New Revised Standard NRS
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me!
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Put up with me if I am a little foolish: but, truly, you do put up with me.
2 I feel a divine jealousy for you, for I promised you in marriage to one husband, to present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
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For I have a very great care for you: because you have been married by me to one husband, and it is my desire to give you completely holy to Christ.
3 But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by its cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.
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But I have a fear, that in some way, as Eve was tricked by the deceit of the snake, your minds may be turned away from their simple and holy love for Christ.
4 For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or a different gospel from the one you accepted, you submit to it readily enough.
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For if anyone comes preaching another Jesus from the one whose preachers we are, or if you have got a different spirit, or a different sort of good news from those which came to you, how well you put up with these things.
5 I think that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles.
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For in my opinion, I am in no way less than the most important of the Apostles.
6 I may be untrained in speech, but not in knowledge; certainly in every way and in all things we have made this evident to you.
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But though I am rough in my way of talking, I am not so in knowledge, as we have made clear to all by our acts among you.
7 Did I commit a sin by humbling myself so that you might be exalted, because I proclaimed God's good news to you free of charge?
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Or did I do wrong in making myself low so that you might be lifted up, because I gave you the good news of God without reward?
8 I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you.
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I took money from other churches as payment for my work, so that I might be your servant;
9 And when I was with you and was in need, I did not burden anyone, for my needs were supplied by the friends who came from Macedonia. So I refrained and will continue to refrain from burdening you in any way.
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And when I was present with you, and was in need, I let no man be responsible for me; for the brothers, when they came from Macedonia, gave me whatever was needed; and in everything I kept myself from being a trouble to you, and I will go on doing so.
10 As the truth of Christ is in me, this boast of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia.
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As the true word of Christ is in me, I will let no man take from me this my cause of pride in the country of Achaia.
11 And why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!
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Why? because I have no love for you? let God be judge.
12 And what I do I will also continue to do, in order to deny an opportunity to those who want an opportunity to be recognized as our equals in what they boast about.
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But what I do, that I will go on doing, so that I may give no chance to those who are looking for one; so that, in the cause of their pride, they may be seen to be the same as we are.
13 For such boasters are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.
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For such men are false Apostles, workers of deceit, making themselves seem like Apostles of Christ.
14 And no wonder! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
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And it is no wonder; for even Satan himself is able to take the form of an angel of light.
15 So it is not strange if his ministers also disguise themselves as ministers of righteousness. Their end will match their deeds.
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So it is no great thing if his servants make themselves seem to be servants of righteousness; whose end will be the reward of their works.
16 I repeat, let no one think that I am a fool; but if you do, then accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little.
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I say again, Let me not seem foolish to anyone; but if I do, put up with me as such, so that I may take a little glory to myself.
17 What I am saying in regard to this boastful confidence, I am saying not with the Lord's authority, but as a fool;
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What I am now saying is not by the order of the Lord, but as a foolish person, taking credit to myself, as it seems.
18 since many boast according to human standards, I will also boast.
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Seeing that there are those who take credit to themselves after the flesh, I will do the same.
19 For you gladly put up with fools, being wise yourselves!
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For you put up with the foolish gladly, being wise yourselves.
20 For you put up with it when someone makes slaves of you, or preys upon you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or gives you a slap in the face.
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You put up with a man if he makes servants of you, if he makes profit out of you, if he makes you prisoners, if he puts himself in a high place, if he gives you blows on the face.
21 To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that! But whatever anyone dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that.
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I say this by way of shaming ourselves, as if we had been feeble. But if anyone puts himself forward (I am talking like a foolish person), I will do the same.
22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I.
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Are they Hebrews? so am I. Are they of Israel? so am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? so am I.
23 Are they ministers of Christ? I am talking like a madman—I am a better one: with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless floggings, and often near death.
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Are they servants of Christ? (I am talking foolishly) I am more so; I have had more experience of hard work, of prisons, of blows more than measure, of death.
24 Five times I have received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.
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Five times the Jews gave me forty blows but one.
25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I received a stoning. Three times I was shipwrecked; for a night and a day I was adrift at sea;
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Three times I was whipped with rods, once I was stoned, three times the ship I was in came to destruction at sea, a night and a day I have been in the water;
26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from bandits, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers and sisters;
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In frequent travels, in dangers on rivers, in dangers from outlaws, in dangers from my countrymen, in dangers from the Gentiles, in dangers in the town, in dangers in the waste land, in dangers at sea, in dangers among false brothers;
27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, hungry and thirsty, often without food, cold and naked.
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In hard work and weariness, in frequent watchings, going without food and drink, cold and in need of clothing.
28 And, besides other things, I am under daily pressure because of my anxiety for all the churches.
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In addition to all the other things, there is that which comes on me every day, the care of all the churches.
29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I am not indignant?
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Who is feeble and I am not feeble? who is in danger of falling, and I am not angry?
30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.
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If I have to take credit to myself, I will do so in the things in which I am feeble.
31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus (blessed be he forever!) knows that I do not lie.
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The God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be praise for ever, is witness that the things which I say are true.
32 In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas guarded the city of Damascus in order to seize me,
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In Damascus, the ruler under Aretas the king kept watch over the town of the people of Damascus, in order to take me:
33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall, and escaped from his hands.
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And being let down in a basket from the wall through a window, I got free from his hands.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.