Kehillah in Corinth II 7-9

Orthodox Jewish Bible

7 Therefore, having these havtachot (promises), Chaverim, let us submit to his tahorah, cleansing ourselves from every defilement of basar and ruach, perfecting kedushah (holiness) in yirat Shomayim.

² In your levavot make a cheder for us; we wronged no one, we ruined no one, we exploited no one. [2C 12:17]

³ I do not say this to bring you under harsha’ah, for I have said before that you are in our levavot [2C 6:11-12; Pp 1:7] whether to die with you or to live with you. [SHMUEL BEIS 15:21]

⁴ I have much ometz lev (boldness) and confidence toward you. I glory much on your behalf. I have been filled with chozek (strength). I am filled to overflowing with simcha at all of our tzoros.

⁵ For indeed when we had come into Macedonia [Ac 20:1-2; 2C 2:13] we had no physical mano’ach (rest) but we had tzoros everywhere: battles on the outside, fears inside. [DEVARIM 32:25]

⁶ But Hashem who encourages the lowly, encouraged us [YESHAYAH 49:13; 2C 1:3-4] by the coming of Titos;

⁷ And not only by the coming of him, but also by the encouragement by which he was encouraged over you, reporting to us your longing, your mourning, your kanous (zeal) for me, so that it caused me to have even more simcha.

⁸ Because if indeed I caused you agmat nefesh (grief) by the iggeret, I do not regret it, though I did regret it, but I see that that iggeret grieved you only briefly. [2C 2:4]

⁹ Now I have simcha, not that you had agmat nefesh, but that your grief brought you to teshuva, for your agmat nefesh was in Hashem, so that by us you suffered in nothing.

¹⁰ For the agmat nefesh that is according to Hashem produces teshuva to Yeshu’at Eloheinu, not to be regretted, but the agmat nefesh of the Olam Hazeh produces mavet. [Mt 27:3-5; MJ 12:17]

¹¹ For, hinei, see what zerizut (diligence) this agmat nefesh of Hashem has produced in you, what defense, what indignation, what yirat Shomayim, what longing, what kanous (zeal), what onesh (punishment)! At every point you proved yourselves to be without ashma (guilt) in the matter.

¹² Then though I wrote an iggeret to you, it was not for the sake of the one having done hara’ah (the evil), nor for the sake of the one who was beleidikt (offended), but for the sake of your kanous (zeal) for us becoming manifest to you before Hashem.

¹³ In this we have chozek (strength). But in addition to our encouragement, we had still more simcha at the simcha of Titos, because his neshamah has been set at rest by all of you;

¹⁴ Because if I have been somewhat boastful about you Corinthians to Titos, I was in this not put to shame, but just as everything we said to you is HaEmes, so also our boasting to Titos has proven true as well.

¹⁵ And his lev (heart) goes out to you, all the more as he has zikaron of the mishma’at (obedience) of all of you [2C 2:9] as you received him B’YIRAH (with fear) and BIRA’DAH (trembling). [TEFILLAH 2:11]

¹⁶ I have simcha that in everything I have confidence in you.

8 Now we make known to you, Achim b’Moshiach, the Chen v’Chesed Hashem that was granted to Moshiach’s Kehillot of Macedonia,

² That during a great ordeal of tzoros, their abundant simcha and the extreme depth of their oni (poverty) abounded to the osher (riches) of their generosity [SHEMOT 36:5; Pp 1:29-30; 1Th 1:6; 2:14; 3:3 4];

³ That according to their ability, I give solemn edut, and ad kdei kach (so much) even beyond their ability, they gave voluntarily and of their own accord,

⁴ Begging us, requesting from us the privilege of participating in giving tzedakah to the Messianic Jewish ministry of the Kadoshim [Ro 15:26; Ac 11:29; 2C 9:1]

⁵ And this not merely according to tikvateinu. They gave themselves first to Adoneinu and to us [Moshiach’s Shlichim] birtzon Hashem (in the will of G-d),

⁶ So that it was necessary for us to urge Titos that as he began and made a haschala (start) before, so he should complete among you also this mitzvah of avodas kodesh of the Chen v’Chesed Hashem.

⁷ Now just as you abound in everything‖in emunah, in torah, in da’as [1C 1:5] and in all zerizut (diligence) and in our ahavah (love) for you‖see also that you excel in this Chen v’Chesed Hashem. [1C 16:1 2]

⁸ I do not lay this out as a mitzvah, but the sincerity of your ahavah I am testing against the zerizut of others,

⁹ For you have da’as of the Chen v’Chesed of Adoneinu Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua, who, though being rich, for your sakes, he became poor, [Mt 8:20; Pp 2:6-7] that you by Moshiach’s oni (poverty) may become rich.

¹⁰ And in this I give my etza (advice): it is tov me’od that last shanah you were the first not only to give tzedakah but also to be willing to do so.

