What is the meaning of 2 Corinthians 13:6? And I hope Paul’s words carry eager confidence, not doubt. • He trusts God’s work in the Corinthians just as he did earlier: “Our hope for you is firm” (2 Colossians 1:7). • Hope fuels his ministry, echoing Romans 15:13, where God fills believers “with all joy and peace in believing.” • This hope is a settled assurance, like Philippians 1:6, that “He who began a good work in you will perfect it.” you will realize Paul anticipates an awakening of understanding among the believers. • Their recognition of authentic apostleship parallels 2 Corinthians 2:9, where he writes “so that I might know whether you are obedient in everything.” • It also resembles his desire in 1 Corinthians 4:16 for them to “imitate me,” once they see clearly. • Realization comes as truth confronts error, just as in Acts 17:11 the Bereans “examined the Scriptures daily” and recognized what was true. that we The “we” refers to Paul and his ministry team (see 2 Corinthians 1:19, “Silvanus and Timothy and I”). • Their lives stand open for scrutiny, like 1 Thessalonians 2:10 where Paul reminds the Thessalonians, “You are witnesses… how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct.” • The shared pronoun emphasizes unity in missionary calling (Acts 13:2). have not failed Failure here would mean disqualification (compare 1 Corinthians 9:27, “so that… I myself will not be disqualified”). • Paul’s record under pressure—beatings, imprisonments, hardships—shows endurance rather than collapse (2 Corinthians 6:3-10). • He will later write, “I have fought the good fight” (2 Timothy 4:7), confirming the same confidence of finishing well. the test Verse 5 sets the context: “Examine yourselves… test yourselves.” • The test measures genuine faith evidenced by Jesus Christ living in them (Galatians 2:20). • Apostolic faithfulness is verified by fruit, mirrored in Jesus’ words, “You will recognize them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:20). • Divine approval, not human opinion, is the ultimate metric (1 Colossians 4:3-4; 1 Thessalonians 2:4). summary Paul longs for the Corinthian believers to awaken to the obvious: he and his co-workers, standing on Christ’s truth, have passed every God-given test of authenticity. Their ministry, marked by hope, integrity, perseverance, and visible fruit, invites the church to the same self-examination, assurance, and steadfast fidelity to Jesus. |
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