2 Corinthians 9:5 Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brothers, that they would go before to you, and make up beforehand your bounty… As a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness. Dean Plumptre translates, "as a work of your bounty, and not of my claims upon your purses." The Revised Version renders, "and not of extortion," but putting the word "covetousness" in the margin. The Greek of the word "covetous," signifies "to have more," and it signifies (1) one who has more than enough; (2) one who desires more than enough of whatever kind; and (3) one greedy after money. But these do not precisely express the thought which is in the word as employed in Scripture. Covetousness is that exaggerated consideration for self which makes it possible, not only to neglect the interests of others, but even to injure others to secure a man's own ends. It is the desire to get and to hold for self, which shuts up a man's hand and heart so that he cannot give to others. We suggest for treatment - I. THE COVETOUS SPIRIT. Distinguish between covetous acts, and the covetous spirit which may be cherished in such a way as to utterly spoil acts which men may call acts of liberality. It is "covetousness," the self-seeking spirit, concerning which St. Paul is anxious, and this is a form of spiritual evil to which we are all more exposed than we think. The most painful exemplification of it is found in Judas Iscariot. Its subtle and mischievous workings in him can be clearly traced. The examples of Achan, Demas, etc., may also be given. "It is not necessary to describe at any length the sin which the Word of God brands under the name of 'covetousness,' and always associates with whatever is most offensive and most vile, 'the root of all evil,' by bad pre-eminence, 'idolatry.' We assume its existence. It will not be denied. Its spell is upon all. It is the abuse and perversion of a great law of man's nature - the law which teaches him to aspire heavenward and Godward; or of a law not less primary - the law of self-preservation. It is the ruling passion of nearly all men, of all tastes and times. 'Take heed, and beware of covetousness,' said the All-wise; and though his Word teems with such warnings against the sin, men have not been warned. At one time men call it 'the great queen regent of the world;' at another, 'the all-consuming cancer' of the Church; at another, her 'deadly upas;' at a fourth, 'a fatal opiate;' while others assure us that, at the best, man is only the heir of a vault or the lord of a grave. Yet fain are all such exposures. Though it creeps stealthily upon man like grey hairs or dropsy, the conquests of covetousness continue far wider than those of Alexander. The monarch and the menial are alike its slaves. The phlegmatic are covetous because this freezing sin specially suits their nature; the earnest, because it stimulates; the licentious, because it can pamper; the ambitious, because it can exalt; the stupid, because it compensates for dulness. Prosperity fans it, and adversity cannot quench it; men willingly bow down before it, as the tyrant summoned them of old to bow before another idol" (W.K. Tweedie, D.D.). II. ITS RELATION TO THE CHRISTIAN CHARACTER. It is always and necessarily injurious, and, wherever willingly cherished, not only imperilling the finer and more delicate features of character, but even destructive of it root and branch. For the very essence of Christian character is the love of Christ, which takes us out of ourselves, and absorbs us with concern for him; and the love of others, for Christ's sake, which sets us upon making their interests superior to our own. Covetousness may linger in the holes and caves of Mansoul while Immanuel is its King, but where covetousness reigns Christ cannot; or, to put it in other words, it is absolutely impossible to raise a Christian character upon a foundation of covetousness, and this spirit will but exert itself to daub and spoil the whole picture of the Christian graces. III. ITS HINDRANCE TO CHRISTIAN GIVING. 1. By preventing the reception of a due impression of cases of need. Covetousness hardens, deafens, and blinds. 2. By compelling its victim to form a false estimate of his ability. 3. By deceiving a man through the presentation of unworthy excuses. - R.T. Parallel Verses KJV: Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness. |
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