OET OET-RV OET-LV ULT UST BSB MSB BLB AICNT OEB WEBBE WMBB NET LSV FBV TCNT T4T LEB BBE Moff JPS Wymth ASV DRA YLT Drby RV SLT Wbstr KJB-1769 KJB-1611 Bshps Gnva Cvdl TNT Wycl SR-GNT UHB BrLXX BrTr Related Parallel Simple Interlinear Topics Reference Dictionary Search
InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT ESA WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
2 Cor C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13
2 Cor 11 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28 V29 V30 V31 V32 V33
OET (OET-LV) Or a_sin I_did myself humbling, in_order_that you_all may_be_exalted, because undeservedly the of_ the _god good_message I_good_message_preached to_you_all?
OET (OET-RV) Or did I disobey God when I humbled myself so that all of you might be elevated, because I shared the good message with you all without any personal gain?
In 11:1, Paul prepared his readers for what he would say in 11:7–10 and 11:16. He described the way he would speak as “foolishness.” Paul used the term “foolishness” here in a special way. In this chapter Paul said he was “foolish” because he praised himself for his own good character, attitudes, and actions. He called this praise “foolish” especially because he had just said in 10:17–18 that believers should not praise themselves.
Paul was very concerned for the believers in Corinth, like a father wanting his daughter to be faithful to the man whom she would marry one day (11:2). In the same way he worried that the false teachers might have led the believers away from following Jesus (11:3–4).
Since the false teachers had deceived some of the believers in Corinth, Paul had to defend himself to the believers (11:5–6). The false teachers had praised themselves and some of the believers had believed them, so Paul had to praise himself. He reminded them that he had not allowed them to support him. He wanted them to know that he was serving them because he truly loved them and wanted to help them, unlike the false teachers.
In Greek culture, a teacher expected those whom he taught to support him. It was an honor to support a well-known teacher. But Paul had not let the believers in Corinth support him. Using irony, Paul asked them if they were upset about his not letting them support him (11:7). Using irony again, he told them that churches in other cities had supported him while he lived in Corinth so that he could serve them full time (11:8–9). But the false teachers probably did the culturally expected thing and accepted money from the believers. Paul explained that he loved the believers in Corinth and therefore had not accepted their money (11:10–11). This example of love showed that the false teachers were not equals with Paul as apostles (11:12). He described the false teachers as claiming to be apostles while actually following Satan (11:13–15).
Other examples for this section heading are:
Paul Contrasts Himself With False Apostles (GW)
Paul and His Opponents (NET)
Was it a sin for me to humble myself in order to exalt you, because I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge?: This is a rhetorical question. It emphasizes the fact that it was not a sin for Paul to lower himself in order to elevate the believers. Translate this with that meaning. Some ways to translate it are:
As a rhetorical question. For example:
Could it possibly be a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge?
How can it be a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge?
I did not charge you a thing when I preached the Good News of God to you; I humbled myself in order to make you important. Was that wrong of me? (GNT)
As a statement. For example:
It was certainly not a sin for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge.
As a command. For example:
Do not think that I sinned when I lowered myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God to you free of charge!
Was it a sin for me to humble myself in order to exalt you,
¶ Can it be that I sinned when I humbled myself in order to cause you(plur) to have high status,
¶ Surely I did not sin when I humbled myself so that you might be exalted/honored,
humble myself: This phrase refers to Paul humbling himself. He did not act like a worldly leader and make demands. Instead he served them and supported himself by making tents (Acts 18:1–5). Other ways to translate this phrase are:
lower myself (NIV)
I made myself unimportant (NCV)
I did what lower class people do
Paul may have been also thinking of a common Greek attitude. They believed that a free citizen should not do manual labor (such as making tents), because that made him like a slave or lower class person.
in order to exalt you: This phrase refers to causing someone to have high status. Before Paul came, the people in Corinth lived apart from God. Now the believers had a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. So through Paul’s ministry, the believers in Corinth became of high status in God’s eyes. Other ways to translate this phrase are:
so that you might be raised up (NJB)
in order to make you important (GNT)
in order to give/confer high status to you
because I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge?
which I did by proclaiming the gospel of God without cost to you?
