²² And he who had the two talents came and said, Lord, you gave into my care two talents: see, I have got two more.

¹⁸ And another came, saying, Your pound has made five pounds.

¹⁹ And he said, You will be ruler over five towns.

⁶ And having different qualities by reason of the grace given to us, such as the quality of a prophet, let it be made use of in relation to the measure of our faith;

⁷ Or the position of a Deacon of the church, let a man give himself to it; or he who has the power of teaching, let him make use of it;

⁸ He who has the power of comforting, let him do so; he who gives, let him give freely; he who has the power of ruling, let him do it with a serious mind; he who has mercy on others, let it be with joy.

¹ And now we give you news, brothers, about the grace of God which has been given to the churches of Macedonia;

² How while they were undergoing every sort of trouble, and were in the greatest need, they took all the greater joy in being able to give freely to the needs of others.

³ For I give them witness, that as they were able, and even more than they were able, they gave from the impulse of their hearts,

⁷ And that as you are full of every good thing, of faith, of the word, of knowledge, of a ready mind, and of love to us, so you may be full of this grace in the same way.

⁸ I am not giving you an order, but using the ready mind of others as a test of the quality of your love.

¹² For if there is a ready mind, a man will have God's approval in the measure of what he has, and not of what he has not.