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This is what he means by saying, For this reason I did not come, to spare you. For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you through many tears, not that you should be grieved, but that you might know the love which I have more abundantly for you. He shows great affection, if indeed he himself suffers much more than those who have sinned. But if any has caused grief, he has not grieved me, but in part—that I may not put it too severely—all of you. I know, he says, that you grieved with me, and were indignant at the one who committed fornication, and that the event grieved all of you in part. For this reason I said, in part, not as though you grieved less than I, but that I might not be severe to the one who committed fornication. Sufficient for such a one is this punishment by the majority. He does not say, "to the one who committed fornication," but, "to such a one," lightening the burden. So that on the contrary you should rather forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. Wherefore I urge you to reaffirm your love for him; for to this end I also wrote, that I might know the proof of you, whether you are obedient in all things. He not only commands to release from the punishment, but also to bring comfort in all things. And he praises them, reminding them of their former obedience, and bringing it to the fore. But to whom you forgive anything, I also. See how he gives second place to himself, showing them as the leaders, and himself as the follower; which is especially able to soften an arrogant mind. For indeed, what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes. Lest he make them complacent as being lords, he again presses them toward obedience, saying; For I also did this very thing for your sakes. In the presence of Christ. He says, for the glory of Christ, or as though Christ commanded this also; which most especially persuaded them. Lest we should be outwitted by Satan. He rightly called it "outwitting"; for he no longer takes what is his, but seizes what is ours. For the one who repented has become better. For we are not ignorant of his designs. 95.717 For he destroys even under the pretext of piety, not only by leading into fornication, but also from the opposite he can corrupt, from the immoderate grief over repentance. Now when I came to Troas for the gospel of Christ, and a door was opened to me in the Lord, I had no rest in my spirit, because I did not find Titus my brother; but taking my leave of them, I went out into Macedonia. Having said at the beginning that in Asia he was burdened beyond his strength, and having shown how he was delivered, and having necessarily passed over the things in between, he teaches again that he was also afflicted in another way. How then and in what way? By not finding Titus. But he was staying in Corinth. But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ. Lest