Doctrine Analysis
Doctrine Analysis: 2 Corinthians — Maithili Destination Language
Purpose
This document is the full doctrine matrix for 2 Corinthians 1–13, required by PRD Phase 1 Step 4. It extends the Romans baseline doctrine framework and is fully consistent with doctrine_risk_registry.json (2 Corinthians) supplied for this curriculum: the same doctrines, the same risk tiers, and the same review routing appear here, organized for (a) full-book chapter coverage and (b) a consolidated matrix usable directly by Phase 2 segment routing.
Core passage: 2 Corinthians 5:11-21 (Reconciliation with God) is the theological anchor of this curriculum but not its scope boundary. Every chapter of the book is analyzed below; chapters that contribute no new doctrinal load are explicitly marked “reviewed, no new doctrinal risk” rather than omitted.
Citation convention: Scripture references in this document follow the format 2 Corinthians X:Y for drafting clarity, consistent with doctrine_risk_registry.json. For Phase 2 output text, the book name renders as २ कुरिन्थी (2 Kurinthī), following the established North Indian Bible-translation convention already fixed for रोमी in the Romans baseline; verse numbers remain Arabic numerals per the baseline citation rule.
Part A — Chapter-by-Chapter Doctrinal Coverage Map (Full Book)
This section guarantees full-book coverage as mandated by the PRD. Every chapter of 2 Corinthians is listed; each entry names the active doctrines (cross-referenced to Part B) or explicitly states that the chapter was reviewed with no new doctrinal risk beyond what is already logged.
| Ch. | Section | Active Doctrines (see Part B for full detail) | Coverage Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1:1-2 Greeting | Apostleship (baseline, Medium); Church as God’s People | Reviewed — reuses baseline अनुग्रह/शान्ति greeting formula |
| 1 | 1:3-11 Comfort in affliction | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry; Thanksgiving; Prayer and Intercession (1:11) | Load-bearing — new comfort/affliction vocabulary introduced |
| 1 | 1:12-14 Paul’s integrity | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Load-bearing |
| 1 | 1:15-22 Faithfulness of Paul’s word; the Spirit’s seal | Assurance of Salvation: Seal and Guarantee of the Spirit | Load-bearing — first occurrence of seal (मुहर) and guarantee (बयाना) |
| 1 | 1:23-24 Paul’s motive, joint faith | Faith (baseline); Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Reviewed — reuses baseline विश्वास |
| 2 | 2:1-4 The sorrowful letter | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry; Godly Sorrow and Repentance (anticipatory) | Reviewed, feeds forward into ch. 7 |
| 2 | 2:5-11 Forgiveness for the offender; Satan’s schemes | Spiritual Warfare and Satanic Deception (2:11); Mutual Restoration and Edification | Load-bearing — first occurrence of Satan (शैतान) |
| 2 | 2:12-13 Paul’s travel, restless spirit | Gospel Proclamation and Its Defense; Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | Reviewed |
| 2 | 2:14-17 Triumphal procession, fragrance, peddlers of the word | Genuine versus False Apostleship (triumphal image); Sincerity versus Commercialization of the Gospel (2:17) | Load-bearing — high cultural-resonance term (2:17) |
| 3 | 3:1-6 Letters of recommendation; sufficiency; letter/Spirit | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority (commend oneself, sufficiency); Letter and Spirit Contrast | Load-bearing |
| 3 | 3:6-11 Old covenant glory fading; new covenant glory | New Covenant versus the Old; Letter and Spirit Contrast | Load-bearing — core new_covenant terms introduced |
| 3 | 3:12-18 The veil; freedom; transformed into Christ’s image | Veil Removed: Unveiled Glory; Deity of Christ and the Divine Image (3:18) | Load-bearing — highest-risk cluster: परदा, स्वरूप, रूपान्तरण |
| 4 | 4:1-6 Veiled gospel; god of this age; glory of Christ | Gospel Proclamation and Its Defense; False Worship: “The God of This Age” (4:4); Deity of Christ and the Divine Image (4:4, 4:6) | Load-bearing — single highest-risk doctrine cluster in the book |
| 4 | 4:7-12 Treasure in jars of clay; death at work | Power in Weakness | Load-bearing |
| 4 | 4:13-15 Same spirit of faith; resurrection hope; grace and thanksgiving | Faith (baseline); Resurrection (baseline, Critical); Thanksgiving | Reviewed — reuses baseline पुनरुत्थान, never पुनर्जन्म |
| 4 | 4:16-18 Inner/outer man; eternal weight of glory | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | Load-bearing |
| 5 | 5:1-5 Earthly tent; groaning; guarantee of the Spirit | Assurance of Salvation: Seal and Guarantee of the Spirit; New Creation in Christ (anticipatory bodily hope) | Load-bearing |
