1. So I decided that my next visit to you would not be another one to make you sad.
2. If I make you sad, who will make me glad? Only you can make me glad—particularly the person whom I made sad.
3. I wrote you a letter for this reason: that when I came to you I would not be made sad by the people who should make me happy. I felt sure of all of you, that you would share my joy.
4. When I wrote to you before, I was very troubled and unhappy in my heart, and I wrote with many tears. I did not write to make you sad, but to let you know how much I love you.
5. Someone there among you has caused sadness, not to me, but to all of you. I mean he caused sadness to all in some way. (I do not want to make it sound worse than it really is.)
6. The punishment that most of you gave him is enough for him.
7. But now you should forgive him and comfort him to keep him from having too much sadness and giving up completely.
8. So I beg you to show that you love him.
9. I wrote you to test you and to see if you obey in everything.
10. If you forgive someone, I also forgive him. And what I have forgiven—if I had anything to forgive—I forgave it for you, as if Christ were with me.
11. I did this so that Satan would not win anything from us, because we know very well what Satan’s plans are.