Matthew Poole and continuators on 2 Corinthians 7

1 HAving therefore these promises (dearly beloved) let us cleanse our selves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit , perfecting holiness in the fear of God .

These promises, i. e. of Gods dwelling in us, and walking with us, of Gods being our Father, and making and owning us as his Sons; which promises are made to true Penitents that will touch no unclean thing.

Let us, through the assistance of Divine Grace, endeavour to cleanse our selves, or keep our selves clean, not only from fleshly filthiness, (such as are sins of intemperance, drunkenness, uncleanness) but also from spiritual filthiness, (extravagant passions, corrupt affections, pride, envy, rash anger, Idolatry, contention, division.)

And that, because we are not only obliged to Holiness, but to perfect Holiness, in, or through the fear of the Lord; awing our hearts, lest we should profane the Temple of the Lord, or behave our selves as undutiful Sons to so good a Father. So far are Gods promises, and our belief of them, or affiance in God for the fulfilling of them, from hindering us in the practice and exercise of Holiness, that there can be no more potent motive to perswade the perfection of Holiness; and that not only from the Argument of Divine Love, contained in the promises, but from the consideration of the persons to whom, and the conditions upon which, the promises are made.

Marginal references: 1 Joh. 3.3.

2 Receive us , We have wronged no man , we have corrupted no man , we have defrauded no man .

Let us have a room in your hearts and esteem, or (more generally) accept us, as you ought to receive and accept the Ministers of Christ. As our heart is inlarged towards you, so let your hearts be inlarged towards us; we have done nothing to alienate your hearts from us.

We have done no harm to any of you, we have not been like Shepherds that meerly take the fleece, and eat the flesh of the flock; Acts 20.33. I have coveted no mans silver, or gold, or apparel.

We have corrupted none by any false Doctrine, or by flattering Speeches, or by Bribes or Gifts.

We have cheated, or defrauded no man. By which Vindication of, or Apology for himself, and his Fellow-labourers; it is not improbably judged, that the Apostle reflecteth upon those false Apostles and Teachers that were crept into this Church, who had wronged him, corrupted them, and been too busie in other ways to pick their pockets. Nothing becometh more a Minister of the Gospel, than innocency and righteousness, nothing more commends him unto his people: For though they are easily perswaded, that an innocent and just man must be a pious man, yet they are difficulty perswaded, (and there is no reason for it) that an unjust or mischievous man can be so. Men are so mad of their lusts, that oft-times Teachers, who will favour them in them, though never so unjust and unrighteous in their actings, shall find more favour with them, than the most righteous person, that will not spare them as to their Herodi[illegible: 1 letter]s. But he who will entertain the least hopes to bring men off from their lusts and sinful practices, is concerned above all men to be innocent and righteous.

Marginal references: Chap. 12.17.

3 I speak not this to condemn you: for I have said before, that you are in our hearts to die and live with you .

The Apostle deals very tenderly with this Church, which was (as he knew very well) full of many touchy Members; who upon all occasions were ready to reflect upon him, and to take occasion from any expressions of his in Letters, as well as other things, to that purpose; to obviate whose whisperings the Apostle tells them, that he did not speak this to reflect upon, or expose them, as if they had wronged, or defrauded him: For the love which he bare to them was such, as would admit of no such thing; he so loved them, as that he could live and dye with them.

Marginal references: Chap. [illegible: 1 letter].1[illegible: 1 letter] 12.

4 Great is my boldness of speech towards you , great is my glorying of you , I am filled with comfort , I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation .

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.)

I boast of your obedience to others, and therefore would be far from exposing you.

And this I do not feignedly, for I am filled with comfort on your behalf; (a further account of this he giveth us afterward.)

Yea, (saith he) the report I have received of your carriage and behaviour, upon your receit 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.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] [illegible: 1 letter].17. [illegible: 1 word] 1.24.

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

Of this motion of the Apostles into Macedonia, what he did and suffered there, we have a short account Acts 20. He saith, His flesh had no rest, he met with incessant Storms of persecution:

and was troubled both by Iews and Gentiles in all places where he came.

By persons that were without the Christian Church; such were the generality of the Jews and Gentiles;

and by false Brethren within, or with his own fears, lest those violent dealings should be temptations to Christians, being yet tender and young in the Faith, to relapse and Apostatize.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] 2.13.; [illegible: 1 word] 32.25.

