2 Corinthians 11:15
Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
Study Note
Study Note
Paul's assertion that Satan's ministers disguise themselves as 'ministers of righteousness' extends the warning of verse 14 about Satan transforming into an 'angel of light' — both drawing on Jewish traditions of satanic deception (Life of Adam and Eve 9; 2 Enoch 29:4). The ironic use of 'ministers of righteousness' (diakonoi dikaiosynēs) mirrors Paul's self-description as minister of the new covenant (2 Corinthians 3:6), warning the Corinthians that external resemblance to legitimate ministry is no guarantee of divine commission. The verse concludes with an unusually direct eschatological threat: their end will correspond to their works — a principle of divine justice in a letter otherwise focused on grace. The passage (2 Corinthians 11:12–15) is central to interpreting Paul's 'fool's speech' and his polemic against the 'super-apostles.'
Other Translations
It is no great thing therefore if his ministers also fashion themselves as ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.
no great thing, then, if also his ministrants do transform themselves as ministrants of righteousness--whose end shall be according to their works.
So it is no great thing if his servants make themselves seem to be servants of righteousness; whose end will be the reward of their works.
Cross References
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