God is prepared.

Comfort.

This word pops up early in 2 Corinthians. But, at first glance, it feels oddly placed since Paul and Timothy aren’t writing to people in mourning. Which begs the question: did Paul and Timothy know what "comfort" meant, or do they know something we’re missing?


Turns out, it’s the latter.

In this context, "comfort" isn’t the same kind of comfort that Mary and Martha received when Lazarus died. When people visited them to comfort them, it was about sharing their sorrow, empathizing, and offering support in their loss.


Here, in 2 Corinthians, "comfort" has a different flavor altogether. It’s structured around the word “fort”—the root of FORTRESS.

Now, historically, a fortress is a heavily fortified structure built to protect. It wasn’t put up during a crisis; it was built in anticipation of one. Thick walls, towers, weapons, and even food were all put in place to withstand sieges, provide shelter, and house people and supplies. Across civilizations, from medieval castles to African structures like Great Zimbabwe, fortresses were made with military readiness in mind.


So, when Paul calls God the "God of all comfort," he’s not talking about last-minute consolation. He’s saying that GOD IS PREPARED to defend your faith from any attack before it even hits. God is omniscient—He knows the beginning from the end (and vice versa), and when you’re on His side, your faith is secured. That’s why “no weapon fashioned against you prospers” (Isaiah 54:17) because, with God, you’re fortified. Makes me think of fortified maize flour. 😂 Fortified with vitamin D for defense? 🤣


Remember the comfort Jesus gave to Peter?

Luke 22:31-32

“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to SIFT ALL OF YOU as wheat. But I have PRAYED FOR YOU, SIMON, that your faith may not fail. AND WHEN YOU have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”

Breakitdown...

- ALL were to be sifted...

- ONE was prayed for...

- One was to comfort the OTHERS...

Jesus did not say ... I will pray for you. He had already prepared the fort for Peter. "...But I have prayed for you Simon."

Then he demands of him to CTRL C-V the same on other brethren. 🫂

The word is taaaaaamu when you see how one seam joins to another.☺️


Reread 2 Corinthians 1:3-7, but think of "comfort" as God's fortress-like readiness:

> “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all COMFORT, who COMFORTS us in all our troubles (attacks), so that we can COMFORT those in any trouble (attack on their belief) with the COMFORT we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our COMFORT abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your COMFORT and salvation; if we are COMFORTED, it is for your COMFORT, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope (fortress) for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our COMFORT.”


Did you get it in the fortress POV? David must have known this when he spoke the words in Psalm 61. So, are you ready to join David and other saints in running to the fortress when your faith is under attack? When we do, He'll handle the rest!



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