2 Corinthians 9
To write about the service to the holy ones is superfluous — Achaia has been prepared since last year, and its zeal stirred up Macedonia. The brothers go ahead to prepare beforehand the blessing promised beforehand — a blessing, not greed. He who sows sparingly reaps sparingly; he who sows upon blessings reaps upon blessings. Each as he has chosen beforehand in his heart — not out of sorrow or necessity; God loves a cheerful giver. God is able to make all grace abound — he scattered, he gave to the needy. He who supplies seed will furnish seed and make the produce of righteousness grow. The service of this ministry fills up lacks and abounds in thanksgivings — they glorify God for the subjection of your confession and the simplicity of your sharing. Grace to God for his indescribable gift.
Why this rendering
2Cor.9.5 Observation
Syntactic observation
ἀναγκαῖον οὖν ἡγησάμην παρακαλέσαι τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς ἵνα προέλθωσιν εἰς ὑμᾶς καὶ προκαταρτίσωσι τὴν προεπηγγελμένην εὐλογίαν ὑμῶν, ταύτην ἑτοίμην εἶναι οὕτως ὡς εὐλογίαν καὶ μὴ ὡς πλεονεξίαν — So I thought it necessary to exhort the brothers to go ahead to you and to prepare beforehand your blessing promised beforehand, that it may be ready as a blessing and not as greed. Three προ- words — προέλθωσιν · προκαταρτίσωσι (once in the New Testament) · προεπηγγελμένην (Rom 1:2). The collection is called εὐλογία, ‘blessing’ (Rom 15:29; 1 Cor 10:16 ‘the cup of blessing’), set against πλεονεξία, ‘greed’ (Mark 7:22) — as chapter 8 called it χάρις, this chapter calls it ‘blessing’ (twice in v.5, twice in v.6). In v.4 ὑπόστασις (five places in the New Testament — here, 11:17, three in Hebrews) is ‘what stands under’ — ‘assurance’. In v.2 τὸ ζῆλος is the neuter form (⸀ — the other reading is masculine).
Rendering options · 3
Basis As fixed at Rom 15:29 and 1 Cor 10:16; that Paul calls the gift a ‘blessing’ is the point of the verse.
Basis The familiar renderings by sense.
Rejected It hides that the gift is a blessing and breaks the thread to ‘sowing upon blessings’ in v.6.
Basis Rom 1:2 ‘promised beforehand’ and ‘prepare’ (καταρτίζω, Matt 21:16) with the prefix as one word.
Lost in translation
Three προ- (go ahead · prepare beforehand · promised beforehand) — one prefix comes out as ‘ahead / beforehand’.
εὐλογία ↔ πλεονεξία — ‘blessing / greed’ stand as fixed.
ὑπόστασις — the ‘standing under’ inside the word is not in ‘assurance’.
Why this rendering
2Cor.9.7 Observation
Syntactic observation
ἕκαστος καθὼς προῄρηται τῇ καρδίᾳ, μὴ ἐκ λύπης ἢ ἐξ ἀνάγκης· ἱλαρὸν γὰρ δότην ἀγαπᾷ ὁ θεός — Each as he has chosen beforehand in his heart — not out of sorrow or out of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. The first clause has no verb — ‘each as he has chosen’. προῄρηται is a perfect middle (⸀ — the other reading is present). Verse 6 sets the same word down twice, twice — φειδομένως … φειδομένως (only here in the New Testament, twice; the adverb of φείδομαι, ‘spare’, Rom 8:32) · ἐπ’ εὐλογίαις … ἐπ’ εὐλογίαις. ἱλαρός (once) is the adjective of ἱλαρότης, ‘cheerfulness’ (Rom 12:8); δότης also once — the phrase is from the Septuagint of Proverbs 22.
Rendering options · 3
Basis The text has no verb; ‘let him give’ is not supplied.
Basis The familiar rendering, supplying the verb.
Rejected It adds ‘give’ and ‘decided’ loses both the ‘beforehand’ and the ‘choose’ in προῄρηται.
Basis (English keeps the adjective.)
Lost in translation
φειδομένως … φειδομένως · ἐπ’ εὐλογίαις … ἐπ’ εὐλογίαις — both doublings stand: ‘sparingly … sparingly · upon blessings … upon blessings’.
ἱλαρός ↔ ἱλαρότης (Rom 12:8) — ‘cheerful / cheerfulness’ keep the root.
ἱλαρὸν δότην — adjective and noun stay adjective and noun: ‘a cheerful giver’.
