2 Corinthians 9:4

2 Corinthians 9:4

2 for I know your willingness, about which I boast of you to the Macedonians, that Achaia was ready a ^ayear ago; and your zeal has stirred up the majority.

3 ^aYet I have sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this respect, that, as I said, you may be ready;

4 lest if some Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we (not to mention you!) should be ashamed of this¹ confident boasting.

5 Therefore I thought it necessary to¹ exhort the brethren to go to you ahead of time, and prepare your generous gift beforehand, which you had previously promised, that it may be ready as a matter of generosity and not as a² grudging obligation.

The Cheerful Giver

6 ^aBut this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows¹ bountifully will also reap bountifully.

7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, ^anot grudgingly or of necessity; for ^bGod loves a cheerful giver.

8 ^aAnd God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.

9 As it is written:
^a“He has dispersed abroad,
He has given to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever.”

Commentaries:

Robertson's Word Pictures (NT)

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If there come with me any of Macedonia and find you unprepared (ean elqwsin sun emoi Makedonev kai eurwsin umav aparaskeuastouv). Condition of third class (undetermined, but stated as a lively possibility) with ean and the second aorist active subjunctive (elqwsin, eurwsin), a bold and daring challenge. Aparaskeuastov is a late and rare verbal adjective from paraskeuazw with a privative, only here in the N.T.

Lest by any means we should be put to shame (mh pwv kataisxunqwmen hmeiv). Negative purpose with first aorist passive subjunctive of kataisxunw (see on II Corinthians 7:14) in the literary plural.

That we say not, ye (ina mh legwmen umeiv). A delicate syntactical turn for what he really has in mind. He does wish that they become ashamed of not paying their pledges.

Confidence (upostasei). This word, common from Aristotle on, comes from ufisthmi, to place under. It always has the notion of substratum or foundation as here; II Corinthians 11:17; Hebrews 1:3. The papyri give numerous examples (Moulton and Milligan's Vocabulary) of the word for "property" in various aspects. So in Hebrews 11:1 "faith is the title-deed of things hoped for." In the LXX it represents fifteen different Hebrew words.

**Other Robertson's Word Pictures (NT) entries containing 2 Corinthians 9:4:**

1 Corinthians 1:7
1 Corinthians 16:1
2 Thessalonians 1:4
Philemon 1:19
Hebrews 11:1

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2 Corinthians 9:5 >>

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