Lectionary Calendar
Wednesday, October 2nd, 2024
the Week of Proper 21 / Ordinary 26
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THE MESSAGE

2 Corinthians 8:22

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.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Diligence;   Titus;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Diligence;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Titus;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Corinth;   Trophimus;   Tychicus;   Holman Bible Dictionary - 2 Corinthians;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Gift, Giving;   Joy;   Paul the Apostle;   Titus;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Collection;   Commendation ;   Family;   Temptation, Trial;   Trophimus ;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Titus;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Troph'imus;   Tych'icus;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Confidence;   Paul, the Apostle;   Prove;   Trophimus;   Tychicus;  

Parallel Translations

New American Standard Bible (1995)
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.
Legacy Standard Bible
And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have often tested and found earnest in many things, but now even more earnest because of his great confidence in you.
Simplified Cowboy Version
There will be another cowboy who rides with us also. He's also a top hand and wants to serve God and y'all. This fellow has proven himself time and time again. When he heard what y'all were going to do, he wanted in.
Bible in Basic English
And we have sent with them our brother, whose ready spirit has been made clear to us at times and in ways without number, but it is now all the more so because of the certain faith which he has in you.
Darby Translation
And we have sent with them our brother whom we have often proved to be of diligent zeal in many things, and now more diligently zealous through the great confidence [he has] as to you.
Christian Standard Bible®
We have also sent with them our brother. We have often tested him in many circumstances and found him to be diligent—and now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you.
World English Bible
We have sent with them our brother, whom we have many times proved earnest in many things, but now much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence which he has in you.
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have often proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, through his great confidence in you.
Weymouth's New Testament
And we send with them our brother, of whose zeal we have had frequent proof in many matters, and who is now more zealous than ever through the strong confidence which he has in you.
King James Version (1611)
And we haue sent with them our brother, whom wee haue often times proued diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, vpon the great confidence which I haue in you.
Literal Translation
And we sent with them our brother whom we often proved in many things to be earnest, and now much more earnest by the great assurance which I have toward you.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
We haue sent with them also a brother of oures, whom we haue oft proued diliget in many thinges, but now moch more diligent.
Mace New Testament (1729)
I have sent likewise another of our brethren, whose diligence I have experienc'd in several affairs.
Amplified Bible
We have sent with them our brother, whom we have often tested and found to be diligent in many things, but who is now even more diligent [than ever] because of his great confidence in you.
American Standard Version
And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have many times proved earnest in many things, but now much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence which he hath in you.
Revised Standard Version
And with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested and found earnest in many matters, but who is now more earnest than ever because of his great confidence in you.
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
We have sent with them a brother of oures whom we have ofte tymes proved diliget in many thynges but now moche more diligent. The great confidence which I have in you.
Update Bible Version
and we have sent with them our brother, whom we have many times proved earnest in many things, but now much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence which [he has] in you.
Webster's Bible Translation
And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have often proved [to be] diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, upon the great confidence which [I have] in you.
Young's Literal Translation
and we sent with them our brother, whom we proved in many things many times being diligent, and now much more diligent, by the great confidence that is toward you,
New Century Version
Also, we are sending with them our brother, who is always ready to help. He has proved this to us in many ways, and he wants to help even more now, because he has much faith in you.
New English Translation
And we are sending with them our brother whom we have tested many times and found eager in many matters, but who now is much more eager than ever because of the great confidence he has in you.
Berean Standard Bible
And we are sending along with them our brother, whose earnestness has been proven many times and in many ways, and now even more so by his great confidence in you.
Contemporary English Version
We are also sending someone else with Titus and the other follower. We approve of this man. In fact, he has already shown us many times that he wants to help. And now he wants to help even more than ever, because he trusts you so much.
Complete Jewish Bible
With these two we are sending another brother of ours, one whose diligence we have tested many times in many ways, but who is now all the more diligent because of his great confidence in you.
English Standard Version
And with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested and found earnest in many matters, but who is now more earnest than ever because of his great confidence in you.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And we haue sent with them our brother, whom we haue oft times prooued to be diligent in many thinges, but nowe much more diligent, for the great confidence, which I haue in you.
George Lamsa Translation
And we have sent with them also our brother, who has oftentimes been proven by us in many things, that he is earnest, and now is more earnest because of the abundant trust he has in you.
Hebrew Names Version
We have sent with them our brother, whom we have many times proved earnest in many things, but now much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence which he has in you.
International Standard Version
We have also sent with them our brother whom we have often tested in many ways and found to be dedicated. At present he is more dedicated than ever because he has so much confidence in you.
Etheridge Translation
22 But we have also sent with them our brother, whom we have often proved in many [fn] to be diligent; but now still more diligent from the great confidence he hath concerning you.
Murdock Translation
22 And we also sent with them that brother of ours, who hath often, and in many things, been proved diligent by us; and is now particularly diligent, from the great confidence [fn] in you.
New King James Version
And we have sent with them our brother whom we have often proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, because of the great confidence which we have in you.
New Living Translation
We are also sending with them another of our brothers who has proven himself many times and has shown on many occasions how eager he is. He is now even more enthusiastic because of his great confidence in you.
New Life Bible
We are sending another Christian brother with them. We have tested him many times. His faith has proven to be true. He wants very much to help because he trusts you.
English Revised Version
And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have many times proved earnest in many things, but now much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence which [he hath] in you.
New Revised Standard
And with them we are sending our brother whom we have often tested and found eager in many matters, but who is now more eager than ever because of his great confidence in you.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Moreover we have set forward, with them, our brother whom we have proved, in many things, ofttimes, earnest, - but, now, much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence which he hath towards you.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And we have sent with them our brother also, whom we have often proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent: with much confidence in you,
King James Version
And we have sent with them our brother, whom we have oftentimes proved diligent in many things, but now much more diligent, upon the great confidence which I have in you.
Lexham English Bible
And we are sending with them our brother whom we have tested many times in many things that he is diligent, but now much more diligent because of his great confidence in you.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
We haue sent with them a brother of ours, whom we haue oftentymes proued diligent in many thinges, but nowe much more diligent, for the great confidence [whiche I haue] in you:
Easy-to-Read Version
Also, we are sending with them our brother who is always ready to help. He has proved this to us in many ways. And he wants to help even more now because he has much faith in you.
New American Standard Bible
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.
Good News Translation
So we are sending our brother with them; we have tested him many times and found him always very eager to help. And now that he has so much confidence in you, he is all the more eager to help.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
For we senten with hem also oure brothir, whom we han preued in many thingis ofte, that he was bisi, but nowe myche bisier, for myche trist in you,

