Chapter 1
V1 This once again is a typical salutation by Paul, whereby he expresses his apostleship as having been the will of Elohim. This contrasts greatly to the current trend in prosperity gospel churches, whereby self-proclaimed prophets and apostles lead the masses down the broad street of destruction, through doctrinal teachings that fail to line up with scripture. Apostolos is Greek for one sent forth with orders. These orders from Yeshua the Messiah, were to spread the gospel to the Gentiles and to the Israelites cf Acts 9:15-16. Interestingly this much sought-after vocation and title by fickle Christians of today, comes with a great price as expressed in Acts 9:16, and evidenced by the sufferings of all the apostles of Yeshua in the book of Acts and further catalogued in Foxe’s book of martyrs, which is a highly recommended book to read. Timothy was a Greek disciple born of a Jewess cf Acts 16:1-2. This epistle was addressed not only to the ecclesia in Corinth but also to all hagios/saints, holy ones in Achaia, which was a Roman province embracing all of Greece excluding Thessaly.
V2-3 Paul strictly refers to Elohim as the Father in his epistles, and differentiates Him from Yeshua the Messiah. He further confirms Elohim as the Father of Yeshua. Grace and peace are derived from Elohim the Father and Yeshua the Messiah. Verse 3 however, attributes mercy and all comfort to Elohim the Father. It was by the grace of Elohim and Yeshua that They agreed for Yeshua to die for mankind, in order for our sins to be forgiven. Once forgiven Elohim the Father is merciful to those who repent, allowing the blood of His Son to prevent us from receiving our deserved eternal damnation.
By so doing, Elohim’s mercy leads to all comfort from Him too. Peace is hence established by Elohim’s mercy and by Yeshua’s sacrificial blood that facilitates this. Grace always precedes peace as is noted throughout scripture. One cannot find peace without having been afforded grace from which it derives cf Num 6:25-26; Rom 1:7; 1 Pet 1:2; Eph 1:2. It is important to realise how the Holy Spirit is very precise in scripture in His wording through the great men He used to pen them.
V4 We are parakaleo/comforted by the Comforter/parakletos, who is the Holy Spirit of Elohim. Thlipsis translated tribulation and trouble is Greek for oppression, affliction and distress. Any true Christian shall inevitably be persecuted by emissaries of Satan, be they earthly, demonic or celestial/angelic. This shall culminate in the great tribulation described in Rev 7:14; Matt 24:21. Paul in 11:23-33 narrates the great affliction he endured for the gospel.
It is very clear that the comfort from the Holy Spirit in these times of trial is supernatural, and Elohim keeps us alive on earth and delivers us from danger and seemingly imminent death, for as long as He feels we are of use to the winning of souls. It is in His counsel to use us for the greater good, until He calls us home into glory where eternal rewards await us. Our supernatural death-defying escapes from persecution additionally are for bearing testimony to fellow Christians to embolden their cause, and increase their faith in the power of Elohim.
V5 Messiah however is faithful enough to console us in our times of affliction, the ultimate solace being found in death whereby we shall meet Him in glory. This consolation will vastly exceed whatever persecution one may have endured. Also, the greater the suffering we endure for the gospel, the greater the supernatural deliverance we experience for further increase in our faith and trust in Elohim. This leads to greater gifts and workings of the Holy Spirit in our Christian walk.
Every single apostle excluding John the revelator was martyred. John needless to say, suffered much persecution himself, being banished to the isle of Patmos. Modern day Christians buckle to much less pressures in life, falling short of the faith greatly needed to be eligible for that eternal consolation that awaits us. We are never to lose sight of the fact that whatever affliction we may endure, Messiah also endured the more, hence why our consolation by Him is of great magnitude cf Heb 4:15.
