1 A s I thought about it, I decided I would not come to you again. It would only make you sad.

But I definitely made up my mind not to grieve you with another painful and distressing visit.

2 I f I make you sad, who is going to make me happy? How can you make me happy if I make you sad?

For if I cause you pain, who is there to provide me enjoyment but the one whom I have grieved and made sad?

3 T hat is why I wrote that letter to you. I did not want to visit you and be made sad by the ones who should be making me happy. I am sure when I am happy, you are happy also.

And I wrote the same to you so that when I came, I might not be myself pained by those who are the ones who ought to make me glad, for I trusted in you all and felt confident that my joy would be shared by all of you.

4 I wrote you with a troubled heart. Tears were coming from my eyes. I did not want to make you sad. I wanted you to know how much I loved you. Forgiving a Christian

For I wrote you out of great sorrow and deep distress of heart, with many tears, not to cause you pain but in order to make you realize the overflowing love that I continue increasingly to have for you.

5 I f someone among you has brought sorrow, he has not made me as sad as he has all of you. I say this so I may not make it hard for you.

But if someone has caused grief and pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure, not to put it too severely, all of you.

6 M ost of you have punished him. That is enough for such a person.

For such a one this censure by the majority sufficient.

7 N ow you should forgive him and comfort him. If you do not, he will be so sad that he will want to give up.

So you should rather turn and forgive and comfort and encourage, to keep him from being overwhelmed by excessive sorrow and despair.

8 I ask you to show him you do love him.

I therefore beg you to reinstate him in your affections and assure him of your love for him;

9 T his is why I wrote to you. I wanted to test you to see if you were willing to obey in all things.

For this was my purpose in writing you, to test your attitude and see if you would stand the test, whether you are obedient and altogether agreeable in everything.

10 I f you forgive a man, I forgive him also. If I have forgiven anything, I have done it because of you. Christ sees me as I forgive.

If you forgive anyone anything, I too forgive that one; and what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, has been for your sakes in the presence of Christ (the Messiah),

11 W e forgive so that Satan will not win. We know how he works!

To keep Satan from getting the advantage over us; for we are not ignorant of his wiles and intentions.

12 W hen I arrived in the city of Troas, the Lord opened the door for me to preach the Good News of Christ.

Now when I arrived at Troas the good news (the Gospel) of Christ, a door of opportunity was opened for me in the Lord,

13 I was worried because I could not find our brother Titus. After saying good-bye, I went on my way to the country of Macedonia.

Yet my spirit could not rest (relax, get relief) because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I took leave from them and departed for Macedonia.

14 W e thank God for the power Christ has given us. He leads us and makes us win in everything. He speaks through us wherever we go. The Good News is like a sweet smell to those who hear it.

But thanks be to God, Who in Christ always leads us in triumph and through us spreads and makes evident the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere,

15 W e are a sweet smell of Christ that reaches up to God. It reaches out to those who are being saved from the punishment of sin and to those who are still lost in sin.

For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ unto God, among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing:

16 I t is the smell of death to those who are lost in sin. It is the smell of life to those who are being saved from the punishment of sin. Who is able for such a work?

To the latter it is an aroma from death to death; to the former it is an aroma from life to life. And who is qualified (fit and sufficient) for these things?

17 W e are not like others. They preach God’s Word to make money. We are men of truth and have been sent by God. We speak God’s Word with Christ’s power. All the time God sees us.

For we are not, like so many, peddling God’s Word; but like of sincerity and the purest motive, as by God, we speak in Christ (the Messiah), in the sight and presence of God.