For he did not put the world to come, ¹  about which we are speaking, ²  under the control of angels.

And we speak about these things, not with words taught us by human wisdom, but with those taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual things to spiritual people. ¹ 

But in your case, dear friends, even though we speak like this, we are convinced of better things relating to salvation.

I tell you the solemn truth, ¹  we speak about what we know and testify about what we have seen, but ²  you people ³  do not accept our testimony. ⁴ 

Now we do speak wisdom among the mature, ¹  but not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are perishing.

Instead we speak the wisdom of God, hidden in a mystery, that God determined before the ages for our glory.

For we are not like so many others, hucksters who peddle the word of God for profit, ¹  but we are speaking in Christ before ²  God as persons of sincerity, ³  as persons sent from God.

But since we have the same spirit of faith as that shown in ¹  what has been written, “I believed; therefore I spoke,” ²  we also believe, therefore we also speak.

Have you been thinking all this time ¹  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. ² 

but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we declare it, not to please people but God, who examines our hearts.