V6 Paul expresses to the saints that the afflictions endured by himself and Timothy were bearable to them both, by their knowledge that by furtherance and non-denial of the gospel, such fervent defence of it benefited the ecclesia, and worked for the consolation and salvation of the saints. Essentially Paul and Timothy were bearing as much affliction as possible to strengthen the resolve and acceptance of the gospel in society, in order for the saints to not have to endure as much cf 2 Tim 2:9-12. In the event of Paul and Timothy being comforted, this further effectuated the salvation and comforting of the saints, through giving them hope set by their example as courageous soldiers of Messiah.
Note that soteria/salvation is referred to in the future tense, of which is only achieved at the end of a successful Christian walk. Simply accepting Yeshua as Lord and Saviour does not guarantee salvation. It is essential to successfully lead a life of obedience and winning of souls for the kingdom, for one to attain salvation in the afterlife cf 1 Pet 1:5,9.
V7 Trial and tribulation was not only reserved for 1st century saints, but is to be expected of every single soul that professes Yeshua as their Lord and Saviour. Equally, consolation shall be bestowed upon such without fail cf 1 Pet 2:20-21. Any self-proclaimed Christian who has never suffered from trial and tribulation in their lives, and had a life of continual ease, should greatly examine their walk for fear of being under great delusion, and walking on the broad path that leads to destruction. Moreover, persecution strengthens true Christians, working for the greater good cf Rom 5:3-5.
V8 Paul does not specify the trouble endured, but could be any of those experienced in Acts 19:22-41; 20:3,19; 1 Cor 15:32.
V9-10 Elohim both delivers us from premature death on earth, and from eternal death i.e. damnation in the afterlife. When the Holy Spirit sends us into seemingly perilous situations to win souls, He protects us when we stare death in the face, and many a saint has penned or narrated such experiences of miraculous escapes from the jaws of death, when performing Elohim’s duties. However, those who seek dangerous circumstances, when not led by the Holy Spirit, to the extent of even ignoring the Holy Spirit of such dangers, tend to succumb to premature death altogether. Even the great apostle Paul made this fateful error cf Acts 21:8-13.
V11 Prayer is the most effective means of conquering evil in spiritual warfare. The whole armour of Elohim would be useless without this direct means of communicating with our commander YHVH Elohim cf Eph 6:17-19. Paul needed these prayers from the saints to embolden him to preach the gospel more effectively against a weakened enemy. The charisma/gift bestowed upon Timothy and Paul by Elohim, was actuated by the intercessory prayers of many people. This gift would have been the deliverance from sure death mentioned in the previous 3 verses. Had the saints not prayed so intensely for them, they may not have survived. Paul and Timothy were truly grateful for these prayers.
V12 The suneidesis/Greek conscience is the soul as distinguishing between what is morally good and bad, prompting to do the former and shun the latter, commending one, condemning the other. Anastrepho/ conversation is Greek for one’s conduct. Paul gloried in the fact that he had conducted himself without pretence and hypocrisy with divine purity, qualities which cannot be gained by worldly philosophy, but only by the Holy Spirit working in us by the grace of Elohim. This divine nature of Paul and Timothy was expressed to the world but magnified ever more towards the saints.
The grace of Elohim sustaining Paul and Timothy throughout all their experiences of persecution for the gospel, bore further testimony of the power of Elohim which supersedes all evil, thus encouraging the saints even more. No amount of worldly wisdom could match this. The greatest evangelists and soul winners are those who preach the gospel with physical and spiritual battle wounds as evidence of its truth.
V13 -14 That divine nature conducted by Paul, bereft of hypocrisy and full of sincerity, was also the content of his writings, which did not deviate from this manner of righteousness. There may have been some in this ecclesia who were vacillating in their perceptions of Paul, as evidenced in his first epistle to them. It was hence imperative that Paul re-emphasize his commitment to the gospel of truth in word and deed to the end, in order to dispel any doubts. The day of the Lord Yeshua refers to the end, when He shall return to judge the saints at the bema seat judgement cf 2 Cor 5:10.
