What does it mean to take every thought captive (2 Corinthians 10:5)?

"Bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ" does not refer, as the context plainly shows, to the apostle's own thoughts, but rather to those of his adversaries, who were seeking at Corinth to corrupt the truth of Christianity. There were two forms of opposition with which the apostle had to contend: first, that springing from Judaizing teachers; and, secondly, that connected with philosophy — both of which were alike antagonistic to the truth. (See Col. 2.) It is to the latter, we apprehend, the apostle chiefly alludes in this scripture. His opponents, taking advantage of his absence, had sought to undermine his authority and influence, and had insinuated, among other things, that he "walked according to the flesh." (v. 2.) To this he replied by saying, "Though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after [according to] the flesh." There is the widest difference possible between walking "in" the flesh, that is, in the body (compare Galatians 2:20), and "according to" the flesh, for this latter would mean to be governed by it. The apostle gives the reason for his distinction. "The weapons of our warfare," he says, "are not carnal [fleshly], but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds" — seats of the enemy's power, like Jericho of old in its typical significance. He then avows the object of his warfare, which was to cast down "imaginations," the "reasonings," as the word is, of man's corrupt mind, in short, philosophy; and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, as man's intellect and fancied wisdom are ever doing, looking down with scarce concealed pity on those who receive the revelation God has been pleased to make in His word; and lastly, in his holy warfare, bringing into captivity every thought, from whatever quarter it may come, every activity of man's mind, to the obedience of Christ. Whether reasonings, high things, or thoughts — all alike are regarded as opposed to the knowledge of God, and hostile to Christ; and Paul, as a true soldier, sought to overcome them all, to reduce them into captivity to the authority of Christ. Not that any of these could serve Christ — that would be impossible; but his aim was to compel them by force and power, with his mighty weapons, to acknowledge the supremacy of his Lord and Master, and to place them as helpless captives at His feet.

Our warfare is upon another plane altogether. With us there are "strongholds" to be overthrown. Who holds these strongholds? The great adversary himself. He it is who has entrenched himself in human hearts, so that they are filled with "imaginations" or "reasonings," so that they exalt themselves on high against the knowledge of God, and are filled with lawlessness. All these lofty thoughts have to be brought low into captivity to Christ, so that lawlessness is exchanged for obedience to Him. What weapons are sufficient to produce that result?

Merely human weapons must be perfectly futile. Fleshly weapons can no more subdue flesh than Satan can cast out Satan. Spiritual weapons alone can prevail; and they must be used in a way that is according to God, if they are to be effectual.

Another phase of proper Christian conflict comes before us in 2 Corinthians 10:3-5. The conflict of Ephesians 6 is, as we have seen, mainly defensive: the only offensive weapon named being the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. Here the conflict is essentially of the aggressive, offensive order, and there are weapons: the word is plural, for there are more than one. These weapons are effectual to "the pulling down of strongholds; casting down imaginations [or, reasonings, margin] and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." Here is a task which involves conflict indeed! To pull down strongholds of stone or iron is easy compared with dismantling strongholds of unbelief and of the powers of darkness, and casting down the vain reasonings of darkened yet proud and self-satisfied minds, so that the whole soul and mind, and every thought in that mind, is in subjection to God with a glad and ready obedience like the obedience of Christ.

Not that his action would be fleshly; for though he walked in flesh, this is, in bodily condition, his warfare was not according to flesh, the mere selfish, vain principles that unregenerate man understands. Paul had higher weapons than those fleshly: they were in fact the opposite of self-assurance and pretentious pride; and yet "mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds." In fact, it is these very things - the haughtiness and pride of man, the determined exalting of the flesh - that God's weapons cast down. Men's imaginations, or reasonings, the rationalistic wisdom of philosophy, "and every high thing," that which man considers high, but is merely pretense, everything that seeks self-exaltation, which after all is really "against the knowledge of God;" all of this is brought to nothing by "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Moreover, God's warfare does not stop on this negative note: it is also that which can bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. Precious, wonderful weapons indeed!

