2 โครินธ์ 8:15 วิจารณ์

In this and the following chapter Paul is exhorting and directing the Corinthians about a particular work of charity - to relieve the necessities of the poor saints at Jerusalem and in Judea, according to the good example of the churches in Macedonia, Rom 15:26. The Christians at Jerusalem, through war, famine, and persecution, had become poor, many of them had fallen into decay, and perhaps most of them were but poor when they first embraced Christianity; for Christ said, "The poor receive the gospel." Now Paul, though he was the apostle of the Gentiles, had a fonder regard, and kind concern, for those among the Jews who were converted to the Christian faith; and, though many of them had not so much affection to the Gentile converts as they ought to have had, yet the apostle would have the Gentiles to be kind to them, and stirred them up to contribute liberally for their relief. Upon this subject he is very copious, and writes very affectingly. In this eighth chapter he acquaints the Corinthians with, and commends, the good example of the Macedonians in this work of charity, and that Titus was sent to Corinth to collect their bounty (Co2 8:1-6). He the proceeds to urge this duty with several cogent arguments (Co2 8:7-15), and commends the persons who were employed in this affair (Co2 8:16-24).

INTRODUCTION TO 2 CORINTHIANS 8 In this chapter the apostle stirs up the Corinthians, to make a collection for the poor saints at Jerusalem, by a variety of arguments, and gives a commendation of Titus and some other brethren, who were appointed messengers to them on that account. He first sets before them the example of the Macedonian churches, who had made a liberal collection for the above persons; which the apostle calls the grace of God, and says it was bestowed on them; and it was not the generosity of one church only, but of many, and so worthy of imitation, Co2 8:1 which generosity of theirs he illustrates by the circumstances and condition they were in, they were not only in great affliction, but in deep poverty; and yet contributed with abundance of joy, and in great liberality, Co2 8:2 yea, this they did not only to the utmost of their power, and according to the best of their abilities; but their will was beyond their power, they had hearts to do more than they were able; and what they did, they did of themselves without being asked and urged to it, Co2 8:3 nay, they even entreated the apostle and his fellow ministers to take the money they had collected, and either send or carry it to the poor saints at Jerusalem, and minister it to them themselves, Co2 8:4 and which was beyond the expectation of the apostle, who knew their case; and yet it was but acting like themselves, who at first gave themselves to the Lord and to the apostles by the will of God, Co2 8:5 and this forwardness and readiness of the Macedonian churches, or the churches themselves put the apostle upon desiring Titus to go to Corinth, and finish the collection he had begun; and which carries in it more arguments than one to excite them to this service; as that this was not only at the request of the apostle, but of the Macedonian churches, that Titus should be desired to go on this business; and besides the thing had been begun, and it would be scandalous not to finish it, Co2 8:6 and next the apostle argues from their abounding in the exercise of other graces, which he enumerates, that they would also in this, Co2 8:7 for to excel in one grace, and not in another, was not to their praise and honour; however, he did not urge them to this in an imperious way, and to show and exercise his authority; but was moved unto it through the generous example of others, and that there might be a proof of their sincere love and affection to the Lord, and to his people, Co2 8:8 but as what he wisely judged would have the greatest weight with them; he proposes to them the example of Christ, and instances in his great love to them; who though was rich became poor for them, that they might be enriched through his poverty, Co2 8:9 and therefore should freely contribute to his poor saints. Moreover, inasmuch as the apostle did not take upon him to command, only give advice, he should be regarded; and that the rather because what he advised to was expedient for them, would be for their good, and be profitable to them; as well as prevent reproach and scandal, which would follow should they not finish what they had begun so long ago, Co2 8:10 wherefore he exhorts them cheerfully to perform what they had shown a readiness to; and points out unto them the rule and measure of it, that it should be out of their own, what they were possessed of, and according to their ability; which be it more or less would be acceptable to God, Co2 8:11 for his meaning was not that some should be eased and others burdened; but that all should communicate according to what they had, Co2 8:13 to which he stimulates them from the hope of the recompence of reward, whenever it should be otherwise with them than it was, and things should change both with them who communicated, and with them to whom they communicated; or this was the end proposed by the apostle, that in the issue there might be an equality between them, Co2 8:14 which he confirms and illustrates by the distribution of the manna to the Israelites, who had an equal measure, Co2 8:15 as appears from what is said, Exo 16:18 next the apostle enters upon a commendation of the messengers, that were appointed and ordered to be sent to them upon this errand, and begins with Titus; and gives thanks to God, that had put it into his heart to be so solicitous about this matter, Co2 8:16 and praises him for his forwardness in undertaking it of his own accord, and in performing it without being urged to it, Co2 8:17 and next he commends another person, whose name is not mentioned, who was sent along with him; a person of note and fame in all the churches, Co2 8:18 and who had the honour to be chosen by the churches for this service, Co2 8:19 and the reason why more persons than one were sent, was to prevent any suspicion of converting the collections to wrong purposes; and to preserve and secure a good character, a character of honesty before God and men, Co2 8:20. To these two a third was added, whose name also is not mentioned, and who had been proved to be a diligent man, and appeared more so in this matter upon the apostle's confidence in the Corinthians, that they would readily attend to the service these were sent to promote, Co2 8:22 and thus having separately given the characters of these men, they are all of them commended again; Titus, as the apostle's partner and fellow helper; and the other brethren as the messengers of the churches, and the glory of Christ, Co2 8:23 and the chapter is concluded with an exhortation to the members of the church at Corinth, to give these messengers a proof of their love to the poor saints before all the churches, and make it appear that he had not boasted of them in vain, Co2 8:24.

