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VI. 1 We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also, that ye receive not the grace of God in vain :

2 (For he saith, "I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee:" behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation!)

3 Giving no offence in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed: 4 But, in all things, approving ourselves, as the ministers of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in distresses,

5 In stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labours, in watchings, in fastings;

6 By pureness, by knowledge, by long-suffering, by kindness, by the Holy Ghost, by love unfeigned,

7 By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,

8 By honour and dishonour, by evil report and good report: as deceivers, and yet true;

9 As unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and not killed;

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if he had been a sinner, though he were guilty of no sin; that we, in and by him, might be made righteous, by a righteousVI. 1 ness imputed to us by God. I therefore, working together with him, beseech you also, that you receive not the favour of 2 God, in the Gospel preached to you, in vains. (For he saith, "I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee:" behold, now is the accepted 3 time; behold, now is the day of salvation!) Giving no offence to any one in any thing, that the ministry be not blamed: 4 But, in every thing, approving myself, as becomes the minister

of God, by much patience, in afflictions, in necessities, in 5 straits, In stripes, in imprisonments, in being tossed up and 6 down, in labours, in watchings, in fastings; By a life un

defiled; by knowledge; by long-sufferings; by the gifts of the 7 Holy Ghost; by love unfeigned; By preaching the Gospel of truth sincerely; by the power of God, assisting my ministry; by uprightness of mind, wherewith I am armed at all points, 8 both to do and to suffer; By honour and disgrace; by good 9 and bad report; as a deceivert, and yet faithful; As an obscure, unknown man, but yet known and owned; as one often

NOTES.

1 "Receive the grace of God in vain," the same with "believing in vain," 1 Cor. xv. 2, i. e. receiving the doctrine of the Gospel for true, and professing Christianity, without persisting in it, or performing what the Gospel requires. 8" Deceiver," a title (it is like) he had received from some of the opposite faction at Corinth: vid. chap. xii. 16.

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10 As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.

11 O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged. 12 Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels. 13 Now, for a recompense in the same, (I speak as unto my children) be ye also enlarged.

14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness?

15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

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16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, " I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people."

17 Wherefore, "Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.

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in danger of death, and yet, behold, I live; as chastened, but 10 yet not killed; As sorrowful, but yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet 11 possessing all things. Ŏ ye Corinthians, my mouth is opened

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to you, my heart is enlarged" to you; my affection, my ten12 derness, my compliance for you, is not strait, or narrow. It 13 is your own narrowness makes you uneasy. Let me speak to you, as a father to his children; in return, do you, likewise, 14 enlarge your affections and deference to me.

Be ye not as

sociated with unbelievers, having nothing to do with them in their vices or worship": for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? What communion hath light 15 with darkness? What concord hath Christ with Belial? 16 Or what part hath a believer with an unbeliever? What agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, "I will dwell in them, among them will I walk; and I will be their 17 God, and they shall be my people." Wherefore, "Come out from among them, and be separate, saith the Lord, and

NOTES.

11 " Another argument, St. Paul makes use of, to justify and excuse his plainness of speech to the Corinthians, is the great affection he has for them, which he here breaks out into an expression of, in a very pathetical manner. This, with an exhortation to separate from idolaters and unbelievers, is what he insists on, from this place to chap. vii. 16.

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15 Belial is a general name for all the false gods, worshipped by the idolatrous Gentiles.

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18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters," saith the Lord Almighty.

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

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

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3 I speak not this to condemn you: for I have said before, that you are in our hearts, to die and live with 4 Great 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.

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

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

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touch not the unclean thing, and I will receive you to me; 18 And I will be a Father, and ye shall be my sons and daughVII. 1 ters," saith the Lord Almighty. Having, therefore, these

promises, (dearly beloved) let us cleanse ourselves from the defilement of all sorts of sins, whether of body or mind, en2 deavouring after perfect holiness, in the fear of God. Receive me, as one to be hearkened to, as one to be followed, as one that hath done nothing to forfeit your esteem. I have wronged no man: I have corrupted no man: I have defrauded no 3 man. I say not this to reflect on your carriage towards me: for I have already assured you, that I have so great an 4 affection for you, that I could live and die with you. But, in the transport of my joy, I use great liberty of speech towards you. But let it not be thought to be of ill-will, for I boast much of you; I am filled with comfort, and my joy abounds 5 exceedingly, in all my afflictions. For, when I came to Macedonia, I had no respite from continual trouble, that beset me on every side. From without, I met with strife and opposition, in preaching the Gospel: and within, I was filled with fear upon your account; lest the false apostle, continuing his credit and faction amongst you, should pervert you from the 6 simplicity of the Gospel. But God, who comforteth those who are cast down, comforted me, by the coming of Titus:

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NOTES.

