Commentary
On the First Epistle to the Corinthians

PROLOGUE

“Men shall speak of you as ministers of our God” (Is. 61:6).

1. – The subject matter of this second epistle to the Corinthians is fittingly touched upon by these words. For in the first epistle the Apostle discussed the sacraments; in this one he discusses the ministers, both good and bad, of these sacraments. The reason he wrote this epistle was that he had preached to the Corinthians, but they had welcomed certain false apostles, whom they preferred to the Apostle. Therefore he writes them this epistle, in which he commends the apostles and the dignity of the true apostles, and discloses and reproves the falseness of the false apostles.

2. – He commends the dignity of the true apostles, because they are God’s ministers. Men shall speak of you, i.e., the apostles, as the ministers of God. They are called ministers under three aspects. First, inasmuch as they dispense the sacraments: “This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ” (1 Cor. 4:1). For Christ instituted the sacraments, but the apostles and their successors dispense them; therefore the text just cited continues: and stewards of the mysteries of God. Secondly, inasmuch as they govern the people of God: “Because, as servants of his kingdom, you did not rule rightly, nor keep the law” (Wis. 6:4). For God governs all things by his wisdom, so that whoever governs any one is called God’s minister. Thirdly, because they labor for the salvation of men, namely, inasmuch as many are converted by their ministry and preaching. But God alone is the author of man’s salvation, because it was he who came to save that which had been lost; the apostles, however, are his ministers: “What then is Apollos? What is Paul? The ministers of him whom you have believed” (1 Cor. 3:5).

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            2 Cor. 1:1-2

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother. To the church of God which is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia: 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3. – In this epistle to the Corinthians, the Apostle treats of these ministers and points out their dignity: first, he gives his greeting; secondly, he begins his message (v. 3). In the greeting he does three things: first, he mentions the persons who send the greeting; secondly, those who are greeted; thirdly, the good things he wishes them. In regard to the first he does two things: first, he mentions the principal person who sends the greeting, namely Paul; secondly, his companion, Timothy.

4. – The person who sends the greeting is described by his humility, because it is Paul, which in Latin means ‘humble’. He is that humble person of whom it is said in Is. (60:22): “The least one shall become a clan, and the smallest one a mighty nation.” Or by his doctrine, because Paul is called the mouth of the trumpet. This is the trumpet mentioned in Zechariah (9:14): “The Lord God will sound the trumpet, and march forth in the whirlwinds of the south.” He fits what is said in Isaiah (58:1): “Lift up your voice like a trumpet.” By the authority of his dignity, because he says, an apostle of Jesus Christ. Here he mentions three things: first, that he is a representative; hence, he is called an apostle, i.e., principally sent, for only twelve apostles were sent by Christ: “He chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles” (Lk. 6:13). But the other disciples were not sent principally, but secondarily. That is why the apostles are succeeded by bishops, who have a special care of the Lord’s flock; but other priests succeed the seventy-two disciples and perform duties committed to them by the bishops. His dignity, therefore, is that he is an apostle: “If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you” (1 Cor. 9:2); “He who worked through Peter for the ministry to the circumcised worked through me also for the Gentiles” (Gal. 2:8). But why does he call himself an apostle, whereas in the epistle to the Romans he calls himself a servant. The reason for this is that he rebuked the Romans for quarreling and for pride, which is the mother of quarrels, because there are always disputes among the proud. Hence to cure them of quarreling he leads them to humility by calling himself a servant. But the Corinthians were obstinate and rebellious; so in order to curb their boldness, he uses a dignified name here, calling himself an apostle. Secondly, he mentions the one he represents, Jesus Christ: “We are ambassadors for Christ” (2 Cor. 5:20). Thirdly, he mentions how he obtained his ambassadorship, because he is not coming as a false apostle: “I did not send them and they ran” (Jer. 23:21), nor was he given to the people in God’s anger in the sense of Job (34:30): “Who makes a hypocrite to reign”; “I have given you kings, but in my anger” (Hos. 13:11). But he obtained apostleship by God’s will and pleasure: “He is a chosen instrument of mine” (Ac. 9:15). Therefore he says, by the will of God.

5. – The other person is Timothy; hence he says, and Timothy our brother. A brother, I say, because of the faith: “You are all brothers” (Matt. 23:8), and because of his dignity, for he was a bishop. This is why the Pope calls all bishops brothers. He mentions Timothy because, since he [Timothy] had visited them, as he said in the first epistle (ch. 16), the people might believe that he had maliciously reported to the Apostle the things he is writing to them.

6. – Then he mentions the persons greeted: first, the principal ones; secondly, those associated with the principal ones. He says, to the church of God, which includes all believers, both the clergy and the laity: “That you may know how one ought to behave” (1 Tim. 3:15); which is at Corinth, because Corinth was the chief city of Achaia. But those associated with the principal ones are all the saints who are reborn by the grace of the one Holy Spirit: “But you were washed, you were sanctified, in the Spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6:11); who are in Achaia, whose chief city is Corinth.

7. – The Apostle wishes good things to the persons greeted; hence, he says, grace and peace to you. In regard to this he does two things: first, he mentions the good things; secondly, their author (v. 2b).

8. – He mentions these two gifts as two extremes, between which are contained all other goods. For the first good is grace, which is the beginning of all good things; because before grace there is only a diminished goodness in us. The last of all goods is peace, because peace is the general end of the mind; for no matter how peace is defined, it has the character of an end. In eternal glory, in government and in the way one lives, the end is peace: “He makes peace in your borders” (Ps. 147:14).

9. – He indicates the author of these goods when he says, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. These two expressions can be distinguished in two ways, because, when he says, from God our Father, it can be referred to the entire Trinity. For although the person of the Father is called the Father of Christ by nature, the entire Trinity in our Father by creation and governance: “For thou art our Father” (Is. 63:16); “You would call me My Father” (Jer. 3:19). Therefore good things come from God our Father, i.e., from the entire Trinity: “If you, then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him” (Matt. 7:11). But if God our Father is taken for the entire Trinity, why is the person of the Son added, when he says, and the Lord Jesus Christ? Is there another person in the Trinity? I answer that he is added, not as though he were an additional person, but on account of another nature, namely, of the humanity assumed by the Son to the divine person. The reason he lists him along with the Trinity is that all good things come to us from the Trinity through the Incarnation of Christ, first of all grace: “Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (Jn. 1:17), and secondly peace: “He is our peace” (Eph. 2:14).

10. – Again, when he says, from God our Father, it can be taken to mean the person of the Father alone; and although the entire Trinity is our Father, as has been said, the person of the Father is our Father by appropriation. Then the Lord Jesus Christ can be referred to the person of the Son. No mention is made of the Holy Spirit because, as Augustine says, since he is the nexus of the Father and the Son, whenever the person of the Father and the person of the Son are mentioned, the person of the Holy Spirit is also understood.

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            2 Cor. 1:3-5

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who 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. 5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.

11. – Here begins the message, in which the Apostle does two things: first, he excuses himself for not visiting them as he had promised; secondly, he begins to follow out his intention (chap. 3). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he wins their good will; secondly, he presents his excuse (v. 15). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he wins their good will be citing some general facts; secondly, some special ones (v. 8). The Apostle wins their good will by showing that whatever he does, it is all for their benefit. In regard to this he does two things: first, he mentions the profit others have obtained from him; secondly, the reason (v. 5). In regard to the first he does three things: first, he gives thanks; secondly, the manner of the thanks (v. 4); thirdly, the cause (b. 4b).

12. – He gives thanks, therefore, to the entire Trinity, the source of every good; hence he says, Blessed be the God, i.e., the entire Trinity; and to the person of the Father when he says, and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom the Father has given us all things. It should be noted that we bless God and God blesses us, but in different ways. For when God speaks, he accomplishes: “He spoke and they were made” (Ps. 148:5). Hence, for God to bless is to produce something good, and to infuse something good, and so to be a cause: “I will indeed bless you and multiply your descendants” (Gen. 22:17). But our speech does not cause things, but acknowledges or expresses them; hence, our blessing is the same as recognizing good. Therefore, when we thank God, we bless him, i.e., acknowledge that he is good and the giver of all good: “Bless God and acknowledge him in the presence of all the living for the good things he has done for you.” (Tob. 12:6); “Bless the Lord, all you works of the Lord; praise and exalt him above all for ever” (Dan. 3:57).

13. – It is fitting that he thank the Father, because he is merciful; hence he says, the Father of mercies: and because he is a comforter he says, and God of all comfort. He thanks God for the two things men especially need: first, to have evil removed from them, and this is done by mercy which takes away misery, for it is characteristic of a father to have compassion: “As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear him” (Ps. 103: 13). Secondly, they need to be supported in the face of evils which occur, and that is to receive comfort. Because unless a man had something in which his heart could rest, he would not stand firm when evils come upon him. Therefore a person comforts another by affording him something refreshing, in which he can rest in evil times. And although a man might be comforted by something and find rest and be supported by it in the case of some evils, it is God alone who comforts us in all evils; hence he says, the God of all comfort. For if you sin, God comforts you, because he is merciful; if you are afflicted, he comforts you either by rooting out the affliction by his power or by judging justly; if you labor, he comforts you with a reward: “I am your shield; your reward shall be very great (Gen. 15:1). Therefore, it says in Matthew (5:4): “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”

14. – He tells us why he is thankful when he adds, who comforts us in all our affliction. As if to say: He is blessed, because he comforts us in all our affliction: “God who comforts the downcast” (2 Cor. 7:6).

15. – He gives the reason for this when he says, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction. Here it should be noted that there is an order among God’s gifts. For God gives special gifts to some, that they may pour them out for the benefit of others; for he does not give light to the sun in order that the sun may shine for itself alone, but for the whole world. Hence, God desires that some profit accrue to others from all our gifts, whether they be riches or power of knowledge or wisdom: “As each has received a gift, employ it for one another” (1 Pet. 4:10). This then is what the Apostle says, who comforts us in all our affliction.

