2 Corinthians 10

¹Now by the mildness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you — I, Paul, who [am] humble when face to face with you, but bold when away.

²I beg [you] that when I come I may not need to be as bold as I expect toward [those] who presume that we live according to [the] flesh.

³For though we live in [the] flesh, we do not wage war according to [the] flesh.

⁴The weapons of our warfare [are] not [ the weapons ] of the flesh. Instead, [they have] divine power to demolish strongholds.

⁵We demolish arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

⁶And we will be ready to punish every [act of] disobedience, as soon as your obedience is complete.

⁷You are looking at outward appearances. If anyone is confident that he belongs to Christ, he should remind himself that we [belong to Christ] just as much as he [does].

⁸For even if I boast somewhat excessively about the authority the Lord gave us for building [you] up rather than tearing you down, I will not be ashamed.

⁹I do not want to seem to be [trying] to frighten you by [my] letters.

¹⁰For [some] say, “[His] letters [are] weighty and forceful, but his physical presence [is] unimpressive, and [his] speaking [is] of no account.”

¹¹Such [people] should consider that what we are in [our] letters when absent, [we will be] in our actions when present.

¹²We do not dare to classify or compare ourselves [with] some who commend themselves. [When] they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they show their ignorance.

¹³We, however, will not boast beyond our limits, but only within the field of influence that God has assigned to us — a field that reaches even to you.

¹⁴We are not overstepping our [bounds], as if we had not come to you. Indeed, we were the first to reach you with the gospel of Christ.

¹⁵Neither do we boast beyond our limits in [the] labors of others. But we hope that [as] your faith increases, our area of influence among you will greatly increase [ as well ],

¹⁶so that we can preach the gospel [in the regions] beyond you. [Then] we will not be boasting in the [work] already done in another man’s territory.

¹⁷Rather, “{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.