2 Corinthians 12:7-10 details how, because of the incredible revelations Paul has seen, such as his visit to Paradise (which he is not allowed to talk about), God permitted Paul to suffer a chronic pain of some kind. Paul does not disclose what the pain is, but that he asked God three times to remove the pain, but God revealed that the point of this burden was to teach Paul to be satisfied in his weaknesses so that he can continually and humbly rely on the power of Christ. That is why Paul is happy to boast about his weaknesses and endure persecutions from other people, because it prompts him to rely on Christ.
In 2 Corinthians 12:7-102 Corinthians 12:7-10 commentary, commentary Paul now moves from visions and revelations to something we might find unexpected in the storyline of an apostolic bragging contest:
Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself! (v. 7).
For a present-day follower of Christ, particularly one from the developed world, this might be one of the most unnerving verses in the New Testament. It starts with the continuation of the majestic revelations of Paul in the previous verses. We might revel in a statement such as the surpassing greatness of the revelations. We might hope for and seek to experience such revelations for ourselves.
We might hope that we could be given or have such a vision of the glory of God that extends beyond our imagination. Then, our assumption of the great benefit this might bring goes awry. Paul has been given these visions and revelations because of his greatness in the service of the Lord. But rather than this blessing being something that brings worldly fame and adulation, the Lord gives with it a thorn in the flesh.
In saying for this reason Paul makes it unmistakably clear why he has been given a thorn in the flesh, and that is to keep me from exalting myself. In making this statement, Paul exhibits an amazing humility. If we consider humility as a willingness to seek and recognize reality as it is, Paul gives us here a great example.
Paul infers an admission that he has a tendency to exalt himself. He can be viewed as saying something similar in 1 Corinthians 9:181 Corinthians 9:18 commentary. That verse can be translated as Paul saying he refuses payment for his ministry in Corinth because he does not want to abuse his apostolic authority. This is, again, an admission that Paul recognizes a need in himself to discipline his body that it might not lead him astray from his mission to follow Christ by acting in a manner that is self-serving (1 Corinthians 9:271 Corinthians 9:27 commentary).
While we know him primarily as Paul, he first was Saul, who we met prior to his conversion in Acts 9Acts 9 commentary. We get only hints of how ambitious and driven he was in fleshly pursuits prior to his conversion to be an apostle for Jesus. We saw that he was ruthless and committed to succeed when he gained authority to travel to Damascus and persecute fellow Jews who had believed in Jesus (Acts 9:1-2Acts 9:1-2 commentary).
Through his encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus, Paul went through a cleansing repentance process of forgiveness and cleansing of sin (Acts 9:3-6Acts 9:3-6 commentary, 15-2015-20 commentary). Now he applies his relentless commitment toward executing his stewardship as an apostle appointed by Jesus to take the gospel to the Gentiles.
However, as he tells us multiple times, he is (as we are) still in this world. We are all human. Exalting oneself is deceptively invasive in our world, and natural for our flesh. Paul was determined to do whatever necessary to allow God to do His work through him. So, he resolved to be content with God’s provision, even when it was not his preference.
Paul recognized that God blessed him in an unwanted manner: There was given me a thorn in the flesh. Who gave it to him? God did. But from whence did it come? Paul answers that question in the next phrase, that God sent a messenger of Satan to torment me.
There have been many suggestions, ideas, and assertions attempting to identify what was Paul’s thorn in the flesh. The original meaning for the word thorn was a “stake” or a “sharpened wooden shaft.” That developed into similar uses such as “thorn,” “splinter,” or “sliver.” There has been much conversation whether the phrase thorn in the flesh is literal or a figure of speech.
We might ask how a messenger of Satan can be an instrument of God. This is the case throughout scripture. The book of Revelation serves as an extreme example. Many horrific events occur through spiritual forces of destruction, but none without God’s authorization. We see it also in Job, where God authorized Satan to inflict Job, who was His prize pupil. Job was a man God pronounced as righteous before Him (Job 1:8Job 1:8 commentary, 42:842:8 commentary).
We also see this in the Old Testament, where God authorized a spirit to be a lying spirit in the mouth of the prophets to persuade Ahab to engage in a battle where he would lose his life (1 Kings 19-231 Kings 19-23 commentary). God revealed to Paul why He authorized this thorn in the flesh to torment Paul: to keep me from exalting myself! Paul repeats this same phrase in verse 7— to keep me from exalting myself! In doing so, he gives the point an emphasis, which the translators have captured by including an exclamation point after the second use of the phrase.
We can now more fully understand why Paul has repeatedly expressed distaste for the boasting contest, the “Paul vs. false apostles” comparison. It is true Paul is superior in his apostolic résumé, in persecutions suffered as well as revelations received (v. 6). But Paul recognizes in a deep and personal way that this sort of comparative preening is counterproductive and useless. This is why he is pivoting the conversation from the apparent strength of his apostolic résumé to his actual human weaknesses.
We do not know if the thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan that tormented Paul was one of spiritual temptation, sexual temptation, depression, anxiety, malaria, migraine headaches, blindness in one eye, deformity of some facial figure, human enemies (like these false apostles), some combination of these things or something else altogether.
