1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia: (羅1:1; 林前1:1; 加1:1; 弗1:1; 腓1:1; 西1:1; 西1:2; 帖前3:2; 提前1:1; 提后1:1; 多1:1)2Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (羅1:7)
God of All Comfort
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, (羅15:5; 羅15:6; 弗1:3; 彼前1:3)4who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. (赛51:12; 赛66:13)5For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.[1] (林后4:10; 腓3:10; 西1:24)6If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. (林后4:15; 林后12:15; 弗3:13; 提后2:10)7Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort. (羅8:17)8For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers,[2] of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. (徒19:23; 林前15:32)9Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. (诗2:12; 诗25:2; 诗26:1; 路18:9; 林后4:14)10He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. (羅15:31; 提前4:10)11You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many. (徒12:5; 羅15:30; 林后4:15; 林后9:11; 腓1:19; 门1:22)
Paul’s Change of Plans
12For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity[3] and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. (徒23:1; 林前2:4; 林前2:13; 林后2:17; 林后4:2; 帖前2:10)13For we are not writing to you anything other than what you read and understand and I hope you will fully understand—14just as you did partially understand us—that on the day of our Lord Jesus you will boast of us as we will boast of you. (林前1:8; 林前9:15; 林后2:5; 林后5:12; 林后9:3; 腓2:16; 腓4:1; 帖前2:19)15Because I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a second experience of grace. (徒18:1; 羅1:11; 林前4:19)16I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you send me on my way to Judea. (徒19:21; 林前16:5)17Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans according to the flesh, ready to say “Yes, yes” and “No, no” at the same time? (林后10:2)18As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. (林前1:9; 林后2:17)19For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No, but in him it is always Yes. (太14:33; 徒15:22; 來13:8)20For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory. (羅15:8; 林前14:16; 來10:23; 启3:14)21And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, (约一2:20; 约一2:27)22and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.[4] (羅8:16; 林后5:5; 弗1:13; 弗1:14; 弗4:30)23But I call God to witness against me—it was to spare you that I refrained from coming again to Corinth. (羅1:9; 林前4:21; 林后2:1; 林后2:3; 加1:20)24Not that we lord it over your faith, but we work with you for your joy, for you stand firm in your faith. (太23:8; 羅11:20; 林前15:1; 林后4:5; 彼前5:3)