| 5 | 5:6-10 Confidence; judgment seat of Christ | Judgment Seat of Christ | Load-bearing — highest karma-collision risk term |
| 5 | 5:11-21 CORE PASSAGE — fear of the Lord; new creation; ministry/word of reconciliation; ambassador; Christ made sin; not counting trespasses | Reconciliation with God; New Creation in Christ; Substitutionary Atonement; Non-Imputation of Trespasses; Christian Identity in Christ (5:16-17) | Load-bearing — theological anchor of the curriculum; five doctrines converge here |
| 6 | 6:1-10 Marks of true ministry; hardship catalog | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry; Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Load-bearing |
| 6 | 6:11-13 Appeal for open hearts | Christian Fellowship | Reviewed |
| 6 | 6:14-18 Unequally yoked; temple of God; Belial | Holiness and Separation: Unequal Yoking; Believers as God’s Temple | Load-bearing — deliberate मन्दिर reuse, mandatory note |
| 7 | 7:1 Cleansing from defilement | Holiness and Separation: Unequal Yoking (closing) | Reviewed — reuses baseline पवित्र |
| 7 | 7:2-7 Paul’s confidence; Titus’s news; comfort in affliction | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | Load-bearing |
| 7 | 7:8-13 Godly sorrow versus worldly sorrow; repentance | Godly Sorrow and Repentance | Load-bearing |
| 7 | 7:13-16 Joy at the Corinthians’ response | Christian Fellowship; Mutual Restoration and Edification | Reviewed |
| 8 | 8:1-9 Macedonian generosity; grace of giving; Christ’s voluntary poverty | Generosity and Grace in Giving; Incarnation and Voluntary Poverty of Christ (8:9) | Load-bearing — connects to baseline देहधारण |
| 8 | 8:10-15 Equality principle | Generosity and Grace in Giving | Load-bearing |
| 8 | 8:16-24 Titus and the brothers sent; church commendation | Church as God’s People | Reviewed |
| 9 | 9:1-5 Readiness of the collection | Generosity and Grace in Giving; Church as God’s People | Reviewed |
| 9 | 9:6-11 Cheerful giving; sowing and reaping | Generosity and Grace in Giving | Load-bearing |
| 9 | 9:12-15 Thanksgiving; indescribable gift | Generosity and Grace in Giving; Thanksgiving | Load-bearing |
| 10 | 10:1-6 Meekness and boldness; spiritual weapons; strongholds | Spiritual Warfare and Satanic Deception; Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Load-bearing |
| 10 | 10:7-11 Authority for building up | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Reviewed |
| 10 | 10:12-18 Boasting in the Lord, not self-comparison | True versus False Boasting | Load-bearing |
| 11 | 11:1-6 Fear of corruption from sincerity; serpent’s craftiness | Spiritual Warfare and Satanic Deception (11:3); Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Load-bearing |
| 11 | 11:7-11 Preaching free of charge | Sincerity versus Commercialization of the Gospel | Load-bearing |
| 11 | 11:12-15 False apostles; Satan as angel of light | Genuine versus False Apostleship; Spiritual Warfare and Satanic Deception | Load-bearing — highest false-apostleship risk cluster |
| 11 | 11:16-33 Paul’s “fool’s boast”; catalog of sufferings; weakness | True versus False Boasting; Suffering and Comfort in Ministry; Power in Weakness | Load-bearing |
| 12 | 12:1-6 Visions and revelations; restrained boasting | True versus False Boasting | Reviewed |
| 12 | 12:7-10 Thorn in the flesh; power in weakness | Power in Weakness | Load-bearing — core passage for this doctrine |
| 12 | 12:11-13 Signs of a true apostle; irony toward “super-apostles” | Genuine versus False Apostleship | Load-bearing |
| 12 | 12:14-18 Not a financial burden; sincerity restated | Sincerity versus Commercialization of the Gospel | Load-bearing |
| 12 | 12:19-21 Fear of continuing sin among them | Church as God’s People; Godly Sorrow and Repentance (anticipatory) | Reviewed |
| 13 | 13:1-4 Warning of coming discipline; Christ’s power in weakness | Power in Weakness | Reviewed — reuses ch. 12 vocabulary |
| 13 | 13:5-7 Examine yourselves; disqualified | Assurance of Salvation: Seal and Guarantee of the Spirit (self-examination clause); Christian Identity in Christ | Load-bearing |
| 13 | 13:8-10 Prayer for their restoration | Mutual Restoration and Edification; Prayer and Intercession | Reviewed |
| 13 | 13:11-14 Closing exhortation; holy kiss; Trinitarian benediction | Christian Fellowship; Church as God’s People; baseline God/Lord/Holy Spirit terms | Load-bearing — Trinitarian benediction (13:14) requires exact, consistent baseline term reuse |
Coverage confirmation: All 13 chapters of 2 Corinthians reviewed. No chapter is silently omitted; every section is either flagged load-bearing (feeding Part B below) or explicitly marked reviewed with existing baseline/Part-B coverage sufficient.
