2 Corinthians 2

1 For I judged this for myself: not to come to you again in grief. [a] 2 For if I grieve you, then who is the one who gladdens me except the one grieved by me? 3 And I wrote this very thing so that when I came I would not have grief from those I ought to rejoice over, being confident about all of you that my joy is the joy of all of you. [b] 4 For out of much affliction and distress of heart I wrote to you through many tears — not so that you would be grieved, but so that you would know the love that I have more than ever for you. [c]

5 But if anyone has caused grief, he has not grieved me, but in part — so that I may not weigh on all of you. 6 Enough for such a person is this punishment by the greater number, [d] 7 so that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him, in case such a person is swallowed up by too much grief. [e] 8 Therefore I urge you to ratify love toward him. [f]

9 For this is also why I wrote: so that I might know what is proved in you, whether you are obedient in all things. [g] 10 And to whom you forgive anything, I also; for indeed what I have forgiven — if I have forgiven anything — is for your sake, in the face of Christ, 11 so that we may not be taken advantage of by Satan; for we are not unaware of his thoughts. [h]

12 Now when I came to Troas for the good news of Christ, and a door had been opened for me in the Lord, 13 I had no ease in my spirit at not finding Titus my brother; but saying goodbye to them I went out into Macedonia. [i]

14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ and makes plain through us the smell of the knowledge of him in every place; [j] 15 because we are a pleasing smell of Christ to God among those being saved and among those perishing — [k] 16 to the ones a smell from death to death, to the others a smell from life to life. And who is fit for these things?

17 For we are not, like the many, peddling the word of God; but as out of sincerity, but as out of God, before God, in Christ we speak. [l]