Great is my boldness of speech toward you. Great is my boasting on your behalf. I am filled with comfort. I overflow with joy in all our affliction.
Parallel Translations
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Great is my boldness of speech toward you. Great is my boasting on your behalf. I am filled with comfort. I overflow with joy in all our affliction.
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I am filled with comforte and am excadinge ioyouse in all oure tribulacions.
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I vse great boldnesse of speach toward you: I reioyce greatly in you: I am filled with comfort, and am exceeding ioyous in all our tribulation.
Cross-references (21)
Passages linked to 2 Corinthians 7:4 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- 2 Corinthians 1:4 who comforts us in all our affliction, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, through the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
- 2 Corinthians 3:12 Having therefore such a hope, we use great boldness of speech,
- James 1:2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you fall into various temptations,
- Romans 5:3 Not only this, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces perseverance;
- 1 Corinthians 1:4 I always thank my God concerning you, for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus;
- Philippians 2:17 Yes, and if I am poured out on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice, and rejoice with you all.
- Colossians 1:24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and fill up on my part that which is lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the assembly,
- Acts 5:41 They therefore departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for Jesus’ name.
- 2 Corinthians 1:14 as also you acknowledged us in part, that we are your boasting, even as you also are ours, in the day of our Lord Jesus.
- 2 Corinthians 2:14 Now thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and reveals through us the sweet aroma of his knowledge in every place.
- 2 Corinthians 6:10-11 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things. Our mouth is open to you, Corinthians. Our heart is enlarged.
- 2 Corinthians 7:6-7 Nevertheless, he who comforts the lowly, God, comforted us by the coming of Titus, and not by his coming only, but also by the comfort with which he was comforted in you while he told us of your longing, your mourning, and your zeal for me, so that I rejoiced still more.
- 2 Corinthians 8:24 Therefore show the proof of your love to them before the assemblies, and of our boasting on your behalf.
- 2 Corinthians 9:2-4 for I know your readiness, of which I boast on your behalf to those of Macedonia, that Achaia has been prepared for the past year. Your zeal has stirred up very many of them. But I have sent the brothers that our boasting on your behalf may not be in vain in this respect, that, just as I said, you may be prepared, lest by any means, if anyone from Macedonia comes there with me and finds you unprepared, we (to say nothing of you) would be disappointed in this confident boasting.
- 2 Corinthians 11:21 I speak by way of disparagement, as though we had been weak. Yet in whatever way anyone is bold (I speak in foolishness), I am bold also.
- Ephesians 6:19-20 on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in opening my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the Good News, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
- Philippians 1:20 according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will in no way be disappointed, but with all boldness, as always, now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:2 but having suffered before and been shamefully treated, as you know, at Philippi, we grew bold in our God to tell you the Good News of God in much conflict.
- 1 Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Isn’t it even you, before our Lord Jesus at his coming?
- 1 Thessalonians 3:7-9 for this cause, brothers, we were comforted over you in all our distress and affliction through your faith. For now we live, if you stand fast in the Lord. For what thanksgiving can we render again to God for you, for all the joy with which we rejoice for your sakes before our God,
- 2 Corinthians 10:1-2 Now I Paul, myself, entreat you by the humility and gentleness of Christ, I who in your presence am lowly among you, but being absent am bold toward you. Yes, I beg you that I may not, when present, show courage with the confidence with which I intend to be bold against some, who consider us to be walking according to the flesh.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (15 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 4. Great is my boldness. Now, as if he…
4. Great is my boldness. Now, as if he had obtained the enlargement of heart that he had desired on the part of the Corinthians, he leaves off complaining, and pours out his heart with cheerfulness. “What need is there that I should expend so much labor upon a matter already accomplished? For I think I have already what I asked. For the things that Titus has reported to me respecting you are not merely sufficient for quieting my mind, but afford me also ground of glorying confidently on your account Nay more, they have effectually dispelled the grief, which many great and heavy afflictions had occasioned me.” He goes on step by step, by way of climax; for glorying is more than being of an easy and quiet mind; and being freed from grief occasioned by many afflictions, is greater than either of those. Chrysostom explains this boldness somewhat differently, in this manner — “If I deal with you the more freely, it is on this account, that, relying on the assurance of your good will towards me, I think I may take so much liberty with you.” I have stated, however, what appeared to me to be the more probable meaning — that the report given by Titus had removed the unfavorable impression, which had previously racked his mind.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 4 Great is my boldness of speech toward you,…
4 Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying of you: I am filled with comfort, I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation.
