2 Corinthians 10
10
Tearing Down Strongholds
1Now I, Paul, appeal myself to you by the meekness and gentleness of Messiah—I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold toward you when far away.
2I beg of you that when I am present I won’t need to be bold with the courage I consider showing against some who judge us as walking in the flesh.
3For though we walk in the flesh, we do not wage war according to the flesh.
4For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly but powerful through God for the tearing down of strongholds. We are tearing down false arguments
5and every high-minded thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. We are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Messiah—
6ready to punish all disobedience, whenever your obedience is complete.
7Look at what is before your eyes. If anyone is confident in himself that he belongs to Messiah, let him reconsider that just as he belongs to Messiah, so also do we.
8For even if I boast a little more about our authority—which the Lord gave for building you up and not for tearing you down—I will not be put to shame.
9Not that I would try to terrify you by my letters—
10for they say, “His letters are weighty and strong, but his presence in person is weak and his speech of no account.”
11Let such a person consider this, that what we are in word through letters when we are absent, we also are in action when we are present.
12For we do not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who commend themselves. But when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they have no understanding.
13But we will not boast beyond limits, but within the limits of the area that God has assigned to us—to reach even as far as you.
14We are not extending ourselves too far, as if we did not reach you—for we did come even as far as to you with the Good News of Messiah.
15Neither are we boasting beyond limits based on the labors of others, but we have hope while your faith is growing for our area among you to be greatly enlarged—
16so that we may proclaim the Good News even to regions beyond you, not boasting about what has been accomplished in another’s area.
17But “let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”
18For it Is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.
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Copyright © 2014 - Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society
2 Corinthians 10
10
Paul Speaks Up for His Service to the Church
1Christ is humble and free of pride. Because of this, I make my appeal to you. I, Paul, am the one you call “shy” when I am face to face with you. But when I am away from you, you think I am “bold” toward you. 2I am coming to see you. Please don’t make me be as bold as I expect to be toward some people. They think that I live the way the people of this world live. 3I do live in the world. But I don’t fight my battles the way the people of the world do. 4The weapons I fight with are not the weapons the world uses. In fact, it is just the opposite. My weapons have the power of God to destroy the camps of the enemy. 5I destroy every claim and every reason that keeps people from knowing God. I keep every thought under control in order to make it obey Christ. 6Until you have obeyed completely, I will be ready to punish you every time you don’t obey.
7You are judging only by how things look on the surface. Suppose someone is sure they belong to Christ. Then they should consider again that we belong to Christ just as much as they do. 8Do I brag too much about the authority the Lord gave me? If I do, it’s because I want to build you up, not tear you down. And I’m not ashamed of that kind of bragging. 9Don’t think that I’m trying to scare you with my letters. 10Some say, “His letters sound important. They are powerful. But in person he doesn’t seem like much. And what he says doesn’t amount to anything.” 11People like that have a lot to learn. What I say in my letters when I’m away from you, I will do in my actions when I’m with you.
12I don’t dare to compare myself with those who praise themselves. I’m not that kind of person. They measure themselves by themselves. They compare themselves with themselves. When they do that, they are not wise. 13But I won’t brag more than I should. God himself has given me an opportunity for serving. I will only brag about what I have done with that opportunity. This opportunity for serving also includes you. 14I am not going too far in my bragging. I would be going too far if I hadn’t come to where you live. But I did get there with the good news about Christ. 15And I won’t brag about work done by others. If I did, I would be bragging more than I should. As your faith continues to grow, I hope that my work among you will greatly increase. 16Then I will be able to preach the good news in the areas beyond you. I don’t want to brag about work already done in someone else’s territory. 17But, “The one who brags should brag about what the Lord has done.” (Jeremiah 9:24) 18Those who praise themselves are not accepted. Those the Lord praises are accepted.
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