For our proud confidence is this: the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you.

In this confidence I intended at first to come to you, so that you might twice receive a blessing;

Therefore, I was not vacillating when I intended to do this, was I? Or what I purpose, do I purpose according to the flesh, so that with me there will be yes, yes and no, no at the same time?

But I determined this for my own sake, that I would not come to you in sorrow again.

This is the very thing I wrote you, so that when I came, I would not have sorrow from those who ought to make me rejoice; having confidence in you all that my joy would be the joy of you all.

Sufficient for such a one is this punishment which was inflicted by the majority,

For to this end also I wrote, so that I might put you to the test, whether you are obedient in all things.

For indeed what had glory, in this case has no glory because of the glory that surpasses it.

But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ.

But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart;

Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we received mercy, we do not lose heart,

in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;

For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven,

For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life.

Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.

For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died;

Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer.

For behold what earnestness this very thing, this godly sorrow, has produced in you: what vindication of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what avenging of wrong! In everything you demonstrated yourselves to be innocent in the matter.

For this reason we have been comforted.And besides our comfort, we rejoiced even much more for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all.

and this, not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God.

So we urged Titus that as he had previously made a beginning, so he would also complete in you this gracious work as well.

But just as you abound in everything, in faith and utterance and knowledge and in all earnestness and in the love we inspired in you, see that you abound in this gracious work also.

I am not speaking this as a command, but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity of your love also.

I give my opinion in this matter, for this is to your advantage, who were the first to begin a year ago not only to do this, but also to desire to do it.

For this is not for the ease of others and for your affliction, but by way of equality—

at this present time your abundance being a supply for their need, so that their abundance also may become a supply for your need, that there may be equality;

and not only this, but he has also been appointed by the churches to travel with us in this gracious work, which is being administered by us for the glory of the Lord Himself, and to show our readiness,

taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift;

For it is superfluous for me to write to you about this ministry to the saints;

But I have sent the brethren, in order that our boasting about you may not be made empty in this case, so that, as I was saying, you may be prepared;

otherwise if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we—not to speak of you—will be put to shame by this confidence.

Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God.

Because of the proof given by this ministry, they will glorify God for your obedience to your confession of the gospel of Christ and for the liberality of your contribution to them and to all,

You are looking at things as they are outwardly. If anyone is confident in himself that he is Christ’s, let him consider this again within himself, that just as he is Christ’s, so also are we.

Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word by letters when absent, such persons we are also in deed when present.

For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully.

But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things.

As the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be stopped in the regions of Achaia.

What I am saying, I am not saying as the Lord would, but as in foolishness, in this confidence of boasting.

For if I do wish to boast I will not be foolish, for I will be speaking the truth; but I refrain from this, so that no one will credit me with more than he sees in me or hears from me.

Because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, for this reason, to keep me from exalting myself, there was given me a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me—to keep me from exalting myself!

Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me.

For in what respect were you treated as inferior to the rest of the churches, except that I myself did not become a burden to you? Forgive me this wrong!

Here for this third time I am ready to come to you, and I will not be a burden to you; for I do not seek what is yours, but you; for children are not responsible to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.

All this time you have been thinking that we are defending ourselves to you. Actually, it is in the sight of God that we have been speaking in Christ; and all for your upbuilding, beloved.

This is the third time I am coming to you. Every fact is to be confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses.

Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?

For we rejoice when we ourselves are weak but you are strong; this we also pray for, that you be made complete.

For this reason I am writing these things while absent, so that when present I need not use severity, in accordance with the authority which the Lord gave me for building up and not for tearing down.