Part B — Master Doctrine Risk Matrix
This matrix is doctrine-indexed (not chapter-indexed) and is the authoritative cross-reference for Phase 2 Step 17 review routing. Doctrine names, risk tiers, and routing are identical to doctrine_risk_registry.json.
| # | Doctrine | Supporting Passages (2 Corinthians) | Risk Level | Translation Risk | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gospel Proclamation and Its Defense | 2:12; 2:17; 4:3-4; 9:13; 11:4; 11:7 | High | सुसमाचार must keep its weighty, unique-proclamation force even while under direct polemical attack and commercialization pressure (2:17); risk of softening into “a message among several” in defensive contexts. | Human theologian |
| 2 | Reconciliation with God | 5:18-21 | Critical | मेल-मिलाप/मेल कराएब must never read as mutual negotiation (सुलह) or upward ritual appeasement (प्रायश्चित); God alone is agent; “be reconciled” (5:20) is a summons to receive an accomplished work, not a task performed to earn peace. | Human theologian |
| 3 | New Creation in Christ | 5:17 | Critical | नव सृष्टि must never be rendered पुनर्जन्म (rebirth/samsara) or नव अवतार (invokes forbidden अवतार); this is a one-time, permanent, non-repeatable act of God’s creative power. | Human theologian |
| 4 | Substitutionary Atonement (Christ Made Sin for Us) | 5:14-15; 5:21 | Critical | पाप बनाओल गेलनि must never be read as Christ becoming morally sinful in nature (reject पापी बनाओल); highest-sensitivity claim in the book with no prior Maithili Christian precedent. | Human theologian |
| 5 | Non-Imputation of Trespasses | 5:19 | Critical | Shares forensic-accounting root with baseline आरोपित धार्मिकता; must not collapse into a generic क्षमा करब (“God forgave”) that loses the legal-ledger sense central to Paul’s argument. | Human theologian |
| 6 | Deity of Christ and the Divine Image | 3:18; 4:4; 4:6 | Critical | स्वरूप (image) must never be rendered प्रतिमा (Hindu idol-statue/mūrti) — single highest idol-collision risk term in the book; mandatory translator note every occurrence. | Human theologian |
| 7 | Incarnation and Voluntary Poverty of Christ | 8:9 | Critical | Must connect to baseline देहधारण and never be assimilated to an avatar-descent “temporary divine slumming” narrative, given Mithila’s own richly celebrated Vaishnava setting. | Human theologian |
| 8 | False Worship: “The God of This Age” | 4:4 | Critical | Deliberately reuses ईश्वर (rejected for the true God in baseline) to mark Satan as a false, usurping object of worship; mandatory note every occurrence so परमेश्वर’s exclusivity is never diluted. | Human theologian |
| 9 | The New Covenant versus the Old | 3:6-18 | High | नयका वाचा must be explicitly contrasted with व्यवस्था so supersession reads clearly without implying two competing revelations; परदा and स्वतंत्रता carry independent collision risks (see #16, #21). | Human theologian |
| 10 | Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | 1:12; 2:16-17; 3:1-6; 3:12; 5:12 | High | निष्कपटता must retain its “no hidden motive” sense, distinct from generic honesty (ईमानदारी); rejection of commercialized ministry (2:17) must land at full force given live regional pandit/guru fee-practice concerns. | Human theologian |
| 11 | Genuine versus False Apostleship | 11:5; 11:13-15; 12:11-12 | High | झूठा प्रेरित must convey lack of genuine divine commissioning, not merely doctrinal error; अति-श्रेष्ठ प्रेरित must preserve Paul’s sarcasm — a flat literal reading risks being taken as sincere praise. | Human theologian |
| 12 | Generosity and Grace in Giving | 8:1-9:15 | High | Every giving term (अनुग्रह, उदारता, उल्लासपूर्ण दाता, अवर्णनीय उपहार) must resist collapsing into दान-पुण्य merit-earning almsgiving; giving flows from received grace and produces no merit before God. | Human theologian |
| 13 | Power in Weakness | 4:7; 12:7-10; 13:4 | High | सामर्थ्य only, never शक्ति (Shakta-goddess association); दुर्बलता must not carry the shame connotation Paul’s argument reverses; “thorn” must read as purposeful divine discipline, not fatalistic प्रारब्ध. | Human theologian |
| 14 | Suffering and Comfort in Ministry | 1:3-11; 4:7-18; 6:4-10; 7:5-7; 11:23-29 | High | सान्त्वना must be active divine comfort from a personal God, not stoic resignation; क्लेश must be distinguished from self-imposed ascetic austerity (तप) practiced in regional traditions. | Human theologian |
| 15 | Assurance of Salvation: Seal and Guarantee of the Spirit | 1:22; 5:5; 13:5-7 | High | बयाना risks reducing the Holy Spirit to a lesser financial token; mandatory note that the Spirit himself is the guarantee in person, securing a certain inheritance, not a probabilistic karmic outcome. | Human theologian |