But thanks be to God,.... The apostle proceeds to give an account of the persons and their characters, who were employed in making this collection at Corinth for the poor saints, and begins with Titus; and the rather because he had been already concerned in setting afoot that good work among them; and gives thanks to God, which, says he, put the same earnest care into the heart of Titus for you, by "earnest care" is meant that very great carefulness, solicitude, and diligence, Titus had shown in stirring them up to a liberal contribution; and which was the same that he had expressed in the arguments just now used by him, to engage them in the same service; and this care, as it was a very earnest and hearty one, so he suggests that it was more for them, than for the sake of the poor; the performance of acts of beneficence and liberality tending more to the advantage and account of the giver than of the receiver: and he further intimates, that these good motions in the heart of Titus were not merely natural, or the effects of human power and free will, but were of God, as every good thing is; they were wrought in him by the Spirit of God, and sprung from the grace of God, and therefore the apostle returns thanks to God for the same; and the mention of this could not fail of carrying weight with it, and of having some influence on the minds of the Corinthians.

Now this happened in the case of the manna. For both they that gathered more, and they that gathered less, were found to have the same quantity, God in this way punishing insatiableness. And this he said at once both to alarm them by what then happened, and to persuade them never to desire to have more nor to grieve at having less. And this one may see happening now in things of this life not in the manna only. For if we all fill but one belly, and live the same length of time, and clothe one body; neither will the rich gain aught by his abundance nor the poor lose aught by his poverty.

The saints, with their hope in the world to come, have more than those who appear to be rich in this world. But both will be made equal, because those who give of their wealth to help the saints now will be helped by them at some future time, when they are in need.

How will there be equality? If both you and they mutually share your surpluses with one another and fill each other's deficiencies. But what kind of equality is it to give spiritual things in return for material things? Here, of course, the equality is not in relation to the value or pricelessness of what is given and received in return, but in relation to surplus and lack: you give from your surplus, and they give from their surplus; and again: you receive what you were in need of, and they receive what they are in need of. This equality relates entirely to the present time, but what belongs to the future age has a great advantage over what is given now. Therefore, humble yourselves, O rich, because in things that are permanent and imperishable, the poor surpass you. He brings as an example what happened during the gathering of manna, to show how equality comes about. Namely: when a rich man, having much, gives his surplus to the one who has little, then he himself does not have excess, nor does the one who had little have any lack in what he received from him. The same is true of boldness before God. At the same time, he also suggests something greater, showing the rich that just as during the gathering of manna all—both those who gathered more and those who gathered less—found an equal measure for themselves, by which God punished their insatiability, so also now one should not desire more.

