Who is weak, and I do not feel [his] weakness? Who is made to sin, and I am not on fire [with sorrow and concern]?

If I have to take credit to myself, I will do so in the things in which I am feeble.

In the city of Damascus, the governor of the people under king Aretas, laid watch in the city of the Damascenes, and would have caught me,

I have to boast. There is nothing to be gained by it, but I will go on to visions and revelations given me by the Lord.

I have known a man in Christ, fourteen years ago -- whether in the body I have not known, whether out of the body I have not known, God hath known -- such an one being caught away unto the third heaven;

and I have known such a man -- whether in the body, whether out of the body, I have not known, God hath known, --

On account of such a one I will have glory: for myself I will take no glory, but only in my feeble body.

(If I did care to boast of other things, I would be no 'fool,' for I would have a true tale to tell; however, I abstain from that ??I want no one to take me for more than he can see in me or make out from me.)

My wealth of visions might have puffed me up, so I was given a thorn in the flesh, an angel of Satan to rack me and keep me from being puffed up;

As for this, three times have I besought the Lord to rid me of him;

but he told me, "It is enough for you to have my grace: it is in weakness that [my] power is fully felt." So I am proud to boast of all my weakness, and thus to have the power of Christ resting on my life.

Therefore have I delectation in infirmities, in rebukes, in need, in persecutions, in anguish, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then am I strong.

I am become a fool in glorying; ye have compelled me: for I ought to have been commended of you: for in nothing am I behind the very chiefest apostles, though I be nothing.

Indeed, the signs of an apostle have been done among you with all patient endurance, both signs and wonders and deeds of power.

For in what is it that ye have been inferior to the other assemblies, unless that I myself have not been in laziness a charge upon you? Forgive me this injury.

Now I'm ready to visit you for a third time, and I will not bother you for help. I do not want your things, but rather you yourselves. Children should not have to support their parents, but parents their children.

And as for me, most gladly will I spend all I have and be utterly spent for your salvation.

But let [it] be. I have not been a burden to you, but [because I] was crafty, I took you by cunning.

Did I take advantage of you by any one of them whom I have sent unto you?

I begged Titus, and sent the brother with him: did Titus at all make gain of you? have we not walked in the same spirit? have we not in the same steps?

Ye have long been supposing that we excuse ourselves to you: we speak before God in Christ; and all things, beloved, for your building up.

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;

And lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and that I shall bewail many which have sinned already, and have not repented of the uncleanness and fornication and lasciviousness which they have committed.

I told you before, and foretell you, as if I were present, the second time; and being absent now I write to them which heretofore have sinned, and to all other, that, if I come again, I will not spare:

That will prove to you that I am indeed a spokesman of Christ. It is no weak Christ you have to do with, but a Christ of power.

But it is my hope that you will have no doubt that we are truly Christ's.

But I pray to God that you may do nothing wrong. Not so that we [and our teaching] may appear to be approved, but that you may continue doing what is right, even though we [by comparison] may seem to have failed.

For we have no power against the truth, but only for the furtherance of the truth;

For this reason I am writing these things while absent from you, so that when I come, I will not need to deal severely [with you], in my use of the authority which the Lord has given me [to be used] for building you up and not for tearing you down.

Now brothers, goodbye; mend your ways, listen to what I have told you, live in harmony, keep the peace; then the God of love and peace will be with you.

May you have unearned favor and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ,

whom be glory for ever and ever. amen. I wonder you have so soon deserted unto another gospel,

I wonder that you have so quickly turned away from him that called you in the grace of Christ to another gospel,

But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.

As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

For do I now obey man, or God? or do I seek to please men? For if I yet pleased men, I could not have been a servant of Christ.

For I would have you know, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man.

For ye have heard of my conversation in time past in the Jews' religion, how that beyond measure I persecuted the church of God, and wasted it:

And [you have heard how] I surpassed many of my contemporaries among my countrymen in [my advanced study of the laws of] Judaism, as I was extremely loyal to the traditions of my ancestors.

But only they had heard that he who persecuted us before, now preacheth the faith which he formerly would have destroyed.

I went up according to a revelation and presented to them the gospel I preach among the Gentiles—but privately to those recognized as leaders—so that I might not be running, or have run the race, in vain.

