HomeLog inTodaySubscriptionVerse LibraryApproachAboutPrivacy中文English
← Back to Library

2 Corinthians 10:2-6

哥林多后书 10:2-6

The Passage

Now I beg you that when I am present I may not yet be bold with that confidence by which I intend to be bold against some, who consider us to be walking according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we don't wage war according to the flesh; for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the throwing down of strongholds, throwing down imaginations and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ; and being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, when your obedience will have been made full.

In the other language

有人以为我是凭着血气行事，我也以为必须用勇敢待这等人；求你们不要叫我在你们那里的时候，有这样的勇敢。因为我们虽然在血气中行事，却不凭着血气争战。我们争战的兵器本不是属血气的，乃是在神面前有能力，可以攻破坚固的营垒，将各样的计谋，各样拦阻人认识神的那些自高之事，一概攻破了，又将人所有的心意夺回，使他都顺服基督。并且我已经预备好了，等你们十分顺服的时候，要责罚那一切不顺服的人。

Theme

Weapons not of the flesh

Bring a question to this passage

Many readers arrive here from a real question. These are reflections for how this passage speaks to the questions people bring most often — not an answer about what will happen, but an invitation to sit with it slowly.

How do I face this season of pressure at work?

Paul is addressing a conflict over his ministry, not giving instructions for workplace disputes. Still, his refusal to wage war according to the flesh invites you to examine how you respond when you feel challenged. Under pressure, winning an argument or defending your reputation can become more important than truthfulness. Bringing thoughts into obedience to Christ is not a demand to stop feeling anxious or to treat colleagues as enemies. It offers a place to pause and question the assumptions driving your response. You can notice a defensive thought without immediately acting on it. Which thought about your work most needs to be examined rather than obeyed?

Carry thisA defensive thought does not have to direct your response.

Other passages for this questionGenesis 1:26-28 · Isaiah 41:10 · 1 Corinthians 7:3-4

I want to learn to love better in this relationship.

The conflict Paul describes is not advice about a personal relationship, but his attention to thoughts offers a place to pause. He distinguishes living in the flesh from fighting according to it, and speaks of bringing thoughts into obedience to Christ. When you feel hurt, your mind may quickly turn an assumption into a verdict about the other person. This passage invites you to examine that inner argument rather than simply obey it. Its language of warfare is not a license to conquer your partner or punish disagreement. The attention belongs first on your own thoughts and responses. It does not give advice about your relationship directly. In what way could this passage help you bring an assumption about the other person before Christ rather than treat it as a verdict?

Carry thisYour first interpretation does not have to govern your response.

Other passages for this questionGenesis 1:26-28 · Isaiah 41:10 · 1 Corinthians 7:3-4

What do I need to let go of in the coming weeks?

Paul distinguishes living in the flesh from fighting according to the flesh. His concern is with arguments and proud claims that resist the knowledge of God, and with bringing thought into obedience to Christ. This passage does not supply a list of things to abandon in the coming weeks. It does invite you to examine the ideas you defend without question: the need to defeat someone, the certainty that you cannot be wrong, or the belief that force is your only option. Not every unwanted thought is a moral failure. This passage does not specify what to leave behind in the coming weeks. Which thought might you be ready to examine before Christ rather than defend?

Carry thisA strongly held thought can still be open to examination.

Other passages for this questionGenesis 1:26-28 · Isaiah 41:10 · 1 Corinthians 7:3-4

How can I find stillness in a busy life?

Paul writes here amid conflict, distinguishing life in the flesh from warfare conducted according to the flesh. This passage is not a guide to relaxation, but it invites attention to what governs your thinking. A busy mind can treat every demand as a battle that must be won through force or control. Paul's language directs attention instead toward the knowledge of God and obedience to Christ. Bringing thoughts before Christ need not mean punishing yourself for distraction or trying to erase unwanted thoughts. You can pause and examine the assumptions driving your urgency. This passage does not offer a method for finding stillness. When your mind treats every demand as a battle, could you pause to bring that urgency before Christ?

Carry thisEvery urgent thought need not become your marching order.

Other passages for this questionGenesis 1:26-28 · Isaiah 41:10 · 1 Corinthians 7:3-4

Have a different question?

Write what you are actually carrying right now, and Lectio will answer it with this passage — 2 Corinthians 10:2-6.

Or walk this passage through the five steps of Lectio →

2 Corinthians 10 — in context

1Now I Paul, myself, entreat you by the humility and gentleness of Christ; I who in your presence am lowly among you, but being absent am bold toward you.

2Yes, I beg you that I may not, when present, show courage with the confidence with which I intend to be bold against some, who consider us to be walking according to the flesh.

3For though we walk in the flesh, we don’t wage war according to the flesh;

4for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the throwing down of strongholds,

5throwing down imaginations and every high thing that is exalted against the knowledge of God, and bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ;

6and being in readiness to avenge all disobedience, when your obedience will be made full.

7Do you look at things only as they appear in front of your face? If anyone trusts in himself that he is Christ’s, let him consider this again with himself, that, even as he is Christ’s, so also we are Christ’s.

8For though I should boast somewhat abundantly concerning our authority, (which the Lord gave for building you up, and not for casting you down) I will not be disappointed,

9that I may not seem as if I desire to terrify you by my letters.

10For, “His letters”, they say, “are weighty and strong, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech is despised.”

11Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when we are absent, such are we also in deed when we are present.

12For we are not bold to number or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves. But they themselves, measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves with themselves, are without understanding.

More from 2 Corinthians

Begin a Lectio reading

Log in

Continue with Google
or use email

Don't have an account? Sign up