6 Nevertheless, God that comforteth those that are cast down , comforted us by the coming of Titus .

It's observable▪ how careful the Apostle is to ascribe all the supports and reliefs of his Spirit unto God. Nor is this Notion, or name of God unuseful to any that fear him; who through any casualties or contingences of this life shall happen to be cast down. It advantageth our Faith in Prayer, in any such straits to consider God, as having taken to himself the name of him that comforteth those that are cast down.

It is only the coming of Titus his Fellow-labourer and one dear to him▪ that he mentioneth in this Verse, as the means of his support and relief; yet he entituleth God to his comfort, under his dejection. God comforteth his people variously▪ sometimes by his good word, sometimes by his Providence; be what will the Instrumental cause, God is the principal Efficient.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word] 1.4.

7 And not by his coming only, but by the consolation wherewith he was comforted in you , when he told us your earnest desire , your mourning , your fervent mind towards me, so that I rejoiced the more .

I was glad to see Titus, but that was the least of that consolation which he brought me. You had before much comforted and rejoyced him, and he being come to me, made me a Partaker of his consolation, upon his beholding or being a Witness to

your earnest desire, to give me satisfaction in the things about which I wrote to you,

Your mourning, either for those scandals amongst you, of which I have given you notice; or for my afflicted state, and condition; or for the offence you had given me, which caused me to write that sharp Letter to you.

Your earnest desire to give me satisfaction, and yield obedience to my admonitions, or to maintain and defend my honour and reputation against such as had impeached and wounded it. These things much augmented my rejoycing in, and over you. Nothing so much rejoiceth the heart of a conscientious, faithful Minister of Christ, as to see his peoples obedience to the Doctrine of the Gospel, which he is an Instrument to communicate to them.

8 For though I made you sorry with a letter , I do not repent , though I did repent : For I perceive that the same Epistle made you sorry, though it were but for a season .

The Apostle doubtless meaneth the former Epistle to this Church.

As to which, he saith, that although he was sometimes troubled, because (probably) he understood that some truly pious persons in this Church were troubled at it, as thinking themselves intended in the reprehensions of it; for which effect, or mistake, (he saith) he was once sorry, being troubled that he should do any thing to grieve them, whom he so affectionately loved, yet now he tells them he was not sorry.

And their sorrow was but a temporary sorrow; until they could reform those abuses, which they were made sensible of by that Epistle, and give the Apostle that wrote it just satisfaction.

Marginal references: [illegible: 1 word]. 2.4.

9 Now I rejoice not that you were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance : For ye were made sorry after a godly manner , that ye might receive damage by us in nothing .

The Apostle takes all advantages to insinuate himself into the good Opinion and affections of the Members of this famous Church, and to obviate any misrepresentations of him to them from those false Teachers that were crept in amongst them. Lest they should take some advantage from his saying, that he repented not that he had made them sorry; he here openeth himself, and tells them, he did not rejoice in their sorrow, but in the blessed product and effect of it; which was their Reformation of those abuses and Errours which he had reproved them for; the effect of which reproof, was this their sorrow for a little season.

And that they were made sorry after a godly manner; they did but sow in tears, they reaped in joy; they had a wet Seed-time, but a fair Harvest. They sorrowed with a sorrow according to God; the cause of their sorrow was their sin, the root of it a love to God, the manner of it such as was agreeable to the Will of God.

The wise God [illegible: 1 letter]o governing things by his Providence, that nothing, which the Apostle spake or wrote, should prove de[illegible: 1 letter]rimental; but rather advantageous to this Church which he so loved.

Marginal references: Or, according to God.

10 For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation, not to be repented of : but the sorrow of the world worketh death .

That sorrow, which is according to God, either commanded by him, (as sorrow for our own or others sins, or for the Judgments of God, as they are the indications of God's wrath and displeasure for sin;) or which he, as the God of Grace, worketh in the soul, touching the heart by the Finger of his Spirit, Zech. 12.10. Or whose end is the Glory of God, in the reformation of the person sorrowing, by an hatred and detestation of sin, and an hearty turning from it.

Worketh repentance; it is not repentance, but it produceth that change of heart and life, which is repentance; and shall not be imperfect, but perfect, which shall issue in the salvation of the soul; and neither will ever be repented of. Never did any when he came to dye repent of true repentance; nor is it possible, that reasonable Souls should repent of what issueth in their eternal salvation.

But all sorrow except this, is but the sorrow of the World; the effect of which is oft-times Natural death; While men bow down under their burdens, and through impatience destroy themselves, or at least so fix their thoughts upon sad objects, and so afflict themselves with them, that they bring themselves into Diseases tending to death. It also worketh Spiritual death; as it indisposeth men for their Duty: (as it was in the case of Elijah) and is a temptation to them to be angry against God (as in the case of Ionah) to fret, murmure and repine against God's Providence, and by this means it also worketh towards Eternal death, which is the wages belonging to sin.

