Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of 2 Corinthians 11:15
Therefore [it is] no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
15. whose end shall be according to their works ] Cf. Pro 24:12; Mat 16:27; Rom 2:6-11; 1Co 3:8; Php 3:19; 2Ti 4:14; Rev 20:12, &c.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Therefore it is no great thing … – It is not to be deemed surprising. You are not to wonder if people of the basest, blackest character put on the appearance of the greatest sanctity, and even become eminent as professed preachers of righteousness.
Whose end shall be … – Whose final destiny. Their doom in eternity shall not be according to their fair professions and plausible pretences, for they cannot deceive God; but shall be according to their real character, and their works. Their work is a work of deception, and they shall be judged according to that. What revelations there will be in the day of judgment, when all impostors shall be unmasked, and when all hypocrites and deceivers shall be seen in their true colors! And how desirable is it that there should be such a day to disclose all beings in their true character, and forever to remove imposture and delusion from the universe!
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 15. Whose end shall be according to their works.] A bad way leads to a bad end. The way of sin is the way to hell.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
It is no wonder if there be like servants, like masters: and as the devil, in order to the deceiving of souls, pretends to what he is not, viz. a friend to them; so those who seek their own profit, not your good, show themselves to be
his ministers, driving the same design with him, also do the like, and change their shapes, pretending themselves to be ministers of the gospel, and to aim at the good of your souls, by teaching you the way
of righteousness; but God will one day judge of their works, and their reward at last will be
according to their works.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
15. no great thingnodifficult matter.
if his ministers alsoaswell as himself.
righteousnessansweringto “light” (2Co 11:14);the manifestation wherewith God reveals Himself in Christ (Mat 6:33;Rom 1:17).
endThe test of thingsis the end which strips off every specious form intowhich Satan’s agents may now “transform” themselves(compare Phi 3:19; Phi 3:21).
according to their worksnotaccording to their pretensions.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Therefore it is no great thing,…. It is no strange and wonderful thing; it may easily be given into; no man need to make any doubt of it, or hesitate concerning it, since the devil himself, who is an angel of darkness, is transformed into an angel of light:
if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; not that they really are transformed into such ministers, but they appear and look like such; they are not really, but “as the ministers of righteousness”; they put on the form and air of faithful upright ministers of the word, and would be thought to be such; they mimic Gospel preachers, who assert the doctrine of justification by the righteousness of Christ, though they most miserably corrupt it, and blend it with something of their own; and which they endeavour to palliate, and cover from the sight of men; and especially they set up themselves as such, by pretending to be great friends to holiness and good works, which they press with much vehemence, and oppose to the doctrines of grace, with all their might and main; in doing which, they greatly serve their master, whose ministers they are; and who well knows that the doctrine of works may do much prejudice to the Gospel interest, and churches of Christ, but will never convert nor save one soul: a dreadful character these men have, for though they would pass for ministers of righteousness, friends to holiness, and men zealous of good works, they are no other than ministers of Satan, doing his work, serving his interest, and propagating his kingdom, which is a kingdom of darkness:
whose end shall be according to their works; for either God will make public examples of them in this world, or if they are not made manifest here, though they may deceive themselves and others, they cannot deceive God; he will take off the mask, their hypocrisy shall be detected, their evil works will be laid open, and they will be judged according to them, and condemned for them to everlasting punishment.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
As ministers of righteousness ( ). Jesus (Joh 10:1-21) terms these false shepherds thieves and robbers. It is a tragedy to see men in the livery of heaven serve the devil.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
1) “Therefore it is no great thing,” (ou mega oun) “It is therefore no great thing,” Php_3:18-19.
2) “If his ministers,” (ei kai hoi diakonoi autou) “If the common ministers of him (of Satan),” Joh 8:44.
3) “Also be transformed,” (metaschematizontai) “also transform themselves,” Of their own accord, like chameleons, Jud 1:4: as the Pharisees and Sadducees attempted to do, Joh 8:33; Joh 8:39; Joh 8:48; Joh 8:52; Joh 8:59.
4) “As ministers of righteousness,” (hos diakonoi diakiousunes) “as common ministers of righteousness,” Joh 9:16; Joh 9:24; Joh 9:28-29.
5) “Whose end shall be,” (ho to telos estai) “the end of whom shall be; 2Pe 2:11; Php_3:19; Rom 6:21.
