Romans 15:26

Saints - Men and women of God.

For it hath pleased them of Macedonia - That is, they have done it "cheerfully" and "voluntarily." See their liberality and cheerfulness commended by the apostle in 2 Corinthians 8:1-6; 2 Corinthians 9:2. Paul had been at much pains to obtain this collection, but still they did it freely; see 2 Corinthians 9:4-7. It was with reference to this collection that he directed them to lay by for this purpose as God had prospered them on the first day of the week; 1 Corinthians 16:1.

Of Macedonia - That is, the Christians in Macedonia - those who had been Gentiles, and who had been converted to the Christian religion; Romans 15:27. Macedonia was a country of Greece, bounded north by Thrace, south by Thessaly, west by Epirus, and east by the AEgean sea. It was an extensive region, and was the kingdom of Philip, and his son Alexander the Great. Its capital was Philippi, at which place Paul planted a church. A church was also established at Thessalonica, another city of that country; Acts 16:9, etc.; compare Acts 18:5; Acts 19:21; 2 Corinthians 7:5; 1 Thessalonians 1:1, 1 Thessalonians 1:7-8; 1 Thessalonians 4:10.

And Achaia - Achaia in the largest sense comprehended "all" ancient Greece. Achaia Proper, however, was a province of Greece embracing the western part of the Peloponnesus, of which Corinth was the capital; see the note at Acts 18:12. This place is mentioned as having been concerned in this collection in 2 Corinthians 9:2.

The poor saints ... - The Christians who were in Judea were exposed to special trials. They were condemned by the sanhedrin, opposed by the rulers, and persecuted by the people; see Acts 8:1, etc.; Acts 12:1, etc. Paul sought not only to relieve them by this contribution, but also to promote fellow-feeling between them and the Gentile Christians. And "this" circumstance would tend much to enforce what he had been urging in Romans 14; 15 on the duty of kind feeling between the Jewish and Gentile converts to Christianity. Nothing tends so much to wear off prejudice, and to prevent unkind feeling in regard to others, as to set about some purpose "to do them good," or to unite "with" them in doing good.

15:26 The poor of the saints that are in Jerusalem - It can by no means be inferred from this expression, that the community of goods among the Christians was then ceased. All that can be gathered from it is, that in this time of extreme dearth, Acts 11:28 ,29, some of the church in Jerusalem were in want;the rest being barely able to subsist themselves, but not to supply the necessities of their brethren.