For truly, we who are in this tent do give out cries of weariness, for the weight of care which is on us; not because we are desiring to be free from the body, but so that we may have our new body, and death may be overcome by life.

(For we are walking by faith, not by seeing,)

We are not again requesting your approval, but we are giving you the chance of taking pride in us, so that you may be able to give an answer to those whose glory is in seeming, and not in the heart.

That is, that God was in Christ making peace between the world and himself, not putting their sins to their account, and having given to us the preaching of this news of peace.

We then, working together with God, make our request to you not to take the grace of God to no purpose.

But in everything making it clear that we are the servants of God, in quiet strength, in troubles, in need, in sorrow,

Unnoted, but still kept fully in mind; as near to death, but still living; as undergoing punishment, but not put to death;

It is not our feelings to you which are narrow, but yours to us.

Do not keep company with those who have not faith: for what is there in common between righteousness and evil, or between light and dark?

And what agreement is there between Christ and the Evil One? or what part has one who has faith with one who has not?

It is not with the purpose of judging you that I say this: for I have said before that you are in our hearts for life and death together.

And not by his coming only, but by the comfort which he had in you, while he gave us word of your desire, your sorrow, your care for me; so that I was still more glad.

Now I am glad, not that you had sorrow, but that your sorrow was the cause of a change of heart; for yours was a holy sorrow so that you might undergo no loss by us in anything.

So though I sent you a letter, it was not only because of the man who did the wrong, or because of him to whom the wrong was done, but so that your true care for us might be made clear in the eyes of God.

For I was not put to shame in anything in which I may have made clear to him my pride in you; but as we said nothing to you but what was true, so the good things which I said to Titus about you were seen by him to be true.

How while they were undergoing every sort of trouble, and were in the greatest need, they took all the greater joy in being able to give freely to the needs of others.

I am not giving you an order, but using the ready mind of others as a test of the quality of your love.

For you see the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, how though he had wealth, he became poor on your account, so that through his need you might have wealth.

And in this I give my opinion: for it is to your profit, who were the first to make a start a year before, not only to do this, but to make clear that your minds were more than ready to do it.

For if there is a ready mind, a man will have God's approval in the measure of what he has, and not of what he has not.

And I am not saying this so that others may get off free, while the weight comes on you:

But so that things may be equal; that from those things of which you have more than enough at the present time their need may be helped, and that if you are in any need they may be a help to you in the same way, making things equal.

And not only so, but he was marked out by the churches to go with us in the grace of this giving which we have undertaken to the glory of the Lord and to make clear that our mind was ready:

For the business has been so ordered by us as to have the approval, not only of the Lord, but of men.

But there is no need for me to say anything in my letter about the giving to the saints:

For fear that, if any from Macedonia come with me, and you are not ready, we (not to say, you) might be put to shame in this thing.

So it seemed to me wise for the brothers to go before, and see that the amount which you had undertaken to give was ready, so that it might be a cause for praise, and not as if we were making profit out of you.

Let every man do after the purpose of his heart; not giving with grief, or by force: for God takes pleasure in a ready giver.

For this work of giving not only takes care of the needs of the saints, but is the cause of much praise to God;

Yes, I make my request to you, so that when I am with you I may not have to make use of the authority which may be needed against some to whom we seem to be walking after the flesh.

For though we may be living in the flesh, we are not fighting after the way of the flesh

(For the arms with which we are fighting are not those of the flesh, but are strong before God for the destruction of high places);

For though I might take pride in our authority (which the Lord gave for building you up, and not for your destruction), it will not be a cause of shame to me:

That I may not seem to have the desire of causing you fear by my letters.

For we will not make comparison of ourselves with some of those who say good things about themselves: but these, measuring themselves by themselves, and making comparison of themselves with themselves, are not wise.

We will not give glory to ourselves in over-great measure, but after the measure of the rule which God has given us, a measure which comes even to you.

For we have no need to make ourselves seem more than we are, as if our authority did not come as far as to you: for we came even as far as you with the good news of Christ:

Not taking credit to ourselves for what is not our business, that is, for the work of others; but having hope that, with the growth of your faith, we may get the credit for an increase which is the effect of our work,

So that we may be able to go on and take the good news to countries still farther away than you are, and not take credit for another man's work in making things ready to our hand.

For the Lord's approval of a man is not dependent on his opinion of himself, but on the Lord's opinion of him.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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;

In hard work and weariness, in frequent watchings, going without food and drink, cold and in need of clothing.

Who is feeble and I am not feeble? who is in danger of falling, and I am not angry?

As it is necessary for me to take glory to myself, though it is not a good thing, I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord.

I have knowledge of a man in Christ, fourteen years back (if he was in the body, or out of the body, I am not able to say, but God only), who was taken up to the third heaven.

And I have knowledge of such a man (if he was in the body, or out of the body, I am not able to say, but God only),

How he was taken up into Paradise, and words came to his ears which may not be said, and which man is not able to say.

For if I had a desire to take credit to myself, it would not be foolish, for I would be saying what is true: but I will not, for fear that I might seem to any man more than he sees me to be, or has word from me that I am.

