2 Corinthians 9-11

English Standard Version

The Collection for Christians in Jerusalem

9 Now ^(A)it is superfluous for me to write to you about ^(B)the ministry for the saints, ² for I know your readiness, ^(C)of which I boast about you to the people of Macedonia, saying that Achaia has been ready ^(D)since last year. And your zeal has stirred up most of them. ³ But ^(E)I am sending^[a] the brothers so that our boasting about you may not prove empty in this matter, so that you may be ready, ^(F)as I said you would be. ⁴ Otherwise, if some Macedonians ^(G)come with me and find that you are not ready, we would be humiliated—to say nothing of you—for being so confident. ⁵ So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the ^(H)gift^[b] you have promised, so that it may be ready ^(I)as a willing gift, ^(J)not as an exaction.^[c]

The Cheerful Giver

⁶ The point is this: ^(K)whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully^[d] will also reap bountifully. ⁷ Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, ^(L)not reluctantly or under compulsion, for ^(M)God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸ And ^(N)God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency^[e] in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. ⁹ As it is written,

¹⁰ He who supplies ^(P)seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and ^(Q)increase the harvest of your righteousness. ^11 (R)You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which ^(S)through us will produce thanksgiving to God. ¹² For the ministry of this service is not only supplying ^(T)the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. ¹³ By their approval of this service, ^(U)they^[f] will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your ^(V)confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others, ¹⁴ while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you. ^15 (W)Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!

Paul Defends His Ministry

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

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

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

Paul and the False Apostles

11 I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me! ² For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since ^(BC)I betrothed you to one husband, ^(BD)to present you ^(BE)as a pure virgin to Christ. ³ But I am afraid that ^(BF)as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts ^(BG)will be led astray from a ^(BH)sincere and ^(BI)pure devotion to Christ. ⁴ For if someone comes and ^(BJ)proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept ^(BK)a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. ⁵ Indeed, I consider that ^(BL)I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles. ^6 (BM)Even if I am unskilled in speaking, ^(BN)I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way ^(BO)we have made this plain to you in all things.

⁷ Or ^(BP)did I commit a sin in humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because ^(BQ)I preached God's gospel to you free of charge? ⁸ I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you. ⁹ And when I was with you and was ^(BR)in need, ^(BS)I did not burden anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia ^(BT)supplied my need. So I refrained and will refrain ^(BU)from burdening you in any way. ^10 (BV)As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine ^(BW)will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia. ¹¹ And why? ^(BX)Because I do not love you? ^(BY)God knows I do!

¹² And what I am doing I will continue to do, ^(BZ)in order to undermine the claim of those who would like to claim that in their boasted mission they work on the same terms as we do. ¹³ For such men are ^(CA)false apostles, ^(CB)deceitful workmen, ^(CC)disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. ¹⁴ And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as ^(CD)an angel of light. ¹⁵ So it is no surprise if his servants, also, disguise themselves as ^(CE)servants of righteousness. ^(CF)Their end will correspond to their deeds.

Paul's Sufferings as an Apostle

¹⁶ I repeat, ^(CG)let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little. ¹⁷ What I am saying ^(CH)with this boastful confidence, ^(CI)I say not as the Lord would^[g] but as a fool. ¹⁸ Since ^(CJ)many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. ¹⁹ For you gladly bear with fools, ^(CK)being wise yourselves! ²⁰ For you bear it if someone ^(CL)makes slaves of you, or ^(CM)devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or ^(CN)strikes you in the face. ²¹ To my shame, I must say, ^(CO)we were too weak for that!

But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. ²² Are they Hebrews? ^(CP)So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. ²³ Are they ^(CQ)servants of Christ? ^(CR)I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, ^(CS)far more imprisonments, ^(CT)with countless beatings, and ^(CU)often near death. ²⁴ Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the ^(CV)forty lashes less one. ²⁵ Three times I was ^(CW)beaten with rods. ^(CX)Once I was stoned. Three times I ^(CY)was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; ²⁶ on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, ^(CZ)danger from my own people, ^(DA)danger from Gentiles, ^(DB)danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; ^27 (DC)in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, ^(DD)in hunger and thirst, often without food,^[h] in cold and exposure. ²⁸ And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for ^(DE)all the churches. ^29 (DF)Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

^30 (DG)If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. ^31 (DH)The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, ^(DI)he who is blessed forever, ^(DJ)knows that I am not lying. ³² At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas ^(DK)was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, ^33 (DL)but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.