2 Corinthians 8:20

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

New American Standard Bible (1995)
taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift;

Legacy Standard Bible
taking precaution lest anyone discredits us in our ministering of this generous gift,

Simplified Cowboy Version
We aren't going to take any chances with our reputation regarding the money.

Bible in Basic English
And so that no man might be able to say anything against us in the business of this giving which has been put into our hands:

Darby Translation
avoiding this, that any one should blame us in this abundance [which is] administered by us;

Christian Standard Bible®
We are taking this precaution so no one can criticize us about this large sum administered by us.

World English Bible
We are avoiding this, that any man should blame us in concerning this bounty which is served by us.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
and for the declaration of our ready mind) Avoiding this, lest any one should blame us in this abundance, which is administred by us.

Weymouth's New Testament
For against one thing we are on our guard--I mean against blame being thrown upon us in respect to these large and liberal contributions which are under our charge.

King James Version (1611)
Auoyding this, that no man should blame vs in this aboundance which is administred by vs.

Literal Translation
avoiding this, lest anyone should blame us in this bounty being ministered by us;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and to bewarre, lest eny ma reporte euell of vs because of this plenteousnes, which is mynistred by vs:

Mace New Testament (1729)
this I did, to prevent any suspicion that might be rais'd from my having the management of so great a sum:

Amplified Bible
We are taking precaution so that no one will [find anything with which to] discredit us in our administration of this generous gift.

American Standard Version
avoiding this, that any man should blame us in the matter of this bounty which is ministered by us:

Revised Standard Version
We intend that no one should blame us about this liberal gift which we are administering,

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
For thys we eschue that eny man shuld rebuke vs in this plenteous distribucion that is ministred by vs

Update Bible Version
Avoiding this, that any man should blame us in [the matter of] this bounty which is being provided by us:

Webster's Bible Translation
Avoiding this, that no man should blame us in this abundance which is administered by us:

Young's Literal Translation
avoiding this, lest any one may blame us in this abundance that is ministered by us,

New Century Version
We are being careful so that no one will criticize us for the way we are handling this large gift.

New English Translation
We did this as a precaution so that no one should blame us in regard to this generous gift we are administering.

Berean Standard Bible
We hope to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this generous gift.

Contemporary English Version
We don't want anyone to find fault with the way we handle your generous gift.

Complete Jewish Bible
Our aim in this is to show that our conduct in dealing with these substantial sums is above reproach;

English Standard Version
We take this course so that no one should blame us about this generous gift that is being administered by us,

Geneva Bible (1587)
Auoiding this, that no man shoulde blame vs in this aboundance that is ministred by vs,

George Lamsa Translation
But we are careful in this, lest any one should blame us in connection with this generous help which is administered by us.

Hebrew Names Version
We are avoiding this, that any man should blame us in concerning this bounty which is served by us.

International Standard Version
We are trying to avoid any criticism of the way we are administering this great undertaking.

Etheridge Translation
20 For we are precautious in this, that no one should lay upon us any imputation [fn]

Murdock Translation
20 we hereby guarded, that no one should cast censure on us, in [fn] this abundance which is ministered by us.

New King James Version
avoiding this: that anyone should blame us in this lavish gift which is administered by us--

New Living Translation
We are traveling together to guard against any criticism for the way we are handling this generous gift.

New Life Bible
We want everyone to trust us with the way we take this large gift of money to them.

English Revised Version
Avoiding this, that any man should blame us in [the matter of] this bounty which is ministered by us:

New Revised Standard
We intend that no one should blame us about this generous gift that we are administering,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Arranging this - lest anyone, upon us, should cast blame, in this munificence which is being ministered by us;

Douay-Rheims Bible
Avoiding this, lest any man should blame us in this abundance which is administered by us.

King James Version
Avoiding this, that no man should blame us in this abundance which is administered by us:

Lexham English Bible
We are trying to avoid this, lest anyone should find fault with us in this abundant gift that is being administered by us.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
For this we eschewe, that any man shoulde rebuke vs in this plenteous distribution that is ministred by vs:

Easy-to-Read Version
We are being careful so that no one will criticize us about the way we are caring for this large gift.

New American Standard Bible
taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift;

Good News Translation
We are being careful not to stir up any complaints about the way we handle this generous gift.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
eschewynge this thing, that no man blame vs in this plente, that is mynystrid of vs to the glorye of the Lord.