he seem to lament these things as one mourning, he sends up thanks to God; and what he says is this. Everywhere affliction, everywhere distress. I came to Asia, I was burdened beyond strength. I came to Troas, I did not find my brother; he did not come to us, and this caused me no small discouragement; but in all these things, he says, we do not grieve, but we also rejoice, not only on account of the things to come, but also on account of the things present, because in them we are illustrious and manifest. For this reason he also calls the matter a triumph. For a triumph is this: to become conspicuous to all. And he did not say simply, "who leads us in triumph," but also "in Christ," that is, through Christ and the preaching. And manifesting through us the fragrance of His knowledge in every place, for we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, but to the other the aroma of life leading to life. He shows that every place and time is filled with the apostolic contests; and again he uses another metaphor, that of fragrance. Then, since he said, And among those who are perishing we are a fragrance, lest anyone should think that they too are well-pleasing, he added: To the one we are the aroma from death to death, but to the other the aroma from life to life. And what he says is this: this fragrance, he says, some receive in such a way as to be saved, but others in such a way as to perish; so that even if someone perishes, the cause is from himself. Since it is often said that ointment chokes swine, and the

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Τοῦτο λέγει, τὸ εἰπεῖν, ὅτι ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐκ ἦλθον, φειδόμενος ὑμῶν. Ἐκ γὰρ πολλῆς θλίψεως καὶ συνοχῆς καρδίας ἔγραψα ὑμῖν διὰ πολλῶν δακρύων, οὐχ ἵνα λυπηθῆτε, ἀλλὰ τὴν ἀγάπην, ἵνα γνῶτε, ἣν ἔχω περισσοτέρως εἰς ὑμᾶς. Φιλοστοργίαν πολλὴν ἐνδείκνυται, εἴ γε αὐτὸς πολλῷ πλέον τῶν ἡμαρτηκότων ἀλγεῖ. Εἰ δέ τις λελύπηκεν, οὐκ ἐμὲ λελύπηκεν, ἀλλὰ ἀπὸ μέρους, ἵνα μὴ ἐπιβαρῶ πάντας ὑμᾶς. Οἶδα, φησὶν, ὅτι συνελυπήθητέ μοι, καὶ συνηγανακτήσατε ἐπὶ τῷ πεπορνευκότι, καὶ ἐκ μέρους πάντας ὑμᾶς ἐλύπησε τὸ συμβάν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο δὲ εἶπον, ἐκ μέρους, οὐχ ὡς ὑμῶν ἐλάττονα ἀλγησάντων ἢ ἐγὼ, ἀλλ' ἵνα μὴ βαρήσω τὸν πορνεύσαντα. Ἱκανὸν τῷ τοιούτῳ ἡ ἐπιτιμία αὕτη ὑπὸ τῶν πλειόνων. Οὐ λέγει, τῷ πεπορνευκότι, ἀλλὰ, τῷ τοιούτῳ, κουφίζων τὸ βάρος. Ὥστε τοὐναντίον μᾶλλον ὑμᾶς χαρίσασθαι καὶ παρακαλέσαι, μή πως τῇ περισσοτέρᾳ λύπῃ καταποθῇ ὁ τοιοῦτος. ∆ιὸ παρακαλῶ ὑμᾶς κυρῶσαι εἰς αὐτὸν ἀγάπην· εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ ἔγραψα, ἵνα γνῷ τὴν δοκιμὴν ὑμῶν, εἰ εἰς πάντα ὑπήκοοί ἐστε. Οὐ μόνον κελεύει λύσαι τὴν ἐπιτίμησιν, ἀλλὰ καὶ παραμυθίαν εἰσενεγκεῖν εἰς πάντα. Ἐγκωμιάζει δὲ, τῆς προτέρας ὑπακοῆς ἀναμνήσας, καὶ εἰς μέσον αὐτὴν ἄγων. Ὧ δέ τι χαρίζεσθε, κἀγώ. Ὅρα πῶς τὰ δευτερεῖα ἑαυτῷ δίδωσιν, ἐκείνους μὲν ἄρχοντας, ἑαυτὸν δὲ ἑπόμενον δεικνύς· ὅπερ δύναται