because I did not accept any pay from you while I preached God’s message to you!
the gospel of God: This phrase refers to the good news about Jesus and restoring people’s relationship with God. In some languages a literal translation would wrongly refer to something other than the gospel of Jesus. If that is true in your language, you may want to:
Explain in your translation. For example:
the gospel of God concerning Jesus
Translate literally and explain the meaning in a footnote. An example footnote is:
This refers to the gospel of Jesus.
free of charge: This phrase refers to not taking pay. Paul did not allow the Corinthians to give him money when he preached and taught among them. Other ways to translate this phrase are:
without cost (RSV)
without taking money for my work/ministry
Some Greek wise men (Sophists) said that if someone taught without receiving pay, then their teaching was worth nothing. This may have been part of the accusation of those “super-apostles” against Paul.
Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-logic-contrast
ἢ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἤ ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησα ἐμαυτόν ταπεινῶν ἵνα ὑμεῖς ὑψωθῆτε ὅτι δωρεάν τό τοῦ Θεοῦ εὐαγγέλιον εὐηγγελισάμην ὑμῖν)
The word Or introduces an alternate to what Paul said in the previous verse, where he stated that he has “knowledge” (See: [11:6](../11/06.md)). With Or, then, Paul introduces a question that raises another possible objection to his authority as an apostle: he did not charge them money for teaching them. If it would be helpful in your language, you could express Or with a word that signifies a contrast or gives an alternative. Alternate translation: [But] or [However,]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / rquestion
ἢ ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησα ἐμαυτὸν ταπεινῶν, ἵνα ὑμεῖς ὑψωθῆτε, ὅτι δωρεὰν τὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ εὐαγγέλιον εὐηγγελισάμην ὑμῖν
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἤ ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησα ἐμαυτόν ταπεινῶν ἵνα ὑμεῖς ὑψωθῆτε ὅτι δωρεάν τό τοῦ Θεοῦ εὐαγγέλιον εὐηγγελισάμην ὑμῖν)
Paul is using the question form to show the Corinthians that he did not commit a sin. If you would not use the question form for this purpose in your language, you could translate this as a statement or an exclamation. Alternate translation: [But I certainly did not commit a sin, humbling myself so that you yourselves might be exalted, because I preached the gospel of God to you without payment!]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
ἐμαυτὸν ταπεινῶν
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἤ ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησα ἐμαυτόν ταπεινῶν ἵνα ὑμεῖς ὑψωθῆτε ὅτι δωρεάν τό τοῦ Θεοῦ εὐαγγέλιον εὐηγγελισάμην ὑμῖν)
Here Paul refers to how he worked to make money for himself. In his culture, this was humbling, since good speakers and teachers would not need to do extra work, because they would make enough money from the people they taught. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make this idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [humbling myself by supporting myself]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive
ὑμεῖς ὑψωθῆτε
you_all ˓may_be˒_exalted
If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. If you need to say who does the action, it is clear from the context that it was Paul. Alternate translation: [I might exalt you yourselves]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / rpronouns
ὑμεῖς ὑψωθῆτε
you_all ˓may_be˒_exalted
Here, the word translated as yourselves emphasizes you. Consider using a natural way to emphasize you in your language. Alternate translation: [you indeed might be exalted] or [it was you who might be exalted]
Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / possession
τὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ εὐαγγέλιον
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἤ ἁμαρτίαν ἐποίησα ἐμαυτόν ταπεινῶν ἵνα ὑμεῖς ὑψωθῆτε ὅτι δωρεάν τό τοῦ Θεοῦ εὐαγγέλιον εὐηγγελισάμην ὑμῖν)
Here Paul uses the possessive form to describe a gospel that could: (1) come from God. Alternate translation: [the gospel that came from God]; (2) come from and be about God. Alternate translation: [the gospel from and about God]
OET (OET-LV) Or a_sin I_did myself humbling, in_order_that you_all may_be_exalted, because undeservedly the of_ the _god good_message I_good_message_preached to_you_all?
OET (OET-RV) Or did I disobey God when I humbled myself so that all of you might be elevated, because I shared the good message with you all without any personal gain?
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.
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