into mine Psalms 18:32 - girdeth Psalms 78:72 - guided Psalms 119:125 - give Acts 3:12 - as Acts 20:19 - with all Romans 1:5 - we have 1 Corinthians 12:3 - no man 2 Corinthians 1:9 - that 2 Corinthians 10:4 - mighty Galatians 6:3 - when 1 Timothy 1:12 - who

Cross-References

Genesis 2:17
but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die."

Genesis 2:17
but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die."

Genesis 2:17
but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not eat from it; for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die."

Genesis 2:17
but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die."

Genesis 2:17
But as touching the tree of knowlege of good and euyll thou shalt not eate of it: For in what daye so euer thou eatest therof, thou shalt dye the death.

Genesis 2:17
But you must not eat from the tree that gives knowledge about good and evil. If you eat fruit from that tree, on that day you will certainly die!"

Genesis 2:17
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die."

Genesis 2:17
forsothe ete thou not of the tre of kunnyng of good and of yuel; for in what euere dai thou schalt ete therof, thou schalt die bi deeth.

Genesis 2:17
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and euill, thou shalt not eate of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die.

Genesis 2:17
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves,.... Though we are sufficient for this work to which God has called us, and have such trust and confidence that he has blessed and owned us, and done such great things by us; yet we do not ascribe anything to ourselves, to any power of ours, to any self-sufficiency in us: for "we are not sufficient of ourselves" neither for the work of the ministry, nor for the conversion of sinners, nor for faith and hope in God, nor for any spiritual work whatever; not even to think anything as of ourselves; any good thing, either for our own use and benefit, or for the advantage of others; we are not able of ourselves to meditate with judgment and affection upon the word of God, to study the Scriptures, to collect from them things fit for the ministry; and much less with freedom and boldness to speak of them to edification; and still less able to impress them upon the heart: for though you who are the epistle of Christ are ministered by us, yet not by any power and self-sufficiency of ours;

but our sufficiency is of God; to think, to speak, and to act for his glory.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Not that we are sufficient of ourselves - This is evidently designed to guard against the appearance of boasting, or of self-confidence. He had spoken of his confidence; of his triumph; of his success; of his undoubted evidence that God had sent him. He here says, that he did not mean to be understood as affirming that any of his success came from himself, or that he was able by his own strength to accomplish the great things which had been effected by his ministry. He well knew that he had no such self-sufficiency; and he would not insinuate, in the slightest manner, that he believed himself to be invested with any such power, compare note on John 15:5.

To think anything - (λογίσασθαι τι logisasthai ti). The word used here means properly to reason, think, consider; and then to reckon, count to, or impute to anyone. It is the word which is commonly rendered impute; see it explained more fully in the note on Romans 4:5. Robinson (Lexicon) renders it in this place, “to reason out, to think out, to find out by thinking.” Doddridge renders it, “to reckon upon anything as from ourselves.” Whitby renders it, “to reason; as if the apostle had said, We are unable by any reasoning of our own to bring people to conversion. Macknight gives a similar sense. Locke renders it, “Not as if I were sufficient of myself, to reckon upon anything as from myself:” and explains it to mean that Paul was not sufficient of himself by any strength of natural parts to attain the knowledge of the gospel truths which he preached. The word may be rendered here, to reckon, reason, think, etc.; but it should be confined to the immediate subject under consideration. It does not refer to thinking in general; or to the power of thought on any, and on all subjects - however true it may be in itself but to the preaching the gospel. And the expression may be regarded as referring to the following points, which are immediately under discussion:

(1) Paul did not feel that he was sufficient of himself to have reasoned or thought out the truths of the gospel. They were communicated by God.

(2) He had no power by reasoning to convince or convert sinners. That was all of God.

(3) He had no right to reckon on success by any strength of his own. All success was to be traced to God. It is, however, also true, that all our powers of thinking and reasoning are from God; and that we have no ability to think clearly, to reason calmly, closely, and correctly, unless he shall preside over our minds and give us clearness of thought. How easy is it for God to disarrange all our faculties, and produce insanity! How easy to suffer our minds to become unsettled, bewildered, and distracted with a multiplicity of thoughts! How easy to cause every thing to appear cloudy, and dark, and misty! How easy to affect our bodies with weakness, langor, disease, and through them to destroy all power of close and consecutive thought! No one who considers on how many things the power of close thinking depends, can doubt that all our sufficiency in this is from God; and that we owe to him every clear idea on the subjects of common life, and on scientific subjects, no less certainly than we do in the truths of religion, compare the case of Bezaleel and Aholiab in common arts, Exodus 31:1-6, and Job 32:8.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Corinthians 3:5. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves — We do not arrogate to ourselves any power to enlighten the mind or change the heart, we are only instruments in the hand of God. Nor was it possible for us apostles to think, to invent, such a scheme of salvation as is the Gospel; and if we even had been equal to the invention, how could we have fulfilled such promises as this scheme of salvation abounds with? God alone could fulfil these promises, and he fulfils only those which he makes himself. All these promises have been amen-ratified and fulfilled to you who have believed on Christ Jesus according to our preaching; therefore, ye are God's workmanship and it is only by God's sufficiency that we have been able to do any thing. This I believe to be the apostle's meaning in this place, and that he speaks here merely of the Gospel scheme, and the inability of human wisdom to invent it; and the words λογισασθαι τι, which we translate to think any thing, signify, properly, to find any thing out by reasoning; and as the Gospel scheme of salvation is the subject in hand, to that subject the words are to be referred and limited. The words, however, contain also a general truth; we can neither think, act, nor be, without God. From him we have received all our powers, whether of body or of mind, and without him we can do nothing. But we may abuse both our power of thinking and acting; for the power to think, and the power to act, are widely different from the act of thinking, and the act of doing. God gives us the power or capacity to think and act, but he neither thinks nor acts for us. It is on this ground that we may abuse our powers, and think evil, and act wickedly; and it is on this ground that we are accountable for our thoughts, words, and deeds.