2 Corinthians 13:5 Kommentar

In this chapter the apostle threatens to be severe against obstinate sinners, and assigns the reason thereof (Co2 13:1-6); then he makes a suitable prayer to God on the behalf of the Corinthians, with the reasons inducing him thereto (Co2 13:7-10), and concludes his epistle with a valediction and a benediction (Co2 13:11-14).

INTRODUCTION TO 2 CORINTHIANS 13 In this chapter the apostle continues his resolution to come to the Corinthians, and to threaten with severity the incorrigible among them, giving the reasons of it; prays to God that they might so behave, that there might be no occasion for the exercise of it; and concludes the epistle with very useful exhortations, and hearty wishes of good things to them. He intimates to them again, that he intended this third time to come unto them, when he would not spare them, as they might expect he would not; partly because they had such repeated warnings, reproofs, and admonitions from him, Co2 13:1 and partly because many of them had sinned before, and were stubborn and obstinate, and had not repented, Co2 13:2 as also because they had tempted him, and demanded a proof of his power and authority, and of Christ speaking in him, Co2 13:3 and whereas this sprung from the outward appearance of the apostle, whose bodily presence was weak, he observes to them the instance of Christ himself in human nature, who was crucified through weakness, and yet lives by the power of God; and so he and his fellow ministers were weak like Christ, and for his sake, and yet lived, and should live by the power of God; so that their outward appearance was no proof of their want of the power of Christ in them, Co2 13:4 besides, he directs them to themselves for a proof of it; who upon examination would find, that they were in the faith, and Christ was in them; which was owing to the ministry of the apostle, as a means and instrument; and so they had a proof in themselves of Christ's speaking in the apostle, and being mighty in, and towards them, or else they must be reprobate, injudicious, and disapproved persons, Co2 13:5 but whether they were such persons or not, he was confident that he would not be found such; but would appear to be in the faith, to have Christ in him, and to have power and authority from him, Co2 13:6 however, the apostle's hearty prayer for them was, that they might be kept from evil; and that they might do that which is good, and so be approved of God and men; and there be no occasion to use any severity with them, when he should come among them, Co2 13:7 otherwise he could do nothing against the truth, could not connive at error and sin, but must use the power and authority he had to crush everything of that kind, and defend truth, Co2 13:8 and so far was he from glorying in his power, and priding himself with it, that it was a pleasure to him to have no occasion to make use of it, by which it might seem as if he was without it; and it rejoiced him, when they stood fast in the faith, and walked as became the Gospel, and so needed not the rod of reproof and correction; nay, he could even wish, that they were wholly perfect, and free from all blame, and every kind of charge, Co2 13:9 and the end he had in the writing in the manner he did, being absent from them, was, lest when he should come among them, he should be obliged to make use of his power he had from Christ for edification, and not destruction; to prevent which, he wrote and admonished them, in order to bring them to repentance, that so he might have no occasion to use severity and sharpness, Co2 13:10 and then he takes his farewell of them, by giving them some exhortations to harmony, unity, peace, and love among themselves, Co2 13:11 gives the salutations of all the saints unto them, Co2 13:13 and then his own, with which he concludes the epistle, which is a wish of all the blessings of grace from all the three persons, Father, Son, and Spirit, Co2 13:14.

Examine yourselves whether ye be in the faith,.... These words are to be considered in connection with Co2 13:3 for seeing they sought and demanded a proof the voice and power of Christ in the apostle, he directs them to self examination, to look within themselves, to try, prove, and recognise their own souls; where if things were right, they would find a proof of Christ's speaking in him, to them: he advises them to examine the state of their own souls, and see whether they were in the faith; either in the doctrine of faith, having a spiritual and experimental knowledge of it, true love and affection for it, an hearty belief of it, having felt the power of it upon their souls, and abode in it; whether, as the Syriac version reads it, , "ye stand in the faith", firm and stable; or in the grace of faith, either of miracles, or that which is connected with salvation; and which if they were in it, and had it, is attended with good works; operates by love to Christ and to his people; by which souls go out of themselves to Christ, live upon him, receive from him, and give him all the glory of salvation: and if this was their case, he desires to know how they came by their faith; and suggests, that their light in the doctrine of the Gospel, and their faith in Christ Jesus, as well as the miraculous gifts many of them were possessed of, were through his ministry as the means; and this was a full proof of Christ's speaking in him: prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you; by which he means, that if they took a survey of things in their own souls, it would appear that Christ was in them; not as he is in all the world, filling heaven and earth with his presence; or as he is in every rational creature, as the Creator and author of the light of nature; but in a special and spiritual manner, by his Spirit and grace; the Father reveals him in his people, as the foundation of their hope of glory; he himself enters and takes possession of their hearts in conversion, communicates his grace, and manifests himself, and is formed there by his Spirit; his graces are implanted, his image is stamped, his Spirit is put within them, and he himself dwells by faith: and this upon inquiry would be found to be the case of the Corinthians, except, says the apostle, ye are reprobates; meaning not that they were so, as such may stand opposed to the elect of God; for persons may as yet neither be in the faith, nor Christ in them, and yet both be hereafter, and so not be left of God, or consigned to destruction; but that if they were not in the doctrine of, faith, then they were reprobate concerning it, or void of judgment in it; and if they had not the grace of faith, and Christ was not in them, then they were not genuine, but nominal professors, like "reprobate silver", counterfeit coin; which when detected, would be "disapproved", not only by God, but man, as this word also signifies, and so stands opposed to them that are "approved", Co2 13:7 or if they did not make such an examination, probation, and recognition of themselves, they would be without probation: or as the Arabic version, without experiment. The apostle hereby brings them into this dilemma, either that if upon examination they were found to be in the faith, and Christ in them, which blessings they enjoyed through his ministry, then they did not want a proof of Christ speaking in him; but if these things did not appear in them, then they were persons of no judgment in spiritual things, were not real Christians, but insignificant and useless persons.

"But the very hairs of your head are all numbered," says the Lord; those on the chin, too, are numbered, and those on the whole body. There must be therefore no plucking out, contrary to God's appointment, which has counted them in according to His will. "Know ye not yourselves," says the apostle, "that Christ Jesus is in you?" Whom, had we known as dwelling in us, I know not how we could have dared to dishonour.

"Try your own selves, whether ye be in the faith, prove your own selves. Know ye not as to your own selves, that Christ is in you, unless indeed ye be reprobate?" For since by what he has said he hath shown that even if he does not punish, it is not because he hath not Christ in himself, but because he intimates His long-suffering, Who was crucified and yet avenged not Himself; he again, in another manner, produces the same effect, and still more irrefragably, establishing his argument by the disciples.

"For why speak I of myself," he says, "the teacher, who have so much care upon me and am entrusted with the whole world and have done such great miracles. For if ye will but examine yourselves who are in the rank of disciples, ye will see that Christ is in you also. But if in you, then much more in your teacher. For if ye have faith, Christ is in you also." For they who then believed wrought miracles. Wherefore also he added, "Try your own selves, prove your own selves, whether ye be in the faith. Know ye not as to your own selves, unless indeed that Christ is in you, ye be reprobate?"

He seems to me here to speak of the "faith" which relates to miracles. "For if ye have faith," he says, "Christ is in you, except ye have become reprobates." Seest thou how again he terrifies them, and shows even to superfluity that Christ is with Him. For he seems to me to be here alluding to them, even as to their lives. For since faith is not enough [by itself] to draw down the energy of the Spirit, and he had said that "if ye are in the faith" ye have Christ in you, and it happened that many who had faith were destitute of that energy; in order to solve the difficulty, he says, "except ye be reprobate," except [that is] ye are corrupt in life.

Paul is saying this because if we do not know how to put one another to the test, we do not know whether Christ is in us or not. To fail to meet the test is not to know the faith inherent in our religious profession. A person who has a sense of faith in his heart knows that Jesus Christ is within him. Commentary on Paul’s Epistles.

And what am I saying about myself, that Christ speaks in me, that I am powerful, even though I imitate Him who was crucified and do not proceed to punishment. For you too, if you wish to test yourselves, will see Christ in yourselves, since you all have faith — either ordinary faith, or in particular — wonder-working faith (for believers at that time performed miracles). Thus, if Christ is in you — my disciples — then all the more so in me, the teacher. That is, if you have not been deprived of the gift of miracles which you received. He hints that they are living lawlessly, for many, having faith, did not have the power to work miracles, because they lived lawlessly. The meaning of the words is as follows: you, it seems, do not know yourselves — whether Christ is in you? He is not in you, because you are "not what you ought to be." But he expresses this thought not directly, but speaks indefinitely, so as not to strike them.

After threatening God's severe judgment, the Apostle warns them to be ready, so that they will not experience a severe judgment. First, he gives the admonition; secondly, he assigns the reason for it (v. 10). In regard to the first he does two things. First, he presents the admonition; secondly, he excludes a false suspicion (v. 7). In regard to the first he does two things. First, he advises them to examine themselves; secondly, he suggests what they will be able to find through such an examination (v. 5b). In regard to the first it should be noted that one who would appear in judgment securely should first examine himself on his deeds; in that way he can tell whether he will appear safely. Therefore the Apostle warns them that before they come to judgment, which will take place when he comes to them, they should examine themselves, saying: examine yourselves, i.e., examine and reflect on your acts: "Test everything; hold fast what is good" (1 Th. 5:21). He advises them to examine themselves on two points, namely, on faith; hence he says: to see whether you are holding to your faith, namely, which I have preached to you and you have received from me concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, or have fallen away and lapsed into another. This is necessary because in 1 Cor. (11:31) it says: "But if we judged ourselves truly, we should not be judged"; "Look at your way in the valley; know what you have done" (Jer. 2:23). Likewise all works, when he says: test yourselves, whether you be in good works, or whether your conscience bothers you for having done some evil. This is useful, because it says in 1 Cor. (2:28): "Let a man examine himself"; and in Gal. (6:4): "Let each one test his own work." Then when he says, Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you? he shows what they can find through such an examination. First, what they might find in themselves; secondly, what they might find in the Apostle (v. 6). In themselves they will be able to discover two things by this examination, because they will either know that they are keeping the faith, and thus they will be able to find and know that Christ is in them; and this is what he says: Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you? i.e., if you were to examine yourselves, would you know that you have the faith and recognize that Christ is in you? As if to say: Yes, because where faith in Christ is, there Christ is: "That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith" (Eph. 3:17); "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God?" (1 Cor. 6:19). Or they will know that they are not keeping the faith and will find themselves reprobates; hence he says, unless indeed you fail to meet the test! i.e., you will find that you have Christ, unless you have lost the faith and are fallen from the state of previously having had the faith: "You have rejected me, says the LORD, you keep going backward" (Jer. 15:6); "For the wicked are not removed. Refuse silver they are called" (Jer. 6:29). But here there is a literal question in regard to the statement: Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you? For Christ only remains in those who have charity, as it says in 1 Jn. (4:16): "God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him" If therefore we know that Christ is in us by faith, it is required that this be by formed faith. But this is contrary to Ec. (9:1): "Their deeds are in the hand of God; whether it is love or hate man does not know." I answer that "Christ dwelling in us" can be taken in two ways, namely, in regard to the intellect or in regard to the affections [affectum]. If it is taken in regard to the intellect, then he dwells in us by unformed faith; and in this way we know there is nothing to prevent our knowing with certainty that Christ dwells in us, namely, when we know that we hold the faith which the Catholic Church teaches and holds. But if it is taken in regard to the affectivity, then Christ dwells in us by formed faith; and in this way no one can know that Christ dwells in him, or that he has charity, unless this certainty be granted to a person by revelation and a special grace. But there is nothing to prevent us from having a conjecture [coniecturum] that we are in charity, namely, when a person finds himself so ready and disposed that he would not wish to do anything against Christ in any way for something temporal: "Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God" (1 Jn. 3:21). It is clear, therefore, that the Apostle is speaking in regard to the first way. Or he is even speaking of knowledge which is by a conjecture, as has been said. But his argument proceeds as to the second way and in regard to knowledge which is certain.

