| Holman Christian Standard Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1In fact, I made up my mind about this: I would not come to you on another painful visit. | 1So I decided that I would not bring you grief with another painful visit. |
| 2For if I cause you pain, then who will cheer me other than the one being hurt by me? | 2For if I cause you grief, who will make me glad? Certainly not someone I have grieved. |
| 3I wrote this very thing so that when I came I wouldn't have pain from those who ought to give me joy, because I am confident about all of you that my joy will also be yours. | 3That is why I wrote to you as I did, so that when I do come, I won’t be grieved by the very ones who ought to give me the greatest joy. Surely you all know that my joy comes from your being joyful. |
| 4For I wrote to you with many tears out of an extremely troubled and anguished heart--not that you should be hurt, but that you should know the abundant love I have for you. | 4I wrote that letter in great anguish, with a troubled heart and many tears. I didn’t want to grieve you, but I wanted to let you know how much love I have for you. Forgiveness for the Sinner |
| 5If anyone has caused pain, he has caused pain not so much to me but to some degree--not to exaggerate--to all of you. | 5I am not overstating it when I say that the man who caused all the trouble hurt all of you more than he hurt me. |
| 6The punishment inflicted by the majority is sufficient for that person. | 6Most of you opposed him, and that was punishment enough. |
| 7As a result, you should instead forgive and comfort him. Otherwise, this one may be overwhelmed by excessive grief. | 7Now, however, it is time to forgive and comfort him. Otherwise he may be overcome by discouragement. |
| 8Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him. | 8So I urge you now to reaffirm your love for him. |
| 9I wrote for this purpose: to test your character to see if you are obedient in everything. | 9I wrote to you as I did to test you and see if you would fully comply with my instructions. |
| 10If you forgive anyone, I do too. For what I have forgiven--if I have forgiven anything--it is for you in the presence of Christ. | 10When you forgive this man, I forgive him, too. And when I forgive whatever needs to be forgiven, I do so with Christ’s authority for your benefit, |
| 11I have done this so that we may not be taken advantage of by Satan. For we are not ignorant of his schemes. | 11so that Satan will not outsmart us. For we are familiar with his evil schemes. |
| 12When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, the Lord opened a door for me. | 12When I came to the city of Troas to preach the Good News of Christ, the Lord opened a door of opportunity for me. |
| 13I had no rest in my spirit because I did not find my brother Titus, but I said good-bye to them and left for Macedonia. | 13But I had no peace of mind because my dear brother Titus hadn’t yet arrived with a report from you. So I said good-bye and went on to Macedonia to find him. Ministers of the New Covenant |
| 14But thanks be to God, who always puts us on display in Christ and through us spreads the aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. | 14But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. |
| 15For to God we are the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. | 15Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God. But this fragrance is perceived differently by those who are being saved and by those who are perishing. |
| 16To some we are an aroma of death leading to death, but to others, an aroma of life leading to life. And who is competent for this? | 16To those who are perishing, we are a dreadful smell of death and doom. But to those who are being saved, we are a life-giving perfume. And who is adequate for such a task as this? |
| 17For we are not like the many who market God's message for profit. On the contrary, we speak with sincerity in Christ, as from God and before God. | 17You see, we are not like the many hucksters who preach for personal profit. We preach the word of God with sincerity and with Christ’s authority, knowing that God is watching us. |
| Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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