¹¹ Now also complete what you started! Then your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your finishing it from what you have. [SHEMOT 25:2]

¹² For if the readiness is already present, it is acceptable according to whatever one may have‖not according to what one does not have. [MISHLE 3:27-28; Mk 12:43]

¹³ For it is not that there should be relief to others and distress and tzoros to you, but that there should be a balance of equality

¹⁴ During the present time of your abundance for those who lack, and also for your lack there may be their abundance, [2C 9:12] so also there may be equality,

¹⁵ As it has been written V’LO HE’DIF HAMARBEH V’HAMMAMIT LO HECHSIR. ("The one that gathered the much did not have too much and the one that gathered little did not have too little” SHEMOT 16:18)

¹⁶ But Baruch Hashem, the One having given the same zerizut (diligence) for you in the lev (heart) of Titos,

¹⁷ Because of the chozek (encouragement) he received, and having more zerizut on his own accord, he went forth to you.

¹⁸ And we sent with him the Ach b’Moshiach who is bavust (famous) among all the Kehillot for his proclaiming the Besuras HaGeulah,

¹⁹ And not only this but also this Ach b’Moshiach has been handpicked by the Kehillot to travel with us and with this avodas kodesh of chesed being administered by us to the kavod of Adoneinu Himself and as a gvies eidus (testimony) to your goodwill.

²⁰ Avoiding also that anyone should murmur about our handling of this liberal matanah (gift);

²¹ For our tachlis is to do what is tov me’od B’EINEI ELOHIM V’ADAM (“in the eyes of G-d and man”). [MISHLE 3:4 TARGUM HASHIVIM]

²² And we sent with them our Ach b’Moshiach whom we have often tested and found having zerizut in much, and now having even more zerizut by his great bitachon in you.

²³ As for Titos, he is my shutaf and your fellow po’el in your avodas kodesh; as for our Achim b’Moshiach, they are shlichim of the Kehillot, the kavod of Moshiach.

²⁴ Therefore, openly before the Moshiach’s Kehillot, demonstrate your ahavah and vindicate our glorying about you [2C 7:14].

9 Concerning your Messianic avodas kodesh sherut for the Kadoshim [2C 8:4,20] it is superfluous for me to send you this iggeret.

² For I have da’as of your readiness to involve yourself in Messianic Jewish ministry and this is the subject of my glorying to the Macedonians, saying that Achaia has been prepared since last shanah and your kanous has been mezarez (a spur into action) to most of them.

³ And I am sending the Achim b’Moshiach lest our glorying on behalf of you should be made empty in this respect, that you be ready, as I was saying you would be,

⁴ Lest perhaps if some Macedonians should come with me and they find you unprepared, we should have bushah, to say nothing of you, in this situation.

⁵ Therefore, I considered it necessary to encourage the Achim b’Moshiach, that they should go on ahead to you and, having arranged in advance the bountiful terumah (contribution) of the havtacha you made previously so that this matanah would be ready so as to be a bracha and not an exaction.

⁶ Note this: the one sowing sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one sowing for a bracha of bounty will also reap a bracha of bounty. [MISHLE 11:24,25; 22:9]

⁷ Each of you should give as he has decided previously in his lev (heart), not giving bedieved (begrudgingly) nor out of necessity; for Hashem loves a cheerful giver. [SHEMOT 25:2; DEVARIM 15:10; MISHLE 22:8 TARGUM HASHIVIM]

⁸ And Hashem is able to cause to abound to you all Chen v’Chesed Hashem that in everything, always, having all sufficiency, you may abound to every mitzvah.

⁹ As it has been written, PIZAR NATAN LAEVYONIM TZIDKATO OMEDET LA’AD "He scattered, he gave to the poor, His Righteousness endures forever." [Ps 112:9 Mal 3:10]

¹⁰ Now the one supplying ZERA (seed) to the sower and LECHEM for okhel (food) [YESHAYAH 55:10] will supply and will multiply your zera and will increase the p’ri of the Tzedek of you; [Hos 10:12 TARGUM HASHIVIM]

¹¹ You will be enriched in every ma’aseh chesed to all generosity, which produces through us hodayah (thanksgiving) to Hashem; [2C 1:11; 4:15]

¹² Because the avodas kodesh of this tzedakah is not only filling up the things lacking of the Kadoshim, [2C 8:14] but is also abounding through hodayah rabbah (much thanksgiving) to Hashem;

¹³ Through the proof of this Messianic Jewish sherut you bring kavod to Hashem on the basis of your submission to your Ani Ma’amin Hoda’a confession of the Besuras HaGeulah of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach and on the basis of the generosity of your terumah (contribution) to them and to all kol Bnei Adam;

¹⁴ And, reciprocally, the Messianic Jews in Yerushalayim will daven in intercession for you, having great ahavah in Moshiach for you, because of the surpassing Chen v’Chesed Hashem upon you.

¹⁵ Baruch Hashem for his indescribable matanah!