In Paul’s second letter to the Church at Corinth he includes a greeting for the Saints of Achaia. It was the southern part of Greece including Corinth and Athens that was one province under Roman rule. He addresses them by “the will of God and Timothy our brother.” Timothy had been introduced as a leader by Paul in his first letter. 

Paul starts out by offering the blessing of God in affliction. He notes God’s comfort and mercy in times of suffering. Unfortunately, he is not offering salvation from difficulties, so we learn to endure patiently. While like Christ, we are not spared, we also have his gift of comfort so that we can learn to be a comfort to others. This is a hard pill to swallow for those looking to sign onto Christianity in the hopes of carefree life. The Christian blessing is that during hardships we have the opportunity to draw closer to both God and each other. He hopes that the readers remain unshaken. 

Paul references his own perils, detailed in Acts, while traveling in Asia—modern day Turkey. He says things were so grim that they thought they might die—they were beaten nearly to death.  Instead, they experienced the power of God that raised Christ from the dead—they didn’t die, but were revived and continued on. Paul thanks the Corinthians for their prayers and asks for more. 

What Paul is most proud of is that they behaved in simplicity and sincerity. He wants his readers to live that way as well so they can be proud of themselves too. He said he, Timothy and Silvanus, who is also known as Silas, always wanted to come visit them a second time, but are writing instead. He emphasizes that he never wavered in his desire to visit, but ultimately couldn’t. All yeses, he notes, ultimately come from God. Paul says their authority comes from the spirit of God that established, anointed and put a seal on their hearts as a guarantee. By not visiting in person, they have the joy to stand firm in faith.