📖WEB · 2 Corinthians 5:7
What does 2 Corinthians 5:7 mean?
"for we walk by faith, not by sight."
— 2 Corinthians 5:7 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
For indeed we who are in this tent do groan, being burdened; not that we desire to be unclothed, but that we desire to be clothed, that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
Now he who made us for this very thing is God, who also gave to us the down payment of the Spirit.
Therefore we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord;
for we walk by faith, not by sight.
We are courageous, I say, and are willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be at home with the Lord.
Therefore also we make it our aim, whether at home or absent, to be well pleasing to him.
For we must all be revealed before the judgment seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
Explanation
2 Corinthians 5:7 states simply: "For we walk by faith, not by sight." In plain language, this means that Christians live and make decisions based on trust in God and his promises, rather than relying solely on what can be seen, measured, or empirically verified in the present moment. The phrase "walk" refers to the entire manner of one's daily life and conduct, a common biblical metaphor for how a person lives. "Sight" here refers to physical, visible circumstances or empirical evidence, while "faith" refers to confident trust in God's character, word, and unseen realities.
To understand this verse properly, we need its context. Paul wrote this letter to the church in Corinth, a congregation he had founded but which was experiencing tension with him, partly due to false teachers and partly due to Paul's own sufferings, which some saw as inconsistent with apostolic authority. In the verses surrounding 5:7, Paul is discussing the Christian hope of resurrection and eternal life with God. In 5:1-5, he speaks of an eternal dwelling with God that awaits believers after this earthly life, contrasted with our current "tent," the physical body, which is temporary and subject to decay. In 5:6, Paul states that "whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord." Verse 7 explains why: because our full, direct experience of God's presence is not yet visible—it lies ahead. Then in verse 8, Paul expresses his desire to be "at home with the Lord" rather than in the body. So 5:7 is nestled within Paul's disc
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