2 Corinthians 11

If you were a Christian minister, how would you go about convincing the people in your congregation that you really loved them?

This was the problem Paul faced as he wrote this epistle. If he reminded the people of the work he did among them, they would only reply, “Paul is bragging!” If he said nothing about his ministry at Corinth, the Judaizers would say, “See, we told you Paul didn’t accomplish anything!”

So what did Paul do? He was led by the Spirit of God to use a beautiful image—a comparison—that was certain to reach the hearts of the believers at Corinth. He compared himself to a “spiritual father” caring for his family. He had used this image before to remind the Corinthians that, as a “father” he had begotten them through the gospel, and that he could discipline them if he felt it was necessary (1 Cor. 4:14–21). They were his beloved spiritual children, and he wanted the very best for them.

Paul gave them three evidences of his fatherly love for them.

True love is never envious, but it has a right to be jealous over those who are loved. A husband is jealous over his wife and rightfully resents and resists any rivalry that threatens their love for each other. A true patriot has every right to be jealous over his freedom and will fight to protect it. Likewise, a father (or a mother) is jealous over his or her children and seeks to protect them from anything that will harm them.

The picture here is that of a loving father who has a daughter engaged to be married. He feels it is his privilege and duty to keep her pure, so that he can present her to her husband with joy and not with sorrow. Paul saw the local church as a bride, engaged to be married to Jesus Christ (see Eph. 5:22ff.; Rom. 7:4). That marriage will not take place until Jesus Christ has come for His bride (Rev. 19:1–9). Meanwhile, the church—and this means individual Christians—must keep herself pure as she prepares to meet her Beloved.

The peril, then, is that of unfaithfulness to her fiancé. The engaged woman owes her love and allegiance to but one—her betrothed. If she shares herself with any other man, she is guilty of unfaithfulness. The word translated “simplicity” in 2 Corinthians 11: means “sincerity, singleness of devotion.” A divided heart leads to a defiled life and a destroyed relationship.

The image of love and marriage, and the need for faithfulness, is often used in the Bible. The prophet Jeremiah saw the people of Judah losing their love for God, and he warned them: “Thus saith the Lord; ‘I remember thee, the kindness of thy youth, the love of thine espousals’” (Jer. 2:2). The nation of Judah had lost its “honeymoon love” and was guilty of worshipping idols. Jesus used the same image when He warned the church at Ephesus: “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love” (Rev. 2:4).

The person behind the peril was Satan, pictured here as the serpent. The reference is to Genesis 3. It is worth noting that Paul had a great deal to say about our adversary, the devil, when he wrote this letter to the Corinthians. He warned that Satan has several devices for attacking believers. He can burden the consciences of believers who have sinned (2 Cor. 2:10–11), blind the minds of unbelievers (2 Cor. 4:4) or beguile the minds of believers (2 Cor. 11:3), and even buffet the bodies of God’s ministers (2 Cor. 12:7).

The focus here is on the mind, for Satan is a liar and tries to get us to listen to his lies, ponder them, and then believe them. This is what he did with Eve. First, he questioned God’s word (“Yea, hath God said?”), then he denied God’s word (“Ye shall not surely die”), and then he substituted his own lie (“Ye shall be as gods”) (see Gen. 3:1, 4–5).

Satan, of course, is crafty. He knows that believers will not immediately accept a lie, so the enemy has to “bait the hook” and make it easy for us to accept what he has to offer. Basically, Satan is an imitator: he copies what God does and then tries to convince us that his offer is better than God’s. How does he do this? By using counterfeit ministers who pretend to serve God, but who are really the servants of Satan.

Satan has a counterfeit gospel (Gal. 1:6–12) that involves a different savior and a different spirit. Unfortunately, the Corinthians had “welcomed” this “new gospel,” which was a mixture of law and grace and not a true gospel at all. There is only one gospel and, therefore, there can be only one Savior (1 Cor. 15:1ff.). When you trust the Savior, you receive the Holy Spirit of God within, and there is only one Holy Spirit.

