Charles Ellicott Commentary 1 Corinthians 16:3

"And when I arrive, whomsoever ye shall approve, them will I send with letters to carry your bounty unto Jerusalem:" — 1 Corinthians 16:3 (ASV)

Whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters.—Better, whomsoever you shall approve, them I will send with letters to bring your gifts to Jerusalem. The Apostle had not finally decided whether he would take the gift himself or send it by messengers, whom he would accredit with letters, to the Church at Jerusalem.

He would probably be influenced by the amount collected and by the urgency, or lack thereof, of the needs of those at Jerusalem at the time. The Apostle was, in one sense, the humblest of men; but he valued highly the dignity of his apostolic office. If only a very small sum were ready for the Church at Jerusalem, he would have felt it to be beneath the dignity of his office, though not of himself, to be the bearer of such an offering.

The course finally adopted was that the Apostle went himself, and the selected brethren with him (Acts 21:15).