Third Letter to the Corinthians

I believe that Paul did not write the "Third Letter to the Corinthians" because it is not historically reliable. Comparing the letter with the gospels included in the New Testament, the letter is written in the same style and voice, and seems to be written by Paul. There are minor details that I think may contradict the character of Paul, such as the comparison that the study guide recommends, between Galatians 1:6 and 3 Corinthians 1:2. The comparison of these two versus suggest that Paul should in fact be surprised that the teachings of the "Evil One" are succeeding with the Corinthians. I do not, however, think that this comparison could hold an argument, nor do I think that such subtle details refute any validity of the letter, as many interpretations can change the context.

It is argued that 2 Corinthians 2:4 and 7:8-9 reference to this missing letter because the description (causing anguish and grief) does not match 1 Corinthians. In the beginning of 1 Corinthians 6:5, Paul says outright, "I say this to your shame" (ESV). Paul puts the Corinthians to shame throughout his entire letter (1:26-27, 3:1-4, 4:8-14, etc.), and there is no reason to believe that this would not cause anguish and grief among an entire civilization being accused of such common sin.

I believe that Paul did not write the "Third Letter to the Corinthians" because it is not historically reliable. Despite the copies that were written in the same time period of Paul's other letters, this letter was discredited from The Acts of Paul by Tertullian in the 3rd century because it encouraged woman to preach and baptize, but ultimately the texts are not considered canonical because Paul himself did not author the writings, and they were written out of respect for him, in Asia Minor. Although they were written out of respect for Paul, the lack of authorship creates an illusory idea which should not be considered God-inspired, as is the rest of the canonized scripture.

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