Paul Boasts About His Sufferings

¹⁶ I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool.^(A) But if you do, then tolerate me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting. ¹⁷ In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would,^(B) but as a fool.^{(C) 18} Since many are boasting in the way the world does,^(D) I too will boast.^{(E) 19} You gladly put up with^(F) fools since you are so wise!^{(G) 20} In fact, you even put up with^(H) anyone who enslaves you^(I) or exploits you or takes advantage of you or puts on airs or slaps you in the face. ²¹ To my shame I admit that we were too weak^(J) for that!

Whatever anyone else dares to boast about—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast about.^{(K) 22} Are they Hebrews? So am I.^(L) Are they Israelites? So am I.^(M) Are they Abraham’s descendants? So am I.^{(N) 23} Are they servants of Christ?^(O) (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder,^(P) been in prison more frequently,^(Q) been flogged more severely,^(R) and been exposed to death again and again.^{(S) 24} Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes^(T) minus one. ²⁵ Three times I was beaten with rods,^(U) once I was pelted with stones,^(V) three times I was shipwrecked,^(W) I spent a night and a day in the open sea, ²⁶ I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews,^(X) in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city,^(Y) in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers.^{(Z) 27} I have labored and toiled^(AA) and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food;^(AB) I have been cold and naked. ²⁸ Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.^{(AC) 29} Who is weak, and I do not feel weak?^(AD) Who is led into sin,^(AE) and I do not inwardly burn?

³⁰ If I must boast, I will boast^(AF) of the things that show my weakness.^{(AG) 31} The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever,^(AH) knows^(AI) that I am not lying. ³² In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me.^{(AJ) 33} But I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall and slipped through his hands.^(AK)

Paul’s Vision and His Thorn

12 I must go on boasting.^(AL) Although there is nothing to be gained, I will go on to visions and revelations^(AM) from the Lord. ² I know a man in Christ^(AN) who fourteen years ago was caught up^(AO) to the third heaven.^(AP) Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows.^{(AQ) 3} And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows— ⁴ was caught up^(AR) to paradise^(AS) and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. ⁵ I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses.^{(AT) 6} Even if I should choose to boast,^(AU) I would not be a fool,^(AV) because I would be speaking the truth. But I refrain, so no one will think more of me than is warranted by what I do or say, ⁷ or because of these surpassingly great revelations.^(AW) Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh,^(AX) a messenger of Satan,^(AY) to torment me. ⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.^{(AZ) 9} But he said to me, “My grace^(BA) is sufficient for you, for my power^(BB) is made perfect in weakness.^(BC)”^(BD) Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. ¹⁰ That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight^(BE) in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships,^(BF) in persecutions,^(BG) in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.^(BH)

Paul’s Concern for the Corinthians

¹¹ I have made a fool of myself,^(BI) but you drove me to it. I ought to have been commended by you, for I am not in the least inferior to the “super-apostles,”^[a](BJ) even though I am nothing.^{(BK) 12} I persevered in demonstrating among you the marks of a true apostle, including signs, wonders and miracles.^{(BL) 13} How were you inferior to the other churches, except that I was never a burden to you?^(BM) Forgive me this wrong!^(BN)

¹⁴ Now I am ready to visit you for the third time,^(BO) and I will not be a burden to you, because what I want is not your possessions but you. After all, children should not have to save up for their parents,^(BP) but parents for their children.^{(BQ) 15} So I will very gladly spend for you everything I have and expend myself as well.^(BR) If I love you more,^(BS) will you love me less? ¹⁶ Be that as it may, I have not been a burden to you.^(BT) Yet, crafty fellow that I am, I caught you by trickery! ¹⁷ Did I exploit you through any of the men I sent to you? ¹⁸ I urged^(BU) Titus^(BV) to go to you and I sent our brother^(BW) with him. Titus did not exploit you, did he? Did we not walk in the same footsteps by the same Spirit?