The preachers of this false gospel (and they are with us yet today) are described in 2 Corinthians 11:13–15. They claimed to have divine authority as God’s servants, but their authority was bogus. They claimed that the true servants of God were all impostors; in Paul’s day, they said this about him. They even claimed to be “super-apostles,” on a much higher level than Paul. With their clever oratory, they mesmerized the ignorant believers, while at the same time they pointed out that Paul was not a very gifted speaker (2 Cor. 11:6; 10:10). How tragic it is when unstable believers are swayed by the “fair speech” of Satan’s ministers, instead of standing firm on the basic truths of the gospel taught to them by faithful pastors and teachers.

“They are not ‘super-apostles’ at all!” warned Paul. “They are pseudo apostles—false apostles! Their motive is not to glorify God, but to get personal gain by capturing converts. Their methods are deceitful” (2 Cor. 2:17; 4:2). The basic idea here is that of using bait to catch fish. They offer church members a Christian life that is “superior” to that described in the New Testament, a life that is an unbiblical mixture of law and grace.

Instead of being empowered by the Spirit, these ministers are energized by Satan. Three times, Paul used the word transform in referring to their work (see 2 Cor. 11:13–15). This Greek word simply means “to disguise, to masquerade.” There is a change on the outside, but there is no change on the inside. Satan’s workers, like Satan himself, never appear in their true character; they always wear a disguise and hide behind a mask.

As I was writing this book, several of Satan’s “masquerading ministers” appeared at my front door. One of them, an attractive young lady, tried to tell me she was working for world peace; but when I confronted her, she admitted that she belonged to a cult. Two welldressed young men introduced themselves with, “We are here representing Jesus Christ!” I quickly informed them that I knew what group they represented, and I closed the door. I did not even say goodbye. If you think I was unkind, read 2 John 5—11—and obey it.

Paul proved his love for the church by protecting it from the attacks of false teachers; and yet the members of the church “fell for” the Judaizers and let them come in. The Corinthians had “left their first love” and were no longer giving single-hearted devotion to Jesus Christ. It was not only that they had turned against Paul, but they had turned away from Christ; and that was far more serious.

A loving parent provides for the needs of the family, and Paul sacrificed that he might minister to the church at Corinth. While Paul was there, he labored with his own hands as a tentmaker (Acts 18:1–3) and even received gifts from other churches so that he might evangelize Corinth. In other words, it had cost the Corinthians nothing to benefit from the apostolic ministry of this great man of God.

Did the Corinthians appreciate the sacrifices that Paul made for them? No, most of them did not. In fact, the Judaizers even used Paul’s financial policy as “proof” that he was not a true apostle. After all, if he were a true apostle, he would accept financial support.

Paul had already explained his policy in a previous letter (1 Cor. 9). He had pointed out that he was a true apostle because he had seen the risen Christ and had been commissioned by Him. Paul had the right to ask for financial support, just as God’s faithful servants do today; but he had deliberately given up that right so that nobody could accuse him of using the gospel simply as a means of making money. He gave up his “financial rights” for the gospel’s sake and for the sake of lost sinners who might stumble over anything that gave the impression of being “religious business.”

On the other hand, it was the Judaizers who were guilty of “peddling the gospel” for personal profit. Paul had preached the gospel to them freely (2 Cor. 11:7, literally “without charge, for nothing”), but the false teachers were preaching a false gospel—and robbing the church (2 Cor. 11:20). Paul used a bit of irony in 2 Corinthians 11:8: “Yes, I have been a ‘robber.’ I ‘robbed’ other churches so I would not have to ‘rob’ you!” And now the Judaizers were really robbing them.

A loving father does not lay his burdens on his children. Instead, he sacrifices so that the children might have what they need. It is a difficult thing to teach children the difference between “prices” and “values.” Children seem to have no idea what it means for parents to go to work and earn the money that provides what the family needs. When one of my nephews was very young, he heard his parents discussing the purchase of some major appliance, and he could not understand why they did not just go out and buy it. “Why don’t you just write one of those pieces of paper?” he asked, pointing to his father’s checkbook. He did not understand that there has to be money in the bank to back up what you write on those “pieces of paper.”

