2 Corinthians 4

1So, since God in His mercy has given us this work, we do not give up.

2Instead, we have given up shameful, secret ways. We do not use tricks, and we do not twist the word of God. By clearly telling the truth, we let everyone's conscience judge us in the sight of God.

3And even if our good news is hidden, it is hidden to those who are being lost.

4Satan, the god of this evil world, has blinded unbelievers! He blocks them from seeing the light of the good news. They cannot see the glorious light of Christ. And Christ shows us exactly what God is like!

5For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake.

6God commanded long ago: Let light shine out of darkness! Now He has made His bright light shine inside our hearts. He lets us see the radiant glory of God. We see that dazzling glory shining in the face of Jesus Christ!

7But we have this treasure in clay jars, to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.

8Troubles push against us from every side, but we are not crushed! We are confused, but we never give up in despair.

9Enemies hunt us down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we are never destroyed!

10We face death daily in our physical bodies, just like Jesus did. We endure this so the life of Jesus will shine in our bodies!

11Every day we risk our lives for the sake of Jesus. This shows His supernatural life inside our dying human bodies.

12So death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.

13The Scripture says: I believed, and so I spoke. With that same spirit of faith, we also believe, and so we speak,

14because we know that the One who raised the Lord Jesus from death will also raise us with Jesus. He will bring us, together with you, into His presence.

15All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow, to the glory of God.

16That is why we never give up! Our physical bodies are wearing out and growing weaker. Yet inside, God renews our spirit brand new every single day!

17Our troubles right now are small and last only a short moment. These small troubles produce for us a glory that outweighs everything! That glorious reward will last forever and ever.

18So we do not focus on visible things we can see with our eyes. We focus our eyes on invisible things we cannot see! Earthly things quickly pass away, but heavenly things last forever.