2 Corinthians 9:8 (NIV) - Commentary

If we are secure in his love and know that he undertakes to watch over our lives, then all anxiety for the future will be gone (Siede 1978:728).

God's abounding grace extends beyond the mere replenishment of resources. He is powerful not only to replace resources spent in Christian service but also to multiply them to the point that at all times and in all things we have all that we need (v. 8).

Autarkeia ("all that is needed") means to be sufficient in oneself or self-supporting. Cynics and Stoics aimed at the kind of self-sufficiency that permitted indifference to other people and to circumstances. To a certain extent Paul aligns himself with this sentiment. Like the Stoic, the Christian aspires to be free from dependence on material possessions--or, as Paul puts it, "to be content whatever the circumstances" (Phil 4:11).

To learn to be content with very little requires that one want very little: "If we have food and clothing, we will be content" (1 Tim 6:8). And the less one wants, the greater the means for relieving the needs of others (Plummer 1915:260).

This is a very difficult notion for Westerners today, for the drive in our world too often is to get-get-get and buy-buy-buy. An attitude of contentment like Paul's presupposes trust and confidence in God to provide for our basic needs.

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