2 Corinthians
Chapter 4
Overview
Paul explains why he refuses to lose heart, even when his work brings suffering. He speaks to the Christians in Corinth about honest teaching, the good news about Jesus, and the power that belongs to God rather than to fragile human messengers. His image is simple: treasure carried in breakable clay jars. The chapter moves from hardship and danger to trust, endurance, and hope beyond death. What can be seen is temporary, Paul says, while the unseen work of God lasts forever.
1Therefore, since God has shown us mercy by giving us this work to do, we do not lose heart.
2Instead, we have rejected secret and shameful practices. We do not act dishonestly or twist God’s message. We state the truth openly, and in God’s presence we let every person’s conscience judge whether we are trustworthy.
3Even if the good news we announce is hidden, it is hidden among those who are headed for destruction.
4The god who rules this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe. As a result, they cannot see the light of the good news about the glory of the Messiah, who shows us what God is like.
5We are not proclaiming ourselves. We proclaim Jesus the Messiah as Lord, and we present ourselves as your servants because of Jesus.
6The God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts. He has given us the light of knowing his glory as it is seen in the face of the Messiah.
7But we carry this treasure in fragile clay jars—our human lives—so that it will be clear that this extraordinary power comes from God, not from us.
8We are pressured from every side, but not crushed. We are confused, but not driven to despair.
9We are hunted down, but not abandoned. We are knocked down, but not destroyed.
10We always carry in our bodies the death that Jesus suffered, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed through our bodies.
11Although we are alive, we are constantly being handed over to death because of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed through our mortal bodies.
12So death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
13We have the same spirit of trust described in the words, “I believed, and therefore I spoke.” We also believe, and therefore we speak.
14We know that the God who raised Jesus from death will also raise us with Jesus and bring us into his presence together with you.
15Everything we endure is for your benefit. As God’s generous kindness reaches more and more people, their overflowing thanks will bring honor to God.
16Therefore, we do not lose heart. Even though our outward selves are wearing away, our inner selves are being renewed day after day.
17These troubles are light and brief compared with what they are producing for us: an eternal weight of glory far beyond all measure.
18We focus not on what can be seen, but on what cannot be seen. What can be seen lasts only for a while, but what cannot be seen lasts forever.