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Was Paul a Thief?

By March 1, 2003November 9th, 2022No Comments

Q.

Please explain 2 Corinthians 11:8, where Paul said that he robbed churches. I thought thievery is sin.

A.
In this portion of his second letter to the Corinthian believers, the apostle Paul was defending his apostleship and ministry. He was afraid that Satan was deceiving them into discrediting the gospel and the one who was ministering the gospel to them, namely himself.

Studying the word “robbed” reveals that the apostle was not robbing in the sense of stealing. Rather, he was pointing out to the believers in Corinth that while they hadn’t given him anything in support, other believers elsewhere had. Because of the sacrificial generosity of those other believers, Paul had in essence accepted from them more than their share, more than they had to give, enabling him not to depend on the Corinthian believers. Further, Paul worked with his own calloused hands to support himself. No one could accuse him of being greedy.

This article appeared in the “Q & A” column of the Baptist Bulletin (March 2003) by Norman A. Olson. 

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