2 Corinthians 10
Complete Jewish Bible
10 Now it is I myself, Sha’ul, making an appeal to you with the meekness and forbearance that come from the Messiah, I who am considered timid when face-to-face with you but intimidating from a distance. 2 But I beg you not to force me to be intimidating when I am with you, as I expect to be toward some who regard us as living in a worldly way. 3 For although we do live in the world, we do not wage war in a worldly way; 4 because the weapons we use to wage war are not worldly. On the contrary, they have God’s power for demolishing strongholds. We demolish arguments 5 and every arrogance that raises itself up against the knowledge of God; we take every thought captive and make it obey the Messiah. 6 And when you have become completely obedient, then we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience.
7 You are looking at the surface of things. If anyone is convinced that he belongs to the Messiah, he should remind himself that we belong to the Messiah as much as he does. 8 For even if I boast a little too much about the authority the Lord has given us — authority to build you up, not tear you down — I am not ashamed. 9 My object is not to seem as if I were trying to frighten you with these letters. 10 Someone says, “His letters are weighty and powerful, but when he appears in person he is weak, and as a speaker he is nothing.” 11 Such a person should realize that what we say in our letters when absent, we will do when present.
12 We don’t dare class or compare ourselves with some of the people who advertise themselves. In measuring themselves against each other and comparing themselves with each other, they are simply stupid. 13 We will not boast about what lies outside the area of work which God has given us; rather, we will boast within our assigned area, and that area does reach as far as you. 14 We are not overextending our boasting as if we had not reached as far as you; for we did come all the way to you with the Good News of the Messiah. 15 We do not boast about the area in which others labor; but our hope is that as your trust grows, we will be magnified in your midst in relation to our own area of work, so that we can go on to do even more, 16 namely, to proclaim the Good News in regions beyond you. Our hope is not to boast about the work already done by someone else.
17 So, let anyone who wants to boast, boast about Adonai;[a] 18 because it is not the one who recommends himself who is worthy of approval, but the one whom the Lord recommends.
Footnotes
- 2 Corinthians 10:17 Jeremiah 9:23(24)
Kehillah in Corinth II 10
Orthodox Jewish Bible
10 Now I myself, Sha’ul, appeal to you gently in Moshiach and in his anavah (humility) I who am peh el peh (panim el panim, face to face) "lowly" among you [1C 2:3] but have "chutzpah" with you when absent. [1C 2:4; 7:8]
2 Now I beg of you that when I am present I may not have to show enough chutzpah to oppose certain persons, [1C 4:21] the ones considering us to act according to the standards of the basar of the Olam Hazeh.
3 For though walking in basar, we war not according to the basar,
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the basar, [Ep 6:13 17] but full of ko’ach through Hashem to the overthrowing of strongholds, reasonings [Jer 1:10; 23:29]
5 And every high minded thing rising up against the da’as of Hashem, and leading captive every machshavah (thought) into the mishma’at of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, [Isa 2:11,12]
6 And prepared to discipline all disobedience whenever your mishma’at (obedience) is completed. [2C 2:9]
7 You look at things according to outward appearance. If anyone has persuaded himself that he belongs to Moshiach, have zikaron (recollection) of this: as he is of Moshiach, so also are we.
8 Now even if I should glory a little too much [2C 12:6] in our samchut (authority) [as Shlichim of Moshiach] [2C 13:10] which Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Adoneinu gave for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will make good my claim. [Jer1:10]
9 I did not intend to seem as if my iggrot were meant to frighten you.
10 For they say, "His iggrot indeed are weighty and strong but his physical presence is weak and his shprach (diction), as far as rhetoric is concerned, is despicable."
11 Let such a one consider this: that the dvar we speak through iggrot when absent will become action we will very well do when present! [2C 13:2,10]
12 For we dare not to make a geder (classification) for ourselves or to compare ourselves with some of the ones commending themselves [2C 3:1; 5:12], but when they measure themselves by the standard of one another or compare themselves with one another, they do not show seichel.
13 But we will not boast out of our depth, but will be shomer to keep within the sadeh (field) Hashem has apportioned to us [Ro 12:3] which reached out even as far as you. [Ga 2:7 8]
14 For we were not getting out of our depth when we reached even as far as you. We were the chalutzim (pioneers) who came with the Besuras HaGeulah of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach.
15 We do not boast out of our depth, that is, in the labor of others; but tikvateinu is that, as your emunah grows, our sphere of Shlichus (Divine mission) among you will also be enlarged,
16 So that we may abundantly proclaim the Besuras HaGeulah to the regions beyond you, without boasting in someone else’s Messianic chalutz accomplishments.
17 But HAMMIT HALLELYIT HALLEL; ("The one boasting let him boast" in the L-rd.) [Jer 9:23,24; Ps 34:2; 44:8; 1C 1:13];
18 For it is not the one commending himself that has the haskama (approval), but it is the one to whom [Moshiach] Adoneinu gives the haskama. [1C 4:4 5]
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
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