| 16 | Judgment Seat of Christ | 5:10 | High | Sits close to the Yamaraj/Chitragupta karmic-ledger folk image; mandatory note clarifying this evaluates a believer’s works/service for reward, not a karmic tribunal determining salvation or rebirth. | Human theologian |
| 17 | Spiritual Warfare and Satanic Deception | 2:11; 10:3-5; 11:3; 11:14-15 | High | Serpent’s deception (11:3) must be framed as the Genesis deceiver, distinct from regionally revered folk-nāga imagery; “angel of light” disguise must not be confused with generally positive luminous divine-being imagery in regional devotional art. | Human theologian |
| 18 | Believers as God’s Temple | 6:14-18 | High | Deliberately reuses मन्दिर (rejected for “church” in baseline); mandatory note distinguishing this corporate indwelling metaphor from both मण्डली and a literal Hindu temple housing multiple deities. | Human theologian |
| 19 | True versus False Boasting | 10:12-18; 11:16-30; 12:9-11 | High | प्रभुमे गौरव करब must never be shortened to bare गौरव करब; distinction from घमण्ड करब (rival teachers’ self-promotion) must be preserved at every occurrence, not left to inference. | Human theologian |
| 20 | Christian Identity in Christ | 5:16-17; 13:5 | High | Identity located in union with Christ, not caste lineage or Panjikaran-verified ancestry; 5:16’s rejection of evaluating “according to the flesh” must not be misread as endorsing lineage-based evaluation categories — it rejects that very standard. | Human theologian |
| 21 | The Veil Removed: Unveiled Glory | 3:13-18 | High | परदा risks activating the regional घूंघट (daughter-in-law veiling) custom; mandatory note clarifying this veil concerns spiritual perception of God’s glory and covenant fulfillment, not domestic modesty custom. | Human theologian |
| 22 | Sincerity versus Commercialization of the Gospel | 2:17; 12:14-18 | High | Given live regional fee-based pandit-rite and guru-business practice, Paul’s denial of profiting from the gospel must retain full polemical force; a softened “misuse of the word” rendering would blunt present-day cultural resonance. | Human theologian |
| 23 | Godly Sorrow and Repentance | 7:8-11 | Medium | Must be distinguished from stoic non-attachment and from merit-based penance (साधना/प्रायश्चित) in which sorrow itself becomes a spiritual accomplishment; पश्चाताप conveys inward turning toward God. | Native speaker review |
| 24 | Church as God’s People | 1:1; 8:1-24; 9:1-15; 11:8; 12:13 | Medium | मण्डली names the covenant assembly, distinct from math (monastic) structures and caste-segregated gatherings; the cross-congregational collection illustrates unity without caste-lineage qualification. | Native speaker review |
| 25 | Mutual Restoration and Edification | 13:9; 13:11 | Medium | Low doctrinal collision risk; consistency with baseline mutual-edification vocabulary (पारस्परिक उन्नति) should be maintained. | Native speaker review |
| 26 | Holiness and Separation: Unequal Yoking | 6:14-7:1 | Medium | Agrarian yoke image (जुआ) translates naturally with low literal-image risk, but the applied meaning — spiritual partnership/allegiance, not merely marriage — must be explicitly retained, not narrowed. | Native speaker review |
| 27 | Letter and Spirit Contrast | 3:6-9 | Medium | अक्षर (the letter/written code) must not be read as disparaging Scripture itself; names the difference between an external code without the Spirit’s inward work and the Spirit’s life-giving work. | Native speaker review |
| 28 | Prayer and Intercession | 1:11; 9:14; 13:7; 13:9 | Medium | Distinguish direct, Spirit-enabled prayer to a personal God on another’s behalf from ritual intermediation through intercessory shrine-figures or ancestor-appeasement practice. | Native speaker review |
| 29 | Christian Fellowship | 6:14; 8:4; 9:13; 13:12-14 | Low | Shared participation in Christ, not merely social/caste-community association; “holy kiss” (13:12) needs a note on culturally-conditioned greeting-custom substitution in application only. | Automated review |
| 30 | Thanksgiving | 1:11; 2:14; 4:15; 8:16; 9:11-12; 9:15 | Low | Standard term; minor risk of over-ritualization, consistent with baseline classification. | Automated review |
Part C — Cross-Doctrine Dependencies on the Baseline (Romans)
The following 2 Corinthians doctrines directly extend or depend on Romans baseline doctrines and their fixed terms; reviewers must confirm baseline consistency alongside the new risk notes above.
