2Corinthians:1:12-2
Seeker Overlay ON
*
For this is our glorying-the testimony of our conscience ,
that with godly simplicity and sincerity , (
not with fleshly wisdom ,
but by the favor of God ,)
we have behaved ourselves in the world ,
and more abundantly among you .
*
For we write no other things to you than what you read ,
and also acknowledge ;
and I hope that you will acknowledge ,
even to the end ;
*
seeing ,
indeed ,
you have acknowledged us in part ,
that we are your boasting ,
even as you also are ours ,
in the day of the Lord Jesus .
*
And in this persuasions I purposed to come to you first ,
that you might have a second gift ;
*
and from you to pass through into Macedonia ,
and from Macedonia to come again to you ,
and by you to be sent forward into Judea .
*
Having ,
then ,
purposed this ,
did I ,
indeed ,
use levity ?
or the things which I purpose ,
do I purpose according to the flesh ;
so that with me there should be yes ,
yes ,
and no ,
no ?
*
But as God is faithful ,
certainly our word ,
which was to you ,
was not yes and no .
*
For the Son of God ,
Jesus Christ ,
who was proclaimed to you by us ,
even by me and Sylvanus ,
and Timothy ,
was not yes and no ;
but in him was yes .
*
And whatever promises are of God ,
were through him yes ,
and through him amen ,
to the glory of God ,
by us .
*
Now ,
he who establishes us with you in Christ ,
and who has anointed us ,
in God :
*
who has also sealed us ,
and given us the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts .
*
Moreover ,
I call on God as a witness against my soul ,
that to spare you ,
I have not as yet come to Corinth .
*
Not that we lord it over your faith ,
but we are joint promoters of your joy :
for by the faith you stand .
*
Now ,
I (
the same Paul who ,
when present ,
indeed ,
am humble among you ;
but when absent ,
am bold toward you ,)
*
beseech you ,
by the mildness and clemency of Christ .
And I request that ,
when present I may not be bold with that confidence with which I conclude to be bold against some ,
who conclude us to be really persons who walk according to the flesh .
*
For though we walk in the flesh ,
we do not war according to the flesh ;
* (
for the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly ,
but exceeding powerful for the overturning of strongholds ;)
*
overturning reasonings ,
and every high thing raised up against the knowledge of God ;
and leading captive every thought to the obedience of Christ ;
*
and are prepared to punish all disobedience ,
when your obedience is completed .
*
Do you look on things according to appearance ?
If any one is confident in himself that he is Christ '
s ,
let him ,
on the other hand ,
reason this from himself ,
that he is Christ '
s ,
so ,
also ,
are we .
*
And ,
therefore ,
I should not be ashamed ,
if I should boast somewhat more of our power ,
which the Lord has given us for your edification ,
and not for your destruction .
*
That I may not seem as if I would terrify you by letters ;
* (
for his letters ,
says one ,
are indeed weighty and strong ;
but his bodily presence weak ,
and his speech contemptible ;)
*
let such a one conclude this ,
that such as we are in speech by letters ,
when absent ,
the same ,
also ,
when present ,
we will be in deed .
*
But we dare not rank and compare ourselves with some who commend themselves :
however ,
they ,
among themselves ,
measuring themselves ,
and comparing themselves with themselves ,
do not understand themselves .
*
Further ,
we will not boast of things not measured according to the line of measure ,
which the God of measure has allotted to us ,
to reach even to you .
*
For we do not stretch ourselves beyond our line ,
as not reaching to you ; (
but we are come as far as to you also ,
in the gospel of Christ .)
*
We do not boast of things not measured ,
that is ,
of other men '
s labors ;
but we have hope when your faith is increased ,
to be by you abundantly enlarged with respect to our line ;
*
to declare the gospel in the regions beyond you ;
and not in another man '
s line ,
to boast of things already prepared .
*
He ,
then ,
who boasts ,
let him boast in the Lord .
*
For not he who commends himself is approved ;
but whom the Lord commends .
*
I wish you would bear with me a little in my foolishness :
yes ,
indeed ,
bear with me :
*
for I am jealous of you with a godly jealousy ;
because I have espoused you to one husband ,
that I might present you a chaste virgin to Christ .
