< 2 Corinthians 11 >
1 I hope you will bear with a little of my foolishness, but you are already doing that.
Woulde to God, yee coulde suffer a litle my foolishnes, and in deede, ye suffer me.
2 I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.
For I am ielous ouer you, with godly ielousie: for I haue prepared you for one husband, to present you as a pure virgine to Christ:
3 I am afraid, however, that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may be led astray from your simple and pure devotion to Christ.
But I feare least as the serpent beguiled Eue through his subtiltie, so your mindes shoulde be corrupt from the simplicitie that is in Christ.
4 For if someone comes and proclaims a Jesus other than 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 way too easily.
For if he that commeth, preacheth another Iesus whome we haue not preached: or if yee receiue another spirite whome ye haue not receiued: either another Gospell, which yee haue not receiued, ye might well haue suffered him.
5 I consider myself in no way inferior to those “super-apostles.”
Verely I suppose that I was not inferior to the very chiefe Apostles.
6 Although I am not a polished speaker, I am certainly not lacking in knowledge. We have made this clear to you in every way possible.
And though I be rude in speaking, yet I am not so in knowledge, but among you wee haue beene made manifest to the vttermost, in all things.
7 Was it a sin for me to humble myself in order to exalt you, because I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge?
Haue I committed an offence, because I abased my selfe, that ye might be exalted, and because I preached to you ye Gospell of God freely?
8 I robbed other churches by accepting their support in order to serve you.
I robbed other Churches, and tooke wages of them to doe you seruice.
9 And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to you in any way, and I will continue to do so.
And when I was present with you, and had neede, I was not slouthfull to the hinderance of any man: for that which was lacking vnto me, the brethre which came from Macedonia, supplied, and in all thinges I kept and will keepe my selfe, that I should not be grieuous to you.
10 As surely as the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia.
The trueth of Christ is in me, that this reioycing shall not be shut vp against me in the regions of Achaia.
11 Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!
Wherefore? because I loue you not? God knoweth.
12 But I will keep on doing what I am doing, in order to undercut those who want an opportunity to be regarded as our equals in the things of which they boast.
But what I doe, that will I doe: that I may cut away occasion from them which desire occasion, that they might be found like vnto vs in that wherein they reioyce.
13 For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ.
For such false apostles are deceitfull workers, and transforme themselues into the Apostles of Christ.
14 And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.
And no marueile: for Satan himselfe is transformed into an Angel of light.
15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their actions.
Therefore it is no great thing, though his ministers transforme themselues, as though they were the ministers of righteousnes, whose end shall be according to their workes.
16 I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then receive me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little.
I say againe, Let no man thinke that I am foolish, or els take mee euen as a foole, that I also may boast my selfe a litle.
17 In this confident boasting of mine, I am not speaking as the Lord would, but as a fool.
That I speake, I speake it not after the Lord: but as it were foolishly, in this my great boasting.
18 Since many are boasting according to the flesh, I too will boast.
Seeing that many reioyce after the flesh, I will reioyce also.
19 For you gladly tolerate fools, since you are so wise.
For ye suffer fooles gladly, because that yee are wise.
20 In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or exalts himself or strikes you in the face.
For ye suffer, euen if a man bring you into bondage, if a man deuoure you, if a man take your goods, if a man exalt himselfe, if a man smite you on the face.
21 To my shame I concede that we were too weak for that! Speaking as a fool, however, I can match what anyone else dares to boast about.
I speake as concerning the reproche: as though that we had bene weake: but wherein any man is bold (I speake foolishly) I am bold also.
22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I.
They are Hebrues, so am I: they are Israelites, so am I: they are the seede of Abraham, so am I:
23 Are they servants of Christ? I am speaking like I am out of my mind, but I am so much more: in harder labor, in more imprisonments, in worse beatings, in frequent danger of death.
They are the ministers of Christ (I speake as a foole) I am more: in labours more aboundant: in stripes aboue measure: in prison more plenteously: in death oft.
24 Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.
Of the Iewes fiue times receiued I fourtie stripes saue one.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea.
I was thrise beaten with roddes: I was once stoned: I suffered thrise shipwracke: night and day haue I bene in the deepe sea.
26 In my frequent journeys, I have been in danger from rivers and from bandits, in danger from my countrymen and from the Gentiles, in danger in the city and in the country, in danger on the sea and among false brothers,
In iourneying I was often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of mine owne nation, in perils among the Gentiles, in perils in the citie, in perils in wildernes, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren,
27 in labor and toil and often without sleep, in hunger and thirst and often without food, in cold and exposure.
In wearinesse and painefulnesse, in watching often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in colde and in nakednesse.
28 Apart from these external trials, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.
Beside the thinges which are outwarde, I am combred dayly, and haue the care of all the Churches.
29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not burn with grief?
Who is weake, and I am not weake? who is offended, and I burne not?
30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.
If I must needes reioyce, I will reioyce of mine infirmities.
31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is forever worthy of praise, knows that I am not lying. (aiōn )
The God, euen the Father of our Lord Iesus Christ, which is blessed for euermore, knoweth that I lie not. (aiōn )
32 In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas secured the city of the Damascenes in order to arrest me.
In Damascus the gouernour of the people vnder King Aretas, layde watch in the citie of the Damascens, and would haue caught me.
33 But I was lowered in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his grasp.
But at a window was I let downe in a basket through the wall, and escaped his handes.