2 Corinthians 5:13 (WEB)

Passage

For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God. Or if we are of sober mind, it is for you.

Nearby Context

2 Corinthians 5:11 Knowing therefore the fear of the Lord, we persuade men, but we are revealed to God; and I hope that we are revealed also in your consciences.

2 Corinthians 5:12 For we are not commending ourselves to you again, but speak as giving you occasion of boasting on our behalf, that you may have something to answer those who boast in appearance, and not in heart.

2 Corinthians 5:13 For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God. Or if we are of sober mind, it is for you.

2 Corinthians 5:14 For the love of Christ constrains us; because we judge thus, that one died for all, therefore all died.

2 Corinthians 5:15 He died for all, that those who live should no longer live to themselves, but to him who for their sakes died and rose again.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "beside", "ourselves", "sober", and "mind". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "beside" and "ourselves", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "For we are not commending ourselves to..." into verse 14's "For the love of Christ constrains us...", so "beside" and "ourselves" belong inside that flow. In 2 Corinthians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "beside" and "ourselves" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.