We have also a remarkable verse which is enlightening on the subject of thoughts which lead nowhere. Paul wrote of the manner of his service that in it he brought every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. (2 Cor. 10:5) The picture this suggests is of a number of horses roaming at will, but captured one by one and all harnessed together into obedience to the driver of a chariot. All that energy which had been dissipated in aimless wanderings about the field is now co-ordinated under the guidance of one hand. How much mental energy will run to waste unless it is yielded in obedience to Christ!

But while the Lord always answers the cry to Him for help and will give you the victory over your fitful self, a responsibility rests on your own shoulders. If you treat the matter lightly and make no efforts of your own, you will find that evil thoughts are more frequently present with you, and that their presence is not distasteful to you. The apostle Paul speaks of "bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ Christ" (2 Cor. 10:5). He no doubt refers to the thoughts of the Corinthian saints, and He seeks to restrain their fleshly imagination by presenting to them the pure truth of God.

Well has it been said, "repression of the natural will, which is the seat and vehicle of Satan's machinations, is the true aim of spiritual warfare." Mere fleshly, independent "reasonings" and "imaginations" are inconsistent with a real subjection to God. The natural man thinks his own thoughts and follows his own imaginations, but not so the believer: he abandons his own thoughts and imaginations; he casts down all that exalteth itself against the true knowledge of God, and brings into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. The Corinthians had not done this; they walked in a carnal way and the enemy got an advantage over them. And so it is largely today among God's people.

After stating that he was ready to avenge all disobedience, in virtue of his apostolic authority, when their obedience was fulfilled, he asks, "Do ye look on things after the outward appearance?" This is what they had done. "For his letters," say they, "are weighty and powerful, but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible." But he answers that just what he was in his letters when not with them, so would he also be when he is present with them, He speaks of his authority given to him by the lord for edification and not for their destruction; he wanted them to know that he was not terrifying them by his letters. He did not dare to do as others did, commending himself. Those who opposed him constantly measured themselves among themselves, and not in God's presence. He acted differently. "But we will not boast of things without measure, but according to the measure of the rule which God hath distributed to us, a measure to reach even unto you." He disavowed all connection and comparison with those whose glory was of themselves, and though he had greater gifts bestowed upon himself than others, yet he would not boast of it. The measure which God had given to him had reached unto the Corinthians, for they were the fruit of his labors. He did not boast of other men's labors, and hoped that with an increase of their faith there would also be an increase of his labors even to the regions beyond.

Verse 5. "Casting down imaginations and every high thing," etc. This is in truth the language of a "strong man armed," and, in its breadth and boldness of expression, may recall to our minds his earlier words (ante, chap. 1:4). If we compare with this passage what is written in Eph. 6:12, we shall find that what is there referred to its energizing Source, is here contemplated in its operative form and power. Repression of the natural will, which is the seat and vehicle of Satan's machinations, is the true aim of spiritual warfare. God's rights are thus asserted and maintained by faith against the pretended rights of men. And this explains the peculiar cast of the apostle's language here; since independent "reasonings" or "imaginations" (logismoi) are for ever inconsistent with a genuine subjection of heart and mind to God. Where is the disputer of this world? is a question asked at the outset by the Spirit, when declaring in the face of all men the gospel of Christ crucified (1 Cor. 1:20). God's church is a sanctuary, not of human thought, but of divine truth. And if love be, as it is, the vital distinction of God's children from the world which knows not God, and the open seal of their discipleship (John 13:35; 1 John 3:14), obedience to what is written should also be part of their reproach in the estimation of a self-worshipping and speculative generation. A freethinking saint is a contradiction in terms, for it is by the truth of God that we are sanctified. Of such it is written, that they sit down at His feet and live upon His words. (Deut. 8:3, 33:3).

