2 Corinthians 9:8

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things, at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.

Berean Standard Bible

Follow its threads on the canvas →

Study note

Setting — Paul to the Corinthian congregation, mid-argument for the Jerusalem collection, having just affirmed that God loves a cheerful giver (9:7).

The words — περισσεῦσαι (perisseusai), "to make abound," is the verb of the result clause; it carries the sense of overflowing beyond sufficiency, not merely meeting a need.

The thread — Paul uses the same verb stem in Philippians 4:18, where he tells the Philippians he has "all I need and more." Ephesians 3:20 echoes the divine capacity ("able to do immeasurably more"), and Proverbs 10:22 pairs enrichment with the absence of sorrow.

Why it lands — The verse removes the arithmetic of scarcity from the act of giving: God's ability to provide is the ground, not your own ledger. It asks the reader to stop treating generosity as a subtraction from a fixed sum and start treating it as participation in an overflow.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Greek words

King James Version

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:

Cross-references

Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us,
Philippians 4:18 I have all I need and more, now that I have received your gifts from Epaphroditus. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.
Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the LORD enriches, and He adds no sorrow to it.
Malachi 3:10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the LORD of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure.
Haggai 2:8 The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine, declares the LORD of Hosts.
Proverbs 28:27 Whoever gives to the poor will not be in need, but he who hides his eyes will receive many curses.
Psalms 84:11 For the LORD God is a sun and a shield; the LORD gives grace and glory; He withholds no good thing from those who walk with integrity.
Proverbs 3:9 Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your crops;
Titus 3:14 And our people must also learn to devote themselves to good works in order to meet the pressing needs of others, so that they will not be unfruitful.
2 Corinthians 8:7 But just as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness, and in the love we inspired in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.