| King James Bible | NET Bible |
| 1Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me. | 1I wish that you would be patient with me in a little foolishness, but indeed you are being patient with me! |
| 2For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. | 2For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy, because I promised you in marriage to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. |
| 3But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. | 3But I am afraid that just as the serpent deceived Eve by his treachery, your minds may be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. |
| 4For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him. | 4For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus different from the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the one you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it well enough! |
| 5For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles. | 5For I consider myself not at all inferior to those "super-apostles." |
| 6But though I be rude in speech, yet not in knowledge; but we have been throughly made manifest among you in all things. | 6And even if I am unskilled in speaking, yet I am certainly not so in knowledge. Indeed, we have made this plain to you in everything in every way. |
| 7Have I committed an offence in abasing myself that ye might be exalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely? | 7Or did I commit a sin by humbling myself so that you could be exalted, because I proclaimed the gospel of God to you free of charge? |
| 8I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service. | 8I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so that I could serve you! |
| 9And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from Macedonia supplied: and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself. | 9When I was with you and was in need, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia fully supplied my needs. I 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, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the regions of Achaia. | 10As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be stopped in the regions of Achaia. |
| 11Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth. | 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! |
| 12But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we. | 12And what I am doing I will continue to do, so that I may eliminate any opportunity for those who want a chance to be regarded as our equals in the things they boast about. |
| 13For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. | 13For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. |
| 14And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. | 14And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. |
| 15Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works. | 15Therefore it is not surprising his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will correspond to their actions. |
| 16I say again, Let no man think me a fool; if otherwise, yet as a fool receive me, that I may boast myself a little. | 16I say again, let no one think that I am a fool. But if you do, then at least accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little. |
| 17That which I speak, I speak it not after the Lord, but as it were foolishly, in this confidence of boasting. | 17What I am saying with this boastful confidence I do not say the way the Lord would. Instead it is, as it were, foolishness. |
| 18Seeing that many glory after the flesh, I will glory also. | 18Since many are boasting according to human standards, I too will boast. |
| 19For ye suffer fools gladly, seeing ye yourselves are wise. | 19For since you are so wise, you put up with fools gladly. |
| 20For ye suffer, if a man bring you into bondage, if a man devour you, if a man take of you, if a man exalt himself, if a man smite you on the face. | 20For you put up with it if someone makes slaves of you, if someone exploits you, if someone takes advantage of you, if someone behaves arrogantly toward you, if someone strikes you in the face. |
| 21I speak as concerning reproach, as though we had been weak. Howbeit whereinsoever any is bold, (I speak foolishly,) I am bold also. | 21(To my disgrace I must say that we were too weak for that!) But whatever anyone else dares to boast about (I am speaking foolishly), I also dare to boast about the same thing. |
| 22Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they Israelites? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I. | 22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. |
| 23Are they ministers of Christ? (I speak as a fool) I am more; in labours more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequent, in deaths oft. | 23Are they servants of Christ? (I am talking like I am out of my mind!) I am even more so: with much greater labors, with far more imprisonments, with more severe beatings, facing death many times. |
| 24Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one. | 24Five times I received from the Jews forty lashes less one. |
| 25Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep; | 25Three times I was beaten with a rod. Once I received a stoning. Three times I suffered shipwreck. A night and a day I spent adrift in the open sea. |
| 26In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; | 26I have been on journeys many times, in dangers from rivers, in dangers from robbers, in dangers from my own countrymen, in dangers from Gentiles, in dangers in the city, in dangers in the wilderness, in dangers at sea, in dangers from false brothers, |
| 27In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness. | 27in hard work and toil, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, many times without food, in cold and without enough clothing. |
| 28Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches. | 28Apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxious concern for all the churches. |
| 29Who is weak, and I am not weak? who is offended, and I burn not? | 29Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not burn with indignation? |
| 30If I must needs glory, I will glory of the things which concern mine infirmities. | 30If I must boast, I will boast about the things that show my weakness. |
| 31The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is blessed for evermore, knoweth that I lie not. | 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is blessed forever, knows I am not lying. |
| 32In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king kept the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, desirous to apprehend me: | 32In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to arrest me, |
| 33And through a window in a basket was I let down by the wall, and escaped his hands. | 33but I was let down in a rope-basket through a window in the city wall, and escaped his hands. |
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