Ver. 4. I am exceeding joyful] Gr. υπερπερισσενομαι, I do overbound exceedingly with joy. Others may revel, the godly only rejoice: they have an exuberance of joy, such as no good can match, no evil out match. Witness the martyrs, ancient and modern. Oh, how my heart leapeth for joy, said one of them, that I am so near the apprehension of eternal bliss! God forgive me mine unthankfulness and unworthiness of so great glory. In all the days of my life I was never so merry as now I am in this dark dungeon. Believe me there is no such joy in the world as the people of Christ have under the cross. Thus and much more Mr Philpot, martyr. (Acts and Mon.)
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Great is my boldness of speech toward you; because…
Great is my boldness of speech toward you; because I so dearly love you, therefore I speak so boldly and freely to you (as men use to speak most freely to those whom they most love).
Great is my glorying of you; I boast of your obedience to others, and therefore would be far from exposing you. And this I do not feignedly, for
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I am filled with comfort on your behalf (a further account of this he giveth us afterward).
I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation; yea, (saith he), the report I have received of your carriage and behaviour, upon your receipt of my former Epistle, hath filled me with a joy that balanceth all the affliction and tribulation that I meet with for the gospel. So good news to a faithful minister is the repentance and reformation of any member or members that belong to his flock; whereas the hireling, or false teacher, is not much concerned whether the souls of his people do well or ill.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Great is my boldness of speech towards you,.... Or…
Great is my boldness of speech towards you,.... Or "liberty of speaking", which I use with you; I very freely, and without any disguise, open my mind to you; I faithfully tell you your faults; I am free in my exhortations and counsels to you, as in the case of the incestuous person, and in other instances, which is a sign of true friendship; for had I any suspicion of you, or not cordial affection for you, I should have been more reserved, more upon my guard, and have spoke and wrote with more caution: besides,
great is my glorying, or "boasting of you"; of your faith in Christ, your love to the people of God, respect to the ministers of the Gospel, obedience to us, and very great liberality to the poor saints, of which the apostle frequently boasts in this epistle: now as speaking freely to them when present with them, or in writing to them, so glorying in them, and speaking well of them when absent, clearly showed what an opinion he had of them, and what true hearty respect he had for them:
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I am filled with comfort, says he; not only with divine and spiritual consolations from God, but with the news Titus brought of the state of this church, of the good effect the apostle's reproof and advice had both upon them, and the offender among them, and of their tender and affectionate regard to him: this filled him brimful of comfort, yea, adds he,
I am exceeding joyful; I abound, I over abound in joy; such is the joy that possesses my soul, at the tidings brought me, that it superabounds all the sorrow and anguish of spirit, out of which I wrote unto you, occasioned by the unhappy affair among you: yea, it makes me inexpressibly joyful in all our tribulation; which is not small we meet with, wherever we go, in preaching the Gospel of Christ.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain I am filled with comfort - Of this he…
I am filled with comfort - Of this he treats, 2 Cor. vii, 6, &c.; of his joy, 2 Cor. vii, 7, &c.; of both, 2 Cor. vii, 13.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 4. Great is my boldness of speech] He…
Verse 4. Great is my boldness of speech] He seems to refer to the manner in which he spoke of them to others.
Great is my glorying of you] They had probably been very loving and affectionate previously to the time in which they were perverted by their false apostle. He therefore had boasted of them in all the Churches.
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I am filled with comfort] My affection for you has still the most powerful ascendancy in my soul. Here we may see the affection of the most tender father to his children.