2 This seems to insinuate the contrary behaviour of their false apostle.
Vid. 1 Cor. iv. 3. 2 Cor. x. 2, and xi. 20, 21, and xiii. 3.
5 a Vid. chap. xi. 3.

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7 And 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

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

9 Now 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.

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

11 For, behold, this self-same 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;

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7 Not barely by his presence, but by the comfort I received from you, by him, when he acquainted me with your great desire of conforming yourselves to my orders; your trouble for any neglects you have been guilty of towards me; the great warmth of your affection and concern for me; so that I re8 joiced the more for my past fears; Having writ to you a letter, which I repented of, but now do not repent of, perceiving, that, though that letter grieved you, it made you sad but for a 9 short time: But now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that you were made sorry to repentance. For this proved a beneficial sorrow, acceptable to God, that in nothing you might have cause to complain, that you were damaged by me, 10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation, not to be repented of: but sorrow arising from worldly interest worketh 11 death. In the present case, mark it, that godly sorrow which you had, what carefulness it wrought in you, to conform yourselves to my orders; yea, what clearing yourselves from your former miscarriages; yea, what indignation against those who led you into them; yea, what fear to offend me; yea, what vehement desire of satisfying me; yea, what zeal for me; yea, what revenge against yourselves, for

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11 b St. Paul, writing to those, who knew the temper they were in, and what were the objects of the several passions which were raised in them, doth both here, and in the seventh verse, forbear to mention, by and to what they were moved, out of modesty, and respect to them. This is necessary, for the information of ordinary readers, to be supplied, as can be best collected from the main design of the apostle, in these two epistles, and from several passages giving us light in it.

· Vid. ver. 15.

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yea, what zeal; yea, what revenge! In all things ye have approved yourselves to be clear in this matter.

12 Wherefore, 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. 13 Therefore, 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.

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having been so misled! You have shown yourselves to be set right*, and be, as you should be, in every thing, by this car12 riage of yourst. If, therefore, I wrote unto you, concerning the fornicator, it was not for his sake that had done, nor his that had suffered, the wrong; but principally, that my care and concern for you might be made known to you, as in the 13 presence of God. Therefore, I was comforted in your comfort: but much more exceedingly rejoiced I in the joy of Titus; because his mind was set at ease, by the good disposi

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* “Clear.” This word answers very well άyvòs, in the Greek: but then, to be clear, in English, is generally understood to signify, not to have been guilty; which could not be the sense of the apostle, he having charged the Corinthians so warmly in his first epistle. His meaning must therefore be, "that they had now resolved on a contrary course, and were so far clear," i. e. were set right, and in good disposition again, as he describes it, in the former part of this verse. + And therefore I think i T Tрáyμari may be best rendered in fact," i. e. by your sorrow, your fear, your indignation, your zeal, &c. I think it cannot well be translated, “in this matter," understanding thereby the punishment of the fornicator. For that was not the matter St. Paul had been speaking of; but the Corinthians siding with the false apostle against him, was the subject of the preceding part of this, and of the three or four foregoing chapters; wherein he justifies himself against their slanders, and invalidates the pretences of the adverse party. This is that which lay chiefly upon his heart, and which he labours, might and main, both in this and the former epistle, to rectify, as the foundation of all the disorders amongst them; and, consequently, is the matter wherein he rejoices to find them all set right. Indeed, in the immediately following verse, he mentions his having writ to them, concerning the fornicator; but it is only as an argument of his kindness and concern for them: but that which was the great cause of his rejoicing, what it was that gave him the great satisfaction, was the breaking of the faction, and the re-uniting them "all" to himself, which he expresses in the word "all,” emphatically used, ver. 13, 15, and, from thence, he concludes thus, ver. 16, "I rejoice, therefore, that I have confidence in you in all things." His mind was now at rest, the partisans of his opposer, the false apostle, having forsaken that leader, whom they had so much gloried in, and being all now come over to St. Paul, he doubted not, but all would go well; and so leaves off the subject he had been upon, in the seven foregoing chapters, viz. the justification of himself, with here and there reflections on that false apostle.

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