“We give no offense in anything, that our ministry may not be blamed. But in all things we commend ourselves as ministers of God: in much patience, in tribulations, in needs, in distresses, in stripes, in imprisonments, in tumults, in labors, in sleeplessness, in fastings” (2 Corinthians 6:3-5).
A number of spiritual benefits are hidden away in 2 Corinthians 6:3-10 for those who are willing to uncover them. Within this portion of Scripture, Paul the Apostle will first list some of the challenges he encountered in ministry and then go on to detail several positive virtues that resulted from the act of following God’s agenda for his life. Reading through these life experiences can help prepare us for whatever we may encounter in our own spiritual walk.
The first item on this list is patience, a word that expresses the qualities of steadfastness, constancy, and endurance. (1) Next is tribulation. Today, we might use the “pressure” to communicate the idea behind this word. Alternative definitions of “tribulation” would include words like oppression, affliction, and/or distress. (2) Paul next referred to various “needs.” This word is translated as hardships (AMP), emergencies (MKJV), and difficulties (NET) in other versions of this passage.
The next item is distresses. One commentator defines this word as the “…calamitous situations from which one cannot escape. The Greek word pictures a person trapped in a confining place.” (3) Another source notes the extent of the distresses Paul endured by observing, “These were of every kind: (1) personal rejection by former friends; (2) disease; (3) shipwrecks; (4) plots to murder him; (5) charges laid against him before governors; (6) anxieties for the churches; (7) travel delays, etc., etc.” (4)
Stripes refers to a physical lashing with a whip, a punishment that Paul endured more than once. Imprisonments requires no definition but does serve to remind us that Paul was incarcerated on a number of occasions. A tumult carries the idea of a rioting mob, something that Paul once experienced in the town of Ephesus. Labors brings to mind the physical effort that Paul invested in his work. Finally, sleeplessness and fastings (or hunger [NIV]) are experiences that are familiar to many.
While we may not be called to endure this particular set of challenges, these examples can help prepare us to overcome the difficulties we often encounter in life. As one source candidly observes, “…in these three categories, tough circumstances, tough opposition, and tough commitments, (Paul) faced continual conditions of pressure. Yet he never quit.” (5)
(1) G5281 hupomone https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?t=kjv&strongs=g5281
(2) G2347 thlipsis https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?t=kjv&strongs=g2347
(3) Thomas L. Constable, Notes on 2 Corinthians 2017 Edition [6:4-5]. Copyright © 2017 Thomas L. Constable http://www.soniclight.com/constable/notes/htm/NT/2%20Corinthians/2Corinthians.htm
(4) James Burton Coffman, Coffman’s Commentaries on the Bible, 2 Corinthians 6 [Verse 4] https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bcc/2-corinthians-6.html10
(5) Excerpted with permission from Sensible Fanaticism, © 1979, 1995 by Ray Stedman Ministries. All rights reserved. Visit www.RayStedman.org for the complete library of Ray Stedman material. Please direct any questions to [email protected].