*
But I am afraid that ,
by some means ,
as the serpent beguiled Eve by his subtlety ,
so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity due to Christ .
*
For ,
if ,
indeed ,
he who has come preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached ;
or ,
if you receive another Spirit which you have not received ;
or another gospel which you have not embraced ;
you might justly bear with him .
*
For I reckon myself to have come nothing short of the very chief of the Apostles .
*
And even though I be rude in speech ,
yet not in knowledge .
But upon the whole ,
we have been made manifest to you in all things .
*
Have I committed an offense in humbling myself that you might be exalted ;
because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely ?
*
I robbed other congregations ,
taking wages of them to do you service ;
*
for being present with you ,
and in want ,
we were burdensome to no one ;
but what I wanted ,
the brethren from Macedonia supplied :
and in everything I have kept ,
and will keep myself from being burdensome to you .
*
Is the truth in me ?
then this my boasting shall not be prevented in the regions of Achaia .
*
For what reason ?
because I do not love you ?
God knows .
*
But what I do ,
that I will do ,
that I may cut off opportunity from them who desire opportunity ;
that in what they boast ,
they may be found even as we .
*
For such are false Apostles ,
deceitful workmen ,
transforming themselves into Apostles of Christ .
*
And no wonder ;
for Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light .
*
Therefore ,
it is no great wonder if his ministers also transform themselves as ministers of righteousness :
whose end shall be according to their works .
*
Moreover ,
I say ,
let no one think me a fool ;
but ,
if otherwise ,
at least ,
as a fool ,
bear with me ,
that I also may boast a little .
*
What I speak in this confident boasting ,
I do not speak according to the Lord ;
but as in foolishness .
*
Seeing many boast according to the flesh ,
I also will boast .
*
For ,
being wise ,
you bear with fools cheerfully .
*
For if one enslave you ,
you bear it ;
if one devour you ,
if one take your goods ,
if one exalt himself ,
if one strike you on the face -
*
I speak of reproach ,
as ,
that we are weak .
But ,
in whatever any one is bold , (
I speak foolishly ,)
I am bold also .
*
Are they Hebrews ?
so am I .
Are they Israelites ?
so am I .
Are they the seed of Abraham ?
so am I .
*
Are they ministers of Christ ? (
I speak as a fool ,)
I am above them :
in labors more abundant ,
in stripes above measure ,
in prisons more frequently ,
in deaths often ;
*
of the Jews ,
five times I received forty stripes ,
save one :
*
thrice I was beaten with rods ,
once I was stone ,
thrice I was ship-wrecked :
I have spent a night and a day in the deep .
*
In journeys often ,
in dangers from rivers ,
in dangers from robbers ,
in dangers from my countrymen ,
in dangers from the heathens ,
in dangers in the city ,
in dangers in the wilderness ,
in dangers at sea ,
in dangers among false brethren .
*
In labor and toil ;
in watching often ;
in hunger and thirst ;
in fastings often ;
in cold and nakedness .
*
Besides these troubles from without ,
that which is my daily pressure ,
the anxious care of all the congregations .
*
Who is weak ,
and I am not weak ?
Who is made to stumble ,
and I do not burn ?
*
If I must boast ,
I will boast of the things which relate to my weakness .
*
The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ ,
who is blessed for ever ,
knows that I do not lie .
*
In Damascus ,
the governor under King Aretas ,
intending to apprehend me ,
guarded the city of the Damascenes ;
*
but I was let down in a basket ,
through a window in the wall ,
and escaped his hands .
*
To boast ,
indeed ,
is not profitable to me ;
yet I will proceed to visions and revelations of the Lord .
*
I knew a man in Christ fourteen years ago , (
whether in the body ,
or out of the body ,
I do not know ;
God knows :)
such a one suddenly conveyed away to the third heaven .
*
Indeed ,
I knew such a man , (
whether in the body ,
or out of the body ,
I do not know :)
*
that he was suddenly conveyed away into paradise ,
and heard unspeakable things ,
which are not lawful for man to utter .
*
Concerning such a one I will boast ;
but concerning myself I will not boast ,
except of my weaknesses .
