(What I am saying I say not with the Lord's authority but as a fool, in this boastful confidence;
To the rest I say, not the Lord, that if any brother has a wife who is an unbeliever, and she consents to live with him, he should not divorce her.
Now concerning the unmarried, I have no command of the Lord, but I give my opinion as one who by the Lord's mercy is trustworthy.
I say this by way of concession, not of command.
I wish you would bear with me in a little foolishness. Do bear with me!
lest if some Macedonians come with me and find that you are not ready, we be humiliated—to say nothing of you—for being so confident.