| 2 Corinthians Doctrine | Depends on Romans Baseline Doctrine | Shared/Extended Term |
|---|---|---|
| Substitutionary Atonement | Justification; Righteousness | धार्मिकता (5:21’s “that we might become the righteousness of God”) |
| Non-Imputation of Trespasses | Justification (आरोपित धार्मिकता root) | आरोपित (root, negated) |
| Incarnation and Voluntary Poverty of Christ | Incarnation (देहधारण) | देहधारण |
| New Creation in Christ | Resurrection (पुनरुत्थान) | Shared “never पुनर्जन्म” forbidden-substitution logic |
| Judgment Seat of Christ | Assurance of Salvation | Shared “not fate/karma” distinguishing-note pattern |
| Power in Weakness | Power of God (परमेश्वरक सामर्थ्य) | सामर्थ्य, never शक्ति |
| Deity of Christ and the Divine Image | Deity of Christ; Sonship of Christ | Extends with new term स्वरूप |
| Sincerity and Apostolic Authority | Apostleship (प्रेरित) | प्रेरित as base for false_apostles, super_apostles |
| Believers as God’s Temple | Church as God’s People | Deliberate मन्दिर/मण्डली distinction |
| Christian Identity in Christ | Christian Identity in Christ (Romans) | Reused doctrine name and reasoning, extended to 2 Corinthians 5:16-17; 13:5 |
Risk Summary
| Risk Tier | Count | Review Routing |
|---|---|---|
| Critical | 7 | Human theologian (every occurrence) |
| High | 15 | Human theologian |
| Medium | 6 | Native speaker review |
| Low | 2 | Automated review |
| Total doctrines | 30 | |
| Total requiring theologian review (Critical + High) | 22 | — |
| Total requiring native speaker review | 6 | — |
| Total automated-only | 2 | — |
Note: this summary is computed directly from the 30 doctrine entries in Part B above and is provided as the authoritative count for this analysis document. It should be cross-checked against doctrine_risk_registry.json’s own summary block during Phase 1 Step 5 QA; any residual discrepancy in that file’s aggregate totals should be reconciled in favor of the per-doctrine tier assignments, which are identical between the two documents.
Phase 2 Handoff Notes
- All Critical and High doctrines above require the mandatory translator notes specified in
08_core_glossary.mdPart B and the correspondingdoctrine_risk_registry.jsonmaithili_risk_notesfields — this document does not repeat full note text but confirms tier and routing. - The core passage (5:11-21) is the single highest doctrine-density zone in the book: five distinct doctrines (Reconciliation, New Creation, Substitutionary Atonement, Non-Imputation, Christian Identity in Christ) converge in eleven verses. Phase 2 processing of this passage should route every segment to human theologian review regardless of individual sentence-level risk scoring.
- Chapters 3–4 and 11–12 are secondary density peaks (new covenant/veil/divine-image cluster; false-apostleship/weakness cluster respectively) and should be scheduled with equivalent theologian review bandwidth.
- No chapter of 2 Corinthians is doctrine-free; even chapters marked “reviewed, no new doctrinal risk” in Part A carry baseline-level Critical/High terms (God, Jesus, Lord, Holy Spirit, grace, faith, righteousness, salvation, resurrection) that remain under full baseline enforcement throughout.
This document extends but does not modify doctrine_risk_registry.json (2 Corinthians, v1) or translation_memory.json (Romans baseline, v1). See 08_core_glossary.md for full term-level detail underlying each doctrine above.
Critical Risk Doctrines
Reconciliation with God
Maithili name: परमेश्वरसँ मेल-मिलाप
Key terms: reconciliation, to reconcile, word of reconciliation, ambassador, be reconciled
Review routing: Human theologian
God alone is the agent of reconciliation, accomplished entirely through Christ; मेल-मिलाप/मेल कराएब must never be rendered so that it reads as mutual negotiation between equals (सुलह) or as a ritual expiation/appeasement a devotee offers upward to a deity (प्रायश्चित), both live categories in regional religious practice. The passive imperative ‘be reconciled’ (5:20) must be a summons to receive an already-accomplished work, not a task the hearer performs to earn peace.
