The Greek verb gymneteuó means to be poorly clothed, to lack adequate clothing, or to go nearly naked. It appears only once in the New Testament (1 Corinthians 4:11), where Paul lists it among the hardships apostles endure for the sake of the gospel. The word emphasizes material vulnerability and social humiliation.
Paul's use of gymneteuó in the catalog of apostolic sufferings (1 Corinthians 4:9–13) is a pointed reversal of cultural expectations. In the Greco-Roman world, religious teachers were expected to project prosperity and status. Paul instead boasts in the degradation the apostles endure — poorly clothed, hungry, homeless, dishonored — yet they are 'the aroma of Christ' (2 Corinthians 2:15). The theology of gymneteuó is the theology of the cross: God's power works through human weakness and social marginalization (2 Corinthians 12:9).