2 Corinthians — Chapter 7

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1Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

2Receive us; we have wronged no man, we have corrupted no man, we have defrauded no man.

3I speak not this to condemn you: for I have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die and live with you.

4Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying of you: I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation.

5For, when we were come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears.

6Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus;

7And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you, when he told us your earnest desire, your mourning, your fervent mind toward me; so that I rejoiced the more.

8For though I made you sorry with a letter, I do not repent, though I did repent: for I perceive that the same epistle hath made you sorry, though it were but for a season.

9Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner, that ye might receive damage by us in nothing.

10For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

11For behold this selfsame thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you, yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what vehement desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.

12Wherefore, though I wrote unto you, I did it not for his cause that had done the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered wrong, but that our care for you in the sight of God might appear unto you.

13Therefore we were comforted in your comfort: yea, and exceedingly the more joyed we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all.

14For if I have boasted any thing to him of you, I am not ashamed; but as we spake all things to you in truth, even so our boasting, which I made before Titus, is found a truth.

15And his inward affection is more abundant toward you, whilst he remembereth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him.

16I rejoice therefore that I have confidence in you in all things.

1Having therefore these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

2Open your hearts to us: we wronged no man, we corrupted no man, we took advantage of no man.

3I say it not to condemn [you]: for I have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die together and live together.

4Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying on your behalf: I am filled with comfort, I overflow with joy in all our affliction.

5For even when we were come into Macedonia our flesh had no relief, but [we were] afflicted on every side; without [were] fightings, within [were] fears.

6Nevertheless he that comforteth the lowly, [even] God, comforted us by the coming of Titus;

7and not by his coming only, but also by the comfort wherewith he was comforted in you, while he told us your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me; so that I rejoiced yet more.

8For though I made you sorry with my epistle, I do not regret it: though I did regret [it] (for I see that that epistle made you sorry, though but for a season),

9I now rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye were made sorry unto repentance; for ye were made sorry after a godly sort, that ye might suffer loss by us in nothing.

10For godly sorrow worketh repentance unto salvation, [a repentance] which bringeth no regret: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

11For behold, this selfsame thing, that ye were made sorry after a godly sort, what earnest care it wrought in you, yea what clearing of yourselves, yea what indignation, yea what fear, yea what longing, yea what zeal, yea what avenging! In everything ye approved yourselves to be pure in the matter.

12So although I wrote unto you, I [wrote] not for his cause that did the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered the wrong, but that your earnest care for us might be made manifest unto you in the sight of God.

13Therefore we have been comforted: And in our comfort we joyed the more exceedingly for the joy of Titus, because his spirit hath been refreshed by you all.

14For if in anything I have gloried to him on your behalf, I was not put to shame; but as we spake all things to you in truth, so our glorying also which I made before Titus was found to be truth.

15And his affection is more abundantly toward you, while he remembereth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him.

16I rejoice that in everything I am of good courage concerning you.

1Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that could defile the body and the spirit, and thus accomplish holiness out of reverence for God.

2Make room for us in your hearts; we have wronged no one; we have ruined no one; we have exploited no one.

3I do not say this to condemn you, for I told you before that you are in our hearts so that we die together and live together with you.

4I have great confidence in you; I take great pride on your behalf. I am filled with encouragement; I am overflowing with joy in the midst of all our suffering.

5For even when we came into Macedonia, our body had no rest at all, but we were troubled in every way—struggles from the outside, fears from within.

6But God, who encourages the downhearted, encouraged us by the arrival of Titus.

7We were encouraged not only by his arrival, but also by the encouragement you gave him, as he reported to us your longing, your mourning, your deep concern for me, so that I rejoiced more than ever.

8For even if I made you sad by my letter, I do not regret having written it (even though I did regret it, for I see that my letter made you sad, though only for a short time).

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

10For sadness as intended by God produces a repentance that leads to salvation, leaving no regret, but worldly sadness brings about death.

11For see what this very thing, this sadness as God intended, has produced in you: what eagerness, what defense of yourselves, what indignation, what alarm, what longing, what deep concern, what punishment! In everything you have proved yourselves to be innocent in this matter.

12So then, even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did wrong or on account of the one who was wronged, but to reveal to you your eagerness on our behalf before God.

13Therefore we have been encouraged. And in addition to our own encouragement, we rejoiced even more at the joy of Titus because all of you have refreshed his spirit.

14For if I have boasted to him about anything concerning you, I have not been embarrassed by you, but just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting to Titus about you has proved true as well.

15And his affection for you is much greater when he remembers the obedience of you all, how you welcomed him with fear and trembling.

