2 Corinthians 13:1
What does 2 Corinthians 13:1 mean?
A plain-English look at 2 Corinthians 13:1 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What 2 Corinthians 13:1 means
Paul announces his “third” coming and invokes the principle that every matter must be established by two or three witnesses. He signals that his next visit will not be casual but judicial, guided by Scripture’s standard for confirming charges. This shows he is not acting out of irritation but under God’s order for truth and fairness. By appealing to witnesses, Paul guards against rumor and partisanship, and sets the expectation that accusations and discipline will be handled openly and justly. His apostolic authority is real, yet it will operate within God’s righteous procedures, so that what is affirmed in Corinth rests on evidence, not impulse or hearsay.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000This is the third time I am coming to you. At the mouth of two witnesses or three shall every word be established.
KJV
King James Version · 1611This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901This is the third time I am coming to you. At the mouth of two witnesses or three shall every word be established.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949This is the third time that I am coming to you. From the mouth of two or three witnesses will every word be made certain.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862This third time do I come unto you; on the mouth of two witnesses or three shall every saying be established;
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752Behold, this is the third time I am coming to you: In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word stand.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890This third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every matter be established.
Context
After chapters of self-defense and pastoral appeal, Paul turns to closing matters with firm clarity. Verse 1 opens the final section by framing his impending visit as a serious, orderly encounter, not a social call. The legal standard of witnesses prepares the church to think in terms of verifiable facts. This sets up verse 2, where Paul warns that he will not spare the unrepentant, and it anchors that warning in a fair process, helping first-time readers see that discipline, if needed, will be principled, not arbitrary.
v.1This passage
v.2I have said beforehand, and I do say beforehand, as when I was present the second time, so now, being absent, to them that have sinned heretofore, and to all the rest, that, if I come again, I will not spare;
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- 2 Corinthians 12:14
Behold, this is the third time I am ready to come to you; and I will not be a burden to you: for I seek not yours, but you: for the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.
- John 8:17
Yea and in your law it is written, that the witness of two men is true.
- 1 Kings 21:10
and set two men, base fellows, before him, and let them bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst curse God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him to death.
- Deuteronomy 19:15
One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall a matter be established.
- 1 Kings 21:13
And the two men, the base fellows, came in and sat before him: and the base fellows bare witness against him, even against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, Naboth did curse God and the king. Then they carried him forth out of the city, and stoned him to death with stones.
- Hebrews 10:28
A man that hath set at nought Moses’ law dieth without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses:
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