11 For behold, this self same thing, that ye sorrowed after a godly sort, what carefulness it wrought in you , yea what clearing of your selves ? yea what indignation ? yea what fear ? yea what vehement desire ? yea what zeal ? yea what revenge ? In all things ye have approved your selves to be clear in this matter.

The Apostle having shewed the mischievous effects of worldly sorrow, all which he comprehended under the word Death; here sheweth the blessed effects of that sorrow which is according to God. The first he mentioneth is great carefulness, both to make our peace with God for our former violations of his Law, (using all means he hath prescribed, and directed thereunto;) and also to preserve our peace, by avoiding the like breaches for the time to come.

The Corinthians sorrow might work in some of them a clearing, or purging themselves of that guilt which other Members of that Church had incurred. But there is another clearing of our selves, which true repentance worketh; not by denying the fact, but by confessing it, with taking shame to our selves; which, though it be not a clearing of a person from the fact, yet, through Divine Grace, joined with a reformation, it is a clearing him from the guilt thereof.

What a displeasure against your selves, for your follies!

What fear! not so much of the wrath of God, as lest you should again fall into the like temptations, and be overcome by them.

What vehement desire! what hearty Prayers to God, that for the time to come you might be kept from the like temptations!

yea, what warmth and great degrees of all sanctified affections! love to God, hatred of sin, fear of offending God, desire to please him.

What acts of Discipline, fas[illegible: 1 letter]ing, denying of your selves in some lawful things wherein you may have offended, or the too free use of which may have been to you occasions of offending.

By these Acts, though some of you have been to be blamed, yet the Body of you have shewed your selves clear of this matter; or though all of you have been formerly too guilty of some things I have charged you with, yet you have cleared your selves both to God, (who imputeth no sin to him that confesseth his sin, and forsaketh it) and to me, who am abundantly satisfied with your declared sorrow, repentance, and reformation.

12 Wherefore though I wrote unto you, I did it not for his cause that had done the wrong , nor for his cause that suffered wrong , but that our care for you in the sight of God might appear to you .

For the cause of him that had abused his Fathers Wife, not out of any particular hatred or ill will I had to him,

nor for the sake of him whose Wife was so abused; nor for my own sake who had been so abused, and suffered wrong by you;

but only out of a love to your Souls, and a care I had for you, that in all things you might approve your selves unto God. Or possibly this Text is more generally to be interpreted, without respect either to the incestuous person in particular, or to his Father; and the sense of the Verse no more than this, Though in my former Epistle I wrote something sharply to you, yet I did it not in any passion, nor was I drawn aside by any prejudice or hatred of any person, nor out of any partial affection to any, as to any thing for which I blamed you; but out of that general love and affection which I have to you all, which produceth in me a care of, and a sollicitude for you, that you might do no evil, which care I was willing should appear to you.

13 Therefore we were comforted in your comfort ; yea, and exceedingly the more joyed we for the joy of Titus, because his spirit was refreshed by you all .

The comfort which your Letters brought us, and so came from you; or the comfort which you received upon your reformation of those things which were amiss amongst you.

And we also joyed for the joy that Titus conceived, upon his understanding of your affairs, and your ready obedience to the Epistle which I wrote to you; such is the union betwixt the true Members of Christ, that they are comforted with one anothers comforts, and afflicted with one anothers sorrows and griefs.

14 For if I have boasted any thing to him of you, I am not ashamed; but as we spake all things to you in truth, even so our boasting which I made before Titus, is found a truth .

The Apostle here multiplieth expressions to sweeten the Corinthians, by all manner of ways declaring his value for, and affection towards them. It appeareth by this, that the Apostle had at some time before spoken something to Titus in commendation of this Church of Corinth, which he here calleth a Boasting of them; he now again boasted, that he had said nothing but the truth, which Titus had experienced, and reported to him.

15 And his inward affection is more abundant towards you, whilst he remembreth the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling you received him .

By your obedience to my admonitions and exhortations, you have not only obliged me in a debt of Love to you, but Titus also; who joyfully remembers, with what fear and trembling you received him, lest he should find any thing amongst you that should grieve and offend him.

Marginal references: Gr. bowels.

16 I rejoice therefore that I have confidence in you in all things .

That I can write and speak to you with confidence, that you will hearken to my admonitions and exhortations, and that I can confidently boast glory concerning you.

Marginal references: Chap. 2.9. Phil. 2.12. 2 Thess. 3.4. Philem. 21.