μάλιστα μαλάξαι θρασυνομένην γνώμην. Καὶ γὰρ ἐγὼ ὃ κεχάρισμαι, εἴ τι κεχάρισμαι δι' ὑμᾶς. Ἵνα μὴ ὑπτίους ποιήσῃ ὡς κυρίους ὄντας, πάλιν αὐτοὺς ἄγχει πρὸς τὸ ὑπακούειν, λέγων· Καὶ τοῦτο γὰρ αὐτὸ δι' ὑμᾶς ἐποίησα. Ἐν προσώπῳ Χριστοῦ. Εἰς δόξαν Χριστοῦ λέγει, ἢ ὡς τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ τοῦτο κελεύοντος· ὃ μαλίστα αὐτοὺς ἔπειθεν. Ἵνα μὴ πλεονεκτηθῶμεν ὑπὸ τοῦ Σατανᾷ. Καλῶς πλεονεξίαν ὠνόμασεν· οὐδὲ γὰρ τὰ ἐν αὐτῷ λαμβάνει λοιπὸν, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἡμῶν ἁρπάζει. Γέγονε γὰρ ὁ μετανοήσας ἀμείνων. Οὐ γὰρ αὐτοῦ τὰ νοήματα ἀγνοοῦμεν. 95.717 Ὅτι καὶ προσχήματι εὐλαβείας ἀπόλλυσιν, οὐ μόνον τῷ εἰς πορνείαν ἀγαγεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπὸ τοὐναντίου δύναται διαφθεῖραι, ἐκ τῆς ἀμέτρου λύπης τῆς ἐπὶ τῇ μετανοίᾳ. Ἐλθὼν δὲ εἰς τὴν Τρωάδα διὰ τὸ Εὐαγγέλιον τοῦ Χριστοῦ, καὶ θύρας μοι ἀνεῳγμένης ἐν Κυρίῳ, οὐκ ἔσχηκα ἄνεσιν τῷ πνεύματί μου, τῷ μὴ εὑρεῖν με Τίτον τὸν ἀδελφόν μου, ἀλλὰ ἀποταξάμενος αὐτοῖς, ἐξῆλθον εἰς Μακεδονίαν. Εἰπὼν ἐν ἀρχαῖς ὅτι ἐν τῇ Ἀσίᾳ ἐβαρήθη ὑπὲρ δύναμιν, καὶ δείξας πῶς ἀπηλλάγη, καὶ τὰ ἐν μέσῳ παρελθὼν ἀναγκαίως, διδάσκει πάλιν, ὅτι καὶ ἑτέρως ἐθλίβη. Πῶς οὖν καὶ τίνι τρόπῳ; τῷ μὴ εὑρεῖν Τίτον. Οὗτος δὲ ἐν Κορίνθῳ διέτριβεν. Τῷ δὲ Θεῷ χάρις τῷ πάντοτε θριαμβεύοντι ἡμᾶς ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ. Ἵνα μὴ δόξῃ ὡς θρηνῶν ταῦτα ἀποδύρεσθαι, χάριν ἀναπέμπει τῷ Θεῷ· ὃ δὲ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστι. Πανταχοῦ θλίψις, πανταχοῦ στενοχωρία. Ἦλθον εἰς τὴν Ἀσίαν, ἐβαρήθην ὑπὲρ δύναμιν. Ἦλθον εἰς Τρωάδα, οὐχ εὗρον τὸν ἀδελφόν· οὐκ ἦλθον πρὸς ἡμᾶς, οὐ μικράν μοι καὶ τοῦτο ἀθυμίαν ἐποίησεν· ἀλλ' ἐν τούτοις πᾶσι, φησὶν, οὐκ ἀλγοῦμεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ χαίρομεν, οὐ μόνον διὰ τὰ μέλλοντα, ἀλλὰ καὶ διὰ τὰ παρόντα, ὅτι ἐν αὐτοῖς λαμπροί ἐσμεν καὶ προσφανεῖς. ∆ιὸ τοῦτο καὶ θρίαμβον τὸ πρᾶγμα καλεῖ. Ὁ γὰρ θρίαμβος τοῦτό ἐστι, τὸ πᾶσι γενέσθαι περιφανή. Καὶ οὐχ ἁπλῶς θριαμβεύοντι, εἶπεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν Χριστῷ, τουτέστι διὰ τὸν Χριστὸν καὶ τὸ κήρυγμα. Καὶ τὴν ὀσμὴν τῆς γνώσεως αὐτοῦ φανεροῦντι δι' ἡμῶν ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ, ὅτι Χριστοῦ εὐωδία ἐσμὲν τῷ Θεῷ ἐν τοῖς σωζομένοις, καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις· οἷς μὲν ὀσμὴ θανάτου εἰς θάνατον, οἷς δὲ ὀσμὴ ζωῆς εἰς ζωήν. ∆είκνυσιν ὅτι καὶ τόπος καὶ καιρὸς πᾶς τῶν ἄθλων ἐμπέπλησται τῶν ἀποστολικῶν· καὶ ἑτέρᾳ δὲ πάλιν κέχρηται μεταφορᾷ τῇ τῆς εὐωδίας. Εἶτα ἐπειδὴ εἶπε, Καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀπολλυμένοις εὐωδία ἐσμὲν, ἵνα μή τις νομίσῃ ὅτι κἀκεῖνοι εὐπαράδεκτοί εἰσι, παρήγαγεν· Οἷς μὲν ὀσμὴ ἐκ θανάτου εἰς θάνατον, οἷς δὲ ὀσμὴ ἐκ ζωῆς εἰς ζωήν. Ὃ δὲ λέγει τοιοῦτόν ἐστι· τὴν εὐωδίαν ταύτην, φησὶν, οἱ μὲν οὕτως προσίενται ὥστε σωθῆναι, οἱ δὲ οὕτως ὥστε ἀπολέσθαι· ὥστε κἂν ἀπόλλυταί τις, παρ' αὐτοῦ ἡ αἰτία. Ἐπεὶ πολλάκις λέγεται τὸ μύρον πνίγειν τοὺς χοίρους, καὶ τοὺς