But I am afraid that just as the serpent deceived Eve by his treachery, your minds may be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.

Or did I commit a sin by humbling myself so that you could be exalted, because I proclaimed the gospel of God to you free of charge?

I robbed other churches by receiving support from them so that I could serve you!

And what I am doing I will continue to do, so that I may eliminate any opportunity for those who want a chance to be regarded as our equals in the things they boast about.

I say again, let no one think that I am a fool. But if you do, then at least accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little.

(To my disgrace I must say that we were too weak for that!) But whatever anyone else dares to boast about (I am speaking foolishly), I also dare to boast about the same thing.

If I must boast, I will boast about the things that show my weakness.

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.

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.

I asked the Lord three times about this, that it would depart from me.

But he said to me, "My grace is enough for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." So then, I will boast most gladly about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may reside in me.

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

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

Have you been thinking all this time that we have been defending ourselves to you? We are speaking in Christ before God, and everything we do, dear friends, is to build you up.

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,

since you are demanding proof that Christ is speaking through me. He is not weak toward you but is powerful among you.

Put yourselves to the test to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize regarding yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you -- unless, indeed, you fail the test!

And I hope that you will realize that we have not failed the test!

Now we pray to God that you may not do anything wrong, not so that we may appear to have passed the test, but so that you may do what is right even if we may appear to have failed the test.

For we rejoice whenever we are weak, but you are strong. And we pray for this: that you may become fully qualified.

Because of this I am writing these things while absent, so that when I arrive I may not have to deal harshly with you by using my authority -- the Lord gave it to me for building up, not for tearing down!

I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are following a different gospel --

not that there really is another gospel, but there are some who are disturbing you and wanting to distort the gospel of Christ.

Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin.

to reveal his Son in me so that I could preach him among the Gentiles, I did not go to ask advice from any human being,

I assure you that, before God, I am not lying about what I am writing to you!

But I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ.

I went there because of a revelation and presented to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did so only in a private meeting with the influential people, to make sure that I was not running -- or had not run -- in vain.

Now this matter arose because of the false brothers with false pretenses who slipped in unnoticed to spy on our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, to make us slaves.

But we did not surrender to them even for a moment, in order that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.

On the contrary, when they saw that I was entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised just as Peter was to the circumcised

and when James, Cephas, and John, who had a reputation as pillars, recognized the grace that had been given to me, they gave to Barnabas and me the right hand of fellowship, agreeing that we would go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.

They requested only that we remember the poor, the very thing I also was eager to do.

And the rest of the Jews also joined with him in this hypocrisy, so that even Barnabas was led astray with them by their hypocrisy.

But when I saw that they were not behaving consistently with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, "If you, although you are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you try to force the Gentiles to live like Jews?"

yet we know that no one is justified by the works of the law but by the faithfulness of Jesus Christ. And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by the faithfulness of Christ and not by the works of the law, because by the works of the law no one will be justified.

But if I build up again those things I once destroyed, I demonstrate that I am one who breaks God's law.

For through the law I died to the law so that I may live to God.

so then, understand that those who believe are the sons of Abraham.

And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, proclaimed the gospel to Abraham ahead of time, saying, "All the nations will be blessed in you."

in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles, so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith.

What I am saying is this: The law that came four hundred thirty years later does not cancel a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to invalidate the promise.

Is the law therefore opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that was able to give life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law.

But the scripture imprisoned everything and everyone under sin so that the promise could be given -- because of the faithfulness of Jesus Christ -- to those who believe.

Thus the law had become our guardian until Christ, so that we could be declared righteous by faith.

But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.

Now I mean that the heir, as long as he is a minor, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything.

to redeem those who were under the law, so that we may be adopted as sons with full rights.

Formerly when you did not know God, you were enslaved to beings that by nature are not gods at all.

But now that you have come to know God (or rather to be known by God), how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless basic forces? Do you want to be enslaved to them all over again?

I fear for you that my work for you may have been in vain.

But you know it was because of a physical illness that I first proclaimed the gospel to you,

Where then is your sense of happiness now? For I testify about you that if it were possible, you would have pulled out your eyes and given them to me!

They court you eagerly, but for no good purpose; they want to exclude you, so that you would seek them eagerly.

For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman.

But just as at that time the one born by natural descent persecuted the one born according to the Spirit, so it is now.

Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you at all!

And I testify again to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision carries any weight -- the only thing that matters is faith working through love.

I am confident in the Lord that you will accept no other view. But the one who is confusing you will pay the penalty, whoever he may be.

Now, brothers and sisters, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed.

However, if you continually bite and devour one another, beware that you are not consumed by one another.

For the flesh has desires that are opposed to the Spirit, and the Spirit has desires that are opposed to the flesh, for these are in opposition to each other, so that you cannot do what you want.

Brothers and sisters, if a person is discovered in some sin, you who are spiritual restore such a person in a spirit of gentleness. Pay close attention to yourselves, so that you are not tempted too.

For those who are circumcised do not obey the law themselves, but they want you to be circumcised so that they can boast about your flesh.

For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything; the only thing that matters is a new creation!

For he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished in his sight in love.

to the praise of the glory of his grace that he has freely bestowed on us in his dearly loved Son.

that he lavished on us in all wisdom and insight.

He did this when he revealed to us the secret of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ,

so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, would be to the praise of his glory.

I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you spiritual wisdom and revelation in your growing knowledge of him,

-- since the eyes of your heart have been enlightened -- so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints,

far above every rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

in which you formerly lived according to this world's present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience,

it is not from works, so that no one can boast.

For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them.

Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh -- who are called "uncircumcision" by the so-called "circumcision" that is performed on the body by human hands --

that you were at that time without the Messiah, alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

so that through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for you,

that by revelation the divine secret was made known to me, as I wrote before briefly.

namely, that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus.

I became a servant of this gospel according to the gift of God's grace that was given to me by the exercise of his power.

and to enlighten everyone about God's secret plan -- a secret that has been hidden for ages in God who has created all things.

The purpose of this enlightenment is that through the church the multifaceted wisdom of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms.

This was according to the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord,

I pray that according to the wealth of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person,

that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love,

and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.

Now to him who by the power that is working within us is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think,

Now what is the meaning of "he ascended," except that he also descended to the lower regions, namely, the earth?

to equip the saints for the work of ministry, that is, to build up the body of Christ,

So I say this, and insist in the Lord, that you no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.

They are darkened in their understanding, being alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.

and to put on the new man who has been created in God's image -- in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth.