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| What We Believe |
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Name - It appears quite evident from certain passages in both First and Second
Corinthians that much communication took place between Paul and the church, and that the two
letters that have come down to us are only some of the series. Paul was intensely interested in the
work of the Corinthian church and received with mixed emotions the reports of reactions to his
communications. Further, he endured much perplexity , anxiety, and grief because of the
prevailing conditions. Theme - The immediate occasion of this Second Epistle was the report Paul received from Titus who met him in Macedonia, following Paul's departure from Ephesus, as well as his short stay in Troas. The report of Titus had some favourable news. The majority of the church was again loyal to Paul and discipline of the immoral offender had been administered; but factionalisms continued, and there was still a rebellious minority. With this background we can understand why this Epistle contains so much that is intensely personal, and why it is made up largely of explanation, defence, protestation, appeal, reproach, and threatening, permeated with a subdued pathos and blended with subtle irony. It is, indeed, the most biographical of all Paul's Epistles; it sheds more light upon his personal character, inner emotions, trials, hardships, and sufferings than any other section of the New Testament. The doctrinal and practical elements are largely incidental and subordinate to the personal element. Outline - The Epistle is an excellent unity and lends itself to a simple analysis: I. Personal Concerns of the Apostle (1:1-2:13) II. The Glory of the Gospel and Its Ministry (2:14-6:10) III. The Appeal for Separation and for Complete Reconciliation with the Apostle (6:11-7:16) IV. Directions for the Collection for the Poor Saints at Jerusalem (8-9) V. The Vindication of His Own Apostolic Authority (10:1-13:10) VI. Closing Salutations (13:11-14) |
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