Why this rendering
2Cor.9.10 Observation
Syntactic observation
δυνατεῖ δὲ ὁ θεὸς πᾶσαν χάριν περισσεῦσαι εἰς ὑμᾶς, ἵνα ἐν παντὶ πάντοτε πᾶσαν αὐτάρκειαν ἔχοντες περισσεύητε εἰς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθόν … ὁ δὲ ἐπιχορηγῶν σπόρον τῷ σπείροντι καὶ ἄρτον εἰς βρῶσιν χορηγήσει καὶ πληθυνεῖ τὸν σπόρον ὑμῶν καὶ αὐξήσει τὰ γενήματα τῆς δικαιοσύνης ὑμῶν — God is able to make all grace abound to you … in everything, always, having all sufficiency, to every good work … he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for eating will furnish and multiply your seed and make the produce of your righteousness grow. Verse 8 has πᾶς five times (πᾶσαν · παντί · πάντοτε · πᾶσαν · πᾶν). In v.10 the three verbs are future indicative in the base text (three ⸀ — the other reading is optative, ‘may he furnish …’), and ἐπιχορηγέω and χορηγέω (two places in the New Testament — here and 1 Peter) differ by one prefix in one verse. In v.9 the quotation (Psalms) has ἐσκόρπισεν, the ‘scatter’ of Matt 12:30, and πένης (once) is the partner of πενιχρός, ‘needy’ (Luke 21:2). Verse 10 joins the words of Isaiah 55 and Hosea 10.
Rendering options · 3
Basis The base text has future indicatives; the Received Text’s optatives (‘may he …’) are not followed.
Basis The Received Text’s reading, a prayer.
Rejected The base text promises (future); it does not wish.
Basis Two verbs one prefix apart, in one verse, kept as two words.
Lost in translation
πᾶς ×5 (v.8) — ‘all · everything · always · all · every’: five different English words.
ἐπιχορηγέω / χορηγέω — ‘supply / furnish’ are two words, but the prefix is not visible as an addition.
σπόρον / σπείροντι — ‘seed / sower’ keep the root.
γένημα — one word with Matt 26:29 ‘fruit of the vine’; here ‘produce’.
Why this rendering
2Cor.9.12 Observation
Syntactic observation
ὅτι ἡ διακονία τῆς λειτουργίας ταύτης οὐ μόνον ἐστὶν προσαναπληροῦσα τὰ ὑστερήματα τῶν ἁγίων, ἀλλὰ καὶ περισσεύουσα διὰ πολλῶν εὐχαριστιῶν τῷ θεῷ — διὰ τῆς δοκιμῆς τῆς διακονίας ταύτης δοξάζοντες τὸν θεὸν ἐπὶ τῇ ὑποταγῇ τῆς ὁμολογίας ὑμῶν … — because the service of this ministry is not only filling up the lacks of the holy ones, but also abounding through many thanksgivings to God — through the proof of this service they glorify God for the subjection of your confession … Two service-words — διακονία and λειτουργία (the priestly service of Luke 1:23) — are stacked in one phrase. In this chapter χάρις (vv.8, 14, 15) and εὐχαριστία (vv.11, 12) move on one root — grace works out thanksgiving, and thanksgiving returns as ‘grace to God’ (v.15). προσαναπληρόω (here; 11:9) is ἀναπληρόω, ‘fill up’ (1 Cor 16:17), with πρός-. ὑποταγή (four places in the New Testament) is the noun of ὑποτάσσω, ‘be subject’ (1 Cor 14:34); ὁμολογία the noun of ὁμολογέω, ‘confess’ (Rom 10:9).
Rendering options · 3
Basis διακονία is fixed as ‘service’, so λειτουργία takes ‘ministry’ (the root of λειτουργός, ‘minister’, Rom 13:6).
Basis Folding the two into one.
Rejected It hides that the text stacks two different words.
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected It breaks ‘grace to God’ (Rom 6:17) and merges χάρις with εὐχαριστία, ‘thanksgiving’, in vv.11-12.
Lost in translation
διακονία / λειτουργία — ‘service / ministry’ keep the two apart, and ‘ministry’ stays on the root of ‘minister’ (Rom 13:6).
χάρις ↔ εὐχαριστία — ‘grace / thanksgiving’ lose the shared root.
ὑποταγή ↔ ὑποτάσσω · ὁμολογία ↔ ὁμολογέω — ‘subjection / be subject’ · ‘confession / confess’ keep the roots.
προσαναπληρόω — the πρός- on ἀναπληρόω, ‘fill up’, is not visible in English.