Whatever it was, the words a messenger of Satan to torment me is not something any of us would desire to experience. Neither did Paul. Paul says: Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me (v. 8).
Paul did not just ask the Lord, he implored, which is a strong word meaning an “urgent request” or to ask in an “urgent manner.” We would think that surely the Lord would answer Paul’s imploring and relieve him of this thorn. After all, Paul certainly fit the description of being a “righteous man” whose prayers “accomplish much,” as James puts it (James 5:16James 5:16 commentary). And God did answer. But the answer was not as Paul requested.
The Lord’s answer was, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (v. 9a).
Here we now see why Paul has not only disdained the “Me vs. the false apostles” boasting contest. We also see why Paul has pivoted to boasting only in his weaknesses. It is because God revealed to him this answer to his prayer: My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.
The Greek word translated as grace is “charis.” It means “favor” as in Luke 2:52Luke 2:52 commentary where Jesus grew in favor (“charis”) with God as well as men. The Greek word translated is sufficient is rendered in other verses as “content,” “enough,” and “satisfied.” The idea seems to be, “You should be content with this because I have your best interest at heart.”
God’s favor (grace or “charis”) was perfected in Paul through giving this thorn to him. This is because God’s power is perfected in weakness. The Greek word “teleo” translated is perfected refers to something being completed or finished. In fact, “teleo” is translated as “fulfilled,” “accomplished,” or “completed” in other passages. God was accomplishing a finished product in Paul through this agent of a thorn in the flesh. This finished product would eventually embrace martyrdom for his testimony for Jesus with grace and courage, saying “in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness” (2 Timothy 4:82 Timothy 4:8 commentary).
The Greek word translated power in the phrase power is perfected in weakness is “dynamis” from which we get the English word “dynamite.” Context indicates here that the power being referred to is the power of God working through Paul. The point seems to be that God can’t perfect His power working through Paul until Paul gets out of the way. The weakness of Paul in context here is Paul’s weakness as a human. In particular, it is inferred that Paul’s weakness was elevated through the thorn in the flesh, that his strength in Christ might be similarly elevated.
Throughout Paul’s writings, he readily admits his faults:
He admits he does not deserve to be an apostle because he persecuted the church (1 Corinthians 15:91 Corinthians 15:9 commentary).
We can take from this that it is through a willingness to face the reality of our own sinfulness that we can actually become an instrument of God’s power. We can see this also in the teaching of James 1James 1 commentary. There James tells us that our temptations do not really come from circumstances, but from our own pleasures, the lusts within our fallen flesh (James 1:13-14James 1:13-14 commentary). It is by setting these aside and receiving God’s word that we can save our lives from being squandered by following the flesh (James 1:21James 1:21 commentary).
It is when we admit the corruption of our natural self that we can choose to set aside our fallen nature and replace it with the “word implanted” which will save our lives from the negative effect of our inner fallenness. Embracing this spiritual reality then allows us to recognize fruits of the flesh as evidence that we are walking in our old lusts, which lead to death (Galatians 5:19-21Galatians 5:19-21 commentary). Upon this recognition, we can lay self aside and instead walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-17Galatians 5:16-17 commentary). It is then we can experience the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-24Galatians 5:22-24 commentary).
It is interesting that Paul notes that he implored the Lord three times that the thorn in the flesh might depart from him. This could have been three specific but brief prayers. Jesus tells us not to pray with “meaningless repetition” like the heathen, thinking they will be answered because of their many words (Matthew 6:7Matthew 6:7 commentary).
On the other hand, Daniel’s prayer was answered after he fasted and prayed for twenty-one days (Daniel 10:3Daniel 10:3 commentary, 12-1312-13 commentary). God dispatched an angel to answer his prayer immediately, but the messenger was held up by evil spiritual forces for twenty-one days until the angel Michael came to help him.
So, it could also be that Paul followed Daniel’s example and set aside a special time of fasting and prayer three separate times. We do not know, but we do know that after three specific instances of imploring God, God’s answer was not to remove the thorn, but to tell Paul My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.
We might be bewildered and find it hard to fathom a godly man such as Paul having to bear such a burden while he was on mission for God. It certainly does not fit with the comfort-centered gospel prevalent in our present world. But scripture does not promise circumstantial comfort; in fact it promises the opposite (2 Timothy 3:122 Timothy 3:12 commentary). Scripture asserts that God is to be our comfort (2 Corinthians 1:52 Corinthians 1:5 commentary). Paul’s response was to submit to God’s directive: Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weakness, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me (v. 9b).
God revealed to Paul that the thorn in the flesh was for his benefit, that it would perfect God’s power within Him. Paul then embraced that perspective and chose to believe it. To the point where he was actually enthusiastic about it (most gladly). Paul told of his revelations, which demonstrated his apostolic superiority as compared to the false apostles (2 Corinthians 11:132 Corinthians 11:13 commentary). But more importantly, it shows why he gladly boasts about my weakness. It is for a reason that is a great benefit: so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
The implication of this statement is immense—so that the power of Christ may dwell in me is a conditional statement that asserts that the power of Christ will dwell in Paul only through his weakness. The Greek word translated may dwell occurs only here in the New Testament. The Thayer’s Greek Lexicon includes in its definition “to take possession of and live in the houses (of the citizens).” Both from this definition as well as the context, we can gather that Paul is saying that we must set aside self in order for the power of Christ to take possession of our lives.