16. – But why? Not only for our benefit, but that it profit others too. Hence, he says, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction. For we can comfort others by the example of our own comfort. For one who is not comforted does not know how to comfort others: “He who has not been tried, what manner of things does he know” (Sir. 34:9, Vulgate) about any affliction; “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me to bring good tidings to the afflicted” (Is. 61:1); “He who comforts all who were mourning in Zion” (Sir. 48:27, Vulgate). We are able, I say, to comfort them by exhorting them to endure sufferings by promising eternal rewards, i.e., because we exhort you by the Scriptures and internal inspirations, in order that we may patiently endure and exhort others by our example and by the Scriptures themselves: “For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you” (1 Cor. 11:23); “What I have heard from the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, I announce to you” (Is. 21:10).

17. – Having mentioned the profit which comes to others from the apostles, he gives the reason for what he has said: For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. And because he has said two things, namely, that God comforts us in every affliction and that we ourselves can also comfort others, he explains here the reason for these two things: first, he shows how God comforts us in every affliction; secondly, how our comfort is turned to the comfort of others (v. 6).

18. – He says, therefore, I am right in saying that he comforts us in every affliction, for as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. He says, in Christ’s sufferings, i.e., begun by Christ: “Begin at my sanctuary” (Ez. 9:6). For the sufferings for our sins began in Christ, because ‘he himself bore our sins in his body on the tree” (1 Pet. 2:24); then by the apostles, who said: “We are slain all the day long” (Ps. 44:22; Rom. 8:36); then by the martyrs, who were cut in two and were tempted (Heb. 11:37). Finally, sinners themselves will bear patiently God’s anger for their sins. Or the sufferings of Christ, i.e., what we endure for Christ: “Then they left the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name” (Ac. 5:41); “For your sake we are slain all the day long, and accounted as sheep for the slaughter” (Ps. 44:22). Just as we share abundantly in these sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too: “When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul” (Ps. 94:19).

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            2 Cor. 1:6-11

6 If 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. 7 Our hope for you is unshaken; for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort. 8 For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of the affliction we experienced in Asia; for we were so utterly, unbearably crushed that we despaired of life itself. 9 Why, 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; 10 he delivered us from so deadly a peril, and he will deliver us; on him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. 11 You also must help us by prayer, so that many [faces] will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us in answer to many prayers.

19. – After showing that the Lord comforts his servants in their tribulations, i.e., the ministers of the faith and preachers, the Apostle now shows that their comfort redounds to the good of others: first, he shows that their comfort results in the advantage and salvation of others; secondly, he shows the relation of this comfort to salvation (v. 6b).

20. – In regard to the first, it should be noted that the Apostle says that he received three things: afflictions, when he says, “In all our afflictions”; comfort, when he says, “who comforts us”; exhortation, when he says, “so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction”. By taking these three things in a passive sense, we say that the apostles are afflicted, comforted and exhorted. Hence, the Apostle also shows that three things result in the comfort of others, and these in a definite order. First, their affliction, when he says, If we are afflicted it is for your comfort and salvation, because by our example God is telling you to endure suffering, from which eternal salvation will come to you. Hence in 1 Maccabees (6:34) we read that “they showed the elephants the juice of grapes and mulberries, to arouse them for battle”. This is done when the lukewarm and lazy are shown the sufferings of the saints as an example. Secondly, he shows that their comfort turns out to the advantage of others, when he says, and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort: as if to say, the very comfort by which we are comforted by the hope of a reward is a comfort to you, for by our example you also rejoice in having the same hope of a reward. Thirdly he shows that the exhortation they receive turns out to the benefit of others, saying, if we are exhorted by an internal inspiration or by scourges, it is for your exhortation, i.e., that you be inspired to greater things and hope for salvation. Hence it says in 2 Maccabees (15:17) that, “exhorted by the word of Judas, they determined to attack bravely.”

21. – He suggests the relationship between this comfort and salvation when he says, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. In regard to this he does two things: first, he shows the patience to be had in adversity; secondly, the fruit which results from patience (v. 7).

22. – He says, therefore, I say that these things work for your salvation, inasmuch as by our example you are strong enough to endure sufferings and patiently endure the trials which we also suffer: “By your endurance you will gain your lives” (Lk. 21:19); “As an example of suffering and patience, brethren, take the prophets” (Jas. 5:10).

23. – You obtain fruit from this patience because from it our hope for you is unshaken by the fact that you are made heirs of eternal life: “Suffering produces endurance, and endurance true hope” (Rom. 5:3-4): “Hope in God becomes firmer to the extent that one suffers more difficult things for his name. For as a result of the sufferings the saints endure for Christ, the hope of eternal life rises in them” (Gregory). And the cause of this hope is knowing that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort, i.e., in eternal life: “The saying is sure: If we have died with him, we shall also live with him; if we endure, we shall also reign with him” (2 Tim. 2:11-12); “But rejoice in so far as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed” (1 Pet. 4:13).

24. – Then when he says, For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of the affliction we experienced in Asia, he wins their good will by mentioning certain specific things. And he does three things: first, he describes the persecution he suffered in Asia; secondly, the special comfort he received (v. 10); thirdly, the cause of the comfort.

25. – He says first, therefore: it is good for you to know not only what we have said about our afflictions in general, but we do not want you to be ignorant, because it is profitable for you to know them, inasmuch as you are more patient because of our example: we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of the affliction we experienced; “Remember my affliction and my bitterness, the wormwood and the gall” (Lam. 3:19). This is the persecution mentioned in Acts (19:23ff), which was launched by a certain Asian silversmith, who incited the people against him. The Apostle describes it from three aspects: from the place, because it was in Asia; hence he says, in Asia, i.e., Ephesus, which is in Asia, where he should rather have been honored and comforted; from its bitterness, because it was an extreme suffering; hence he says, for we were so utterly crushed. Also it was beyond his strength, and so he says, unbearably.

26. – But this seems to be contrary to what it says in 1 Corinthians (10:13): “God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your strength.” I answer that to suffer beyond one’s strength can be understood in two ways: first, above one’s natural strength, which the Apostle means here, above which God sometimes permits his servants to be tempted; secondly, above the strength of grace, which the Apostle means in 1 Corinthians (10:13): “God is faithful.” That the Apostle is speaking of natural strength is indicated by what he says next, we despaired of life itself. For it is evident that among all else, life is most desirable. Therefore when a persecution is so great that life itself becomes wearisome, it is obviously above the strength of our nature. And this is what he says, we despaired of life itself, as if to say, this persecution was so cruel that life itself became a burden to us: “I loathe my life” (Jb. 10:1). But against this James (1:2) says: “Count it all joy, my brethren, when you meet various trials.” I answer that affliction can be considered in two ways: either in itself, and then it is wearisome, or in relation to faith, and then it is joyful, inasmuch as it is endured for God and with the hope of eternal life. We were not only weary of life, but we were certain of death; hence, he says, we felt that we had received the sentence of death, i.e., the certainty of death. As if to say: in my opinion I was about to die. Or another way, the sentence of death, i.e., reason itself would say to choose death because of the weariness of life.

27. – He amplifies the reason for his affliction when he says, but that was to make us rely not on ourselves, i.e., that human pride should be repressed: “O Lord, my strength and my stronghold” (Jer. 16:19), and that we trust God in all things: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord” (Jer. 17:7). And therefore he says, but on God who raises the dead: “The Lord kills and brings to life” (1 Sam. 2:6).

28. – But because the Lord does not abandon those who trust in him, the Apostle mentions the comfort he received from the Lord, saying, he delivered us from so deadly a peril. In regard to this he does three things: first, he describes his present comfort against past evils; secondly, the comfort to come; thirdly, the cause of love. He says, therefore: We have been comforted by God, who delivered us in the past from so deadly a peril, and is delivering us in the present, because he does not stop delivering: “When you pass through the waters I will be with you” (Is. 43:2); on him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again, adding in the future: “You who fear the Lord, hope for good things” (Sir. 2:9). Your prayers give us cause for this hope; hence he says, you also must help us by prayer, which you make for us: “A brother helped is like a strong city” (Prov. 18:19); “I appeal to you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to God on my behalf” (Rom. 15:30). These prayers are necessary, because God gives many gifts to one person due to the prayers of many. The reason is that God wishes to be thanked for the gifts he gives, and as a result many are bound to give thanks. This happens when, as a result of giving to one person because of the prayers of many, he puts all those at whose prayers he gave some good under an obligation to him. Consequently, not only the one who received the benefit, but those who prayed should give thanks to God. And this is what he says, so that many will give thanks. And he says, from many faces, either as to age or condition or the diversity of nations or customs. On our behalf for the blessing, i.e., for the gift of faith which we have, granted us in answer to many prayers: “Always and for everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father” (Eph. 5:20). Or another way: “from the faces of many persons”, i.e., the condition of persons. I say, “For the blessing granted to us”, i.e., because they have the same gift, namely of faith or of charity; i.e., by means of the many persons who are in the faith of Christ, “thanks may be given on our behalf.” Therefore, according to this explanation, by the many faces are understood the various virtues, so that the predominant virtue in a person is called his face; thus, patience is the face of Job, humility the face of David, and so on.

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2 Cor. 1:12-14

12 For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience that we have behaved in the world, and still more toward you, with holiness and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God. 13 For we write you nothing but what you can read and understand; I hope you will understand fully, 14 as you have understood in part, that you can be proud of us as we can be of you, on the day of the Lord Jesus.

29. – After speaking of the comfort he had received from God following his persecution, the Apostle assigns the cause of this comfort, which is hope in God’s help. In regard to this he does two things: first, he states the cause of hope; secondly, he supports this with the testimony of those to whom he is writing (v. 13).

30. – He says, therefore: I say that we still hope to be rescued by God to be comforted, For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, as if to say: the cause of this hope is our good conscience, for hope is an expectation of things to come and arises from grace and merits. Hence, in regard to this he also does three things: first, he shows the boast which he has in the testimony of a pure conscience; secondly, he suggests the cause of this boasting (v. 12b); thirdly, he discloses the source of this cause (v. 12c).

31. – He says, therefore: The reason I hope and trust in God is because our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, i.e., I glory in the testimony and purity of our conscience: “If our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God” (1 Jn. 3:21): “The Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Rom. 8:16). It should be noted that the testimony of conscience is true, because it does not deceive; for many appear good outwardly who are not good in their conscience; and conscience always endures. He does not say, “the conscience of others,” but our conscience, because a man should put more trust in the testimony of his own conscience about himself than in the testimony of others; they do not do this who consider themselves good because others are evil rather than because they themselves are truly good. Nor is it done by those who boast in the goodness of a good person, who is joined to them by some bond.

