Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Corinthians 11:3

"But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve in his craftiness, your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity and the purity that is toward Christ." — 2 Corinthians 11:3 (ASV)

But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent . . .—This is an allusive reference to the history in Genesis 3, which we encounter again in 1 Timothy 3:13–15. St. Paul either takes for granted that the disciples at Corinth will recognize the “serpent” as the symbol of the great Tempter, as in Revelation 12:9; or, without laying stress on that identification, simply compares the work of the rival teachers to that of the serpent. The word for “subtilty” is not the one used in the Septuagint of Genesis 3:1. Literally, it expresses the mischievous activity of a man who is capable de tout—ready, as we say, for anything.

Corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.—The Greek word for “corrupt” has the same special sense as in 2 Corinthians 7:2, implying something incompatible with the idea of purity. The Apostle seeks, as it were, a chastity of mind as well as of body. Many of the better manuscripts read, from the simplicity (that is, singleness of affection) and chastity; and some, chastity and simplicity.