2 Corinthians 10

English Standard Version

Paul Defends His Ministry

10 ^(A)I, Paul, myself entreat you, by the ^(B)meekness and gentleness of Christ—I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold toward you when I am away!— ²I beg of you ^(C)that when I am present I may not have to show ^(D)boldness with such confidence as I count on showing against some who suspect us of walking according to the flesh. ³For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. ⁴For the ^(E)weapons of ^(F)our warfare are not of the flesh but have ^(G)divine power ^(H)to destroy strongholds. ⁵We destroy arguments and ^(I)every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to ^(J)obey Christ, ⁶^(K)being ready to punish every disobedience, ^(L)when your obedience is complete.

⁷^(M)Look at what is before your eyes. ^(N)If anyone is confident that he is Christ's, let him remind himself that just as ^(O)he is Christ's, ^(P)so also are we. ⁸For even if I boast a little too much of ^(Q)our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed. ⁹I do not want to appear to be frightening you with my letters. ¹⁰For they say, “His letters are weighty and strong, but ^(R)his bodily presence is weak, and ^(S)his speech of no account.” ¹¹Let such a person understand that what we say by letter when absent, we do when present. ¹²Not that we dare to classify or ^(T)compare ourselves with some of those who ^(U)are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are ^(V)without understanding.

¹³But we will not boast ^(W)beyond limits, but will ^(X)boast only with regard to the area of influence God assigned to us, ^(Y)to reach even to you. ¹⁴For we are not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach you. ^(Z)For we were the first to come all the way to you with the gospel of Christ. ¹⁵We do not boast beyond limit in the labors of others. But our hope is that ^(AA)as your faith increases, our area of influence among you may be ^(AB)greatly enlarged, ¹⁶so that we may preach the gospel in lands beyond you, without boasting of work already done in another's area of influence. ¹⁷“Let ^(AC)the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” ¹⁸For it is ^(AD)not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one ^(AE)whom the Lord commends.

Read full chapter

Proverbs 27-28

English Standard Version

27 Do not boast about tomorrow,
    ^(A)for you do not know what a day may bring.
²Let ^(B)another praise you, and not your own mouth;
    a stranger, and not your own lips.
³A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,
    but ^(C)a fool's provocation is heavier than both.
⁴Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming,
    but who can stand before ^(D)jealousy?
⁵^(E)Better is open rebuke
    than hidden love.
⁶Faithful are ^(F)the wounds of a friend;
    profuse are the kisses of an enemy.
⁷One who is full loathes ^(G)honey,
    but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet.
⁸Like ^(H)a bird that strays from its nest
    is a man who strays from his home.
⁹^(I)Oil and perfume make the heart glad,
    and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.^[a]
¹⁰Do not forsake your friend and ^(J)your father's friend,
    and do not go to your brother's house in the day of your calamity.
^(K)Better is a neighbor who is near
    than a brother who is far away.
¹¹^(L)Be wise, ^(M)my son, and ^(N)make my heart glad,
    that I may ^(O)answer him who reproaches me.
¹²^(P)The prudent sees danger and hides himself,
    but ^(Q)the simple go on and suffer for it.
¹³^(R)Take a man's garment when he has put up security for a stranger,
    and hold it in pledge when he puts up security for an adulteress.^[b]
¹⁴Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice,
    rising early in the morning,
    will be counted as cursing.
¹⁵^(S)A continual dripping on a rainy day
    and a quarrelsome wife are alike;
¹⁶to restrain her is to restrain the wind
    or to grasp^[c] oil in one's right hand.
¹⁷Iron sharpens iron,
    and one man sharpens another.^[d]
¹⁸^(T)Whoever tends a fig tree will eat its fruit,
    and he who ^(U)guards his master will be honored.
¹⁹As in water face reflects face,
    so the heart of man reflects the man.
²⁰^(V)Sheol and Abaddon are ^(W)never satisfied,
    and ^(X)never satisfied are the eyes of man.
²¹^(Y)The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
    and a man is tested by his praise.
²²^(Z)Crush a fool in a mortar with a pestle
    along with crushed grain,
    yet his folly will not depart from him.