32. – He suggests the cause of this boast when he says, in simplicity of heart, which consists of two things. For purity of conscience consists of two things, namely, that the things a person does are good and that his intention is right. These two things the Apostle says of himself. First, that he has a right intention towards God in his action; hence he says, in simplicity of heart, i.e., with a right intention: “Seek him with sincerity of heart” (Wis. 1:1); “The integrity of the upright guides them” (Prov. 11:3). Secondly, that the things he does are good; hence, he says, and godly sincerity in his actions: “That you may be pure and blameless” (Phil. 1:10)

33. – He discloses the source of the cause of this glory when he says, not by earthly wisdom. This can be taken in two ways. First, as referring to what he had just said, namely, godly sincerity, and then he is suggesting the source of his sincerity and simplicity; as if to say: many of the ancients were wise in earthly wisdom, as the philosophers, and many Jews lived honorably, trusting in the justice of the Law, but we have behaved in the world, not by earthly wisdom, which is according to the nature of things, nor by the desires of the flesh, but by the grace of God: “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace” (Rom. 8:6); “not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power” (1 Cor. 2:4); “By the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Cor. 15:10). Or even according to this manner, not by earthly wisdom, i.e., as though relying on human wisdom, but by the grace of God: “Do not rely on your own insight” (Prov. 3:5) Or it might be explained in another way, so that in saying, in simplicity of heart and godly sincerity, he is referring to his purity of life; but in saying, not by earthly wisdom, but by the grace of God, he is referring to the truth of his teaching; as if to say: Just as our life is in the simplicity and sincerity of God, so our teaching is not in earthly wisdom, but in the grace of God. But the first two interpretations are more valid. And although we have behaved thus in the world, yet still more toward you, because he had received collections from the other churches, but not from them: “I robbed other churches” (2 Cor. 11:8). The reason for this might be that they were greedy; hence, in order not to sadden them, he refused to take any revenue from them.

34. – Then he calls on them to witness to this holy manner of life, saying, For we write you nothing but what you can read and understand. As if to say: these things I write to you are not unknown to you, because you have already read them in the first letter, and you know them by experience: “I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment” (1 Jn. 2:7). And although you do not know fully, because you have received false apostles, I hope you will to the end, namely, of your life, understand, namely, perfectly, as you have understood in part. The reason for this is that when we see someone starting well, we should hope that he will always progress well. And why? Because “he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6) And you will understand, that you can be proud of us, i.e., that through us you should obtain eternal glory, which a person reaches through the faith of Christ, which we preach to you: “The glory of sons is their fathers” (Prov. 17:6). I say that you can be proud of us as we can be of you, because we hope for the reward of eternal glory through you who have been instructed by us: “For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting? Is it not you?” (1 Th. 2:19). And this boast will be ours from you on the day of the Lord Jesus, i.e., on the day of judgment, which is called Christ’s day, because he will then accomplish his will with sinners by punishing those who in this world did their own will by sinning against the will of Christ the Lord: “At the set time which I appoint I will judge with equity” (Ps. 75:2); “And books were opened . . . and the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done” (Rev. 20:12).

1-5

            2 Cor. 1:15-24

15 Because I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a double pleasure; 16 I 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. 17 Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans like a worldly man, ready to say Yes and No at once? 18As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. 19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we preached among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not Yes and No; but in him it is always Yes. 20 For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why we utter the Amen through him, to the glory of God. 21 But it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us; 22 he has put his seal upon us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee. 23 But I call God to witness against me—it was to spare you that I refrained from coming to Corinth. 24 Not that we lord it over your faith; we work with you for your joy, for you stand firm in your faith.

35. – After winning the good will of the Corinthians, the Apostle adds his excuse. In regard to this he does three things: first, he mentions what he intends; secondly, in the form of a question he answers an accusation they made against him (v. 17); thirdly, he excuses himself.

36. – In regard to the first it should be noted that in a previous epistle (which we do not have), which the Apostle has sent to the Corinthians by a messenger, he had promised them that he would visit them before going to Macedonia, and that he would return again to Achaia, where Corinth is, and from Achaia to Judea. Then in a second epistle, which we call the first, he wrote them that he would first go to Macedonia and later to Corinth. Therefore, because this seemed contrary to the first promise, the Apostle now excuses himself for this by first mentioning the promise he originally made; hence, he says, Because I was sure of this. As if to say: you know my honesty and sincerity and you are my witnesses and my glory; therefore, because I was sure of this, i.e., relying on this, because we hope to be glorified by you, I wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a double pleasure, because a second visit and strengthening of the faith is called a second grace in relation to the time they were first converted by his ministry and his teaching. I 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. This is the sequence of the first promise, but in the preceding epistle this is a contrary sequence, as has been said.

37. – Then he puts the accusation for this change, for which the Corinthians accused him, in the form of a question, saying, Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? For on account of this they charged him with two things: light-mindedness, because he changed his mind: “The fool changes like the moon” (Sir. 27:11); and carnal love, because it seemed to them that he had done this from some carnal and human affection. Hence, he touches on two points: first, light-mindedness, and he says, Was I vacillating, if I failed to do what I once wanted to do? God forbid! “Neither must you think, if we command different things, that it comes from the levity of our mind” (Est. 16:9, Vulgate); “In the mighty throng I will praise you” (Ps. 35:18). Secondly he touches on carnal affection, when he says, Do I make my plans like a worldly man, i.e., according to carnal affection, ready to say Yes and No at once, i.e., to affirm and deny: “Some suspect us of acting in worldly fashion” (2 Cor. 10:2); “A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways” (Jas. 1:7-8).

38. – Having enlarged upon their accusation, he excuses himself, saying, As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been Yes and No. In regard to this he does two things: first, he declares that he did not lie; secondly, he shows how he did not lie (v. 21).

39. – He shows in two ways that he had not lied, namely, from his character and from the cause [for his not lying]. From his character, because we should not suppose that a person would easily lie, if he has never been found to be a liar. According to this explanation, As surely as God is faithful, is spoken with the force of an oath. As if to say: God is my witness that my word, namely, my preaching, to you has not been Yes and No, i.e., there is no falsity in it: “A faithful God, without deceit, just and upright is he” (Deut. 32:4). But if God is faithful is taken for the truth of the divine promise, then the sense is: God is faithful, i.e., he keeps his promises, but he had promised to send you preachers of the truth: “I will give you shepherds after my own heart” (Jer. 3:15). Therefore, since I was sent by him, our word to you has not been Yes and No.

40. – In regard to the cause, he excuses himself for two reasons, namely, from the motive and the efficient cause. His motive for not lying is that a person who assumes an office is naturally moved to what suits that office and not to what is contrary; but it is obvious that the Apostle’s office is to preach the truth. Therefore, he is not moved to the contrary of the truth, which is to lie. In regard to this he does three things: first, he proves the truth of his word by the word of Christ; secondly, he proves the truth of Christ by the word of God; thirdly, he concludes to what he intended (v. 20b).

41. – He says, therefore: I say that our words should be regarded as true, and true they are, because we have preached Christ, in whom there is no falsehood. And this is what he says, For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we preached among you, Silvanus, by me, i.e. to say principally, and Silvanus, secondarily (he is the Silas of Ac. 18:5), and Timothy mentioned above. For those two were with the Apostle when he first converted them. He, namely, the Son of God, was not Yes and No, i.e., there was not falsity, for he did nothing unbecoming, but in him it is always Yes, i.e., the truth, for truth and being are convertible: “I am the way and the truth and the life” (Jn. 14:6).

42. – But because there might be some doubt about his statement that there was no falsity in Christ, he at once proves this, saying, For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. He proves this in the following way: it is obvious that there can be no falsity in that which is the manifestation of the divine truth; but the Son of God came to manifest the divine truth in the promises made by God to be fulfilled through him. Therefore there is no falsity in him. And that is what he says: there is not in the Son of God Yes and No, because all the promises of God, namely made to men, find their Yes in him, i.e., in Christ, i.e., they are verified and fulfilled in Christ: “I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God’s truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs” (Rom. 15:8)

43. – From this, therefore, the Apostle concludes that his words are true, because he preaches the Son of God, in whom is the truth. That is why through him, namely, Christ, we utter the Amen, i.e., that which is true: “The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness” (Rev. 3:14); “He who blesses himself in the land shall bless himself by the God of truth, amen” (Is. 65:16). This truth we say to God, i.e., to the honor of God, namely, manifesting his truth to the glory of God and our glory, because our glory is to show and preach the word of God.

44. – Then when he says, but it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, the Apostle proves that he has not lied by the efficient cause. For although a man by his free will can employ his tongue for speaking truth or falsity, God can establish a man so well in the truth, that he would speak nothing but the truth. Therefore, if God established someone in the truth, it is obvious that he could not say anything false; but God establishes us in the truth. And therefore he says, it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, i.e., in the true preaching of Christ. As if to say: if Christ were outside us, we could lie, but because he is with us and we in Christ, we do not lie: “It is I who keep steady its pillars” (Ps. 75:3). Therefore we are in Christ in two ways, namely, by grace and by glory: by grace, inasmuch as we have been anointed with the grace of the Holy Spirit and made members of Christ and joined to him; by which grace Christ as man was also anointed: “God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows” (Ps. 45:7). And from the fullness of that anointing it has overflowed to all of us as “the precious oil on the head”, namely of Christ, “has flowed down on the beard, the beard of Aaron” (Ps. 133:2). Therefore, he says that God has anointed us. He anointed us, I say, as kings and priests: “You made them a kingdom and priests to our God” (Rev. 5:10); “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation” (1 Pet. 2:9).

45. – But the union which is according to glory we do not yet have in reality, but in sure hope, inasmuch as we have a firm hope of attaining to this union. And we have a twofold certainty of hope resulting from the hope of this union. One is by a sign, the other by a pledge. [The first is] by an evident sign, which is of faith. Hence he says, he has put his seal upon us with the sign of Christian faith: “Put a mark on their foreheads” (Ez. 9:4), i.e., the sign of the cross: “Till we have sealed the servants of our God upon their foreheads” (Rev. 7:3). And this is done through the Holy Spirit: “Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him” (Rom. 8:9). Therefore the special and certain sign of obtaining eternal life is configuration to Christ: “Set me as a seal upon your heart” (Sg. 8:6). Or he sealed us with the sign of life. [The second is] by the greatest pledge, i.e., of the Holy Spirit; and so he says and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee, and we are certain that no one can take him from us.

