(1) Assertions (6:3-12)

Paul makes three claims. The first describes what he does not do in the pursuit of his ministry (v.3). The second enumerates the ways in which his ministerial conduct recommends him as a servant of God (vv.4-10). Paul lists ten hardships (vv.4b-5) and eight virtues (vv.6-7a), each introduced with the Greek preposition en (in). Then he lists three twofold circumstances, each introduced with the Greek preposition dia (with/through—vv. 7b-8a). He concludes with a list of seven paradoxes contrasting outward experiences and essential reality, each introduced with the Greek particle hos (as—vv. 8b-10).