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that our earnestness for you might be manifested to you in the sight of God. Therefore we have been comforted; and in our comfort we rejoiced the more exceedingly for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all. For if in anything I have boasted to him about you, I was not put to shame; but as we spoke all things to you in truth, so also our boasting before Titus has been found to be true, and his affection is more abundant toward you, as he remembers the obedience of you all, how you received him with fear and trembling. I rejoice, because in everything I am confident in you. Lest they say, "Why do you rebuke us, if we are innocent in the matter?" He says, "Therefore I wrote to you in this way, that you might know how I love you."

CHAPTER 8. Now we make known to you, brethren, the grace of God which has been given in the

churches of Macedonia, that in a great ordeal of affliction, the abundance of their joy. He moves the discourse about almsgiving to them; but lest they be lifted up, he calls the matter "grace," and by recounting the deeds of others, he makes them more earnest. And their deep poverty abounded, That is, their great and ineffable poverty showed their liberality. 95.748 Unto the riches of their liberality. For according to their ability, I testify, and beyond their ability, they were willing of their own accord, with much entreaty, begging of us the grace. Not only did poverty not hinder them from generosity, he says, but it even became an occasion for their abundance. For the poorer they were, the more generously ambitious they were. And the fellowship of the ministry to the saints. And not as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God, so that we urged Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also complete in you this grace also. See how again he elevates the matter with solemn names. But as you abound in everything, in faith and utterance and knowledge and in all earnestness and in the love from you to us, that you may abound in this grace also. But see again the exhortation being made with praise. He calls faith that of the spiritual gifts, and utterance that of wisdom, and knowledge that of doctrines. And "all earnestness," that concerning every other virtue. I am not speaking this as a command, but through the earnestness of others, testing the sincerity of your love also. Again he makes his speech unburdensome. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich. And in this I give my opinion. For this is profitable for you, who were the first to begin, a year ago, not only to do but also to desire. He moves the discussion about the dispensation, and from this exhorts to almsgiving. But now finish the doing also, so that just as there was the readiness to desire, so there may be also the completion of it out of your ability. For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. For this is not for the ease of others and for your affliction, but by way of equality; at this present time your abundance being a supply for their want, that their abundance also may become a supply for your want; that there may be equality, as it is written. The readiness, he says, is from the will; but the doing, from what one has. He who gathered much had nothing over, and he who gathered little had no lack. From this he makes their readiness most vehement, showing that if they did not share with others, they would not have anything more, by gathering all things within; and he brings forward an ancient story: for those who gathered much were not found to have more than those who gathered a smaller measure, God punishing their greed in this way. 95.749 But he says these things, at the same time both frightening them by what happened then, and persuading them in no way to desire more. But thanks be to God, who puts the same earnestness on your behalf into the heart of Titus. For he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very earnest, he has gone to you of his own accord. Since about almsgiving

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ἕνεκεν τοῦ φανερωθῆναι τὴν σπουδὴν ἡμῶν τὴν ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν πρὸς ὑμᾶς ἐνώπιον τοῦ Θεοῦ. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο παρακεκλήμεθα, ἐπειδὴ τῇ παρακλήσει ὑμῶν περισσοτέρως μᾶλλον ἐχάρημεν ἐπὶ τῇ χαρᾷ Τίτου, ὅτι ἀναπέπαυται τὸ πνεῦμα αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ πάντων ὑμῶν. Ὅτι εἴ τι αὐτοῦ ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν κεκαύχημαι, οὐ κατῃσχύνθην, ἀλλ' ὡς πάντα ἐν ἀληθείᾳ ἐλάλησα ὑμῖν, οὕτως καὶ ἡ καύχησις ἡμῶν ἡ πρὸς Τίτον, ἀλήθεια ἐγενήθη, καὶ τὰ σπλάγχνα αὐτοῦ περισσοτέρως εἰς ὑμᾶς, ἀναμιμνησκομένου τὴν πάντων ὑμῶν ὑπακοὴν, ὡς μετὰ φόβου καὶ τρόμου ἐδέξασθε αὐτόν. Χαίρω ὅτι ἐν παντὶ θαῤῥῶ ἐν ὑμῖν. Ἵνα μὴ λέγωσι, Τί ἐπιτιμᾷς ἡμῖν, εἰ ἁγνοί ἐσμεν τῷ πράγματι; λέγει· ∆ιὸ οὕτω ἔγραψα ὑμῖν, ἵνα εἰδῆτε πῶς ὑμᾶς φιλῶ.

ΚΕΦΑΛ. Ηʹ. Γνωρίζομεν δὲ ὑμῖν, ἀδελφοὶ, τὴν χάριν τοῦ Θεοῦ, τὴν δεδομένην ἐν ταῖς

Ἐκκλησίαις τῆς Μακεδονίας, ὅτι ἐν πολλῇ δοκιμῇ θλίψεως ἡ περισσεία τῆς χαρᾶς αὐτῶν. Τὸν περὶ ἐλεημοσύνης αὐτοῖς κινεῖ λόγον· ἵνα δὲ μὴ ἐπαίρωνται, χάριν τὸ πρᾶγμα καλεῖ, καὶ τὰ ἑτέρων διηγούμενος, σπουδαιοτέρους αὐτοὺς ἐργάζεται. Καὶ ἡ κατὰ βάθους πτωχεία αὐτῶν ἐπερίσσευσεν, Τουτέστι. πολλὴ καὶ ἄφατος ἔδειξεν αὐτῶν τὴν ἁπλότητα. 95.748 Εἰς τὸν πλοῦτον τῆς ἁπλότητος αὐτῶν· ὅτι κατὰ δύναμιν μαρτυρῶ, καὶ ὑπὲρ δύναμιν, αὐθαίρετοι μετὰ πολλῆς παρακλήσεως, δεόμενοι ἡμῶν τὴν χάριν. Οὐ μόνον οὐκ ἐνεπόδισεν αὐτοῖς πρὸς δαψίλειαν ἡ πτωχεία, φησὶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀφορμὴ γέγονε τῆς περισσεύσεως. Ὧ γὰρ μᾶλλον ἦσαν πένητες, τοσοῦτον μᾶλλον ἐφιλοτιμοῦντο. Καὶ κοινωνίαν τῆς διακονίας τῆς εἰς τοὺς ἁγίους, καὶ οὐ καθὼς ἠλπίσαμεν, ἀλλ' ἑαυτοὺς ἔδωκαν πρῶτον τῷ Κυρίῳ καὶ ἡμῖν διὰ θελήματος Θεοῦ, εἰς τὸ παρακαλέσαι ἡμᾶς Τίτον, ἵνα καθὼς προενήρξατο, οὕτως ἐπιτελέσῃ εἰς ὑμᾶς καὶ τὴν χάριν αὐτήν. Ὅρα πῶς πάλιν ἐπαίρει τὸ πρᾶγμα σεμνοῖς ὀνόμασιν. Ἀλλ' ὥσπερ ἐν παντὶ περισσεύετε πίστει, καὶ λόγῳ, καὶ γνώσει, καὶ πάσῃ σπουδῇ, καὶ τῇ ἐξ ὑμῶν ἐν ὑμῖν ἀγάπῃ, ἵνα καὶ ἐν ταύτῃ χάριτι περισσεύητε. Ὅρα δὲ πάλιν μετὰ ἐγκωμίου τὴν προτροπὴν γινομένην. Πίστιν δὲ τὴν τῶν χαρισμάτων λέγει, καὶ λόγον τὸν τῆς σοφίας, καὶ γνῶσιν τὴν τῶν δογμάτων. Πᾶσαν δὲ σπουδὴν, τὴν περὶ τὴν ἄλλην πᾶσαν ἀρετήν. Οὐ κατ' ἐπιταγὴν λέγω, ἀλλὰ διὰ τῆς ἑτέρων σπουδῆς, καὶ τὸ τῆς ὑμετέρας ἀγάπης γνήσιον δοκιμάζων. Ἀνεπαχθῆ πάλιν τὸν λόγον ποιεῖ. Γινώσκετε γὰρ τὴν χάριν τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὅτι δι' ἡμᾶς ἐπτώχευσεν πλούσιος ὢν, ἵνα ὑμεῖς τῇ ἐκείνου πτωχείᾳ πλουτήσητε, καὶ γνώμην ἐν τούτῳ δίδωμι. Τοῦτο γὰρ ὑμῖν συμφέρει, οἵτινες οὐ μόνον τὸ ποιῆσαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ θέλειν προενήρξασθε ἀπὸ πέρυσι. Τὸν περὶ τῆς οἰκονομίας κινεῖ λόγον, καὶ ἐκ τούτου ἐπὶ τὴν ἐλεημοσύνην προτρέπων. Νυνὶ δὲ καὶ τὸ ποιῆσαι ἐπιτελέσατε, ὅπως καθάπερ ἡ προθυμία τοῦ θέλειν, οὕτω καὶ τοῦ ἐπιτελέσαι ἐκ τοῦ ἔχειν. Εἰ γὰρ ἡ προθυμία πρόκειται, καθ' ὃ ἂν ἔχῃ, εὐπρόσδεκτος, οὐ καθ' ὃ οὐκ ἔχει. Οὐ γὰρ ἵνα ἄλλοις ἄνεσις, ὑμῖν δὲ θλίψις, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἰσότητος ἐν τῷ νῦν καιρῷ, τὸ ὑμῶν περίσσευμα εἰς τὸ ἐκείνων ὑστέρημα, ἵνα καὶ τὸ ἐκείνων περίσσευμα γένηται εἰς τὸ ὑμῶν ὑστέρημα· ὅπως γένηται ἰσότης, καθὼς γέγραπται. Ἡ προθυμία, φησὶν, ἐκ τῆς γνώμης· τὸ δὲ ποιῆσαι, ἐκ τοῦ ἔχειν. Ὁ τὸ πολὺ, οὐκ ἐπλεόνασε, καὶ ὁ τὸ ὀλίγον, οὐκ ἠλαττόνησεν. Ἐκ τούτου κατασκευάζει τὴν προθυμίαν αὐτῶν σφοδροτάτην, δεικνὺς ὅτι εἰ μὴ μεταδοῖεν ἑτέροις, οὐχ ἕξουσί τι πλέον, πάντα ἔνδον συνάγοντες· καὶ παραφέρει ἱστορίαν παλαιάν· οἱ γὰρ πολὺ συνάγοντες, οὐ μεῖζον τῶν ἔλαττον μέτρον συναγόντων εὑρίσκοντο ἔχοντες, τὴν ἀπληστίαν αὐτῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ 95.749 ταύτην κολάζοντος. Ταῦτα δὲ λέγει, ἅμα καὶ φοβίζων αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ τῶν τότε γενομένων, καὶ πείθων μηδαμοῦ τοῦ πλείονος ἐφίεσθαι. Χάρις δὲ τῷ Θεῷ τῷ διδόντι τὴν αὐτὴν σπουδὴν ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ Τίτου· ὅτι τὴν μὲν παράκλησιν ἐδέξατο, σπουδαιότερος δὲ ὑπάρχων, αὐθαίρετος ἐξῆλθε πρὸς ὑμᾶς. Ἐπειδὴ περὶ ἐλεημοσύνης