This is why I write these things while absent, so that when I am present I will not need to be severe in my use of the authority that the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.
Parallel translations
- WEB For this cause I write these things while absent, that I may not deal sharply when present, according to the authority which the Lord gave me for building up, and not for tearing down.
- KJV Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the power which the Lord hath given me to edification, and not to destruction.
- NKJV Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the authority which the Lord has given me for edification and not for destruction.
- NASB For this reason I am writing these things while absent, so that when present I need not use severity, in accordance with the authority which the Lord gave me for building up and not for tearing down.
- NLT I am writing this to you before I come, hoping that I won’t need to deal severely with you when I do come. For I want to use the authority the Lord has given me to strengthen you, not to tear you down.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Paul writes these warnings while absent so that, when present, he need not use his authority severely; that authority was given for building up, not tearing down. It matters because godly discipline aims at restoration, not destruction.
Overview
Paul prefers correction by letter now to harsh action later, hoping repentance will make severity unnecessary. He clarifies the purpose of his Lord-given authority: edification, not demolition. This sets the pattern for all church discipline, whose end is the healing and growth of God's people.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- 2 Cor 10:8For even if I boast somewhat excessively about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than tearing you down, I will not be ashamed.
- 2 Cor 2:3I wrote as I did so that on my arrival I would not be saddened by those who ought to make me rejoice. I had confidence in all of you, that you would share my joy.
- Titus 1:13This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sternly, so that they will be sound in the faith
- 2 Cor 13:8For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth.
- 2 Cor 10:2I beg you that when I come I may not need to be as bold as I expect toward those who presume that we live according to the flesh.
- 1 Cor 4:21Which do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love and with a gentle spirit?
- 2 Cor 13:2I already warned you the second time I was with you. So now in my absence I warn those who sinned earlier and everyone else: If I return, I will not spare anyone,
- 2 Cor 12:20–21For I am afraid that when I come, I may not find you as I wish, and you may not find me as you wish. I fear that there may be quarreling, jealousy, rage, rivalry, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorder.
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Christ at the center
In Christ all God's promises are 'Yes and Amen'; though rich, he became poor to make us rich, and in him God reconciles the world, making us new creations.
How 2 Corinthians 13:10 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.