In this new series we offer brief introductions to the books of the Bible, including background, authorship, content, and application to the lives of today’s Christians.
No Christian congregation is without problems, but the city of Corinth seems to have been a breeding ground for spiritual disruptions that would try any shepherd’s patience. What we know as First Corinthians (see the January 2025 Spokesman) arose from Paul’s physician-like process of diagnosing and treating the many spiritual ills that disrupted the unity of faith that Christ would have His churches enjoy. But in this “second” letter to the Corinthians (there were others, now lost to us), Paul the physician finds his “doctoring” vigorously criticized and his credentials rejected. He was under attack and had to defend himself; more importantly, he had to defend his role as an apostle of Jesus Christ.
This letter arrived in Corinth perhaps six months after the earlier one (possibly the fall of A.D. 56), as the culmination of an amazing period of “shuttle diplomacy” between Paul and this very troubled congregation. After First Corinthians—with its strong medicine—was written, Paul dispatched Timothy to Corinth to see how things were going. Timothy returned with a report that left Paul still deeply concerned, so the apostle dropped what he was doing in Ephesus and sailed across the Aegean Sea himself to see how his words were sitting with the congregation. After he returned to Ephesus, he then sent Titus back to Corinth, again to see to the conditions there, while he made his way to Macedonia. He had declined to go back himself because he feared he may have dealt, or still might deal, too strongly with troublers of the church (II Corinthians 1:23). It was after Titus met him in Macedonia and provided a “good news/bad news” report that Paul penned this letter.
At the root of all this activity, and of this letter specifically, was the danger to the faith and life of the church because of greedy, false-hearted leaders (it is easy to imagine that the party spirit that Paul called out in I Corinthians 1 was still an active issue). Many sincere church workers have experienced some of the things Paul suffered from his detractors: their nit-picking and fault-finding about trivial things (he changed his plans; didn’t carry through on a “promise,” 1:15-16); his bark was worse than his bite (they claimed he could write powerful letters, but wasn’t that impressive in person, 10:10); his integrity was shaky (Paul countered “we are not men who peddle the word of God,” 2:17). But underlying all this was a very serious matter—one that Paul couldn’t just graciously pass over. For Paul’s word was the word of “an apostle of Christ by the will of God” (1:1), and that could not be despised or undermined without harm to the church, which lives by the Gospel proclamation.
So Paul crafted a vigorous and impassioned defense of his work, his authority, and his divine commission; not to spare himself, but to confirm the power of the Gospel of Christ and His salvation. Interestingly, in this deeply personal letter we find an abundance of passages that give Christ the glory. Here are a few of our favorites:
“For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (4:6)
“God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them.” (5:19)
“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.” (8:9)
“My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” (12:9)
Paul’s word was the word of “an apostle of Christ by the will of God” (1:1), and that could not be despised or undermined without harm to the church
is a former pastor who now teaches English at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. He makes his home in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.