2 Corinthians 9

     9:1-5.  Paul wants to avoid being discredited for his boasting about them, and also to save them the embarrassment of being unprepared.

     9:6.  This is a spiritual principle as well.  We reap what we sow, both in this world and in heaven.

     9:7.  One should never exceed one’s generosity.  God will not be pleased, nor will there be joy in the heart in giving a grudging gift.

     9:9-11.  He scattered abroad; this is from Ps.112:9, and refers to the righteous man of that psalm.  It is a promise to the righteous that God, the supplier of all the seeds of righteousness, will provide an imperishable increase to the sower (10, 11).  I think we should see Christ as the righteous man of Ps.112, but that only adds to our assurance that the promise is for us as well.

     9:12-15.  Proper Christian charity produces supply for the need, thanksgiving to God, love and unity between diverse members of Christ’s body, and prayers for one another because of the evidence of God’s grace.  “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!”  (Cf. Ro.8:32.)