Chapter 8

Great Generosity

1 Now, brethren, we wish to make known to you the grace of God which has been agiven in the churches of bMacedonia,

2 that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the awealth of their liberality.

3 For I testify that aaccording to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave of their own accord,

4 begging us with much urging for the afavor 1of participation in the 2bsupport of the 3saints,

5 and this, not as we had 1expected, but they first agave themselves to the Lord and to us by bthe will of God.

6 So we aurged bTitus that as he had previously cmade a beginning, so he would also complete in you dthis gracious work as well.

7 But just as you aabound bin everything, in faith and utterance and knowledge and in all earnestness and in the 1love we inspired in you, see that you aabound in this gracious work also.

8 I aam not speaking this as a command, but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity of your love also.

9 For you know athe grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that bthough He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.

10 I agive my opinion in this matter, for this is to your advantage, who were the first to begin ba year ago not only to do this, but also to desire to do it.

11 But now finish 1doing it also, so that just as there was the areadiness to desire it, so there may be also the completion of it by your ability.

12 For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable aaccording to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.

13 For this is not for the ease of others and for your affliction, but by way of equality—

14 at this present time your abundance being a supply for atheir need, so that their abundance also may become a supply for ayour need, that there may be equality;

15 as it is written, “aHe who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little had no lack.”

16 But athanks be to God who bputs the same earnestness on your behalf in the heart of cTitus.

17 For he not only accepted our aappeal, but being himself very earnest, he has gone to you of his own accord.

18 We have sent along with him athe brother whose fame in the things of the bgospel has spread through call the churches;

19 aand not only this, but he has also been bappointed by the churches to travel with us in cthis gracious work, which is being administered by us for the glory of the Lord Himself, and to show our dreadiness,

20 1taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift;

21 for we ahave regard for what is honorable, not only in bthe sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

22 We have sent with them our brother, whom we have often tested and found diligent in many things, but now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you.

23 As for aTitus, he is my bpartner and fellow worker 1among you; as for our cbrethren, they are 2dmessengers of the churches, ea glory to Christ.

24 Therefore 1openly before the churches, 2show them the proof of your love and of our areason for boasting about you.