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

whom: Philippians 2:20-22

I have: or, he hath

Reciprocal: Romans 16:10 - approved 2 Corinthians 2:3 - having 2 Corinthians 8:18 - the brother Galatians 5:10 - confidence Philippians 2:22 - ye Philippians 2:25 - my brother 2 Thessalonians 3:4 - we have Philemon 1:21 - General

Cross-References

Genesis 8:12
He waited another seven days and sent the dove out a third time. This time it didn't come back.
Genesis 8:20
Noah built an altar to God . He selected clean animals and birds from every species and offered them as burnt offerings on the altar. God smelled the sweet fragrance and thought to himself, "I'll never again curse the ground because of people. I know they have this bent toward evil from an early age, but I'll never again kill off everything living as I've just done.
Exodus 34:21
"Work six days and rest the seventh. Stop working even during plowing and harvesting.
Jeremiah 31:35
God 's Message, from the God who lights up the day with sun and brightens the night with moon and stars, Who whips the ocean into a billowy froth, whose name is God -of-the-Angel-Armies:
James 5:7
Meanwhile, friends, wait patiently for the Master's Arrival. You see farmers do this all the time, waiting for their valuable crops to mature, patiently letting the rain do its slow but sure work. Be patient like that. Stay steady and strong. The Master could arrive at any time.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And we have sent with him our brother,.... This is a third person sent about this business. The apostle, in this, conformed to the customs of his nation; at least if he did not purposely do it, it agrees with the Jewish canons, which require three persons for the distribution of alms.

"The alms dish, (they say x) is by three; nor do they appoint פרנסין פחות משלשה "overseers" of it "less than three".''

Again, they say y,

"the poor's chest is collected by two, ומתחלקת בשלשה "but distributed by three"; it is collected by two, because they do not appoint governors over a congregation less than two, and it is distributed by three, even as pecuniary judgments; but the alms dish is collected by three, and distributed by three; for the collection and distribution are alike:''

who this brother was, sent by the apostle with Titus and the other person, is as uncertain as the former. Some think it was Luke, others Apollos, others Timothy, others Sosthenes, others Epaenetus, others Silas, others Zenas the lawyer; a brother he was, and a very considerable character is given of him:

whom we have oftentimes proved diligent in many things; he was a very diligent and industrious man, and so fit for this service; he had been tried and proved, and was found to be so, not only once or twice, but oftentimes; and that not in a few instances, but in many; and in nothing did he ever show more diligence than in this matter:

but now much more diligent; than ever he had been in anything before:

upon the great confidence which I have in you; what doubled and increased this brother's diligence, and made him so eager for, and forward to this work, was, his observing the great confidence the apostle expressed of the very great readiness and liberality of the Corinthians; and which tacitly carries in it an argument exciting them thereunto: or this last clause may be read, "which he hath in you"; and so regards the confidence this brother had in them, which made him so ready to engage with, and join the other messengers.

x T. Hieros. Peah, fol. 21. 1. y Misn. Peah, c. 8. sect. 7. & Jarchi, Maimonides & Bartenora, in ib. T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol. 8. 2. Maimon. Mattanot Anayim, c. 9. sect. 5.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And we have sent with them our brother - Who this was is wholly unknown; and conjecture is useless. Some have supposed that it was Apollos, others Silas, others Timothy. But there are no means of ascertaining who it was; nor is it material. It was some one in whom Paul had entire confidence.

Whom we have oftentimes proved diligent - Of whom we have evidence that he has been faithful. It is evident, therefore, that he had been the companion and fellow-laborer of Paul.

But now much more diligent ... - Who will now prove himself much more diligent than ever before.

Upon the confidence ... - Margin, “he hath.” The margin is doubtless the more correct reading here. The idea is, that this brother had great confidence in the Corinthians that they would give liberally, and that he would, therefore, evince special diligence in the business.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 22. We have sent with themTitus and, probably, Luke, our brother, probably Apollos.

Now much more diligent — Finding that I have the fullest confidence in your complete reformation and love to me, he engages in this business with alacrity, and exceeds even his former diligence.


 
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