Verses 12-14 are transition verses from the introductory section (1.1-11) to the theme of Paul’s travel plans and his relationship to the church at Corinth. As the following verses suggest, some people in Corinth thought that Paul was not being honest or straightforward in his relationship with them. In verses 12-13 Paul assures the readers that his conscience is clear, and that he has been guided in his decisions by God’s grace and not by his own human wisdom.

Verse 12 begins in Greek with the word For. Though this word sometimes expresses a causal relationship between two phrases, it may also function as an introductory word without connecting what follows with what precedes. Here the Greek word appears to function only to introduce a new movement of thought. The word may be omitted in some languages (so Good News Translation and Revised English Bible) or translated with an introductory word such as “Now” (Anchor Bible). In some languages the presence of a new section heading serves much the same purpose as this transition word. If the word is translated overtly, the receptor language word or phrase used should be one that serves to introduce an important point or that indicates a point of transition.

Boast: this noun and the related verb are very common in 2 Corinthians and may be considered a key word in this letter. In this context boast may refer to “that which one boasts about” (Revised Standard Version, New International Version, New Revised Standard Version, Revised English Bible) or “the reason that one is proud.” The former seems more likely. While it is a noun, it may be better translated by a verbal expression, as in Good News Translation. Here the idea of “boasting” may be expressed in some languages in terms of “pride,” but in other cases it will be necessary to soften this by using an expression like “we must say something good about ourselves…” or “something that makes us feel good about ourselves is….”

Both Nestle-Aland and the UBS Greek New Testament place the words the testimony of our conscience within commas. This punctuation is accepted by Phillips: “Now it is a matter of pride to us—endorsed by our conscience—that our activities….” That is, Paul is stating that he is proud that his life has been ruled by God’s grace, and his conscience agrees with, or endorses, his boast. This interpretation and punctuation are followed also in New Revised Standard Version: “Indeed, this is our boast, the testimony of our conscience: we have behaved…” (so also Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Nouvelle version Segond révisée).

On the other hand, both Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation make the words the testimony of our conscience a part of that about which Paul boasts, that is, he is proud that his conscience assures him that his life has been ruled by God’s grace (so also Revised English Bible, Spanish common language version [Biblia Dios Habla Hoy], Bible en français courant). Both interpretations make good sense, and the grammar and context do not point more strongly to one interpretation over the other. In most languages it will not be possible to maintain the ambiguity of the Greek, and translators must simply choose one interpretation, knowing that the other is equally possible.

The word conscience presents serious problems for translators in many languages. It occurs in Paul’s speeches in (Acts 23.1 and 24.16) and is used frequently by Paul in his letters—especially to the Corinthian Christians. It is also found in the letter to the Hebrews and in 1 Peter. It involves knowledge based on contemplation of one’s past actions. In some cases it is qualified by the adjectives “good” or “clean” if those actions have been acceptable and as “evil” if they are unacceptable. In 1 Peter 2.19 Revised Standard Version translates the same term “mindful,” and in Heb 10.2 it is rendered “consciousness.” So the meaning is something like “awareness,” either of having done wrong or of having done nothing wrong. In this verse it clearly involved Paul’s feeling that he had done no wrong. It is translated “conscientious conviction” by New Jerusalem Bible. In many languages the nominal expression the testimony of our conscience may be rendered by a verbal expression like “our heart tells us” or something similar.

We have behaved: the verb used here involves a person’s actions and relationships with other people. Some languages may say “our conduct has been…” or “we have lived….”

The words in the world here are not negative, as if the world is an evil place. Paul is simply referring to his daily life among people.

With holiness and godly sincerity is literally “with holiness and sincerity of God.” The words “of God” may modify the second noun only (Revised Standard Version, New Revised Standard Version) or both nouns (Good News Translation; New International Version “in the holiness and sincerity that are from God”). Some manuscripts have a word meaning “frankness” in place of holiness here. In Greek the two words are spelled almost the same. In this case the word “frankness” would be virtually synonymous with sincerity. This is reflected in a variety of translations, including King James Version, New Revised Standard Version, and Translator’s New Testament (Translator’s New Testament), as well as Good News Translation. The reading “frankness” is recommended by the editors of the UBS Greek New Testament as the word that fits the context better. “Frankness” may be expressed as “openness,” “absolutely above board” (Phillips), or, in some cases, by a full verbal expression like “we have not hidden anything from you.” The alternative term holiness presents special problems in many languages. If translators follow the texts that have holiness (as in Revised Standard Version, New International Version, and Revised English Bible), it may be necessary to restructure the whole phrase and say something like “we have always lived as those who belong to God [or, in obedience to God] and with a sincerity that comes from God.”

Earthly wisdom: literally “fleshly wisdom” (King James Version). Paul sometimes uses the word “fleshly” to refer to that which is typical of human nature. Some other possible models may be “the wisdom of this world” (Contemporary English Version) or simply “human wisdom” (Translator’s New Testament).

The grace of God: on the term grace see 2 Cor. 1.2 above. The expression “the grace of God” occurs nineteen times in Acts and the New Testament letters. It refers to God’s kindness or goodness to human beings, who can do nothing to earn it. In this context Paul is saying that his good behavior is not due to anything in himself but to God’s goodness to him.

A model for this verse as a whole may be something like the following:
• In our own hearts we know that in everything we have done in this world we have done it all with an honest and pure heart given by God. And this is especially true of what we have done in our relations with you. We are very proud of this. But we have done this by the grace of God and not by human wisdom.

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 .