Verse 3 is connected to verse 2 with the word But, which Good News Translation does not translate. Verse 3 is in contrast to what Paul hopes for on the basis of his actions described in verse 2. In many languages it will be helpful to mark this contrast explicitly, using a conjunction like “but” or “however.”
As the serpent deceived Eve: Paul alludes here to the account in Gen 3.1-6, 13. Some languages will need to indicate that this incident refers to a time in the remote past. Though Paul does not identify the serpent with Satan, he probably understood the passage in Genesis as referring to Satan (see Wisdom of Solomon 2.24).
On the translation of cunning see 4.2. In some languages it will be redundant to translate this word explicitly, since the verb used to translate deceived will already contain the idea of cunning or trickery.
Your thoughts will be led astray: the verb led astray has a root meaning of “ruin,” “corrupt,” or “spoil.” In some languages a word such as “spoil” rather than “lead astray” may tie in better with the following words sincere and pure. As the next verse indicates, the implicit agent of the verb be led astray is “someone who preaches a different gospel from the one that Paul preaches.” In those languages where a passive verb cannot naturally be used here, one may have to say “someone will trick you and make you abandon [your faith in Christ],” or possibly even “by their cunning those false apostles will cause you to go away from [Christ].” Since Paul more than likely had specific persons in mind, it is not a good idea to make Satan the primary subject of the verb “to lead astray” in the receptor language. Languages often have rather unusual ways of talking about deceiving or leading other people astray. Some may say things like “to lead by the ears” or “to treat like an animal.”
The word sincere (literally “sincerity”) is translated in Revised Standard Version as “liberality” in 8.2 and “generosity” in 9.11, 13. Here the sense is “singleness of purpose,” that is, a “full” or “total” (Anchor Bible) devotion.
Pure is literally “purity.” Some manuscripts omit the word pure after sincere (followed by New Jerusalem Bible, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, and Revised English Bible), but the editors of the UBS Greek New Testament kept the word “pure” in brackets, thinking it is more likely that a scribe accidentally omitted the word. But since the meaning of the two words is very similar in this context, they may possibly be rendered by a single term in the receptor language.
Both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation restructure according to the implied meaning of the Greek, adding devotion to show that the “sincerity” and “purity” are qualities demonstrating a relationship with Christ. The Greek phrase may also be rendered “sincerity and purity [maintained] toward [or, for the sake of] Christ.” For normal English, of course, Revised Standard Version and Good News Bible do well to restructure as they do.
One possible restructuring of this verse may be as follows: “You remember the old story about the snake tricking Eve. I am afraid that you will be like that. Someone will trick you and then you will abandon your true and complete love for Christ.”
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellingworth, Paul. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .