2 Corinthians 4:7

2 Corinthians 4:7 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
• New International Version (NIV)But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.

Context of 2 Corinthians 4:7

5For we are not proclaiming ourselves but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’s sake. 6For God who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of God’s glory in the face of Jesus Christ. Now we have this treasure in clay jars, so that this extraordinary power may be from God and not from us. 8We are afflicted in every way but not crushed; we are perplexed but not in despair; 9we are persecuted but not abandoned; we are struck down but not destroyed.

2 Corinthians 4:7 word by word

Ἔχομεν δὲ τὸν θησαυρὸν τοῦτον ἐν ὀστρακίνοις σκεύεσιν, ἵνα ἡ ὑπερβολὴ τῆς δυνάμεως ᾖ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ μὴ ἐξ ἡμῶν,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Butδέde · thenG1161
• we haveἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
• thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• treasureὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• treasureθησαυρόςthēsauros · treasureG2344
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• earthenὀστράκινοςostrakinos · clayG3749
• vesselsσκεῦοςskeuos · vesselG4632
• thatἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• the excellencyὑπερβολήhuperbolē · surpassingG5236
• of the powerδύναμιςdunamis · powerG1411
• may beεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• notμήmē · notG3361
• ofἐκek ex · out fromG1537
• usἐγώegō · I/weG1473

Cross-references for 2 Corinthians 4:7

• 2 Corinthians 4:1Therefore, since we have this ministry because we were shown mercy, we do not give up.
• 2 Corinthians 6:10as grieving, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet enriching many; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.
• Matthew 13:44“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure, buried in a field, that a man found and reburied. Then in his joy he goes and sells everything he has and buys that field.
• Ephesians 3:8This grace was given to me — the least of all the saints — to proclaim to the Gentiles the incalculable riches of Christ,
• Colossians 1:27God wanted to make known among the Gentiles the glorious wealth of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
• Colossians 2:3In him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
• 2 Corinthians 5:1For we know that if our earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal dwelling in the heavens, not made with hands.
• 2 Corinthians 10:10For it is said, “His letters are weighty and powerful, but his physical presence is weak and his public speaking amounts to nothing.”
• Judges 7:13When Gideon arrived, there was a man telling his friend about a dream. He said, “Listen, I had a dream: a loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp, struck a tent, and it fell. The loaf turned the tent upside down so that it collapsed.”
• Lamentations 4:2Zion’s precious children — once worth their weight in pure gold — how they are regarded as clay jars, the work of a potter’s hands!
• 1 Corinthians 1:28God has chosen what is insignificant and despised in the world — what is viewed as nothing — to bring to nothing what is viewed as something,
• 1 Corinthians 4:9For I think God has displayed us, the apostles, in last place, like men condemned to die: We have become a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to people.
• Galatians 4:13you know that previously I preached the gospel to you because of a weakness of the flesh.
• 2 Timothy 2:20Now in a large house there are not only gold and silver vessels, but also those of wood and clay; some for honorable use and some for dishonorable.
• 2 Corinthians 3:5It is not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God.
• 2 Corinthians 12:7especially because of the extraordinary revelations. Therefore, so that I would not exalt myself, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to torment me so that I would not exalt myself.

Commentaries on 2 Corinthians 4:7

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 7But we have this treasure in earthen vessels - The original, , signifies, more literally, vessels made of shells, which are very brittle; and as the shell is the outward part of a fish, it is very fit, as Dr. Hammond observes, to resemble our bodies in which our souls dwell. The Platonists make two bodies of a man: the one they call , the chariot of the soul; the other, that which we see and touch; and this they call which is the same to us as the shell…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 7But we have this treasure - The treasure of the gospel; the rich and invaluable truths which they were called to preach to others. The word “treasure” is applied to those truths on account of their inestimable worth. Paul in the previous verses had spoken of the gospel, the knowledge of Jesus Christ, as full of glory, and infinitely precious. This rich blessing had been committed to him and his fellow-laborers, to dispense it to others, and to diffuse it…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7The message of good news about Jesus is like a great treasure, but it is kept in fragile clay jars (our weak bodies). This understanding gives purpose to suffering (4:8–5:10).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 77. "Lest any should say, How then is it that we continue to enjoy such unspeakable glory in a mortal body? Paul replies, this very fact is one of the most marvellous proofs of God's power, that an earthen vessel could bear such splendor and keep such a treasure" [Chrysostom, Homilies, 8.496, A]. The treasure or "the light of the knowledge of the glory of God." The fragile "earthen vessel" is the body, the "outward man" (2Co 4:16; compare 2Co 4:10), liable…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Corinthians 4:7

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Man
• Minister, Christian
• Treasure

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Earthen Vessels
• Corinthians, Second Epistle to the
• Craftiness
• Despair
• Dishonesty
• Distress
• Light
• Temporal

Commentaries on 2 Corinthians 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings