Exegetical Analysis2 Corinthians 5:1-10 (ESV)
Introduction
In the text under analysis, 2 Corinthians 5:1-10, Paul, who is the author, wrote to Corinthians at a time when they hand reformed from conflicts within themselves. Corinthians had separation based on which apostle to follow. However, Paul comes to encourage them after they have reformed and ended the conflict. Paul utilizes his authority as an apostle to encourage and give them more hopes. The text informs that there is no joy in the world since it is only a temporary residence while there is a permanent secure heavenly come that should give believers hope. However, Paul provides Corinthians with a strategy to overcome the world sufferings by focusing on the unseen heaven, which will bring them happiness for eternity. The text furthermore provides more hope to believers by showing that God has already made heaven for them, and the current Holy Spirit serves as a surety. Despite the surety, Paul informs the believers that their actions will also matter whether they will access heaven and, therefore, they should have good deeds.
Life in the World (2Cor 5:1)
The verbal clause “For we know” in 2Cor 5:1 is an agent because it is acting the role of having knowledge. Following the clause is the sentence theme, “the tent that is our earthly home.”On the other hand, the noun building serves as the patient or theme for the verbal clause. In Greek, the verbal phrase is in the first person connected to the two themes with a condition if. It means that where the opening theme does not favor the agent, there is an alternative providing an assurance.
There is a need to carefully consider the starting words “for we know,” which eliminates the guesswork in the themes which follow. The words mean having apparent confidence in the building, which serves as the sentence theme. In Greek, know means to admit, identify, or acknowledge. The English translation adds the meaning of being aware of something and reveals more about Paul’s words that they were aware of the building. Paul and other apostles whom he refers to “we” had suffered and seen Christ suffering promotion to eternity, an experience that gives him the confidence he mentions in the passage. As an apostle, Paul had a duty to impact hope amongstChristians through words of confidence. The word tent, on the other hand, means something temporal for securing the body. In the text, Paul meant the people’s current physical body because it can get destroyed at any time and suffer pain. Relating the tent with the earthy house means the body which sizes to exist after death on earth. There is also the world-buildingwhich means a permanent structure in comparison with the tent. Hence, a building is more secure and relates to the Spirit, which people will have once they go to heaven. Paul says that God made the eternal building to show that the renewed Spirit will be secure from any further destruction.Therefore, the text communicates the basis of faith, providing reasons why Corinthians ought to have persevered hard life through belief in Christ, for there is an assurance of eternity.
Reynolds observes that Paul contrasts observable things, which is the physical body with the unseen, which is the soul to show the benefit of the latter in having eternity.[1]The further argument is that Paul aimed at encouraging the Corinthians to persevere the transition having in mind the benefits to come. The unseen eternal life is the basis of hope because it will be better and never get destroyed like the physical body.Bray refers to the promised building a dwelling indicating that it is more than a structural building extending comfort, security, and ownership. It compares with a permanent house as opposed to a tent.[2] However, Corinthians had to accept and perseverethe physical body’s destruction to have the unseen eternal soul. The transition is not easy and is the one which Paul comes to persuade Corinthians that there is a great reward of enteral life free from suffering.
Longing for Heavenly Home and Body (2Cor 5:2-4)
The clause “we groan” in 2Cor 5:2is an agent acting on the preceding object tent. However, ‘we’ is the experience of groaning and a theme at the same time. There is also the phrase “longing to put on our heavenly dwelling,” which comes later with a verb longing.“Our heavenly dwelling,” on the other hand, is the goal of the subject ‘we’ seeking to come out of the act of groaning. The verse, therefore, means that groan is the pathway to the heavenly dwelling. However, one must submit to groaning through the act of longing. The passage’s purpose is to guide on the prerequisite for reaching heaven.
