SUMMARY
In a short thanksgiving, PaulThe Apostle Paul, originally known as Saul of Tarsus, was the author of several New Testament letters and the founder of many Christian communities. More depicts how he is being led by God in a triumphal procession. To some, his suffering body gives off the smell of death and suffering. Yet to others, it is the sweet-smelling aroma of the knowledge of God given in the MessiahThe Messiah was the one who, it was believed, would come to free the people of Israel from bondage and exile. In Jewish thought the Messiah is the anticipated one who will come, as prophesied by Isaiah. In Christian thought Jesus of Nazareth is identified... More.
ANALYSIS
Paul thanks God for leading us in a “triumphal procession,” an ancient parade in which victorious kings and army leaders paraded prisoners of war. He uses this image, with its vivid portrayal of conquered bodies, to depict how God, as a warrior victorious over sin, death, and demonic powers, manifests the very fragrance of knowing God precisely by parading our suffering bodies to everyone’s conscience throughout the world (2 Corinthians 2:14; Colossians 2:15).
To understand how Paul is using this image, we first need to understand that it juxtaposes two biblical associations with our sense of smell—the “pleasing odor” of burnt sacrifices offered to the Lord (e.g., in Exodus 29:18) and the way God’s WisdomWisdom encompasses the qualities of experience, knowledge, and good judgment. The Old Testament book of Proverbs, which sometimes invokes a Woman as the personification of Wisdom, is a collection of aphorisms and moral teachings. Along with other biblical passages, it teaches, "The fear of the... More comes to us a sweet-smelling fragrance (Sirach 24:15). In turn, Paul’s use of it centers on the distinction between two Greek words for smell. Osmē (translated as “fragrance” in 2 Corinthians 2:14 and 2 Corinthians 2:16) can refer either to a pleasant odor or to an unpleasant one. By contrast, euōdia (translated as “aroma” in 2 Corinthians 2:15) can only refer to a sweet smell, as when it is used to describe the “pleasing odor” of burnt sacrifices (Exodus 29:18). Further, Paul understands that our bodies, when united with the Messiah are, like his, sacrifices offered to God (see Romans 12:1-2).
Thus, Paul is saying that, to be sure, God’s parade of apostolic bodies like his, which are being offered as sacrifices, may, indeed, give off to the world an ambivalent smell. Recalling his argument about the crucified Messiah in 1 Corinthians, he points out what we smell will either be salvific or destructive to us, depending on our perspective (2 Corinthians 5:16; cf. 1 Corinthians 1:18-25). For some, these bodies smell of death; for others, they smell of life. But, in fact—and this is the point Paul wants to make, especially to his detractors, who are questioning his competence as an apostle—his suffering body, with all its ambivalent odors to different people at different times, is the “aroma” (euōdia) of the Messiah, who as God’s unquestionable “Yes” to the world and has only one smell, a sweet smell that is available to all (2 Corinthians 2:15-16; cf. 2 Corinthians 1:20).
So, in response to those who question his competence as an apostleDerived from a Greek word meaning "one who is sent," an apostle is a person who embraces and advocates another person's idea or beliefs. At the beginning of his ministry Jesus called twelve apostles to follow and serve him. Paul became an apostle of Jesus... More, Paul maintains that he is not a huckster of God’s word, like so many others. Rather, he is like MosesProphet who led Israel out of Egypt to the Promised Land and received the law at Sinai. More, who in spite of his incompetence as a public speaker was nonetheless called as a prophet (Exodus 4:10). Paul avers that he is a true apostle—a person of sincerity who in the Messiah is always both sent from God even as he continues to stand before God (2 Corinthians 2:17).
RELATED PASSAGES
Genesis 8:18-22 – God’s Promise and Noah’s Sweet-Smelling SacrificeSacrifice is commonly understood as the practice of offering or giving up something as a sign of worship, commitment, or obedience. In the Old Testament grain, wine, or animals are used as sacrifice. In some New Testament writings Jesus' death on the cross as the... More
Exodus 4:10-12 – The Source of Moses’ Competence as a Prophet
IsaiahIsaiah, son of Amoz, who prophesied in Jerusalem, is included among the prophets of the eighth century BCE (along with Amos, Hosea, and Micah)--preachers who boldly proclaimed God's word of judgment against the economic, social, and religious disorders of their time. More 29:11-14 – God Thwarts the Wisdom of False Rulers, Priests, and Prophets
Sirach 24:1-17 – The Wisdom of God as a Fragrant Tree