2 Corinthians 12:11-13

¹¹ I have become a fool in boasting; you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you; for in nothing was I behind the most eminent apostles, though I am nothing. ¹² Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds. ¹³ For what is it in which you were inferior to other churches, except that I myself was not burdensome to you? Forgive me this wrong!

Commentary

Vs.11 "I have become a fool in boasting; you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you; for in nothing was I behind the most eminent apostles, though I am nothing."

In retelling all things the Apostle Paul had by the good hand of the Lord upon him gone through and survived, Paul now feels that his boasting was foolish. But as the Apostle Paul says here, the Corinthians compelled him by their receiving the false apostles own boasting, by which they were trying to undermine the Corinthians confidence in Paul. Therefore the Apostle Paul felt he had no other recourse to prove to them that whatever these most "eminent" apostles were portraying themselves to be, he was more so the reality of all they were claiming to be. Now Paul in saying that he was in no way their inferior, checks himself in this by saying, "though I am nothing." Meaning that all that Paul was, and had accomplished as an Apostle of Christ, should in no way be attributed to himself, but only to the Lord Jesus Christ who both made him, and was sustaining him, as one of His own chosen Apostles. 

Vs. 12 "Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds."

 If all of that the Apostle Paul had retold to them, did not now move the Corinthians to reconsider how they were now wrongly judging Paul. Paul also reminds them that, "Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs and wonders and mighty deeds." For long before the false apostles came on the scene, the Holy Spirit gave mighty evidence to the Lord Jesus Christ's, life, death, and Resurrection power through the Apostle Paul. Thus it wasn't just the mighty endurance the Lord gave Paul, which was giving evidence of his Apostleship as coming from Christ, it was all the signs, wonders, and mighty deeds of an Apostle that were accomplished among the Corinthians, while Paul was going through all these things, that is the undeniable proof of Paul's apostleship as truly coming from Christ. Now the word translated sign here is referring too a supernatural sign/miracle done by Holy Spirit power, often to reveal something, or someone (i.e. John 2:1-11 when the disciples chosen by Christ believed in Him, which could be contrasted with the Jews ongoing unbelief in John 12:35-40, 37 where Jesus rebukes them for it). And so this word in the N.T. is used positively of both the Lord Jesus Christ's signs and miracles; which again authenticated His Person and Ministry as coming from God (Hebrews 2:4); as well in regards to the signs and miracles done by Christ's chosen Apostles, which again authenticated them as coming from Him (see Mark 16:17; Acts 4:29-31; 14:3; 15:12 etc.). Thus these signs give evidence of Divine Authority (HIBD). On the other hand this word in the N.T. is also used; and significantly less; in the negative sense of Satan and his false apostles and prophets doing and showing lying signs in the last days (see Matt 24:3; 2 Thess 2:9; Rev. 13:13-14; 16:14; 19:20 etc.). Therefore in light of this we must be discerning, and not accept every spiritual sign or miracle as coming from God (1 John 4:1-3). Which is a very strong reason why we do not now look for these kinds of things today, because we now walk by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7). And so in the last days when all kinds of lying signs and wonders will be shown by Satan and his own, we will know not to receive, or have anything to do with them (consider Matt. 24:23-26), because the next sign that God will show in those days, will be the sign of the Coming of the Son of Man with great glory and power, and then all the people who did not receive the love of the truth, will mourn when Christ returns for us all who believe in Him (Matthew 24:27-31). Now regarding the Apostle Paul also doing great wonders and mighty deeds, wonders are the those supernatural works done by Holy Spirit power that inspire great awe or even terror (consider Acts 2:43; 15:12; Rom 15:18-19), while mighty deeds are direct demonstrations of Holy Spirit power (sometimes also translated as miracles). And thus that words usage in describing the Apostle Paul's mighty deeds is fairly extensive in the book of Acts (see Acts 14:8-10; 16:16-18; 19:11, 12; 20:6-12; 28:1-10, taken from NKJ reference). 

Vs. 13 "For what is it in which you were inferior to other churches, except that I myself was not burdensome to you? Forgive me this wrong!"

Given all that the Lord did and accomplished through the Apostle Paul, while Paul was amongst them, the Corinthians in no way were inferior to any of the other churches. And so if the false apostles had portrayed the Corinthians as being anything other then equal with all the other churches,(in all things and in everything done by and through the Spirit of God) then they themselves were the ones to be rebuked and rejected, not the Apostle Paul. And so as a kind of pun, the Apostle Paul now says that only in regards to his not being a burden to any of them were they to be distinguished from any other churches where the false apostles had not taken root. For the false apostles were nothing but a burden, financially, and in every other way, wherever they themselves dwelt and were allowed to be established. And so Paul says, "forgive me this wrong!"

Word Studies 

Vs. 12 sign: σημεῖον, Str 4592; GK 4956; TDNT 7.200; TDNTA 1015; LN 33.477 (Matt. 12:38-39; 16:1, 3,4; 24:3, 24, 30; 26:48; Mark 8:11-12; 13:4, 22; 16:17, 20; Luke 2:12, 34; 11:16, 29, 30; 21:7, 11, 25; 23:8; John 2:11, 18, 23; 3:2; 4:48, 54; 6:2, 14, 26, 30; 7:31; 9:16; 10:41; 11:47; 12:18, 37;
20:30; 2:19, 22, 43; 4:16, 22, 30; 5:12; 6:8; 7:36; 8:6, 13; 14:3; 15:12; Rom 4:11; 5:19; 1 Cor 1:22; 14:22; 2 Cor 12:12; 2 Thess 2:9; 3:17; Heb 2:4; Rev. 12:1, 3; 13:13, 14; 15:1; 16:14; 19:20) 77x

wonders: τέρας, Str 5059; GK 5469; TDNT 8.113; TDNTA 170; LN 33.480 (Matt. 24:24; Mark 13:22; Acts 2:19, 22, 43; 4:30; 5:12; 6:8; 7:36; 14:3; 15:12; Rom 15:19; 2 Cor 12:12; 2 Thess. 2:9; Heb. 2:4)16x

mighty deeds: δύναμις, Str 1411; GK 1539; TDNT 2.284; TDNTA 186; LN 76.7 (Matt 7:22; 11:20, 21, 23; 13:54, 58; 14:2; Mark 6:2, 5, 14; 9:39; Luke 1:51; 10:13; 19:37; Acts 2:22; 8:13; 19:11; 1 Cor 12:10, 28, 29; 2 Cor 12:12; Gal. 3:5; Heb 2:4) 23x 

Note: the other forms and usages of this word maybe found in LN 12.43–12.50; LN 33.134; 37.61; 74.1; 76.1. In total there are 120 occurrences of this word in the N.T. way to many to exhaustively list here.

Scripture Quotations

The New King James Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982.

Additional Resources Consulted
McNeal, T. R. “Miracles, Signs, Wonders.” Edited by Chad Brand, Charles Draper, Archie England, Steve Bond, E. Ray Clendenen, and Trent C. Butler. Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003.

Louw, Johannes P., and Eugene Albert Nida. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains. New York: United Bible Societies, 1996.

Strong, James. Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship, 1995.