2 Corinthians 11:28

THE MESSAGE

And that's not the half of it, when you throw in the daily pressures and anxieties of all the churches. When someone gets to the end of his rope, I feel the desperation in my bones. When someone is duped into sin, an angry fire burns in my gut.

Parallel Translations

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.

Legacy Standard Bible
Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.

Simplified Cowboy Version
And of all the problems I have, the main one is how much I care about all the outfits. I worry about these crews of believers every single day.

Bible in Basic English
In addition to all the other things, there is that which comes on me every day, the care of all the churches.

Darby Translation
Besides those things that are without, the crowd [of cares] pressing on me daily, the burden of all the assemblies.

Christian Standard Bible®
Not to mention other things, there is the daily pressure on me: my care for all the churches.

World English Bible
Besides those things that are outside, there is that which presses on me daily, anxiety for all the assemblies.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Beside the things which are from without, that which rusheth upon me daily, the care of all the churches.

Weymouth's New Testament
And besides other things, which I pass over, there is that which presses on me daily--my anxiety for all the Churches.

King James Version (1611)
Besides those things that are without, that which commeth vpon me dayly, the care of all the Churches.

Literal Translation
besides the things outside conspiring against me day by day, the care of all the assemblies.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Besyde those thynges which are outwarde, namely my daylie combraunce, my daylie care for all cogregacions.

Mace New Testament (1729)
besides these troubles from without, that which crouds upon me daily, the care of all the churches.

Amplified Bible
Besides those external things, there is the daily [inescapable] pressure of my concern for all the churches.

American Standard Version
Besides those things that are without, there is that which presseth upon me daily, anxiety for all the churches.

Revised Standard Version
And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure upon me of my anxiety for all the churches.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And besyde the thynges which outwardly happe vnto me I am cobred dayly and do care for all congregacions.

Update Bible Version
Besides those things that are outside, there is that which presses on me daily, anxiety for all the churches.

Webster's Bible Translation
Besides those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.

Young's Literal Translation
apart from the things without -- the crowding upon me that is daily -- the care of all the assemblies.

New Century Version
Besides all this, there is on me every day the load of my concern for all the churches.

New English Translation
Apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxious concern for all the churches.

Berean Standard Bible
Apart from these external trials, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

Contemporary English Version
Besides everything else, each day I am burdened down, worrying about all the churches.

Complete Jewish Bible
And besides these external matters, there is the daily pressure of my anxious concern for all the congregations.

English Standard Version
And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Beside the thinges which are outwarde, I am combred dayly, and haue the care of all the Churches.

George Lamsa Translation
Besides other things, and the many calling on me everyday, I have also the care of all the churches.

Hebrew Names Version
Besides those things that are outside, there is that which presses on me daily, anxiety for all the assemblies.

International Standard Version
Besides everything else, I have a daily burden because of my anxiety about all the churches.Acts 20:18; Romans 1:14;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
besides the aboundings and the gathering which are upon me daily even my care which is for all the churches.

Murdock Translation
besides many other things, and the thronging around me every day, and my anxiety for all the churches.

New King James Version
besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches.

New Living Translation
Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches.

New Life Bible
More than all these things that have happened to my body, the care of all the churches is heavy on me.

English Revised Version
Beside those things that are without, there is that which presseth upon me daily, anxiety for all the churches.

New Revised Standard
And, besides other things, I am under daily pressure because of my anxiety for all the churches.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Apart from the things without, my daily care, - my anxiety for all the assemblies; -

Douay-Rheims Bible
Besides those things which are without: my daily instance, the solicitude for all the churches.

King James Version
Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.

Lexham English Bible
Apart from these external things, there is the pressure on me every day of the anxiety about all the churches.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Besides the thynges which outwardlye come vnto me: my dayly encombraunce [is] the care of all the Churches.

Easy-to-Read Version
And there are many other problems. One of these is the care I have for all the churches. I worry about each group of believers every day.

New American Standard Bible
Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.

Good News Translation
And not to mention other things, every day I am under the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Withouten tho thingis that ben withoutforth, myn ech daies trauelyng is the bisynesse of alle chirchis.

