Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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2 Corinthians
Book: 2 Corinthians
Chapter: 1
Overview:
The
Apostle blesses
God for comfort in, and deliverance out of
troubles.
(1-11) He professes his own and his fellow-labourers'
integrity.
(12-14) Gives reasons for his not coming to them.
(15-24)
1-11 We are encouraged to come boldly to the
Throne of
Grace,
that we may obtain
Mercy, and find
Grace to help in time of
need. The
Lord is able to give peace to the troubled
Conscience,
and to calm the raging passions of the soul. These blessings are
given
By him, as the
Father of his redeemed family. It is our
Saviour who says, Let not your
Heart be troubled. All comforts
come from
God, and our sweetest comforts are in him. He speaks
peace to souls
By granting the free remission of sins; and he
comforts them
By the enlivening influences of the Holy
Spirit,
and
By the rich mercies of his
Grace. He is able to bind up the
broken-hearted, to heal the most painful wounds, and also to
give
Hope and joy under the heaviest sorrows. The favours
God
bestows
On us, are not only to make us cheerful, but also that
we may be useful to others. He sends comforts enough to support
such as simply trust in and serve him. If we should be brought
So low as to despair even of
Life, yet we may then trust
God,
who can bring back even from
Death. Their
Hope and trust were
not in vain; nor shall any be ashamed who trust in the
Lord.
Past experiences encourage
Faith and
Hope, and lay us under
obligation to trust in
God for time to come. And it is our duty,
not only to help one another with
Prayer, but in praise and
thanksgiving, and thereby to make suitable returns for benefits
received. Thus both trials and mercies will
End in good to
ourselves and others.
12-14 Though, as a sinner, the
Apostle could only rejoice and
Glory in
Christ Jesus, yet, as a believer, he might rejoice and
Glory in being really what he professed.
Conscience witnesses
concerning the steady course and tenor of the
Life. Thereby we
may
Judge ourselves, and not
By this or
By that single act. Our
Conversation will be
Well ordered, when we live and act under
such a gracious principle in the
Heart. Having this, we may
leave our characters in the
Lord's hands, but using proper means
to clear them, when the credit of the
Gospel, or our usefulness,
calls for it.
15-24 The
Apostle clears himself from the charge of levity and
inconstancy, in not coming to
Corinth. Good men should be
careful to keep the reputation of sincerity and constancy; they
should not resolve, but
On careful thought; and they will not
change unless for weighty reasons. Nothing can render
God's
promises more certain: his giving them through
Christ, assures
us they are his promises; as the wonders
God wrought in the
Life, resurrection, and
Ascension of his Son, confirm
Faith. The
Holy
Spirit makes Christians firm in the
Faith of the
Gospel:
the quickening of the
Spirit is an
Earnest of
Everlasting Life;
and the comforts of the
Spirit are an
Earnest of
Everlasting
joy. The
Apostle desired to spare the blame he feared would be
unavoidable, if he had gone to
Corinth before he learned what
effect his former
Letter produced. Our strength and ability are
owing to
Faith; and our comfort and joy must flow from
Faith.
The holy tempers and gracious fruits which attend
Faith, secure
from delusion in
So important a matter.