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2Co_1:18. But according to His faithfulness, God causes our speech to you to be not yea and nay, not untrustworthy.[133] The δέ introduces the contrast (yea rather) to the state of things denied in the preceding question (Baeumlein, Partik. p. 95); and ὅτι is equivalent to εἰς ἐκεῖνο , ὅτι , like Joh_2:18; Joh_9:17; Joh_11:51; 1Co_1:26, al.: Faithful is God in reference to this, that our speech, etc., i.e. God shows Himself faithful by this, that, etc. Beza, Calvin, and others, including Flatt, Rückert, de Wette, Osiander, Neander, Ewald, Hofmann, take πιστὸς ὁ Θεός as an asseveration: proh Dei fidem! Against all linguistic usage, for the ζῶ ἐγὼ … ὅτι (see on Rom_14:11), which is compared, is a habitual formula of swearing, which the πιστὸς ὁ Θεός , very frequent with the apostle (1Co_1:9; 1Co_10:13; 1Th_5:24; 2Th_3:3; 1Jn_1:9), is not. Nor can we compare 2Co_11:10, where a subjective state of things is asserted as a guarantee of what is uttere.
ὁ λόγος ἡμῶν ] is by most understood of the preaching of the gospel, according to which Paul thus, against the suspicion of untruthfulness in his resolves and assurances, puts forward the truthfulness of his preaching,—in which there lies a moral argument a majori ad minus; for the opinion of Hofmann, that Paul means to say that his preaching stands in a different position from the conditioned quality of his yea and nay, falls with his view of 2Co_1:17. From 2Co_1:19, however, it appears to be beyond doubt that the usual explanation of λόγος , of the preaching, not in general of the apostle’s speech (Rückert), or of that unfulfilled promise (Erasmus in the Annot.), is the right one. Olshausen mixes up the two explanations.
[133] Erasmus says aptly, Paraphr.: “Sed non fallit Deus, cujus praesidio factum est, ut sermo noster, quo vobis illius evangelium praedicavimus, non vacillarit, sed semper sui similis fuerit.”