2Co 2 Corinthians, chapter Second Epistle to the Corinthians, chapter 4
For this reason, since we have received this ministry by the mercy of God, we do not become discouraged.
Instead, we have rejected secret and shameful practices. We do not conduct ourselves with deceit, nor do we distort the word of God. Rather, by openly setting forth the truth, we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing.
In their case, the god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the visible image of God.
For we do not proclaim ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for the sake of Jesus.
For God, who said, “Light shall shine out of darkness,”* is the One who has shone in our hearts, granting us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God as it is revealed in the face of Jesus Christ.
Divine Treasure in Earthen Vessels
But we possess this priceless treasure in fragile, earthly containers, so that the extraordinary greatness of the power may be clearly seen as coming from God and not from us.
We are pressed on every side, yet not crushed; confused, yet not driven to despair;
persecuted, yet not abandoned; struck down, yet not destroyed.
We continually carry in our bodies the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be displayed in our bodies.
For we who live are constantly being handed over to death for the sake of Jesus, so that His life may also be revealed in our mortal flesh.
So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
The Spirit of Faith
But having the same Spirit of faith, in accordance with what is written, “I believed, therefore I spoke,”* we also believe, and for that reason we also speak,
knowing that the One who raised the Lord Jesus will also raise us with Jesus and will present us together with you.
For all these things are for your benefit, so that grace, spreading to an ever-increasing number of people, may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.
Therefore, we do not lose heart. Even though our outer man is wasting away, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.
For our present affliction is light and momentary, yet it is producing for us an eternal weight of glory that surpasses all comparison,
while we fix our attention not on what can be seen, but on what cannot be seen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Notes
6 Quoted from Gen. 1:3
13 Quoted from Ps. 116:10