The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown (108 page)

Despite this evidence many scholars suspect that 2 Corinthians is a composite document consisting of several pieces of Pauline correspondence addressed to Corinth and elsewhere and possibly some non-Pauline material as well. The integrity of the letter has been challenged at four points. First, many scholars believe that the change in tone from chaps. 1—9 to 10—13 suggests that chaps. 10—13 belong to an originally separate letter written either before or after chaps. 1—9. Second, some scholars believe that the transition from chap. 8 to chap. 9 is unusually abrupt and that chap. 9 may have been pasted to chap. 8 by a later editor. Third, 2:14—7:4 is recognized by some as a unit distinct from the rest of the letter that interrupts Paul's discussion of Titus and his travel to Macedonia in 2:12—13 and 7:5—16. Fourth, some scholars see 6:14—7:1 as out of place and out of character for Paul. Moreover, affinities between this text and some Qumran documents suggest that the section may be a non-Pauline interpolation.

2 Corinthians 10—13
A bewildering array of theories exists that attempt to demonstrate that 2 Corinthians 10—13 was originally a separate piece of correspondence appended to chaps. 1—9. Some scholars have argued that chaps. 10—13 are an earlier “painful letter” mentioned in 2 Cor 7:8.
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However, it is clear that the painful letter demanded that an offender in the church be punished (2 Cor 2:5—6; 7:12), and chaps. 10—13 make no reference to such an offender. Moreover, no satisfactory reasons have been offered to explain why a redactor would fuse two separate letters together and ignore their chronological order.

The majority of recent commentators argue that Paul wrote chaps. 10—13 sometime after chaps. 1—9.
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After Titus delivered chaps. 1—9 to the Corinthians, Paul received
further information about their situation, which demanded another stern response.
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He wrote chaps. 10—13 as his final letter to the Corinthians. The major difficulty with the theory is that it requires a later editor to have excised both the original conclusion of the letter containing chaps. 1—9 and the original introduction of the letter comprised of chaps. 10—13 in order to combine the two letters. One wonders why, if an editor were willing to make such changes in order to join two letters seamlessly, he would not take additional steps to smooth out the transition from one section to another. This theory is also complicated by references to Paul's upcoming visit to Corinth in the two sections. As L. Belleville has noted:

While Paul obliquely speaks of his upcoming visit in 9:4 (“if any Macedonians come with me”), it is only in chapters 10—13 that an explicit announcement is made and details are given. Indeed, it would have been a breach of epistolary etiquette for Paul to have written without formally announcing a forthcoming visit.
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In light of these difficulties with theories that 2 Corinthians is a composite document, many continue to affirm the original unity of the letter. The shift in tone between the earlier and later sections of the letter can be easily explained without requiring an interpolation. Chapters 1—9 may be addressed to the congregation at large, while chaps. 10—13 are directed primarily to Paul's opponents. More likely Paul received new information about the situation in Corinth after a lengthy dictation pause. Depending on the schedules of authors and their secretaries, periods of days or even weeks might pass between the dictations of various sections of a letter. This was more than an adequate amount of time for Paul to receive new information that might require a fresh approach in the final chapters of the letter.

2 Corinthians 9
Several scholars have noted that 2 Corinthians 9 sits rather awkwardly in its present context. After discussing the collection of the relief offering in chap. 8 at length, chap. 9 begins with what many deem to be an introductory formula (“Now concerning the ministry to the saints, it is unnecessary for me to write to you”) and discusses the relief offering all over again. J. S. Semler advanced the theory that chap. 9 was originally a separate letter addressed to Christians in Achaian cities other than Corinth. But recent research has demonstrated that the so-called introductory formula in 2 Cor 9:1 was used for a variety of purposes,
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and one of the most common uses was to give an
explanation of preceding material.
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Moreover, chap. 9 refers repeatedly to “the brothers” who are known only by their previous identification in 8:16—24. Both of these features strongly imply the original unity of chaps. 8 and 9.

2 Corinthians 6:14—7:1
Initially, 2 Cor 6:14—7:1 does appear to be positioned somewhat awkwardly. In 6:11—13 Paul spoke of his heart being open to the Corinthians and urged them to open their hearts to him. This closely matches 7:2, “Take us into your hearts.” The intervening text appears to disrupt this connection.

