2 Corinthians 7:10
For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
Study Note
Study Note
The distinction between 'godly sorrow' that 'worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of' and 'the sorrow of the world' that 'worketh death' provides one of the New Testament's clearest diagnostic criteria for genuine repentance versus mere regret. Paul writes in the aftermath of his 'painful letter' to Corinth and the community's subsequent repentance, making this not abstract theory but observed pastoral experience. The contrast has been developed in Protestant homiletics as the distinction between contrition (sorrow over sin before God) and attrition (sorrow over consequences before men) — though Paul's categories resist too precise a scholastic taxonomy. Judas's remorse (Matthew 27:3-5) and Peter's repentance (Luke 22:62) are often cited as the canonical illustrations of the difference.
Other Translations
For godly sorrow worketh repentance unto salvation, a repentance which bringeth no regret: but the sorrow of the world worketh death.
for the sorrow toward God reformation to salvation not to be repented of doth work, and the sorrow of the world doth work death,
For the sorrow which God gives is the cause of salvation through a change of heart, in which there is no reason for grief: but the sorrow of the world is a cause of death.
Cross References
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Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make supplication unto …
And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against thee, and …
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