Groan is the keyword in verse, which is a verb coming after the subject we. In English translation, it is a sound which one produces while in pain or ways of expressing emotions of pain. However, Paul, in the passage, goes beyond the regular expression of pain. The groaning which Paul talked about is that of longing, which is waiting for the heavenly dwelling.The addition of the word logging after groan gives it a different meaning of the pressure which people get when they are waiting for something good. There is an option of thinking that the groaning is that of pain in the physical body, but Pau is talking about the patience and zeal which Corinthians should have in accessing the eternal building. Paul meant that Corinthians should thirst for the heavenly body to do what is right instead of focusing on the suffering physical body.
Lowery argues that the verse guides Corinthians to focus on “…what is unseen.”[3]Hussman, in a further argument, states that Paul was groaning for the futureresurrection.[4]The position distances the word groan from pain to indicate emotions that come with patience.Instead, Lowery shows that groaning should be directed to things that will come later. However, the things to come are good because there are promises of peace, meaning that groaning is having a longing heart and pressure of patience. The unseen things make people anxious seeking to reach the destination to unfold the goodness.
Christians Confidence (2Cor 5:5-8)
The verbal clause has prepared, in verse 5 represent an action from an agent He, which is a pronoun of God. However, there is also another pronoun after the verbal clause, us, which represents the patient. In the next clause within verse 5, the verbal clause also precedes a pronoun us still serving as a patient. The verse whose message combines with verses 6, 7 and, 8 shows that the agent God has done two things to the Corinthians and Paul as he talks. God has prepared them and also given them the Spirit to serve as an assurance.
Paul used the world to prepare while encouraging Corinthians to persevere the groans and destruction of the body as they await the eternal life. The meaning of the word preparation, in this case, is being positioned in a way that one can receive something. In English, the word prepare means to make ready, waiting for something to do or happen. The thing which Paul is talking about in this case is heavenly life or the spiritual body, building as he refers in the previous verses. Preparation, therefore, means forgiveness of suns through Christ’s grace, which is the way to heaven. Another word in the context is a guarantee which translates to evidence. In Greek, the word guarantee means surety or security. In English, on the other hand, the guarantee implies a warranty of formal assurance of fulfilling certain conditions. The interpretation is not far from Paul’s, where he tells the Corinthians that they have a warranty to eternal life through the Spirit. The Spirit which comes after baptism through Christ Jesus is also a way of preparing believers since He comes after forgiveness of sins.
In commenting onthe verse, Barrett argues that the promised joy is an encouragement to believers and not against the current comfort through Christ’s death.[5]Barrett relates preparation with the benefits Corinthians got after they accept Christ Jesus, which is forgiveness of sins and delivery of the Holy Spirit.Corinthians and Christians, in general, are supposed to get comfortable once they believe and receive the Spirit because they know that they have a gate pass to heaven on the last day. Believing in Christ and having the Spirit has no comfort on earth because of the groaning in patience and destruction of the body. However, Paul shows that the HolySpirit comes with hope since it is an assurance that after suffering, there is eternal life.
Purpose of Life in Comparison with Eternal Destiny (2Cor 5:10)
The first clause in verse 10 carries a keyword and verb, appear. However, a pronoun, we precede the verb and serves as the agent in the clause. We is an agent because it takes an act of going before God. The verbal phrase “may receive” in the second sentence comes before the agent, each, which is a pronoun representing believers, including Paul as the text author. Another verbal clause has done, also comes after the agent, each. The agent, therefore,performs several actions in verse, including going before Christ for judgment, receiving form Christ, and other cations on the body. However, receiving occurs when the agent goes before Christ, where other cations on the body precede the two actions. The verse means that Christ will give a reward to people following their actions on the body. However, the rewards will not be the same but depending on an evaluation of actions.
Paul used the keyword, all, after consistently personalizing the context to Corinthians who believed in Christ and encouraging them that there is life after the destruction of the body.The word all in the text means both the believers and unbelievers in Corinthians. In Greek, all means either all types of all groups, for example, of people. In English, all means a measure of the extent to a particular thing or group. The two translations show that one must define the extent of all. In verse 10, Paul means believers and non-believersbecause he breaks the consistency of using we, who were believers. There is an attempt to include other people who are non-believers since that was the excluded group at the beginning. Another word appear, means going before Christ for evaluation of deeds. In English, the word means going into sight, which relates to the context in which the agents will go before Christ. The verse implies that all people, both believers, and non-believers, will go before God for evaluation of their actions. Paul, in this case, shows that regardless of the guarantee of eternal life, believers must live a life that pleases God by obeying his commands and having faith for furtherqualifications.