The apostle again says that this is the third time he has purposed to come and see them; and threatens that he will, by the power of Christ, punish every incorrigible sinner, Co2 13:1-4. Exhorts them to examine themselves, whether they be in the faith, Co2 13:5, Co2 13:6. Prays that they may do no evil, Co2 13:7. And shows how ardently he wished their complete restoration to unity and purity, Co2 13:8, Co2 13:9. Tells them for what reason he writes to them, Co2 13:10. Bids them farewell, Co2 13:11, Gives them some directions, and concludes with his apostolical benediction, Co2 13:12-14.

Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith - Ἑαυτους πειραζετε· Try yourselves; pierce your hearts; bore yourselves throughout; try yourselves by what I have written, and see whether ye retain the true faith of the Gospel. Prove your own selves - Ἑαυτους δοκιμαζετε· Put yourselves to the test, as you would try gold or silver suspected of adulteration. No more take that for Gospel which is not so, than you would take adulterated money for sterling coin. This is a metaphor taken from testing or assaying adulterated metals. Know ye not your own selves - Are ye not full of wisdom and understanding? And is it not as easy to find out a spurious faith as it is to detect a base coin? There is an assay and touchstone for both. If base metal be mixed with the pure you can readily detect it; and as easily may you know that you are in the faith as you can know that base metal is mixed with the pure. Does Jesus Christ dwell in you? You have his Spirit, his power, his mind, if ye be Christians; and the Spirit of Christ bears witness with your spirit that ye are the children of God. And this is the case except ye be reprobates; αδοκιμοι, base counterfeit coin; mongrel Christians. This metaphor holds excellently here. They had a Judaizing Christian among them; such, presumptively, was the false apostle: they had received his Judaico-Christian doctrine, and were what the prophet said of some of the Israelites in his time. Reprobate silver, adulterated coin, shall men call them, Jer 6:30. And thus, when they were brought to the test, they were found reprobate; that is, adulterated with this mixture of bad doctrine. There is no other kind of reprobation mentioned here than that which refers to the trial and rejection of adulterated coin; and, by way of metaphor, to the detection of false Christianity. This reprobation came of the people themselves: they, not God, adulterated the pure metal. Man pollutes himself; then God reprobates the polluted.

HE THREATENS A SEVERE PROOF OF HIS APOSTOLIC AUTHORITY, BUT PREFERS THEY WOULD SPARE HIM THE NECESSITY FOR IT. (Co2 13:1-14) This is the third time I am coming to you--not merely preparing to come to you. This proves an intermediate visit between the two recorded in Act 18:1; Act 20:2. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established--Quoted from Deu 19:15, Septuagint. "I will judge not without examination, nor will I abstain from punishing upon due evidence" [CONYBEARE and HOWSON]. I will no longer be among you "in all patience" towards offenders (Co2 12:12). The apostle in this case, where ordinary testimony was to be had, does not look for an immediate revelation, nor does he order the culprits to be cast out of the church before his arrival. Others understand the "two or three witnesses" to mean his two or three visits as establishing either (1) the truth of the facts alleged against the offenders, or (2) the reality of his threats. I prefer the first explanation to either of the two latter.

Examine--Greek, "Try (make trial of) yourselves." prove your own selves--This should be your first aim, rather than "seeking a proof of Christ speaking in me" (Co2 13:3). your own selves--I need not speak much in proof of Christ being in me, your minister (Co2 13:3), for if ye try your own selves ye will see that Christ is also in you [CHRYSOSTOM], (Rom 8:10). Finding Christ dwelling in yourselves by faith, ye may well believe that He speaks in me, by whose ministry ye have received this faith [ESTIUS]. To doubt it would be the sin of Israel, who, after so many miracles and experimental proofs of God's presence, still cried (Exo 17:7), "Is the Lord among us or not?" (Compare Mar 8:11). except ye be reprobates--The Greek softens the expression, "somewhat reprobates," that is, not abiding the "proof" (alluding to the same word in the context); failing when tested. Image from metals (Jer 6:30; Dan 5:27; Rom 1:28).