“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;”
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort — paraklēsis (comfort/encouragement) becomes the thematic heartbeat of chapters 1-7, appearing 10 times in vv3-7. God is not merely comforter but the Father of compassion itself (patēr tōn oiktirmōn), the very source from which all consolation flows. This opening doxology establishes suffering's purpose: to deepen our knowledge of God's merciful character.
Church Fathers on 2 Corinthians 1:3
It is meet to enquire, first, why to the former Epistle he adds a second: and what can be his reason for thus beginning with the mercies and consolation of God. Why then does he add a second Epistle? Whereas in the first he had said, “I will come to you, and will know not the word of them which are puffed up, but the power;” 1 Corinthians 4:19 and again towards the end had promised the same in milder terms, thus, “I will come unto you when I shall have passed through…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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