2 Corinthians 11:28

Besides those things that are without, there is that which presseth upon me daily, anxiety for all the churches.

Those things that are without ... The New English Bible (1961) renders this, "These external things just enumerated"; but RSV has "Apart from other things," indicating that even this astounding list is but the tip of the iceberg. Nevertheless, it was not any of those things that happened to Paul, but his deep and faithful concern for his Christian converts that he reserved as the climax of his credentials as a true apostle. The loving concern and care for all the churches God had blessed him to establish; that was the heart of Paul. Everything else was peripheral. One wonders if the Corinthians did not weep when they read this. Could any human being be so unresponsive to pure and holy love as not to be touched by what was written here? The only answer we have is history. The false apostles disappeared, their names unknown, their doctrines not identified, even their number merely a conjecture; but the church of Corinth continued through centuries; and these priceless letters are living treasures nineteen centuries afterward! Oh Lord, blessed be thy holy name!