46. – But note that there are two things to be considered in a pledge, namely, that it produces a hope of obtaining the reality, and that it is as valid as the reality or more so. And these two things are in the Holy Spirit, because if we consider the substance of the Holy Spirit, he is as valid as eternal life, which is God, because he is as valid as the three persons. But if we consider the manner in which [he] is possessed, then it produces the hope but not the possession of eternal life, because we do not yet have him perfectly in this life. Therefore we are not perfectly happy until we have him perfectly in heaven: “You were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” (Eph. 1:13).

47. – The when he says, but I call God to witness, he gives his excuse for not coming; and this is by oath which is greater. In regard to this he does three things: first, he states the excuse; secondly, he answer a tacit question (v. 24a); thirdly, he explains what he says (v. 24b). He excuses himself with a double oath: one of attestation, when he says, I call God to witness; the other of execration, when he says, against me, i.e., against my soul: “For God is my witness” (Rom. 1:9). As witness, I say, I call upon God, because I refrained from coming, i.e., after the first time or after I departed from you; and this I did to spare you, namely, because he knew that they were incorrigible. Hence, if he had gone then, he would either have punished them, and they perhaps would have left the faith altogether, or he would not have punished them, and then he would have been giving them occasion to sin more. But because someone could say, Why do you say spare us? Are you our lord? He removes this, saying, not that we lord it over your faith; we work with you for your joy. As if to say: I do not say this as a lord, but as a helper: “Not as those domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock” (1 Pet. 5:3). A helper, I say, for your joy, or for your improvement. Why he says, of your faith, he explains, saying, for you stand firm in your faith, i.e., you stand in that grace of Christ by faith.

2-1

            2 Cor. 2:1-4

1 For I made up my mind not to make you another painful visit. 2 For if I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained? 3 And I wrote as I did, so that when I came I might not suffer pain from those who should have made me rejoice, for I felt sure of all of you, that my joy would be the joy of you all. 4 For I wrote you out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, not to cause you pain but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you.

48. – After giving a general excuse for his delay in visiting the Corinthians, the Apostle now gives the cause of his delay and how he spared them. In regard to this he does two things: first, he mentions that one cause of his delay was that he might not pain them by coming; secondly, he shows that another cause was that the fruit he hoped for from others and which was beginning to ripen, might not be hindered (v. 12). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he shows that the cause of his delay in general was to avoid paining them; secondly, he speaks in particular about a certain person who had grieved him (v. 5). In regard to the first he does three things: first, he tells why he postponed his visit; secondly, he gives the reason for his statement (v. 2); thirdly, he explains what he said (v. 4).

49. – He says, therefore: I have said that it was in order not to grieve you that I did not come to you. Therefore, I made up my mind, i.e., about what I mentioned when I sent the other letter: “Reason is the beginning of every work, and counsel precedes every undertaking” (Sir. 37:16); not to make you another painful visit, i.e., not to cause you pain. The reason he did not wish to grieve them is the same one whereby the Lord did not wish his disciples to fast, namely, in order that they be drawn to Christ and be joined to him not by fear but by love. For the Lord wished to strengthen and nourish them in the faith in all sweetness and heartfelt desire, so that, being thus established in love, they would not easily turn away from him because of tribulations, for “many waters cannot extinguish love” (Sg. 8:7). For the same reason the Apostle does not want to pain them on this account.

50. – He assigns the reason for what he says, namely, that he does not want to pain them, when he says, for if I cause you pain, who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained? In regard to this he does two things: first, he deals with the reason why he did not wish to pain them; secondly, he shows why he tells them this (v. 3).

51. – He says, therefore: the reason why I did not wish you to fall into sadness was that your sadness pains me, and I rejoice in your consolation; and you only console me when I am with you. Hence, if I had come and pained you, I would be sad at your sadness; then there would be no one among you to gladden me, because you would be sad on my account. For one who is sad does not easily console another person: “A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother” (Prov. 10:1); “He who loves wisdom makes his father glad” (Prov. 29:3). Or in another way, there are two kinds of sadness. One is according to the world, and the other according to God who produces repentance leading to salvation. The Apostle is not speaking of the first, but of the second. He says: I will be consoled if I cause you pain, i.e., if by scolding you I bring you to repentance; but if I had come and seen you unrepentant of your sins, I would have had no consolation, because no one is sad and repentant because of me, i.e., because of my correction and rebuke.

52. – But the reason I write this to you is that you so adjust yourselves, that when I come, I will not be sad at seeing you uncorrected, in addition to the sadness I experienced when I heard that you had sinned. In regard to this he does two things: first, he gives his admonition; secondly, he shows that he is confident it will be obeyed (v. 3b). The admonition is this: I wrote as I did, namely, that I am pained at the sin you committed: “he was vexed in his righteous soul day after day with their lawless deeds” (2 Pet. 2:8), in order that you might prepare and arrange yourselves by correction, so that when I came I might not suffer pain at your sins from those who should have made me rejoice, i.e., I ought to rejoice and be glad in your presence: “There is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Lk. 15:10). The confidence he had that they would follow his admonition is indicated when he says, for I felt sure of all of you. As if to say: I have this confidence in you, that you will be so disposed, that when I come, all of you will give me reason for joy; and you should do this cheerfully, that my joy would be the joy of you all, i.e., it would contribute to your joy, or it is for the sake of your joy, which you have from the recovery of grace: “Rejoice with those who rejoice” (Rom. 12:15)

53. – But because someone might be in doubt at his saying, so that when I came I might not suffer pain, and ask what sort of pain he had for them, he explains this saying, for I wrote you out of much affliction and anguish of heart. In regard to this he does two things: first, he mentions the pain he has already suffered; secondly, he answers a tacit question (v. 4b).

54. – First, therefore, he says: I would be pained if I found you uncorrected—a greater pain than I had when you sinned and I was obliged to sadden you with a sharp rebuke: for I wrote you in the first epistle out of much affliction and anguish of heart and with many tears, which I shed for you when you were already dead in sin: “O that my head were waters, and my eyes a fountain of tears” (Jer. 9:1); “It is a disgrace to be the father of an undisciplined son” (Sir. 22:3); “The righteous man perishes and no one lays it to heart” (Is. 57:1). But it should be noted that he mentions two things that amplify his pain, namely, affliction and anguish, because one added to the other increases sadness. For sometimes a person is sad but without anguish, namely, when he is pricked by some adversity as though by a very sharp thorn; and yet various ways of escape seem open to him, because if no way is open, anguish is joined to affliction. He says, therefore, for I wrote you out of much affliction, with which he was pricked by your deeds and your evil, and anguish of heart, because he could not see where a remedy could easily be found: “Trouble and anguish have come upon me” (Ps. 119:143).

55. – But because they could say, O Apostle, you even write these things to pain us, he anticipates this, saying, not to cause you pain do I write these things to you, but to let you know the abundant love that I have for you. For there are two signs of love, namely, to rejoice in the good of another and to be pained at his evil; and I have these toward you: “For the love of Christ controls us” (2 Cor. 5:14). More abundantly than you think, or more abundantly than toward others.

2-2

            2 Cor. 2:5-11

5 But if any one has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure—not to put it too severely—to you all. 6 For such a one this punishment by the majority is enough; 7 so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. 8 So I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. 9 For this is why I wrote, that I might test you and know whether you are obedient in everything. 10 Any one whom you forgive, I also forgive. What I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the presence of Christ, 11 to keep Satan from gaining the advantage over us; for we are not ignorant of his designs.

56. – After giving the reason for his delay, namely, to avoid paining them, and after telling them of his sadness, the Apostle then treats here of the one causing his sadness. In regard to this he does three things: first, he speaks more fully of the guilt of the one who causes this sadness; secondly, of his punishment for the injury he inflicted (v. 6); thirdly, he urges them to have mercy on this person (v. 7).

57. – He says, therefore: I have written to you with many tears, which I shed because of the sadness I fell and because of the punishment to be inflicted on the sinner, but if any one has caused me pain, he, namely, the heinous fornicator of whom he writes in 1 Corinthians (5:1): “It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and of a kind that is not found even among pagans”: that one, I say, even if he has caused sorrow, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure, i.e., he has caused it not to me alone, but you and us. Not all, but in some measure. And I say this, not to put it too severely to you all, i.e., that I may not lay this burden on all of you by speaking derisively. As if to say: you are not so good or love me so much that all of you would weep over my sadness and over the sin of a brother. Or, not to put it too severely to you all, not only those who did not grieve over the sin.

58. – Or it could be said and better: he has caused it not to me, but in some measure. For it should be noted that sometimes a person is completely saddened and sometimes not. He is completely saddened when he is engrossed by pain with his grief. This is the sadness that works death, as he says below (7:10), but that, according to the Philosopher, does not happen to a wise man. He is not completely sad when, although he is sad about some evil he is suffering or seems to be on its way, he nevertheless rejoices for other good reasons. This sadness is according to God and does happen to a wise man. Therefore, because the Apostle says that he was very sad, he adds that he was sad in some measure, as though not entirely, lest they suppose that he was altogether engrossed by sadness, which does not befit a wise man. According to this, the meaning is: He, i.e. the fornicator, has pained me on account of his sin, but he has not pained me entirely. For although I grieved for him because of his sin, yet I take joy in you because of the many good things you do, and in him because of his repentance. I say, in some measure, that I may not burden you all, i.e., that I may not lay this burden on you, namely, that you should grieve me.

59. – But lest they should wish to punish him more on account of the Apostle’s sadness, he shows them that the punishment was sufficient, saying, for such a one, namely, he who pained me so much by sinning, this punishment by the majority is enough, i.e., such a harsh public correction that he was excommunicated from the Church and delivered to Satan (1 Cor. 5:5). Therefore this punishment is enough for the above reasons. Or it can be called sufficient, not as to God’s judgment, but as was expedient for the time and the person. For it is better to observe such a spirit of leniency in correcting, that the fruit of correction follows on the penance, than to correct so harshly that the sinner despairs and falls into worse sins. Therefore is says in Sirach (21:4): “Terror and violence will lay waste riches.”

