The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Corinthians — Section 3

Erb. i. 17: comp. John xx. 17), but was hithorto umlree.mccl of, and was B new "Bl<>ssed be God, who is also the Fnther of phenomenon in the world. St. Paul always our Lord Jesus Christ." nnd who is there- uses the first person in passo.ges where ho fore "our Father" by ndoption and redemp- is speaking directly of individual feelings tion, e.s well AS onr (<od by creation. The and experiences. In other passages ho Father of meroies. This corresponds to a likes to lose himself, e.s it were, in tho Hebrew expression, e.nd means that oom- Christian community. The delicate ple.y passionat,eness is the most cbe.re.cteristio of emotion is often shown by the rapid attribriJ.e of God, e.nd emanation.from him. interoh.e.nges of singulo.r and pluml (sea He is the Source of all mercy ; and mercy vers. 1-':l, 15, 17; oh. ii. 1, 11, H, etc.). "Is an attribute of God himself." The present, "comforteth," expresses a con- tinuous experience, with which the Chris- He is " full of oompe.ssion, and gracious, tians of the first e.ge were most happily long-suffering, and plenteous in mercy and familie.r (John xiv. 16-18; 2 These. ii. truth" (Ps. lxxxvi. 15). "The Law," says 16, 17). In all onr e.ffilotion. The collec- the Talmud, "begins and ends with an a.et tive expel'ience of e.ffliotion is sustained by of mercy. At its commencement God the collective experience of comfort. That clothes the naked; at its close be buries we me.y be e.ble to comfort. Thus St. Paul the dead" (' Sotab,' f. 14, 1). Thus every to.kes "e. teleological view of sorrow." It is chapter but one of the Koran is beaded, "In partly designed as a school of sympathy. the name of God the Compassionate, the It is e. part of the training of an apostle, Merciful : " and it is an Ee.stern expression just as suffering is essential to one who is tc say of one tbe.t has died that. "be is to be a sympe.thetio high priest (Hob. v. taken to the mercy of the 11:lorciful." 1, 2). In e.ny trouble. The originnl more Comp. "Father of glory," Eph. t. 17; forcibly repeats the words," in all affliction." l Cor. ii. S (" of spirits," Heb. xii. 9; " of Wherewith we ourselves e.re oomforted. By lights," Jas. i. 17). The plnral, "compae- means of the comfort which God gives ,u, sions," is perhaps e. plnro.l of excellence, we ce.n, by the a.id of blessed experience, "exceeding compassion" (Rom. xii. 1), e.nd communicate comfort to others. may be influenced by the Hebrew word Ver. 5.-As the sufferings of Christ rachamim, often literally rendered by St. e.bonnd in ns; rather, '11,nto tu. "The Paul "bowels." The article in the Greek sufferings of Christ" e.re the sufferings (" the Father of the compassions ") special- which he endured in the days of his flesh,. izes the mercy. The God of all comfort. So e.nd they were not exhausted by him, but in eh. xiii. 11 God is called " the God of overflow to us who have to suffer as he love and peace ; " Rom. xv. 5, " the God of suffered, bee.ring. about with us· his dying, patience e.nd of comfort ; " ii. 15, "the that we me.y she.re his life (oh. iv. 10). God of hope." This word " comfort" The idea is, not that he is suffering in us (unfortunately interchanged with "conso- e.nd with us (though the truth of hie intense lation" in the Authorized Version) and the sympathy with his suffering Church may be word " affliction" (varyingly rendered by she.dowed forth in some such terms, Matt. " trouble " and" tribulation" in the Autho- :u:v. 40-45 ; Acts ix. 4), but that we have rized Version), e.re the key-notes of this "e. fellowship in his sufferings" (Phil. iii. passage : e.nd to some extent of the whole 17); Ge.I. ii. 20, "I have been crucified with Epistle. St. Paul is he.nnted as it were e.nd Christ; " Heb. xiii. 13, "Bearing his re- possessed by them. " Comfort," e.s verb or proach." Onr sufferings are the sufferings substantive, occnrs ten times in vers. 3-7; of Christ because we suffer as he suffered and " affliction " occnrs four times in succes- (1 Pet. iv. 13) and in the same cause. sion. It is characteristic of St. Paul's style Abonndeth by Christ, If his sufferings, all to be thus dominated, as it were, by a single it were, overflow to us, so too is he the Source word (comp. notes on eh. iii. 2, 13; iv. 2; of our comfort, in that he sendeth us the see note on eh. x. 8). The needless varia- Comforter (John xiv. 16-18). tions of the Authorized Version were well Ver. 6.-And; rather, b-ut. The verse ex- intentioned, but arose from a false notion of presses the additional thought tho.t the com- style, e. deficient sense of the precision of fort ( i.e. encouragement e.nd strengthening) specie.I words, and an inadequate conception of the apostle, as well e.s his affliction, wo.s of the duties of faithful translation, which no(only designed for his own spiritual train- requires that we should as exactly as pos- ing, but was the source of direct blessing to sible reflect the peculiarities of the original, his converts, been.use it enabled him, both by and not attempt to improve upon them. example (Phil. i. 14) and by the lessons of Ver. 4.-Who comforteth us. The" us" experience, to strengthen others in affliction, implies here, not only St. Paul and Timothy, a.ncl so to further their salvation by teaching but also the Corinthians, who are one with them how to endure (Rom. v. 34). Tho them in a bond of Christian unity which affliction brings encouragement, and so works on. 1. 1-24.J THE .SEUONU EPISTLE '.L'O '£llE CORIN'l'HIANS. 3