24 There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.

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24 One person gives freely, yet gains even more;
    another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.

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17 He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.

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17 Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the Lord,(A)
    and he will reward them for what they have done.(B)

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38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

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38 Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.(A) For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”(B)

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He hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor; his righteousness endureth for ever; his horn shall be exalted with honour.

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They have freely scattered their gifts to the poor,(A)
    their righteousness endures(B) forever;
    their horn[a] will be lifted(C) high in honor.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 112:9 Horn here symbolizes dignity.

Ye looked for much, and, lo it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the Lord of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.

10 Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit.

11 And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the new wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands.

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“You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little.(A) What you brought home, I blew(B) away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin,(C) while each of you is busy with your own house. 10 Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld(D) their dew(E) and the earth its crops.(F) 11 I called for a drought(G) on the fields and the mountains,(H) on the grain, the new wine,(I) the olive oil(J) and everything else the ground produces, on people and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.(K)

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In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.

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Sow your seed in the morning,
    and at evening let your hands not be idle,(A)
for you do not know which will succeed,
    whether this or that,
    or whether both will do equally well.

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18 The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward.

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18 A wicked person earns deceptive wages,
    but the one who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.(A)

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10 Thou shalt surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him: because that for this thing the Lord thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto.

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10 Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart;(A) then because of this the Lord your God will bless(B) you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.

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Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.

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You have planted much, but harvested little.(A) You eat, but never have enough.(B) You drink, but never have your fill.(C) You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages,(D) only to put them in a purse with holes in it.”

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Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness.

But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

(As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever.

10 Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;)

11 Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God.

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So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers(A) to visit you in advance and finish the arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. Then it will be ready as a generous gift,(B) not as one grudgingly given.(C)

Generosity Encouraged

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.(D) Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give,(E) not reluctantly or under compulsion,(F) for God loves a cheerful giver.(G) And God is able(H) to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need,(I) you will abound in every good work. As it is written:

“They have freely scattered their gifts(J) to the poor;
    their righteousness endures forever.”[a](K)

10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food(L) will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness.(M) 11 You will be enriched(N) in every way so that you can be generous(O) on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.(P)

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 9:9 Psalm 112:9

16 Since those days were, when one came to an heap of twenty measures, there were but ten: when one came to the pressfat for to draw out fifty vessels out of the press, there were but twenty.

17 I smote you with blasting and with mildew and with hail in all the labours of your hands; yet ye turned not to me, saith the Lord.

18 Consider now from this day and upward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, even from the day that the foundation of the Lord's temple was laid, consider it.

19 Is the seed yet in the barn? yea, as yet the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree, hath not brought forth: from this day will I bless you.

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16 When anyone came to a heap(A) of twenty measures, there were only ten. When anyone went to a wine vat(B) to draw fifty measures, there were only twenty.(C) 17 I struck all the work of your hands(D) with blight,(E) mildew and hail,(F) yet you did not return(G) to me,’ declares the Lord.(H) 18 ‘From this day on, from this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, give careful thought(I) to the day when the foundation(J) of the Lord’s temple was laid. Give careful thought: 19 Is there yet any seed left in the barn? Until now, the vine and the fig tree, the pomegranate(K) and the olive tree have not borne fruit.(L)

“‘From this day on I will bless(M) you.’”

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He that by usury and unjust gain increaseth his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.

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Whoever increases wealth by taking interest(A) or profit from the poor
    amasses it for another,(B) who will be kind to the poor.(C)

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29 Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judaea:

30 Which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.

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29 The disciples,(A) as each one was able, decided to provide help(B) for the brothers and sisters(C) living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending their gift to the elders(D) by Barnabas(E) and Saul.(F)

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