2 Corinthians 1 - IVP New Testament Commentaries

Praise for Divine Encouragement in Times of Trouble

Parents today commonly use the full name of their child to express rebuke. So too Paul's choice of the formal eulogy (Praise be) rather than the customary thanksgiving ("I thank") provides us with a definite clue that the news he received from Titus about his spiritual children in Corinth was not entirely to his liking. Paul's focus in these verses on his own situation and God's faithfulness, rather than his usual attention to the church's situation and its steadfastness, also suggests that something was amiss.