2 Corinthians 2:14-16a: Christ's Incense

BONNIE BOWMAN THURSTON Institute for the Study of Christian Origins

Tübingen

The sense of smell is particularly evocative: grandmother's face pow­der, bread dough in a friend's kitchen, rotting leaves in the garden, incense in a convent chapel. Perhaps that is why the translation of 2 Corinthians 2:15a in the New English Bible is so striking. "We are indeed the incense offered by Christ to God." In the New Testament context, what im­mediately comes to mind is the pinch of incense to honor the Emperor required of adherents of the Imperial Cults of Rome. But this is not Paul's point of reference. He is making an important statement about how our Uves are to be understood as witnesses to Christ's life. The thrust of the message is spiritual and not moral or ecclesiological.

The whole statement in the NEB runs as follows: But thanks be to God, who continually leads us about,

captives in Christ's triumphal procession, and everywhere uses us to reveal and spread abroad the fragrance of the knowledge of himself! We are indeed the incense offered by Christ to God, both for those who are on the way to salvation, and for those who are on the way to perdition: to the latter it is a deadly fume that kills, to the former a vital fragrance that brings life.

The metaphors Paul uses here, procession and fragrance, are not familiar ones today. Before discussing the spirituality commended in the passage, an explanation of these two metaphors is necessary.

Triumphal Procession

The procession image in verse 14 arises indirectly from Paul's travels in the previous two verses. Troas (vs. 12) is on the Aegean shore of Asia Minor, about 10 miles from the site of ancient Troy. Here Paul received his vision to go over to Macedonia (Acts 16:6-11), and here he sub-sequendy preached at the missionary meeting at which Eutychus fell out of the window (Acts 20:5-12). Troas is the place from which Paul traveled, so that his journeys from there to Corinth can be seen as "a triumphal procession cin Christ' giving off a fragrance of the knowledge of Christ in every place that he reached."1

Matthew Black and Rowley, eds., Peake*s Commentary on the Bible (London: Thomas Nelson, 1967), p. 969.

66 RESTORATION QUARTERLY

The thanksgiving in verse 14 probably refers to Titus' success in reconciling the Corinthian Church. The thanks is for good news from Titus. A victory for God's cause at Corinth leads to general remarks on God's victory.2

The term "triumphal procession" (vs. 14, θριαμβεύοντι, present par­ticiple from θριαμβέω) occurs only one other time in the New Testament­in Colossians 2:15: O n that cross he discarded the cosmic powers and authorities like a garment; he made a public spectacle of them and led them as captives in his triumphal procession." (NEB) The Colossian refer­ence reveals what is really going on in the Corinthians passage: a victory procession of captives taken in warfare.

Definitive work on the triumphal procession as it comes to bear on this passage in 2 Corinthians occurs in an unpublished Tübingen disserta­tion by Scott J. Hafemann. While many commentators disagree, Mr. Hafemann is correct that Paul sees himself led as a captive. Hafemann's historical study of the triumphal procession is extensive, but only his conclusions will be noted here. First, the purpose of the triumphal proces­sion was twofold, to thank the deity who granted victory in battle and to glorify the general who achieved the victory. Second, it was a well-known Roman institution with stereotyped clothing, rituals, and so forth. Third, θριαμβύειν in the literature always refers to the one conquered. Finally, the function of the conquered was to show the strength of die conquerors; he is being led to death (literally, to be sacrificed).3

Jesus has conquered Paul on the road to Damascus (see Acts 9*, 22, and 26). Paul subsequendy refers to himself as Christ's prisoner: "From Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus" (Phile. 1). The image of a prisoner leads to Paul's use of the image of incense or fragrance in verse 15, for at one time incense in the triumphal procession heralded the execution of the prisoners and the celebration of the victors.5

Fragrance

Two Greek words which the English translations variously render "fragrance," "smell," "incense," and "fume" occur in the three verses with

2James Thompson, The Second Letter of Paid to the Corinthians (Austin, Texas: R.B. Sweet, 1970) p. 37.

3Scott J. Hafemann, The Letter and the Spirit of 2 Corinthians 2.14-3.6 within the Context of the Corinthian Correspondence as a Whole, Chapter Three, "Led unto Death," pp. 29-32.

4In Acts 9:15, Paul becomes Christ's instrument, or, literally, "vessel" (σκεύος). As in 2 Cor. 4:7, the word emphasizes Christ's dominion over Paul.

5Thompson, p. 39.

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different shades of meaning. The differences in the Greek serve to clarify the usage in each verse.

Verse 14, literally translated, says "the fragrance of knowledge of him manifested by us." The genitive of agent suggests the object of "by"(ôi* ημών) to be Christian workers like Paul and Titus. Clearly, the reference is to Christians, the captives in Christ's procession. Here the word for fragrance, όσμήν, is from the verb όσμάομαι and means simply "smell" or "sense of smell."6

In verse 14 the fragrance is the knowledge of Christ. This squares with Paul's understanding of his ministry to the Corinthians as, at least in part, that of dissemination of knowledge. It is interesting that, when he describes his ministry in these terms, it is in the context of captivity and submission.

. . . we demolish sophistries and all that rears its proud head against the knowledge of God; we compel every human thought to surrender in obedience to Christ; and we are prepared to punish all in rebellion when once you have put yourselves in our hands.

( 2 Cor. 10:5-6, NEB) The point in verse 14 is that Corinthians manifest or make known

knowledge of Christ in all places.

