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I say. Since he perceived the harshness, he corrects himself again. For I have said before, that you are in our hearts, to die together and to live together. This is the greatest proof of friendship, when being despised he chooses both to die with them and to live with them. And he says this, intensifying the love. For it is possible both to love and to flee dangers, but we are not so, he says. But the meaning is this. If it should happen, he says, that a danger comes upon us, I am ready to suffer all things for your sake, and neither death nor life seems anything to me in this regard; but wherever you live, this is more preferable to me, both death than life, and life than death. I have great boldness of speech toward you; I have great boasting on your behalf. For this reason, he says, I dare to say such things, not for condemnation, but because of the great boldness of speech. I am filled with comfort. With what comfort, except that from you, that having been corrected, he says, you comforted me by your deeds? 95.744 I am overflowing with joy in all our affliction. For even when we came into Macedonia. That is, I have not been grieved more, I have been healed, Our flesh had no rest. Since he said, the affliction, he also says what sort of affliction it was, and he magnifies it in his speech, so that he might show how much earnestness from these things, and comfort, and joy it produced, if indeed it repelled so great a pain. But being afflicted in every way. And how? It is shown through what follows. Without were fightings. From the unbelievers. Within were fears; but God, who comforts the lowly, comforted us by the coming of Titus. And not only by his coming, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you, telling us. For the sake of the weak among the faithful, lest they be led astray. For not only among the Corinthians did he signify such things, but also elsewhere. Your longing, your mourning, your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced the more. Since he bore great witness to them, so that he might not seem to be flattering, he brings forward Titus as a witness for them, who had come from them to Paul after the former epistle. For even if I made you sorry with my letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it. For I see that that letter, even if it made you sorry for a time, now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, He reported these things, that so great was the repentance of the Corinthians, the zeal. And he says zeal, his own. Therefore he says; You were set on fire, and you burned, having received my letter, for these things I abound in joy. But that you were made sorry to repentance. He then makes a defense for the letter, that it was without danger to heal them of the sin which had been corrected. It is as if he were to say; even if the things written by me were such as to exceed