24 There is one who (A)scatters, yet increases more;
And there is one who withholds more than is right,
But it leads 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 (A)He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord,
And He will pay back what he has given.

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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 (A)Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your (B)bosom. For (C)with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”

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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 has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever;
His [a]horn will be exalted with honor.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 112:9 Strength

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.

(A)You looked for much, but indeed it came to little; and when you brought it home, (B)I blew it away. Why?” says the Lord of hosts. “Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house. 10 Therefore (C)the heavens above you withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its fruit. 11 For I (D)called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on (E)all the labor of your 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 your seed,
And in the evening do not withhold your hand;
For you do not know which will prosper,
Either this or that,
Or whether both alike will be 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 man does deceptive work,
But (A)he who sows righteousness will have 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 You shall surely give to him, and (A)your heart should not be grieved when you give to him, because (B)for this thing the Lord your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand.

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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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“You have (A)sown much, and bring in little;
You eat, but do not have enough;
You drink, but you are not filled with drink;
You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm;
And (B)he who earns wages,
Earns wages to put 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 [a]exhort the brethren to go to you ahead of time, and prepare your generous gift beforehand, which you had previously promised, that it may be ready as a matter of generosity and not as a [b]grudging obligation.

The Cheerful Giver

(A)But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows [c]bountifully will also reap [d]bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, (B)not grudgingly or of [e]necessity; for (C)God loves a cheerful giver. (D)And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. As it is written:

(E)“He has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever.”

10 Now [f]may He who (F)supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, [g]supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your (G)righteousness, 11 while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, (H)which causes thanksgiving through us to God.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 9:5 encourage
  2. 2 Corinthians 9:5 Lit. covetousness
  3. 2 Corinthians 9:6 with blessings
  4. 2 Corinthians 9:6 with blessings
  5. 2 Corinthians 9:7 compulsion
  6. 2 Corinthians 9:10 NU omits may
  7. 2 Corinthians 9:10 NU will supply

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, (A)when one came to a heap of twenty ephahs, there were but ten; when one came to the wine vat to draw out fifty baths from the press, there were but twenty. 17 (B)I struck you with blight and mildew and hail (C)in all the labors of your hands; (D)yet you did not turn to Me,’ says the Lord. 18 ‘Consider now from this day forward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, from (E)the day that the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid—consider it: 19 (F)Is the seed still in the barn? As yet the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have not yielded fruit. But from this day I will (G)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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One who increases his possessions by usury and extortion
Gathers it for him who 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, each according to his ability, determined to send (A)relief to the brethren dwelling in Judea. 30 (B)This they also 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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