I am exceeding joyful] υπερπερισσευομαι. I superabound in joy; I have a joy beyond expression. υπερπερισσευω is an extremely rare verb. I have not met with it in any Greek author; and it occurs no where in the New Testament but here and in Ro 5:20.
In all our tribulation.] Perhaps επι here should be rendered under instead of in, as it signifies, Mr 2:26; Lu 3:2; Ac 11:28. Under all our tribulations, I feel inexpressible joy on your account.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain Great is my boldness of speech toward you -…
Great is my boldness of speech toward you - This verse seems designed to soften the apparent harshness of what he had said 2Co 6:12, when he intimated that there was a lack of love in them toward him (Bloomfield), as well as to refer to the plainness which he had used all along in his letters to them. He says, therefore, that he speaks freely; he speaks as a friend; he speaks with the utmost openness and frankness; he conceals nothing from them. He speaks freely of their faults, and he speaks freely of his love to them; and he as frankly commends them and praises them. It is the open, undisguised language of a friend, when he throws open his whole soul and conceals nothing.
Great is my glorying of you - I have great occasion to commend and praise you, and I do it freely. He refers here to the fact that he had boasted of their liberality in regard to the proposed collection for the poor saints of Judea 2Co 9:4; that he had formerly boasted much of them to Titus, and of their readiness to obey his commands 2Co 7:14; and that now he had had abundant evidence, by what he had heard from Titus (verses 5ff), that they were disposed to yield to his commands, and obey his injunctions. He had probably often had occasion to boast of their favorable regard for him.
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I am filled with comfort - That is, by the evidence which I have received of your readiness to obey me.
I am exceeding joyful - I am overjoyed. The word used here occurs nowhere else in the New Testament except in Rom 5:20. It is not found in the classic writers; and is a word which Paul evidently compounded (from ὑπὲρ huper and περισσεύω perisseuō), and means to superabound over, to superabound greatly, or exceedingly. It is a word which would be used only when the heart was full, and when it would be difficult to find words to express its conceptions. Paul’s heart was full of joy; and he pours forth his feelings in the most fervid and glowing language. I have joy which cannot be expressed.
In all our tribulation - see the note, 2Co 1:4.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain boldness of speech--(compare Co2 6:11).
boldness of speech--(compare Co2 6:11).
glorying of you--Not only do I speak with unreserved openness to you, but I glory (boast) greatly to others in your behalf, in speaking of you.
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filled with comfort--at the report of Titus (Co2 7:6-7, Co2 7:9, Co2 7:13; Co2 1:4).
exceeding joyful--Greek, I overabound with joy (Co2 7:7, Co2 7:9, Co2 7:16).
our tribulation--described in Co2 7:5; also in Co2 4:7-8; Co2 6:4-5.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 4. Great—Paul cannot directly address the Corinthians (as at…
4. Great—Paul cannot directly address the Corinthians (as at 2Co_6:1) without breaking into exultation.
Boldness—The fearlessness of a friendship that dares say any thing it pleases.
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Great… glorying—A climax; as is also comfort and exceeding joyful. Paul was lovingly bold in speaking to them, and boastful in speaking of them. He spake to them in fearless love; he spake to them in (if we may so say) holy pride.
Tribulation—In every crisis of danger and damage, joy over his Corinthian Church was a cheer and an exultation.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 4. Great is my boldness of speech toward you]…
4. Great is my boldness of speech toward you] Cf. note on ch. 2Co_3:12.
great is my glorying of you] See notes on ch. 2Co_1:14 and ch. 2Co_5:12. The word here signifies not the ground of rejoicing or boasting, but, as A. V., the act itself. St Paul explains his boldness of speech by the confidence he has that it will not be misplaced. This is another instance of the delicate tact of the Apostle referred to above.
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comfort] For this word and tribulation, see notes on ch. 2Co_1:3-4. So also below in 2Co_7:6-7.