6) “According to their works,” (kata ta erga auton) “According to their (own) (deceitful) works, Jud 1:14; Jud 1:5; 2Pe 2:9; 2Pe 2:18-22; Mat 7:21-23; Mat 25:12.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
15. Whose end shall be. He adds this for the consolation of the pious. For it is the statement of a courageous man, who despises the foolish judgments of men, and patiently waits for the day of the Lord. In the mean time, he shows a singular boldness of conscience, which does not dread the judgment of God.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(15) If his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness.The words seem to point to one of the special characteristics of the Apostles rivals. They represented themselves as the preachers of a righteousness which was, they asserted, neglected in St. Pauls teaching. They claimed the authority of one who was known as James the Just, or Righteous, and who had insisted emphatically on the necessity of a righteousness showing itself in act. They presented themselves as a kind of revival of the Chasidim, or righteous ones. (See Note on Act. 9:13.) It may be noted that the latter developments of the same school, as seen in the Clementine Homilies and Recognitions, present, in the midst of much that is both false and malignant, an almost ostentatiously high standard of morality.
Whose end shall be according to their works.What the works were is stated, or implied, in 2Co. 11:20. Hero he is content to rest on the eternal law of Gods government, that what a man sows that shall he also reap. The abruptness with which the next verse opens indicates that here again there was a pause in the dictation of the letter. After an intervalduring which, led by the last words he had spoken, his thoughts had travelled to the contrast between their works, of which they boasted so loudly, and his ownhe begins again, half-indignant at the necessity for self-assertion which they have forced upon him, aware that all that had been said of his insane habit of commending himself was likely to be said again, and yet feeling that he must once for all remind the Corinthians of what he had done and suffered, and then leave them to judge between the rival claims.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
15. End Their final retribution.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
2Co 11:15 . It is not a great matter, therefore , not strange and extraordinary, if , etc. Comp. 1Co 9:11 ; Plato, Hipp. maj . p. 287 A, Menex . p. 235 D; Herod. vii. 38.
] if, as he does himself, his servants also transform themselves, namely, as servants of righteousness, i.e. as people who are appointed for, and active in, furthering the righteousness by faith. Comp. on 2Co 3:9 . The , the opposite of , but in a specifically Christian and especially Pauline sense (comp. on 2Co 6:14 ) as the condition of the kingdom of God, is naturally that which Satan and his servants seek to counteract. When the latter, however, demean themselves as , the , which they pretend to serve, must have the semblance of the righteousness of faith , although it is not so in reality. This view is therefore not “ out of the way ” (Klpper, p. 90), but contextual; and the cannot be the righteousness of the law , the preaching of which is not the mark of the . As to ( transform themselves and become as ), comp. on Rom 9:29 .
. . .] of whom the servants of Satan the end, final fate, will be in accordance with their works . Comp. Phi 3:19 ; Rom 6:21 ; 1Pe 4:17 . “Quacunque specie se nunc efferant, detrahitur tandem schema,” Bengel.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Ver. 15. As the ministers of righteousness ] Cavete a Melampygo. Try before you trust; sects and seducers are very subtle and insinuative; the locusts have faces like women; know them and avoid them. When one commended the pope’s legate at the Council of Basil, Sigismund the emperor answered, Tamen Romanus est, Yet he is a Roman. So, let Satan or his agents come never so much commended to us in his sugared allurements, let us answer, Yet he is a devil. Sin draws the devil’s picture in a man; envy is the devil’s eye, falsehood his tongue, oppression his hand, hypocrisy his cloven foot, &c.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
15. ] , if also , i.e. as well as himself , or perhaps better applying to the whole sentence, if, also
. , i.e. . : so Rom 9:29 , .
, the father of falsehood and wrong ( Joh 8:44 ), is directly opposed to , Mat 6:33 , that manifestation of God by which He is known to us in the Gospel, Rom 1:17 .
.] Of whom (notwithstanding this disguise) the end shall be correspondent to their works (not to their pretensions).
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
2Co 11:15 . . . .: it is no great thing therefore, if his ministers also, sc. , as well as himself, fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness (see on 2Co 3:9 ); whose end , notwithstanding their disguise ( cf. Rom 6:21 , Phi 3:19 ), shall be according to their works (see on 2Co 11:10 ).
