The pronoun you in this verse and throughout chapter 11 is plural, referring to the Christian community at Corinth, or to some group within it.
The verb bear with, used twice in this verse, may also be rendered “be patient with,” as in Translator’s New Testament. The same Greek word is translated “endure” in 1 Cor 4.12, and later in this chapter (verse 4) it is rendered “submit.” The idea of being patient or tolerant with someone or something is rendered in some languages as “close your heart for,” “accept,” or “support.”
The pronoun me in Greek may be taken with the verb bear with as in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation, or with the noun foolishness as in New International Version (“put up with a little of my foolishness”; so also New Jerusalem Bible). Probably the pronoun should go with the verb, as it does at the end of the verse, but either way the meaning is essentially the same.
Foolishness: the terms for “fool” and “foolishness” occur more frequently in 2 Corinthians than in any other New Testament book. These terms are derived from the verb meaning “to foam at the mouth,” which was thought to be a sign of an insane person. Here, of course, foolishness is used in a figurative sense of not using one’s good judgment. The word for “foolishness” is repeated in verses 17 and 21. Related terms are found in verses 16 and 19 of this chapter and in 12.6, 11.
The verb in the second sentence of this verse is taken as a command by Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation, but it is also possible to understand the verb as a statement of fact, as in New International Version and Translator’s New Testament for example, since the verb form may be either imperative (command) or indicative (statement). The first two Greek words in this second sentence are left untranslated in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation, but they may be understood as expressing emphasis (so Anchor Bible, “Indeed, do put up with me!”) or as expressing a contrast with the first sentence of the verse, as in New International Version (“but you are already doing that”). Either interpretation fits the context, but perhaps the context favors taking 11.1b as a command, as in Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation.
Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellingworth, Paul. A Handbook on Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .