2 Corinthians 12:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works.

NIV: I persevered in demonstrating among you the marks of a true apostle, including signs, wonders and miracles.

NASB: The distinguishing marks of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs, wonders, and miracles.

CSB: The signs of an apostle were performed with unfailing endurance among you, including signs and wonders and miracles.

NLT: When I was with you, I certainly gave you proof that I am an apostle. For I patiently did many signs and wonders and miracles among you.

KJV: Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, in signs, and wonders, and mighty deeds.

NKJV: Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds.

False teachers—self-proclaimed apostles—are attacking Paul's authority in the church at Corinth. Critics had questioned whether he was a true apostle or not. These attackers were trying to seduce the Corinthians away from devotion to the true Christ, tempting them towards belief in a false gospel. Part of these attacks were to belittle Paul's unspectacular attitude and appearance (2 Corinthians 10:10). Paul responded by sarcastically imitating the self-promotion of those men, which even then became a list of his sufferings for the sake of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:21, 30).

Paul wrote that the Corinthians should have commended him, or stuck up for him, to the false apostles (2 Corinthians 12:11). They knew him. He had lived among them and led many of them to faith in Christ. He sounds pained and baffled that the Corinthians would think he was inferior to the ones he sarcastically calls the "super-apostles."

After all, he now writes, the Corinthians saw the signs and wonders and mighty works performed through him by the power of the Holy Spirit. Demonstrations of the Holy Spirit's power were among the marks of a true apostle of Jesus. Signs and wonders and mighty works were supernatural occurrences that served as evidence that God's power was at work in and through one of His messengers, especially as the church was being born (Acts 2:43; Hebrews 2:4). The specific signs and wonders performed in Corinth are not recorded in the New Testament, but they were a routine part of Paul's ministry.

Paul says such signs were performed among them with "patience," here again referring to Paul's endurance of difficult times for the Corinthians' sake. The evidence of God's power and authority in Paul was obvious to them, especially at the time. Paul seems to wonder how they could have forgotten that.

Second Corinthians 12:11–21 describes Paul's disappointment that the Corinthians did not defend him against attacks from false apostles. The believers of Corinth saw the signs and wonders God performed through him. Paul declares once again that he will not receive payment from them. A father provides for his children, not the other way around. He rejects an accusation that he or Titus plan to swindle them and expresses his concern that when he arrives in Corinth, he will find some still unrepentant of specific sins.

With as much humility as possible, Paul describes an astounding experience. He was caught up to the ''third heaven'' and received a revelation from God that he cannot reveal on earth. He refuses to brag about it, but mentions it in order to introduce the consequences of that experience. To keep Paul humble, God gave him a ''thorn in the flesh,'' some malady which the Bible does not explicitly explain. Paul has learned to be content in his suffering since God's power is made perfect in his weakness. He chastises the Corinthians for not commending him since they know him. He defends himself against a charge of crafty swindling, and he expresses concern that he will find some still living in sin when he arrives in Corinth.

Second Corinthians 12 follows Paul's sarcastic ''boasting'' about his suffering for Christ. The chapter continues with Paul refusing to take credit for an astounding revelation from God. Given a ''thorn in the flesh'' to keep him humble, Paul learned to be content with his suffering since God's power was made perfect in his weakness. Still, the Corinthians should have defended him to the false apostles and not believed lies about him swindling money from them with no evidence. He is concerned that when he comes to visit them, he will find some still unrepentant of specific sins. This leads Paul to his final warnings and the close of his letter, in chapter 13.

Second Corinthians returns to similar themes as those Paul mentioned in his first letter to this church. Paul is glad to hear that the church in Corinth has heeded his advice. At the same time, it is necessary for Paul to counter criticisms about his personality and legitimacy. Most of this text involves that subject. The fifth chapter, in contrast, contains comforting words which Christians have quoted often in times of hardship. Paul also details his expectations that the church in Corinth will make good on their promise to contribute to the needs of suffering believers in Jerusalem.