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¹ Am I not an apostle? Am I not free? Have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? Are you not my work in the LORD?² If I am not an apostle to others—yet doubtless I am to you; for you are the seal of my apostleship in the LORD.

³ My defense to those who examine me in this:⁴ do we not have authority to eat and to drink?⁵ Do we not have authority to lead about a sister—a wife—as also the other apostles, and the brothers of the LORD, and Cephas?⁶ Or do only Barnabas and I have no authority to work?⁷ Who serves as a soldier at his own expense at any time? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who feeds a flock and does not eat of the milk of the flock?⁸ Do I speak these things according to man? Or does the Law not also say these things?⁹ For in the Law of Moses it has been written: "you will not muzzle an ox treading out grain"; does God care for the oxen?¹⁰ Or by all means does He say [it] because of us? Yes, because of us it was written, because in hope ought the plower to plow, and he who is treading [ought] of his hope to partake in hope.¹¹ If we sowed to you the spiritual things—[is it] great if we reap your fleshly things?¹² If others partake of the authority over you—[do] we not more? But we did not use this authority, but we bear all things, that we may give no hindrance to the good news of the Christ.¹³ Have you not known that those working about the things of the temple eat of the temple, and those waiting at the altar are partakers with the altar?¹⁴ So also the LORD directed to those proclaiming the good news to live of the good news.

¹⁵ And I have used none of these things; neither did I write these things that it may be so done in my case, for [it is] good for me rather to die, than that anyone may make my glorying void;¹⁶ for if I may proclaim good news, it is no glorying for me, for necessity is laid on me, and woe is to me if I may not proclaim good news;¹⁷ for if I do this willingly, I have a reward; and if unwillingly—I have been entrusted with a stewardship!¹⁸ What, then, is my reward? That proclaiming good news, without charge I will make the good news of the Christ, not to abuse my authority in the good news;

¹⁹ for being free from all men, I made myself servant to all men, that the more I might gain;²⁰ and to the Jews I became like a Jew, that I might gain Jews; to those under law as under law, that I might gain those under law;²¹ to those without law, as without law—(not being without law to God, but within law to Christ)—that I might gain those without law;²² to the weak I became weak, that I might gain the weak; to all men I have become all things, that by all means I may save some.²³ And I do this because of the good news, that I may become a fellow-partaker of it;

²⁴ have you not known that those running in a race—all indeed run, but one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain;²⁵ and everyone who is striving is temperate in all things; these, indeed, then, that they may receive a corruptible garland, but we an incorruptible;²⁶ I, therefore, thus run, not as uncertainly, thus I fight, as not beating air;²⁷ but I bruise my body, and bring [it] into servitude, lest by any means, having preached to others—I myself may become disapproved.