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!— I 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. For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the (E)weapons of (F)our warfare are not of the flesh but have (G)divine power (H)to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and (I)every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to (J)obey Christ, (K)being ready to punish every disobedience, (L)when your obedience is complete.

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Paul Defends His Authority

10 Now I, Paul, appeal to you with the gentleness and kindness of Christ—though I realize you think I am timid in person and bold only when I write from far away. Well, I am begging you now so that when I come I won’t have to be bold with those who think we act from human motives.

We are human, but we don’t wage war as humans do. [a]We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments. We destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ. And after you have become fully obedient, we will punish everyone who remains disobedient.

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Footnotes

  1. 10:4 English translations divide verses 4 and 5 in various ways.