Contextual Overview

²¹The Offering Now, friends, I want to report on the surprising and generous ways in which God is working in the churches in Macedonia province. Fierce troubles came down on the people of those churches, pushing them to the very limit. The trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts. I was there and saw it for myself. They gave offerings of whatever they could—far more than they could afford!—pleading for the privilege of helping out in the relief of poor Christians. This was totally spontaneous, entirely their own idea, and caught us completely off guard. What explains it was that they had first given themselves unreservedly to God and to us. The other giving simply flowed out of the purposes of God working in their lives. That's what prompted us to ask Titus to bring the relief offering to your attention, so that what was so well begun could be finished up. You do so well in so many things—you trust God, you're articulate, you're insightful, you're passionate, you love us—now, do your best in this, too. I'm not trying to order you around against your will. But by bringing in the Macedonians' enthusiasm as a stimulus to your love, I am hoping to bring the best out of you. You are familiar with the generosity of our Master, Jesus Christ. Rich as he was, he gave it all away for us—in one stroke he became poor and we became rich. So here's what I think: The best thing you can do right now is to finish what you started last year and not let those good intentions grow stale. Your heart's been in the right place all along. You've got what it takes to finish it up, so go to it. Once the commitment is clear, you do what you can, not what you can't. The heart regulates the hands. This isn't so others can take it easy while you sweat it out. No, you're shoulder to shoulder with them all the way, your surplus matching their deficit, their surplus matching your deficit. In the end you come out even. As it is written, Nothing left over to the one with the most, Nothing lacking to the one with the least. I thank God for giving Titus the same devoted concern for you that I have. He was most considerate of how we felt, but his eagerness to go to you and help out with this relief offering is his own idea. We're sending a companion along with him, someone very popular in the churches for his preaching of the Message. But there's far more to him than popularity. He's rock-solid trustworthy. The churches handpicked him to go with us as we travel about doing this work of sharing God's gifts to honor God as well as we can, taking every precaution against scandal. We don't want anyone suspecting us of taking one penny of this money for ourselves. We're being as careful in our reputation with the public as in our reputation with God. That's why we're sending another trusted friend along. He's proved his dependability many times over, and carries on as energetically as the day he started. He's heard much about you, and liked what he's heard—so much so that he can't wait to get there. I don't need to say anything further about Titus. We've been close associates in this work of serving you for a long time. The brothers who travel with him are delegates from churches, a real credit to Christ. Show them what you're made of, the love I've been talking up in the churches. Let them see it for themselves! ²²The Offering Now, friends, I want to report on the surprising and generous ways in which God is working in the churches in Macedonia province. Fierce troubles came down on the people of those churches, pushing them to the very limit. The trial exposed their true colors: They were incredibly happy, though desperately poor. The pressure triggered something totally unexpected: an outpouring of pure and generous gifts. I was there and saw it for myself. They gave offerings of whatever they could—far more than they could afford!—pleading for the privilege of helping out in the relief of poor Christians. This was totally spontaneous, entirely their own idea, and caught us completely off guard. What explains it was that they had first given themselves unreservedly to God and to us. The other giving simply flowed out of the purposes of God working in their lives. That's what prompted us to ask Titus to bring the relief offering to your attention, so that what was so well begun could be finished up. You do so well in so many things—you trust God, you're articulate, you're insightful, you're passionate, you love us—now, do your best in this, too. I'm not trying to order you around against your will. But by bringing in the Macedonians' enthusiasm as a stimulus to your love, I am hoping to bring the best out of you. You are familiar with the generosity of our Master, Jesus Christ. Rich as he was, he gave it all away for us—in one stroke he became poor and we became rich. So here's what I think: The best thing you can do right now is to finish what you started last year and not let those good intentions grow stale. Your heart's been in the right place all along. You've got what it takes to finish it up, so go to it. Once the commitment is clear, you do what you can, not what you can't. The heart regulates the hands. This isn't so others can take it easy while you sweat it out. No, you're shoulder to shoulder with them all the way, your surplus matching their deficit, their surplus matching your deficit. In the end you come out even. As it is written, Nothing left over to the one with the most, Nothing lacking to the one with the least. I thank God for giving Titus the same devoted concern for you that I have. He was most considerate of how we felt, but his eagerness to go to you and help out with this relief offering is his own idea. We're sending a companion along with him, someone very popular in the churches for his preaching of the Message. But there's far more to him than popularity. He's rock-solid trustworthy. The churches handpicked him to go with us as we travel about doing this work of sharing God's gifts to honor God as well as we can, taking every precaution against scandal. We don't want anyone suspecting us of taking one penny of this money for ourselves. We're being as careful in our reputation with the public as in our reputation with God. That's why we're sending another trusted friend along. He's proved his dependability many times over, and carries on as energetically as the day he started. He's heard much about you, and liked what he's heard—so much so that he can't wait to get there. ²³I don't need to say anything further about Titus. We've been close associates in this work of serving you for a long time. The brothers who travel with him are delegates from churches, a real credit to Christ. Show them what you're made of, the love I've been talking up in the churches. Let them see it for themselves!