But Paul may have viewed 6:14—7:1 as a necessary qualification for his plea to the Corinthians to “be open” in 6:13. Paul insists that this desired openness does not mean forsaking all discretion and embracing all people regardless of their lifestyles. The prohibition of idolatry in 6:16 seems to confirm this. In Deut 6:11 (LXX), the open or widened heart is associated with involvement in idolatry. Perhaps after urging the Corinthians to open their hearts, Paul sensed that he must clarify his intentions so as not to encourage the Corinthians’ predisposition toward idolatry. The text does parallel texts from Qumran, but these parallels do not require it to be an interpolation since Paul may have incorporated a preformed text into the letter. Moreover, commentators have observed several Pauline features in the text: (1) the description of the church as God's temple; (2) the emphasis on righteousness; (3) the contrast between light and darkness; and (4) the tension between the “already” and the “not yet.”
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The letter also expresses concerns virtually identical to concerns expressed in 1 Corinthians. For example, 2 Cor 6:14, “Do not be mismatched with unbelievers,” closely parallels 1 Cor 6:15-17 and the command to marry “only in the Lord” (1 Cor 7:39). Moreover, Paul's command in 2 Cor 6:14 clearly interprets OT animal laws (here Deut 32:10), allegorically applying a hermeneutic identical to the one he utilized in 1 Cor 8:8—11. Also, 2 Cor 6:15—16 seems closely related to concerns Paul expressed in 1 Cor 10:20—22. Numerous commentators believe that the disruption in thought was caused by a lapse of time between Paul's composition of the preceding text and this section.
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2 Corinthians 2:14—7:4
Paul broke off his discussion of Titus and Macedonia in 2:14 and did not return to that discussion until 7:5. But a rather tight connection exists between 2:13 and 2:14 that makes it unlikely that 2:14 begins a completely different document. In 2:13 Paul explained that, despite his evangelistic opportunities in Troas, he felt compelled to leave the city and travel to Macedonia out of concern for Titus who had apparently left Troas for Macedonia shortly before Paul's arrival. In verse 14 Paul further stated that Titus's and later Paul's journeys to Macedonia fulfilled God's gracious plan to spread “in every place the scent of knowing Him.” This naturally flowed into a discussion of the purpose and motives for Paul's missionary work. H. Lietzmann demonstrated that 7:4 is closely bound to 7:5—6 by three verbal links that strongly suggest the original unity
of the sections.
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Thus, theories that 2:14—7:4 originally constituted a separate document are unconvincing.

In 1 Cor 1:1 Paul listed Sosthenes as a cosender. Some have inferred from the use of the first person plural pronoun “we” in the letter that Sosthenes had a greater role in composing the letter than was normally the case for Paul. Sosthenes is not mentioned elsewhere in Paul's letters. But it is possible that the Sosthenes of 1 Corinthians is the same Sosthenes mentioned in Acts 18:17, the ruler of the synagogue who was beaten by bystanders after the Jews accused Paul before Gallio in Corinth. If so, Sosthenes was a follower of Christ at the time of the writing of 1 Corinthians and supported and encouraged the ministry of the apostle he once persecuted.

In 2 Cor 1:1 Paul listed Timothy as a cosender. In contrast to Sosthenes, much is known about Timothy and his relationship to Paul. Paul met Timothy on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:1), and the two became life-long friends. Two of Paul's letters, 1 and 2 Timothy, are personally addressed to him. Moreover, Timothy was named as cosender of more of Paul's letters than any other individual. In addition to 2 Corinthians, he was Paul's cosender of five other letters: Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, and Philemon.

Date and Provenance

Paul's history with the Corinthians is complex, but it is possible to reconstruct the course of the apostle's dealings with this difficult congregation from the available evidence in Acts and 1 and 2 Corinthians with a high degree of plausibility. As the following list shows, Paul made at least three visits to Corinth and wrote at least four letters, only two of which have been preserved in the Christian canon. The sequence of these visits and letters presents itself as follows.