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
ministers. Greek. diakonos. App-190.
righteousness. Greek. dikaiosune. App-191.
according to. Greek. kata, App-104.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
15.] , if also, i.e. as well as himself, or perhaps better applying to the whole sentence, if, also
. , i.e. . :-so Rom 9:29, .
, the father of falsehood and wrong (Joh 8:44), is directly opposed to , Mat 6:33, that manifestation of God by which He is known to us in the Gospel, Rom 1:17.
.] Of whom (notwithstanding this disguise) the end shall be correspondent to their works (not to their pretensions).
Fuente: The Greek Testament
2Co 11:15. , no great thing) no difficult matter.-, his) Satans.-, of righteousness) which is in Christ.- , the end) Whatever may be the specious appearance, on which they now plume themselves, the form [alluding to their transforming themselves into ministers of righteousness] is at last stripped off from them. A most effectual criterion is derived from the future end of things, in the case of good and evil alike, Php 3:19; Php 3:21.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
2Co 11:15
2Co 11:15
It is no great thing therefore if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness;-Since this is true of Satan, it is not a strange thing that his servants should follow his example and claim to be ministers of light. These impostors claiming to be apostles were an example of this. They yet do it. Every one who seeks to turn the children of God from his appointed ways is a minister of Satan, even though he thinks he is serving God. [This fearful description implies that Pauls opponents, though church members and professed followers of Jesus Christ, were bad men, deliberately deceiving the Corinthian Christians. Therefore since Satan even assumes the garb of righteousness in order to ensnare men, it is no wonder that these men assumed a garb which was not their own.]
whose end shall be according to their works.-The end of all such shall correspond to their works; evil works bring an evil end. [They are guilty of the deepest sort of lie, and their punishment will be as terrible as their sin.]
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
righteousness
(See Scofield “1Jn 3:7”).
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
no: 2Ki 5:13, 1Co 9:11
his: 2Co 11:13, Act 13:10, Eph 6:12, Rev 9:11, Rev 13:2, Rev 13:14, Rev 19:19-21, Rev 20:2, Rev 20:3, Rev 20:7-10
the ministers: 2Co 11:23, 2Co 3:9
whose: Isa 9:14, Isa 9:15, Jer 5:31, Jer 23:14, Jer 23:15, Jer 28:15-17, Jer 29:32, Eze 13:10-15, Eze 13:22, Mat 7:15, Mat 7:16, Gal 1:8, Gal 1:9, Phi 3:19, 2Th 2:8-12, 2Pe 2:3, 2Pe 2:13-22, Jud 1:4, Jud 1:10 -13
Reciprocal: Pro 18:21 – Death Mat 16:23 – Get 2Th 2:10 – deceivableness
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2Co 11:15. Ministers is from the same Greek word that its rendered “deacon” in other passages. Thayer’s primary definition is, “one who executes the commands of another, especially of a master; a servant, attendant, minister.” Hence Paul accuses these false teachers with executing the orders of Satan, but doing it under the guise of righteous workers. Whose end . . . their works; will reap as they sowed (Gal 6:8).
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
2Co 11:15. It is no great thing therefore (nothing surprising) if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness: whose end shall be according to their worksfor whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap (Gal 6:7; Rom 6:21; Php 3:19).
Advancing now to the things of which he was well entitled to boast, if boasting was at all permissible and wise, he begins by deprecating the supposition that in so doing he was playing the fool; and if they should still say that he was, then claiming the liberty permitted even to fools.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Verse 15 All who would turn God’s people from the truth are ministers of Satan. They deceive and will be punished for such deception ( Rev 21:8 ).
Fuente: Gary Hampton Commentary on Selected Books
It is no great thing therefore if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. [The apostle says that no one need stand aghast at such awful presumption, for Satan himself sets an example in this respect and his ministers may be expected to follow it. Some think that Satan fashioned himself as an angel of light when he appeared before God as narrated in the Book of Job; others, that he did so when he appeared before Jesus to tempt him. It is not clear to what incident in the life of Satan Paul refers. In this age, as in all ages, these warning words of the apostle should be weighed and considered. As Jesus bade us beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing, so Paul bids us beware of the emissaries of Satan, who come claiming to be leaders in religion. The servants of Satan do not hesitate to hold ecclesiastical offices, or occupy pulpits.]
Fuente: McGarvey and Pendleton Commentaries (New Testament)
Verse 15
His ministers; his servants; those who execute his purposes.