New Creation in Christ
Maithili name: ख्रीष्टमे नव सृष्टि
Key terms: new creation, in Christ, the old has passed away
Review routing: Human theologian
नव सृष्टि must never be rendered with पुनर्जन्म (rebirth/reincarnation), which would relocate this claim inside the samsara cycle, nor with नव अवतार, which would improperly invoke the forbidden अवतार concept. This is a one-time, permanent, non-repeatable act of God’s creative power, not a repeatable cycle-stage.
Substitutionary Atonement (Christ Made Sin for Us)
Maithili name: प्रतिस्थानी प्रायश्चित (हमरा सभक हेतु पाप बनाओल गेल ख्रीष्ट)
Key terms: died for all, made him to be sin, who knew no sin
Review routing: Human theologian
The single highest-sensitivity claim in the book: Christ’s representative bearing of sin’s guilt (पाप बनाओल गेलनि) must never be read as Christ becoming morally sinful in nature (rejecting पापी बनाओल). Given no prior Maithili Christian tradition addresses this verse, every occurrence requires a mandatory translator note and human theologian review.
Non-Imputation of Trespasses
Maithili name: अपराधक अ-आरोपण
Key terms: not counting their trespasses, imputation, trespass
Review routing: Human theologian
Shares its forensic-accounting root with the baseline’s imputed_righteousness (आरोपित धार्मिकता); reviewers must confirm the legal-ledger sense survives rather than collapsing into a loose, generic ‘God forgave’ (क्षमा करब) that loses the accounting metaphor central to Paul’s argument.
Deity of Christ and the Divine Image
Maithili name: ख्रीष्टक ईश्वरत्व आ दिव्य स्वरूप
Key terms: image of God, image of Christ, glory of Christ
Review routing: Human theologian
स्वरूप (image) must never be rendered प्रतिमा, which in Maithili/Hindi religious usage specifically denotes a temple idol-statue (mūrti). This is the single highest idol-collision risk term in the book; a mandatory translator note is required distinguishing Christ as God’s very likeness from any statue-image of a Hindu deity.
Incarnation and Voluntary Poverty of Christ
Maithili name: ख्रीष्टक देहधारण आ स्वेच्छा दरिद्रता
Key terms: though he was rich, yet became poor, incarnation (baseline connection)
Review routing: Human theologian
Must be read alongside the baseline’s देहधारण doctrine and never assimilated to an avatar-descent narrative of temporary divine ‘slumming,’ given Mithila’s own richly celebrated Ramayana/Vaishnava setting. This is the eternal Son’s unique, voluntary self-humbling for believers’ spiritual enrichment, not a repeatable divine appearance or a literal economics case study.
False Worship: ‘The God of This Age’
Maithili name: एहि संसारक ईश्वर: झूठ पूजा
Key terms: god of this age, blinded minds, veiled gospel
Review routing: Human theologian
Deliberately renders Satan with ईश्वर (the generic term explicitly rejected for the true God, परमेश्वर, in the baseline) to mark him as a false, usurping object of worship. Mandatory translator note required every occurrence so readers do not conclude Satan is a legitimate co-equal देवता alongside परमेश्वर; the exclusivity of परमेश्वर must never be diluted by this ironic usage.
High Risk Doctrines
Gospel Proclamation and Its Defense
Maithili name: सुसमाचारक प्रचार आ रक्षा
Key terms: gospel, veiled gospel, peddlers of God’s word
Review routing: Human theologian
Because Maithili lacks a long-settled Christian translation tradition, सुसमाचार must continue to read as a weighty, unique proclamation even while under direct polemical attack from rival teachers and commercialization (2:17) — the term must not soften into a generic ‘religious message among several’ in these defensive contexts.
The New Covenant versus the Old
Maithili name: नयका वाचा आ पुरान वाचाक बीच भेद
Key terms: new covenant, letter of the law, veil, freedom in the Spirit, glory of Moses
Review routing: Human theologian
नयका वाचा must be paired with explicit contrast to व्यवस्था (baseline ‘law’ term) so the supersession claim reads clearly without implying two competing revelations or gods. परदा (veil) carries a live collision risk with the region’s घूंघट domestic veiling custom and requires a mandatory distinguishing note; freedom (स्वतंत्रता) must never shade toward मोक्ष.
Sincerity and Apostolic Authority
Maithili name: निष्कपटता आ प्रेरितीय अधिकार
Key terms: sincerity, boldness of speech, peddlers of God’s word, sufficiency, commend oneself
Review routing: Human theologian
The rejection of commercialized ministry (2:17) carries direct force given the live regional concern about fee-based pandit rites and guru-business models; this must land at full strength rather than being softened into vague ‘misuse’ language, and निष्कपटता must retain its ‘no hidden motive’ sense distinct from generic honesty (ईमानदारी).
