| New American Standard Bible 1995 | New International Version |
| 1I wish that you would bear with me in a little foolishness; but indeed you are bearing with me. | 1I hope you will put up with me in a little foolishness. Yes, please put up with me! |
| 2For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin. | 2I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him. |
| 3But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. | 3But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent's cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. |
| 4For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. | 4For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough. |
| 5For I consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles. | 5I do not think I am in the least inferior to those "super-apostles." |
| 6But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things. | 6I may indeed be untrained as a speaker, but I do have knowledge. We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way. |
| 7Or did I commit a sin in humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I preached the gospel of God to you without charge? | 7Was it a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge? |
| 8I robbed other churches by taking wages from them to serve you; | 8I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so as to serve you. |
| 9and when I was present with you and was in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for when the brethren came from Macedonia they fully supplied my need, and in everything I kept myself from being a burden to you, and will continue to do so. | 9And when I was with you and needed something, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied what I needed. I have kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and will continue to do so. |
| 10As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be stopped in the regions of Achaia. | 10As surely as the truth of Christ is in me, nobody in the regions of Achaia will stop this boasting of mine. |
| 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! | 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! |
| 12But what I am doing I will continue to do, so that I may cut off opportunity from those who desire an opportunity to be regarded just as we are in the matter about which they are boasting. | 12And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. |
| 13For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. | 13For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. |
| 14No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. | 14And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. |
| 15Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds. | 15It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve. |
| 16Again I say, let no one think me foolish; but if you do, receive me even as foolish, so that I also may boast a little. | 16I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then tolerate me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting. |
| 17What I am saying, I am not saying as the Lord would, but as in foolishness, in this confidence of boasting. | 17In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool. |
| 18Since many boast according to the flesh, I will boast also. | 18Since many are boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast. |
| 19For you, being so wise, tolerate the foolish gladly. | 19You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise! |
| 20For you tolerate it if anyone enslaves you, anyone devours you, anyone takes advantage of you, anyone exalts himself, anyone hits you in the face. | 20In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or puts on airs or slaps you in the face. |
| 21To my shame I must say that we have been weak by comparison. But in whatever respect anyone else is bold-- I speak in foolishness-- I am just as bold myself. | 21To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that! Whatever anyone else dares to boast about--I am speaking as a fool--I also dare to boast about. |
| 22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. | 22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham's descendants? So am I. |
| 23Are they servants of Christ?-- I speak as if insane-- I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. | 23Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. |
| 24Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. | 24Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. |
| 25Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. | 25Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, |
| 26I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; | 26I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. |
| 27I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. | 27I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. |
| 28Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. | 28Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. |
| 29Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern? | 29Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn? |
| 30If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness. | 30If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. |
| 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, He who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. | 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying. |
| 32In Damascus the ethnarch under Aretas the king was guarding the city of the Damascenes in order to seize me, | 32In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me. |
| 33and I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and so escaped his hands. | 33But I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall and slipped through his hands. |
| 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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