Why does Paul use the pronoun ἐγώ, which usually does not affect sense (adequately indicated by a first person singular verb)? The standard explanation, that ἐγώ supplies emphasis, is incomplete at best. A detailed survey of Paul's usage shows various factors: sometimes ἐγώ helps Paul distinguish himself from others, and other times to align himself with them; sometimes it allows a paradoxical construction in which Paul both admits and denies that he has done something; sometimes it seems linked to certain verbs; sometimes it supplies a kind of rhythm to a passage.