Christ is always present in each believer. Each believer is a new creation in Christ upon belief (2 Corinthians 5:172 Corinthians 5:17 commentary). Each believer has the Spirit within them as a seal of forever belonging to Jesus (1 Corinthians 3:161 Corinthians 3:16 commentary, 6:196:19 commentary, 12:1312:13 commentary, 2 Corinthians 1:222 Corinthians 1:22 commentary, commentary2 Timothy 1:142 Timothy 1:14 commentary). Neither the presence of Christ nor the Spirit is conditional in any way for one who has believed on Jesus.
But the power of Christ only operates through believers when we set aside self—that is to say, through our weakness. The Greek verb translated may dwell has a subjunctive mood, which indicates it might or might not occur. The inference here is that the power of Christ is in us but only works through us when we walk in weakness. To recognize our natural selves as weakness is to set aside our natural capabilities and instead rely upon the resurrection power of Christ to live through us.
This is likely another way to say the same thing Paul says in Galatians 5:16-17Galatians 5:16-17 commentary, commentary when he exhorts believers to walk in the Spirit rather than in the flesh. When we try to do things on our own, we end up doing things according to the ways of the world, which produces the fruits of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21Galatians 5:19-21 commentary). Walking in the flesh is seeking our own ends through our own capabilities. Conversely, walking in the Spirit is seeking God’s will through the obedience of Christ, through the power of Christ, and produces the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-24Galatians 5:22-24 commentary).
Verse 9 is a primary point in the chapter and perhaps the entire letter of 2 Corinthians. We would naturally see it as a low point because we are naturally self-centered. But that is Paul’s argument. When we seek to ascend over others through worldly means, as with the boasting contest between Paul and the false apostles, it is foolishness and unprofitable. But to boast about my weakness is admitting that apart from Christ we can do nothing worthwhile.
In John 15John 15 commentary, commentary Jesus tells us something like this teaching of Paul, that strength comes through weakness. Jesus teaches us that apart from Him we can do nothing constructive, nothing that produces good fruit (John 15:5John 15:5 commentary). And the means to produce good fruit is to abide in the vine which is Christ (John 15:4John 15:4 commentary).
As fallen humans, we are born in sin, apart from God (Romans 3:23Romans 3:23 commentary, 5:125:12 commentary). But when we are made new creations through faith in Christ, we have a new nature that exists within us, alongside the old nature (2 Corinthians 5:172 Corinthians 5:17 commentary). However, the old nature is still corrupt. It is weak in that it is incapable of producing righteousness. And we are accustomed to letting it reign in us.
So, the way forward is to set aside our old selves, our old nature, and allow the power of Christ to take up all the remaining space. It is when we admit our weakness, our incapacity to produce godly fruit of ourselves, that we can bear the fruit of righteousness through the power of Christ working through us.
It was the depth of Paul’s relationship with and “in Christ” that allowed him to choose a perspective that suffering was beneficial, so much so that he asserted that all the afflictions he suffered (as he detailed in 2 Corinthians 11:23-272 Corinthians 11:23-27 commentary) were “momentary” and “light” as compared to the glory he would gain from God’s reward for living as a faithful witness unto Him (2 Corinthians 4:172 Corinthians 4:17 commentary, 5:105:10 commentary). This teaching of living for God’s reward is a theme woven throughout Paul’s letters. Some other examples follow: 1 Corinthians 3:11-141 Corinthians 3:11-14 commentary, 9:25-279:25-27 commentary, Philippians 2:5-10Philippians 2:5-10 commentary, 3:10-113:10-11 commentary, 2 Timothy 2:12:32 Timothy 2:12:3 commentary, 10-1310-13 commentary.
Accordingly, Paul now asserts that he is perfectly content to be considered weak because that is how he is strong: Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong (v.10).
As Paul entered into the foolishness of having a bragging contest with the false apostles, he defended critiques against him with what his opponents and the Corinthian church called weaknesses. This included being a weak public speaker (2 Corinthians 10:102 Corinthians 10:10 commentary, 11:611:6 commentary) as well as providing for his own means rather than charging the Corinthians for his services (2 Corinthians 11:72 Corinthians 11:7 commentary).
But Paul has pivoted the discussion such that he now claims the purported weaknesses are actually strengths because they cause Paul to point all things to Christ. He also adds to the weaknesses leveled at him by his opponents. Not only is he content with the weaknesses they raised, but also with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, and with difficulties. All these things are okay with Paul; he is content to endure them so long as they are done for Christ’s sake. When he endures these things for Christ’s sake then he is strong. He is strong because he is doing God’s will, and that leads both to God’s glory and the fulfillment of his own design as a human.
