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2 Corinthians 13

KJV · Chapter 13/13

1This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.

2I told you before, and foretell you, as if I were present, the second time; and being absent now I write to them which heretofore have sinned, and to all other, that, if I come again, I will not spare:

3Since ye seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, which to you-ward is not weak, but is mighty in you.

4For though he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God. For we also are weak in him, but we shall live with him by the power of God toward you.

5Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

6But I trust that ye shall know that we are not reprobates.

7Now I pray to God that ye do no evil; not that we should appear approved, but that ye should do that which is honest, though we be as reprobates.

8For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.

9For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.

10Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not to destruction.

11Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.

12Greet one another with an holy kiss.

13All the saints salute you.

14The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen. The second epistle to the Corinthians was written from Philippi, a city of Macedonia, by Titus and Lucas.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Paul announces his third visit to Corinth, warning that he will not hesitate to act firmly against those who persist in unrepentant sin. He asks the Corinthians themselves to examine whether their faith is genuine, and closes the letter with a blessing that would become one of the most widely used in Christian history.

Explanation

As he closes the letter, Paul takes on a final tone of serious warning, yet also of hope: he longs for the church to grow mature so that it will not need harsh correction when he arrives. The call to "examine yourselves" concerning the faith is an invitation to honest spiritual self-evaluation, checking whether Christ truly dwells and works in a person's life, rather than simply trusting in outward religious appearances. The closing trinitarian blessing — the grace of Christ, the love of God, the fellowship of the Holy Spirit — is one of the clearest early expressions of the doctrine of the Trinity in the New Testament, uniting the three divine persons in a single formula of blessing. Today's practical application includes both a willingness for sincere spiritual self-examination and confidence in the grace, love, and fellowship that God continually offers to the church.

Fun facts

  • The closing blessing of this chapter (v. 14) is still used today as the apostolic benediction at the end of worship services in churches of many Christian traditions around the world, making it one of the most liturgically repeated passages in the entire Bible.
  • The phrase "in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established" (v. 1) quotes Deuteronomy 19:15, showing how Paul applied Old Testament legal principles to disciplinary matters within the Christian church.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. 2 Corinthians 13:1The phrase “In the mouth of two or three witnesses” quotes a rule from the law of Moses (Deuteronomy 19:15) about needing more than one witness to confirm an accusation. Paul warns that, on his third visit, he will take seriously the accusations against those who sinned and haven't repented.
  2. 2 Corinthians 13:2He warns, for the second time, that on his next visit he won't spare anyone who sinned before and continues without repenting — a serious warning, repeated so there is no doubt.
  3. 2 Corinthians 13:3He explains that this firmness answers a demand from the Corinthians themselves, who wanted proof that Christ really speaks through Paul — and he assures them that Christ is not weak, but powerful among them.
  4. 2 Corinthians 13:4He uses the crucifixion as an example: Christ was crucified through weakness, yet lives by the power of God — in the same way, even if Paul seems weak, he will act with the power of God when he is with them.
  5. 2 Corinthians 13:5Paul turns the test his rivals applied to him back on the Corinthians themselves, asking them for proof he really was an apostle: he asks them to examine themselves, whether they are truly in the faith, instead of only questioning his authority.
  6. 2 Corinthians 13:6He hopes that, in the end, the Corinthians will recognize that he is not among the “reprobates” — answering the doubt about his apostolic legitimacy raised throughout the letter.
  7. 2 Corinthians 13:7He prays to God not to prove himself right, but so the Corinthians will simply do what is good, even if that means Paul looks like one of the “reprobates” in their eyes.
  8. 2 Corinthians 13:8He explains his real interest: he has no power at all against the truth, only for it — he isn't trying to win an argument, only to defend what is right.
  9. 2 Corinthians 13:9He'd rather appear weak, as long as the Corinthians are strong in faith — his true desire, he reinforces, is their complete spiritual maturity.
  10. 2 Corinthians 13:10He explains why he writes all this from a distance: so he won't need to use severity when present, using the authority the Lord gave him to build up, not to tear down.
  11. 2 Corinthians 13:11He closes with final exhortations: joy, the pursuit of spiritual perfection, mutual comfort, unity of mind, and peace — promising that the God of love and peace will be with them.
  12. 2 Corinthians 13:12The “holy kiss,” the same greeting kiss from 1 Corinthians 16:20, appears again as a farewell: a common greeting among fellow believers at the time, without the romantic meaning the word has today.
  13. 2 Corinthians 13:13He ends the letter with a blessing uniting all three persons of the Trinity: the grace of Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit — one of the few explicit trinitarian greetings in the New Testament.

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