11 This is so that we won’t be taken advantage of by Satan, because we are well aware of his schemes.
12 When I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, the Lord gave me an opportunity to preach.
13 But I was worried because I couldn’t find my brother Titus there. So I said good-bye to them and went on to Macedonia.
14 But thank God, who is always leading us around through Christ as if we were in a parade. He releases the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere through us.
15 We smell like the aroma of Christ’s offering to God, both to those who are being saved and to those who are on the road to destruction.
16 We smell like a contagious dead person to those who are dying, but we smell like the fountain of life to those who are being saved. Who is qualified for this kind of ministry?
17 We aren’t like so many people who hustle the word of God to make a profit. We are speaking through Christ in the presence of God, as those who are sincere and as those who are sent from God.