2 Corinthians 11:24Five times from the Jews I received forty stripes minus one.
The setting
Corinth, Greece, ~55 AD. Paul recounts specific beatings he received in various synagogues...
The emotion here: matter-of-fact about extreme suffering
The original word
tessarakonta (τεσσεράκοντα) — forty, the maximum allowed under Jewish law
Why it matters
Jews gave 39 lashes instead of 40 to avoid accidentally exceeding God's law if they miscounted
Read with care
What most readers miss in 2 Corinthians 11:24
This happened FIVE separate times — Paul kept going back to synagogues knowing he'd be beaten
Common misconceptionThis wasn't random violence — these were official synagogue punishments. Paul was tried and convicted five times.
The thread continues
Verses that echo 2 Corinthians 11:24
Bible Genome reading
2 Corinthians 11:24 — Bible Genome reading
Emotional genome
2 Corinthians 11:24 comes from the book of 2 Corinthians, written during the early_church period. These words are attributed to Paul. The dominant emotion in this verse is grieving, with a comfort power of 40% and a tone that is lamenting. It belongs to the narrative genre of biblical literature. Key themes include suffering, persecution. Notable phrases: forty stripes minus one.
Emotionally similar
Verses that meet the same grieving
“By the sweat of your face will you eat bread until you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken. For you are dust, and to dust you…”
— Genesis 3:19
“Jesus wept.”
— John 11:35
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?”
— Psalms 22:1
“They divide my garments among them. They cast lots for my clothing.”
— Psalms 22:18
“for all have sinned, and fall short of the glory of God;”
— Romans 3:23
Your reflection
What does 2 Corinthians 11:24 mean to you, today?
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