Genuine versus False Apostleship
Maithili name: सच्चा आ झूठा प्रेरितत्व
Key terms: false apostles, super-apostles, sign of a true apostle, angel of light, commend oneself
Review routing: Human theologian
झूठा प्रेरित must unambiguously convey that these figures lack genuine divine commissioning (not merely doctrinal error), while अति-श्रेष्ठ प्रेरित must preserve Paul’s biting irony toward self-exalting rivals — a flat literal rendering risks readers taking the title as sincere praise rather than sarcasm, distorting the passage’s polemical force.
Generosity and Grace in Giving
Maithili name: अनुग्रहपूर्ण दानशीलता
Key terms: grace, generosity, cheerful giver, equality, indescribable gift
Review routing: Human theologian
Every giving-related term (अनुग्रह, उदारता, उल्लासपूर्ण दाता, अवर्णनीय उपहार) must resist collapsing into दान-पुण्य, the region’s familiar category of merit-earning religious almsgiving; giving here flows entirely FROM received grace and produces no merit before God, a distinction that must be actively maintained rather than assumed.
Power in Weakness
Maithili name: दुर्बलतामे सामर्थ्य
Key terms: weakness, thorn in the flesh, power of God, treasure in jars of clay
Review routing: Human theologian
सामर्थ्य must be used exclusively, never शक्ति (Shakta-goddess association per the baseline’s own rule, especially sensitive given active regional Durga/Kali devotional traditions); दुर्बलता must not carry the shame connotation Paul’s argument explicitly reverses, and the ‘thorn’ (शरीरमे काँटा) must read as purposeful divine discipline, not fatalistic bad karma (प्रारब्ध).
Suffering and Comfort in Ministry
Maithili name: सेवकाईमे क्लेश आ सान्त्वना
Key terms: comfort, affliction, eternal weight of glory, inner/outer man
Review routing: Human theologian
सान्त्वना must read as active divine comfort from a personal God, not stoic resignation or fatalistic acceptance; क्लेश must be distinguished from self-imposed ascetic austerity (तप) practiced in regional ascetic traditions — this is suffering endured for the gospel’s sake, given meaning by God’s comfort, not self-chosen penance.
Assurance of Salvation: Seal and Guarantee of the Spirit
Maithili name: उद्धारक निश्चय: आत्माक मुहर आ बयाना
Key terms: seal of the Spirit, guarantee of the Spirit, examine yourselves, disqualified
Review routing: Human theologian
बयाना (down payment/earnest money) is a vivid, familiar commercial/agrarian idiom, but risks reducing the Holy Spirit himself to a lesser financial token; a mandatory translator note must clarify the Spirit is the guarantee in person, not a substitute pledge, securing a certain future inheritance rather than a probabilistic karmic outcome.
Judgment Seat of Christ
Maithili name: ख्रीष्टक न्याय-आसन
Key terms: judgment seat of Christ, recompense for deeds done in the body
Review routing: Human theologian
Sits uncomfortably close to the Hindu folk image of Yamaraj’s judgment court and Chitragupta’s karmic ledger determining a soul’s next rebirth. Mandatory translator note required clarifying this evaluates a believer’s works/service for reward, not a karmic tribunal determining salvation, rebirth, or fundamental standing (already secured by the reconciliation of 5:18-21).
Spiritual Warfare and Satanic Deception
Maithili name: आत्मिक युद्ध आ शैतानी छल
Key terms: Satan, angel of light, craftiness of the serpent, Belial, strongholds
Review routing: Human theologian
The serpent’s deception (11:3) must be clearly framed as the Genesis deceiver, distinct from the generally revered folk/Puranic serpent (nāga) imagery in regional festivals (e.g. Nag Panchami); Satan’s disguise as an ‘angel of light’ must not be confused with the generally positive luminous divine-being imagery common in regional devotional art.
Believers as God’s Temple
Maithili name: विश्वासी परमेश्वरक मन्दिरक रूपमे
Key terms: temple of God, unequally yoked, indwelling presence
Review routing: Human theologian
Deliberately reuses मन्दिर, the very word the baseline rejected for ‘church’ (there specifically meaning a Hindu temple building housing an idol). A mandatory translator note is required distinguishing this metaphorical corporate indwelling-of-God sense both from मण्डली (church-as-assembly) and from a literal Hindu temple building, to prevent readers from imagining believers becoming a shrine housing multiple deities.
True versus False Boasting
Maithili name: सच्चा आ झूठा गौरव
Key terms: boasting, boasting in the Lord, commend oneself
Review routing: Human theologian
प्रभुमे गौरव करब must never be shortened to bare गौरव करब without ‘in the Lord,’ since all legitimate boasting locates credit in Christ, never self; the distinction from घमण्ड करब (self-promoting boasting, the rival teachers’ practice) must be actively preserved across every occurrence, not left to inference.
