9Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are you not my work in the Lord? ²If I am not an apostle to others, at least I am to you, because you are the seal^r of my apostleship in the Lord.

³My defense to those who examine me is this: ⁴Don’t we have the right to eat and drink?^s ⁵Don’t we have the right to be accompanied by a believing wife^B like the other apostles,^t the Lord’s brothers, and Cephas?^u ⁶Or do only Barnabas^v and I have no right to refrain from working? ⁷Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?^w Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Or who shepherds a flock and does not drink the milk from the flock?

⁸Am I saying this from a human perspective? Doesn’t the law also say the same thing? ⁹For it is written in the law of Moses, Do not muzzle an ox^x while it treads out grain.^C^y Is God really concerned about oxen? ¹⁰Isn’t he really saying it for our sake? Yes, this is written for our sake,^z because he who plows ought to plow in hope,^aa and he who threshes should thresh in hope of sharing the crop.^ab ¹¹If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it too much if we reap material benefits from you? ¹²If others have this right to receive benefits from you, don’t we even more? Nevertheless, we have not made use of this right; instead, we endure everything^ac so that we will not hinder the gospel of Christ.

¹³Don’t you know that those who perform the temple services eat the food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar^ad share in the offerings of the altar? ¹⁴In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should earn their living by the gospel.^ae

¹⁵For my part I have used none of these rights, nor have I written these things that they may be applied in my case. For it would be better for me to die than for anyone to deprive me of my boast! ¹⁶For if I preach the gospel, I have no reason to boast, because I am compelled to preach^D—and woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! ¹⁷For if I do this willingly, I have a reward, but if unwillingly, I am entrusted^af with a commission. ¹⁸What then is my reward? To preach the gospel and offer it free of charge and not make full use of my rights in the gospel.^ag

Read in Logos

Footnotes

B a sister as a wife
D because necessity is laid upon me

Cross references

r Rv 5:1
s 2Th 3:8–9
t Jd 17
u Jn 1:42
v Ac 4:36
w Lk 3:14
x Lk 13:15
C Dt 25:4
y Dt 25:4
z Rm 4:24
aa Ac 23:6; 1Th 1:3
ab 2Tm 2:6
ac Ac 20:33–35; 2Co 6:3–10; 11:7–12
ad Lv 6:16,26; 7:6,31–32; Nm 5:9–10; 18:8–20,31; Dt 18:1
ae Mt 10:8–10; Lk 10:7
af Lk 16:11
ag 2Co 11:7; 12:13