7. Who says you are better than others? What do you have that was not given to you? And if it was given to you, why do you brag as if you did not receive it as a gift?
8. You think you already have everything you need. You think you are rich. You think you have become kings without us. I wish you really were kings so we could be kings together with you.
9. But it seems to me that God has put us apostles in last place, like those sentenced to die. We are like a show for the whole world to see—angels and people.
10. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but you are very wise in Christ. We are weak, but you are strong. You receive honor, but we are shamed.
11. Even to this very hour we do not have enough to eat or drink or to wear. We are often beaten, and we have no homes in which to live.
12. We work hard with our own hands for our food. When people curse us, we bless them. When they hurt us, we put up with it.
13. When they tell evil lies about us, we speak nice words about them. Even today, we are treated as though we were the garbage of the world—the filth of the earth.