¹ O that ye tolerated a little of my foolishness, but tolerate me too.

² For I am jealous for you with a jealousy of God. For I betrothed you to one husband, a pure virgin to present to the Christ.

³ But I fear lest somehow, as the serpent enticed Eve by his craftiness, so your thoughts might be corrupted from the simplicity in the Christ.

⁴ For indeed if a man who comes, preaches another Jesus whom we did not preach, or ye receive another spirit that ye did not receive, or another good news that ye did not accept, ye well tolerated it.

⁵ For I reckon to come short in nothing of those, superlative apostles.

⁶ But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet not in knowledge, but in everything made known in all things to you.

⁷ Or did I commit a sin lowering myself so that ye might be lifted up, because I preached to you the good news of God freely?

⁸ I robbed other congregations, having taken a wage in order for your service.

⁹ And being present with you, and when needy, I was a burden to no man. For the brothers who came from Macedonia, they supplied my need. And in everything I kept and I will keep myself non-burdensome to you.

¹⁰ The truth of Christ is in me that this pride in me will not be stopped in the regions of Achaia.

¹¹ Why? Because I do not love you? God knows.

¹² But what I do, I also will do, so that I may cut off the opportunity of those who desire an opportunity, that in what they boast, they might appear just as we also.

¹³ For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves into apostles of Christ.

¹⁴ And no marvel, for even Satan disguises himself into an agent of light.

¹⁵ Therefore, it is no great thing if his helpers also disguise themselves as helpers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works.

¹⁶ I say again, let not any man think me to be foolish, but if otherwise-even if as foolish-accept me, so that I also may boast some a little.

¹⁷ What I speak, I speak not according to the Lord, but as in foolishness, in this confidence of the boast.

¹⁸ Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast.

¹⁹ For being wise, ye gladly tolerate the foolish.

²⁰ For ye tolerate it if some man enslaves you, if some man devours you, if some man seizes you, if some man lifts himself up, if some man strikes you on the face.

²¹ I speak as from shame, that we were so weak. Yet in whatever any man may be bold in foolishness, I say I too am bold.

²² Are they Hebrews? I too. Are they Israelites? I too. Are they a seed of Abraham? I too.

²³ Are they helpers of Christ? (I speak as being mad) I more: in toils, more abundantly; in stripes, countless; in prisons, more frequently; in deaths often.

²⁴ From the Jews five times I received forty save one.

²⁵ Thrice I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, thrice I was shipwrecked, I have done a night and a day in the depth,

²⁶ in frequent journeys, in perils of flowing waters, in perils of bandits, in perils from my race, in perils from Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils at sea, in perils among false brothers,

²⁷ in toil and hardship, in frequent sleeplessness, in hunger and thirst, in frequent fasts, in cold and nakedness.

²⁸ Besides the external things, crowding upon me daily is the care of all the congregations.

²⁹ Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is caused to stumble, and I am not made fiery?

³⁰ If it is necessary to boast, I will boast of the things of my weakness.

³¹ The God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, he who is blessed into the ages, knows that I do not lie.

³² In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king guarded the city of the Damascenes wanting to apprehend me.

³³ And I was lowered in a hamper through a window through the wall, and escaped his hands.