And because the revelations were so very great, in order that I might not be overmuch lifted up, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, one sent from Satan to give me pain.

For what is there in which you were made less than the other churches, but in the one thing that I was not a trouble to you? Let me have forgiveness for this wrong.

This is now the third time that I am ready to come to you; and I will not be a trouble to you: my desire is for you, not for your property: for it is not the children's business to make store for their fathers, but the fathers for the children.

But let it be so, that I was not a trouble to you myself; but (someone may say) being false, I took you with deceit.

I gave orders to Titus, and I sent the brother with him. Did Titus make any profit out of you? were we not guided by the same Spirit, in the same ways?

For I have a fear that, when I come, you may not be answering to my desire, and that I may not be answering to yours; that there may be fighting, hate, angry feeling, divisions, evil talk about others, secrets, thoughts of pride, outbursts against authority;

I said before, and still say it before I come, as being present for the second time, though I am still away from you, to those who have done wrong before, and to all the others, that if I come again I will not have pity;

Seeing that you are looking for a sign of Christ giving out his word in me; who is not feeble in relation to you, but is strong in you:

Make a test of yourselves, if you are in the faith; make certain of yourselves. Or are you not conscious in yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you, if you are truly Christ's?

Now our prayer to God is that you may do no evil; not in order that it may be put to our credit, but so that you may do what is right, whatever we may seem.

For this cause I am writing these things while I am away, so that there may be need for me, when I am present, to make use of sharp measures, by the authority which the Lord has given me for building up and not for destruction.

Paul, an Apostle (not from men, and not through man, but through Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who made him come back from the dead),

Which is not another sort: only there are some who give you trouble, desiring to make changes in the good news of Christ.

Am I now using arguments to men, or God? or is it my desire to give men pleasure? if I was still pleasing men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

Because I say to you, my brothers, that the good news of which I was the preacher is not man's.

For I did not get it from man, and I was not given teaching in it, but it came to me through revelation of Jesus Christ.

To give the revelation of his Son in me, so that I might give the news of him to the Gentiles; then I did not take the opinion of flesh and blood,

And I went not up to Jerusalem to those who were Apostles before me; but I went away into Arabia, and again I came back to Damascus.

And I went up by revelation; and I put before them the good news which I was preaching among the Gentiles, but privately before those who were of good name, so that the work which I was or had been doing might not be without effect.

But not even Titus who was with me, being a Greek, was made to undergo circumcision:

To whom we gave way not even for an hour; so that the true words of the good news might still be with you.

But from those who seemed to be important (whatever they were has no weight with me: God does not take man's person into account): those who seemed to be important gave nothing new to me;

But when I saw that they were not living uprightly in agreement with the true words of the good news, I said to Cephas before them all, If you, being a Jew, are living like the Gentiles, and not like the Jews, how will you make the Gentiles do the same as the Jews?

We being Jews by birth, and not sinners of the Gentiles,

Being conscious that a man does not get righteousness by the works of the law, but through faith in Jesus Christ, we had faith in Christ Jesus, so that we might get righteousness by faith in Christ, and not by the works of the law: because by the works of the law will no flesh get righteousness.

I do not make the grace of God of no effect: because if righteousness is through the law, then Christ was put to death for nothing.

For all who are of the works of the law are under a curse: because it is said in the Writings, A curse is on everyone who does not keep on doing all the things which are ordered in the book of the law.

And the law is not of faith; but, He who does them will have life by them.

Brothers, as men would say, even a man's agreement, when it has been made certain, may not be put on one side, or have additions made to it.

Now to Abraham were the undertakings given, and to his seed. He says not, And to seeds, as of a great number; but as of one, he says, And to your seed, which is Christ.

Now this I say: The law, which came four hundred and thirty years after, does not put an end to the agreement made before by God, so as to make the undertaking without effect.

Now a go-between is not a go-between of one; but God is one.

And you did not have a poor opinion of me because of the trouble in my flesh, or put shame on it; but you took me to your hearts as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.

Their interest in you is not good; but their desire is that you may be shut out, so that you may go after them.

But it is good to have an interest in a good cause at all times, and not only when I am present with you.

Say, you whose desire it is to be under the law, do you not give ear to the law?

What then do the Writings say? Send away the servant-woman and her son; for the son of the servant-woman will not have a part in the heritage with the son of the free woman.

So, brothers, we are not children of the servant-woman, but of the free woman.

Because in Christ Jesus, having circumcision or not having circumcision are equally of no profit; but only faith working through love.

You were going on well; who was the cause of your not giving ear to what is true?

This ready belief did not come from him who had made you his.

Because you, brothers, were marked out to be free; only do not make use of your free condition to give the flesh its chance, but through love be servants one to another.

But if you are given to fighting with one another, take care that you are not the cause of destruction one to another.

But I say, Go on in the Spirit, and you will not come under the rule of the evil desires of the flesh.

For the flesh has desires against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; because these are opposite the one to the other; so that you may not do the things which you have a mind to do.

But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Let us not be full of self-glory, making one another angry, having envy of one another.

But let every man make test of his work, and then will his cause for glory be in himself only, and not in his neighbour.