2 Corinthians 4:13

But having the same spirit of faith, according to that which is written, I believed, and therefore did I speak; we also believe, and therefore also we speak.

According to that which is written ... This was Paul's formal designation of what he was about to quote as a passage from the word of God; and again the carelessness of the RSV in murdering this clause should be noted but not excused. Of all the places to find a correction of their error ... it is in the Interpreter's Bible! "Paul cites the Psalm passage as scripture, according as it is written; the RSV rendering does not make this clear."[36]

I believed, and therefore did I speak ... This is from Psalms 116:10, a psalm which is titled, "Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Death" in the English Revised Version (1885). It was indeed appropriate that Paul, who had so frequently been delivered from death, should use the same words here. It is possible that Paul had read this Psalm frequently during his tribulations. G. Campbell Morgan identified this verse as revealing the secret of effective preaching. Because Paul believed, his testimony had the ring of truth. Morgan concluded with the imperative: "If you do not believe, shut your mouth!"[37] This writer would add that if people do not believe the word of God, let them refrain from wasting our time with their books on the subject.

In this verse Paul disclosed the first of four reasons which explained his endurance of so many trials. No. 1, he truly believed God's word.

[36] Floyd V. Filson, op. cit., p. 322.

[37] G. Campbell Morgan, The Corinthian Letters of Paul (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Fleming H. Revell Company, 1946), p. 239.