Paul did not bring up this matter of money in order to boast about himself. Rather, he was using every means possible to silence the boasting of the Judaizers. Paul knew that not a single person could accuse him of covetousness or selfishness (see Acts 20:33–35, Paul’s testimony to the Ephesian church). His hands were clean. He wanted to “cut off’ any opportunity for his enemies to accuse him.

The word chargeable in 2 Corinthians 11: is worth considering in a special way (see also 2 Cor. 12:13–14). In the Greek, it literally means “to grow numb.” The word comes from the image of the electric eel numbing its victim with its shock. A numbed part of the body would be a burden to the victim. Paul had not used any devious tricks to catch the believers by surprise, attack them, or rob them. Both in his preaching of the gospel and his handling of finances, he was open and honest.

In my own travels, I have seen situations in local churches that have broken my heart. I have seen congregations show little or no appreciation to faithful pastors who were laboring sacrificially to see the church grow. Some of these men were underpaid and overworked, yet the churches seemed to have no love for them. However, their successors were treated like kings! Certainly at the judgment seat of Christ, the books will be balanced.

I once heard Dr. W. A. Criswell tell about the faithful missionary couple who returned to the United States on the same ship that brought Teddy Roosevelt home from a safari in Africa. Many reporters and photographers were on the dock, waiting to see Roosevelt and interview him and take pictures; but nobody was on hand to welcome home the veteran missionaries who had spent their lives serving Christ in Africa.

That evening, in their modest hotel room, the couple reviewed their arrival in New York City; and the husband was somewhat bitter.

“It isn’t fair,” he said to his wife. “Mr. Roosevelt comes home from a hunting trip, and the whole country is out to meet him. We get home after years of service, and nobody was there to greet us.”

But his wife had the right answer, “Honey, we aren’t home yet.”

Paul has presented two pieces of evidence to prove his love for the Corinthians: his jealousy over the church—protecting them from “spiritual unfaithfulness,” and his generosity to the church—refusing to accept support from them. He shared a third piece of evidence.

The key to this long section is 2 Corinthians 11:28, which could be paraphrased: “Yes, I have been through many trials, but the greatest trial of all, the heaviest burden of all, is my concern for the churches!” The word translated “care” means “pressure, stress, anxiety.” The other experiences were external (“without”) and occasional, but the burden of the churches was internal and constant.

“We never know the love of our parents for us till we have become parents,” said Henry Ward Beecher, and he was right. When our older son was a tot, he pushed a toy into the electrical outlet and was “zapped” across the room. (We didn’t have the word zap in those days, but that’s still what happened.) One day recently he discovered his own little son playing with the outlet, and father’s explosive response nearly frightened the child out of a year’s growth. “Now I know how you and Mom felt when I was a kid,” he told me over the phone. “Being a parent has its fears as well as its joys.”

Before listing the various kinds of trials he had experienced, Paul was careful to explain why he was “boasting” in this way. Paul never had any problem boasting about Christ and telling of His sufferings, but he was always hesitant to speak of his own painful experiences as a servant of God. Paul and John the Baptist would have agreed: “He [Christ] must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). “But he that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord” (2 Cor. 10:17).

It was the immature and unspiritual attitude of the Corinthians that forced Paul to write about himself and “glory” (boast) in these experiences. He had begun this section (2 Cor. 11:1) by apologizing for his boasting, and he repeated this sentiment in 2 Corinthians 11:16. In 2 Corinthians 11:17, Paul was not denying the inspiration of his words; rather, he was admitting that, by boasting, he was being very unlike the Lord (see 2 Cor. 10:1). However, he had to do it to prove his love for the Corinthians and protect them from those who would lead them astray.

To begin with, the false teachers were not ashamed to boast, and the Corinthians were not afraid to accept their boasting. “Since boasting is the ‘in thing’ in your fellowship,” Paul seemed to be saying, “then I will boast.” Paul may have had the principle of Proverbs 26: in mind: “Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.”