¹⁹ Have you been thinking all along that we have been defending ourselves to you? We have been speaking in the sight of God^(BX) as those in Christ; and everything we do, dear friends,^(BY) is for your strengthening.^{(BZ) 20} For I am afraid that when I come^(CA) I may not find you as I want you to be, and you may not find me as you want me to be.^(CB) I fear that there may be discord,^(CC) jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition,^(CD) slander,^(CE) gossip,^(CF) arrogance^(CG) and disorder.^{(CH) 21} I am afraid that when I come again my God will humble me before you, and I will be grieved^(CI) over many who have sinned earlier^(CJ) and have not repented of the impurity, sexual sin and debauchery^(CK) in which they have indulged.

Final Warnings

13 This will be my third visit to you.^(CL) “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.”^{[b](CM) 2} I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second time. I now repeat it while absent:^(CN) On my return I will not spare^(CO) those who sinned earlier^(CP) or any of the others, ³ since you are demanding proof that Christ is speaking through me.^(CQ) He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you. ⁴ For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness,^(CR) yet he lives by God’s power.^(CS) Likewise, we are weak^(CT) in him, yet by God’s power we will live with him^(CU) in our dealing with you.

⁵ Examine yourselves^(CV) to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.^(CW) Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you^(CX)—unless, of course, you fail the test? ⁶ And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test. ⁷ Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong—not so that people will see that we have stood the test but so that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed. ⁸ For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. ⁹ We are glad whenever we are weak^(CY) but you are strong;^(CZ) and our prayer is that you may be fully restored.^{(DA) 10} This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh^(DB) in my use of authority—the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.^(DC)

Final Greetings

¹¹ Finally, brothers and sisters,^(DD) rejoice! Strive for full restoration, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace.^(DE) And the God of love^(DF) and peace^(DG) will be with you.

¹² Greet one another with a holy kiss.^{(DH) 13} All God’s people here send their greetings.^(DI)

¹⁴ May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,^(DJ) and the love of God,^(DK) and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit^(DL) be with you all.

1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle^(A) and set apart^(B) for the gospel of God^(C)— ² the gospel he promised beforehand^(D) through his prophets^(E) in the Holy Scriptures^{(F) 3} regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life^[a](G) was a descendant of David,^{(H) 4} and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power^[b](I) by his resurrection from the dead:^(J) Jesus Christ our Lord.^{(K) 5} Through him we received grace^(L) and apostleship to call all the Gentiles^(M) to the obedience that comes from^[c] faith^(N) for his name’s sake. ⁶ And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.^(O)

⁷ To all in Rome who are loved by God^(P) and called to be his holy people:^(Q)

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.^(R)

Paul’s Longing to Visit Rome

⁸ First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you,^(S) because your faith is being reported all over the world.^{(T) 9} God, whom I serve^(U) in my spirit in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness^(V) how constantly I remember you ¹⁰ in my prayers at all times;^(W) and I pray that now at last by God’s will^(X) the way may be opened for me to come to you.^(Y)

¹¹ I long to see you^(Z) so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift^(AA) to make you strong— ¹² that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. ¹³ I do not want you to be unaware,^(AB) brothers and sisters,^[d](AC) that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now)^(AD) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.

¹⁴ I am obligated^(AE) both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. ¹⁵ That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome.^(AF)

¹⁶ For I am not ashamed of the gospel,^(AG) because it is the power of God^(AH) that brings salvation to everyone who believes:^(AI) first to the Jew,^(AJ) then to the Gentile.^{(AK) 17} For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed^(AL)—a righteousness that is by faith^(AM) from first to last,^[e] just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”^[f](AN)

God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity

¹⁸ The wrath of God^(AO) is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, ¹⁹ since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.^{(AP) 20} For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made,^(AQ) so that people are without excuse.^(AR)

²¹ For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.^{(AS) 22} Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools^{(AT) 23} and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images^(AU) made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

²⁴ Therefore God gave them over^(AV) in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.^{(AW) 25} They exchanged the truth about God for a lie,^(AX) and worshiped and served created things^(AY) rather than the Creator—who is forever praised.^(AZ) Amen.^(BA)

²⁶ Because of this, God gave them over^(BB) to shameful lusts.^(BC) Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones.^{(BD) 27} In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.^(BE)

²⁸ Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over^(BF) to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. ²⁹ They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,^{(BG) 30} slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;^{(BH) 31} they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love,^(BI) no mercy. ³² Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death,^(BJ) they not only continue to do these very things but also approve^(BK) of those who practice them.