Contextual Overview

²²Pseudo-Servants of God Will you put up with a little foolish aside from me? Please, just for a moment. The thing that has me so upset is that I care about you so much—this is the passion of God burning inside me! I promised your hand in marriage to Christ, presented you as a pure virgin to her husband. And now I'm afraid that exactly as the Snake seduced Eve with his smooth patter, you are being lured away from the simple purity of your love for Christ. It seems that if someone shows up preaching quite another Jesus than we preached—different spirit, different message—you put up with him quite nicely. But if you put up with these big-shot "apostles," why can't you put up with simple me? I'm as good as they are. It's true that I don't have their voice, haven't mastered that smooth eloquence that impresses you so much. But when I do open my mouth, I at least know what I'm talking about. We haven't kept anything back. We let you in on everything. I wonder, did I make a bad mistake in proclaiming God's Message to you without asking for something in return, serving you free of charge so that you wouldn't be inconvenienced by me? It turns out that the other churches paid my way so that you could have a free ride. Not once during the time I lived among you did anyone have to lift a finger to help me out. My needs were always supplied by the believers from Macedonia province. I was careful never to be a burden to you, and I never will be, you can count on it. With Christ as my witness, it's a point of honor with me, and I'm not going to keep it quiet just to protect you from what the neighbors will think. It's not that I don't love you; God knows I do. I'm just trying to keep things open and honest between us. And I'm not changing my position on this. I'd die before taking your money. I'm giving nobody grounds for lumping me in with those money-grubbing "preachers," vaunting themselves as something special. They're a sorry bunch—pseudo-apostles, lying preachers, crooked workers—posing as Christ's agents but sham to the core. And no wonder! Satan does it all the time, dressing up as a beautiful angel of light. So it shouldn't surprise us when his servants masquerade as servants of God. But they're not getting by with anything. They'll pay for it in the end. Let me come back to where I started—and don't hold it against me if I continue to sound a little foolish. Or if you'd rather, just accept that I am a fool and let me rant on a little. I didn't learn this kind of talk from Christ. Oh, no, it's a bad habit I picked up from the three-ring preachers that are so popular these days. Since you sit there in the judgment seat observing all these shenanigans, you can afford to humor an occasional fool who happens along. You have such admirable tolerance for impostors who rob your freedom, rip you off, steal you blind, put you down—even slap your face! I shouldn't admit it to you, but our stomachs aren't strong enough to tolerate that kind of stuff. Since you admire the egomaniacs of the pulpit so much (remember, this is your old friend, the fool, talking), let me try my hand at it. Do they brag of being Hebrews, Israelites, the pure race of Abraham? I'm their match. Are they servants of Christ? I can go them one better. (I can't believe I'm saying these things. It's crazy to talk this way! But I started, and I'm going to finish.) ²³I've worked much harder, been jailed more often, beaten up more times than I can count, and at death's door time after time. I've been flogged five times with the Jews' thirty-nine lashes, beaten by Roman rods three times, pummeled with rocks once. I've been shipwrecked three times, and immersed in the open sea for a night and a day. In hard traveling year in and year out, I've had to ford rivers, fend off robbers, struggle with friends, struggle with foes. I've been at risk in the city, at risk in the country, endangered by desert sun and sea storm, and betrayed by those I thought were my brothers. I've known drudgery and hard labor, many a long and lonely night without sleep, many a missed meal, blasted by the cold, naked to the weather. ²⁸And that's not the half of it, when you throw in the daily pressures and anxieties of all the churches. When someone gets to the end of his rope, I feel the desperation in my bones. When someone is duped into sin, an angry fire burns in my gut. ³⁰If I have to "brag" about myself, I'll brag about the humiliations that make me like Jesus. The eternal and blessed God and Father of our Master Jesus knows I'm not lying. Remember the time I was in Damascus and the governor of King Aretas posted guards at the city gates to arrest me? I crawled through a window in the wall, was let down in a basket, and had to run for my life.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

those: 2 Corinthians 11:23-27

the care: Acts 15:36, Acts 15:40, Acts 15:41, Acts 18:23, Acts 20:2, Acts 20:18-35, Romans 1:14, Romans 11:13, Romans 15:16, Romans 16:4, Colossians 2:1

Reciprocal: Numbers 11:11 - Wherefore hast thou Psalms 51:18 - Do 1 Corinthians 7:17 - so ordain 1 Corinthians 7:34 - careth 1 Corinthians 10:33 - General 1 Corinthians 12:26 - General 2 Corinthians 7:12 - that our

Cross-References

Genesis 11:4
Then they said, "Come, let's build ourselves a city and a tower that reaches Heaven. Let's make ourselves famous so we won't be scattered here and there across the Earth."

