See Revised Standard Version for the division between verses 3 and 4. Good News Bible has restructured the translation by placing “in the name of our Lord Jesus” earlier in the sentence, for the sake of style, and for this reason has combined the two verses.
The text begins with an emphatic I. This probably contrasts with the emphatic “you” of verse 2. It may also contrast with the judgment of the whole community with which verse 4 is concerned. The meaning in the second case would be “As far as I am concerned, I have already reached a decision, but the whole congregation must confirm and apply this.”
The contrast absent in body … present in spirit recalls a similar passage in 4.18-19.
Good News Bible‘s “far” is implicit in the Greek text and can be included by the translator if deemed necessary.
Spirit does not refer to the Holy Spirit or to a spiritual entity or separate personality in Paul’s body, but refers to Paul’s mind or thoughts. In most languages it will be helpful to render I am present in spirit as “I am present with you in my thoughts.” Some languages, of course, have one word for both “heart” and “mind.” Such a word would be meaningful in this verse.
The phrase as if present may also be rendered as “as though I were present in Corinth with you” or “… I were there in Corinth with you.”
I have already pronounced judgment is literally “I have judged,” but the tense of the Greek verb suggests that it is a judgment that still stands.
In the name of the Lord Jesus: King James Version followed Greek manuscripts that have “our Lord Jesus Christ,” but “Christ” is almost certainly not part of the original text. The word “our” (Good News Bible) may not have been in the original text either, in which case the translation would be the Lord Jesus, as in Revised Standard Version and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch. New International Version, New Jerusalem Bible, and Revised English Bible, however, agree with Good News Bible. The UBS Greek text omits “Christ” and puts “our” in square brackets, indicating that this word may not be part of the text. Our Lord Jesus certainly translates the correct Greek text at the end of this verse.
Done translates a different Greek word from the one used in verse 2, but the meaning is the same.
As in verse 1, “terrible” in Good News Bible is implied in the Greek text and may be added by translators if deemed necessary. Other ways to express “terrible” are “shocking” or “appalling.” In some languages the phrase “done such a thing” will be expressed as “broken this taboo.”
The clause and my spirit is present may be rendered as “I am with you in my heart.”
With the power of our Lord Jesus may be expressed as “with the authority of our Lord Jesus.”
It is possible to make the phrase with the power of our Lord Jesus relate only to my spirit is present, just as earlier in the sentence Paul speaks of having judged in the name of the Lord Jesus. However, it probably makes better sense to think of the assembled Corinthian Christians, Paul, and the power of Jesus all working together to condemn and punish the guilty man. Power here refers to Jesus’ “authority” rather than to some supernatural power that Paul and the Corinthian Christians will manipulate. A possible translation model for the final part of this verse is: “When you meet together, and I am meeting with you in my thoughts, through the authority of our Lord Jesus….”
There is probably no difference in meaning between in the name and with the power.
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, 2nd edition. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1985/1994. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .