Revisiting 2 Corinthians: Rhetoric and the Case for Unity

Abstract

The current work argues for the compositional unity of 2 Corinthians. First, it addresses the chronological and argumentative relationship of chapters 10–13 to chapters 1–9. It next rejects the presence of so-called ‘interpolations’ and ‘sources’ in chapters 1–9. Finally, it considers the integrity of chapters 8 and 9. The uniqueness of this effort lies in its emphasis upon rhetorical reasons and warrants against the widely accepted partition hypothesis of Pauline historical- and source-critical scholarship. It does so by demonstrating the complex integrity of the argumentative development and trajectories in 2 Corinthians. It concludes with a new, suggestive approach to the correspondence as a complex, but nevertheless coherent, act of persuasion.