2 Corinthians 11:16-33

16 I repeat, let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little. 17 What I am saying with this boastful confidence, I say not as the Lord would but as a fool. 18 Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. 19 For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves! 20 For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face. 21 To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that! But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant? 30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. 31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

Let’s dive right into this with verse 16. These first two verses are critical to understand why Paul is taking this tone, and what his tactic is.

I. Self Exaltation (boasting in ourselves) is foolishness (vv.16–23a)

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2 Corinthians 11:16–17 ESV

Verse 16

“I repeat, let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little.”

Paul is about to do something that he knows is going to sounds foolish. In a moment, he is actually going to go toe to toe with the so called “super apostles,” and boast the way they do. However, it isn’t for the same reason that they do. You see, he hates this kind of boasting—but the Corinthians have been listening to fools, and sometimes, you have to answer a fool to show how empty his words really are.

So Paul is essentially saying in this first verse:

“Alright, if you see me like a fool, then let me speak like a fool for a minute.”

He’s not promoting this kind of boasting, in fact he is actively speaking against it. He’s taking a rhetorical tool and using it to confront from. It is a drastic measure in some sense, but it is also thoughtful and calculated.

Verse 17

“What I am saying with this boastful confidence, I say not as the Lord would but as a fool.”

Paul clarifies: this is not the Lord’s way.

Jesus didn’t come boasting in Himself—He came in humility.

And Paul wants the church to know: “Don’t confuse this next section with how Christ speaks.” We see Christ’s example of perfect humility all throughout scripture, read what it says in Philippians 2:

Philippians 2:5–8 ESV

5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

As I was saying before, Paul has distain for this kind of boasting.

Boasting in oneself—our own strength, gifting, knowledge, platform—is not godly. It’s foolish.

Example?????

But Paul is using this tool, as a leader, to expose their pride and help rescue them from this misguided thinking.

This principle can be found in Proverbs chapter 26:

Proverbs 26:4–5 ESV

4 Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself. 5 Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.

At first glance, these verses seem contradictory. But it is two sides to the same coin, these two verses offer well rounded wisdom.

Verse 4 offers the general wisdom: “Don’t answer a fool according to his folly, or you’ll become like him.” In other words, if you get caught up in the fool’s game—trading insults, engaging on his terms—you may end up acting just as foolish.

But verse 5 offers the exception: “Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.”

That means: sometimes, for the sake of correction—or for the benefit of others—you have to engage. You have to answer in a way that exposes the folly and prevents the fool from thinking he’s right or untouchable.

These verses show that how you answer a fool depends on what’s most loving and effective in the moment.

Sometimes, you stay silent so you don’t become like them.

Other times, you answer in a way that exposes their foolishness so they don’t continue thinking they’re wise.

Example???

That’s exactly what Paul is doing. He’s answering a fool according to his folly—but not because he agrees with it.

He’s answering this way to shake the Corinthians awake.

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2 Corinthians 11:18–20 ESV

18 Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast. 19 For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves! 20 For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face.

Verse 18

“Since many boast according to the flesh, I too will boast.”

Paul’s saying, “Fine. If boasting in the flesh is what everyone’s doing, I’ll show you what that looks like.”

His goal isn’t really to outdo them in credentials, or even to convince them that he is better.

He’s holding up a mirror to show just how foolish and shallow this kind of self-promotion really is.

Think of it like this:

Imagine your child is bragging about how fast they can run, and you respond, “Wow, you must be the fastest human on the planet!” That exaggeration reveals how silly the original boast was. That’s similar to what Paul is doing here.

Paul hasn’t suddenly conceded the point that our boasting should only be in the Lord, he is simply showing them in an extreme way how foolish their thinking has become.

Verse 19

“For you gladly bear with fools, being wise yourselves!”

This is biting sarcasm—and it lands.

Another way to say this would be, “You should have no trouble putting up with a fool like me, since you’re so wise!”

Some of the Corinthians had begun to pride themselves in their spiritual maturity and discernment.

But in reality, they were being deceived by spiritual manipulators.

They were so impressed with these false teachers, and yet they questioned Paul—the one who actually loved them, served them, and preached Christ to them.

Verse 20

“For you bear it if someone makes slaves of you, or devours you, or takes advantage of you, or puts on airs, or strikes you in the face.”

Now Paul names exactly what these false teachers were doing:

“Makes slaves of you” – they used guilt, fear, or control to manipulate the people.

“Devours you” – they drained their resources, their time, their energy.

