Main Highlights
Paul discusses his change of plans, emphasizing forgiveness and reconciliation towards the offender in Corinth.
Key Verses
“But I determined this for my own sake, not to come to you again in sorrow. For if I cause you sorrow, who then is the one who gladdens me but the one who is saddened by me?”— 2 Corinthians 2:1-2 “So I urge you to reaffirm your love for him. For to this end also I wrote, that I might test you, whether you are obedient in all things. But one whom you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ, so that no advantage may be taken of us by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his schemes.”— 2 Corinthians 2:8-11 “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is adequate for these things?”— 2 Corinthians 2:14-16
Related Scripture
“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”— Ephesians 4:32
Scholar Insight
"“The main thrust of the chapter is a plea for the restoration of a repentant offender in the Corinthian church.” - Murray J. Harris, 2 Corinthians (Expositor's Bible Commentary), p. 329."
Theological Analysis
What we learn about God
God leads us in triumph in Christ (2 Corinthians 2:14).
Christological Connection
We are a fragrance of Christ to God. (2 Corinthians 2:15)
Systematic Theology
Ecclesiology - the church's responsibility to forgive and restore repentant sinners.
Law & Grace
Forgiveness is a demonstration of grace, superseding legalistic demands for punishment. (2 Corinthians 2:7-8)
Personal Application
We should reaffirm our love for those who have wronged us and forgive them. "So I urge you to reaffirm your love for him." (2 Corinthians 2:8)