2 Corinthians 7:9

yet now I rejoice, not because you were made sorrowful, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. For you felt the sorrow that God had intended, and so were not harmed in any way by us.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Paul writes to the Corinthian church after sending a rebuking letter, now addressing their response to his correction.

The words — χαίρω (chairō) means I rejoice, while ἐλυπήθητε (elupēthēte) translates as you were grieved. Paul states his joy stems not from their grief itself, but from the repentance that grief produced.

The thread — The connection between disciplined sorrow and repentance runs through Jeremiah 31:18, where grief over discipline leads to restoration, and Psalm 38:18, where confession follows acknowledged sin. Luke 15:7 parallels the rejoicing over repentance that Paul describes.

Why it lands — The text requires a reader to distinguish between sorrow that produces repentance and sorrow that produces only self-pity. It demands an honest assessment of whether one's grief aligns with God's correction or merely wounds the soul.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

Now I rejoice, not that ye 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.

Cross-references

Luke 15:7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous ones who do not need to repent.
Jeremiah 31:18 I have surely heard Ephraim’s moaning: ‘You disciplined me severely, like an untrained calf. Restore me, that I may return, for You are the LORD my God.
Psalms 38:18 Yes, I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.
Ecclesiastes 7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter, for a sad countenance is good for the heart.
2 Corinthians 7:10 Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.
2 Corinthians 13:8 For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth.
Zechariah 12:10 Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son.
2 Corinthians 10:8 For even if I boast somewhat excessively about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than tearing you down, I will not be ashamed.
Isaiah 6:9 And He replied: “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
Luke 15:10 In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who repents.”