<p>1:8 <i>Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant in regards to the hardships which we encountered in Asia- </i>Paul reminds them of his sufferings in the context of wanting to comfort them. For he has just outlined God's principle of how suffering is experienced in order that we might comfort others. His affliction is for their comfort (:6) and so he doesn't wish them to be ignorant of how much hardship he encountered in Asia.</p><p><i>We were weighed down exceedingly</i>- This is the term used by the Lord in predicting what would happen to the believers immediately prior to His return (Mt. 24:9,21,29). Some of the preconditions for the Lord's return in AD70 were indeed fulfilled, and so Paul eagerly anticipated it. But there were other preconditions which were not fulfilled, and therefore His coming was delayed until our last days.</p><p><i>Beyond our power- </i>The phrase is only used again in the NT in 2 Cor. 8:3. The Macedonians were generous to the Jerusalem Poor Fund beyond their natural power or ability. Paul is urging the Corinthians to learn from his example, and theirs too- that in the power of the Spirit we can do what would be beyond our own<i> dunamis</i>. In Paul's thought, what is beyond <i>human </i>poweris the Holy Spirit, the power of God. The Holy Spirit and the power <i>dunamis</i> of God are paralleled in Lk. 1:35; 4:14. The gift of the Holy Spirit was the source of <i>dunamis</i>, power (Eph. 3:16; Rom. 15:13; 2 Tim. 1:7). In these passages the Spirit gives psychological, internal power.</p><p><i>So much so that we feared even for our lives</i>- &quot;Feared&quot; is better &quot;despaired&quot;, and the Greek word is only again used when Paul writes that through the power of the Spirit he does not despair despite all sufferings (2 Cor. 4:8). He is describing here in this opening chapter his natural powerless situation, but with the implication that the power of the Spirit changes all that. And although the Corinthians had received potentially the Spirit (1 Cor. 1), they were not making use of that potential. And Paul urges them to follow his example in doing so.</p>