2 Corinthians 4:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.

NIV: We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.

NASB: always carrying around in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.

CSB: We always carry the death of Jesus in our body, so that the life of Jesus may also be displayed in our body.

NLT: Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.

KJV: Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.

NKJV: always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.

Scripture explains clearly that those who carry the gospel are just fragile vessels that contain a powerful truth. As in Paul's case, it is God's power, not their own, that keeps them going in the mission to take the gospel to the world.

They have been afflicted, perplexed, persecuted, and struck down, but they have never been crushed, in total despair, abandoned, or destroyed. They continue to carry the gospel to all who will hear. God allowed their physical bodies to continue to reflect the death of Jesus in His physical, earthly body that was crushed to pay for the sin of humanity. However, the bodies of Paul and his co-workers had been spared from being crushed (2 Corinthians 4:8) to show the life and power of Jesus in them, as well.

Paul's main point is that he and his friends did not proclaim themselves or carry the message in their own power. They proclaimed Christ in their weakness and suffering to show His power in and through them.

Second Corinthians 4:7–18 explains that the priceless treasure of knowing God's glory through faith in Christ is kept in the fragile containers of human beings. In this case, this refers to Paul and his co-workers who preach the gospel. Their suffering is enormous, but God keeps them from being wiped out. They don't quit because even after they die, they know they will be resurrected, as Christ was. Then they will spend eternity with Him in a glory that will far outweigh and outlast the comparatively lightweight and momentary suffering of this life.

Paul insists that he and his co-workers for Christ would never act in a way that is disgraceful or dishonest, though he knows some are blinded by Satan from believing their message about Jesus. They cannot see the light of knowing Christ as God. That knowledge is a priceless treasure stored in the fragile containers of Paul and his friends. No matter how difficult their suffering in this work, Paul refuses to quit. He is confident that he will be resurrected after his death and then all his pain on this side of eternity won't even be worth comparing with the glory there.

Second Corinthians 4 follows Paul's teaching in the previous chapter about the transformation that happens for those who see God's glory in Christ. Some are blinded to it by sin and by the god of this world. Paul knows that he and his co-workers are fragile containers for the priceless message of God's grace through faith in Jesus. They won't quit, though, because God sustains them and will eventually resurrect them. Once in eternity, all the suffering in this life won't be worth comparing with sharing God's glory forever. Chapter 5 expands on the idea that believers in Christ look forward to something much better than this life.

Second Corinthians returns to similar themes as those Paul mentioned in his first letter to this church. Paul is glad to hear that the church in Corinth has heeded his advice. At the same time, it is necessary for Paul to counter criticisms about his personality and legitimacy. Most of this text involves that subject. The fifth chapter, in contrast, contains comforting words which Christians have quoted often in times of hardship. Paul also details his expectations that the church in Corinth will make good on their promise to contribute to the needs of suffering believers in Jerusalem.

Accessed 5/3/2024 10:35:29 AM