8

The Collection for the Lord’s People

¹And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. ²In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. ³For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, ⁴they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people. ⁵And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us. ⁶So we urged Titus, just as he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. ⁷But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you⚓ —see that you also excel in this grace of giving.
⁸I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. ⁹For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.
¹⁰And here is my judgment about what is best for you in this matter. Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so. ¹¹Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. ¹²For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.
¹³Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. ¹⁴At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. The goal is equality, ¹⁵as it is written: “The one who gathered much did not have too much, and the one who gathered little did not have too little.”⚓

Titus Sent to Receive the Collection

¹⁶Thanks be to God, who put into the heart of Titus the same concern I have for you. ¹⁷For Titus not only welcomed our appeal, but he is coming to you with much enthusiasm and on his own initiative. ¹⁸And we are sending along with him the brother who is praised by all the churches for his service to the gospel. ¹⁹What is more, he was chosen by the churches to accompany us as we carry the offering, which we administer in order to honor the Lord himself and to show our eagerness to help. ²⁰We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this liberal gift. ²¹For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man.
²²In addition, we are sending with them our brother who has often proved to us in many ways that he is zealous, and now even more so because of his great confidence in you. ²³As for Titus, he is my partner and co-worker among you; as for our brothers, they are representatives of the churches and an honor to Christ. ²⁴Therefore show these men the proof of your love and the reason for our pride in you, so that the churches can see it.

8

Ua siab dav pub

¹Cov kwvtij, peb xav kom nej paub txog Vajtswv txojkev hlub uas nws pub rau cov pawg ntseeg hauv lub xeev Makhedaunia. ²Thaum lawv raug kev sim siab uas yog kev txom nyem ceeblaj, lawv txojkev xyiv fab kawg nkaus thiab lawv txojkev pluag phwj tshwm los ua kom muaj lub siab dav kawg pub rau luag. ³Kuv ua tau timkhawv tias lawv pub raws li lawv tus peevxwm, thiab yeej pub dhau lawv tus peevxwm. Tsis muaj leejtwg yuam lawv ⁴los lawv thov peb heev cia lawv muaj feem rau txojkev hlub uas pab Vajtswv cov xov dawb. ⁵Thiab lawv tsis ua li uas peb xav tseg cia, lawv xub muab lawv tus kheej pub rau tus Tswv mam li muab pub rau peb raws li Vajtswv lub siab nyiam. ⁶Vim li no peb thiaj thov Titau kom nws pab nej ua txojkev hlub no kom tiav rau qhov nws yog tus uas pib ua tes haujlwm ntawd. ⁷Ib yam li nimno nej muaj txhua yam txhij lawm tsis hais kev ntseeg, kev hais lus, kev paub, kev kub siab rau txhua yam thiab txojkev hlub uas nej muaj rau peb,⚓ nej yuav tsum muaj txojkev hlub no txhij thiab.
⁸Qhov uas kuv hais li no tsis yog kuv yuam nej, tiamsis yog coj qhov uas lwm tus kub siab lug tuaj sim nej txojkev hlub saib muaj tseeb los tsis muaj. ⁹Vim nej paub peb tus Tswv Yexus Khetos txojkev hlub lawm tias, txawm yog nws nplua nuj los nws kuj yeem ua tus pluag vim yog saib rau nej, kom nej thiaj ua neeg nplua nuj vim yog qhov uas nws ua tus pluag. ¹⁰Thiab kuv hais raws li kuv xam pom qhov uas zoo rau nej ua. Tsaib no nej tsis yog thawj cov uas nqes tes ua xwb tiamsis nej yog thawj cov uas xav ua thiab. ¹¹Mas nimno tsim nyog nej ua kom tiav, kom nej kub siab lug xav ua li cas, nej thiaj ua kom tiav raws li muaj peevxwm ua tau ib yam li ntawd. ¹²Yog muaj lub siab kub lug lawm, Vajtswv yuav txais yuav raws li uas yus muaj tsis yog raws li yus tsis muaj. ¹³Tsis yog kuv xav cia lwm tus li haujlwm sib, cia nej li haujlwm hnyav, tiamsis yeej xav kom zoo sib txig. ¹⁴Qhov uas nimno nej muaj nplua mias kuj pab cov uas tu ncua, thiab thaum lawv muaj nplua mias, lawv yuav pab nej rau thaum tu ncua xwv thiaj zoo sib txig. ¹⁵Raws li muaj lus sau cia hais tias, “Tus uas khaws tau ntau kuj tsis muaj seem, tus uas khaws tau tsawg kuj tsis tu ncua.”⚓

Titau thiab cov uas nrog nws ua haujlwm

¹⁶Ua Vajtswv tsaug uas pub qhov uas kub siab lug rau nej rau hauv Titau lub siab ib yam li kuv kub siab. ¹⁷Rau qhov nws tsis yog zoo siab txais tej lus uas peb thov nws xwb tiamsis nws tseem kub siab lug heev mus cuag nej tsis muaj leejtwg yuam nws. ¹⁸Peb xa tus kwvtij uas txhua pawg ntseeg qhuas qhov uas nws txawj piav txoj xov zoo nrog nws ua ke mus. ¹⁹Tsis tag li ntawd xwb cov pawg ntseeg tseem xaiv tsa tus no kom nrog peb taug kev thiab nrog peb koom ua tes haujlwm hauv txoj hmoov zoo uas peb tabtom ua no, ua kom Vajtswv tau koob meej thiab ua kom pom qhov uas peb kub siab lug. ²⁰Peb xav kom tsis muaj leejtwg thuam tau peb txog tej uas luag pub ntau kawg rau peb ceev thiab tu. ²¹Peb npaj siab ua ncaj ncees tsis yog ua tab meeg tus Tswv lub qhov muag xwb tiamsis tab meeg ib tsoom sawvdaws thiab. ²²Peb kuj txib peb tus kwvtij nrog ob tug mus thiab, yog tus uas peb twb muab sim ntau zaus lawm pom tias nws kub siab rau ntau qhov, thiab nimno nws yimhuab kub siab heev dua vim nws tso siab rau nej ntau heev. ²³Hais txog Titau, nws koom nrog kuv thiab pab kuv ua num rau nej. Hais txog ob tug kwvtij ntawd, cov pawg ntseeg txib ob tug mus thiab ob tug ua rau Khetos tau koob meej. ²⁴Vim li no nej cia li ua nej txojkev hlub thiab tej uas kuv khav txog nej tshwm rau lawv pom thiab ua tshwm rau cov pawg ntseeg pom.