2 Corinthians, Chapter 9

 

2 Corinthians 9 Why did Paul feel it was not really necessary to write to the Corinthians about the "ministry to the saints" of Jerusalem? vs.1,2 He knew they were ready. There is no need for me to write to you about this service to the Lord’s people.  For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting about it to the Macedonians, telling them that since last year you in Achaia were ready to give; and your enthusiasm has stirred most of them to action. [TNIV] What did Paul "boast about" to the Macedonians concerning the church at Corinth? vs. 2 That they were eager to help and ready to give. What did the zeal of the Corinthians do for the other churches? vs. 2 It stirred up most of them. Paul sent the brethren ahead of the Corinthians to arrange beforehand the bountiful gift that they had promised to give them. What was Paul concerned might happen with such a large amount of money? vs. 3-5 That it would be ready as a bountiful gift and not affected by covetousness. That it will be ready as a generous gift, not as one grudgingly given. [TNIV] Paul mentions that they had already pledged to make a generous gift. If they renege on their promises, they would be pledge dodgers. The Corinthians would be familiar with such public dishonor, and Paul may be asking them, “Do you want to be known as pledge-dodgers?” The most infamous pledge dodgers are Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1–11). This story, probably unknown to the Corinthians, reveals that such attempts to cheat or to perform less than one promised was not unknown in the church. They should not be motivated to give simply to avoid shame, however. Paul therefore encourages them to be ready so it is indeed a gift of blessing and not greediness. This new term, “gift of blessing,” is related to a thank offering given in response to benefits received. The phrase translated “not as one grudgingly given” (mē hōs pleonexian) does not quite capture Paul’s uneasiness. The word pleonexia means “greediness,” or “covetousness”; and Paul may be suggesting that avarice may cause them to give less than they should. In 2:11 and 7:2, however, the verb form of the word appears with the meaning “outwit” and “exploit”; and the noun may carry this meaning here. It would fit the potential quandary that Paul is so eager to avoid. If they raise the sum they contribute only after Paul and the others arrive, it will seem as if he is exploiting them in some way. Moffatt perhaps translates it best, “not as money wrung out of you.” If it appears that Paul has twisted their arms to get them to give, they will come off as ungrateful, stingy givers. If the money donated to the saints comes as a levy squeezed out of them, it may provide some needed assistance for the poor, but it will undermine the whole intent of the project. This gift is not a tax, nor is it to be a burden that weighs them down with guilt. All too often people give out of a sense of guilt rather than from a glad heart, and Paul does not want the Corinthians to feel that this offering was somehow imposed upon them. Generous giving only comes when it is voluntary and not coerced. Paul uses a new term for the offering in this verse, “blessing” (eulogia). The NIV is not incorrect to render it as “a generous gift” because it refers to the rich bounty that comes from giving a blessing. The idea of blessing, however, should not be obscured. In the Bible an act of blessing calls down the grace of God on others. By sharing their material substance with the saints, they are blessing them spiritually and materially. Garland, D. E. (2001, c1999). Vol. 29: 2 Corinthians (electronic ed.). Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (403). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. If we sow sparingly into the kingdom of God, what can we be sure about what we will receive in return? vs. 6 Will also reap sparingly. If we sow bountifully into the kingdom of God, what can we be sure about what we will receive in return? vs. 6 Will also reap bountifully.  The idea that generosity to the poor would meet with overflowing blessing in return was common in Jewish thinking (cp. Prov 11:24–25; Mal 3:10). In recent times this idea has been perverted by unscrupulous ministers to entice people to believe that the more they give the more they we will get in return. They appeal to greed to encourage others to open their pocketbooks, and they give ultimately to get more for themselves. But this verse must be interpreted in terms of what follows. Paul does not pass this principle off as a shrewd investment strategy on how to reap greater material blessings by giving a portion of it to others. If one gives in hopes of attaining greater material prosperity, then one will harvest only spiritual poverty. Paul makes clear in what follows that God rewards generosity with material abundance to make it possible for people to be even more generous. Garland, D. E. (2001, c1999). Vol. 29: 2 Corinthians (electronic ed.). Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (405). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. God loves a cheerful giver! What 3 things must we do to make sure our gifts to the Lord are ones that please Him? vs. 7 do just as he has purposed in his heart not grudgingly or under compulsion Paul echoes Scripture to bolster the need to give generously: those who give spontaneously from the heart are especially prized by God. In the Old Testament, giving reluctantly or under compulsion is portrayed as cancelling out any benefit that could be received from the gift while giving with a glad heart promises reward from God: “Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to” (Deut 15:10). Scripture assumes that what is crucial is the attitude of the one who gives, not the amount. God, who knows and appraises our hearts, values only those gifts that come as a free expression of the deepest part of our souls. Gifts given under some sense of external compulsion will always be halfhearted at best. That is why the amount makes no difference if it is given with a glad heart (8:12). Garland, D. E. (2001, c1999). Vol. 29: 2 Corinthians (electronic ed.). Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (406). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. When we put the kingdom above all else, what does God do to take care of all of our needs? vs.8-9 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; as it is written, “He scattered abroad, he gave to the poor, His righteousness endures forever.” God is lavishly generous and abundantly supplies us with everything necessary to have enough for our own needs and to be generous with others. The phrase “all grace” is quite broad in scope, covering the material blessings and the spiritual motivation to share them. Most people become miserly in their giving because they worry that they will not have enough for themselves. Paul assures them that God will supply them with plenty for their needs at all times and uses alliterative repetition to carry his point: “All grace … so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every [all] good work.” Reluctance to sow generously, then, reflects a refusal to trust that God is all sufficient and all gracious. It also assumes that we can only give when we are prospering and have something extra that we will not need for ourselves. Paul says that at all times God provides us with all that we need so there is never any time when we cannot be generous. In 9:8 the word “having all you need” translates autarkeia, a word that Greek authors used to mean “self-sufficiency” or “contentment.”  Having enough does not simply mean reducing one’s craving for material goods and becoming independent from everyone. It means reducing what one wants for oneself so that one has enough to share with others and create an interdependence with them. For Paul, having all you need means having enough for every good work. Paul’s point is that “God will provide the means to be generous, that one can sow liberally (which also means freely and cheerfully, v. 7a) in the confidence that God will bestow a liberal harvest.” The more we give, the more we will be given by God to share with others. We may not have all the money that we want, but we will have all the money we need to be abundant in our giving to others. When God gives us our resources, God gives us more than we need, not so that we can have more, but so that we can give more to others. God does not bestow material blessings so that one can hoard them for oneself or withdraw from others but so that they might be shared with others. Paul believes that God bestows both the generosity and the resources for generosity which explains why he lists “liberality” as a spiritual gift (Rom 12:8 ). Paul assumes in this verse that the most valuable thing about money is that we can use it for every good work.  “Every good work” here refers to acts of charity (see 1 Cor 15:58 ) and is little different from what James says about supplying the needs of the brother or sister who is naked and lacks daily food (Jas 2:14–17). Garland, D. E. (2001, c1999). Vol. 29: 2 Corinthians (electronic ed.). Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (407). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers. How does this compare with what Jesus said in Matthew 6:33? “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Jesus was saying God has built into His Creation the means by which all things are cared for. The birds are fed because they diligently work to maintain their lives. They do not store up great amounts of food, but continually work. And believers are far more valuable to God than birds! Rather than being like the pagans who are concerned about physical needs, the Lord’s disciples should be concerned about the things of God, His kingdom and His righteousness. Then all these needs will be supplied in God’s timing. This is the life of daily faith. Walvoord, J. F., Zuck, R. B., & Dallas Theological Seminary. (1983-c1985). The Bible knowledge commentary : An exposition of the scriptures (2:33). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. What is forbidden here is worry, not responsible provision for one’s own and one’s family needs; God provides food for the birds, but they still have to search for it! The basis of the disciple’s confidence, in contrast with the anxiety of the pagans, lies in recognizing God as your heavenly Father (32). The proper attitude then is to put God first (33) and to trust him for our practical needs. In today’s world many (some of whom are Christian disciples) do not have all their needs met. This passage offers no answer to the problem, but we need to consider how God’s provision relates to human misuse of what he has provided. Carson, D. A. (1994). New Bible commentary : 21st century edition. Rev. ed. of: The new Bible commentary. 3rd ed. / edited by D. Guthrie, J.A. Motyer. 1970. (4th ed.) (Mt 6:19). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, Ill., USA: Inter-Varsity Press. When we sow into God's kingdom, He multiplies our seed for sowing! Do we realize how fast things grow under the law of multiplication? Think about it. What kind of harvest will God increase in your life? vs. 10,11 Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness; you will be enriched in everything for all liberality, which through us is producing thanksgiving to God. What caused Paul to overflow with thanksgiving concerning the Corinthian church? vs.11,12 For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God. What would happen to the other believers because of the obedience of the Corinthians in giving this bountiful gift? vs. 13 Because of the proof given by this ministry, they will glorify God for your obedience to your confession of the gospel of Christ and for the liberality of your contribution to them and to all. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, people will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. [TNIV] In return, what would the other believers do for them? vs. 14 while they also, by prayer on your behalf, yearn for you because of the surpassing grace of God in you. Most of all, what can we be thankful to God for? vs. 15 Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift! Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!  [ESV] What do you think the gift is? Has God blessed you with His indescribable gift? How are you sowing that into the lives of others? Paul gives thanks here specifically for the “indescribable” (inexpressible) gift. This may refer to a number of things that are all connected together: the gift of salvation, the gift of God’s Son, the gift of God’s grace (8:1, 4, 6, 7, 16, 19; 9:8 ). Most likely it refers to 8:9, “the primary gift of God which has established the whole framework of Christian life and fellowship within which Paul’s preaching and collection alike stand.” These words of thanksgiving conclude Paul’s appeal to the Corinthians to renew their ardor for the undertaking and to fulfill their promise. They reveal that “all Christian giving is carried out in the light of God’s inexpressible gift.” Remembering thankfully Christ’s sacrifice (8:9) and God’s grace, which human words fail to capture fully, should cause them to finish the preparations for their gifts diligently, unselfishly, and cheerfully. Their gift models the kind of inexpressible gift that God has given to them. Garland, D. E. (2001, c1999). Vol. 29: 2 Corinthians (electronic ed.). Logos Library System; The New American Commentary (415). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.