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Paul Defends His Apostleship

11 I wish that you would (A)bear with me in a little (B)foolishness, but [a]indeed you are bearing with me. For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy, for I (C)betrothed you to one husband, so that I might (D)present you as a pure virgin to Christ. But I fear that, as the (E)serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be corrupted from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. For if [b]one comes and preaches (F)another Jesus whom we did not preach, or you receive a (G)different spirit which you did not receive, or a (H)different gospel which you did not accept, you (I)bear this (J)beautifully. For I consider myself (K)in no way inferior to the [c]most-eminent apostles. But even if I am (L)unskilled in word, yet I am not so in (M)knowledge; in fact, in every way we have (N)made this evident to you in all things.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 11:1 Or do indeed bear with me
  2. 2 Corinthians 11:4 Lit the one who comes preaches
  3. 2 Corinthians 11:5 Or super-apostles

Confrontation of the super-apostles

11 I hope that you will put up with me while I act like a fool. Well, in fact, you are putting up with me! I’m deeply concerned about you with the same concern that God has. As your father, I promised you in marriage to one husband. I promised to present you as an innocent virgin to Christ himself. But I’m afraid that your minds might be seduced in the same way as the snake deceived Eve with his devious tricks. You might be unable to focus completely on a genuine and innocent commitment to Christ.

If a person comes and preaches some other Jesus than the one we preached, or if you receive a different Spirit than the one you had received, or a different gospel than the one you embraced, you put up with it so easily! I don’t consider myself as second-rate in any way compared to the “super-apostles.” But even if I’m uneducated in public speaking, I’m not uneducated in knowledge. We have shown this to you in every way and in everything we have done.

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