For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, regarding the affliction that happened to us in the province of Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of living.

Indeed we felt as if the sentence of death had been passed against us, so that we would not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead.

For our reason for confidence is this: the testimony of our conscience, that with pure motives and sincerity which are from God -- not by human wisdom but by the grace of God -- we conducted ourselves in the world, and all the more toward you.

For we do not write you anything other than what you can read and also understand. But I hope that you will understand completely

Therefore when I was planning to do this, I did not do so without thinking about what I was doing, did I? Or do I make my plans according to mere human standards so that I would be saying both "Yes, yes" and "No, no" at the same time?

But as God is faithful, our message to you is not "Yes" and "No."

For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, the one who was proclaimed among you by us -- by me and Silvanus and Timothy -- was not "Yes" and "No," but it has always been "Yes" in him.

Now I appeal to God as my witness, that to spare you I did not come again to Corinth.

I do not mean that we rule over your faith, but we are workers with you for your joy, because by faith you stand firm.

So I made up my own mind not to pay you another painful visit.

And I wrote this very thing to you, so that when I came I would not have sadness from those who ought to make me rejoice, since I am confident in you all that my joy would be yours.

For out of great distress and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears, not to make you sad, but to let you know the love that I have especially for you.

But if anyone has caused sadness, he has not saddened me alone, but to some extent (not to exaggerate) he has saddened all of you as well.

so that we may not be exploited by Satan (for we are not ignorant of his schemes).

I had no relief in my spirit, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said good-bye to them and set out for Macedonia.

For we are not like so many others, hucksters who peddle the word of God for profit, but we are speaking in Christ before God as persons of sincerity, as persons sent from God.

Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? We don't need letters of recommendation to you or from you as some other people do, do we?

revealing that you are a letter of Christ, delivered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets but on tablets of human hearts.

Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as if it were coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God,

who made us adequate to be servants of a new covenant not based on the letter but on the Spirit, for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

But if the ministry that produced death -- carved in letters on stone tablets -- came with glory, so that the Israelites could not keep their eyes fixed on the face of Moses because of the glory of his face (a glory which was made ineffective),

and not like Moses who used to put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from staring at the result of the glory that was made ineffective.

But their minds were closed. For to this very day, the same veil remains when they hear the old covenant read. It has not been removed because only in Christ is it taken away.

Therefore, since we have this ministry, just as God has shown us mercy, we do not become discouraged.

But we have rejected shameful hidden deeds, not behaving with deceptiveness or distorting the word of God, but by open proclamation of the truth we commend ourselves to everyone's conscience before God.

among whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe so they would not see the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God.

For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus' sake.

But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that the extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us.

We are experiencing trouble on every side, but are not crushed; we are perplexed, but not driven to despair;

we are persecuted, but not abandoned; we are knocked down, but not destroyed,

Therefore we do not despair, but even if our physical body is wearing away, our inner person is being renewed day by day.

because we are not looking at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen. For what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.

For we know that if our earthly house, the tent we live in, is dismantled, we have a building from God, a house not built by human hands, that is eternal in the heavens.

if indeed, after we have put on our heavenly house, we will not be found naked.

For we groan while we are in this tent, since we are weighed down, because we do not want to be unclothed, but clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.

for we live by faith, not by sight.

We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again, but are giving you an opportunity to be proud of us, so that you may be able to answer those who take pride in outward appearance and not in what is in the heart.

So then from now on we acknowledge no one from an outward human point of view. Even though we have known Christ from such a human point of view, now we do not know him in that way any longer.

In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people's trespasses against them, and he has given us the message of reconciliation.

God made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we would become the righteousness of God.

Now because we are fellow workers, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain.

We do not give anyone an occasion for taking an offense in anything, so that no fault may be found with our ministry.

as unknown, and yet well-known; as dying and yet -- see! -- we continue to live; as those who are scourged and yet not executed;

Our affection for you is not restricted, but you are restricted in your affections for us.

Do not become partners with those who do not believe, for what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship does light have with darkness?

I do not say this to condemn you, for I told you before that you are in our hearts so that we die together and live together with you.

We were encouraged not only by his arrival, but also by the encouragement you gave him, as he reported to us your longing, your mourning, your deep concern for me, so that I rejoiced more than ever.

For even if I made you sad by my letter, I do not regret having written it (even though I did regret it, for I see that my letter made you sad, though only for a short time).

Now I rejoice, not because you were made sad, but because you were made sad to the point of repentance. For you were made sad as God intended, so that you were not harmed in any way by us.

