1Having therefore these promises, beloved, let’s cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
2Open your hearts to us. We wronged no one. We corrupted no one. We took advantage of no one. 3I say this not to condemn you, for I have said before that you are in our hearts to die together and live together. 4Great is my boldness of speech toward you. Great is my boasting on your behalf. I am filled with comfort. I overflow with joy in all our affliction.
5For even when we had come into Macedonia, our flesh had no relief, but we were afflicted on every side. Fightings were outside. Fear was inside. 6Nevertheless, he who comforts the lowly, God, comforted us by the coming of Titus, 7and not by his coming only, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you while he told us of your longing, your mourning, and your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced still more.
8For though I grieved you with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it. For I see that my letter made you grieve, though just for a while. 9I now rejoice, not that you were grieved, but that you were grieved to repentance. For you were grieved in a godly way, that you might suffer loss by us in nothing. 10For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, which brings no regret. But the sorrow of the world produces death. 11For behold, this same thing, that you were grieved in a godly way, what earnest care it worked in you. Yes, what defense, indignation, fear, longing, zeal, and vindication! In everything you demonstrated yourselves to be pure in the matter. 12So although I wrote to you, I wrote not for his cause that did the wrong, nor for his cause that suffered the wrong, but that your earnest care for us might be revealed in you in the sight of God. 13Therefore we have been comforted. In our comfort we rejoiced the more exceedingly for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all. 14For if in anything I have boasted to him on your behalf, I was not disappointed. But as we spoke all things to you in truth, so our glorying also which I made before Titus was found to be truth. 15His affection is more abundantly toward you, while he remembers all of your obedience, how with fear and trembling you received him. 16I rejoice that in everything I am confident concerning you.
How many letters did the apostle Paul write to the church at Corinth? The evidence indicates that he wrote at least four epistles to the Corinthian believers. Two of them are present in the New Testament canon: 1 and 2 Corinthians. But two other letters written by Paul to the church at Corinth are lost to us: a “previous letter” and a “severe letter.” Paul mentioned the “previous letter” in 1 Cor 5:9-11, whereas he spoke of the “severe letter” in 2 Cor 2:3-4, 9; 7:8, 12.
The occasion behind these letters may have gone like this. Paul’s founding visit to Corinth is in Acts 18 (c. A.D. 50-52). A couple of years later, while Paul was in Ephesus, he wrote the “previous letter” (1 Cor 5). Though the contents of this letter are unknown, it surely dealt with the problem of sexual immorality in the church. Paul’s words in 1 Cor 5 suggest that the Corinthians had misunderstood his directives in this letter. This misunderstanding led to the writing of the canonical 1 Corinthians (c. A.D. 55). This letter was occasioned by several events: (1) Paul has heard from Chloe’s people (1:11) that a factional spirit has developed in Corinth; (2) he also received a letter from the Corinthian church to which he begins to respond in 1 Cor 7. He takes up the items in their letter one by one, most of them introduced by the words “now about” (7:1, 25, 8:1, 12:1, 16:1, 12). Most likely, this letter from Corinth was written as a response to Paul’s “previous letter” and was carried to Paul by three men from Corinth (16:15-17). This Corinthian delegation may have also brought oral reports about the situation in Corinth. After they received 1 Corinthians, the Christians at Corinth probably took care of most of the practical abuses that Paul had mentioned. For example, he says nothing further about abuses of the Lord’s Supper in 2 Corinthians. However, despite this improvement, the situation in Corinth deteriorated. This crisis led to Paul’s “painful visit” (2 Cor 2:1; 12:14, 21; 13:1-2). Most likely, the crisis resulted from the efforts of outsiders who opposed Paul, arrived in Corinth, and had begun to criticize him openly. A particular individual was apparently quite vocal in his opposition to Paul. After returning to Ephesus, Paul penned a “severe letter” in which he instructed the Corinthian church to punish this ringleader (2 Cor 2:4-9; 7:8-12). This letter is sent by Titus. Paul left Ephesus, and eventually he arrived in Macedonia where he meets Titus. Titus reported that the Corinthians had responded positively to the “severe letter” (2 Cor 7:5-16). Then, Paul wrote 2 Corinthians (c. A.D. 56).
Many critical scholars also argue against the integrity of 1 and 2 Corinthians and say that these books themselves each consist of more than one letter. But, the context of 1 and 2 Corinthians and the available manuscript evidence do not support such theories.