For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I may win more.

To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak; I have become all things to all men, so that I may by all means save some.

but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.

Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.

For if a woman does not cover her head, let her also have her hair cut off; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her cover her head.

For a man ought not to have his head covered, since he is the image and glory of God; but the woman is the glory of man.

Therefore the woman ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels.

But if one is inclined to be contentious, we have no other practice, nor have the churches of God.

What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you.

And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”

whereas our more presentable members have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked,

so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.

All do not have gifts of healings, do they? All do not speak with tongues, do they? All do not interpret, do they?

If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.

If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.

For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.

After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep;

Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.

If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.

I affirm, brethren, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.

Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.

Just as we have borne the image of the earthy, we will also bear the image of the heavenly.

But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory.

Now I urge you, brethren (you know the household of Stephanas, that they were the first fruits of Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves for ministry to the saints),

I rejoice over the coming of Stephanas and Fortunatus and Achaicus, because they have supplied what was lacking on your part.

For they have refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore acknowledge such men.

who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us,

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.

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.

For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you with many tears; not so that you would be made sorrowful, but that you might know the love which I have especially for you.

But one whom you forgive anything, I forgive also; for indeed what I have forgiven, if I have forgiven anything, I did it for your sakes in the presence of Christ,

Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.

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

but we have renounced the things hidden because of shame, not walking in craftiness or adulterating the word of God, but by the manifestation of truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight 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 we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.

We are not again commending ourselves to you but are giving you an occasion to be proud of us, so that you will have an answer for those who take pride in appearance and not in heart.

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.

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness?

I do not speak to condemn you, for I have said before that you are in our hearts to die together and to live together.

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.

For if in anything I have boasted to him about you, I was not put to shame; but as we spoke all things to you in truth, so also our boasting before Titus proved to be the truth.

I rejoice that in everything I have confidence in you.

For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.

as it is written, “He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little had no lack.”

We have sent along with him the brother whose fame in the things of the gospel has spread through all the churches;

for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

We have sent with them our brother, whom we have often tested and found diligent in many things, but now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you.

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;

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;

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.

To my shame I must say that we have been weak by comparison.But in whatever respect anyone else is bold—I speak in foolishness—I am just as bold myself.

Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep.

I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren;

I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.

If I have to boast, I will boast of what pertains to my weakness.

I have become foolish; you yourselves compelled me. Actually I should have been commended by you, for in no respect was I inferior to the most eminent apostles, even though I am a nobody.

Certainly I have not taken advantage of you through any of those whom I have sent to you, have I?

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.

I am afraid that when I come again my God may humiliate me before you, and I may mourn over many of those who have sinned in the past and not repented of the impurity, immorality and sensuality which they have practiced.

I have previously said when present the second time, and though now absent I say in advance to those who have sinned in the past and to all the rest as well, that if I come again I will not spare anyone,

But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!

As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!

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

For you have heard of my former manner of life in Judaism, how I used to persecute the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it;

But it was because of the false brethren secretly brought in, who had sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage.

nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.

But if, while seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves have also been found sinners, is Christ then a minister of sin? May it never be!

For if I rebuild what I have once destroyed, I prove myself to be a transgressor.

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

Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law.

For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and worthless elemental things, to which you desire to be enslaved all over again?

I fear for you, that perhaps I have labored over you in vain.

I beg of you, brethren, become as I am, for I also have become as you are. You have done me no wrong;

Where then is that sense of blessing you had? For I bear you witness that, if possible, you would have plucked out your eyes and given them to me.

So have I become your enemy by telling you the truth?

You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.

I have confidence in you in the Lord that you will adopt no other view; but the one who is disturbing you will bear his judgment, whoever he is.

envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another.

So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.

For those who are circumcised do not even keep the Law themselves, but they desire to have you circumcised so that they may boast in your flesh.

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace

also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will,

even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.

if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace which was given to me for you;

in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him.

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called,

and they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness.

if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus,

He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need.