We can take from this a principle that the way to unleash the power of Christ within us is to do all we do in the obedience of Christ. Our flesh does not want to walk in obedience to Christ. It might want to claim to other people that it is being obedient to Christ—this is likely what the false apostles are doing (2 Corinthians 11:132 Corinthians 11:13 commentary, 2020 commentary). It is worth dwelling briefly on the list of adversities Paul says he is well content to endure:
The Greek word translated insults occurs two other times in the New Testament where it is translated “damage” (Acts 27:10Acts 27:10 commentary, 2121 commentary). From 2 Corinthians 11:23-272 Corinthians 11:23-27 commentary, commentary we might infer that Paul is content to endure both verbal as well as physical hostility for Christ’s sake.
The Greek word translated as distresses can also be translated “needs.” Paul is content to do without basic needs for the cause of Christ. He said something similar in his letter to the Philippians, that he had learned how to be content in all things, regardless of his circumstances (Philippians 4:11-13Philippians 4:11-13 commentary).
In 2 Timothy 3:112 Timothy 3:11 commentary, commentary Paul speaks of persecutions “such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra.” In Antioch and Iconium he was attacked verbally. Then those who opposed him there stirred up opposition in Lystra and the people stoned Paul and left him, thinking he was dead (Acts 13:45Acts 13:45 commentary, 14:214:2 commentary, 14:1914:19 commentary).
The Greek word translated difficulties occurs three other times in the New Testament where it is translated “distress(es).” In Romans 2:9-10Romans 2:9-10 commentary, commentary the “distress” there speaks of God’s judgment for evil deeds, and is contrasted with “glory, and honor, and peace” God will reward for good deeds. We can infer from this that Paul is wellcontent to endure the kinds of earthly trouble that are the opposite of “glory, and honor, and peace” in order to please Christ, and gain honor, glory and peace from Him at the judgment.
As we follow Paul in the book of Acts, he is a part of many triumphs for the Lord and the church, but he does not boast in these. Earlier in this letter, Paul said:
“For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.” (2 Corinthians 5:14-152 Corinthians 5:14-15 commentary)
This likely explains what Paul means when he says he is willing to endure all these adversities for Christ’s sake. It is to “no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.” In Paul’s letter to the Romans, Paul also created a context for why believers should be well content to endure the same sufferings as Jesus:
“The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” (Romans 8:16-17Romans 8:16-17 commentary)
We can see in this verse from Romans that being an heir of God is unconditional—all believers are a child in His family because Jesus paid the price for us to be spiritually reborn simply through faith (John 3:3John 3:3 commentary, 14-1514-15 commentary). It is to this reality of our new birth that the “Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit”—we are His children, regardless of what we might or might not do.
On the other hand, being “fellow heirs with Christ” is conditional. We become “fellow heirs with Christ” when we “suffer with Him.” Why would we want to suffer the sufferings of Christ? Paul exhorts us to suffer Christ’s sufferings that we might “also be glorified with Him.”
As Jesus says in Revelation, all believers who overcome as He overcame will be given to share the reward of sitting on His throne, as He received the reward to sit on His Father’s throne (Revelation 3:21Revelation 3:21 commentary).
Thus, it was a conviction for Paul to be well content with suffering for Christ’s sake. When he was weak in following his own ways, and instead followed in the obedience of Christ, then he was strong in becoming who God made him to be—a fellow heir of the grace of Christ.
Paul’s words in these verses flesh out what it means to no longer live for himself but to live for Christ: when I am weak, then I am strong. As with many biblical truths, this is a great paradox. Some other examples of paradoxical truths follow:
He said that the greatest fruitfulness of life comes through death (John 12:24John 12:24 commentary).
Jesus said that if we love our life in this world, we will lose our life, and if we hate our life in this world, we will keep it for eternal life (John 12:25John 12:25 commentary).
These paradoxical statements all fit a similar theme, that spiritual benefit often comes through physical loss. So it is with Paul’s assertion that when I am weak, then I am strong.
We can observe that from a human standpoint there was not a greater time of weakness for Jesus than when He was on the cross. However, through that physical weakness of dying on the cross, He was spiritually the strongest; it was there that He bore the sins of and brought salvation to the world (Colossians 2:14Colossians 2:14 commentary).
Through His physical weakness on the cross, Jesus was glorified and made strong. As Paul wrote to the Philippians, Jesus “humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” and as a result He was awarded the “name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:8-9Philippians 2:8-9 commentary).
In Jesus’s words after He rose from the dead, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18Matthew 28:18 commentary). You can’t get any stronger than ruling over all. And that strength of reigning came through the weakness of serving. That reward of eternal life came through the suffering of the cross. Jesus promises all believers if they will follow His ways, endure His sufferings, and overcome as He overcame, He will share His reign with them (Romans 8:17Romans 8:17 commentary, commentaryRevelation 3:21Revelation 3:21 commentary).
It was in Jesus’s fullest obedience to His Father where Jesus was the strongest. In saying for when I am weak, then I am strong, Paul is following Jesus’s example, putting his own desires aside and walking in the obedience of Christ.
