2 Corinthians 8:21

THE MESSAGE

The 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!

Parallel Translations

New American Standard Bible (1995)
for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Legacy Standard Bible
for we respect what is good, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Simplified Cowboy Version
We will do what is right. We will do what the Lord says is right. And we will do what the people say is right.

Bible in Basic English
For the business has been so ordered by us as to have the approval, not only of the Lord, but of men.

Darby Translation
for we provide for things honest, not only before [the] Lord, but also before men.

Christian Standard Bible®
For we are making provision for what is right, not only before the Lord but also before men.

World English Bible
Having regard for honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
For we provide things honest, not only before the Lord, but also before men.

Weymouth's New Testament
For we seek not only God's approval of our integrity, but man's also.

King James Version (1611)
Prouiding for honest things, not onely in the sight of the Lord, but in the sight of men.

Literal Translation
providing right things not only before the Lord, but also before men. Prov. 3:4

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and therfore make we prouision for honest thinges, not onely before the LORDE, but also before men.

Mace New Testament (1729)
always considering what is virtuous, with respect to God, and with respect to men.

Amplified Bible
For we have regard for what is honorable [and above suspicion], not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

American Standard Version
for we take thought for things honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Revised Standard Version
for we aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of men.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
and therfore make provision for honest thynges not in the sight of god only but also in the sight of men.

Update Bible Version
for we take thought for things honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Webster's Bible Translation
Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Young's Literal Translation
providing right things, not only before the Lord, but also before men;

New Century Version
We are trying hard to do what the Lord accepts as right and also what people think is right.

New English Translation
For we are concerned about what is right not only before the Lord but also before men.

Berean Standard Bible
For we are taking great care to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord, but also in the eyes of men.

Contemporary English Version
But we want to do what pleases the Lord and what people think is right.

Complete Jewish Bible
for we take pains to do what is right not only in the sight of God but also in the sight of other people .

English Standard Version
for we aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of man.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Prouiding for honest thinges, not onely before the Lord, but also before men.

George Lamsa Translation
For we are very careful to do the right thing, not only in the presence of God, but also in the presence of men.

Hebrew Names Version
Having regard for honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

International Standard Version
We intend to do what is right, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of people.Romans 12:17; Philippians 4:8; 1 Peter 2:12;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
with regard to this great bounty which is to be administered by us. For we are careful for the things which are comely, not only before Aloha, but also before men.

Murdock Translation
For we are attentive to things commendable, not only before God, but also before men.

New King James Version
providing honorable things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

New Living Translation
We are careful to be honorable before the Lord, but we also want everyone else to see that we are honorable.

New Life Bible
We want to do the right thing. We want God and men to know we are honest.

English Revised Version
for we take thought for things honourable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

New Revised Standard
for we intend to do what is right not only in the Lord's sight but also in the sight of others.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
For we provide things honourable, not only before the Lord, but also before men.

Douay-Rheims Bible
For we forecast what may be good, not only before God but also before men.

King James Version
Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Lexham English Bible
For we are taking into consideration what is honorable not only before the Lord, but also before people.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And make prouisio for honest thinges, not only in the syght of the Lorde, but also in the syght of men.

Easy-to-Read Version
We are trying to do what is right. We want to do what the Lord accepts as right and also what people think is right.

New American Standard Bible
for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of other people.

Good News Translation
Our purpose is to do what is right, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of others.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
For we purueyen good thingis, not onely bifor God, but also bifor alle men.

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

for: Romans 12:17, Philippians 4:8, 1 Timothy 5:14, Titus 2:5-8, 1 Peter 2:12

not: 2 Corinthians 2:17, 2 Corinthians 5:9-11, Matthew 5:16, Matthew 6:1, Matthew 6:4, Matthew 23:5, 1 Thessalonians 5:22

Reciprocal: Genesis 31:32 - before Genesis 43:12 - double Ruth 3:14 - Let it not Ruth 4:4 - Buy it 1 Kings 18:34 - Do it the second 2 Kings 22:7 - they dealt faithfully Ezra 8:25 - weighed Ezra 8:33 - weighed Jeremiah 32:12 - and in Acts 4:35 - at Acts 10:23 - and certain Romans 14:16 - General Romans 14:18 - is 1 Corinthians 10:29 - why 2 Corinthians 13:7 - honest 1 Thessalonians 4:12 - ye may walk 1 Timothy 3:7 - lest

Cross-References

Genesis 3:17
He told the Man: "Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree That I commanded you not to eat from, ‘Don't eat from this tree,' The very ground is cursed because of you; getting food from the ground Will be as painful as having babies is for your wife; you'll be working in pain all your life long. The ground will sprout thorns and weeds, you'll get your food the hard way, Planting and tilling and harvesting, sweating in the fields from dawn to dusk, Until you return to that ground yourself, dead and buried; you started out as dirt, you'll end up dirt."