60. – Therefore, because that punishment was sufficient and he did penance, he urges them to show mercy, saying, so you should rather turn to forgive and comfort him. Here he does three things: first, he commands them to spare the sinner; secondly, he gives the reason (v. 7); thirdly, he urges them to observe this admonition (v. 8).

61. – He says first, therefore: I say that the punishment is sufficient for him, so much that you should rather turn to forgive him: “Forgive, and you will be forgiven” (Lk. 6:37); “Forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Eph. 4:32). You should not only forgive, but what is more, you should comfort him, and this by recalling to themselves the example of sinners who were restored to the state of grace, such as David, Peter, Paul and Magdalene, and through the Word of God: “For I have no pleasure in the death of any one, says the Lord GOD; so turn, and live” (Ez. 18:32); “Admonish the idlers, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all” (1 Th. 5:14).

62. – He gives the reason for this admonition, saying, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow. For some are sometimes so steeped in sorrow because of sin and punishment of sin, that they are overcome, when they have no one to comfort them; and this is bad, because it does not result in the hope for the fruit of repentance, namely reformation, but in despair he delivers himself over to all sins, as Cain, when he said: “My punishment is greater than I can bear” (Gen. 4:13); “Who, despairing, have given themselves up to licentiousness, greedy to practice every kind of uncleanness” (Eph. 4:19). For this reason, despair is called a dangerous thing in 2 Samuel (2:26), so that David said in Psalm 69 (v. 15): “Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me.” Therefore, in order to prevent this, he says, comfort him, so that he will cease sinning: “This will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin” (Is. 27:9).

63. – Then the Apostle urges them not only by reason, but from other causes to do this, when he says, so I beg you to reaffirm your love for him. And he urges them in three ways: first, by his appeal, saying, so, i.e., that he not be overwhelmed, I, who can command, beg you: “Though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required, yet for love’s sake I prefer to appeal to you” (Phlm. 1:8-9). Evil prelates do the opposite: “With force and harshness you have ruled them” (Ez. 34:4). To reaffirm your love for him, which happens if you show your charity for him and not hate him for his sins, or despise him, but for your consolation make him hate his sin and love justice: “Strengthen your brethren” (Lk. 22:32).

64. – Secondly, he urges them with a command, saying, for this is why I wrote, namely, that I might test you and know whether you are obedient in everything. He says, in everything, namely, whether they are pleasing or displeasing to you. For he had first commanded them to excommunicate him, and they obeyed the Apostle’s command. But now he commands them to be sparing; hence he says, whether you are obedient in everything.

65. – Thirdly, he urges them by reminding them of a gift, when he says, any one whom you forgive, I also forgive. As if to say: you should do this because I also have done it. For if you have forgiven someone and asked me to forgive, I have forgiven. And this is what he says: any one whom you forgive, I also forgive.

66. – And this is obvious, for what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sake in the [person] of Christ. In this he touches four things required for such pardon or forgiveness. The first is discernment, so that pardon is not granted indiscriminately and rashly; hence he says, if I have forgiven anything, namely, in the proper way: “Let your eyes look directly forward” (Prov. 4:25). The second is the end, because it should be done not for love or hatred, but for some benefit to the Church or others; hence he says, it has been for your sake. The third is authority, because it should not be done on one’s own authority, but Christ’s, who forgives sin by authority, but the others to whom it has been entrusted, forgive as ministers and members of Christ; hence he says, in the [person] of Christ, namely, not by my own authority. Yet whatever is forgiven, Christ forgives: “If you forgive the sins of any they are forgiven” (Jn. 20:23). The fourth is need; hence he says, to keep Satan from gaining the advantage over us. For the devil had deceived many: some by leading them to commit sins, and others by excessive rigor against sinners; so that if Satan cannot get them for having committed sin, he at least destroys those he already has by the severity of prelates who drive them to despair by not correcting them in a compassionate way. Hence, he destroys these, and the others he puts in the snare of the devil: “Be not righteous overmuch” (Ecc. 7:16); “Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Pet. 5:8). And this will happen to us if we do not forgive sinners. Therefore that we might not be deceived by Satan, to keep Satan from gaining the advantage over us, I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, for we are not ignorant of his designs, namely, those of Satan. This is true in general, but in particular no one can know his thoughts but God alone: “Who can strip off his outer garment? Who can penetrate into the midst of his mouth?” (Jb. 41:13, Vulgate).

2-3

            2 Cor. 2:12-17

12 When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, a door was opened for me in the Lord; 13 but my mind could not rest because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia. 14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumph, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. 15 For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, 16 to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? 17 For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God’s word; but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.

67. – Having stated the first reason for his delay, namely, that he might avoid coming to them in sadness, he now states the second reason, which is the fruit he was producing elsewhere. In regard to this he does two things: first, he mentions his travels; secondly, their result (v. 14). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he mentions the obstacle he met at Troas; secondly, his journey into Macedonia (v. 13b).

68. – He says, therefore: When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, i.e., to preach Christ: “But I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit” (Jn. 15:16), a door was opened for me, i.e., men’s minds were prepared and disposed to receive the words of preaching and Christ: “for a wide door for effective work has opened to me” (1 Cor. 16:9); “Behold, I stand at the door and knock” (Rev. 3:20). But not in anyone, but in the Lord, because this preparation of the human mind is accomplished by God’s power. For although the ease with which minds are prepared is the cause of conversion, God is the cause of that ease and of the preparation: “Convert us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be converted” (Lam. 5:21, Vulgate). When, I say, a door was thus opened for me in the Lord my mind [spirit] could not rest, i.e., I was unable to do what my spirit wished, i.e., dictated. For the spirit is said to have rest, when it achieves what it wishes, just as the flesh is said to rest when it has what it desires: “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; take your ease” (Lk. 12:19). The Apostle does not say, I had no rest in my flesh or my body, but in my mind, i.e., in my spiritual will, which is to establish Christ in the hearts of men. And I was hindered because I saw hearts prepared and disposed, and was unable to preach.

69. – Then he tells why he had no rest in his spirit, when he adds, because I did not find my brother Titus there, i.e., because of Titus’ absence. And this for two reasons. One reason was that although the Apostle knew all their languages, so that he could say: “I thank God that I speak in tongues more than you all” (1 Cor. 14:18), he was more skilled in Hebrew than in Greek, but Titus more in Greek. Therefore, he wanted to have him present to preach in Troas. And because he was absent, for the Corinthians had detained him, he says, my spirit could not rest. But because God’s gifts are not imperfect, and the gift of tongues was specifically given to the apostles for preaching throughout the whole world: “Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world” (Ps. 19:4), the other reason is better, namely, that many things remained for the Apostle to do in Troas. For on the one hand, he had to preach to those who were prepared to receive Christ by faith; and on the other, he had to resists the adversaries who opposed him; therefore, because he could not do these things alone, he was grieved by the absence of Titus, who could concentrate on preaching and converting the good, while the Apostle withstood the adversaries. And he is at pains to write this to them in order to suggest that not only the first, but also the second reason for his delay was due to them. For on account of their hardness and quarreling, they delayed Titus for a long time. Hence he says, because I did not find my brother Titus there, either in Christ or in my co-worker: “A brother helped is like a strong city” (Prov. 18:19).

70. – Because I did not find Titus in Troas, I did not stay there; I took leave of them who were converted and in whom a door had been opened, and I went on to Macedonia, where I expected to find him. But his reason for going into Macedonia is given in Acts (16:9), where it says: “A man of Macedonia was standing beseeching him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’”

71. – Then when he says, But thanks be to God, he describes the progress of his journey, and does two things: first, he describes the order of his progress; secondly, he excludes the false apostles from that progress (v. 16b). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he hints at the progress he made; secondly, he explains something he had said (v. 15).

72. – In regard to the first it should be noted that the Apostle did not attribute to himself the progress and fruit he had produced, or to his own power, but to God: “On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God which is with me” (1 Cor. 15:20): “Give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Th. 5:18); “Always and for everything giving thanks in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father” (Eph. 5:20). Who in Christ always leads us in triumph, i.e., makes us triumph in preaching Christ against our adversaries. Here it should be notes that preachers of truth should do two things: namely, to exhort in sacred doctrine and to refute those who contradict it. This they do in two ways: by debating with heretics and by practicing patience toward persecutors. The Apostle touches on these in order; hence he says, who leads us in triumph, as to those who contradict: “We are more than conquerors” (Rom. 8:37); “It is not on the size of the army that victory in battle depends, but strength comes from Heaven” (1 Macc. 3:19); and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere, as to exhorting in sacred doctrine.

73. – A Gloss explains the fragrance of the knowledge of him, i.e., of his Son; but it is better to suppose that this is said to distinguish between knowledge of God obtained by other sciences and that obtained by faith. For the knowledge of God obtained by other sciences enlightens the intellect only by showing that God is the first cause, that he is one and wise and so on. But the knowledge of God obtained by faith both enlightens the intellect and delights the affections, because it not only says that God is the first cause, but that he is our Savior, that he is our Redeemer, that he loves us and that he became incarnate for us: all of which inflame the affections. Therefore is should be said that the fragrance of the knowledge of him, i.e., the knowledge of his sweetness, he spreads to those who believe by everywhere, because that fragrance is diffused far and wide: “Like a vine I cause loveliness to bud” (Sir. 24:17); “See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field which the Lord has blessed” (Gen. 27:27).

74. – But because some might say, What is the fragrance of God in every place? For there are many places in which our preaching is not accepted. The Apostle explains this, saying: I do not care, because whether they accept our preaching or not, the knowledge of God is manifest everywhere through us, because we are the aroma of Christ to God, namely, to the honor of God. He says this in a likeness to the Law, where it is said that a sacrifice becomes the sweetest fragrance of sweetness to God. As if to say: we are a holocaust offered to God as a fragrance of sweetness among those who are being saved, namely, that they not perish, which is theirs from God; and among those who are perishing, which is theirs from themselves. Hence, it is written in Hosea (13:9, Vulgate): “Destruction is your own, O Israel, your help is only in me”. But is that fragrance related to the good and the wicked in the same way? No, but to one a fragrance from death to death, i.e., of envy and malice, which are the occasion of bringing them to eternal death, i.e., those who envy the good reputation of the Apostle and strive against the preaching of Christ and the conversion of the faithful: “This child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against” (Lk. 2:34). To the other a fragrance from life to life, of love and good opinion leads them to eternal life, namely, to those who rejoice and are converted by the preaching of the Apostle: “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18). Thus, from the fragrance of the Apostle the good live and the wicked die, as it is read that serpents die from the smell of flourishing vines.

