2 Corinthians 4:7-10

2 Corinthians 4:7-10

[7] But  we have  treasure  in  earthen  vessels,  that  the excellency  of the power  of God,  and  not  of  [8] We are troubled  on  every side,  yet  not  distressed;  we are perplexed,  but  not  in despair;  [9] Persecuted,  but  not  forsaken;  cast down,  but  not  destroyed;  [10] Always  bearing about  in  the body  the dying  Jesus,  that  the life  also  of Jesus  might be made manifest  in  body. 

What does 2 Corinthians 4:7-10 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

Paul proceeded to explain further the nature of ministry under the New Covenant so his readers would understand his ministry and theirs better. The nature of Christianity is paradoxical. Second Corinthians explains more of these paradoxes than any other New Testament book.
In writing this epistle Paul wanted his readers to realize that his ministry was not faulty, as his critics charged, but that it was solidly within the will of God. To do this he described his own ministry as a projection or extension of Jesus" ministry. As Jesus had died and been raised, Paul was similarly dying, but he was also experiencing the benefits of resurrection. He used the death and resurrection of Jesus metaphorically to describe his own ministry. This becomes most evident in 2 Corinthians 4:7-15, but also in 2 Corinthians 5:14-21 and in chapters8-9 where the metaphor describes the ministry of giving. [1]