2 Corinthians 8

⁹During the night, Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and pleading with him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

²For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting to the Macedonians that since last year you in Achaia were prepared to give. And your zeal has stirred most of them to do likewise.

⁹And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to you in any way, and I will continue to do so.

²³When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to abide in the Lord with all their hearts.

¹²For this ministry of service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.

¹⁰And you are indeed showing this love to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to excel more and more

⁵Listen, my beloved brothers: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom He promised those who love Him?

²⁵A generous soul will prosper, and he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.

¹⁰sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

⁴There will be no poor among you, however, because the Lord will surely bless you in the land that the Lord your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance,

¹³Because of the proof this ministry provides, the saints will glorify God for your obedient confession of the gospel of Christ, and for the generosity of your contribution to them and to all the others.

³so that none of you would be shaken by these trials. For you know that we are destined for this.

⁴Indeed, when we were with you, we kept warning you that we would suffer persecution; and as you know, it has come to pass.

²⁹So all the men and women of the Israelites whose hearts prompted them brought a freewill offering to the Lord for all the work that the Lord through Moses had commanded them to do.

⁵Take from among you an offering to the Lord. Let everyone whose heart is willing bring an offering to the Lord: gold, silver, and bronze;

⁶Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

⁷Each one should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not out of regret or compulsion. For God loves a cheerful giver.

²¹And everyone whose heart stirred him and whose spirit prompted him came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the Tent of Meeting, for all its services, and for the holy garments.

²²So all who had willing hearts, both men and women, came and brought brooches and earrings, rings and necklaces, and all kinds of gold jewelry. And they all presented their gold as a wave offering to the Lord.

¹⁴But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that your goodness will not be out of compulsion, but by your own free will.

⁹And the people rejoiced at the willing response of their leaders, for they had given to the Lord freely and wholeheartedly. And King David also rejoiced greatly.

¹⁰Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to the family of faith.

¹⁷After several years, then, I returned to Jerusalem to bring alms to my people and to present offerings.

¹Now about the service to the saints, there is no need for me to write to you.

¹⁰For God is not unjust. He will not forget your work and the love you have shown for His name as you have ministered to the saints and continue to do so.

¹⁶By this we know what love is: Jesus laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.

¹⁷If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him?

¹⁵You know that Stephanas and his household were the first converts in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints. Now I urge you, brothers,

¹Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.

⁷For none of us lives to himself alone, and none of us dies to himself alone.

⁸If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

¹³Do not present the parts of your body to sin as instruments of wickedness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and present the parts of your body to Him as instruments of righteousness.

¹Now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the churches of Macedonia.

¹²Moreover, the power of God was on the people in Judah to give them one heart to obey the command of the king and his officials according to the word of the Lord.

¹⁴For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that One died for all, therefore all died.

¹⁵And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again.

¹⁸I urged Titus to visit you, and I sent our brother with him. Did Titus exploit you in any way? Did we not walk in the same Spirit and follow in the same footsteps?

¹⁹More than that, this brother was chosen by the churches to accompany us with the gracious offering we administer to honor the Lord Himself and to show our eagerness to help.

¹⁶But thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same devotion I have for you.

¹⁷For not only did he welcome our appeal, but he is eagerly coming to you of his own volition.

⁴they earnestly pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.

¹⁸I have all I need and more, now that I have received your gifts from Epaphroditus. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.

⁵So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you beforehand and make arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. This way, your gift will be prepared generously and not begrudgingly.

⁸And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

⁵For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge;

⁶and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness;

³We are obligated to thank God for you all the time, brothers, as is fitting, because your faith is growing more and more, and your love for one another is increasing.

⁹And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight,

²If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have absolute faith so as to move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

⁵For in Him you have been enriched in every way, in all speech and all knowledge,

⁶I say this as a concession, not as a command.

¹⁷If anyone with earthly possessions sees his brother in need, but withholds his compassion from him, how can the love of God abide in him?

¹⁸Little children, let us love not in word and speech, but in action and truth.

²²Since you have purified your souls by obedience to the truth so that you have a genuine love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from a pure heart.

⁷Each one should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not out of regret or compulsion. For God loves a cheerful giver.

¹⁴What good is it, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith, but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?

¹⁵Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.

²⁴And let us consider how to spur one another on to love and good deeds.

³²He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things?

⁶Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

⁷but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.

²⁸just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”

⁸But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

¹⁰sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.

¹⁴The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

¹⁶And do not neglect to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

¹⁸Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, and to be generous and ready to share,

¹⁹treasuring up for themselves a firm foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

¹⁷Kindness to the poor is a loan to the Lord, and He will repay the lender.

¹⁵Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food.

¹⁶If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that?

²For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting to the Macedonians that since last year you in Achaia were prepared to give. And your zeal has stirred most of them to do likewise.

²⁵Now about virgins, I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy.

²For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting to the Macedonians that since last year you in Achaia were prepared to give. And your zeal has stirred most of them to do likewise.

⁴²Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius.

⁴³Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury.

¹Then Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury,

²and He saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins.