75. – Then when he says, Who is sufficient for these things? He excludes the false apostles from the progress, saying, Who of those false apostles is sufficient for these things? which we true apostles accomplish. As if to say: None: “But to me your friends, O God, are exceedingly honorable” (Ps. 138:17, Vulgate). But on the other hand, it says in Proverbs (27:2): “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips.” Gregory, in his commentary on Ezekiel, answers this by saying that the saints praise themselves for two reasons, and not for their own glory and vanity. The first reason is that they not despair in tribulations, as Job, when his friends tried to bring him to despair, recalled to his mind the good things he had done, in order to comfort himself and not despair. Hence, he said: “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I look upon a virgin?” (31:1). We read of a holy father, that when he was tempted to despair, he recalled to mind the good things he had done, in order to comfort himself; when he was tempted to pride, he recalled the evil he had done, in order to be humbled. The second reason is for profit, namely, that he obtain a greater reputation and that his teaching be believed more readily. This is the reason why the Apostle praises himself here. For the Corinthians had preferred false apostles to him and disdained him. As a result they were not ready to obey him. Therefore, to assure that they would not disdain but obey him, he prefers himself to them and praises himself, saying, Who is sufficient for these things? as we are. Not the false apostles, because even though they preach, they adulterate God’s word—which we do not do.

76. – Hence, he says, for we are not, like so many, namely, the false apostles, peddlers of God’s word, mingling contrary doctrines, as the heretics, who although they confess Christ, do not admit that he is true God. This is what the false apostles do, who say that along with the Gospel the legal observances must be kept. Hence he says, for we are not, like so many, peddlers [adulterers] of God’s word, i.e., preaching for gain or for praise. For thus are women called adulteresses, when they receive seed from another man for the propagation of children. In preaching, the seed is nothing less than your end or intention. Therefore, if your end is gain, if your intention is your own glory, you adulterate God’s word. This the false apostles were doing who were preaching for gain: “We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God” (2 Cor. 4:2). But the apostles preached neither for monetary gain nor their own glory, but for the praise of God and the salvation of their neighbor. Hence, he adds, but as men of sincerity, i.e., with a sincere intention; not for gain and without corrupted admixtures: “We have behaved in the world, and still more toward you, with holiness and godly sincerity” (2 Cor. 1:12).

77. – He points out three aspects of this sincerity: the first is taken from the dignity of the one who sent them. For it is expected of a messenger of the truth to speak the truth; hence he says, as commissioned by God, i.e., with that sincerity which befits a messenger of God: “Whoever speaks as one who utters oracles of God” (1 Pet. 4:11). The second is taken from the authority of the one presiding, before whom he stands. Hence he says, in the sight of God, in whose presence we should speak with sincerity: “As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand” (1 Kg. 17:1). The third is taken from the dignity of the subject of which he speaks. For the preaching of the apostles is about Christ; therefore, it should be sincere, as also Christ and God are. Hence, he says, we speak in Christ alone, and not in the ceremonies of the Law, as false apostles do: “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2).

3-1

            2 Cor. 3:1-5

1 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some do, letters of recommendation to you, or from you? 2 You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on your hearts, to be known and read by all men; 3 and you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us; our competence is from God.

78. – After presenting his excuse, by which he won the good will of his hearers, the Apostle continues toward his main intention, namely, to treat about the ministers of the New Testament. In regard to this he does two things: first, he commends the dignity of the good ministers; secondly, he expands on the guilt of the evil ministers (chap. 10ff.). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he commends the ministry of the New Testament; secondly, he commends the exercise of this ministry in others by exhorting them to this (chap. 6). In regard to the first he commends the ministry of the New Testament from three aspects: first, in this chapter, from its dignity; secondly, from its exercise (chap. 4); thirdly, from its reward (chap. 5). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he removes an objection; secondly, he commends the ministers of the New Testament (v. 6). In regard to the first it should be noted that the Apostle intended to commend the ministers of the New Testament, of which he is one. Therefore, lest the Corinthians object that in doing this he wishes to commend himself, he at once removes this, saying, Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Here he does two things: he first raises the question and then he answers it.

79. –The question is this: I say that we do not adulterate the Word of God as the false apostles do, but we speak with sincerity as from God. But in saying this, are we beginning to commend ourselves again?, i.e., are we saying this because we want to procure our glory and not that of God? And he says, again, because in the first epistle he had commended himself enough, when he said (3:10): “Like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation.” Therefore, we are not saying this to seek our own glory, but God’s: “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips” (Prov. 27:2).

80. – He answers this when he says, Or do we need? Here he shows that he is not happy to commend himself. In regard to this he does two things: first, he shows that he does not need man’s commendation; secondly, that he does not require it of them (v. 4). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he shows that he does not need their commendation; secondly, he assigns the cause of this (v. 2).

81. – He says, therefore: I say that we do not begin to commend ourselves, because we do not need commendation. And this is what he says: Do we, the true ministers, need as some do, namely the false apostles, letters of recommendation, i.e., praise, to you by others, or from you to others? But on the other hand, he says in Colossians (4:10): “Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, greets you.” Even papal legates always carry letters of recommendation. Therefore it is not an evil. I answer that to accept such letters from famous persons, who are commended and honored by reason of them alone, until they become known by their good works, is not evil: that is what papal legates do. But the Apostle was already so well known and recommended among them by his works, that he did not need letters of recommendation.

82. – Therefore he at once gives the reason for this, saying, you yourselves are our letter of recommendation; as if to say: I have a good letter; I do not need others. In regard to this, he does two things: first, he shows what that letter is which he has; secondly, he explains this (v. 3). In regard to the first he does two things: first he shows what that letter is; secondly, he shows that it is sufficient for commending him (v. 3b). He says, therefore, you are our letter, i.e., the letter through which our dignity is made manifest, by which we are commended, so that we do not need other letters: “You are our glory” (1 Th. 2:20); “My little children, with whom I am again in travail, until Christ be formed in you” (Gal. 4:19). But is this letter sufficient? Yes, because it is written on your hearts. Here he touches on two things causing the sufficiency of such letters. One is that it should be understood and known by the one for whom it is sent; the other that he still seeks, and not that he knows himself to have it. As to this he says, written on our hearts, because we always have you in mind, having a special care for you: “I hold you in my heart” (Phil. 1:7). The other is that he to whom it is sent may read and know it; hence, he says, to be known and read by all men. To be known, I say, because you have been instructed and converted by us; but it is read, because by our example even others imitate you: “Write the vision; make it plain upon tablets, so he may run who reads it” (Hab. 2:2).

83. – Then he explains how this letter is known, saying, you show that you are a letter from Christ, and in regard to this he does three things. First, he explains whose letter it is; secondly, how it was written; thirdly, on what. He shows whose it is when he says, from Christ. Hence, he says, you show that you are a letter from Christ, i.e., informed and led by Christ, principally and authoritatively: “For you have one teacher” (Matt. 23:8), but by us secondarily and instrumentally. Hence he adds, delivered by us: “This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ” (1 Cor. 4:1); “What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed” (1 Cor. 3:5) He shows how it was written, not with ink, i.e., not mixed with errors, as the letters of the false apostle; not changeable and imperfect as the Old Law, which led no one to perfection (cf. Heb. 7:19); for black ink is that by which error is understood, and delible by which changeableness is understood. It is written not with ink, I say, but with the Spirit of the living God, i.e., by the Holy Spirit, by whom you live and by whose teaching you have been instructed: “In whom you were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit” (Eph. 1:13). He suggests where it is written, when he says, not on tablets of stone, as the Old Law, to exclude hardness; as if to say: not in the stony hearts of the hard-hearted, as the Jews: “You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit” (Ac. 7:51); but on tablets of human hearts, i.e., hearts opened by charity, and human, i.e., made receptive as a result of filling and understanding: “I will take out of your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Ez. 36:26).

84. – Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Above, the Apostle excused himself, that he was not seeking his own glory, because he did not need it; here he proves that he is not seeking his own glory. Indeed, everything good he does he attributes not to himself but to God. In regard to this he does two things: first, he attributes all the good he has and does to God; secondly, he gives the reason for this.

85. – He says, therefore: I say that we do not need letters of recommendation and that you are our letter ministered by us. Nor do we seek our glory, but Christ’s. Such is the confidence, i.e. to say such things, that we have through Christ toward God, i.e., we refer it to God. Or I have such confidence in God, by whose power I say these things, because he works in me, and the confidence we have through Christ, through whom we have access to the Father, as it says in Romans (5:2), who unites us to God: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord” (Jer. 17:7). And I have this confidence because I am united to God through Christ: “I will act confidently in him” (Ps. 11:6, Vulgate).

86. – But the cause of this confidence is that whatever I do, I attribute to the very beginning of the work to God. Therefore, he says, not that we are competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, much less say and accomplish. For in the pursuit of any work there is first an assent, which is done by thinking, then discussion by word, and finally accomplishment by work. Hence if a person does not have the thinking from himself but from God, there is no doubt that not only the completion of a good work is from God, but even the very beginning: “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6). This is contrary to the Pelagians, who say that the beginning of a good work is from us, but its completion is from God: “O Lord, you have wrought for us all our works” (Is. 26:12). But lest this seem to take away free will, he says, of ourselves, i.e., on our part, and commends divine grace when he says, as coming from us, i.e., as though it came from us, rather than God.

87. – The Philosopher also teaches that a man can never do any good through his free will without God’s help. The reason is that in the things we do it is necessary to seek that for which we do it. But there can be no infinite process, for we must come to something which is first, e.g., to counsel. Thus, therefore, I do good, because there is in me the counsel to do so, and this is from God. Hence, he says that the counsel of something good is from something above man, moving him to act well; and this is God, who moves men and all things that act to their actions; but men are moved in one way, and other things in another. For since motion of this kind is something received into the thing moved, it is necessary that this be done according to the mode of its nature, i.e., of the thing moved. And therefore he moves all things according to their natures. Therefore, those things whose nature is to have free will and have dominion over their actions, he moves in such a way that they act freely, as rational and intellectual creatures. But others not freely, but according to the mode of their nature. But although we are not sufficient to think anything of ourselves as coming from ourselves, yet we have a certain sufficiency, namely that by which we are able to will the good, and to begin to believe, and this is from God: “What have you that you did not receive?” (1 Cor. 4:7).