The word “Christ” appears 43 times in 2 Corinthians. In the preamble to this direct defense of his apostleship (2 Corinthians 10:1 - 11:212 Corinthians 10:1 - 11:21 commentary), Paul told us this would be his destination, to say that he is well content to suffer for Christ’s sake. Early in Chapter 10, he said:
“We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:52 Corinthians 10:5 commentary)
It is in the “obedience of Christ” where true strength is found. It is the worldly things that are “lofty” in the world’s eyes that are actually weak. The things the world loves are passing away, but the one who does God’s will will abide forever (1 John 2:15-171 John 2:15-17 commentary).
Jesus lived out strength in weakness on the cross. In doing so, He defeated sin and death. The Apostle John wrote, “The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:81 John 3:8 commentary). When we as believers take up our crosses daily and follow Jesus, then we are His disciples (Luke 14:27Luke 14:27 commentary). We learn His ways when we walk in obedience to His commands. In doing so we overcome our human frailties through the power of Christ and walk apart from sin in the victory of life (Romans 5:12-13Romans 5:12-13 commentary).
Set to dark mode
2 Corinthians 12:7-10 meaning
In 2 Corinthians 12:7-102 Corinthians 12:7-10 commentary, commentary Paul now moves from visions and revelations to something we might find unexpected in the storyline of an apostolic bragging contest:
Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself! (v. 7).
For a present-day follower of Christ, particularly one from the developed world, this might be one of the most unnerving verses in the New Testament. It starts with the continuation of the majestic revelations of Paul in the previous verses. We might revel in a statement such as the surpassing greatness of the revelations. We might hope for and seek to experience such revelations for ourselves.
We might hope that we could be given or have such a vision of the glory of God that extends beyond our imagination. Then, our assumption of the great benefit this might bring goes awry. Paul has been given these visions and revelations because of his greatness in the service of the Lord. But rather than this blessing being something that brings worldly fame and adulation, the Lord gives with it a thorn in the flesh.
In saying for this reason Paul makes it unmistakably clear why he has been given a thorn in the flesh, and that is to keep me from exalting myself. In making this statement, Paul exhibits an amazing humility. If we consider humility as a willingness to seek and recognize reality as it is, Paul gives us here a great example.
Paul infers an admission that he has a tendency to exalt himself. He can be viewed as saying something similar in 1 Corinthians 9:181 Corinthians 9:18 commentary. That verse can be translated as Paul saying he refuses payment for his ministry in Corinth because he does not want to abuse his apostolic authority. This is, again, an admission that Paul recognizes a need in himself to discipline his body that it might not lead him astray from his mission to follow Christ by acting in a manner that is self-serving (1 Corinthians 9:271 Corinthians 9:27 commentary).
While we know him primarily as Paul, he first was Saul, who we met prior to his conversion in Acts 9Acts 9 commentary. We get only hints of how ambitious and driven he was in fleshly pursuits prior to his conversion to be an apostle for Jesus. We saw that he was ruthless and committed to succeed when he gained authority to travel to Damascus and persecute fellow Jews who had believed in Jesus (Acts 9:1-2Acts 9:1-2 commentary).
Through his encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus, Paul went through a cleansing repentance process of forgiveness and cleansing of sin (Acts 9:3-6Acts 9:3-6 commentary, 15-2015-20 commentary). Now he applies his relentless commitment toward executing his stewardship as an apostle appointed by Jesus to take the gospel to the Gentiles.
However, as he tells us multiple times, he is (as we are) still in this world. We are all human. Exalting oneself is deceptively invasive in our world, and natural for our flesh. Paul was determined to do whatever necessary to allow God to do His work through him. So, he resolved to be content with God’s provision, even when it was not his preference.
Paul recognized that God blessed him in an unwanted manner: There was given me a thorn in the flesh. Who gave it to him? God did. But from whence did it come? Paul answers that question in the next phrase, that God sent a messenger of Satan to torment me.
There have been many suggestions, ideas, and assertions attempting to identify what was Paul’s thorn in the flesh. The original meaning for the word thorn was a “stake” or a “sharpened wooden shaft.” That developed into similar uses such as “thorn,” “splinter,” or “sliver.” There has been much conversation whether the phrase thorn in the flesh is literal or a figure of speech.
We might ask how a messenger of Satan can be an instrument of God. This is the case throughout scripture. The book of Revelation serves as an extreme example. Many horrific events occur through spiritual forces of destruction, but none without God’s authorization. We see it also in Job, where God authorized Satan to inflict Job, who was His prize pupil. Job was a man God pronounced as righteous before Him (Job 1:8Job 1:8 commentary, 42:842:8 commentary).
We also see this in the Old Testament, where God authorized a spirit to be a lying spirit in the mouth of the prophets to persuade Ahab to engage in a battle where he would lose his life (1 Kings 19-231 Kings 19-23 commentary). God revealed to Paul why He authorized this thorn in the flesh to torment Paul: to keep me from exalting myself! Paul repeats this same phrase in verse 7— to keep me from exalting myself! In doing so, he gives the point an emphasis, which the translators have captured by including an exclamation point after the second use of the phrase.
