Am I not an apostle? am I not free? have I not seen Jesus Christ our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?
Am I not an apostle? am I not free? So Delta G f g. But 'Aleph (') A B, Vulgate, read the order, 'Am I not free? am I not an apostle?' He alludes to 1 Corinthians 8:9, "this liberty of yours:" if you claim it, I appeal to yourselves, have not I also it? For, "am I not a apostle." I can claim not only Christian, but also apostolic liberty.
Have I not seen Jesus? - corporeally, not in mere vision: cf. 1 Corinthians 15:8, where he proves the resurrection by actual bodily appearances to Peter, the other apostles, and himself. Compare Acts 9:7; Acts 9:17, the contrast between "the men with him seeing no man," and "Jesus that appeared unto thee in the way" to Damascus. His vision of Christ in the temple (Acts 22:17) was "in a trance." To be a witness of Christ's resurrection was a function of an apostle (Acts 1:22). A B omit 'Christ.'
Ye my work in the Lord - your conversion is His workmanship (Ephesians 2:10) through my instrumentality (1 Corinthians 9:2).