3-2

            2 Cor. 3:6-11

6 He has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not in a written code but in the Spirit; for the written code kills, but the Spirit gives life. 7 Now if the dispensation of death, carved in letters on stone, came with such splendor that the Israelites could not look at Moses’ face because of its brightness, fading as this was, 8 will not the dispensation of the Spirit be attended with greater splendor? 9 For if there was splendor in the dispensation of condemnation, the dispensation of righteousness must far exceed it in splendor. 10 Indeed, in this case, what once had splendor has come to have no splendor at all, because of the splendor that surpasses it. 11 For if what faded away came with splendor, what is permanent must have much more splendor.

88. – Having commended the ministry of the New Testament, the Apostle then commends its ministers. First, he stipulates two things, which correspond to the above words. For he had mentioned a gift received from God when he said, our competence is from God, and the confidence born of this gift when he said, such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. First, therefore, he determines the things pertaining to the gift received; secondly, those pertaining to the confidence born of it (v. 12). In regard to the first he does three things: first, he discloses the gift received from God, namely, the ministry of the New Testament; secondly, he describes the New Testament (v. 6b); thirdly, from the dignity of the New Testament he shows the dignity of its ministers (v. 9).

89. – He says, therefore: I say that our sufficiency is from God who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant: “Men shall speak of you as the ministers of our God” (Is. 61:6). And in this we hold the place of angels: “Who make angels your messengers, fire and flame your ministers” (Ps. 104:4). But he not only made us ministers, but fit ones. For God gives to each being the things through which it can attain to the perfection of its nature. Hence, because God constituted ministers of the New Testament, he made them fit to exercise this office, unless he was impeded on the part of the receivers: “Who is sufficient for these things” (2 Cor. 2:16), namely, as are the Apostles instituted by God.

90. – He describes what this New Testament is when he continues, not in a written code but in the Spirit. He describes it in regard to two things, namely, as to that in which it consists and as to its cause for which it has been given: for the written code kills. In regard to the first it should be noted that the Apostle speaks profoundly, for it is stated in Jeremiah (31:31): “I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers”; and later on (v. 33): “I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God and they shall be my people.” The Old Testament, therefore, is written in a book, later to be sprinkled with blood, as it says in Hebrews (9:19): “He took the blood of calves and goats and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, saying: ‘This is the blood of the covenant which God commanded you.’” So it is clear that the Old Law is a covenant of words, but the New Covenant is a covenant of the Holy Spirit, by whom the love of God is poured out in our hearts [Et sic patet, quod vetus lex est testamentum litterae. Sed Novum Testamentum est testamentum Spiritus Sancti, quo charitas Dei diffunditur in cordis nostris], as it says in Rom. 5:5. Consequently, when the Holy Spirit produces charity in us, which is the fulness of the Law, it is a New Covenant, not in a written code, i.e., not written down, but in the Spirit, i.e., through the Spirit who gives life: “The law of the Spirit of life” (Rom. 8:2), i.e., life-giving.

91. – The reason why the New Testament was given by the Spirit is indicated when he says, for the written code kills, not as a cause but as an occasion. For the written Law only gives knowledge of sin: “For through the Law comes knowledge of sin” (Rom. 3:20). But as a result of merely knowing sin, two things follow. For the Law, although sin is known by it, does not repress concupiscence, but is the occasion of increasing it, inasmuch as concupiscence is enkindled the more by something forbidden. Hence such knowledge kills, when the cause of concupiscence has not yet been destroyed. As a result it adds to the sin. For it is more grievous to sin against the written and natural law than against the natural law only: “But sin, finding opportunity in the commandment, wrought in me all kinds of concupiscence” (Rom. 7:8). But although it is the occasion of killing inasmuch as it increases concupiscence and increases the sin, the Law is not evil, because at least it forbids evil; nevertheless, it is imperfect, inasmuch as it does not remove the cause. Therefore, the Law without the Spirit inwardly impressing the Law on the heart is the occasion of death; hence, it was necessary to give the Law of the Spirit, who gives life by producing charity in the heart: “It is the Spirit that gives life” (Jn. 6:63).

92. – From these, therefore, he shows the dignity of his ministry. He does two things in this regard. First, he shows that the ministry of the New Testament is preferred to the Old; secondly, that it is not only preferred, but that in comparison to the Old Testament, the latter has, as it were, nothing of glory (v. 10). In regard to the first, he does two things. First, he shows that the ministry of the New Testament is preferred to the Old; secondly, he assigns the reason for this (v. 9).

93. – In regard to the first, it should be noted that the Apostle argues from a statement in Exodus (34:24), where our text says that Moses had his face horned, so that the people of Israel could not come near. Another version says that his face shone, and this is better. For it should not be supposed that he literally had horns, as some depict him, but he is described as horned because of the rays which seemed to be like horns. He argues from this in the following way: first, by a similarity and by arguing from the lesser. For it is obvious that if something less has glory, then much more something which is greater. But the Old Testament is less than the New: therefore, since the former was in glory, so that the Israelites could not look at Moses’ face, it seems that the New is much more in glory.

94. – That the Old Testament is less than the New he proves in three ways. First, from its effect, because the former is a covenant of death, but the latter of life, as has been said. In regard to this he says, If the dispensation of death, i.e., the Old, which is the occasion of death; and this corresponds to what he said, namely, that the written code kills, but the Spirit gives life. Secondly, as to the way it was delivered, for the Old was delivered written on stone tablets, but the New was impressed by the Spirit on human hearts. He suggests this when he says, carved in letters, i.e., perfectly formed, on stone, i.e., on tablets of stone. This corresponds to his statement, not in a written code but in the Spirit. Thirdly, as to perfection: for the glory of the Old Testament is without assurance, because the Law brought no one to perfection. But in the New there is glory with the hope of a better glory, i.e., eternal: “My salvation will be forever” (Is. 51:6). This is suggested when he says, fading as this was: “If you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you” (Gal. 5:2). He states the conclusion when he says, will not the dispensation of the Spirit be attended with greater glory? which is plain.

95. – Then he assigns the reason for all these when he says, For if there was glory in the dispensation of condemnation, the dispensation of justice must far exceed it in glory. This is his reasoning: Glory is owed more to justice than to condemnation, but the ministry of the New Testament is a ministry of justice, because it justifies by giving life within. The ministry of the Old Testament is a ministry of condemnation, as being its occasion: the written code kills, but the Spirit gives life. Therefore, since the dispensation of condemnation, i.e., the ministry of the Old Testament, is the occasional cause of condemnation, as has been said, is in glory, which appeared on the face of Moses, it is obvious that much more abundant in glory, i.e., gives an abundance of glory to its ministers, is the dispensation of justice, i.e., of the New Testament, by which the Spirit is given through whom is given justice and the fulfillment of the virtues: “The wise shall possess glory” (Prov. 3:35).

96. – It is customary here to compare Moses and Paul; but if the Apostle’s words are considered carefully, this is not necessary, because ministries not persons are being compared.

97. – But because the false apostles could say that even though the ministry of the New Covenant is greater than that of the Old, it is not much greater. Therefore, it is good for us to continue in that ministry, which they did, because they observed the ceremonies of the Law along with the Gospel. Therefore the Apostle rejects this when he says, indeed, in this case, what once had glory has come to have no glory at all, because of the glory that surpasses it. In regard to this he does two things. First, he shows that the ministry of the New Testament exceeds that of the Old beyond all comparison. Secondly, he assigns the reason for this (v. 11).

98. – He says, therefore, I have said that the ministry of justice abounds in glory to such a degree that the glory of the Old Testament should not be called glorious, for what once had glory has come to have no glory at all by reason of the glory that surpasses it. This is explained in two ways. First, that that glory is nothing in comparison to that of the New Testament, because such glory was not conferred on all the ministers, but on Moses alone, and it did not shine on Moses entirely, but in part, i.e., on his face alone. Therefore, it has come to have no glory at all, i.e., should not be glorified because of the glory that surpasses it, i.e., in comparison to the excelling glory of the New Testament, which abounds in grace, so that men purified by it might not see the glory of a man but of God. It is explained in a second way by punctuating it thus: that which was glorious in this part has come to have no glory: as if to say, for in this part, i.e., in respect to this particular nature, that we are servants, has come to have no glory, i.e., that was not glorious which shone in the Old Testament: and this by reason of the glory that surpasses it, which is in the New, because it is the glory of God the Father.

99. – Then he assigns the cause of this when he says, For if what faded away came with glory, what is permanent must have much more glory. His reasoning is thus: that which was given to pass away is nothing in relation to that which is given to remain always. If, therefore, the Old Testament, which is rendered void, is done away with: “But when the perfect comes, the imperfect will pass away” (1 Cor. 13:10). For with glory the ministry of Moses came, at least with a particular glory. And it is obvious that the New Testament remains, because it is begun here and completed in heaven: “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Lk. 21:33). It will be much more in eternal glory, in which it will be perfected; it will be, I say, for us who are its ministers.

3-3

            2 Cor. 3:12-18

12 Since we have such a hope, we are very bold, 13 not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so that the Israelites might not see the end of the fading splendor. 14 But their minds were hardened; for to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. 15 Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their minds; 16 but when a man turns to the Lord the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

100. – Having laid down what pertains to commending the gift received from God, he now lays down what pertains to commending the confidence born of that gift. In regard to this he does two things: first, he mentions the confidence born of the gift; secondly, he compares the confidence in the Old and in the New Testament (v. 13).

101. – He says, therefore, Since we have such a hope, because of what has been said to us, namely, of seeing the glory of God: “In this hope we were saved” (Rom. 8:24), we are very bold [multa fiducia utimur], i.e., we confidently do the things which pertain to the use of this ministry, from which our hope grows: “The righteous are bold as a lion” (Prov. 28:1); “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord” (Jer. 17:7).

102. – Then as he preferred the one gift to the other, so he prefers the confidence [fiducia] of the New Testament to that of the Old (v. 13). In regard to this he does two things: first, he mentions a fact about the Old Testament; secondly, he explains it (v. 13b).

103. – The fact he proposes is mentioned in Exodus (34:33), where it says that when he spoke to the people, Moses veiled his face, because the children of Israel could not look upon him because of the splendor of his face. Hence he says, not like Moses, who put a veil over his face. As if to say: I say that we are very bold, and such as did not happen to us as Moses did to them, namely, not revealing his face to the people, because the time to reveal the splendor of truth had not yet come. Therefore, we have confidence [fiduciam] without the veil.

104. – Then he explains what he had said about the veil, saying, which is made void, for that veil was the dimness of the figures, which was made void by Christ. In regard to this he does three things. First, he mentions the voiding of this veil; secondly, how this voiding still prevails among the Jews (v. 14); thirdly, how this has no place among the ministers of the New Testament (v. 18).

105. – He says, therefore, that Moses put a veil, namely, of the figure, over his face; this veil is made void, i.e., is taken away by Christ, namely, by fulfilling in truth what Moses delivered in figure, because all things happened to them in a figure. For thus Christ by his death removed the veil of the killing of the paschal lamb. Therefore, as soon as he gave up his spirit, the veil of the Temple was rent. Likewise by sending the Holy Spirit into the hearts of believers so that they might understand spiritually what the Jews understood carnally. He removed the veil, when he opened their mind to understand the Scriptures (Lk. 24:45).

106. – What effect this voiding had on the Jews is shown (v. 14). In regard to this he does two things. First, he shows that it was not removed from them in the state of unbelief; secondly, he shows that it will be removed when they are converted (v. 16). In regard to the he does two things: first, he shows why this voiding has no place among the Jews; secondly, from this he shows that they still have the veil (v. 15).

107. – He says, therefore, that it is removed for those who believe, but not for the unbelieving Jews. The reason for this is that their minds were hardened, i.e., their reasoning power is dull and their senses weak and clouded, so that they cannot see the brightness of the divine light, i.e., of divine truth, without the veil of figures. The reason for this is that they close their eyes so as not to see, because the veil of the Temple was rent. Therefore, this is due to their sin of unbelief, and not to a weakness in the truth; because with the removal of the veil the truth is manifested very clearly to all who open the eyes of their mind through faith: “A hardening has come upon part of Israel” (Rom. 11:25); “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind” (Jn. 9:39). For this was foretold by Isaiah (6:10): “Make the heart of this people fat, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes, lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” And indeed their minds are so dulled to the truth that to this day they do not understand the truth manifested to us. But the same veil remains which was in the Old Testament before the veil of the Temple was rent, when they read the Old Testament, because they understand it no differently than before. For they still rely on figures, so as not to reveal the truth, i.e., not understand. Thus they still believe that the veil of God is not a figure, but the truth, which namely is lifted as to believers through Christ, i.e., in the faith of Christ. But it remains in them, because they do not believe that Christ has come.

108. – Then when he says, Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their minds, he shows how even among the Jews the veil remains, as to unbelievers, although it has been removed by Christ. In regard to this it should be noted that a veil is said to be put on something in two ways: either because it is put on the thing seen, so that it cannot be seen; or because it is put on the one seeing, so that he may not see. But the veil was put on the Jews of the Old Law in both ways. For their eyes have been blinded not to see the truth because of their hardness; and the Old Testament had not yet been fulfilled, because the truth had not yet come. As a sign of this the veil was on Moses’ face and not theirs. But with the coming of Christ the veil was removed from the face of Moses, i.e., from the Old Testament, because it was not fulfilled: but it has not been removed from their hearts. Hence, he says, to this day the veil remains. As if to say: the veil has been removed from the believers of the Old Testament, but still when Moses is read, i.e., when the Old Testament is explained to them: “For from early generations, Moses has had in every city those who preach him, for he is read every sabbath in the synagogues” (Ac. 15:21), the veil, i.e. blindness, lies over their hearts: “A hardening has come upon part of Israel” (Rom. 11:25).

109. – But when and how that veil shall be removed from them is shown when he says, but when a man turns to the Lord the veil is removed. First he describes how to remove this veil; secondly, the reason for this (v. 17).

110. – He says, therefore, that this veil is still upon them; not that the Old Testament is veiled, but because their hearts are veiled. Therefore if it is to be removed, nothing remains but that they be converted. Hence, he says, but when a man turns, namely, some of them, to God through faith in Christ, the veil is removed by their conversion: “A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God” (Is. 10:21); and this is also stated in Romans (9:27). And note that when he treated of blindness, he spoke in the plural, saying over their hearts; but when he speaks of conversion, he speaks in the singular, saying, but when a man turns, to show how easy evil is and how difficult the good, as though few will be converted.

111. – But the reason why they are converted and the veil removed in this manner is because God wills it. For they could claim that God put the veil on them and therefore it cannot be removed. But the Apostle shows that it cannot only be removed, but even that it is removed by him who is the Lord. Hence, he says, now the Lord is the Spirit. This can be understood in two ways. In one way, so that Spirit is taken as the subject, as though saying: the Spirit, i.e., the Holy Spirit, namely who is the author of the Law, is the Lord, i.e., works by his own free will: “The Spirit blows where it wills” (Jn. 3:8); “The Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills” (1 Cor. 12:11). And where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom; as if to say: because the Spirit is the Lord, he can give freedom to enable us freely to use the writings of the Old Testament without a veil. Therefore, those who do not have the Holy Spirit cannot use it freely: “You were called to freedom” (Gal. 5:13); “Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil” (1 Pet. 2:16). It can be understood another way so that by the Lord is meant Christ, as though saying: the Lord, i.e., Christ, is Spirit, i.e., has spiritual power. Therefore, where the Spirit of the Lord is, i.e., the law of Christ spiritually understood, not in a written code, but impressed on the heart by faith, there is freedom from every obscurity of the veil.

112. – It should be noted that by occasion of these words, namely, where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom, and of those found in 1 Timothy (1:9): “The law is not laid down for the just”, some have erroneously said that spiritual men are not bound by the precepts of the divine law. But this is false, for God’s precepts are the rule of the human will. But there is no man or angel whose will does not need to be ruled and directed by divine law. Hence, it is impossible for any man not to be subject to God’s precepts. But the statement that “the law is not laid down for the just” means that the law was not laid down “for the just” who are led by an internal habit to do what the law of God commands, but because of the unjust. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the just are not bound to it. Similarly, where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom, is explained thus: the free man is one who exists for himself, but the servant exists for the sake of the master. Therefore, whoever acts of himself acts freely, but one who is moved by another does not act freely. Therefore, one who avoids evils, not because they are evil, but because of God’s commandment, is not free. But one who avoids evils because they are evils is free. But this is done by the Holy Spirit who perfects man inwardly with a good habit, so that from love he avoids evil, as if the divine law had commanded. Consequently, he is called free, not as though he is not subject to the divine law, but because he is inclined by a good habit to do what the divine law ordains.

113. – Then when he says, and we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being changed into his likeness from one degree of glory to another, he shows how the faithful of Christ are altogether free of this veil. He says, therefore: I say that this veil will be removed from them, when a person may be converted as we are; not a particular one, but we all who are Christ’s faithful: “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but for others they are in parables” (Lk. 8:10). With unveiled face, not having a veil upon the heart, as they. By face is meant the heart or the mind, because just as a person sees bodily with the face, so spiritually with the mind: “Open my eyes that I may behold wondrous things out of your law” (Ps. 119:18). The glory of the Lord, not of Moses: for glory signifies brightness, as Augustine says. But the Jews saw some glory on the face of Moses as a result of his speaking with God. But this glory is imperfect, because it is not the glory with which God is glorious: and this is to know God himself. Or the glory of the Lord, i.e., the Son of God: “The glory of a father is a wise son” (Prov. 10:1, Vulgate).

114. – Beholding, i.e., speculating, which is not taken from the word which means “watch tower” (specula), but from “mirror” (speculum), i.e., knowing the glorious God himself by the mirror of reason, in which there is an image of God. We behold him when we rise from a consideration of ourselves to some knowledge of God, and we are transformed. For since all knowledge involves the knower’s being assimilated to the thing known, it is necessary that those who see be in some way transformed into God. If they see perfectly, they are perfectly transformed, as the blessed in heaven by the union of enjoyment: “When he appears we shall be like him” (1 Jn. 3:2); but if we see imperfectly, then we are transformed imperfectly, as here by faith: “Now we see in a mirror dimly” (1 Cor. 13:12).

115. – Therefore he says, into his likeness, that is, as we see, we are transformed, I say, from one degree of glory to another. In this he distinguishes a triple degree of knowledge in Christ’s disciples. The first is from the clarity of natural knowledge to the clarity of the knowledge of faith. The second is from the clarity of the knowledge of the Old Testament to the clarity of the knowledge of the grace of the New Testament. The third is from the clarity of natural knowledge and of the Old and New Testaments to the clarity of eternal vision: “Though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed every day” (2 Cor. 4:16). But how does this come about? Not by the letter of the law, but from the Lord who is the Spirit: “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God” (Rom. 8:14); “Let your good Spirit lead me on a level path” (Ps. 143:10).

4-1

            2 Cor. 4:1-2

1herefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 We have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways; we refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.

116. – Having shown the dignity of the New Testament ministry, the Apostle now discusses the exercise of this ministry. In regard to this he does two things. First, he shows that the exercise of this ministry should consist in doing good; secondly it should consist also in enduring evils patiently (v. 7). In regard to the first he does two things. First, he lays down the use of this ministry; secondly, he excludes an objection (v. 3).

117. – He says, therefore: because this ministry is of such great dignity in itself and in its ministers, therefore having this ministry, i.e., this dignity of administering spiritual things: “This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God” (1 Cor. 4:1); “Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry” (Rom. 11:13); having it, I say, not from ourselves or from our merits, but by the mercy of God which we have obtained from God for this: “I received mercy” (1 Tim. 1:13).

118. – Then when he says, we do not lose heart, he describes the exercise of this ministry, which should be engaged in doing good; and this in regard to two things: first, as to avoiding evil; secondly, as to doing good (v. 2b).

119. – He teaches us to avoid evil both in conduct and in doctrine, when we exercise this ministry. As to conduct in two ways, namely in our actions and in our intentions. But if a person avoids doing evil and has a good intention, he avoids evil completely. But evil is avoided in our activity by enduring evils patiently in adversity. Hence, he says, we do not lose heart by impatience: “Let us no