Paul and the False Apostles
1I hope you will put up with me in a little foolishness. Yes, please put up with me! 2I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him. 3But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. 4For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached, or if you receive a different spirit from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it easily enough.
5I do not think I am in the least inferior to those “super-apostles.”11:5 Or to the most eminent apostles 6I may indeed be untrained as a speaker, but I do have knowledge. We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way. 7Was it a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge? 8I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so as to serve you. 9And when I was with you and needed something, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied what I needed. I have kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and will continue to do so. 10As surely as the truth of Christ is in me, nobody in the regions of Achaia will stop this boasting of mine. 11Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!
12And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. 14And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.
Paul Boasts About His Sufferings
16I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then tolerate me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting. 17In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool. 18Since many are boasting in the way the world does, I too will boast. 19You gladly put up with fools since you are so wise! 20In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or puts on airs or slaps you in the face. 21To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that!
Whatever anyone else dares to boast about—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast about. 22Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they Abraham’s descendants? So am I. 23Are they servants of Christ? (I am out of my mind to talk like this.) I am more. I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. 24Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. 25Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, 26I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. 27I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. 28Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. 29Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?
30If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is to be praised forever, knows that I am not lying. 32In Damascus the governor under King Aretas had the city of the Damascenes guarded in order to arrest me. 33But I was lowered in a basket from a window in the wall and slipped through his hands.
保羅與假使徒
1請你們包容我的這點愚妄吧！我知道你們一定會包容我。 2我以上帝痛恨不貞的愛愛你們。因為我曾把你們當作貞潔的少女許配給一位丈夫——基督。 3但我真怕你們會像被狡猾的蛇欺騙的夏娃一樣，思想受迷惑，失去了對基督純真專一的心。 4有人來傳另一位耶穌——與我們所傳的不同，或要你們接受另一個靈——與你們所接受的不同，或要你們相信另一種福音——與你們所相信的不同，你們竟欣然容忍。 5我想，我一點也不比那些「超級使徒」差。 6我雖然不善辭令，但我認識真理。這一點，我們在各方面已經向你們證明了。
7我為了把上帝的福音白白地傳給你們，甘願卑微，以提升你們，我這樣做有罪嗎？ 8我「搶奪」其他教會，拿了他們的資助，來服侍你們。 9我在你們那裡經濟拮据的時候，沒有拖累過你們任何人，因為馬其頓來的弟兄補足了我的缺乏。我沒有在任何方面成為你們的負擔，將來也不會成為你們的負擔。 10我憑我心中基督的真理說，亞該亞地區無人會阻止我這樣誇口。 11為什麼呢？難道我不愛你們嗎？上帝知道我愛你們！
12我現在所做的，將來還會繼續做下去，為了要斷絕那些投機分子的機會，使他們無法在所誇耀的事上被認為與我們一樣。 13其實這些人是假使徒，為人詭詐，冒充基督的使徒。 14這不足為奇，因為連撒旦都裝成光明的天使， 15牠的爪牙若冒充公義的僕人，又何足為奇呢？他們最終必得到應得的報應。
保羅的諸多苦難
16我再說，誰也別把我當作傻瓜。你們如果真這麼想，那就把我當傻瓜看待吧！好讓我也能說幾句自誇的話。 17我這樣說，並不是主的意思，而是像一個傻瓜一樣誇口。 18既然許多人憑血氣誇口，我當然也可以誇口。 19因為你們這些聰明人竟然甘願忍受那些傻瓜， 20就算有人奴役、剝削、利用、侮辱你們，打你們耳光，你們都能逆來順受！ 21慚愧得很，我必須說，我們太軟弱了，做不出那樣的事！
然而，別人敢誇口的，我再講一句傻話，我也敢。 22他們是希伯來人，我也是。他們是以色列人，我也是。他們是亞伯拉罕的子孫，我也是。 23他們自稱是基督的僕人，我說句狂話，我更是！我比他們更辛苦，坐牢更多，身受更重的鞭打，經常出生入死。 24我被猶太同胞鞭打了五次，每次三十九鞭11·24 「三十九鞭」希臘文是「四十鞭減一鞭」。， 25被人用棍打了三次，用石頭打了一次，遇到船難三次，曾在大海上漂浮了一天一夜。 26我常常四處奔波，遭遇江河的危險、盜賊的威脅、同胞的威脅、外族的威脅、城中的危險、曠野的危險、海上的危險和假信徒的威脅。 27我勞碌困苦，不得安眠，又饑又渴，挨餓受凍，赤身露體。 28此外，我還掛慮眾教會的事，天天承受著壓力。 29有誰軟弱，我不感同身受呢？有誰失足犯罪，我不心急如焚呢？
30如果一定要誇耀，我情願誇耀自己的軟弱。 31主耶穌的父上帝永受稱頌，祂知道我不撒謊。 32在大馬士革的時候，亞哩達王手下的總督吩咐人把守城門，要逮捕我。 33我被人用筐子從城牆上的窗戶縋下去，才逃出他的手掌。
