2 Corinthians 5 is the fifth chapter of the Second Epistle to the Corinthians in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It was written by Paul the Apostle and Timothy (2 Corinthians 1:1) in Macedonia in 55–56 CE.
The 18th-century theologian John Gill (1697-1771) summarises the contents of this chapter:
Text The original text was written in Koine Greek. This chapter is divided into 21 verses.
Textual witnesses Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are: Papyrus 46 (c. AD 200) Codex Vaticanus (325–350) Codex Sinaiticus (330–360) Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (c. 450) Codex Freerianus (c. 450; extant verses 8–10,17–18) Codex Claromontanus (c. 550).
Verse 1 For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. NKJV "Our earthly house" refers to the body; similarly, Plato also calls the body , , "an earthly tabernacle", just as the Jews call the body a house or a "tabernacle".In Clement of Alexandria's Stromata. l. 5. p. 593. Quote: "every man (Sepher Caphtor, fol. 38. 2.) has two houses, "the house of the body" and the house of the soul"; one is the outward, the other the inward house." quoted by Gill on 2 Corinthians 5:1. Abarbinel paraphrases "my dwelling place, which is the body, for that is "the tabernacle of the soul"."Mashmia Jeshua, Bnei Brak 2014, vol. 3. 3,16
The "house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens" can be interpreted as the "glorified body" (after the resurrection), or "the holy house" in the world to come,Zohar in Exod. fol. 34. 3. & 35. 3. which might be intended in or .John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible, 2 Corinthians 5:1
Verse 6 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord.: English Standard Version Otto Paul (O. P.) Kretzmann notes that in the life of a Christian believer, "there is a yearning for home, a homesickness for heaven". Harold H. Buls comments that "this verse touches on the great paradox in the life of the Christian": although believers are homesick, they are cheerful; they long for heaven, but they are content.Buls, H. H., 2 Corinthians 5:1-10, adapted from Exegetical Notes Epistle Texts, Series B, Sundays after Pentecost: Concordia Theological Seminary Press: Ft Wayne IN, 1987, pp. 17-20, accessed on 13 June 2025
Verses 18-19 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.: ESV MacDonald suggests that the passage from 2 Corinthians 2:14 onwards, in which Paul defends his authority as an apostle, ends here at 2 Corinthians 5:19. She notes that the next section (verse 20 to 2 Corinthians 6:2) is "closely related" to the foregoing text, while also initiating "a new type of exhortation".
See also Transfiguration of Jesus Related Bible parts: Isaiah 53, Romans 3, Romans 4, 2 Corinthians 4, Revelation 6
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External links King James Bible - Wikisource English Translation with Parallel Latin Vulgate Online Bible at GospelHall.org (ESV, KJV, Darby, American Standard Version, Bible in Basic English) Multiple bible versions at Bible Gateway (NKJV, NIV, NRSV etc.)