the measure of rebuke, and to make me regret it, yet the great gain from them did not allow me to regret it. And he said these things, not as having rebuked without measure, but to increase their praises. For you showed such a correction, that even if I happened to have rebuked more severely, and so as to even condemn myself, I would now praise myself from the outcome. For you were made sorry according to God, so that you might suffer loss in nothing from us. For godly sorrow works repentance to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world works death. For behold, this very thing, that you were made sorry in a godly manner, what earnestness it has produced in you? 95.745 He stated the reason, for his no longer being grieved. For the painful thing is brief, he says, but the beneficial thing, perpetual. But a defense. Towards me. But indignation. Towards the one who had sinned. But fear. For it was of those who feared greatly, this great earnestness and the very swift correction. But longing. Towards me. But zeal. For God. But avenging. For you have avenged, he says, the laws of God that were outraged. In everything you have proved yourselves to be pure in the matter. Not only in not having fellowship; for this was evident, but also in not taking pleasure with them. For since in the former Epistle he charged this very thing to them, saying: And you are puffed up; here he says: You have also cleared yourselves of the suspicion. Not for the sake of the one who did the wrong, nor for the sake of the one who suffered wrong, but

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λέγω. Ἐπειδὴ ᾔσθετο τῆς βαρύτητος, ἐπιδιορθοῦται πάλιν. Προείρηκα γὰρ, ὅτι ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ἡμῶν ἐστε, εἰς τὸ συναποθανεῖν καὶ συζῇν. Αὕτη μεγίστη φιλίας ἀπόδειξις, ὅταν καταφρονούμενος καὶ συναποθανεῖν αὐτοῖς αἱρῆται καὶ συζῆσαι. Τοῦτο δέ φησιν, ἐπιτείνων τὴν ἀγάπην. Ἔνι γὰρ καὶ φιλεῖν καὶ κινδύνους φεύγειν, ἀλλ' οὐχ ἡμεῖς οὕτω, φησίν. Ὁ δὲ νοῦς οὗτος. Ἂν συμβῇ, φησὶν, ἐπενεχθῆναι κίνδυνον, πάντα ἕτοιμός εἰμι ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν παθεῖν, καὶ οὔτε θάνατος, οὔτε ζωή μοί τι κατὰ τοῦτο φαίνεται· ἀλλ' ἔνθα ἐὰν ζῆτε ὑμεῖς, τοῦτο ἐμοὶ προτιμώτερον, καὶ θάνατος ζωῆς, καὶ ζωὴ θανάτου. Πολλή μοι παῤῥησία πρὸς ὑμᾶς· πολλή μοι καύχησις ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο, φησὶ, τοιαῦτα λέγειν τολμῶ, οὐ πρὸς κατάκρισιν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὴν πολλὴν παῤῥησίαν. Πεπλήρωμαι τῇ παρακλήσει. Ποία παρακλήσει, ἢ τῇ παρ' ὑμῶν, ὅτι διορθωθέντες, φησὶν, διὰ τῶν ἔργων παρακαλέσατέ με; 95.744 Ὑπερπερισσεύομαι τῇ χαρᾷ ἐπὶ πάσῃ τῇ θλίψει ἡμῶν. Καὶ γὰρ ἐλθόντων ἡμῶν εἰς Μακεδονίαν. Τουτέστι, πλεῖον οὐ λελύπημαι, τεθεράπευμαι, Οὐδεμίαν ἔσχηκεν ἄνεσιν ἡ σὰρξ ἡμῶν. Ἐπειδὴ εἶπεν, τὴν θλίψιν, λέγει καὶ ποταπὴ ἡ θλίψις, καὶ ἐπαίρει αὐτὴν τῷ λόγῳ, ἵνα δείξῃ πόσην σπουδὴν ἐκ τούτων, καὶ παραμυθίαν, καὶ χαρὰν ἐποίησεν, εἴ γε τοσαύτην