Introduction to 2 Corinthians

My hope is that through this introduction, you will have some context, both geographical and historical, for this letter.
Where was Corinth?

Corinth was in the southern part of modern-day Greece and was the capital city of its province of Achaia.
See map here.

Why did Paul write this letter? Now for a little historical context...

Most people hold First Corinthians in high esteem and may have a hard time understanding why the Corinthians might have not welcomed this correspondence from Paul. Paul was hoping to quell the hostility from the Corinthians toward him, but he ended up making it worse. The Corinthians may have been upset to receive the 1 Corinthians letter for a couple of reasons. First, it’s not until a third of the way through that Paul even acknowledges that they wrote him a letter. He is writing this letter in response to some information he got from a woman named Chloe and some of her friends. His criticism of the Corinthians in this letter is based almost solely on the information from Chloe, which apparently Paul did nothing to confirm before this scathing letter was written. Paul’s words are not conciliatory; on the contrary, they are rather deprecating. So, while Paul intended for this letter to bring the Corinthians back in line, it really had the opposite effect.


Evidently, Paul also wrote another letter to the Corinthians, which they would have received between the 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians of the Bible. This letter is referred to as the “painful letter”. In it, Paul was more severe than he was in 1 Corinthians and he felt distressed and regretted sending it. Some scholars believe that we have part of this “painful letter” preserved. These scholars believe that 2 Corinthians is actually two letters that somehow were preserved as one letter. In chapters 1-9 Paul is overjoyed at his reconciliation with the Corinthians and has full confidence and pride in them. In chapter 10, the tone changes dramatically and becomes one of bitterness; this tone dominates through the end of the book. Are chapters 10-13 part of the painful letter Paul references? Some scholars believe so. This may make more sense if chapters 10-13 are read first, then chapters 1-9. With the abrupt change in tone, this seems probable.


In that context, then, Paul probably wrote four letters:


1. An unpreserved letter - After establishing the church in Corinth, Paul left to Ephesus. He wrote the Corinthians this letter from there. This unpreserved letter was probably instructional, possibly doctrinal. They responded back with some questions.


2. First Corinthians - Paul writes back to them and starts the breech (described above). Timothy told Paul that the Corinthians formed an opposition to Paul and his teachings. He also would have heard some negative things about them from Chloe, which most likely propelled him to write this letter. This letter was likely written to the leader(s) of the opposition, as a means of disciplining them. Paul was still in Ephesus when he wrote this letter. He gave it to Titus to deliver and subsequently left for Troas, to preach there.


3. The Painful Letter - Paul writes to them, further incensing them and deepening the breech between them. Many scholars believe part of this letter is preserved in 2 Corinthians 10-13. In 10-13, Paul defends his ministry, proves his ministry is legitimate, and asserts his authority as an apostle of Christ.


4. Second Corinthians: The Letter of Reconciliation - Paul wanted to know how the Corinthians responded to the painful letter. He traveled to Macedonia from Troas to seek out Titus and ask how the letter was received. Titus reported that the majority of the Corinthians had repented of their rebellion against Paul and his apostolic authority. He then wrote 2 Corinthians in Macedonia, out of his concern and love for the Corinthian church. This letter is most likely preserved as 2 Corinthians 1-9.


This week, please read 2 Corinthians 10-13 with this context in mind. What is the tone of these chapters? Do you buy the idea that 10-13 are part of the “painful letter”? Does Paul seem to be chastising the Corinthians? Imagine that Paul is writing these chapters directly and personally to you. How does it make you feel? Convicted? Angry? Unjustly accused?How might God be speaking to YOU through these words of Paul?

I look very forward to your comments.

We will begin our verse-by-verse study of 2 Corinthians next Friday. Thanks for stopping by.

Background information taken from:
http://2corinthians.jesusanswers.com/
http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/goodspeed/ch05.html  

Crazy-Grateful

A story is told about Fiorello LaGuardia, who, when he was mayor of New York City during the worst days of the Great Depression and all of WWII, was called by adoring New Yorkers 'the Little Flower' because he was only five foot four and always wore a carnation in his lapel. He was a colorful character who used to ride the New York City fire trucks, raid speakeasies with the police department, take entire orphanages to baseball games, and whenever the New York newspapers were on strike, he would go on the radio and read the Sunday funnies to the kids. One bitterly cold night in January of 1935, the mayor turned up at a night court that served the poorest ward of the city. LaGuardia dismissed the judge for the evening and took over the bench himself.
Within a few minutes, a tattered old woman was brought before him, charged with stealing a loaf of bread. She told LaGuardia that her daughter's husband had deserted her, her daughter was sick, and her two grandchildren were starving. But the shopkeeper, from whom the bread was stolen, refused to drop the charges. "It's a real bad neighborhood, your Honor." the man told the mayor. "She's got to be punished to teach other people around here a lesson." LaGuardia sighed. He turned to the woman and said "I've got to punish you. The law makes no exceptions--ten dollars or ten days in jail." But even as he pronounced sentence, the mayor was already reaching into his pocket. He extracted a bill and tossed it into his famous sombrero saying: "Here is the ten dollar fine which I now remit; and furthermore I am going to fine everyone in this courtroom fifty cents for living in a town where a person has to steal bread so that her grandchildren can eat. Mr. Baliff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant." So the following day the New York City newspapers reported that $47.50 was turned over to a bewildered old lady who had stolen a loaf of bread to feed her starving grandchildren, fifty cents of that amount being contributed by the red-faced grocery store owner, while some seventy petty criminals, people with traffic violations, and New York City policemen, each of whom had just paid fifty cents for the privilege of doing so, gave the mayor a standing ovation.
Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel, Multnomah, 1990, pp 91-2.


What if you were sentenced to pay a fine that you had absolutely no way of paying? Millions of dollars, perhaps? What if the judge who sentenced you --as he read your sentence -- wrote a check covering the fine? Just handed the check over to the bailiff and said -- Sir, she is free to go. Wouldn't you feel crazy-grateful? What if the sentence handed down were death? And what if the judge still was willing to pay the fine... with the life of his very own son?

Would you still be crazy-grateful?

Well, friends, that has been done for you. A "get out of jail free" card has been presented to the Judge with your name on it. All you have to do is say, "Yes, I agree, Judge, I am imperfect. But, I am willing to accept Your Son's perfection in place of my own." That's it. Just believe that Jesus died FOR YOU and the condemnation that you deserve is written off scot-free. We all fall short of the glory of God and we all deserve death. However, in God's unfathomable mercy, He accepts Jesus' sacrifice in lieu of our own. Jesus did it once and for all. It is finished.

Are you crazy-grateful?