2 Corinthians 11:13

2 Corinthians 11:13 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.
• New International Version (NIV)For such people are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ.
• English Standard Version (ESV)For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.
• New King James Version (NKJV)For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into apostles of Christ.

Context of 2 Corinthians 11:13

11You must not think that I say this because I do not love you. God himself knows that I love you. 12Yes, I will continue to work among you in the way that I am already doing. I will not take any pay from you. Then there will be no chance for those other teachers to be proud about themselves. They will not be able to say that they work in the same way that we do. Those people are false apostles. They do not work in an honest way. They try to make people think that Christ has sent them as his apostles. 14That should not surprise you! Even Satan can change himself to look like an angel who belongs to the light. 15So do not be surprised when Satan's servants do the same thing. They can also seem to be serving God. They may seem to be doing good things, but really what they do is bad. So God will punish them in the end.

2 Corinthians 11:13 word by word

οἱ γὰρ τοιοῦτοι ψευδαπόστολοι, ἐργάται δόλιοι, μετασχηματιζόμενοι εἰς ἀποστόλους Χριστοῦ·Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Forγάρgar · forG1063
• suchτοιοῦτοςtoioutos · such as thisG5108
• false apostlesψευδαπόστολοςpseudapostolos · false apostleG5570
• deceitfulδόλιοςdolios · deceitfulG1386
• workersἐργάτηςergatēs · workerG2040
• transforming themselvesμετασχηματίζωmetaschēmatizō · to transformG3345
• intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
• the apostlesἀπόστολοςapostolos · apostleG652
• of ChristΧριστόςChristos · ChristG5547

Cross-references for 2 Corinthians 11:13

• 2 Corinthians 11:15So do not be surprised when Satan's servants do the same thing. They can also seem to be serving God. They may seem to be doing good things, but really what they do is bad. So God will punish them in the end.
• 2 Corinthians 2:17Some people even tell God's message because they want to get a lot of money for themselves. But we are not like them. No, God himself has sent us to do this work. And he sees what we are doing. So we are honest and we speak God's message clearly, as Christ's servants should do.
• 2 Corinthians 4:2We refuse to do anything secretly that we might be ashamed of. We do not tell lies. We do not change God's message to deceive people. No. We tell God's true message clearly. God himself sees that we teach people in an honest way. Everyone should understand that we only do what is right.
• Matthew 25:24The servant who had received 1,000 gold coins then came to his master. The servant said, “Master, I know what you are like. You tell people what they should do all the time. You take food from fields where you did not put any seed in the ground. You get fruit from trees that you did not plant.
• Acts 15:1Some men arrived in Antioch from Judea. They began to teach the believers there who were not Jews. They said to them, ‘God cannot save you unless someone circumcises you. This is in the Law that God gave to Moses.’
• Acts 20:30Even men from your own group of believers will teach things that are not true. They want to deceive other believers, so that they leave you and join with them.
• Romans 16:18People who are like that are not servants of our Lord Christ. Instead, they are doing the things which please themselves. They speak words that seem very nice, but they deceive people who easily accept a false message.
• Galatians 1:7But really, there is no other message from God which is good news. Some people are confusing you. They are trying to change the good news about Christ and make it something different.
• Galatians 2:4But some men did want us to obey all the Jewish rules. Those men came secretly among our group. They said that they were believers, but they were not really true believers. They wanted to see how we lived as believers. They wanted to know how Christ Jesus has made us free from the Jewish rules. They wanted to make us slaves to those rules.
• Galatians 4:17Those false teachers try very much to please you. But they do not really want what is good for you. They want to make you turn away from me. Then you will only want to listen to them.
• Galatians 6:12Do not agree with those people who want to make you obey the Jewish rules. They say that you must let someone circumcise you. They want other people to think that they are important. They do not want to receive any trouble from others. They are afraid to teach that Christ's death on the cross is enough to save us.
• Ephesians 4:14So then we will not be like children any more. Our minds will not become confused by strange ideas. We will not change what we believe, from one thing to another. Some people teach things that are not true. They do clever things to deceive people. But we will not agree with their false message.
• Philippians 1:15It is true that some of these Christians are jealous of me. They want to show that they are better than me. That is why they tell people the message about Christ. But other Christians speak about Christ because they want to help me.
• Colossians 2:4I am telling you these things so that false teachers will not deceive you. They may teach ideas that seem good, but do not listen to them.
• 1 Timothy 1:4Tell people not to listen to false stories. They should not always be studying long lists of their families' names from years ago. Those things do not help people. They only cause them to argue. Instead, they need to understand God's purpose for us. To do that, people must trust him.
• 1 Timothy 4:1God's Spirit tells us clearly that, in later times, some people will stop believing the message about Jesus Christ. Instead, they will listen to bad spirits who want people to believe wrong things. They will listen to the message that comes from demons.

Commentaries on 2 Corinthians 11:13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 13For such are false apostles - Persons who pretend to be apostles, but have no mission from Christ. Deceitful workers - They do preach and labor, but they have nothing but their own emolument in view. Transforming themselves - Assuming as far as they possibly can, consistently with their sinister views, the habit, manner, and doctrine of the apostles of Christ.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 13For such are false apostles - They have no claim to the apostolic office. They are deceivers. They pretend to be apostles; but they have no divine commission from the Redeemer. Paul had thus far argued the case without giving them an explicit designation as deceivers. But here he says that people who had conducted thus; who attempted to impose on the people; who had brought another gospel, whatever pretences they might have - and he was not disposed to…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-15Verses 5-15 It is far better to be plain in speech, yet walking openly and consistently with the gospel, than to be admired by thousands, and be lifted up in pride, so as to disgrace the gospel by evil tempers and unholy lives. The apostle would not give room for any to accuse him of worldly designs in preaching the gospel, that others who opposed him at Corinth, might not in this respect gain advantage against him. Hypocrisy may be looked for, especially…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 13-15Paul strongly criticizes the false teachers in Corinth (compare Galatians 1:6–9). Although these teachers wanted to claim their work was like Paul's (2 Corinthians 11:12), they were actually false apostles and deceitful workers (compare Philippians 3:2). Just as Satan transformed himself into an angel of light to deceive Eve (as described in the Jewish apocryphal book The Life of Adam and Eve), his servants also pretend to be servants of righteousness…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1313. For--reason why he is unwilling they should be thought like him [Bengel]. such--they and those like them. false apostles--those "overmuch apostles" (see on 2Co 11:5) are no apostles at all. deceitful workers--pretending to be "workmen" for the Lord, and really seeking their own gain.Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Corinthians 11:13

• Apostles
• Deceit
• Minister, Christian

In the dictionaries

• Christ
• Christ, Messiah
• Abase
• Above
• Corrupt
• Fear
• Jealous
• Peril
• Receive
• Save

Commentaries on 2 Corinthians 11

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings