Severe Letter

{{Short description|Letter written to the Corinthians by the Apostle Paul}}

The Severe Letter or Letter of Tears was a letter written to the Corinthians by the Apostle Paul. It is mentioned in 2 Corinthians 2:3-4 and again in 2 Corinthians 7:8:{{quote|For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears, not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly for you.|2 Corinthians 2:4.{{bibleverse|2|Corinthians|2:4|KC21}}: 21st Century King James Version}} The description does not match First Corinthians, so there are two main theories on the Severe Letter:

1. The first theory is that the Severe Letter is lost.
2. The second theory is that the "Severe Letter" is preserved in 2 Corinthians 10–13.[http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/goodspeed/ch05.html THE SECOND LETTER TO THE CORINTHIANS], from "An Introduction to the New Testament", By Edgar J. Goodspeed, 1937[http://catholic-resources.org/Bible/NT_Letters.htm#Edited New Testament Letter Structure], from [http://catholic-resources.org Catholic Resources] by Felix Just, S.J.

For more discussion on reconstructing Paul's correspondence with the Corinthians, see Second Epistle to the Corinthians.