“Takes advantage of you” – they used their position for personal gain.

“Puts on airs” – they walked around with spiritual arrogance.

“Strikes you in the face” – possibly literal abuse, or more likely, public shaming or harsh rebuke.

And Paul says: !! “You’re letting this happen. You’re still impressed by them.” !!

This is not just a Corinthian problem. This still happens in churches today.

We’re often drawn to leaders who speak boldly, look polished, and carry authority.

But that doesn’t mean they’re Christlike.

Many churches today fall into the same trap:

The teaching is flashy, the production is impressive, but the gospel is missing.

Paul exhortation is still relevant today.

Don’t be deceived by surface-level strength. Look for fruit. Look for humility. Look for the gospel.

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2 Corinthians 11:21–23 ESV

21 To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that! But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. 22 Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.

Verse 21a

“To my shame, I must say, we were too weak for that!”

This verse is the peak of his sarcastic rhetoric.

He says, “Sorry I wasn’t bold enough to enslave and humiliate you. I guess that’s my weakness.”

Of course, he’s not actually ashamed. He’s showing how backwards their thinking has become. How they have bought into lies that are so gripping they would tolerate spiritual abuse.

They’ve confused strength with pride. They’ve mistaken showmanship for God given authority. They’ve missed the heart of Christ.

And Paul is exposing it—all of it.

Verses 21b–23a

“But whatever anyone else dares to boast of—I am speaking as a fool—I also dare to boast of that. Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they offspring of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman…”

Now Paul starts matching their résumé, line for line.

Are they Hebrews? Me too. Israelites? Me too. Abraham’s descendants? Check. Servants of Christ? I’ve gone further.

But then he stops. He says: !! “I am talking like a madman.” !!

He has a point to make in this, but he knows this whole exercise is absurd. He’s trying to completely undo this entire way of thinking.

He’s holding up all this boasting and then saying, “Do you see how crazy this sounds?”

The point Paul is trying to drive home for them is still completely relevant today:

Self Exaltation (boasting in ourselves) is foolishness

The temptation we experience in our flesh is to exalt ourselves, and to attempt to use our own strength to accomplish things in this world.

We love to have a sense of control, and our flesh would have us believe that we should be exalted for the accomplishments in our lives.

We like to think that we might have a thing or two to boast about…

Maybe you’re the top of your industry. Example???

Maybe you’re the leader in a discipleship group, well respected by other members in the church.

Maybe you think you’re pretty wise, and people ought to come to you if they want solid advice.

None of these things are necessarily bad in their own right, but if we begin to take the posture that the false teachers had, exalting ourselves in our words or in our hearts, we have strayed far from the truth of the gospel.

The truth is that we are but vessels for God’s power. Not our own power and accomplishments, but God’s power.

This is what Paul said in chapter 4:

2 Corinthians 4:5–7 ESV

5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

We serve the Almighty God. We have nothing apart from Him.

Listen to the words in Isaiah 40:

Isaiah 40:21–26 ESV

21 Do you not know? Do you not hear? Has it not been told you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? 22 It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers; who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them like a tent to dwell in; 23 who brings princes to nothing, and makes the rulers of the earth as emptiness. 24 Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown, scarcely has their stem taken root in the earth, when he blows on them, and they wither, and the tempest carries them off like stubble. 25 To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. 26 Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might and because he is strong in power, not one is missing.

Paul’s righteous hatred for boasting in our their own “achievements” is well placed!

When you see and behold the beauty of the King you can’t help but recognize your own inability for greatness in comparison.

God is great, and God is to be exalted for His greatness.

When we exalt ourselves, in boasting and pride, we attempt to elevate ourselves above the one true God.

Walking near to the Lord should produce humility, not boasting in personal achievements.

When we recognize God’s goodness and mercy toward us, it transforms the way we perceive our role in God’s story.

We aren’t the hero to be exalted, we are merely the reflection of Jesus’ power and grace.

So now Paul’s going to flip the script.

He’s going continue boasting—but not in victories, in hardship.

Not in credentials, but faithful pursuit and suffering for Christ.

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2 Corinthians 11:23–27 ESV

23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.

Let’s pick it up in the second half of verse 23:

Verse 23b

“…with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death.”

Now Paul starts listing from a very different kind of list. This would not be the kind of list that the world would have respected at the time.

This next portion of text will be critical for understanding the main point he is making in this chapter, and it transitions into chapter 12 which we will cover after Easter.

Verse 24 “Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one.”