1. First visit: Paul planted the church in Corinth in 50-52 (Acts 18)
   
2. Paul wrote the “previous letter” (1 Cor 5:9,11; “Corinthians A”)
   
3. Paul wrote 1 Corinthians from Ephesus in 53/54 (1 Cor 16:8; “Corinthians B”)
   
4. Second visit: the “painful visit” (2 Cor 2:1; see 12:14; 13:1-2)
   
5. Paul wrote the “severe letter” (2 Cor 2:4; 7:8; “Corinthians C”)
   
6. Paul wrote 2 Corinthians from Macedonia in 54/55 (2 Cor 7:5; 8:1; 9:2; “Corinthians D”)
   
7. Third visit (Acts 20:2)
   

1
Corinthians
According to 1 Cor 16:8, Paul wrote 1 Corinthians during his third missionary journey when he was well into his two-and-a-half-year stay in Ephesus. Based on the Delphi Inscription, Paul's appearance before Gallio in Corinth on the second missionary journey can be dated to late 51. Paul then returned to Antioch and later traveled through Galatia and Achaia to Ephesus where he remained for two and a half to three
years. Paul probablywrote 1 Corinthians shortly before Pentecost either in late 53 or early 54.
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2 Corinthians
Paul wrote 2 Corinthians from Macedonia (2 Cor 7:5; 8:1; 9:2). The subscription in several ancient manuscripts of the letter states more specifically that Paul wrote the letter from Philippi. This is a plausible provenance but remains uncertain unless more evidence becomes available. Second Corinthians 9:2 implies that the Corinthians had been preparing for the Jerusalem relief offering “since last year.” This seems to require a date of composition in late 54 or perhaps early 55. The letter was delivered to Corinth by Titus and two other church representatives who later accompanied Paul to Jerusalem with the relief offering.
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Destination

Paul addressed the Corinthian letters to “God's church at Corinth, to those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus and called as saints” (1 Cor 1:2) and to “God's church at Corinth” (2 Cor 1:1). Although the church at Corinth was the primary intended recipient of the letters, Paul wanted the letters to be read by many congregations, particularly those in Achaia. First Corinthians was coaddressed to “all those in every place who call on the name of Jesus Christ our Lord—theirs and ours” (1:2). Similarly, 2 Corinthians was co-addressed to “all the saints who are throughout Achaia” (1:1).

Paul planted the churches in the province of Achaia in cities such as Athens and Corinth during his second missionary journey (Acts 17:16—18:17). He revisited the area during his third missionary journey (Acts 20:1—6). He returned again after his release from his first Roman imprisonment (2 Tim 4:20).

In Paul's day, the population was probably about 200,000, although some scholars and ancient writers suggest that it was much larger.
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Since even conservative estimates make Corinth eight times larger than Athens, the enormous population of Corinth probably explains why Paul left Athens for Corinth after only a brief ministry there during the second missionary journey. It may also explain why Paul felt compelled to serve there for an entire 18 months. Corinth's political importance also exceeded that of other cities in the region. Since 27 BC, Corinth had been the administrative center for the province of Achaia.
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Corinth's prosperity was due in part to its strategic location. The city was located on the isthmus that connected the Peloponnesus, the southern peninsula of Greece, to mainland Greece. At its most narrow point, this land bridge was only about three and a half miles wide. On the western side of the isthmus lay the port of Lechaeum, which gave access to the Adriatic Sea and across the sea to Italy. On the eastern side of the isthmus lay the port of Cenchrea, which gave access to the Aegean Sea and across the sea to Asia. The Greeks paved a stone road known as the
diolkos
across the narrow isthmus between these two important ports in the sixth century BC.
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The Greeks portaged cargo from one side of the isthmus to another on the diolkos and reloaded it on another vessel. This expedited the shipment of their cargo, shaved hundreds of miles off their journeys, and eliminated the need to sail through the treacherous waters south of the Peloponnesus. According to two ancient writers, some crews even loaded small ships on wagons on the diolkos and carried them across the isthmus.
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This isthmus was also the location of ancient Isthmia, the site of the famous Isthmian games. These games were held every two years, the years both before and after the Olympics, and attracted athletes from all over the ancient world to compete in contests. Several ancient writers note that the games were an important boost to Corinth's economy and enabled the city to prosper when other Greek cities like Athens were languishing.
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The events of the Isthmian games were similar to those of the Olympics. Participants could compete in wrestling or boxing matches, the
pankration
(a combination of ancient martial arts that combined special holds, hand strikes, and kicks), footraces, long jumping, discus and javelin throwing, chariot races, and even music contests. First Corinthians is rich with athletic imagery, and Paul may have used this imagery in part because of the prominence of the Isthmian games in Corinth's history. First Corinthians 9:24—28 refers to racing, boxing, and even the “perishable crown” made of wilted celery that was awarded to victors in the Isthmian games. Paul's time in Corinth probably overlapped with one season of the games. The games would have given him a strategic opportunity to share the good news with people from all over ancient Greece and much of the civilized world.