A Call to Generous Giving

Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia.
They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has
overflowed in rich generosity.

For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will.
They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem. They even did
more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do.

So we have urged Titus, who encouraged your giving in the first place, to return to you and encourage you to finish
this ministry of giving. Since you excel in so many ways—in your faith, your gifted speakers, your knowledge, your
enthusiasm, and your love from us[c]—I want you to excel also in this gracious act of giving.

I am not commanding you to do this. But I am testing how genuine your love is by comparing it with the eagerness of the
other churches.

You know the generous grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that
by his poverty he could make you rich.

Here is my advice: It would be good for you to finish what you started a year ago. Last year you were the first who
wanted to give, and you were the first to begin doing it. Now you should finish what you started. Let the eagerness you
showed in the beginning be matched now by your giving. Give in proportion to what you have. Whatever you give is acceptable
if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have. Of course, I don’t mean your
giving should make life easy for others and hard for yourselves. I only mean that there should be some equality. Right
now you have plenty and can help those who are in need. Later, they will have plenty and can share with you when
you need it. In this way, things will be equal. As the Scriptures say,

“Those who gathered a lot had nothing left over,
and those who gathered only a little had enough.”