We can now more fully understand why Paul has repeatedly expressed distaste for the boasting contest, the “Paul vs. false apostles” comparison. It is true Paul is superior in his apostolic résumé, in persecutions suffered as well as revelations received (v. 6). But Paul recognizes in a deep and personal way that this sort of comparative preening is counterproductive and useless. This is why he is pivoting the conversation from the apparent strength of his apostolic résumé to his actual human weaknesses.
We do not know if the thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan that tormented Paul was one of spiritual temptation, sexual temptation, depression, anxiety, malaria, migraine headaches, blindness in one eye, deformity of some facial figure, human enemies (like these false apostles), some combination of these things or something else altogether.
Whatever it was, the words a messenger of Satan to torment me is not something any of us would desire to experience. Neither did Paul. Paul says: Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me (v. 8).
Paul did not just ask the Lord, he implored, which is a strong word meaning an “urgent request” or to ask in an “urgent manner.” We would think that surely the Lord would answer Paul’s imploring and relieve him of this thorn. After all, Paul certainly fit the description of being a “righteous man” whose prayers “accomplish much,” as James puts it (James 5:16James 5:16 commentary). And God did answer. But the answer was not as Paul requested.
The Lord’s answer was, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (v. 9a).
Here we now see why Paul has not only disdained the “Me vs. the false apostles” boasting contest. We also see why Paul has pivoted to boasting only in his weaknesses. It is because God revealed to him this answer to his prayer: My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.
The Greek word translated as grace is “charis.” It means “favor” as in Luke 2:52Luke 2:52 commentary where Jesus grew in favor (“charis”) with God as well as men. The Greek word translated is sufficient is rendered in other verses as “content,” “enough,” and “satisfied.” The idea seems to be, “You should be content with this because I have your best interest at heart.”
God’s favor (grace or “charis”) was perfected in Paul through giving this thorn to him. This is because God’s power is perfected in weakness. The Greek word “teleo” translated is perfected refers to something being completed or finished. In fact, “teleo” is translated as “fulfilled,” “accomplished,” or “completed” in other passages. God was accomplishing a finished product in Paul through this agent of a thorn in the flesh. This finished product would eventually embrace martyrdom for his testimony for Jesus with grace and courage, saying “in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness” (2 Timothy 4:82 Timothy 4:8 commentary).
The Greek word translated power in the phrase power is perfected in weakness is “dynamis” from which we get the English word “dynamite.” Context indicates here that the power being referred to is the power of God working through Paul. The point seems to be that God can’t perfect His power working through Paul until Paul gets out of the way. The weakness of Paul in context here is Paul’s weakness as a human. In particular, it is inferred that Paul’s weakness was elevated through the thorn in the flesh, that his strength in Christ might be similarly elevated.
Throughout Paul’s writings, he readily admits his faults:
We can take from this that it is through a willingness to face the reality of our own sinfulness that we can actually become an instrument of God’s power. We can see this also in the teaching of James 1James 1 commentary. There James tells us that our temptations do not really come from circumstances, but from our own pleasures, the lusts within our fallen flesh (James 1:13-14James 1:13-14 commentary). It is by setting these aside and receiving God’s word that we can save our lives from being squandered by following the flesh (James 1:21James 1:21 commentary).
It is when we admit the corruption of our natural self that we can choose to set aside our fallen nature and replace it with the “word implanted” which will save our lives from the negative effect of our inner fallenness. Embracing this spiritual reality then allows us to recognize fruits of the flesh as evidence that we are walking in our old lusts, which lead to death (Galatians 5:19-21Galatians 5:19-21 commentary). Upon this recognition, we can lay self aside and instead walk in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16-17Galatians 5:16-17 commentary). It is then we can experience the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-24Galatians 5:22-24 commentary).
It is interesting that Paul notes that he implored the Lord three times that the thorn in the flesh might depart from him. This could have been three specific but brief prayers. Jesus tells us not to pray with “meaningless repetition” like the heathen, thinking they will be answered because of their many words (Matthew 6:7Matthew 6:7 commentary).
On the other hand, Daniel’s prayer was answered after he fasted and prayed for twenty-one days (Daniel 10:3Daniel 10:3 commentary, 12-1312-13 commentary). God dispatched an angel to answer his prayer immediately, but the messenger was held up by evil spiritual forces for twenty-one days until the angel Michael came to help him.
So, it could also be that Paul followed Daniel’s example and set aside a special time of fasting and prayer three separate times. We do not know, but we do know that after three specific instances of imploring God, God’s answer was not to remove the thorn, but to tell Paul My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.
We might be bewildered and find it hard to fathom a godly man such as Paul having to bear such a burden while he was on mission for God. It certainly does not fit with the comfort-centered gospel prevalent in our present world. But scripture does not promise circumstantial comfort; in fact it promises the opposite (2 Timothy 3:122 Timothy 3:12 commentary). Scripture asserts that God is to be our comfort (2 Corinthians 1:52 Corinthians 1:5 commentary). Paul’s response was to submit to God’s directive: Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weakness, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me (v. 9b).