Furthermore, Paul was boasting so that he might help the church, while the false teachers boasted so that they might “help themselves” to what they could get out of the church. Paul’s motive was pure; theirs was selfish. Second Corinthians 11: lists the various ways the Judaizers had taken advantage of the church: They taught a doctrine of legalism

Bondage: that was contrary to the gospel of grace. They “ate up” all they could get in

Devour: the church; they took advantage of their privilege of receiving financial support. “Take you in,” fool you. The

Take of you: image is that of a bird caught in a snare or a fish caught on a hook. “They baited you and caught you!” They exalted themselves, not the

Exalt: Lord Jesus Christ; they loved to be honored and treated as great leaders. This probably refers to verbal

Smite you: attacks rather than physical violence; the Judaizers did not hesitate to “slap them in the face” and embarrass them in public.

Paul ended this exposure of the unspiritual attitudes and actions of the Judaizers by bringing in some more “inspired irony”: “To my shame I admit that we were too weak for that!” (2 Cor. 11: niv). The Corinthians thought that Paul’s meekness was weakness, when it was really strength. And they thought that the Judaizers’ arrogance was power. How ignorant the saints can sometimes be.

When it came to their Jewish heritage, the false teachers were equal to Paul; but when it came to ministry for Christ, it was Paul who was the “super-apostle” and not the Judaizers. Consider what Paul endured for the cause of Christ and the care of the churches.

Sufferings for Christ (vv. 23–25a). Had Paul not been an apostle, he would not have experienced these trials. He received “stripes above measure” from both the Gentiles and from the Jews. Three times the Gentiles beat him with rods, and five times he was given thirty-nine lashes by the Jews. Only one beating is recorded in the book of Acts (16:22), as well as the one stoning (Acts 14:19).

Paul knew from the outset of his ministry that he would suffer for Jesus’ sake (Acts 9:15–16), and God reaffirmed this to him as his ministry continued (Acts 20:23). He who caused others to suffer for their faith, himself had to suffer for his faith.

Natural hardships (vv. 25b–33). Almost any traveler in that day could have experienced some of these hardships; yet we cannot help but believe that they were caused by the enemy in an attempt to hinder the work of the Lord. Acts 27 records one of the three shipwrecks; we know nothing about the other two. We wonder how many of his precious personal possessions Paul lost in this way.

Because he was constantly on the move, Paul was exposed to the perils of travel. The Judaizers visited the safe places; Paul journeyed to the difficult places. But Paul was no ordinary traveler: he was a marked man. He had enemies among both the Jews and the Gentiles, and some would like to have killed him.

Second Corinthians 11: describes the personal consequences of all this difficult travel. In my own limited itinerant ministry, I have had the convenience of automobiles and planes, and yet I must confess that travel wears me out. How much more difficult it was for Paul! No wonder he was filled with weariness and pain. He often had to go without food, drink, and sleep; and sometimes he lacked sufficient clothing to keep himself warm.

While any other traveler could have suffered these things, Paul endured them because of his love for Christ and the church. His greatest burden was not around him, but within him: the care of all the churches. Why did he care so much? Because he identified with the believers (2 Cor. 11:29). Whatever happened to “his children” touched his own heart, and he could not abandon them.

Paul climaxed this narration of his sufferings by telling of his humiliating experience at Damascus, when he—the great apostle—was smuggled out of the city in a basket let over the wall (2 Cor. 11:32–33)! Would any of the Judaizers ever tell a story like that? Of course not! Even when Paul did narrate his sufferings, he was careful that Christ was glorified, and not Paul.

We cannot read these verses without admiring the courage and devotion of the apostle Paul. Each trial left its mark on his life, and yet he kept moving on, serving the Lord. “But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself” (Acts 20:24).

Paul certainly proved his love for the church.

Now the church had to prove its love for Paul.

May we never take for granted the sacrifices that others have made so that we might enjoy the blessings of the gospel today.