ἀπεκρούσατο ὀδύνην. Ἀλλ' ἐν παντὶ θλιβόμενοι. Καὶ πῶς; δηλοῦται διὰ τῶν ἑξῆς. Ἔξωθεν μάχαι. Παρὰ τῶν ἀπίστων. Ἔσωθεν φόβος· ἀλλ' ὁ παρακαλῶν τοὺς ταπεινοὺς ὁ Θεὸς, παρεκάλεσεν ἡμᾶς ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ Τίτου. Οὐ μόνον δὲ ἐν τῇ παρουσίᾳ αὐτοῦ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τῇ παρακλήσει· ᾗ παρεκλήθη ἐφ' ὑμῖν, ἀναγγέλλων ἡμῖν. ∆ιὰ τοὺς ἀσθενεῖς τῶν πιστῶν, μὴ παρασυρῶσιν. Οὐδὲ γὰρ παρὰ Κορινθίοις μόνον τοιαῦτα ἐσήμανεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ. Τὴν ὑμῶν ἐπιπόθησιν, τὸν ὑμῶν ὀδυρμὸν, τὸν ὑμῶν ζῆλον ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ, ὥστε ἐμὲ μᾶλλον χαρῆναι. Ἐπειδὴ μεγάλα αὐτοῖς ἐμαρτύρησεν, ἵνα μὴ δόξῃ κολακεύειν, μάρτυρα αὐτοῖς παράγει Τίτον, ὃς παρ' αὐτῶν ἀφίκετο πρὸς Παῦλον μετὰ τὴν προτέραν ἐπιστολήν. Ὅτι εἰ καὶ ἐλύπησα ὑμᾶς ἐν τῇ ἐπιστολῇ, οὐ μεταμέλομαι, εἰ καὶ μετεμελόμην. Βλέπω γὰρ, ὅτι ἡ ἐπιστολὴ ἐκείνη, εἰ καὶ πρὸς ὥραν ἐλύπησεν ὑμᾶς, νῦν χαίρω, οὐχ ὅτι ἐλυπήθητε, Ταῦτα ἀπήγγελλεν, ὅτι τοσαύτην μετάνοιαν τὴν Κορινθίων, τὸν ζῆλον. Ζῆλον δέ φησι, τὸν αὐτοῦ. Λέγει οὖν· Ἐπυρώθητε, καὶ ἐξεκάητε, δεξάμενοί μου τὰ γράμμα, διὰ ταῦτα περισσεύω τῇ χαρᾷ. Ἀλλ' ὅτι ἐλυπήθητε εἰς μετάνοιαν. Ἀπολογεῖται λοιπὸν ὑπὲρ τῆς ἐπιστολῆς, ὅτι ἀκίνδυνον ἦν αὐτοὺς θεραπεύειν τῆς ἁμαρτίας τῆς διορθωθείσης. Ὅμοιον δὲ ὡς εἰ λέγοι· εἰ καὶ τοιαῦτα ἦν τὰ γραφέντα παρ' ἐμοῦ, ὥστε ὑπερβαίνειν τὸ μέτρον τῆς ἐπιτιμήσεως, καὶ ποιῆσαί με μεταμεληθῆναι, ἀλλὰ τὸ πολὺ, κέρδος τὸ ἐξ αὐτῶν οὐκ εἴασέ με μεταμεληθῆναι. Ταῦτα δὲ ἔλεγεν, οὐχ ὡς ἀμέτρως ἐπιτιμήσας, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἐγκωμία αὐτῶν αὔξων. Τοιαύτην γὰρ ἐπεδείξασθε τὴν διόρθωσιν, ὥστε εἰ καὶ ἔτυχον σφοδρότερον ἐπιπλήξας, καὶ οὕτως ὡς καὶ καταγνῶναι ἐμαυτοῦ, ἐπαινεῖν νῦν ἐμαυτὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ τέλους. Ἐλυπήθητε γὰρ κατὰ Θεὸν, ἵνα ἐν μηδενὶ ζημιωθῆτε ἐξ ἡμῶν. Ἡ γὰρ κατὰ Θεὸν λύπη μετάνοιαν εἰς σωτηρίαν ἀμεταμέλητον ἐργάζεται· ἡ δὲ τοῦ κόσμου λύπη, θάνατον κατεργάζεται. Ἰδοὺ γὰρ αὐτὸ τοῦτο τὸ κατὰ Θεὸν λυπηθῆναι ὑμᾶς, πόσην κατειργάσατο ὑμῖν σπουδήν; 95.745 Τὴν αἰτίαν εἶπε, τοῦ μηκέτι αὐτὸν λυπεῖσθαι. Τὸ μὲν γὰρ λυπηρὸν βραχὺ, φησὶ, τὸ δὲ ὠφέλιμον, διηνεκές. Ἀλλὰ ἀπολογίαν. Πρὸς ἐμέ. Ἀλλὰ ἀγανάκτησιν. Πρὸς ἐκεῖνον τὸν ἡμαρτηκότα. Ἀλλὰ φόβον. Καὶ γὰρ σφόδρα δεδοικότων ἦν ἡ τοσαύτη σπουδὴ, καὶ ἡ ταχυτάτη διόρθωσις. Ἀλλὰ ἐπιποθίαν. Τὴν πρὸς ἐμέ. Ἀλλὰ ζῆλον. Τὸν ὑπὲρ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Ἀλλ' ἐκδίκησιν. Καὶ γὰρ ἐξεδικήσατε, φησι, τοὺς τοῦ Θεοῦ νόμους ὑβρισθέντας. Ἐν παντὶ συνεστήσατε ἑαυτοὺς ἁγνοὺς εἶναι τὸ πρᾶγμα. Οὐ τὸ μὴ κοινωνεῖν μόνον· τοῦτο γὰρ φανερὸν ἦν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ μὴ συνήδεσθαι. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ ἐν τῇ προτέρᾳ Ἐπιστολῇ αὐτὸ τοῦτο ἐνεκάλει αὐτοῖς, λέγων· Καὶ ὑμεῖς πεφυσιωμένοι ἐστέ· ἐνταῦθά φησι· Καὶ ὑμεῖς ἀπηλλάξατε ἑαυτοὺς τῆς ὑποψίας. Οὐχ ἕνεκεν τοῦ ἀδικήσαντος, οὐδὲ ἕνεκεν τοῦ ἀδικηθέντος, ἀλλ'