Genesis 11:31
Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot (Haran's son), and Sarai his daughter-in-law (his son Abram's wife) and set out with them from Ur of the Chaldees for the land of Canaan. But when they got as far as Haran, they settled down there.

Genesis 15:7
God continued, "I'm the same God who brought you from Ur of the Chaldees and gave you this land to own."

Nehemiah 9:7
You're the one, God , the God who chose Abram And brought him from Ur of the Chaldees and changed his name to Abraham. You found his heart to be steady and true to you and signed a covenant with him, A covenant to give him the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, and the Amorites, The Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites, —to give it to his descendants. And you kept your word because you are righteous.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Besides those things that are without,.... Or are omitted, which he had passed by, and had not mentioned in the account and enumeration of things he had given; for otherwise the things he had taken notice of and instanced in, were things external; but besides them and many other things which would be too tedious to relate,

that which cometh upon me daily, is not to be forgotten; meaning the prodigious deal of business which was every day upon his hands, through the continual coming of brethren to him, either for advice, or comfort, or instruction; and through the multiplicity of letters from divers parts, which he was obliged to give answers to; and the several duties of the day, as prayer, meditation, reading, praising, preaching, c. and to sum up the whole, and which is explanative of the phrase,

the care of all the churches not of ten, or twenty, or some only; but of all of them, he being the apostle of the Gentiles, and was concerned in planting, and raising them, and preaching the Gospel to most of them; and who continually stood in need of his watch and care over them, to provide ministers for some, to prevent schisms and heat divisions in others; to preserve others from errors and heresies, and warn them of the dangers to which they were exposed by false teachers; and to animate, strengthen, and support others under violent persecutions, lest their faith should fail, and they be tempted to desert the Gospel, and drop their profession of religion.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Besides those things that are without - In addition to these external trials, these trials pertaining to the body, I have mental trials and anxieties resulting from the necessary care of all the churches, But on the meaning of these words commentators are not agreed. Rosenmuller supposes that the phrase means “besides those things that come from other sources,” “that I may omit other things.” Beza, Erasmus, Bloomfield, and some others suppose that the passage means those things out of the regular routine of his office. Doddridge, “besides foreign affairs.” Probably the sense is, “Apart from the things beside” (Χωρὶς τῶν παρεκτὸς Chōris tōn parektos); “not to mention other matters; or if other matters should be laid aside, there is this continually rushing anxiety arising from the care of all the churches.” That is, this would be enough in itself. Laying aside all that arises from hunger, thirst, cold, etc., this continual care occupies my mind and weighs upon my heart.

That which cometh upon me daily - There is great force in the original here. The phrase rendered “that which cometh upon me” means properly, “that which rushes upon me.” The word (ἐπισύστασις episustasis) means properly a concourse, a crowd, hence, a tumult; and the idea here is, that these cares rushed upon him, or pressed upon him like a crowd of people or a mob that bore all before it. This is one of Paul’s most energetic expressions, and denotes the incessant anxiety of mind to which he was subject.

The care of all the churches - The care of the numerous churches which he had established, and which needed his constant supervision. They were young; many of them were feeble; many were made up of heterogeneous materials; many composed of Jews and Gentiles mingled together, with conflicting prejudices, habits, preferences; many of them were composed of those who had been gathered from the lowest ranks of life; and questions would be constantly occurring relating to their order and discipline in which Paul would feel a deep interest, and which would naturally be referred to him for decision. Besides this, they had many trials. They were persecuted, and would suffer much. In their sufferings Paul would feel deep sympathy, and would desire, as far as possible, to afford them relief. In addition to the churches which he had planted, he would feel an interest in all others, and doubtless many cases would be refered to him as an eminent apostle for counsel and advice. No wonder that all this came rushing on him like a tumultuous assembly ready to overpower him.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 28. Beside those things that are without — Independently of all these outward things, I have innumerable troubles and mental oppressions.

Which cometh upon me — Ἡ επισυατασις· This continual press of business; this insurrection of cases to be heard, solved, and determined, relative to the doctrine, discipline, state, persecution, and supply of all the Churches.

All his perils were little in comparison of what he felt relative to the peace, government, and establishment of all the Churches among the Gentiles; for as he was the apostle of the Gentiles, the government of all the Churches among these fell in some sort on him, whether they were of his own planting or of the planting of others. See Colossians 2:1. None but a conscientious minister, who has at heart the salvation of souls, can enter into the apostle's feelings in this place.