²³^(AA)Know well the condition of your flocks,
    and ^(AB)give attention to your herds,
²⁴for ^(AC)riches do not last forever;
    and does a crown endure to all generations?
²⁵^(AD)When the grass is gone and the new growth appears
    and the vegetation of the mountains is gathered,
²⁶^(AE)the lambs will provide your clothing,
    and the goats the price of a field.
²⁷^(AF)There will be enough goats' milk for your food,
    for the food of your household
    and maintenance for your girls.
28 ^(AG)The wicked flee when no one pursues,
    but ^(AH)the righteous are bold as a lion.
²When a land transgresses, ^(AI)it has many rulers,
    but with a man of understanding and knowledge,
    its stability will long continue.
³^(AJ)A poor man who oppresses the poor
    is a beating rain that leaves no food.
⁴Those who forsake the law ^(AK)praise the wicked,
    but those who keep the law ^(AL)strive against them.
⁵Evil men ^(AM)do not understand justice,
    but those who seek the Lord ^(AN)understand it completely.
⁶^(AO)Better is a poor man who ^(AP)walks in his integrity
    than a rich man who is ^(AQ)crooked in his ways.
⁷The one who keeps the law is a son with understanding,
    but ^(AR)a companion of gluttons shames his father.
⁸Whoever multiplies his wealth ^(AS)by interest and profit^[e]
    ^(AT)gathers it for him who is ^(AU)generous to the poor.
⁹If one turns away his ear from hearing the law,
    even his ^(AV)prayer is an abomination.
¹⁰Whoever misleads the upright into an evil way
    ^(AW)will fall into his own pit,
    but the blameless ^(AX)will have a goodly inheritance.
¹¹A rich man is wise in his ^(AY)own eyes,
    but a poor man who has understanding ^(AZ)will find him out.
¹²When ^(BA)the righteous triumph, there is great glory,
    but when ^(BB)the wicked rise, people hide themselves.
¹³Whoever ^(BC)conceals his transgressions will not prosper,
    but he who ^(BD)confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.
¹⁴Blessed is the one who ^(BE)fears the Lord^[f] always,
    but whoever ^(BF)hardens his heart will fall into calamity.
¹⁵Like ^(BG)a roaring lion or ^(BH)a charging bear
    is ^(BI)a wicked ruler over a poor people.
¹⁶A ruler who ^(BJ)lacks understanding is a cruel oppressor,
    but he who hates unjust gain will prolong his days.
¹⁷If one is burdened with ^(BK)the blood of another,
    he will be a fugitive until death;^[g]
    let no one help him.
¹⁸^(BL)Whoever ^(BM)walks in integrity will be delivered,
    but he who is crooked in his ways will suddenly fall.
¹⁹^(BN)Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread,
    but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty.
²⁰A faithful man will abound with blessings,
    but whoever hastens to be rich ^(BO)will not go unpunished.
²¹To show ^(BP)partiality is not good,
    but for ^(BQ)a piece of bread a man will do wrong.
²²A ^(BR)stingy man^[h] ^(BS)hastens after wealth
    and does not know that ^(BT)poverty will come upon him.
²³Whoever ^(BU)rebukes a man will afterward find more favor
    than ^(BV)he who flatters with his tongue.
²⁴Whoever robs his father or his mother
    and says, “That is no transgression,”
    is ^(BW)a companion to a man who destroys.
²⁵A greedy man ^(BX)stirs up strife,
    but the one who trusts in the Lord will ^(BY)be enriched.
²⁶Whoever ^(BZ)trusts in his own mind is a fool,
    but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered.
²⁷Whoever ^(CA)gives to the poor will not want,
    but he who ^(CB)hides his eyes will get many a curse.
²⁸When ^(CC)the wicked rise, ^(CD)people hide themselves,
    but when they perish, the righteous increase.

Footnotes

Proverbs 27:9 Or and so does the sweetness of a friend that comes from his earnest counsel
Proverbs 27:13 Hebrew a foreign woman; a slight emendation yields (compare Vulgate; see also 20:16) foreigners
Proverbs 27:16 Hebrew to meet with
Proverbs 27:17 Hebrew sharpens the face of another
Proverbs 28:8 That is, profit that comes from charging interest to the poor
Proverbs 28:14 Hebrew lacks the Lord
Proverbs 28:17 Hebrew until the pit
Proverbs 28:22 Hebrew A man whose eye is evil