II Corinthians 11:25 · Bible study
2 Corinthians 11:25 Commentary: Apostolic Suffering as Credential
Greek · 11 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Exegesis of Paul's catalogue of unrecorded hardships, including 'a night and a day in the deep,' and its meaning for apostolic weakness.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Paul catalogues unrecorded sufferings to show apostolic credentials through weakness and God's sustaining power.
- Key words: τρὶς (three times), ἐρραβδίσθην (beaten with rods), ἐλιθάσθην (stoned), ἐναυάγησα (shipwrecked), νυχθήμερον (24-hour period), βυθός (deep sea).
- Main debate: Whether 'the deep' refers to the open sea or a dungeon; most commentators favor the sea.
- Theological theme: Apostolic authority validated by Christ-like suffering and endurance.
- Best use: Preaching on perseverance, the value of unseen trials, or redefining success in ministry.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I suffered shipwreck. I have been a night and a day in the deep.
KJV King James Version 1769
Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
ASV American Standard Version 1901
Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day have I been in the deep;
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice was I shipwrecked, a night and a day in the deep I have passed;
Darby Darby Bible 1890
Thrice have I been scourged, once I have been stoned, three times I have suffered shipwreck, a night and day I passed in the deep:
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Thrice was I beaten with rods: once I was stoned: thrice I suffered shipwreck: a night and a day I was in the depth of the sea.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Tres veces he sido azotado con varas; una vez apedreado; tres veces he padecido naufragio; una noche y un día he estado en lo profundo de la mar;
Por três vezes já fui espancado com varas, uma vez fui apedrejado, três vezes sofri naufrágios, passei uma noite e um dia à deriva no mar profundo;
trois fois j’ ai été battu de verges, une fois j’ ai été lapidé, trois fois j’ ai fait naufrage, j’ ai passé un jour et une nuit dans l’ abîme.
ich bin dreimal gestäupt, einmal gesteinigt, dreimal Schiffbruch erlitten, Tag und Nacht habe ich zugebracht in der Tiefe des Meers;
Driemaal ben ik met roeden gegeseld geweest, eens ben ik gestenigd, driemaal heb ik schipbreuk geleden, een gansen nacht en dag heb ik in de diepte doorgebracht.
tre volte sono stato battuto con le verghe; una volta sono stato lapidato; tre volte ho fatto naufragio; ho passato un giorno e una notte sull’abisso.
Trzykrociem był bity rózgami; razem był kamionowany; trzykroć się ze mną okręt rozbił, dzień i noc byłem w głębokości morskiej;
три раза меня били палками, однажды камнями побивали, три раза я терпел кораблекрушение, ночь и день пробыл во глубине морской;
被棍打 了三次；被石頭打 了一次；遇著船壞 三次，一晝一夜 在 深海裡。
Three times I was whipped with rods, once I was stoned, three times the ship I was in came to destruction at sea, a night and a day I have been in the water;
Verse in Context
Original Language (Koine Greek)
New Testament · Koine Greek · II Corinthians 11:25
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators across traditions agree that this verse catalogues specific hardships to credential Paul's apostleship through suffering, not human prestige. The Greek verbs underscore this: the aorist passives ἐρραβδίσθην ('I was beaten with rods') and ἐλιθάσθην ('I was stoned') denote discrete events, while the perfect πεποίηκα ('I have passed') for the night and day in the deep suggests an experience whose impact lingers. Barnes, Calvin, and the Cambridge Bible all note that most of these beatings, stonings, and shipwrecks are not recorded in Acts, Paley's observation of a 'near contradiction' that actually confirms truthfulness. The majority view, per Clarke, Gill, and Vincent, takes βυθός as the open sea, not a dungeon. What unites the commentaries is the reading of this list as Paul's ironic boast: he glories in what the world calls weakness, establishing that apostolic authority is validated by Christ-like endurance.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Low
What is clear: Paul endured these specific, life-threatening hardships as part of his apostolic ministry, and they demonstrate his commitment to Christ and the power of God in weakness.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| The 'deep' reference | Refers to a place of extreme danger, likely the open sea. | Some ancient traditions (mentioned by Clarke, Gill) interpret as a dungeon; the majority of commentators favor the sea based on lexical evidence from βυθός. |