16I rejoice because in everything I am fully confident in you.

1Having therefore these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

2Open your hearts to us. We wronged no one. We corrupted no one. We took advantage of no one.

3I say this not to condemn you, for I have said before, that you are in our hearts to die together and live together.

4Great is my boldness of speech toward you. Great is my boasting on your behalf. I am filled with comfort. I overflow with joy in all our affliction.

5For even when we had come into Macedonia, our flesh had no relief, but we were afflicted on every side. Fightings were outside. Fear was inside.

6Nevertheless, he who comforts the lowly, God, comforted us by the coming of Titus;

7and not by his coming only, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you, while he told us of your longing, your mourning, and your zeal for me; so that I rejoiced still more.

8For though I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it. For I see that my letter made you sorry, though just for a while.

9I now rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that you were made sorry to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly way, that you might suffer loss by us in nothing.

10For godly sorrow produces repentance to salvation, which brings no regret. But the sorrow of the world produces death.

11For behold, this same thing, that you were made sorry in a godly way, what earnest care it worked in you. Yes, what defense, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and vengeance! In everything you demonstrated yourselves to be pure in the matter.

12So although I wrote to you, I wrote not for his cause that did the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered the wrong, but that your earnest care for us might be revealed in you in the sight of God.

13Therefore we have been comforted. In our comfort we rejoiced the more exceedingly for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all.

14For if in anything I have boasted to him on your behalf, I was not disappointed. But as we spoke all things to you in truth, so our glorying also which I made before Titus was found to be truth.

15His affection is more abundantly toward you, while he remembers all of your obedience, how with fear and trembling you received him.

16I rejoice that in everything I am confident concerning you.

Summary
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
Commentary
Videos
Reflection

Summary

Paul rejoices that his severe letter produced godly sorrow leading to repentance (not worldly sorrow leading to death), is comforted by Titus' report of the Corinthians' earnest desire and zeal, and expresses complete confidence in them.

Authorship & Background

Author: Paul (see Chapter 1 notes for full authorship details).
Historical Context: Chapter 7 records Paul's joy at the Corinthians' repentance. Titus brought good news from Corinth — they had responded to Paul's severe letter with godly sorrow and genuine change. This chapter contains one of the most important distinctions in Scripture: godly sorrow vs. worldly sorrow (v.10).
Godly Sorrow vs. Worldly Sorrow (v.10): "Godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death." Godly sorrow produces change — it leads to repentance and life. Worldly sorrow produces only regret — it leads to despair and death. The difference: godly sorrow is grief over offending God; worldly sorrow is grief over getting caught.
The Fruit of Godly Sorrow (v.11): Seven results of genuine repentance: carefulness (earnestness), clearing of yourselves (eagerness to be vindicated), indignation (anger at sin), fear (reverence), vehement desire (longing), zeal (enthusiasm), and revenge (justice/punishment of wrong). True repentance is not passive — it is active, energetic, and thorough.

Map & Geography

  • No specific geographic locations are referenced in this chapter.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik examines the call to holiness, Titus' good report, godly vs. worldly sorrow, and the seven fruits of repentance.
  • Charles Spurgeon: Sermon: "Godly Sorrow" on v.10 (MTP Vol. 10, No. 665) "Godly sorrow worketh repentance — it PRODUCES change. Worldly sorrow worketh death — it produces only despair. The difference: godly sorrow grieves over offending God; worldly sorrow grieves over consequences. Judas had worldly sorrow — he was sorry he got caught. Peter had godly sorrow — he was sorry he had denied his Lord. One hanged himself; the other was restored."

Videos

The Bible Project — 2 Corinthians Overview

Animated overview of the book's literary structure, themes, and theological message. Excellent visual introduction. (Approx. 8 minutes)

Reflection

  • 1. "Godly sorrow worketh repentance... the sorrow of the world worketh death" (v.10). When you feel bad about sin, which kind of sorrow is it? Are you grieved because you offended God, or because you got caught/faced consequences? The answer determines whether you'll change.
  • 2. The seven fruits of repentance (v.11) — earnestness, eagerness to clear yourself, indignation at sin, fear of God, longing, zeal, justice. When you repent, do you see these fruits? Or is your repentance passive and half-hearted?
  • 3. "Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit" (v.1). Sanctification requires YOUR active participation — "let US cleanse OURSELVES." What filthiness — of flesh (behavior) or spirit (attitudes) — do you need to actively cleanse?
  • 4. God comforted Paul "by the coming of Titus" (v.6). God often comforts through people. Who has God used to comfort you? Who might God want to use you to comfort?