In verse 15, the word which the NEB renders "incense" is a more specialized term, "ότι Χριστού εύωδία εσμέν τω θεώ" literally translates "because we are Christ's fragrance to God."7 Here, "fragrance" is εύωδία, from εύωδέω, "to be fragrant, or smell sweet," especially of sacrifices.8

Paul uses the language of sacrifice in which fragrance ascends to the gods and engenders a favorable attitude toward humanity.9 Here, too, Christians are the incense or perfume; its essence is Christ. The odor is perceptible to those being saved and to those being destroyed. Paul is, at this point, making a statement of fact; no judgment is as yet implied.

6Liddell and Scott, eds., Greek-English Lexicon, (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1958), p. 1261. Bauer translates it "Dufi" in Walter Bauer, Griechisch-Deutsches Wörterbuch (Berlin: Verlag Alfred Töpelmann, 1958), p. 1161. For sweet smell as a sign of the presence of the deity see F. Field, Notes on the Translation of the New Testament, 1899, pp. 181ff.

^auer, "Wir sind Christi Wohlejeruch fur Gott," p. 652. 8Liddell and Scott, p. 740. 'Lampe, Patristic Greek Lexicon (Oxford: Clarendon, 1968), gives numerous

fascinating references for εύωδία. See p. 585, especially "odour of sanctity," Apophth. Patr.

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Paul returns, in verse 16, to the more general term for a smell, οσμή: "a fragrance from death into death55 and "a fragrance from life into life.55

To those who have received knowledge of Christ, incense is a good smell; to those who have rejected Christ, it is the smell of death. Prisoners who are led with Christ (or "by59 in the sense of "because o f ) are already in life and go to it eternally because of the full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice of Jesus. But the fragrance which heralds sacrifice is to prisoners without Christ a terrible smell, a "fume.55 They are already spiritually dead and now must physically die. In the Roman world, this was ultimate finality, eternally the end. Thus the acceptance or rejection Paid implies is decisive.

Peake5s commentary provides a succinct summary. The whole proces­sion, he says,

marked the triumph of Christ, Paul being the victim sacrificially offered as well as sharing in the victory. The fragrance was also the knowledge of God shown in the Gospel, a fragrant spice which brought life to the righteous and death to the unrigh­teous. . . .10

Christian Life

Second Corinthians 2:14-16a has important implications for under­standing the Christian life as witness to the gospel. In order to comprehend the spiritual meaning of the passage for witness, another Pauline reference to fragrance and sacrifice must be recalled.

In a word, as God's dear children, try to be like him, and live in love as Christ loved you, and gave himself up on your behalf as an offering and sacrifice whose fragrance is pleasing to God.

(Eph. 5:1-2, NEB) Paul has been giving the Ephesians rules for their new life as Christians.

He summarizes by saying Christians should imitate God5s love as man­ifested in Chrisfs sacrifice of himself. Both Greek words for fragrance appear in verse 2 as descriptions of Christ's sacrificial gift or offering (προσφοράν και θυσίαν). Christfs self-giving11 functioned as the sweet smelling offerings of the Old Testament tradition.12

10Black and Rowley, p. 696. nBauer, "das Opfer der Selbsthingable Jesus," p. 652. 12See, for example, atonement rituals in Lev. 16:12 or Num. 16:46ff.; morning

and evening sacrifice 2 Chron. 13:11; Luke 1:10; Exod. 29:38ff.; 1 Kings 18:36ff. The LXX is especially revealing. Paul uses this language in connection with gifts from the Philippians. See Phil. 4:18. And it was clearly in the mind of the writer of the Hebrew letter in 9: Uff.

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The giving up of self (παρέδωκεν εαυτόν υπέρ ημών) which Christ first offered is the model for the Christian's sacrifice to God. Paul urges precisely this in the Roman letter. "Therefore, my brothers, I implore you by God5s mercy to offer your very selves to him: a living sacrifice, dedicated and fit for his acceptance, the worship offered by mind and heart55 (NEB, Rom. 12:1; RSV, "your spiritual worship55). The Christian life, sacrificially lived, is incense in the nostrils of God. The content which causes the aroma is Christ. He is known through Christians in all places where they reenact his selflessness.

In an essay on Christian contemplation Thomas Merton made the same point. "The man who lives and acts according to the grace of Christ dwelling in him, acts in that case as another Christ... and thus he prolongs in his own life the effects and the miracle of the incarnation.5513 When one "dies to self5 and is filled by Christ, what is shown forth (or offered up) is the Divine image (or, in this context, the Divine fragrance).

When "more for me,55 self-glorification, ambition, and greed prevail as models of "self-actualization,55 self-sacrifice (in old-fashioned terms "put­ting the other person first55; in PauFs terms having "equal regard for one another,55 Rom. 12:16, or looking "to each others interests and not merely your own,55 Phil. 2:4) is no easier than being led to death as a slave in a Roman triumphal procession must have been. But our imitation of Christ today, as Paul's in his day, functions as subtle, evocative, and real presence. It transforms an apparently "negative55 situation (loss of self) into an offer­ing to God. The practical applications are easily seen.

We can be and leave behind a tangible reminder of Chrisfs presence in the world. We who are Chrises captives in this age can incarnate the genitive of agent in 2 Corinthians 2:14. The words of the prophet Malachi can be fulfilled in our lives: "Everywhere fragrant sacrifice and pure gifts are offered in my name; for my name is great among the nations, says the Lord of Hosts55 (Mai. 1:11).

13Thomas Merton, The Inner Experience: Christian Contemplation III, Cis­tercian Studies, Vol. 18, No. 3 (1983): 206.

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