2 Corinthians 11
- 1
I hope you will put up with a little of my foolishness, but you are already doing that. Begin Abide·
- 2
I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. Begin Abide·
- 3
I am afraid, however, that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may be led astray from your simple and pure devotion to Christ. Begin Abide·
- 4
For if someone comes and proclaims a Jesus other than the One we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the One you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it very easily. Begin Abide·
- 5
I consider myself in no way inferior to those “super-apostles.” Begin Abide·
- 6
Although I am not a polished speaker, I am certainly not lacking in knowledge. We have made this clear to you in every way possible. Begin Abide·
- 7
Was it a sin for me to humble myself in order to exalt you, because I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge? Begin Abide·
- 8
I robbed other churches by accepting their support in order to serve you. Begin Abide·
- 9
And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to you in any way, and I will continue to do so. Begin Abide·
- 10
As surely as the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia. Begin Abide·
- 11
Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! Begin Abide·
- 12
But I will keep on doing what I am doing, in order to undercut those who want an opportunity to be regarded as our equals in the things of which they boast. Begin Abide·
- 13
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. Begin Abide·
- 14
And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. Begin Abide·
- 15
It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their actions. Begin Abide·
- 16
I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then receive me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little. Begin Abide·
- 17
In this confident boasting of mine, I am not speaking as the Lord would, but as a fool. Begin Abide·
- 18
Since many are boasting according to the flesh, I too will boast. Begin Abide·
- 19
For you gladly put up with fools, since you are so wise. Begin Abide·
- 20
In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or exalts himself or strikes you in the face. Begin Abide·
- 21
To my shame I concede that we were too weak for that! Speaking as a fool, however, I can match what anyone else dares to boast about. Begin Abide·
- 22
Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. Begin Abide·
- 23
Are they servants of Christ? (I am speaking as if I were out of my mind.) I am so much more: in harder labor, in more imprisonments, in worse beatings, in frequent danger of death. Begin Abide·
- 24
Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Begin Abide·
- 25
Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. Begin Abide·
- 26
In my frequent journeys, I have been in danger from rivers and from bandits, in danger from my countrymen and from the Gentiles, in danger in the city and in the country, in danger on the sea and among false brothers, Begin Abide·
- 27
in labor and toil and often without sleep, in hunger and thirst and often without food, in cold and exposure. Begin Abide·
- 28
Apart from these external trials, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Begin Abide·
- 29
Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not burn with grief? Begin Abide·
- 30
If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. Begin Abide·
- 31
The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is forever worthy of praise, knows that I am not lying. Begin Abide·
- 32
In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas secured the city of the Damascenes in order to arrest me. Begin Abide·
- 33
But I was lowered in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his grasp. Begin Abide·