Do not avenge yourselves, dear friends, but give place to God’s wrath, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.

For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.”

who risked their own necks for my life. Not only I, but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.

For though you may have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, because I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.

For even though I am absent physically, I am present in spirit. And I have already judged the one who did this, just as though I were present.

“All things are lawful for me” – but not everything is beneficial. “All things are lawful for me” – but I will not be controlled by anything.

For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread,

For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

If you forgive anyone for anything, I also forgive him – for indeed what I have forgiven (if I have forgiven anything) I did so for you in the presence of Christ,

Are they servants of Christ? (I am talking like I am out of my mind!) I am even more so: with much greater labors, with far more imprisonments, with more severe beatings, facing death many times.

I have become a fool. You yourselves forced me to do it, for I should have been commended by you. For I lack nothing in comparison to those “super-apostles,” even though I am nothing.

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.

From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear the marks of Jesus on my body.

I became a servant of the church according to the stewardship from God – given to me for you – in order to complete the word of God,

This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” – and I am the worst of them!

For this I was appointed a preacher and apostle – I am telling the truth; I am not lying – and a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

But now in his own time he has made his message evident through the preaching I was entrusted with according to the command of God our Savior.

The reason I left you in Crete was to set in order the remaining matters and to appoint elders in every town, as I directed you.

So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming high priest, but the one who glorified him was God, who said to him, “You are my Son! Today I have fathered you,”

For we know the one who said, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”