2 Corinthians 5:6 (WEB)

Passage

Therefore we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord;

Nearby Context

2 Corinthians 5:4 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.

2 Corinthians 5:5 Now he who made us for this very thing is God, who also gave to us the down payment of the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 5:6 Therefore we are always confident and know that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord;

2 Corinthians 5:7 for we walk by faith, not by sight.

2 Corinthians 5:8 We are courageous, I say, and are willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be at home with the Lord.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "therefore", "always", "confident", "home", "body", "absent", and "lord". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "therefore" and "always", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "Now he who made us for this..." into verse 7's "for we walk by faith not by...", so "therefore" and "always" 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 "therefore" and "always" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.