"Know the love"

II Corinthians.

Verse 4 of Chapter 2 seems to sum up Paul’s attitude to the people of Corinth:

For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have abundantly unto you.

I read through II Corinthians in the Harper Collins Study Bible – New Revised Standard Version and marked a few passages.

The first one is about the veil.  The definition of ‘veil’ in the Glossary to Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (by Mary Baker Eddy) has me thinking of the Muslim religion. Eddy refers to the veils which "Jewish women wore...over their faces in token of reverence and submission" (p. 596-597).

How Paul suffered “through great endurance” for his faith – “afflictions, hardships, calamities, beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger.”  He overcame through, “purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love.” (II Cor. 6:3-6) And there is more the following verses - Chapter 11:23-27 goes into detail on these trials.

We read that, “Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation and brings no regret, but worldly grief produces death” (II Cor 7: 10).

Abundant supply is covered in II Cor 9:6-10.

NRSV offers an interesting note about the serpent which beguiled Eve by its cunning - “Paul is probably thinking of the Jewish legend, that Eve was sexually seduced by Satan (the serpent) who appeared to her disguised as an angel” (II Cor 11.3 and note).

Joyce Voysey

NRSV: New Revised Standard Version of the Bible