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

that: 2 Corinthians 11:12, Matthew 10:16, Romans 14:16, 1 Corinthians 16:3, Ephesians 5:15, 1 Thessalonians 5:22

Reciprocal: Genesis 31:32 - before 2 Kings 22:7 - they dealt faithfully Ezra 8:25 - weighed Ezra 8:33 - weighed Acts 4:35 - at Romans 12:17 - Provide 2 Corinthians 6:3 - General 1 Thessalonians 4:12 - ye may walk

Cross-References

Genesis 7:2
"Take on board with you seven pairs of every clean animal, a male and a female; one pair of every unclean animal, a male and a female; and seven pairs of every kind of bird, a male and a female, to insure their survival on Earth. In just seven days I will dump rain on Earth for forty days and forty nights. I'll make a clean sweep of everything that I've made."

Genesis 8:1
Then God turned his attention to Noah and all the wild animals and farm animals with him on the ship. God caused the wind to blow and the floodwaters began to go down. The underground springs were shut off, the windows of Heaven closed and the rain quit. Inch by inch the water lowered. After 150 days the worst was over.

Genesis 8:4
On the seventeenth day of the seventh month, the ship landed on the Ararat mountain range. The water kept going down until the tenth month. On the first day of the tenth month the tops of the mountains came into view. After forty days Noah opened the window that he had built into the ship.

Genesis 8:7
He sent out a raven; it flew back and forth waiting for the floodwaters to dry up. Then he sent a dove to check on the flood conditions, but it couldn't even find a place to perch—water still covered the Earth. Noah reached out and caught it, brought it back into the ship.

Genesis 8:15
God spoke to Noah: "Leave the ship, you and your wife and your sons and your sons' wives. And take all the animals with you, the whole menagerie of birds and mammals and crawling creatures, all that brimming prodigality of life, so they can reproduce and flourish on the Earth."

Genesis 13:18
Abram moved his tent. He went and settled by the Oaks of Mamre in Hebron. There he built an altar to God .

Genesis 22:2
He said, "Take your dear son Isaac whom you love and go to the land of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I'll point out to you."

Genesis 22:9
They arrived at the place to which God had directed him. Abraham built an altar. He laid out the wood. Then he tied up Isaac and laid him on the wood. Abraham reached out and took the knife to kill his son.

Genesis 26:25
Isaac built an altar there and prayed, calling on God by name. He pitched his tent and his servants started digging another well.

Genesis 35:1
God spoke to Jacob: "Go back to Bethel. Stay there and build an altar to the God who revealed himself to you when you were running for your life from your brother Esau."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Avoiding this, that no man should blame us,.... There is an allusion in these words to mariners, who, when sensible of danger, steer their course another way, in order to shun a rock and secure themselves. So the apostles being aware of the censorious spirits of some persons, and to prevent all suspicion of their converting any part of what they had collected to their own private use, sent Titus with it, a man of known probity and integrity; and he not by himself only, but another brother with him, one who had obtained a good report as a minister of the Gospel in all the churches: and, besides, was appointed not by the apostles, but by the churches themselves, to this service. This shows the good conduct, and great prudence of the apostle, and his care and solicitude that the ministry be not blamed; he knew he had many enemies, and how subject such are to suspicion and jealousy, when persons are intrusted with much, which was the case here; for it is added,

in this abundance which is administered by us: which designs the very large contributions which were made by the churches, through the means of the apostle's moving, exciting, and encouraging them thereunto; and which were committed to their care and trust, and at their entreaty they had accepted of.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Avoiding this - That is, I intend to prevent any blame from being cast upon me in regard to the management of these funds. For this purpose Paul had refused to have the entire management of the funds (see 1 Corinthians 12:3-4), and had secured the appointment of one who had the entire confidence of all the churches.

That no man should blame us - That no one should have any occasion to say that I had appropriated it to my own use or contrary to the will of the donors. Paul felt how dangerous it was for ministers to have much to do with money matters. He had a very deep impression of the necessity of keeping his own character free from suspicion on this subject. He knew how easy it might be for his enemies to raise the charge that he had embezzled the funds and appropriated them to his own use. He therefore insisted on having associated with him some one who had the entire confidence of the churches, and who should be appointed by them, and thus he was certain of being forever free from blame on the subject. A most important example for all ministers in regard to the pecuniary benefactions of the churches.

In this abundance ... - In this large amount which is contributed by the churches and committed to our disposal. Large sums of money are in our time committed to the ministers of the gospel in the execution of the objects of Christian benevolence. Nothing can be more wise than the example of Paul here, that they should have associated with them others who have the entire confidence of the churches, that there may not be occasion for slander to move her poisonous tongue against the ministers of religion.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 20. Avoiding this, that no man should blame us — Taking this prudent caution to have witnesses of our conduct, and such as were chosen by the Churches themselves, that we might not be suspected of having either embezzled or misapplied their bounty, 1 Corinthians 16:4.