God revealed to Paul that the thorn in the flesh was for his benefit, that it would perfect God’s power within Him. Paul then embraced that perspective and chose to believe it. To the point where he was actually enthusiastic about it (most gladly). Paul told of his revelations, which demonstrated his apostolic superiority as compared to the false apostles (2 Corinthians 11:132 Corinthians 11:13 commentary). But more importantly, it shows why he gladly boasts about my weakness. It is for a reason that is a great benefit: so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
The implication of this statement is immense—so that the power of Christ may dwell in me is a conditional statement that asserts that the power of Christ will dwell in Paul only through his weakness. The Greek word translated may dwell occurs only here in the New Testament. The Thayer’s Greek Lexicon includes in its definition “to take possession of and live in the houses (of the citizens).” Both from this definition as well as the context, we can gather that Paul is saying that we must set aside self in order for the power of Christ to take possession of our lives.
Christ is always present in each believer. Each believer is a new creation in Christ upon belief (2 Corinthians 5:172 Corinthians 5:17 commentary). Each believer has the Spirit within them as a seal of forever belonging to Jesus (1 Corinthians 3:161 Corinthians 3:16 commentary, 6:196:19 commentary, 12:1312:13 commentary, 2 Corinthians 1:222 Corinthians 1:22 commentary, commentary 2 Timothy 1:142 Timothy 1:14 commentary). Neither the presence of Christ nor the Spirit is conditional in any way for one who has believed on Jesus.
But the power of Christ only operates through believers when we set aside self—that is to say, through our weakness. The Greek verb translated may dwell has a subjunctive mood, which indicates it might or might not occur. The inference here is that the power of Christ is in us but only works through us when we walk in weakness. To recognize our natural selves as weakness is to set aside our natural capabilities and instead rely upon the resurrection power of Christ to live through us.
This is likely another way to say the same thing Paul says in Galatians 5:16-17Galatians 5:16-17 commentary, commentary when he exhorts believers to walk in the Spirit rather than in the flesh. When we try to do things on our own, we end up doing things according to the ways of the world, which produces the fruits of the flesh (Galatians 5:19-21Galatians 5:19-21 commentary). Walking in the flesh is seeking our own ends through our own capabilities. Conversely, walking in the Spirit is seeking God’s will through the obedience of Christ, through the power of Christ, and produces the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-24Galatians 5:22-24 commentary).
Verse 9 is a primary point in the chapter and perhaps the entire letter of 2 Corinthians. We would naturally see it as a low point because we are naturally self-centered. But that is Paul’s argument. When we seek to ascend over others through worldly means, as with the boasting contest between Paul and the false apostles, it is foolishness and unprofitable. But to boast about my weakness is admitting that apart from Christ we can do nothing worthwhile.
In John 15John 15 commentary, commentary Jesus tells us something like this teaching of Paul, that strength comes through weakness. Jesus teaches us that apart from Him we can do nothing constructive, nothing that produces good fruit (John 15:5John 15:5 commentary). And the means to produce good fruit is to abide in the vine which is Christ (John 15:4John 15:4 commentary).
As fallen humans, we are born in sin, apart from God (Romans 3:23Romans 3:23 commentary, 5:125:12 commentary). But when we are made new creations through faith in Christ, we have a new nature that exists within us, alongside the old nature (2 Corinthians 5:172 Corinthians 5:17 commentary). However, the old nature is still corrupt. It is weak in that it is incapable of producing righteousness. And we are accustomed to letting it reign in us.
So, the way forward is to set aside our old selves, our old nature, and allow the power of Christ to take up all the remaining space. It is when we admit our weakness, our incapacity to produce godly fruit of ourselves, that we can bear the fruit of righteousness through the power of Christ working through us.
It was the depth of Paul’s relationship with and “in Christ” that allowed him to choose a perspective that suffering was beneficial, so much so that he asserted that all the afflictions he suffered (as he detailed in 2 Corinthians 11:23-272 Corinthians 11:23-27 commentary) were “momentary” and “light” as compared to the glory he would gain from God’s reward for living as a faithful witness unto Him (2 Corinthians 4:172 Corinthians 4:17 commentary, 5:105:10 commentary). This teaching of living for God’s reward is a theme woven throughout Paul’s letters. Some other examples follow: 1 Corinthians 3:11-141 Corinthians 3:11-14 commentary, 9:25-279:25-27 commentary, Philippians 2:5-10Philippians 2:5-10 commentary, 3:10-113:10-11 commentary, 2 Timothy 2:12:32 Timothy 2:12:3 commentary, 10-1310-13 commentary.
Accordingly, Paul now asserts that he is perfectly content to be considered weak because that is how he is strong: Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong (v.10).
As Paul entered into the foolishness of having a bragging contest with the false apostles, he defended critiques against him with what his opponents and the Corinthian church called weaknesses. This included being a weak public speaker (2 Corinthians 10:102 Corinthians 10:10 commentary, 11:611:6 commentary) as well as providing for his own means rather than charging the Corinthians for his services (2 Corinthians 11:72 Corinthians 11:7 commentary).