*
Yet if I should incline to boast ,
I shall not be a fool ;
for I will speak the truth :
but I forbear ,
lest any one should think concerning me ,
above what he sees me to be ,
or what he hears from me .
*
Indeed ,
that I might not be exalted above measure by the transcendency of the revelations ,
there was given to me a thorn in the flesh ,
a messenger of Satan to buffet me ,
lest I should be exalted above measure .
*
Concerning this ,
I besought the Lord thrice ,
that it might depart from me .
*
But he said to me ,
most gladly ,
therefore ,
I will boast rather of my weaknesses ,
that the power of Christ may dwell upon me .
*
Wherefore ,
I am well pleased with weaknesses ,
with insults ,
with necessities ,
with persecutions ,
with distresses ,
for Christ '
s sake ;
because when I am weak ,
then I am strong .
*
Have I become a fool -?
You have constrained me to it ;
for I ought to have been commended by you ,
because I am in nothing behind the very greatest Apostles ,
though I am nothing .
*
Truly the signs of an Apostle were fully wrought among you with all patience ,
by signs and wonders ,
and powers .
*
For what is the thing in which you were inferior to other congregations ,
unless that I myself have not been burdensome to you ?
Forgive me this injury .
*
Behold ,
a third time I am ready to come to you ,
and I will not be burdensome to you ;
because I seek not yours ,
but you :
for the children ought not to lay up for the parents ,
but the parents for the children .
*
Yes ,
I most gladly will spend and be spent for the sake of your souls ;
even though the more abundantly I love you ,
the less I am loved .
*
Be it so ,
then ,
I did not burden you :
nevertheless ,
being crafty ,
I caught you with guile !
*
With respect to any one of them I sent to you ,
did I by him make gain of you ?
*
I besought Titus to go to you ;
and with him I sent a brother :
did Titus make any gain of you ?
Did we not walk in the same spirit ?
Did we not walk in the same steps ?
*
Again ,
do you think that we apologize to you ?
In the presence of God we speak in Christ ,
that all these things ,
beloved ,
are done for your edification .
*
Yet I am afraid ,
lest ,
perhaps ,
when I come ,
I shall not find you such as I wish :
and that I shall be found by you ,
such as you do not wish : -
lest ,
perhaps ,
there be among you strifes ,
emulations ,
wraths ,
brawlings ,
backbitings ,
whisperings ,
swellings ,
tumults .
*
And lest ,
when I come again ,
my God may humble me among you ;
and I shall bewail many ,
who have formerly sinned ,
and have not reformed from the uncleanness ,
and fornication ,
and lasciviousness ,
which they have committed .
*
I am coming this third time to you :
by the mouth of two or three witnesses ,
every matter shall be established .
*
I have told you before ,
and now forewarn the second time , (
as if present ,
though still absent ,)
those who have formerly sinned ,
and all others ,
that when I come again I will not spare ;
*
since you seek a proof of Christ speaking by me : (
who is not weak toward you ,
but who is mighty among you ;
*
for though we was crucified through weakness ,
yet he lives by the power of God ;
and though we also are weak with him ,
yet we shall live with him ,
by the power of God toward you .)
*
Examine yourselves ,
whether you be in the faith ;
prove yourselves :
know you not yourselves ,
that Jesus Christ is in you ,
unless you are disapproved ?
*
But I trust that you shall know that we are not disapproved .
*
However ,
I pray to God that you do no evil-not that we may appear approved ;
but that you may do what is good ,
though ,
indeed ,
we should be disapproved .
*
For we can do nothing against the truth ,
but for the truth .
*
Therefore we rejoice when we are weak ,
and you are strong :
and this ,
also ,
we pray for ,
even your perfection .
*
For this reason ,
being absent ,
I write these things ,
that ,
when present ,
I may not act sharply ,
according to the power which the Lord has give me for edification ,
and not for destruction .
*
Finally ,
brethren ,
farewell :
be perfect :
comfort yourselves :
mind the same thing :
live in peace :
and the God of love and peace will be with you .
*
Salute one another with a holy kiss .
*
All the saints salute you .
*
The favor of the Lord Jesus Christ ,
and the love of God ,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit ,
be with you all .
![[pBiblx2]](/img/pbiblx2_logo3.png){kind=logo}