Was it vacillating of me to want to do that? Do I make my plans like a worldly man, ready to say "Yes" and "No" in the same breath?

and put his seal upon us and given us his Spirit in our hearts, as earnest-money.

For if I hurt your feelings, who is there to cheer me up but the man whose feelings I hurt?

But if anyone has hurt anybody's feelings, it is not so much mine, as yours, or at least those of some of you, not to be too hard upon you all.

When you forgive a man, I forgive him too. For anything I had to forgive has been forgiven on your account, and as in the very presence of Christ,

For I am no peddler of God's message, like most men, but like a man of sincerity, commissioned by God and in his presence, in union with Christ I utter his message.

but "whenever a man turns to the Lord, the veil is removed."

It is with this knowledge of what the fear of the Lord means that I appeal to men. My true character is perfectly plain to God, and I hope to your consciences too.

I am not trying to recommend myself to you again. I am giving you cause to be proud of me, to use in answering men who pride themselves on external advantages and not on sincerity of heart.

All this comes from God, who through Christ has reconciled me to himself, and has commissioned me to proclaim this reconciliation??19 how God through Christ reconciled the world to himself, refusing to count men's offenses against them, and intrusted me with the message of reconciliation.

I have kept nothing back from you, men of Corinth; I have opened my heart to you.

I do not mean this as a reflection upon you, for as I said before, you will always have a place in my heart whether I live or die.

So although I did write to you, it was not on account of the offender, nor of the injured man, but in the sight of God to reveal to you your devotion to me.

I do not mean this as a command. I only want to test the genuineness of your love by the devotion of others.

If a man is willing to give, the value of his gift is in its proportion to what he has, not to what he has not.

I do not mean to be easy upon others and hard upon you,

but to equalize the burden, and in the present situation to have your plenty make up for what they need, so that some day their plenty may make up for what you need, and so things may be made equal??15 as the Scripture says, "The man who got much did not have too much, and the man who got little did not have too little."

I mean to have no one able to find any fault with the way I handle this munificence.

I intend to do what is right not only in the Lord's sight but in the eyes of men.

Remember this: The man who sows sparingly will reap sparingly, and the man who sows generously will reap generously.

Everyone must give what he has made up his mind to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion; God loves a man who is glad to give.

You will grow rich in every way, so that through me you can show perfect liberality that will make men thank God for it.

But let the man who boasts, boast about the Lord.

For it is not the man who approves of himself who is really approved; it is the man of whom the Lord approves.

And when I was with you and wanted money, I did not burden any of you, for when the brothers came from Macedonia they supplied what I needed. So I kept myself, as I shall always do, from being a burden to you in any way.

By the truth of Christ that is in me, this boast of mine shall not be silenced anywhere in Greece.

Such men are sham apostles, dishonest workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ.

For you put up with it if a man makes you his slaves, or lives on you, or takes you in, or puts on airs, or gives you a slap in the face.

I know of a man fourteen years ago??hether in the body or out of it, I do not know, God knows??eing actually caught up to the third heaven.

And I know that this man?? do not know whether it was in the body or out of it, God knows??4 was caught up into Paradise, and heard things that must not be told, which no human being can repeat.

On this man's account I am ready to boast, but about myself I will boast only of my weaknesses.

Here it is the third time that I have been ready to come to see you, and I do not intend to be a burden to you now; for it is not your money but yourselves that I want; for children are not expected to lay up money for their parents, but parents for their children.