1But it was my decision for myself, not to come again to you with sorrow.
2For if I give you sorrow, who then will make me glad, but he who is made sad by me?
3And I said this very thing in my letter, for fear that when I came I might have sorrow from those from whom it was right for me to have joy; being certain of this, that my joy is the joy of you all.
4For out of much trouble and pain of heart and much weeping I sent my letter to you; not to give you sorrow, but so that you might see how great is the love which I have to you.
5But if anyone has been a cause of sorrow, he has been so, not to me only, but in some measure to all of you (I say this that I may not be over-hard on you).
6Let it be enough for such a man to have undergone the punishment which the church put on him;
7So that now, on the other hand, it is right for him to have forgiveness and comfort from you, for fear that his sorrow may be over-great.
8For which cause my desire is that you will make your love to him clear by your acts.
9And for the same reason I sent you a letter so that I might be certain of your desire to do my orders in all things.
10But if you give forgiveness to anyone, I do the same: for if I have given forgiveness for anything, I have done it because of you, in the person of Christ;
11So that Satan may not get the better of us: for we are not without knowledge of his designs.
12Now when I came to Troas for the good news of Christ, and there was an open door for me in the Lord,
13I had no rest in my spirit because Titus my brother was not there: so I went away from them, and came into Macedonia.
14But praise be to God who makes us strong to overcome in Christ, and makes clear through us in every place the value of the knowledge of him.
15For we are a sweet perfume of Christ to God in those who are getting salvation and in those who are going to destruction;
16To the one it is a perfume of death to death; to the other a perfume of life to life. And who is enough for such things?
17For we are not like the great number who make use of the word of God for profit: but our words are true, as from God, being said as before God in Christ.