| Purpose of the list | To demonstrate Paul's apostolic credentials through suffering. | Whether this is genuine boasting or ironic humility; Paul himself calls it 'foolishness' (v.21), suggesting reluctance. |
| Historical relation to Acts | The book of Acts is selective and does not record all events. | Some argue the absence in Acts raises credibility questions; others, like Paley (cited by Barnes and Calvin), see the near-contradiction as confirming authenticity. |
| Legal context of beatings | Roman beating with rods was typically for non-citizens. | Whether Paul always claimed his citizenship to avoid punishment; at Philippi he did not (Acts 16:37 shows he later invoked it). |
Historical & Cultural Context
Beating with rods (virgae) was a Roman punishment typically reserved for non-citizens. Although Paul was a Roman citizen, he suffered this at Philippi (Acts 16:22, 23) without invoking his rights, an injustice the Cambridge Bible notes by citing Cicero's In Verrem, where the cry 'Civis Romanus sum' could halt such punishment. Stoning, by contrast, was a Jewish penalty for blasphemy, as Paul experienced at Lystra (Acts 14:19). The three shipwrecks preceded the famous one on the way to Rome (Acts 27), showing how much of Paul's travel history remains untold in the biblical narrative.
The word νυχθήμερον ('a night and a day') is a compound occurring only here in the New Testament (Vincent). It designates a full 24-hour period, likely from sunset to the next sunset. The Greek βυθός ('deep') refers to the bottom or depth of the sea (Thayer); most commentators, including Barnes, Gill, and the Cambridge Bible, interpret this as the open ocean, where Paul clung to wreckage or swam. Clarke mentions a minority view that it was a deep dungeon, but this is widely rejected.
This catalogue appears within Paul's 'foolish' boasting (2 Cor 11:21), where he is forced to compare himself to false apostles who vaunt earthly status. By listing sufferings, Paul redefines apostolic honour: true glory is found in Christ's power displayed through human weakness. The list is deliberately incomplete, 'besides those things that are outside' (v.28), to show that his life is a continuous pattern of danger and deliverance.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for this verse. The Greek text is stable across manuscript traditions.
Reception History
Early church writers such as Clement of Rome referenced Paul's multiple imprisonments and stoning (Cambridge Bible). John Chrysostom interpreted the 'deep' as Paul swimming in the sea. During the Reformation, commentators like Calvin and the Geneva Bible saw the list as a model of apostolic endurance. Modern scholars often use this passage to affirm the historical reliability of Acts while acknowledging its selective nature. The verse has been cited in hymns of refuge and sermons on perseverance, though no specific hymn title is universally attached to it.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- Suffering as Credential, Paul lists specific, painful events (beaten, stoned, shipwrecked) to show his apostleship is marked by endurance, not human achievement.
- The Unrecorded Peril, The night and day in the deep highlights that Paul's sufferings exceed what Scripture records, pointing to God's sustaining grace in unseen trials.
- Boasting in Weakness, This list is foolishness to the world but reveals the power of Christ perfected in human frailty (cf. 2 Cor 12:9).
Five-point outline
- The Injustice of Roman Beatings, Paul endures what his citizenship should have prevented.
- The Violence of Jewish Stoning, A rejection all too familiar to prophets.
- The Danger of the Sea, Shipwrecks as a recurring theme in apostolic life.
- The Unrecorded Experience, The night and day in the deep represents every trial known only to God.
- The Shepherd's Heart, The list ends with 'anxiety for all the churches' (v.28), showing that suffering serves love.
Illustration hooks
- A pastor who has faced multiple setbacks, church splits, health crises, and continues faithfully.
- A person who survived a shipwreck or was lost at sea and testifies to God's preservation.
- Someone who has endured repeated injustice yet refuses to use privilege to escape suffering for others.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why does God allow suffering for faithful people?
