2 Corinthians - Introduction

Introduction

2 Corinthians is a highly personal letter in which Paul opens up a great deal about his life as an apostle. It was written to the church in Corinth. Several letters were sent to Corinth, of which we have two in the Bible. There may have been four, or even five, in total. There are many who see 2 Corinthians as an amalgamation of two letters, chapters 1-9 and 10-13. However, it seems far more sensible to see it as a single letter. This is the way it is presented, and the way that the early church saw it. There is no manuscript evidence of it being a combination of two or more letters.  Moreover, there is a unifying theme throughout the letter (see later). It was written in 55 AD from Ephesus.

Paul had spent a significant amount of time in Corinth (Acts 18). Corinth was something of a moral cesspit, and in Acts 18:9,10 Jesus spoke directly to Paul telling him that He had many people in the city. This had immediate relevance, but perhaps longer relevance as well, for Paul’s relationship with the church at Corinth was far from easy. 1 Corinthians contained a number of admonitions to the church, but things were going to get worse. The reality of that is brought out in this letter.

The primary theme of the letter is God working through weakness. We see this in the first chapter when Paul speaks about his troubles, then throughout the letter. The finale of this is 2 Cor 12:7-10, and is the foundation of Paul’s attacks to the so-called “super-apostles”. In Chapters 8 and 9 we have instructions on giving.