2 Corinthians 8
King James Version
8 Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia;
2 How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality.
3 For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves;
4 Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.
5 And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God.
6 Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also.
7 Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also.
8 I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love.
9 For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
10 And herein I give my advice: for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not only to do, but also to be forward a year ago.
11 Now therefore perform the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye have.
12 For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.
13 For I mean not that other men be eased, and ye burdened:
14 But by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there may be equality:
15 As it is written, He that had gathered much had nothing over; and he that had gathered little had no lack.
16 But thanks be to God, which put the same earnest care into the heart of Titus for you.
17 For indeed he accepted the exhortation; but being more forward, of his own accord he went unto you.
18 And we have sent with him the brother, whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches;
19 And not that only, but who was also chosen of the churches to travel with us with this grace, which is administered by us to the glory of the same Lord, and declaration of your ready mind:
20 Avoiding this, that no man should blame us in this abundance which is administered by us:
21 Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.
22 And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have oftentimes proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, upon the great confidence which I have in you.
23 Whether any do enquire of Titus, he is my partner and fellowhelper concerning you: or our brethren be enquired of, they are the messengers of the churches, and the glory of Christ.
24 Wherefore shew ye to them, and before the churches, the proof of your love, and of our boasting on your behalf.
2 Corinthians 8
New King James Version
Excel in Giving
8 Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia: 2 that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and (A)their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality. 3 For I bear witness that according to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing, 4 imploring us with much urgency [a]that we would receive the gift and (B)the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. 5 And not only as we had hoped, but they first (C)gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the (D)will of God. 6 So (E)we urged Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also complete this grace in you as well. 7 But as (F)you abound in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us—see (G)that you abound in this grace also.
Christ Our Pattern
8 (H)I speak not by commandment, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, (I)that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become (J)rich.
10 And in this (K)I give advice: (L)It is to your advantage not only to be doing what you began and (M)were desiring to do a year ago; 11 but now you also must complete the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to desire it, so there also may be a completion out of what you have. 12 For (N)if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have.
13 For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened; 14 but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack, that their abundance also may supply your lack—that there may be equality. 15 As it is written, (O)“He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack.”
Collection for the Judean Saints
16 But thanks be to God who [b]puts the same earnest care for you into the heart of Titus. 17 For he not only accepted the exhortation, but being more diligent, he went to you of his own accord. 18 And we have sent with him (P)the brother whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches, 19 and not only that, but who was also (Q)chosen by the churches to travel with us with this gift, which is administered by us (R)to the glory of the Lord Himself and to show your ready mind, 20 avoiding this: that anyone should blame us in this lavish gift which is administered by us— 21 (S)providing honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.
22 And we have sent with them our brother whom we have often proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, because of the great confidence which we have in you. 23 If anyone inquires about (T)Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker concerning you. Or if our brethren are inquired about, they are (U)messengers[c] of the churches, the glory of Christ. 24 Therefore show to them, [d]and before the churches, the proof of your love and of our (V)boasting on your behalf.
Footnotes
- 2 Corinthians 8:4 NU, M omit that we would receive, thus changing text to urgency for the favor and fellowship
- 2 Corinthians 8:16 NU has put
- 2 Corinthians 8:23 Lit. apostles, “sent ones”
- 2 Corinthians 8:24 NU, M omit and
2 Corinthians 8
New English Translation
Completing the Collection for the Saints
8 Now we make known to you, brothers and sisters,[a] the grace of God given to the churches of Macedonia, 2 that during a severe ordeal of suffering, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in the wealth[b] of their generosity. 3 For I testify, they gave according to their means and beyond their means. They did so voluntarily,[c] 4 begging us with great earnestness for the blessing and fellowship of helping[d] the saints. 5 And they did this not just as we had hoped, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and to us by the will of God. 6 Thus[e] we urged[f] Titus that, just as he had previously begun this work,[g] so also he should complete this act of kindness[h] for you. 7 But as you excel[i] in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, and in all eagerness and in the love from us that is in you[j]—make sure that you excel[k] in this act of kindness[l] too. 8 I am not saying this as a command, but I am testing the genuineness of your love by comparison with the eagerness of others.[m] 9 For you know the grace[n] of our Lord Jesus Christ, that although he was rich, he became poor for your sakes, so that you by his poverty could become rich. 10 So here is my opinion on this matter: It is to your advantage, since you[o] made a good start last year both in your giving and your desire to give, 11 to finish what you started,[p] so that just as you wanted to do it eagerly,[q] you can also complete it according to your means.[r] 12 For if the eagerness is present, the gift itself[s] is acceptable according to whatever one has, not according to what he does not have. 13 For I do not say this so there would be relief for others and suffering for you, but as a matter of equality. 14 At the present time, your abundance will meet their need,[t] so that one day their abundance may also meet your need, and thus there may be equality, 15 as it is written: “The one who gathered[u] much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.”[v]
The Mission of Titus
16 But thanks be to God who put in the heart of Titus the same devotion[w] I have for you, 17 because he not only accepted our request, but since he was very eager,[x] he is coming[y] to you of his own accord.[z] 18 And we are sending[aa] along with him the brother who is praised by all the churches for his work in spreading the gospel.[ab] 19 In addition,[ac] this brother[ad] has also been chosen by the churches as our traveling companion as we administer this generous gift[ae] to the glory of the Lord himself and to show our readiness to help.[af] 20 We did this[ag] as a precaution so that no one should blame us in regard to this generous gift we are administering. 21 For we are concerned about what is right not only before the Lord but also before men.[ah] 22 And we are sending[ai] with them our brother whom we have tested many times and found eager in many matters, but who now is much more eager than ever because of the great confidence he has in you. 23 If there is any question[aj] about Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker among you; if there is any question about our brothers, they are messengers[ak] of the churches, a glory to Christ. 24 Therefore show[al] them openly before the churches the proof of your love and of our pride in you.[am]
Footnotes
- 2 Corinthians 8:1 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:8.
