9Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Haven’t I seen Jesus our Lord? Aren’t you the result of my work for the Lord? ²Even though others may not think of me as an apostle, I am certainly one to you! You are the proof that I am the Lord’s apostle. ³That is what I say to stand up for myself when people judge me.

⁴Don’t we have the right to eat and drink? ⁵Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife with us when we travel? The other apostles do. The Lord’s brothers do. Peter does. ⁶Or are Barnabas and I the only ones who have to work for a living?

⁷Who serves as a soldier but doesn’t get paid? Who plants a vineyard but doesn’t eat any of its grapes? Who takes care of a flock but doesn’t drink any of the milk? ⁸Do I say that from only a human point of view? The Law says the same thing.

⁹Here is what is written in the Law of Moses. “Do not stop an ox from eating while it helps separate the grain from the straw.” Is it oxen that God is concerned about? ¹⁰Doesn’t he say that for us? Yes, it was written for us. When a farmer plows and separates the grain, he does it because he hopes to share in the crop.

¹¹We have planted spiritual seed among you. Is it too much to ask that we receive from you some of the things we need? ¹²Others have the right to receive help from you. Don’t we have even more right to do so?

But we didn’t use that right. No, we have put up with everything. We didn’t want to keep the good news of Christ from spreading.

¹³Don’t you know that those who work in the temple get their food from the temple? Don’t you know that those who serve at the altar eat from what is offered on the altar? ¹⁴In the same way, those who preach the good news should receive their living from their work. That is what the Lord has commanded.

¹⁵But I haven’t used any of those rights. And I’m not writing because I hope you will do things like that for me. I would rather die than have anyone take away my pride in my work. ¹⁶But when I preach the good news, I can’t brag. I have to preach it. How terrible it will be for me if I do not preach the good news!

¹⁷If I preach because I want to, I get a reward. If I preach because I have to, I’m only doing my duty. ¹⁸Then what reward do I get? Here is what it is. I am able to preach the good news free of charge. And I can do it without making use of my rights when I preach it.

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