but let us not lose heart in doing good; for in due time, if we do not faint, we shall reap.
Paul has just laid down the law of sowing and reaping, and now turns it into an appeal to keep going. The pressure he addresses is not open sin but slow results — the quiet exhaustion of doing good and seeing nothing come of it.
The law that stands behind the appeal
One writer places this appeal inside God's government of His people in this life. There, what we sow decides what we gather:
The Apostle now adds a solemn warning. He pictures God's government in our path through this world as sowing and reaping. Let us not fool ourselves. We are Christians by the grace of God, but that does not mean we escape the results of our folly in this life. "God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap." On the one hand, if we act in the flesh, we shall suffer. God's mercy may lessen that suffering when we judge the failure. On the other hand, to act in the Spirit will carry its bright reward not only down here but in the life everlasting.
Why the heart gives out
Weariness comes from impatience with God's timing. We check for growth long before anything could have grown:
But we must not weary in the right path, for God is faithful, and if we persevere, we shall reap in His own time. We often want to see the fruit of our labours at once, like someone who turns up the earth to see if the seed is springing. But if the work is real, it is God's work. We must wait until He finishes it. Then we shall see fruit ripened to match the perfection of His workmanship.
Two words, two ways of quitting
The verse uses two different Greek words, and one writer traces both. The first word, en-kakeo, lies behind "be weary." It means losing heart. It bites hardest when someone has taken advantage of your kindness:
"Let us not be weary in well doing" (an older translation), or, as J. N. Darby renders it, "Let us not lose heart in doing good." It is so easy to lose heart in doing good. That poor soul you helped the other day turned out to be a crook, not in need at all. So you vowed nobody would fool you so easily again. No, no; let us not be discouraged; let us not give in to evil. Next time you may turn away somebody really in need.
The second word pictures something different — not a decision to stop, but a gradual loss of tension:
Near the end of this verse older translations have the word "faint" (the ESV has "give up"). It is a completely different word from en-kakeo. The word used here is ek-luo, "I loose," or "I unloose" — like a bowstring being let go slack.
When the reaping comes
The promise is not that we will see returns soon, but that a fixed season is coming — and it arrives with Christ:
This should encourage the heart of the believer in the middle of all the trials of this present life. Often now we have to put a foot on the neck of something we love. Often we have to cut away what our hearts cling to. But the path will soon end in joy and glory, where the divine life in us can grow with nothing to spoil it. We must not let our hands drop, however much the heart urges it. Keep on with every good work until the Lord Jesus comes. The "due season" is not far off; then joy will crown the servant's work. We need to remind each other of this now. Serving Christ in these last days is often very discouraging, and the worker is likely to faint on the road or give up in despair. Take courage — the Lord is near.
What counts as well-doing
The sowing image is not limited to preaching or obvious religious work. It stretches across everything a believer does, and it names where the reaping happens:
The principle of sowing is widened in verses 9 and 10 to include our whole conduct of life. Well-doing of whatever sort is sowing pure seed. May we never become weary in doing it! The season of final reaping is close at hand — the Judgment Seat of Christ (Rom. 14:10; 2 Cor. 5:10). There is no reason to faint or be discouraged, however, and we shall not faint if Christ is the Object before our souls. Opportunities for doing good are abundant if we keep our eyes open, and we are to exclude no one from our thoughtfulness and care.
Summary
- Sowing. Sow in the Spirit and the reward comes, here and in the life to come; God's government makes the harvest as certain as the seed.
- Waiting. Weariness comes from digging up the seed to inspect it, instead of leaving the work to ripen at God's pace.
- Two failures. One word warns against caving in and giving up; the other pictures a bowstring gone slack — strength quietly leaking away.
- One season. The reaping has a set time: it comes with Christ, and it is near.
- One reach. Well-doing covers the whole of life, excludes no one, and keeps going while Christ stays before the soul.