- How can I find purpose in hardships that no one else knows about?
- What does it look like to 'boast' in weakness today without being fake?
Leading a Discussion
Paul's list of hardships challenges our assumptions about success in ministry. He boasts not in achievements but in what he endured. This passage invites us to see our own struggles through the lens of apostolic weakness and God's power.
Discussion questions
- List the specific sufferings Paul mentions. Which one stands out to you most? Why?
- Why does Paul include events that are not recorded in Acts? What does this tell us about the nature of biblical history?
- How does Paul's catalog of suffering compare to the 'boasting' of the false apostles? What is the difference?
- What does it mean for Paul to 'glory in his infirmities'? How can we apply that to our own lives?
- Share a time when you endured something difficult that no one else knew about. How did God sustain you?
- How does this passage reframe the way we evaluate spiritual leadership?
- What is one area of weakness or hardship you can bring to God this week, trusting His power?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Matthew 21:35 | The farmers took his servants, beat one, killed another, and stoned another. |
| Acts 7:58 | They threw him out of the city and stoned him. The witnesses placed their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. |
| Acts 7:59 | They stoned Stephen as he called out, saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” |
| Acts 14:5 | When some of both the Gentiles and the Jews, with their rulers, made a violent attempt to mistreat and stone them, |
| Acts 14:19 | But some Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there, and having persuaded the multitudes, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. |
| Acts 16:22 | The multitude rose up together against them and the magistrates tore their clothes from them, then commanded them to be beaten with rods. |
| Acts 16:23 | When they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely. |
| Acts 16:33 | He took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes, and was immediately baptized, he and all his household. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
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What the Commentators Say
9 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke notes that Paul's beatings with rods were a Roman punishment, with only the Philippi incident recorded in Acts. He finds the "night and day in the deep" puzzling, suggesting it may refer to an unmentioned shipwreck where Paul clung to a plank at sea, though he dismisses a dungeon theory as unlikely.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes highlights Paley's observation that the stoning at Lystra nearly contradicts Paul's claim of being stoned, yet the accounts consistent truthfulness is shown by how they stop just short of contradiction. He also dismisses fanciful interpretations of "the deep," explaining it likely means Paul clung to wreckage at sea for a day and night.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
The commentary emphasizes that the Acts of the Apostles records only a fraction of Paul's actual sufferings, noting specific details like three shipwrecks and a terrifying twenty-four-hour ordeal adrift at sea. The original Greek uses a single word for "a night and a day," indicating a full day immersed in the ocean, possibly suggesting divine deliverance from drowning.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note highlights the sheer physical cost of Paul’s apostolic calling: three beatings, a stoning, three shipwrecks, and a full day and night adrift. The list is stark and factual, driving home that Paul’s authority rested not on words alone but on divinely sustained endurance through real, public suffering.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill identifies "the deep" here as the sea, not a well or prison. He argues that the apostle spent a full day and night in the water after a shipwreck, swimming or clinging to wreckage. The Greek word for "a night and a day" means one complete natural day, combining night and day into a single period.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB points out that Acts records only one of Paul’s beatings and one shipwreck, but Paul himself mentions three shipwrecks and other unlisted hardships. This shows the Acts narrative does not tell the full story of Paul’s suffering and missionary work. Paul likely endured these dangers during voyages from Tarsus.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Matthew Henry emphasizes that Paul catalogs his sufferings not out of pride but to honor God, who enabled him to endure so much for Christ. Paul's point in listing hardships rather than privileges was to show how he far surpassed the false apostles who tried to undermine his authority.
Vincent's Word Studies Evangelical 1887
Vincent observes that Paul’s three shipwrecks are unrecorded in Acts, and the later Malta shipwreck is not one of them. The Greek term for “a night and a day” appears only here in the New Testament, as does the word for “the deep.” No biblical record exists of this particular event.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley notes that Paul's three shipwrecks occurred before his journey to Rome, not during it. He interprets the phrase "in the deep" to mean Paul survived by floating on pieces of the broken vessel.