2 Corinthians 9

¹ It is indeed unnecessary for me to write to you concerning the service to the saints,

² for I know your readiness, of which I boast on your behalf to those of Macedonia, that Achaia has been prepared for the past year. Your zeal has stirred up very many of them.

³ But I have sent the brothers so that our boasting on your behalf may not be in vain in this respect, that, just as I said, you may be prepared,

⁴ lest by any means, if anyone from Macedonia comes there with me and finds you unprepared, we (to say nothing of you) would be disappointed in this confident boasting.

⁵ I thought it necessary therefore to entreat the brothers that they would go before to you and arrange ahead of time the generous gift that you promised before, that the same might be ready as a matter of generosity, and not of greediness.

⁶ Remember this: he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. He who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

⁷ Let each man give according as he has determined in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

⁸ And God is able to make all grace abound to you, that you, always having all sufficiency in everything, may abound to every good work.

⁹ As it is written, “He has scattered abroad. He has given to the poor. His righteousness remains forever.”

¹⁰ Now may he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food, supply and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteousness,

¹¹ you being enriched in everything for all generosity, which produces thanksgiving to God through us.

¹² For this service of giving that you perform not only makes up for lack among the saints, but abounds also through much giving of thanks to God,

¹³ seeing that through the proof given by this service, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the Good News of Christ and for the generosity of your contribution to them and to all,

¹⁴ while they themselves also, with supplication on your behalf, yearn for you by reason of the exceeding grace of God in you.

¹⁵ Now thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift!

Around 2 Corinthians 9

Context

Context for this book is being written. A note appears here only once it names its sources.

AI explanation

2 Corinthians 9 · Written by an AI model · Not reviewed by a theological reader

This explanation was written by an AI model to help you get started. It names no sources and can contain mistakes. Scripture comes first, and context with sources is shown separately on this page.

What this chapter says

Paul says he does not really need to write about this gift, because he knows how ready the Corinthians are. He has even boasted of them to the churches in Macedonia. But he is sending brothers ahead, so that the gift is ready, and so that it is given as a matter of generosity and not of greediness.

Then he reaches for the picture of a farmer. A person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. Each one should give as he has determined in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, “for God loves a cheerful giver”. Paul adds that God is able to make all grace abound, supplying seed to the sower and bread for food.

He also sees where such a gift goes. It meets the needs of the saints, and it overflows in thanksgiving to God. Those who receive it will pray for the givers. The chapter ends in a burst of gratitude for “his unspeakable gift”.

Background

This is the second of two chapters on the collection that Paul has urged on the church at Corinth (see 2 Corinthians 8). The line in verse 9 comes from Psalm 112. Some preachers have read the sowing and reaping as a promise that giving will bring back money. In context Paul is speaking of a particular gift for believers in need, and of generosity and thanksgiving. Christians weigh the passage in different ways.

About this explanation

Written by Claude Sonnet 5.5, an AI model, on 17 October 2026. It draws on the WEB text and general knowledge and was not checked against sources by a person. Every quotation from Scripture is checked automatically against the WEB text.

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World English Bible. Public-domain source and edition notes