And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:

to whom not even for an hour have we yielded subjection, that the truth of the gospel might abide with you.

but, on the contrary, having seen that I have been entrusted with the good news of the uncircumcision, as Peter with that of the circumcision,

requesting only that we would remember the poor, which same thing I have been diligent in doing.

But when I saw that they were not being straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I told Cephas (Peter) in front of everyone, “If you, being a Jew, live [as you have been living] like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how is it that you are [now virtually] forcing the Gentiles to live like Jews [if they want to eat with you]?”

Although we are Jews by natural birth, and not sinful Gentiles [who do not have a relationship with God],

Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.

Now if in seeking to be justified in Christ we also have been found sinners, then is Christ minister of sin? Far be the thought.

For if the things I have thrown down, these I build again, I constitute myself a transgressor.

For I, through law, have died to law, that I may live to God.

I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I that live, but Christ living in me: and that life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith which is in the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself up for me.

O foolish Galatians, by what strange powers have you been tricked, to whom it was made clear that Jesus Christ was put to death on the cross?

This only I wish to learn of you, Have ye received the Spirit on the principle of works of law, or of the report of faith?

Are ye so unwise, that after ye have begun in the spirit, ye would now end in the flesh?

Have ye suffered so many things in vain? if it be yet in vain.

then understand that the ones {who have faith}, these are sons of Abraham.

And the holy Writings, seeing before the event that God would give the Gentiles righteousness by faith, gave the good news before to Abraham, saying, In you will all the nations have a blessing.

So then, the ones [who have] faith are blessed together with Abraham who believed.

for as many as are of works of law are under a curse, for it hath been written, 'Cursed is every one who is not remaining in all things that have been written in the Book of the Law -- to do them,'

That no one is accepted as upright by God for obeying the Law is evident because the upright will have life because of his faith,

but the law is not on the principle of faith; but, He that shall have done these things shall live by them.

So that on the Gentiles might come the blessing of Abraham in Christ Jesus; in order that we through faith might have the Spirit which God had undertaken to give.

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.

Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

However, the holy Writings have put all things under sin, so that that for which God gave the undertaking, based on faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who have such faith.

So the law has been a servant to take us to Christ, so that we might have righteousness by faith.

For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

All distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and freeman, male and female, have vanished; for in union with Christ Jesus you are all one.

so that He might redeem and liberate those who were under the Law, that we [who believe] might be adopted as sons [as God’s children with all rights as fully grown members of a family].

But once, when you Gentiles had no knowledge of God, you were slaves to gods which have no real being.

But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?

Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. I am afraid for you, lest I have laboured upon you in vain.

I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.

Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all.

and ye have known that through infirmity of the flesh I did proclaim good news to you at the first,

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.

Where is then the blessedness ye spake of? for I bear you record, that, if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own eyes, and have given them to me.

So I have become your enemy in speaking the truth to you?

These people who have been instructing you are devoted to you, but not in a good way. They want you to avoid me so that you will be devoted to 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.

my children, of whom I again travail in birth until Christ shall have been formed in you:

Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law: have ye not heard of the law?

Which things have an allegorical sense; for these are two covenants: one from mount Sinai, gendering to bondage, which is Hagar.

For it is written, "Rejoice, O barren woman, who does not give birth to [children]; burst out and shout, [you] who do not have birth pains, because many [are] the children of the desolate [woman], even more than [those of] the one who has a husband."

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.

It was for this freedom that Christ set us free [completely liberating us]; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery [which you once removed].

Yes, I give witness again to every man who undergoes circumcision, that he will have to keep all the law.

Ye are deprived of all profit from the Christ as separated from him, as many as are justified by law; ye have fallen from grace.

*We* have not, for through the Spirit we wait with longing hope for an acceptance with God which is to come through faith.

I have confidence in you however through the Lord,

I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be.

I wish the people who are upsetting you would go on, and have themselves emasculated!

For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

For the entire Law has been obeyed when you have kept the single precept, which says, "You are to love your fellow man equally with yourself."

This is what I have to say--Let your steps be guided by the Spirit, and then you will never gratify the cravings of your earthly nature.

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.

Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

If we [claim to] live by the [Holy] Spirit, we must also walk by the Spirit [with personal integrity, godly character, and moral courage—our conduct empowered by the Holy Spirit].