²⁹So all the men and women of the Israelites whose hearts prompted them brought a freewill offering to the Lord for all the work that the Lord through Moses had commanded them to do.

⁷Each one should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not out of regret or compulsion. For God loves a cheerful giver.

²¹And everyone whose heart stirred him and whose spirit prompted him came and brought an offering to the Lord for the work on the Tent of Meeting, for all its services, and for the holy garments.

²²So all who had willing hearts, both men and women, came and brought brooches and earrings, rings and necklaces, and all kinds of gold jewelry. And they all presented their gold as a wave offering to the Lord.

²“Tell the Israelites to bring Me an offering. You are to receive My offering from every man whose heart compels him.

³⁴There were no needy ones among them, because those who owned lands or houses would sell their property, bring the proceeds from the sales,

²⁶For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem.

²⁷They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual blessings, they are obligated to minister to them with material blessings.

¹²For this ministry of service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.

³⁴There were no needy ones among them, because those who owned lands or houses would sell their property, bring the proceeds from the sales,

¹⁸When they measured it by the omer, he who gathered much had no excess, and he who gathered little had no shortfall. Each one gathered as much as he needed to eat.

³⁵Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you out without purse or bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.

¹⁷For God has put it into their hearts to carry out His purpose by uniting to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled.

⁴⁰I will make an everlasting covenant with them: I will never turn away from doing good to them, and I will put My fear in their hearts, so that they will never turn away from Me.

¹³I had no peace in my spirit, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.

¹⁴But thanks be to God, who always leads us triumphantly as captives in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of Him.

¹²So even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did wrong or the one who was harmed, but rather that your earnestness on our behalf would be made clear to you in the sight of God.

²⁷Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers, who has put into the heart of the king to so honor the house of the Lord in Jerusalem,

³¹Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

⁶So we urged Titus to help complete your act of grace, just as he had started it.

²²I urge you, brothers, to bear with my word of exhortation, for I have only written to you briefly.

¹⁰And this is my opinion about what is helpful for you in this matter: Last year you were the first not only to give, but even to have such a desire.

⁸I am not giving a command, but I am testing the sincerity of your love through the earnestness of others.

¹⁸I urged Titus to visit you, and I sent our brother with him. Did Titus exploit you in any way? Did we not walk in the same Spirit and follow in the same footsteps?

¹⁷Regardless, each one should lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is what I prescribe in all the churches.

¹⁹More than that, this brother was chosen by the churches to accompany us with the gracious offering we administer to honor the Lord Himself and to show our eagerness to help.

¹²Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and a door stood open for me in the Lord,

²²And we are sending along with them our brother who has proven his earnestness to us many times and in many ways, and now even more so by his great confidence in you.

²³As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker among you. As for our brothers, they are messengers of the churches, the glory of Christ.

⁴who have risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.

³Then, on my arrival, I will send letters with those you recommend to carry your gift to Jerusalem.

⁴And if it is advisable for me to go also, they can travel with me.

⁸And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

¹⁵All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is extending to more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow, to the glory of God.

¹⁰As good stewards of the manifold grace of God, each of you should use whatever gift he has received to serve one another.

¹¹If anyone speaks, he should speak as one conveying the words of God. If anyone serves, he should serve with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.

¹²For this ministry of service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.

¹³Because of the proof this ministry provides, the saints will glorify God for your obedient confession of the gospel of Christ, and for the generosity of your contribution to them and to all the others.

²²Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to select men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas called Barsabbas and Silas, two leaders among the brothers,

¹⁵Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,

²²Abstain from every form of evil.

¹⁶Do not allow what you consider good, then, to be spoken of as evil.

¹⁶Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.

³Then, on my arrival, I will send letters with those you recommend to carry your gift to Jerusalem.

¹²But I will keep on doing what I am doing, in order to undercut those who want an opportunity to be regarded as our equals in the things of which they boast.

¹⁷Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Carefully consider what is right in the eyes of everybody.

¹²Conduct yourselves with such honor among the Gentiles that, though they slander you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us.

⁸Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things.

⁵to be self-controlled, pure, managers of their households, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be discredited.

⁶In the same way, urge the younger men to be self-controlled.

¹⁸For whoever serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.

¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

²⁰I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs.

²¹For all the others look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.

²⁵But I thought it necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my needs.

¹⁷So if you consider me a partner, receive him as you would receive me.

⁸Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers for the truth.

⁶So we urged Titus to help complete your act of grace, just as he had started it.

³Yes, and I ask you, my true yokefellow, to help these women who have contended at my side for the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.

¹⁶But thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same devotion I have for you.

¹⁴Indeed, I was not embarrassed by anything I had boasted to him about you. But just as everything we said to you was true, so our boasting to Titus has proved to be true as well.

⁴Great is my confidence in you; great is my pride in you; I am filled with encouragement; in all our troubles my joy overflows.

⁸I am not giving a command, but I am testing the sincerity of your love through the earnestness of others.

²For I know your eagerness to help, and I have been boasting to the Macedonians that since last year you in Achaia were prepared to give. And your zeal has stirred most of them to do likewise.

³But I am sending the brothers in order that our boasting about you in this matter should not prove empty, but that you will be prepared, just as I said.