by
Archibald Thomas Robertson
Second CorinthiansFrom Macedonia A.D. 54 or 55By Way of Introduction |
The Pauline authorship is
admitted by all real scholars, though there is doubt by some as to
the unity of the Epistle. J.H. Kennedy (The Second and Third
Letters of St. Paul to the Corinthians, 1900) has presented the
arguments in a plausible, but not wholly convincing, manner for the
plea that chapters 2 Corinthians 10-13 really represent a separate
and earlier letter, the one referred to in
2Co 2:3,
which was later tacked on to chapters 1-9 as part of the same
Epistle. This theory does explain the difference in tone between
chapters 1 to 7 and 10 to 13, but that fact is sufficiently clear
from the stubborn minority against Paul in Corinth reported by Titus
after the majority had been won to Paul by First Corinthians and by
Titus (2Co 2:1-11).
There are in fact three obvious divisions in the Epistle. Chapters 1
to 7 deal with the report of Titus about the victory in Corinth and
Paul’s wonderful digression on the glory of the ministry in 2
Corinthians 2:12-6:10; chapters 8 and
2Co 9:1-15
discuss the collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem already
mentioned in 1Co 16:1.
and which Titus is to press to completion on his return to Corinth;
chapters 10 to 13 deal sharply with the Judaizing minority who still
oppose Paul’s leadership. These three subjects are in no sense
inconsistent with each other. The letter is a unity. Nowhere do we
gain so clear an insight into Paul’s own struggles and hopes as a
preacher. It is a handbook for the modern minister of inestimable
value. One can hear Paul’s heart throb through these chapters. The
syntax is often broken by anacolutha. The sentences are sometimes
disconnected. Grammatical agreements are overlooked. But there is
power here, the grip of a great soul holding on to the highest
ideals in the midst of manifold opposition and discouragements.
Christ is Master of Paul at every turn. The date of the Epistle is clearly after I Corinthians, for Paul has left Ephesus and is now in Macedonia ( 2Co 2:13), probably at Philippi, where he met Titus, though he had hoped to meet him at Troas on his return from Corinth. At a guess one may say that Paul wrote in the autumn of a.d. 54 or 55 of the same year in the spring of which he had written I Corinthians, and before he went on to Corinth himself where he wrote Romans (Act 20:1-3; Rom 16:1).The occasion for writing is the return of Titus from Corinth with mixed news of the Pauline majority and the minority in opposition. So Titus is sent back with this Epistle to finish the task while Paul waits awhile for matters to clear up ( 2Co 13:1-10).It is not certain whether the letter mentioned in 2Co 2:3 is our I Corinthians or a lost letter like the one alluded to in 1Co 5:9. If it is a lost one, we know of four Corinthian Epistles (the one in 1Co 5:9, our I Corinthians, the one in 2Co 2:3, our II Corinthians), assuming the unity of II Corinthians. Few things in Paul’s ministry gave him more concern than the troubles in Corinth. The modern city pastor finds little in his work that Paul has not faced and mastered. There is consolation and courage for the preacher in the conduct and counsels of this greatest of all preachers. |
Taken from "Word Pictures in the New Testament" by Archibald Thomas Robertson |