| New American Standard Bible 1995 | New International Version |
| 1Now I, Paul, myself urge you by the meekness and gentleness of Christ-- I who am meek when face to face with you, but bold toward you when absent! | 1By the humility and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you--I, Paul, who am "timid" when face to face with you, but "bold" toward you when away! |
| 2I ask that when I am present I need not be bold with the confidence with which I propose to be courageous against some, who regard us as if we walked according to the flesh. | 2I beg you that when I come I may not have to be as bold as I expect to be toward some people who think that we live by the standards of this world. |
| 3For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, | 3For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. |
| 4for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. | 4The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. |
| 5We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, | 5We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. |
| 6and we are ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete. | 6And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete. |
| 7You are looking at things as they are outwardly. If anyone is confident in himself that he is Christ's, let him consider this again within himself, that just as he is Christ's, so also are we. | 7You are judging by appearances. If anyone is confident that they belong to Christ, they should consider again that we belong to Christ just as much as they do. |
| 8For even if I boast somewhat further about our authority, which the Lord gave for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be put to shame, | 8So even if I boast somewhat freely about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than tearing you down, I will not be ashamed of it. |
| 9for I do not wish to seem as if I would terrify you by my letters. | 9I do not want to seem to be trying to frighten you with my letters. |
| 10For they say, "His letters are weighty and strong, but his personal presence is unimpressive and his speech contemptible." | 10For some say, "His letters are weighty and forceful, but in person he is unimpressive and his speaking amounts to nothing." |
| 11Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when absent, such persons we are also in deed when present. | 11Such people should realize that what we are in our letters when we are absent, we will be in our actions when we are present. |
| 12For we are not bold to class or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves; but when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding. | 12We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise. |
| 13But we will not boast beyond our measure, but within the measure of the sphere which God apportioned to us as a measure, to reach even as far as you. | 13We, however, will not boast beyond proper limits, but will confine our boasting to the sphere of service God himself has assigned to us, a sphere that also includes you. |
| 14For we are not overextending ourselves, as if we did not reach to you, for we were the first to come even as far as you in the gospel of Christ; | 14We are not going too far in our boasting, as would be the case if we had not come to you, for we did get as far as you with the gospel of Christ. |
| 15not boasting beyond our measure, that is, in other men's labors, but with the hope that as your faith grows, we will be, within our sphere, enlarged even more by you, | 15Neither do we go beyond our limits by boasting of work done by others. Our hope is that, as your faith continues to grow, our sphere of activity among you will greatly expand, |
| 16so as to preach the gospel even to the regions beyond you, and not to boast in what has been accomplished in the sphere of another. | 16so that we can preach the gospel in the regions beyond you. For we do not want to boast about work already done in someone else's territory. |
| 17But HE WHO BOASTS IS TO BOAST IN THE LORD. | 17But, "Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord." |
| 18For it is not he who commends himself that is approved, but he whom the Lord commends. | 18For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends. |
| New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
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