Christian Identity in Christ
Maithili name: ख्रीष्टमे ख्रीष्टीय पहचान
Key terms: in Christ, new creation, examine yourselves, no longer according to the flesh
Review routing: Human theologian
Identity is located in union with Christ (ख्रीष्टमे), not caste lineage, Panjikaran-verified ancestry, or accumulated devotional merit; 5:16’s rejection of evaluating ‘according to the flesh’ (कात dedicated evaluative standard) must not collide with, nor be read as endorsing, caste/lineage-based evaluation categories central to regional Panjikaran culture — the verse in fact rejects that very standard.
The Veil Removed: Unveiled Glory
Maithili name: परदा हटाओल गेल: अनावृत महिमा
Key terms: veil, unveiled glory, transformed from glory to glory
Review routing: Human theologian
परदा risks activating the culturally loaded regional practice of घूंघट (customary face-veiling of daughters-in-law before elders in Mithila households); mandatory translator note required clarifying this veil concerns spiritual perception of God’s glory and covenant fulfillment, not domestic modesty custom.
Sincerity versus Commercialization of the Gospel
Maithili name: निष्कपटता बनाम सुसमाचारक व्यापारीकरण
Key terms: peddlers of God’s word, sincerity, not for profit
Review routing: Human theologian
Given the live regional practice of fee-based pandit-led rites and guru-business models, Paul’s explicit denial of profiting from the gospel message must retain its full polemical force; a softened rendering (mere ‘misuse of the word’) would blunt a claim with direct present-day cultural resonance.
Medium Risk Doctrines
Godly Sorrow and Repentance
Maithili name: परमेश्वरक अनुसार शोक आ पश्चाताप
Key terms: godly sorrow, repentance, worldly sorrow
Review routing: Native speaker review
Must be distinguished from both stoic non-attachment ideals and from a merit-based penance mindset in which sorrow itself becomes a spiritual accomplishment (साधना/प्रायश्चित); पश्चाताप must convey inward turning toward God, not ritual regret alone.
Church as God’s People
Maithili name: परमेश्वरक प्रजाक रूपमे मण्डली
Key terms: church, saints, collection for the saints
Review routing: Native speaker review
मण्डली names the covenant assembly, distinct from the region’s math (monastic) structures and from a caste-segregated gathering; the cross-congregational collection for the saints in Jerusalem (ch. 8-9) illustrates unity across geography without caste-lineage qualification.
Mutual Restoration and Edification
Maithili name: पारस्परिक सुधार आ उन्नति
Key terms: restore, aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another
Review routing: Native speaker review
Paul’s closing appeal for full spiritual restoration and maturity within the congregation; low doctrinal collision risk, but consistency with baseline mutual-edification vocabulary should be maintained.
Holiness and Separation: Unequal Yoking
Maithili name: पवित्रता आ अलगाव: असमान जुआ
Key terms: unequally yoked, Belial, temple of God (holiness dimension)
Review routing: Native speaker review
The agrarian yoke image (जुआ) translates naturally in Mithila’s farming culture with low literal-image risk, but the applied meaning — a call against binding spiritual partnership/allegiance with unbelief, not merely a marriage prohibition — must be explicitly retained rather than narrowed.
Letter and Spirit Contrast
Maithili name: अक्षर आ आत्माक भेद
Key terms: letter, Spirit gives life, ministry of death, ministry of the Spirit
Review routing: Native speaker review
The contrast (अक्षर, the letter/written code) must not be read as disparaging Scripture itself; it names the difference between an external legal code without the Spirit’s inward work (bringing condemnation) and the Spirit’s life-giving inward work under the new covenant.
Prayer and Intercession
Maithili name: प्रार्थना आ मध्यस्थता
Key terms: prayer for one another, intercession, help by prayer
Review routing: Native speaker review
Distinguish direct, Spirit-enabled prayer to a personal God on another’s behalf from ritual intermediation through intercessory shrine-figures or ancestor-appeasement practice; reuses the baseline’s intercession framing (मध्यस्थता/प्रार्थना).
Low Risk Doctrines
Christian Fellowship
Maithili name: ख्रीष्टीय सङ्गति
Key terms: fellowship, holy kiss, greet one another
Review routing: Automated review
Shared participation in Christ, not merely social or caste-community association; the ‘holy kiss’ (13:12) requires a note on culturally-conditioned greeting-custom substitution in application, but the underlying fellowship doctrine itself carries low collision risk.
Thanksgiving
Maithili name: धन्यवाद
Key terms: thanksgiving, give thanks, thanks be to God
Review routing: Automated review
Standard term; minor risk of over-ritualization, consistent with the baseline’s own Low-risk classification.
Referenced passages