The Pulpit Commentary — 2 Corinthians — Section 90

iii. 13). It occurs again in ver. 16, and in eyes that should gaze on it are wil(ully Luke xviii. I; Gal. vi. 9; Eph. iii. 13. closed. Similorly in eh. ii. 16, he has com- Ver. 2.-Bot have renounoed; mther, but pared the gospel to a fragrance of Iifo, yet u,e re11ounced. We renounced them once and to the doomed captives--" to the perishing" for ever at our bnptilllII. The hidden things -it comes "like a wart from the chornel- of dishonesty; literally, o/ ,hame; meaning, house." A better rendering would be, But of course, of oll tho.t co.uses she.me. Dis- eoen if our gospel (1 Cor. xv. 1 ; Uom. ii. 16) graceful e.e me.y be ce.lumnies of my Jewish i, a veiled one, it i, Mled only among the opponents, I have said farewell for ever to perishing (comp. I Cor. i. 18). Be hid; everything for which a good man would mther, haa been T1eiled. To them that a.re blush. "Honest" we.e originally like the lost; rether, lo the peruhing (see uote on Greek word t<<XAbs, a general expression for oh. ii. 15). moral excellence, e.e in Pope's line- Ver. 4.-The god ot this world; rather, "An honest me.n'e the noblest work of God." the god of thia age. It is, e.e Bengel ""YS. "a great and horrible description of tbe Fletcher's- devil." Ho is not, however, here called a. "Man is his own star, and the soul that C8Il god of the koemos, but only of the olam Be honest is the only perfect man." hazzel1, the present dispensation of things 11s it exists among thoae who rerUBe to enter In oraft.i.nea. The word implies ell subtle, that kiugdom in which the power of Satan cunning, underhand dealing (oh. xi. 3), and is brought to nought. The melancholy it is clear from eh. xii. 16 tbat St. Po.ul bad attempt to get rid or Manichean arguments been charged with such conduct. The word by rendering the verse"in whom God blinded is both uaed and illust.mted in Luke xx. 23. the thoughts of the unbelievers of this Handling the word of God deoeitfolly. He world" is set aside by the faot that tbe ter- ho.s already repudiated this oha.rge by im- rible description of Satan aa "anolher god" plication in eh. ii. 17, and he we.e elwaye (El arlieer) wes common e.mong the raLbis. an:iious to maintain o.n attitude of trans- They knew I.hat his power was indeed a. parent sincerity (eh. i 12) by uttering the derivative power, hut still that it wae per- Lrnth and the whole troth (cb. ii. 17; Acts mitted to be great (Eph. ii. 2; vi. 12). In J:L 27), and not adulterating it. He had to John xii. 81 (xiv. 30) our Lord speaks of meet such insinuations even in hie first him e.e "the ruler or the kosmos." Bath extant letter (1 These.. ii 8). By mani- blinded; rather, blinded. Tho vorb here felltation of the truth. The constnn t recur- hoe no other moaning t.han "to hlinil," rence to this thought shows the apostle's and is quite different from the vcrh " to onxiety to remove tbo suspicion, created by horden," renderod by "lo blinil" in eh. iii. the attaoks or his opponents, that he bod on 14 with the so.me substantive. They nro esoterio toaching for some (oh. i. 13), and blind from lock of faith, 11nd so boing "un- kept some of his doctrines in the bllcli:gronnd. bolieviug" thoy ore" perishing" (Eph. v. G), "'l'he truth" oannot be preached by the aid seeing that they "wnlk in d11rkncss" (John of lies. The prominence of the word" mani- viii. 12) and are in Satan's power (Actd fest" in this Epistle is remarkable. St. xxvi. 18). " DlindneSB of heart," says St. Paul seems to be hauntod by it (ob. ii. 16; Augustine, "is both a sin and a punishment iii. 3; iv. 10; v. 10, 11; vii. 12; i:i. 6). of sin and o. cause of sin." The light ot Commending 01U11elves. This ie the only the glorioua gospol of Christ ; mthor, llie fonn of sclr-com1ncn,lotion or of'' commen- illumination of the go,pcl of tlie glory of ll1e dalory loltor" for which I cnre. Thero is Chriat. The word photi,inoa in lotor occle- evidently a reference to the enme verb used siostiool Grcok woa usod for "b11ptid1n." in oh. iii. 1. Before God (see oh. ii. 17; Who is the image ot God (eh. iii. 18; Col. vii. 12; Gal. i. 20). These solemn oppenls i. 15; Hob. i. 3). Should ahine unto ore meant to show Ulat it would be morally them; or, ns in the Revised Vor•ion, ,hould impossible for him to act o.s he was chorged d,iwn upon them. The other rouderiug, with acting. If he can IISSert his own in- "that they ehould not ,ee tho illumiuntion,'' tegrity he will do eo only oe consciously in gives to the vorb aug,izii, a rarer sonee, the presence of God. only found in poetry, ond not kuown to the Ver. 3.-But if our gospel be hid. This LXX. is o.dded to a.void the semblance of o. con- Ver. 5.-For we preach not 01U11elve■. tradiction. He has spoken of "manife1tatinn Thoro is no glory or illuminntion on our of the truth,'' and yet ho.s spoken of oil faces, ond wo havo no perilOnal cuds to goin, Jews e.e umLble to see it because they will nor nre wo "IordH" over your foith. This is, not remove from their hco.rte the veil which porhape, meant o.s on answer to somo chargo hides it from them. How can "a veiled of egotism. The Lord ; rather, ,ia Lord gospel" be a "monifeetcJ truth"? The (Phil. ii. 11 ; 1 Cor. xii. 8). Your sorva.nta; 11newer is that the gospel is bright, but the litcmlly, your 1laT1P.1 (1 Cor. ix. HJ). l1'or  'l'HE SECOND EPISTLE TO THE CORINTHIANS. [err. 1v. 1-13.