V15-16 Paul felt obliged to visit the Corinthians again as he was confident that they were appreciative and acknowledging of his sincerity. He planned to visit them twice in quick succession: once en route to Macedonia and then again after exiting Macedonia. Yeshua’s principle was to not return to a town or city that wilfully rejected the gospel. Paul was acting upon this cf Matt 10:11-15. Scripture does not mention whether or not Paul indeed fulfilled this planned visit...
V17 Elaphria translated lightness, means fickleness. I am personally convinced that despite no mention of these planned journeys in scripture, Paul would have fulfilled his word, as he had gone to great lengths to express his sincerity and good conduct, lacking hypocrisy and Holy Spirit led in benevolence. He further ratified his promise to visit the ecclesia, by assuring them that the decision made was not sarkikos/of the flesh, carnal. It would have been a travesty for him to subsequently recant on such assertions.
V18-19 To ultimately convince the ecclesia that he would certainly visit them, Paul equated his assurance with that of Yeshua, whereby a yes means yes and must never be doubted and perceived as a possible no.
V20 We also as saints must never vacillate from truth and promises made. This includes praying for others, whereby Holy Spirit prayers must always be expected to produce the desired result, be it healing or casting out demons. Yeshua’s word is always true, and only our doubt and lack of faith blocks spiritual blessings. This verse destroys many current theological doctrines particularly in healing and deliverance. No ritual is required prior to being set free from bondage. As long as the believer administering the power of the Holy Spirit working through him has faith in Yeshua’s immutable promises of YEA at all times i.e. of 100% success, the recipient does not necessarily need the same degree of faith, since the demonstration of power by the saint administering it, brings the recipient into a condition of belief too, culminating in their soul being won for Elohim.
The miracles performed upon Gentiles throughout the book of Acts were almost wholly wrought upon non-believers. It is important to note the word doxa meaning glory. The word glory shall be used gratuitously by Paul throughout this epistle, but various Greek words are utilized to differentiate whether it be the glory/doxa strictly of Elohim, or the glory of boasting of man, or glory of revelling in the knowledge of protection from Elohim. Doxa is only reserved for glory of Elohim, of which is supernaturally imparted to the saints through baptism of the Holy Spirit.
V21-22 Arrhabon translated earnest is Greek for security. Elohim anoints all born-again saints with the Holy Spirit, filling us with His doxa/glory, and giving us the security and confidence to annihilate the host of hell without loss every single time. We however need to remain faithful and true, in order for this security not to be lost. It is important to note that the Holy Spirit is sealed in our hearts. Hence why being born-again replaces our hearts of stone with that of flesh. Our stony hearts devoid of the Holy Spirit are the most despicable part of our bodies, as in them lie all manner of vain and wicked imaginations which steer the course of our lives towards damnation.
The redemptive blood of Yeshua frees us from sin, and opens a path for the Holy Spirit to sanctify our hearts in order to be steered towards eternal life. Note that Paul specifies that it is Elohim the Father who seals us with the Holy Spirit, and those sealed in the Holy Spirit are IN Messiah i.e. become members of the body of Yeshua, hence partaking in all His power and glory. Without Messiah’s redemptive blood, we would never have been able to become partakers and heirs of salvation cf Jer 17:9; Mk 7:21-22; Eccl 9:3; Jer 31:33; Eze 36:25-27; Deut 30:5-6.
V23 -24 Paul appears to be intimating that he delayed his plan to visit them so as not to castigate them for their misconduct, as he did so in the first epistle. He further repeats this reason of his delay in later chapters. Rather than appear dictatorial in their faith and Christian walk, he wanted to give them space to seek out their own salvation, and only be of assistance from the side lines i.e. be a good guide, as should all ministers of the gospel. Too many a judgemental minister has frustrated the progress of Christian’s lives leading to regression instead. There needs to be a fine balance between admonition, which should be largely reserved for the mature Christians who deliberately disobey the word; and exhortation largely for the babes in Messiah, neophytes fresh in the faith, who are still learning slowly but surely the new way of living in Holy Spirit truth cf Phil 2:12; 1 Tim 5:19-20.