Now I Paul myself beseech you
The apostle having said what was necessary and proper to stir up
the Corinthians to a liberal contribution for the poor saints at
Jerusalem, returns to the vindication of himself against the
false apostles; and earnestly entreats the members of this
church,
by the meekness and gentleness of Christ,
not to regard their reproaches, and join with them in them; for
did they but consider the meek and gentle deportment of Christ,
so worthy of his and their imitation, they would see there was no
reason to reflect on him for that part of his conduct, in which
he followed his Lord and master; whose meekness was to be seen in
the assumption of human nature, in the whole of his life and
conversation, and in his sufferings and death; and his
"gentleness" of Spirit to be observed in his coming into this
world, not to judge and condemn it, but that the world might be
saved; in bearing all indignities and insults, without being
provoked to wrath and revenge; in rebuking his disciples for the
severity of their spirits, declaring he came to save, and not
take away the lives of men; in praying for his enemies, and in
his silence under all the ill treatment he met with from the
worst of men. As the apostle had this excellent example before
him, which served both to regulate his conduct, and support him
under the hard measures he met with, so he was desirous to direct
others to the observance of it, which might be a check upon the
ill usage of him. He here speaks of himself in the language of
his adversaries, who meant by these characters to expose him to
scorn and contempt: "I Paul myself"; whose name the false
teachers played upon, it signifying "little"; and he being of
little stature, they reproached him for it, and would insinuate,
that as his name was "little", and his person mean, his bodily
presence weak, and his speech contemptible, that he had a little
soul, was a man of small knowledge, mean parts, and a very
insignificant minister. Now it is as if the apostle should say, I
am not ashamed of my name, nor of my person, and I am willing to
own myself the least of the apostles, yea, less than the least of
all saints; but I beg of you by the mild and gentle Spirit of my
Lord and master, whom I am not ashamed to imitate, that you would
not join in those sneers. I am Paul, (autov) , the "same" in my principles and practice, in
my doctrine and life, when present and absent; though my enemies
say the contrary, as that I am such an one,
who in presence am base,
or "humble among you": they suggested, that when he was at
Corinth he was humble and modest in his conversation, mild and
gentle in all his expressions and deportment; and which they
interpreted of a meanness and baseness of spirit, as though he
crept and cringed to curry favour with men, to avoid offence, and
gain and keep an interest among them:
but being absent, am bold toward you;
wrote blustering, hectoring, terrifying letters, threatening to
come with his apostolic rod and deliver them up to Satan, to
fright them into a compliance with him.