In commenting on the verse, Seifrid argues that Paul focused on the betterment of the current life despite the suffering to get one which is best after the transaction.[6] The comment shows that Corinthians was also supposed to take part by aligning themselves with Christ through their actions. Having the Spirit was a guarantee of life after death. However, there was a condition where Corinthians were supposed not to give up in Christ.Wright, on the other hand, comments on the verse that all people across the world wait for life like Christ, after death, referring the words as a looser phrase.[7] The argument is that life after death is not to everyone where even believers can lack in case they do not prepare themselves buy following Christ in actions. The Spirit was supposed to give believers hope so that there can persevere in life as Christina by avoiding temptations of the world. However, where they fail, they can also lose the promise of life after death like non-believers. Paul calls Corinthians to, therefore, utilize guarantee of life after death through the spirt to persevere temptations of the world and sufferings because once they fail, they will be like non-believers despite the assurance.
Conclusion
Paul’s intention in the text was to give the Corinthians more hope about the heavenly life and, therefore, motivate them to uphold Christian deeds. The author’s meaning was that despite the suffering on earth, the longest time of life is in heaven and where there will be no suffering. He showed the Corinthians that the earth was not meant for enjoyment but a transition stage to heaven. However, Paul did not mean that the Corinthians should relax and wait for the assured heaven. He meant that they should accept the sufferings since they are the bridge to heaven despite the temptation to focus on things of the world that have no pain.
In the current century, the text holds much of its meaning. Christianity comes with much suffering, although there are temptations of avoiding the pains when one focuses on earthly life, for example, stealing, fornication, fighting, corruption, and many more. With the growth in technology and human knowledge, sufferings are more because of the ethical issues arising and many practices which Christians should avoid. However, Christians should have hope that the sufferings will come to an end and have joy in heaven. In addition to hopes, they should live a Christ-like life, free from sins by avoiding temptations of the world. The hope of eternal life should enable Christians to welcome and persevere the suffering since it is for a short time.
Bibliography
Barrett, Charles K.The Second Epistle to the Corinthians. Black’s New TestamentCommentary. London:Continuum, 1973.
Bray, Gerald, ed. Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: 2 Corinthians. Downers Grove, IL:InterVarsity Press, 1999.
David K. Lowery, “2 Corinthians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2, Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985.
Hussman, Andrew J. “The Ministry of Hope, Love, and Peace: An Exegetical Overview of 2 Corinthians 5.” (2018).
Reynolds, Edwin. “Away from the Body and at Home with the Lord”: 2 Corinthians 5: 1-10 in Context.” Journal of the Adventist Theological Society 24, no. 2 (2013): 7.
Seifrid,Mark A. The Second Letter to the Corinthians. Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2014.
Wright, Nicholas. T. Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church. NewYork: HarperCollins, 2008.
[1]Edwin, Reynolds. “Away from the Body and at Home with the Lord”: 2 Corinthians 5: 1-10 in Context.” Journal of the Adventist Theological Society 24, no. 2 (2013): 7.
[2]Gerald, Bray, ed. Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture: 2 Corinthians. (Downers Grove, IL:InterVarsity Press, 1999): 239.
[3]Lowery David K., “2 Corinthians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 565.
[4]Andrew, Hussman J. “The Ministry of Hope, Love, and Peace: An Exegetical Overview of 2 Corinthians 5.” (2018).
[5]Charles, Barrett K.The Second Epistle to the Corinthians. Black’s New TestamentCommentary. (London:Continuum, 1973): 153.
[6]Mark,SeifridA. The Second Letter to the Corinthians. Pillar New Testament Commentary. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2014): 220.
[7]Nicholas,Wright T. Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, the Resurrection, and the Mission of the Church. (NewYork: HarperCollins, 2008): 30.