2 Corinthians 7

1 With these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that pollutes either body or spirit, and, in deepest respect for God, aim at perfect holiness.

Having then these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all pollution of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

2 Make room for us in your hearts. In no instance have we ever wronged, or harmed, or taken advantage of, anyone.

Receive us into your hearts; we have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have defrauded no one.

3 I am not saying this to condemn you. Indeed, I have already said that you are in our heart, to live and die together.

I am not saying this to condemn you; for I have said before, that ye are in our hearts to die with you and to live with you.

4 I have the utmost confidence in you; I am always boasting about you. I am full of encouragement and, in spite of all our troubles, my heart is overflowing with happiness.

Great is my confidence toward you, great is my glorying on your account; I am filled with comfort, I overflow with joy in all our trouble.

5 Ever since we reached Macedonia, we have had no rest in body or mind; on every side there have been troubles – conflicts without, anxieties within.

For indeed when we had come into Macedonia, our flesh had no rest, but we were troubled on every side; without were fightings, within were fears.

6 But God, who encourages the downcast, has encouraged us by the arrival of Titus.

But God, that comforteth those who are brought low, comforted us by the coming of Titus;

7 And it is not only by his arrival that we are encouraged, but also by the encouragement which he received from you; for he tells us of your strong affection, your penitence, and your zeal on my behalf – so that I am happier still.

and not by his coming only, but by the comfort with which he was comforted in regard to you, when he told us of your earnest desire, your mourning, your zeal in my behalf; so that I rejoiced the more.

8 For, though I caused you sorrow by my letter, I do not regret it. Even if I were inclined to regret it – for I see that my letter did cause you sorrow though only for a time –

For though I caused you sorrow with the letter, I do not regret it, though I did regret it; for I perceive that that letter caused you sorrow, though it was but for a short time.

9 I am glad now; not because of the sorrow it caused you, but because your sorrow brought you to repentance. For it was God’s will that you should feel sorrow, in order that you should not suffer loss in any way at our hands.

Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorrowful, but that your sorrow produced repentance. For the sorrow which ye felt had respect to God, that ye might in nothing receive injury from me.

10 For, when sorrow is in accordance with God’s will, it results in a repentance leading to salvation, and which will never be regretted. The sure result of the sorrow that the world knows is death.

For sorrow before God worketh repentance to salvation never to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world worketh death.

11 For see what results that other sorrow – sorrow in accordance with God’s will – has had in your case. What earnestness it produced! What explanations! What strong feeling! What alarm! What longing! What eagerness! What readiness to punish! You have proved yourselves altogether free from guilt in that matter.

For behold this very thing, that your sorrow had respect to God; what earnestness it wrought in you; yea, what clearing of yourselves, yea, what indignation, yea, what fear, yea, what longing desire, yea, what zeal, yea, what readiness to punish! In every thing ye showed yourselves to be pure in the matter.

12 So, then, even though I did write to you, it was not for the sake of the wrongdoer, or of the man who was wronged, but to make you conscious, in the sight of God, of your own earnest care for us. And it is this that has encouraged us.

Although, then, I wrote to you, it was not on account of him that did the wrong, nor of him who suffered wrong; but that your earnestness for us might be made manifest to you in the sight of God.

13 In addition to the encouragement that this gave us, we were made far happier still by the happiness of Titus for his heart has been cheered by you all.

Therefore we have been comforted; but in our comfort we rejoiced still more on account of the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all;

14 Although I have been boasting a little to him about you, you did not put me to shame; but, just as every thing we had said to you was true, so our boasting to Titus about you has also proved to be the truth.

for if in anything I have boasted to him of you, I am not put to shame; but as we spoke all things to you in truth, so also our boasting, which we made before Titus, was found to be truth;

15 And his affection for you is all the greater, as he remembers the deference that you all showed him, and recalls how you received him with anxious care.

and his affection is more abundant toward you, while he remembers the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling ye received him.

16 I am glad that I can feel perfect confidence in you.

I rejoice that in every thing I have confidence in you.