Lexicon :: Strong's G2257 - hēmōn

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort.

He comforts us in all our affliction,[fn] so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God.

For just as the sufferings of Christ overflow to us, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.

And our hope for you is firm, because we know that as you share in the sufferings, so you will also share in the comfort.

We don’t want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of our affliction that took place in Asia. We were completely overwhelmed ​— ​beyond our strength ​— ​so that we even despaired of life itself.

while you join in helping us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our[fn] behalf for the gift that came to us through the prayers of many.

Indeed, this is our boast: The testimony of our conscience is that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you, with godly sincerity and purity, not by human wisdom but by God’s grace.

just as you have partially understood us ​— ​that we are your reason for pride, just as you also are ours in the day of our[fn] Lord Jesus.

As God is faithful, our message to you is not “Yes and no.”

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you ​— ​Silvanus,[fn] Timothy, and I ​— ​did not become “Yes and no.” On the contrary, in him it is always “Yes.”

For every one of God’s promises is “Yes” in him. Therefore, through him we also say “Amen” to the glory of God.

He has also put his seal on us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a down payment.

You show that you are Christ’s letter, delivered[fn] by us, not written with ink but with the Spirit of the living God ​— ​not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.[fn]

It is not that we are competent in[fn] ourselves to claim anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God.

For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ.

Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us.

We always carry the death of Jesus in our body, so that the life of Jesus may also be displayed in our body.

For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus’s sake, so that Jesus’s life may also be displayed in our mortal flesh.

Therefore we do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day.

For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory.

So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

Indeed, we groan in this tent, desiring to put on our heavenly dwelling,

We are not commending ourselves to you again, but giving you an opportunity to be proud of us, so that you may have a reply for those who take pride in outward appearance rather than in the heart.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.”

He made the one who did not know sin to be sin[fn] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

I am very frank with you; I have great pride in you. I am filled with encouragement; I am overflowing with joy in all our afflictions.

In fact, when we came into Macedonia, we[fn] had no rest. Instead, we were troubled in every way: conflicts on the outside, fears within.

I now rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to repentance. For you were grieved as God willed, so that you didn’t experience any loss from us.

So even though I wrote to you, it was not because of the one who did wrong, or because of the one who was wronged, but in order that your devotion to us might be made plain to you in the sight of God.

For if I have made any boast to him about you, I have not been disappointed; but as I have spoken everything to you in truth, so our boasting to Titus has also turned out to be the truth.

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ: Though he was rich, for your sake he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.

And not only that, but he was also appointed by the churches to accompany us with this gracious gift that we are administering for the glory of the Lord himself and to show our eagerness to help.

We are taking this precaution so that no one will criticize us about this large sum that we are administering.

We have also sent with them our brother. We have often tested him in many circumstances and found him to be diligent ​— ​and now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you.

As for Titus, he is my partner and coworker for you; as for our brothers, they are the messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ.

Therefore, show them proof before the churches of your love and of our boasting about you.

You will be enriched in every way for all generosity, which produces thanksgiving to God through us.

For if I boast a little too much about our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will not be put to shame.

We are not boasting beyond measure about other people’s labors. On the contrary, we have the hope that as your faith increases, our area of ministry will be greatly enlarged,