2 Corinthians 11:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Even if I am unskilled in speaking, I am not so in knowledge; indeed, in every way we have made this plain to you in all things.

NIV: I may indeed be untrained as a speaker, but I do have knowledge. We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way.

NASB: But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things.

CSB: Even if I am untrained in public speaking, I am certainly not untrained in knowledge. Indeed, we have in every way made that clear to you in everything.

NLT: I may be unskilled as a speaker, but I’m not lacking in knowledge. We have made this clear to you in every possible way.

KJV: But though I be rude in speech, yet not in knowledge; but we have been throughly made manifest among you in all things.

NKJV: Even though I am untrained in speech, yet I am not in knowledge. But we have been thoroughly manifested among you in all things.

Paul's legitimacy as a genuine and effective apostle of Christ has been under attack in Corinth. Those criticisms came from false apostles teaching the Corinthians a false gospel. In doing so, they were presenting a fictional version of Christ and the Holy Spirit. Their goal in tearing Paul down was to increase their own influence and power over the Corinthians.

Scripture has mocked them, in the previous verse, using the sarcastic term "super-apostles." Paul has suggested they may look the part better than he does. These frauds may have been impressive speakers who made bold and convincing presentations. In this verse, Paul seems to agree that he is, in comparison, "unskilled in speaking."

It's not clear if Paul really felt this way, or if he is simply willing to yield on that point. Either way, his purpose is to show how unimportant style is when compared to substance. The Corinthians' Greek culture valued a person's ability to speak well and forcefully, to hold the attention of a crowd, and to string convincing-sounding arguments together. Paul may not have performed as a speaker in the classic and popular style of a showman.

In any case, Paul insists that knowledge—truth—matters far more than presentation. Paul declares that he is not unskilled in knowledge, meaning that what he gave to the Corinthians was the essential truth of who Christ is and how to trust in Him to be made right with God. Instead of focusing on the flourishes of entertaining speakers, Paul asks the Corinthians to value the fact that he made clear to them the truth about Jesus.

Second Corinthians 11:1–15 includes Paul's unmasking of the false apostles in Corinth. They are like the serpent in the garden tempting Eve. Or, they resemble a man trying to seduce a betrothed woman away from her promised husband. They disguise themselves as servants of righteousness as Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Paul is a spiritual father who must protect the Corinthians from deceptions like a false Christ and a false spirit. Paul doubles down on his commitment not to take funds from the Corinthians for his own needs, simply to prove how he is different from the false apostles.

Second Corinthians 11 compares the believers in Corinth to a betrothed bride. It also pictures them as Eve facing temptation from the snake in the garden in Genesis 3. Paul's job as their spiritual father is to protect them from the lies of false apostles. These deceivers disguise themselves as servants of righteousness in the same way that Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Paul is shocked the Corinthians put up with such harsh treatment from these men. He sarcastically pretends to brag about himself as the false teachers do about themselves. Instead, he boasts mostly about the ways he has endured suffering in his service to Christ.

Chapter 11 follows Paul's warning in the previous chapter. There, he vowed to be as bold as needed when he comes to see them in person. He describes himself as a protective spiritual father trying to save the Corinthians from the deceptions of the false apostles to teach a false gospel about a false Jesus. He is shocked the Corinthians put up with their harsh treatment and says he has decided to foolishly boast in order to compete with the false apostles. His boasting about his service to Christ, though, is mostly a long list of all the ways he has suffered for Christ. That theme continues into chapter 12, where Paul explains just how much his suffering has improved his walk with Christ.

Second Corinthians returns to similar themes as those Paul mentioned in his first letter to this church. Paul is glad to hear that the church in Corinth has heeded his advice. At the same time, it is necessary for Paul to counter criticisms about his personality and legitimacy. Most of this text involves that subject. The fifth chapter, in contrast, contains comforting words which Christians have quoted often in times of hardship. Paul also details his expectations that the church in Corinth will make good on their promise to contribute to the needs of suffering believers in Jerusalem.