So then, even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did wrong, or on account of the one who was wronged, but to reveal to you your eagerness on our behalf before God.

For if I have boasted to him about anything concerning you, I have not been embarrassed by you, but just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting to Titus about you has proved true as well.

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

I am not saying this as a command, but I am testing the genuineness of your love by comparison with the eagerness of others.

For if the eagerness is present, the gift itself is acceptable according to whatever one has, not according to what he does not have.

For I do not say this so there would be relief for others and suffering for you, but as a matter of equality.

At the present time, your abundance will meet their need, so that one day their abundance may also meet your need, and thus there may be equality,

as it is written: "The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little."

because he not only accepted our request, but since he was very eager, he is coming to you of his own accord.

For we are concerned about what is right not only before the Lord but also before men.

For it is not necessary for me to write you about this service to the saints,

But I am sending these brothers so that our boasting about you may not be empty in this case, so that you may be ready just as I kept telling them.

For if any of the Macedonians should come with me and find that you are not ready to give, we would be humiliated (not to mention you) by this confidence we had in you.

Therefore I thought it necessary to urge these brothers to go to you in advance and to arrange ahead of time the generous contribution you had promised, so this may be ready as a generous gift and not as something you feel forced to do.

Each one of you should give just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, because God loves a cheerful giver.

because the service of this ministry is not only providing for the needs of the saints but is also overflowing with many thanks to God.

now I ask that when I am present I may not have to be bold with the confidence that (I expect) I will dare to use against some who consider us to be behaving according to human standards.

For though we live as human beings, we do not wage war according to human standards,

for the weapons of our warfare are not human weapons, but are made powerful by God for tearing down strongholds. We tear down arguments

For if I boast somewhat more about our authority that the Lord gave us for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will not be ashamed of doing so.

I do not want to seem as though I am trying to terrify you with my letters,

For we would not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who recommend themselves. But when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding.

But we will not boast beyond certain limits, but will confine our boasting according to the limits of the work to which God has appointed us, that reaches even as far as you.

For we were not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach as far as you, because we were the first to reach as far as you with the gospel about Christ.

so that we may preach the gospel in the regions that lie beyond you, and not boast of work already done in another person's area.

For it is not the person who commends himself who is approved, but the person the Lord commends.

For I consider myself not at all inferior to those "super-apostles."

And even if I am unskilled in speaking, yet I am certainly not so in knowledge. Indeed, we have made this plain to you in everything in every way.

When I was with you and was in need, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia fully supplied my needs. I kept myself from being a burden to you in any way, and will continue to do so.

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

Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do!

Therefore it is not surprising his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will correspond to their actions.

What I am saying with this boastful confidence I do not say the way the Lord would. Instead it is, as it were, foolishness.

Three times I was beaten with a rod. Once I received a stoning. Three times I suffered shipwreck. A night and a day I spent adrift in the open sea.

Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not burn with indignation?

The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is blessed forever, knows I am not lying.

It is necessary to go on boasting. Though it is not profitable, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord.

I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago (whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows) was caught up to the third heaven.

And I know that this man (whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows)

was caught up into paradise and heard things too sacred to be put into words, things that a person is not permitted to speak.

On behalf of such an individual I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except about my weaknesses.

For even if I wish to boast, I will not be a fool, for I would be telling the truth, but I refrain from this so that no one may regard me beyond what he sees in me or what he hears from me,

even because of the extraordinary character of the revelations. Therefore, so that I would not become arrogant, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to trouble me -- so that I would not become arrogant.

For how were you treated worse than the other churches, except that I myself was not a burden to you? Forgive me this injustice!

Look, for the third time I am ready to come to you, and I will not be a burden to you, because I do not want your possessions, but you. For children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children.

But be that as it may, I have not burdened you. Yet because I was a crafty person, I took you in by deceit!

I have not taken advantage of you through anyone I have sent to you, have I?

I urged Titus to visit you and I sent our brother along with him. Titus did not take advantage of you, did he? Did we not conduct ourselves in the same spirit? Did we not behave in the same way?

For I am afraid that somehow when I come I will not find you what I wish, and you will find me not what you wish. I am afraid that somehow there may be quarreling, jealousy, intense anger, selfish ambition, slander, gossip, arrogance, and disorder.

I am afraid that when I come again, my God may humiliate me before you, and I will grieve for many of those who previously sinned and have not repented of the impurity, sexual immorality, and licentiousness that they have practiced.

I said before when I was present the second time and now, though absent, I say again to those who sinned previously and to all the rest, that if I come again, I will not spare anyone,