Timothy was one of the preachers who had been with Paul since the beginning of the work in Corinth (Acts 19:5; 2 Corinthians 1:19). Perhaps he and Paul had agreed that he would visit Corinth after travelling through Macedonia (see Acts 19:22).
Timothy’s close acquaintance with the Corinthians and his close association with Paul would give him the moral authority to restore unity in the Corinthian church. Clearly, Paul is concerned not only with the Corinthian church’s internal unity. He also wants to preserve unity between the Corinthian church and every church
in the rest of the empire.
17 Pour cela je vous ai envoyé Timothée, qui est mon enfant bien-aimé et fidèle dans le Seigneur; il vous rappellera quelles sont mes voies en Christ, quelle est la manière dont j'enseigne partout dans toutes les Eglises.