| International Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1I wish you would tolerate a little of my foolishness. Yes, please tolerate me! | 1I wish that you would be patient with me in a little foolishness, but indeed you are being patient with me! |
| 2I am jealous of you with God's own jealousy, because I promised you in marriage to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to the Messiah. | 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. |
| 3However, I am afraid that just as the serpent deceived Eve by its tricks, so your minds may somehow be lured away from sincere and pure devotion to the Messiah. | 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 someone comes along and preaches another Jesus than the one we preached, or should you receive a different spirit from the one you received or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you are all too willing to listen. | 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! |
| 5I do not think I'm inferior in any way to those "super-apostles." | 5For I consider myself not at all inferior to those "super-apostles." |
| 6Even though I may be untrained as an orator, I am not so in the field of knowledge. We have made this clear to all of you in every possible way. | 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. |
| 7Did I commit a sin when I humbled myself by proclaiming to you the gospel of God free of charge, so that you could be exalted? | 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 by accepting support from them in order to serve you. | 8I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so that I could serve you! |
| 9When I was with you and needed something, I did not bother any of you, because our brothers who came from Macedonia supplied everything I needed. I kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and I will continue to do so. | 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 surely as the truth of the Messiah is in me, my boasting will not be silenced 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. |
| 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows that I do! | 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! |
| 12But I will go on doing what I'm doing in order to deny an opportunity to those people who want an opportunity to be recognized as our equals in the work they are boasting about. | 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. |
| 13Such people are false apostles, dishonest workers who are masquerading as apostles of the Messiah. | 13For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. |
| 14And no wonder, since Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. | 14And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. |
| 15So it is not surprising if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their doom will match their deeds! | 15Therefore it is not surprising his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will correspond to their actions. |
| 16I will say it again: No one should think that I am a fool. But if you do, then treat me like a fool so that I can also boast 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. |
| 17When I talk as a confident boaster, I am not talking with the Lord's authority but like a fool. | 17What I am saying with this boastful confidence I do not say the way the Lord would. Instead it is, as it were, foolishness. |
| 18Since many people boast in a fleshly way, I will do it, too. | 18Since many are boasting according to human standards, I too will boast. |
| 19You are wise, so you will gladly be tolerant of fools. | 19For since you are so wise, you put up with fools gladly. |
| 20You tolerate anyone who makes you his slaves, devours what you have, takes what is yours, orders you around, or slaps your 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 am ashamed to admit it, but we have been too weak for that. Whatever anyone else dares to claim—I am talking like a fool—I can claim it, too. | 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 Israelis? So am I. Are they among Abraham's descendants? 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 the Messiah's servants? I am insane to talk like this, but I am a far better one! I have been involved in far greater efforts, far more imprisonments, countless beatings, and have faced death more than once. | 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. |
| 24Five times I received from the Jews 40 lashes minus one. | 24Five times I received from the Jews forty lashes less one. |
| 25Three times I was beaten with a stick, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, and I drifted on the sea for a day and a night. | 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. |
| 26I have traveled extensively and have been endangered from rivers, robbers, my own people, and gentiles. I've also been in danger in the city, in the open country, at sea, from false brothers, | 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 toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, through hunger, thirst, many periods of fasting, coldness, 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. |
| 28Besides everything else, I have a daily burden because of my anxiety about 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 without me being weak, too? Who is caused to stumble without me becoming indignant? | 29Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not burn with indignation? |
| 30If I must boast, I will boast about the things that show how weak I am. | 30If I must boast, I will boast about the things that show my weakness. |
| 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. | 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is blessed forever, knows I am not lying. |
| 32In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas put guards around the city of Damascus to catch me, | 32In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to arrest me, |
| 33but I was let down in a basket through an opening in the wall and escaped from him. | 33but I was let down in a rope-basket through a window in the city wall, and escaped his hands. |
|
