Note 11 at 2 Cor. 12:7: Paul's use of the word "exalted" here has caused many people to assume God was the author of this "thorn in the flesh." The reasoning is that "being exalted" is pride, and certainly God is the one who would counter pride. However, the scriptures speak of a godly type of exalting which has nothing to do with pride. There is a promise to the person who humbles himself, that God will exalt him (1 Pet. 5:6). Other scriptures speak of God exalting His true believers (Ps. 37:34; 92:10; Mt. 23:12). The Lord exalted or magnified Joshua in the sight of the Israelites so they would respect him and follow his leadership (Josh. 3:7; 4:14).

This is not speaking of Paul having a pride problem that God had to deal with through affliction. This is speaking about Paul being so respected and honored in the sight of people that Satan had to do something to make him and his gospel less attractive. He did that through persecution (see note 13 at this verse). The devil gave Paul a "thorn in the flesh" to keep him from being exalted in the eyes of people.

Note 12 at 2 Cor. 12:7: Paul makes it very clear that this "thorn in the flesh" came because of the abundance of revelations he had received. So anyone who is claiming to have a thorn like Paul's would have to also have a similar number of revelations. Paul's revelations produced about one half of the New Testament scriptures and one of the greatest missionary thrusts the church has ever had. Until someone receives revelations which are proportional to Paul's, he shouldn't hide behind Paul's thorn in the flesh.

Note 13 at 2 Cor. 12:7: This phrase, "thorn in the flesh" was not original with Paul. It was an Old Testament term which referred to the negative influence ungodly people had on righteous people. In Numbers 33:55, Moses said, "But if ye will not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you; then it shall come to pass, that those which ye let remain of them shall be pricks in your eyes, and thorns in your sides, and shall vex you in the land wherein ye dwell." Joshua 23:13 says, "Know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more drive out any of these nations from before you; but they shall be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you." Judges 2:3 says, "Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you." Paul drew on Old Testament terminology to refer to the persecution he had suffered.

Note 14 at 2 Cor. 12:7: There has been much debate about what Paul's thorn in the flesh was. Most people believe it was sickness sent from God to keep Paul humble (see note 11 at this verse). That is not the case. Paul's thorn in the flesh was persecution which came from the devil, to make people think twice about accepting the gospel because of the persecution which accompanied it (see note 13 at this verse).

One of the reasons people think Paul's thorn was sickness is because of the use of the word "infirmities" in verses 9 and 10. They presume infirmities is referring to some type of sickness. However, as explained in note 22 at verse 9, page 1042, the word "infirmities" in context is referring to persecution.

Paul makes it very clear in this verse that Satan was the author of this thorn, not God (see note 16 at this verse). The reason God didn't take Paul's thorn away was not because He wanted to afflict Paul. It was because we are not redeemed from persecution. Paul later stated this in 2 Timothy 3:12, "Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution."

If the Lord stopped all persecution against His followers, Saul would have died before he became the apostle Paul. Paul was one of the leaders of the persecution against Christians (see note 1 at Acts 9:1, p. 619). The Lord didn't redeem Stephen from persecution, but used it to glorify Himself and prick the heart of the future apostle Paul. Therefore, the Lord has not redeemed us from persecution. He loves even those who persecute us just as He loved those who persecuted Him (Lk. 23:34). He desires their conversion, not their judgment.

Note 15 at 2 Cor. 12:7: The Greek word that was translated "messenger" here is "aggelos," which means "a messenger, especially an angel." It was translated "angel," "angels," or "angel's" a total of 176 times in the New Testament. The only other time it was translated "messenger" was in reference to John the Baptist being the "messenger" sent before the Lord (Mt. 11:10; Mk. 1:2; Lk. 7:27). This same Greek word was also translated "messengers" a total of three times (Lk. 7:24; 9:52; Jas. 2:25). This word is specifying a demonic angel that was assigned to Paul by the devil.

Note 16 at 2 Cor. 12:7: Paul made it very clear that this was a messenger (see note 15 at this verse) of Satan, not of God. However, the false belief that the devil can only do what God allows him to do (see note 7 at Rom. 8:28, p. 801) has led many people to change Paul's clear statement and place the responsibility on God for Paul's thorn in the flesh. That is not the case. God is not the author of our problems (see note 2 at Jn. 9:2, p. 296; see note 4 at Mk. 4:16, p. 193; see note 3 at Lk. 13:16, p. 335).

Note 17 at 2 Cor. 12:7: The New American Heritage dictionary defines the word "buffet" as "to hit or strike against repeatedly." This is describing the work of this messenger of Satan as being a repeated action. Paul suffered persecution everywhere he went (Acts 20:23). If Paul's thorn was a sickness, it would have to be repeatedly given and retracted to carry the full meaning of this word "buffet." But the scripture clearly states that it was not a disease but the messenger (angel-see note 15 at this verse) of Satan sent to repeatedly strike against Paul. Paul speaks of these attacks in verse 10 as being reproaches, persecutions, and distresses for the sake of Christ.