“Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;”
Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves; our competence comes from God — Paul's incompetence (ou hikanoi) is foundational. Ministry flows from divine enablement, not human qualification. This is the corrective to all false apostolic pretension.
Church Fathers on 2 Corinthians 3:5
“Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to account anything as from ourselves.” See again, yet another corrective. For he possesses this virtue, humility I mean, in singular perfection. Wherefore whenever he says anything great of himself, he makes all diligence to soften down extremely and by every means, what he has said. And so he does in this place also, saying, “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to account anything as from ourselves:” that is, I said not, “We…
Nicene & Post-Nicene / Ante-Nicene Fathers translations · public domain
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