(8-12) Prospects of eternal glory keep believers from fainting under troubles. That which the eyes of the flesh are capable of perceiving is not worthy of a soul capable of possessing God. 4 Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. Instead of ουκ εκκακουμεν, we faint not, ουκ εγκακουμεν, we act not wickedly, is the reading of ADFG, and some others. This also belongs to wrestlers, where he that throws the other first is conqueror. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18: Therefore we do not lose heart. Cast down, but not destroyed. New Covenant Ministry. If there be a veil on the Gospel, it is only to the wilfully blind; and if any man's heart be veiled that hears this Gospel, it is a proof that he is among the lost, απολλυμενοι, those who are fully under the power of sin; who have given up themselves to work wickedness; persons who are mere heathens, or live like such, and yet such as Jesus Christ came to seek and save; for the word does not necessarily imply those that will perish eternally, but is a common epithet to point out a man without the Gospel and without God in the world. As light was the beginning of the first creation; so, in the new creation, the light of the Spirit is his first work upon the soul. Satan, it is true, has said that the kingdoms of the world and their glory are his, and that he gives them to whomsoever he will; Matthew 4:8, Matthew 4:9. Paul himself says, “We have renounced the shameful things that one hides” (2 Cor. On the other hand, the καθ ' ὑπερβολην εις ὑπερβολην, which we render far more exceeding, is infinitely emphatical, and cannot be fully expressed by any translation. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. And so Hesychius: καταβαλει, νικησει, ῥιψει, to cast down is to overcome, to throw. See Parkhurst, sub voce ὑπερβολη . Thus he caused the light to shine out of darkness. For our light affliction, etc. Self was not the matter or the end of the apostles' preaching; they preached Christ as Jesus, the Saviour and Deliverer, who saves to the uttermost all that come to God through him. The Second Epistle to the Corinthians, commonly referred to as Second Corinthians or in writing 2 Corinthians, is a Pauline epistle of the New Testament of the Christian Bible.The epistle is attributed to Paul the Apostle and a co-author named Timothy, and is addressed to the church in Corinth and Christians in the surrounding province of Achaea, in modern-day Greece. See on which corrupt, 2 Corinthians 2:17. The prospect of eternal life and happiness was their support and comfort. 2 For v if I cause you pain , who is there to make me glad but the one whom I have pained ? But transparency requires that we re… "The Adam Clarke Commentary". Hath shined in our hearts - He has given our hearts the glorious light of the Gospel, as he has given the world the glorious light of the sun. Caesar objected, and said, There are comely persons who have made great progress in the study of the law. Bibliography InformationClarke, Adam. This is a magnitude excessively exceeding." 2 Corinthians 4:2 But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. And there is this vast difference between them; unseen things are eternal, seen things but temporal, or temporary only. In chapter 4 Paul returns to the theme of transparency, as we noted in our discussion of 2 Corinthians 1:12–23. It is a good antidote against the fear of death to find, as the body grows old and decays, the soul grows young and is invigorated. St. Chrysostom, speaking of this difference, observes that the vessels once baked in the kiln, if broken, are incapable of being restored, δια την εκ τουπυρος εγγινομενην αυτοις ἁπαξ αντιτυπιαν, because of the hardness once gotten by fire; whereas the others are of clay unbaken, if they be spoiled ῥᾳδιωϚπρος το δευτερον επανελθῃ σχημα, they may easily, by the skill of the potter, be restored to some second form. 2 But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. Notice, also, that Paul uses ho theos twice (once in the genitive case) in 2 Corinthians 4:4. (2 Corinthians 4:8-9) "We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body." 2 Corinthians 4:7 Parallel Verses [⇓ See commentary ⇓] 2 Corinthians 4:7, NIV: "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." O world to come, in exchange for the present! There are unseen things, as well as things that are seen. This is one characteristic of Divine truth: even every man's conscience will acknowledge it, though it speak decidedly against his own practices. Nothing which is of a perishable nature can be the chief good of a being that was made for eternity! Christ by his gospel makes a glorious discovery to the minds of men. And farther we proclaim this Jesus the Messiah to be the Lord, ὁ Κυριος, the great Ruler who has all power in heaven and earth; who made and governs the world; and who can save to the uttermost all that come to God through him. In this and the three following verses the apostle makes allusion to the contests at those games; and the terms which he employs in these verses cannot be understood but in reference to those agonistical exercises to which he alludes. - Mr. Blackwall, in his sacred classics, has well illustrated this passage. I was raised a christian, and have recently broken free of religious lies and deceit . She returned to her father, and persuaded him to have all the wine put into silver vessels; but the wine turned acid; and when the emperor heard it he inquired of his daughter who it was that had given her that advice? Question: "What does it mean that we have treasures in jars of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7)?" These verses (2 Corinthians 4:1-6) ... Used of adulterating gold, wine, etc. 2 Corinthians 4:3-6 so that if any see not the truth of it, it must be owing. The light and salvation of God in the soul of man is a heavenly treasure in a very mean casket. 1832. 2 Corinthians 4:6 “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness, ”made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God’s glory displayed in the face of Christ. That is, they have shut their eyes against the light, and their blindness and stupor are the consequence. By the outward man and the inward man St. Paul shows that he was no materialist: he believed that we have both a body and a soul; and so far was he from supposing that when the body dies the whole man is decomposed, and continues so to the resurrection, that he asserts that the decays of the one lead to the invigorating of the other; and that the very decomposition of the body itself leaves the soul in the state of renewed youth. For we preach not ourselves - We neither proclaim our own wisdom nor power; we have nothing but what we have received; we do not wish to establish our own authority, nor to procure our own emolument. Now all this is spoken of the same people, in the same circumstances of wilful rebellion and obstinate unbelief; and the great God of heaven and earth is he who judicially blinds their eyes; makes their hearts fat, i.e. We are troubled on every side - We have already seen, in the notes on the ninth chapter of the preceding epistle, that St. Paul has made several allusions to those public games which were celebrated every fifth year at the Isthmus of Corinth; and those games have been in that place particularly described. We should manifest truth in every part of our life, making honest and diligent use of God's gracious gifts without craftiness. The Platonists make two bodies of a man: the one they call οξημα ψυχης, the chariot of the soul; the other, that which we see and touch; and this they call οστρακινον which is the same to us as the shell is to the fish. The good therefore that is done is so evidently from the power of God, that none can pretend to share the glory with him. 1 Now, it’s because of God’s mercy that we have been entrusted with the privilege of this new covenant ministry. (2 Corinthians 4:10) "Therefore we do not lose heart. Copyright StatementThese files are public domain. Cast down, but not destroyed - Καταβαλλομενοι αλλ 'ουκ απολλυμενοι . 2 Corinthians 4 is the fourth chapter of the Second Epistle to the Corinthians in the New Testament of the Christian Bible.It is authored by Paul the Apostle and Timothy (2 Corinthians 1:1) in Macedonia in 55–56 CE. Such was the Redeemer preached by St. Paul. That the life also of Jesus might be made manifest - That in our preservation, the success of our ministry, and the miracles we work, we might be able to give the fullest demonstration that Jesus is risen again from the dead; and that we are strengthened by him to do all these mighty works. But by manifestation of the truth - An open, explicit acknowledgment of what we know to be the truth - what we are assured is the Gospel of Jesus; concealing nothing; blunting the edge of no truth; explaining spiritual things, not in the words of man's wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit of God. The first thing to note is the several usages of the noun theos to refer to the same referent, specifically the Father. Wakefield thinks it the genuine reading; it certainly makes a very good sense with what goes before and what follows. The vile doctrine of materialism is not apostolic. - We apostles are in continual danger, and live a dying life; while you who have received this Gospel from us are in no danger. Nor is he satisfied with this, but he adds another word, and doubles it, saying, καθ 'ὑπερβολην εις ὑπερβολην . And then, the being not destroyed signifies that, although they were thrown down-cast into troubles and difficulties, yet they rose again, and surmounted them all. And as to the expression this world, αιωνος τουτου, we are not to imagine that it necessarily means wicked men, or a wicked age; for it is frequently used to express the whole mundane system, and all that is called time: Whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither εν τουτῳ τῳ αιωνι, in This World, nor in the world to come; Matthew 12:32. The hope of this resurrection will encourage in a suffering day, and set us above the fear of death. that by the God of this world the supreme Being is meant, who in his judgment gave over the minds of the unbelieving Jews to spiritual darkness, so that destruction came upon them to the uttermost. 4:2). She answered, They are earthen vessels. The apostles had no base and wicked designs, covered with fair and specious pretences. And we will not quit or faint with weariness. Not walking in craftiness - Πανουργιᾳ· In subtlety and clever cunning, as the false teachers did, who were accomplished fellows, and capable of any thing.