- 2 Corinthians 8:2 tn Or “riches.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:3 tn Or “spontaneously.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:4 tn Or “of ministering to.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:6 tn A new sentence was started here in the translation and the word “thus” was supplied to indicate that it expresses the result of the previous clause.
- 2 Corinthians 8:6 tn Or “we exhorted.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:6 tn The words “this work” are not in the Greek text but are implied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted and must be supplied from the context.
- 2 Corinthians 8:6 tn Grk “this grace.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:7 tn Grk “as you abound.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:7 tc The reading “the love from us that is in you” is very difficult in this context, for Paul is here enumerating the Corinthians’ attributes: How is it possible for them to excel “in the love from us that is in you”? Most likely, because of this difficulty, several early scribes, as well as most later ones (א C D F G Ψ [33] M lat), altered the text to read “your love for us” (so NIV; Grk ἐξ ὑμῶν ἐν ἡμῖν ἀγάπῃ [ex humōn en hēmin agapē]). The reading ἐξ ἡμῶν ἐν ὑμῖν ἀγάπῃ (ex hēmōn en humin agapē) is found, however, in excellent and early witnesses (P46 B 0243 6 104 630 1175 1739 1881 co). As the harder reading it explains the rise of the other reading. What, then, is the force of “in the love from us that is in you”? Most likely, Paul is commending the Corinthians for excelling in deriving some inspiration from the apostles’ love for them.
- 2 Corinthians 8:7 tn Grk “you abound.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:7 tn Grk “this grace.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:8 tn Grk “by means of the eagerness of others.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:9 tn Or “generosity.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:10 tn Grk “who.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:11 tn Grk “and now also complete the doing.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:11 tn Grk “just as the eagerness to want [it].”
- 2 Corinthians 8:11 tn Grk “complete from what you have.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:12 tn The words “the gift itself” are not in the Greek text but are implied. Translators often supply an English phrase like “it is” (NASB) but in the context, Paul is clearly referring to the collection Titus was to oversee (2 Cor 8:4-7). Therefore there is no reason not to specify the referent (the gift) more narrowly for clarity.
- 2 Corinthians 8:14 tn Or “their lack.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:15 tn The word “gathered” is not in the Greek text, but is implied (so also for the second occurrence of the word later in the verse).
- 2 Corinthians 8:15 sn A quotation from Exod 16:18.
- 2 Corinthians 8:16 tn Or “eagerness.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:17 tn The comparative form of this adjective is used here with elative meaning.
- 2 Corinthians 8:17 tn This verb has been translated as an epistolary aorist.
- 2 Corinthians 8:17 tn Or “of his own free will.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:18 tn This verb has been translated as an epistolary aorist.
- 2 Corinthians 8:18 tn Grk “the brother of whom the praise in the gospel [is] throughout all the churches.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:19 tn Grk “gospel, and not only this, but.” Here a new sentence was started in the translation.
- 2 Corinthians 8:19 tn Grk “he”; the referent (the brother mentioned in v. 18) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- 2 Corinthians 8:19 tn That is, the offering or collection being taken to assist impoverished Christians.
- 2 Corinthians 8:19 tn The words “to help” are not in the Greek text but are implied (see L&N 25.68).
- 2 Corinthians 8:20 tn “This” refers to sending the brother mentioned in 2 Cor 8:18 to Corinth along with Titus. The words “We did this” have no equivalent in the Greek text, but are necessary to maintain the thought flow in English. The Greek participle that begins v. 20 continues the sentence begun in v. 18 which concerns the sending of the other brother mentioned there.
- 2 Corinthians 8:21 sn An allusion to Prov 3:4.
- 2 Corinthians 8:22 tn This verb has been translated as an epistolary aorist.
- 2 Corinthians 8:23 tn Grk “If concerning Titus” (εἴτε ὑπὲρ Τίτου, eite huper Titou); the Greek sentence opens with an ellipsis which must be supplied: If [there is any question] about Titus.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:23 tn Grk “apostles.”
- 2 Corinthians 8:24 tc The sense of this translation is attested by the fact that most of the later mss, along with several early and significant ones (א C D2 Ψ 0225 0243 1739 1881 M lat), have the imperative verb ἐνδείξασθε (endeixasthe) in place of the participle ἐνδεικνύμενοι (endeiknumenoi), which is found in B D* F G 33. Since an imperatival participle is more Hebraic in style, many scribes would not have understood the idiom as easily and would have been likely to change the participle to an imperative (so TCGNT 513-14). But there is no good reason why scribes would change the imperative into a participle. Thus, ἐνδεικνύμενοι is almost surely the wording of the original text.tn In the Greek text ἐνδεικνύμενοι (endeiknumenoi) is a present participle which is translated as an imperative verb (see BDF §468; ExSyn 650-52).
- 2 Corinthians 8:24 tn Or “our boasting about you.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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