That’s 195 lashes. Paul was flogged within an inch of his life—not once, but five separate times.

Verse 25 “Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea…”

There’s no glamour in this list. He’s not bragging about “battle scars” like trophies—he’s telling the truth about what ministry has cost him.

And he’s not finished.

Verse 26 “…on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers…

Verse 27 “…in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure.”

He’s not exaggerating. He’s not being dramatic.

Paul’s life and ministry is marked by suffering and sacrifice for Jesus.

This list is meant to be contrasted with his first list of boasting, when he was ironically boasting in the flesh.

Now he isn’t boasting in the flesh, he is elevating his weakness and suffering.

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2 Corinthians 11:28–29 ESV

28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?

Now look at verse 28:

“And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.”

This is more of a glimpse into Paul’s heart than we often get to see. This could accurately be rendered, “Above” these other things.

In this verse Paul is essentially saying: “You want to know what really weighs on me? It’s not the beatings. It’s the people.”

It’s the church.

His heart is shaped like Jesus’ heart—burdened for the flock, concerned for their faithfulness, grieved over their sin, and filled with passion for their growth.

You can feel his pastoral heart here.

His body was battered, but his soul was most affected by the spiritual state of his people.

This is one of things that made Paul such an incredible leader, his reflection of Christ’s love for the church.

Continuing on:

Verse 29 “Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?”

Paul’s saying: “When someone in the church is weak—I feel it. When someone falls—I burn with holy anger.”

Paul is deeply impacted by the condition of the church.

He feels the pain when a member goes astray.

He feels the weakness other members of the church are experiencing.

And he shares in their persecution.

He takes this threat to the Corinthian church seriously, and is greatly afflicted by the daily anxiety for Christ’s church in Corinth.

Paul rounds off this point in verse 30, and this is will tee us up nicely for chapter 12 once we return to this series after Easter, because Paul will go even deeper into this principle.

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2 Corinthians 11:30 ESV

30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.

Verse 30 “If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.”

This brings us to the primary point of this text:

Our only boast is in a life lived like Christ, boast in weakness

The list of his sufferings and weakness would hardly have been what the Corinthians expected to read. This would not have been particularly impressive in worldly standards.

Paul’s “Boast” is not in his power, but in his weakness. !! Paul’s boast is that his life is like the life of Jesus!

Jesus was a man of sorrows, well acquainted with suffering:

Isaiah 53:3 ESV

3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

We are a people who share in Christ’s suffering, and in our weakness His strength is magnified.

This is Paul writing in Philippians, listen to his description of his pursuit of Christ:

Philippians 3:7–11 ESV

7 But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

Jesus is the greatest treasure we could ever receive. We are not promised prosperity and power in our pursuit of Him, in fact, we should expect to experience persecution and hardship.

When we experience weakness and persecution in our life as Christians it is an oportunity for people see us share in Christ’s life of suffering.

We can display His love for the church as His love is displayed in our weakness, and his power is seen in our dependence on Him.

So often we are attempting to live our life projecting strength, even in areas that we don’t have it.

Our natural inclination is to mask our weakness, so that other can’t see us struggle and fail.

We puff ourselves up or put on a facade, trying to appear strong.

And to who? Our brothers and sister in Christ? Our lost friends and family?

Church - What they need to see is Christ’s power in our weakness. They need to see us share in the suffering of Christ.

Jesus is near to us in our weaknesses.

When we attempt to hide these things we are rejecting God’s power in our life.

We have the freedom to boast in our weaknesses, because this makes the power and grace of Christ known!

This freedom in weakness and insufficiency allows people to see the one who is sufficient.

It allows people to see the one who is strong.

It points people to Jesus.

We only have a few verses left in this chapter, let’s read verse 31:

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2 Corinthians 11:31–33 ESV

31 The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying. 32 At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, 33 but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.

Verse 31 “The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, he who is blessed forever, knows that I am not lying.”

Paul says: “You might think this all sounds crazy. But God knows—I’m telling the truth.”

He’s not exaggerating. He’s not dramatizing.

Paul is honored for the oportunity to serve the King.

Verses 32–33 “At Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to seize me, but I was let down in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his hands.”

And this is how Paul ends the list—not with a moment of glory, but a story of weakness and humility.

He escapes through a window in a basket.

Not exactly the heroic ending you’d expect.

This is because Paul is reflecting Christ’s suffering and greatness, not seeking his own glory.

2 Corinthians 11:30 ESV

30 If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.

Let’s pray

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