2 Corinthians 8:5

‘And this, not as we had hoped, but first they gave their own selves to the Lord, and to us through the will of God.'

And in doing this they not only fulfilled Paul's hopes but went further. They first ‘gave themselves to the Lord and to us', and did it ‘through the will of God'. Paul's Apostleship was ‘through the will of God' (2 Corinthians 1:1), and the commitment of these men and women was of equal significance. It was God at work. And before handing over their gift they handed themselves over to the Lord, revealing that commitment practically by putting themselves at Paul's service as the one who could guide them in the Lord. It is clear that Paul remembered vividly their dedication and their loyalty, and wants the point to come over to the Corinthians.