Then he confirms this with an authority; hence he says, "As it is written," namely in Ex. (16:18): "He who gathered much," i.e., had collected more manna than an omer, "had nothing over," i.e., did not have more than his sufficiency; "and he who gathered little had no lack," i.e., he did not fall short of it, because all had an equal abundance, as it says in Ex. (16:18). And so neither he who had collected more had more, nor he who had prepared less, discovered less.

The apostle stirs them up to make a collection for the poor Christians at Jerusalem, by the very liberal contributions of the people of Macedonia for the same purpose, who were comparatively a poor people, Co2 8:1-5. He tells them that he had desired Titus to finish this good work among them which he had begun; hoping that as they abounded in many excellent gifts and graces, they would abound in this also, Co2 8:6-8. He exhorts them to this by the example of Jesus Christ, who, though rich, subjected himself to voluntary poverty, that they might be enriched, Co2 8:9. He shows them that this contribution, which had been long ago begun, should have been long since finished, Co2 8:10. And that they should do every thing with a ready and willing mind, according to the ability which God had given them; that abundance should not prevail on one hand, while pinching poverty ruled on the other; but that there should be an equality, Co2 8:11-14. He shows from the distribution of the manna in the wilderness, that the design of God was, that every member of his spiritual household should have the necessaries of life, Co2 8:15. He tells them that he had now sent Titus, and another with him, to Corinth, to complete this great work, Co2 8:16-22. The character which he gives of Titus and the others employed in this business, Co2 8:23, Co2 8:24.

He that had gathered much, had nothing over - On the passage to which the apostle alludes, Exo 16:18, I have stated that, probably, every man gathered as much manna as he could, and when he brought it home and measured it by the omer, (for this was the measure for each man's eating), if he had a surplus it went to the supply of some other family that had not been able to collect enough; the family being large, and the time in which the manna might be gathered, before the heat of the day, not being sufficient to collect a supply for so numerous a household; several of whom might be so confined as not to be able to collect for themselves. Thus there was an equality among the Israelites in reference to this thing; and in this light these words of St. Paul lead us to view the passage. To apply this to the present case: the Corinthians, in the course of God's providence, had gathered more than was absolutely necessary for their own support; by giving the surplus to the persecuted and impoverished Christian Jews these would be an equality; both would then possess the necessaries of life, though still the one might have more property than the other.

THE COLLECTION FOR THE SAINTS; THE READINESS OF THE MACEDONIANS A PATTERN TO THE CORINTHIANS; CHRIST THE HIGHEST PATTERN; EACH IS TO GIVE WILLINGLY AFTER HIS ABILITY; TITUS AND TWO OTHERS ARE THE AGENTS ACCREDITED TO COMPLETE THE COLLECTION. (2Co. 8:1-24) we do you to wit--we make known to you. the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia--Their liberality was not of themselves naturally, but of God's grace bestowed on them, and enabling them to be the instrument of God's "grace" to others (Co2 8:6, Co2 8:19). The importance given in this Epistle to the collection, arose as well from Paul's engagement (Gal 2:10), as also chiefly from his hope to conciliate the Judaizing Christians at Jerusalem to himself and the Gentile believers, by such an act of love on the part of the latter towards their Jewish brethren.

(Exo 16:18; Septuagint). As God gave an equal portion of manna to all the Israelites, whether they could gather much or little; so Christians should promote by liberality an equality, so that none should need the necessaries of life while others have superfluities. "Our luxuries should yield to our neighbor's comforts; and our comforts to his necessities" [J. HOWARD].