2 Corinthians 13

¹This is the third time I am coming to you. “By the mouth of two or three witnesses every matter will be established.” ²I said before, and I say beforehand—as when I was present the second time, and now while absent—to those who sinned before and to all the rest, that if I come again I will not spare, ³since you seek proof that Christ speaks in me. He is not weak toward you but powerful among you. ⁴For indeed he was crucified out of weakness, but he lives out of the power of God. For we too are weak in him, but we will live with him out of the power of God toward you.

⁵Examine yourselves, whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Or do you not recognize about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail the test. ⁶But I hope you will know that we do not fail the test. ⁷Now we pray to God that you do nothing wrong, not so that we may appear approved, but so that you may do what is good, even if we seem to fail the test. ⁸For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. ⁹For we rejoice whenever we are weak and you are powerful; this is also what we pray for: your restoration. ¹⁰This is why I write these things while absent, so that when present I may not have to act severely, according to the authority that the Lord gave me for building up and not for tearing down.

¹¹Finally, brothers, rejoice, be restored, be encouraged, be of the same mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. ¹²Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the holy ones greet you.

¹³The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.

Translation notes 7

13:1 — Deuteronomy 19:15. Quoted, in shortened form, in the Greek Old Testament wording; “by the mouth of” is the idiom for testimony. Paul may mean that he will follow due process when he comes, or that his three visits serve as the witnesses; the draft does not decide.

13:2 — “I said before, and I say beforehand.” Two forms of one verb. The Greek base has no “I write”; the Byzantine text adds it after “absent.”

13:3–4 — “Proof”; “weak … powerful.” The proof word belongs to the family rendered “test,” “approved,” and “fail the test” in verses 5–7 and “proven character” at 2:9. Verse 4's “out of weakness … out of the power of God” describes the source of the crucifixion and of the life; “toward you” is literally as printed and can mean in dealing with you.

13:5 — “Examine”; “test”; “fail the test.” Two verbs: the first is the general word for trying or examining; the second belongs to the family rendered “proof,” “approved,” and “fail the test.” The adjective means disqualified after testing, the opposite of “approved” in 10:18.

13:9, 11 — “Restoration”; “be restored.” Noun and verb of one word meaning to put in order, mend, or make complete; the verb is used of mending nets in Mark 1:19. “Be encouraged” renders the comfort/appeal verb of chapter 1 and can also mean “heed my appeal.”

13:11 — “Rejoice.” The word is also the ordinary farewell; both senses may be present.

13:12–13 — Numbering; “fellowship.” See the notice at the head of the book. “Fellowship of the Holy Spirit” can mean the fellowship the Spirit creates or participation in the Spirit. The Greek base has no closing “Amen.”