I am exceeding joyful] Literally, I abound overmuch with Joy. The English word exceedingly has lost much of its original force.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (4) Great is my boldness of speech.—The context shows…
(4) Great is my boldness of speech.—The context shows that he is not apologising for bold and plain speaking, but uses the word as implying confidence (1Ti_3:13; Phm_1:8). He can speak without reticence now, because he is going to express his comfort and joy at what had been reported to him.
I am exceeding joyful.—Literally, I exceedingly abound (or, overflow) in joy. The verb is the same as in Rom_5:20, and answers to the “pressed above measure” which he had used in 2Co_1:8, in speaking of his troubles.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Boldness of speech. St. Paul feels that he may…
Boldness of speech. St. Paul feels that he may address them with perfect frankness and openness. (2Co_3:12) My glorying of you. "My boasting on your account" (2Co_1:14 2Co_5:12 2Co_8:14; comp. 1Co_1:4-7) I am filled with comfort. "I have been filled with the consolation." "Consolation" is the word which occurs so frequently in 2Co_1:3, 2Co_1:4. I am exceeding joyful. "I superabound in my joy". (2Co_2:2-14) In all our tribulation. The clause belongs to both the preceding clauses. Joy in the very midst of affliction was an essentially Christian blessing. (Php_2:17)
Thou shalt have joy in sadness soon; The pure calm hope be thine Which brightens the Eastern moon, When day"s wild lights decline. (2Co_6:10; Gal_5:22; Rom_14:17; Joh_15:11)
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A minister"s joy in tribulation.
The intensity of the apostle"s language is explained by the intensity of his feelings in relation to the Corinthians. He loved them greatly, and was ready to make any sacrifices for them. And he was proportionately grieved when the news came, through Titus, of the way in which evil men were trying to destroy his character and his influence. The tribulation he here refers to is chiefly this mental distress and the bodily suffering which it involved. His great relief in circumstances of so much distress was that the Corinthian Church, as a whole, had received his first letter in a right spirit. He could be joyful in this, even amidst his tribulation. Two points may receive illustration.
I THE TRIBULATION COMES FROM ANXIETY CONCERNING SPIRITUAL WELL BEING. Precisely this is the minister"s sphere. His interest is in the moral and spiritual condition of those who are set in his charge. But this is the most serious and overwhelming of all burdens that can be laid upon a man"s heart and effort. If we estimate what the due maintenance and culture of our own spiritual life involves, we may understand how great is the anxiety of Christian ministers who watch over souls as well as watch for souls. Illustrate by Samuel Rutherford"s intense expression of feeling, "God is my witness that your salvation would be two salvations to me, and your heaven two heavens to me." Show what a strain upon nervous constitutions the pressure of the ministry becomes in these our days.
II THE JOY COMES FROM DUE RESPONSE MADE TO EFFORTS FOR SPIRITUAL WELL BEING. Compare other expressions by apostles: e.g. "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth;" "What is our joy or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus at his coming? For ye are our glory and our joy." The minister has, in the culture of spiritual life, to use truth, warnings, threatenings, as well as comfortings and inspirings; and his joy is ever this his people are open-hearted to receive, are humble enough to regardwhat he may say, and. earnest enough to obey. No earthly joy is like that which they know who help their brethren to truth and purity and God. R.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 4. Great is my boldness of speech, etc. This…
4. Great is my boldness of speech, etc. This verse declares that he is overflowing with joyful feeling. The next section explains its cause.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great…
Great is my boldness of speech toward you, great is my glorying on your behalf: I am filled with comfort, I overflow with joy in all our affliction . [This verse tells of Paul's restored confidence in the Corinthians, and his consequent freedom of speech and joyfulness of heart. The next few verses show us that these changes were wrought in him by the report which he received from Titus concerning affairs at Corinth.]
J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 7:4 All our troubles might refer to Paul’s many…
7:4 All our troubles might refer to Paul’s many hardships (6:5) or his problems with the Corinthians themselves. Either way, he was filled with joy because the church’s response had greatly encouraged him (as he explains in 7:5-16).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.