But Paul has pivoted the discussion such that he now claims the purported weaknesses are actually strengths because they cause Paul to point all things to Christ. He also adds to the weaknesses leveled at him by his opponents. Not only is he content with the weaknesses they raised, but also with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, and with difficulties. All these things are okay with Paul; he is content to endure them so long as they are done for Christ’s sake. When he endures these things for Christ’s sake then he is strong. He is strong because he is doing God’s will, and that leads both to God’s glory and the fulfillment of his own design as a human.
We can take from this a principle that the way to unleash the power of Christ within us is to do all we do in the obedience of Christ. Our flesh does not want to walk in obedience to Christ. It might want to claim to other people that it is being obedient to Christ—this is likely what the false apostles are doing (2 Corinthians 11:132 Corinthians 11:13 commentary, 2020 commentary). It is worth dwelling briefly on the list of adversities Paul says he is well content to endure:
As we follow Paul in the book of Acts, he is a part of many triumphs for the Lord and the church, but he does not boast in these. Earlier in this letter, Paul said:
“For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.”
(2 Corinthians 5:14-152 Corinthians 5:14-15 commentary)
This likely explains what Paul means when he says he is willing to endure all these adversities for Christ’s sake. It is to “no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.” In Paul’s letter to the Romans, Paul also created a context for why believers should be well content to endure the same sufferings as Jesus:
“The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”
(Romans 8:16-17Romans 8:16-17 commentary)
We can see in this verse from Romans that being an heir of God is unconditional—all believers are a child in His family because Jesus paid the price for us to be spiritually reborn simply through faith (John 3:3John 3:3 commentary, 14-1514-15 commentary). It is to this reality of our new birth that the “Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit”—we are His children, regardless of what we might or might not do.
On the other hand, being “fellow heirs with Christ” is conditional. We become “fellow heirs with Christ” when we “suffer with Him.” Why would we want to suffer the sufferings of Christ? Paul exhorts us to suffer Christ’s sufferings that we might “also be glorified with Him.”
As Jesus says in Revelation, all believers who overcome as He overcame will be given to share the reward of sitting on His throne, as He received the reward to sit on His Father’s throne (Revelation 3:21Revelation 3:21 commentary).
Thus, it was a conviction for Paul to be well content with suffering for Christ’s sake. When he was weak in following his own ways, and instead followed in the obedience of Christ, then he was strong in becoming who God made him to be—a fellow heir of the grace of Christ.
Paul’s words in these verses flesh out what it means to no longer live for himself but to live for Christ: when I am weak, then I am strong. As with many biblical truths, this is a great paradox. Some other examples of paradoxical truths follow:
These paradoxical statements all fit a similar theme, that spiritual benefit often comes through physical loss. So it is with Paul’s assertion that when I am weak, then I am strong.
We can observe that from a human standpoint there was not a greater time of weakness for Jesus than when He was on the cross. However, through that physical weakness of dying on the cross, He was spiritually the strongest; it was there that He bore the sins of and brought salvation to the world (Colossians 2:14Colossians 2:14 commentary).
Through His physical weakness on the cross, Jesus was glorified and made strong. As Paul wrote to the Philippians, Jesus “humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” and as a result He was awarded the “name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:8-9Philippians 2:8-9 commentary).
In Jesus’s words after He rose from the dead, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18Matthew 28:18 commentary). You can’t get any stronger than ruling over all. And that strength of reigning came through the weakness of serving. That reward of eternal life came through the suffering of the cross. Jesus promises all believers if they will follow His ways, endure His sufferings, and overcome as He overcame, He will share His reign with them (Romans 8:17Romans 8:17 commentary, commentary Revelation 3:21Revelation 3:21 commentary).
It was in Jesus’s fullest obedience to His Father where Jesus was the strongest. In saying for when I am weak, then I am strong, Paul is following Jesus’s example, putting his own desires aside and walking in the obedience of Christ.
The word “Christ” appears 43 times in 2 Corinthians. In the preamble to this direct defense of his apostleship (2 Corinthians 10:1 - 11:212 Corinthians 10:1 - 11:21 commentary), Paul told us this would be his destination, to say that he is well content to suffer for Christ’s sake. Early in Chapter 10, he said:
“We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.”
(2 Corinthians 10:52 Corinthians 10:5 commentary)
It is in the “obedience of Christ” where true strength is found. It is the worldly things that are “lofty” in the world’s eyes that are actually weak. The things the world loves are passing away, but the one who does God’s will will abide forever (1 John 2:15-171 John 2:15-17 commentary).
Jesus lived out strength in weakness on the cross. In doing so, He defeated sin and death. The Apostle John wrote, “The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:81 John 3:8 commentary). When we as believers take up our crosses daily and follow Jesus, then we are His disciples (Luke 14:27Luke 14:27 commentary). We learn His ways when we walk in obedience to His commands. In doing so we overcome our human frailties through the power of Christ and walk apart from sin in the victory of life (Romans 5:12-13Romans 5:12-13 commentary).