To think his own thoughts, and utter his own imaginations, instead of hearkening to the voice of God, is the manner of the natural man. Now a believer has not ceased to be a man; and although called with another calling, and begotten by the grace that saves them to a new and better hope, it is certain that the chief besetment of God's saints, while in the body, is a practical forgetting that they are their own no longer if in Christ. But if obedience be not the habit of a Christian's walk, he becomes in effect an adversary to the truth which he confesses, and the action of the Spirit is against him, until he has ceased from his perverseness, and is again learning in submissive silence to know that he is God's (Ps. 46:10).And inasmuch as ignorance of God is the root and occasion of all presumptuous sin (1 Cor. 2:8), the apostle marks here, in general terms, as the objects of his spiritual antagonism, whatever elevates itself against the knowledge of God. Under this comprehensive category may be classed, besides the standing contradictions of Jewish self-righteousness and the philosophic vanities of Gentilism, a host of those "original ideas," "new and suggestive thoughts," etc. of which our own times are so fruitful, and which, when heedlessly accepted and allowed apart from the controlling sanction of the word, so often tickle men's religious fancies, and for a while may even undermine the faith of God's elect (2 Tim. 4:3-4). But as there is no true wisdom that does not come down from above, and light finds entrance only by the word of God, so is there no true moral honesty but in an absolute surrender of our thoughts and purposes to Christ. For He is our Life and our Lord: both ourselves and our imaginings are alike His own. There can be no safe compromise between subjection and independence in the mind of a believer. The Spirit lusts and wars against the flesh for ever; and mental liberty, we must remember, is not less a part of our natural disobedience than carnal wilfulness (Eph. 2:3). His victory is attested, not by a change in our natural dispositions, but by every thought of ours being captivated and directed by the ruling mind of Christ.

Verse 6. "And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience," etc. All who at Corinth were desiring to walk with God would sympathize, as fellow-soldiers, with the apostle; but there were among them some who, although they could not deny the force of his expressions, were doubtful of his power to make good his words. For as many as continued in this mind he has his remedy at hand. The Lord whom he served, and who had sent him, had armed him with powers which none could persistently resist but to their own destruction. Full of this confidence he ministers both warning and rebuke; but, in the true spirit of his Master, he rebukes with all long-suffering and doctrine (2 Tim. 4:2). On the church at large he reckons hopefully, and when, as a body, they had proved sufficiently their faithfulness, he will not withhold from the exceptional recusants the judgment which they still provoked.

It is the sword of the Spirit, not our own, although it be committed to our handling by the grace of God. Our capacity to wield it rightly consists in our walking habitually in the Spirit. We shall be skilful in its use in proportion to the closeness of our walk with God; for it is He who teaches our hands to fight. His word cannot be lightly handled with impunity. The enemy is on the watch, to snatch that weapon from our grasp, and will do so, if held negligently on our parts. It is by sticking to His sure testimonies that God's saints prevail. Once when the Lord wrought mightily in His former wars, the hand, we are told, of His most worthy champion clave, in its weariness, to the sword which he had used so well (2 Sam. 23:10). So likewise, in our spiritual warfare, we are entrusted with a weapon of resistless power to the soul that is instructed in its use, All that exalts itself against the knowledge of God may be brought lew by its means; but it can be safely wielded only by the lowly. If we grasp it in the eagerness of carnal confidence, it will surely wound ourselves. Its first use must be in self-judgment, that every thought within us may be brought into captivity to the obedience of Christ; When the Lord is sanctified in our hearts, we are able with meekness to refute the gainsayer, and to give a reason for the hope that is in ourselves.

Why is it that God's dear people, when confronted by an evil principle absolutely contrary to God, have so little power to deal with it? Why is it that evil lifts its head and we cannot go forth to meet it as we should in the strength of God? Is it not because we go forth before first judging ourselves, because we fail to get down on our faces and ask God to search our hearts, and to bring into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ first? then we can deal with the evil. Brethren, a man that judges himself in the presence of God is the man who can go out and conquer for God, and cast down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of Christ. Is that not true?