Genesis 6:5
God saw that human evil was out of control. People thought evil, imagined evil—evil, evil, evil from morning to night. God was sorry that he had made the human race in the first place; it broke his heart. God said, "I'll get rid of my ruined creation, make a clean sweep: people, animals, snakes and bugs, birds—the works. I'm sorry I made them."

Genesis 6:17
"I'm going to bring a flood on the Earth that will destroy everything alive under Heaven. Total destruction.

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 8:7
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 8:10
He waited seven more days and sent out the dove again. It came back in the evening with a freshly picked olive leaf in its beak. Noah knew that the flood was about finished.

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 8:22
For as long as Earth lasts, planting and harvest, cold and heat, Summer and winter, day and night will never stop."

Psalms 58:3
The wicked crawl from the wrong side of the cradle; their first words out of the womb are lies. Poison, lethal rattlesnake poison, drips from their forked tongues— Deaf to threats, deaf to charm, decades of wax built up in their ears.

Ecclesiastes 7:20
There's not one totally good person on earth, Not one who is truly pure and sinless.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Providing for honest things,.... Or premeditating, forecasting, or considering before hand in the mind, things that are good, that are of good report among men, as well as accounted good by God; for it becomes professors of religion, and especially ministers of the Gospel, to be careful not only to exercise a good conscience towards God; but so to behave, that they may obtain and preserve the good opinion of men; for when they have once lost their credit and reputation among men, their ministry becomes in a great, measure useless; wherefore the apostle adds,

not only in the sight of the Lord: the same Lord as before, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is a diligent searcher of the hearts, and discerner of the thoughts, and observer of the ways and actions of all his people;

but also in the sight of men; not that the apostle affected a mere outside show, popular applause, and the praise of men; but was concerned lest any weak persons, by their conduct, should be stumbled and fall, the edification of any should be hindered, and their ministry become unprofitable.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Providing for honest things - The expression used here occurs in Romans 12:17; see the note on that place. In that place, however, it refers to the manner in which we are to treat those who injure us; here it refers to the right way of using property; and it seems to have been a kind of maxim by which Paul regulated his life, a “vade mecum” that was applicable to everything. The sentiment is, that we are to see to it beforehand that all our conduct shall be comely or honest. The word rendered “providing for” (προνωύμενοι pronōumenoi) means foreseeing, or perceiving beforehand; and the idea is, that we are to make it a matter of previous calculation, a settled plan, a thing that is to be attended to of set design. In the middle voice, the form in which it occurs here, it means to provide for in one’s own behalf; to apply oneself to anything; to practice diligently - Robinson. The word rendered “things honest” (καλὰ kala) means properly beautiful, or comely.

The idea which is presented here is, that we are to see beforehand, or we are to make it a matter of set purpose that what we do shall be comely, that is, just, honorable, correct, not only in the sight of the Lord, but in the sight of mankind. Paul applies this in his own case to the alms which were to be entrusted to him. His idea is, that he meant so to conduct in the whole transaction as that his conduct should be approved by God, but that it should also be regarded as beautiful or correct in the sight of people. He knew how much his own usefulness depended on an irreproachable character. He, therefore, procured the appointment of one who had the entire confidence of the churches to travel with him. But there is no reason for confining this to the particular case under consideration. It seems to have been the leading maxim of the life of Paul, and it should be of ours. The maxim may be applied to everything which we have to do; and should constantly regulate us.

It may be applied to the acquisition and use of property; to the discharge of our professional duties; to our contact with others; to our treatment of inferiors and dependents; to our charities, etc. - in all of which we should make it a matter of previous thought, of earnest diligence, that our conduct should be perfectly honest and comely before God and man. Let us learn from this verse also, that ministers of the gospel should be especially careful that their conduct in money matters. and especially in the appropriation of the charities of the church, should be above suspicion. Much is often entrusted to their care, and the churches and individual Christians often commit much to their discretion. Their conduct in this should be without reproach; and in order to this, it is well to follow the example of Paul, and to insist that others who have the entire confidence of the churches should be associated with them. Nothing is easier than to raise a slanderous report against a minister of the gospel; and nothing gratifies a wicked world more than to be able to do it - and perhaps especially if it pertains to some improper use of money. It is not easy to meet such reports when they are started; and a minister, therefore, should be guarded, as Paul was, at every possible point, that he may be freed from that “whose breath outvenoms all the worms of Nile” - Slander.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 21. Providing for honest things — Taking care to act so as not only to be clear in the sight of God, but also to be clear in the sight of all men; avoiding even the appearance of evil. I wish the reader to refer to the excellent note on "1 Corinthians 16:4", which I have extracted from Dr. Paley.