2 Corinthians 4:4

The latter method has been adopted by Marcion, by reading the passage which follows, "in whom the God of this world," as if it described the Creator as the God of this world, in order that he may, by these words, imply that there is another God for the other world.

Now the countenance (or person ) of the Lord here is Christ. Wherefore the apostle said above: Christ, who is the image of God." Since Christ, then, is the person of the Creator, who said, "Let there be light," it follows that Christ and the apostles, and the gospel, and the veil, and Moses-nay, the whole of the dispensations-belong to the God who is the Creator of this world, according to the testimony of the clause (above adverted to), and certainly not to him who never said, "Let there be light.

Who then is he? Undoubtedly he who has raised up "children of disobedience" against the Creator Himself ever since he took possession of that "air" of His; even as the prophet makes him say: "I will set my throne above the stars; ... I will go up above the clouds; I will be like the Most High." This must mean the devil, whom in another passage (since such will they there have the apostle's meaning to be) we shall recognize in the appellation the god of this world. For he has filled the whole world with the lying pretence of his own divinity.

For if it is a Christian who, after wandering far from his Father, squanders, by living heathenishly, the "substance" received from God his Father,-(the substance), of course, of baptism-(the substance), of course, of the Holy Spirit, and (in consequence) of eternal hope; if, stripped of his mental "goods," he has even handed his service over to the prince of the world -who else but the devil?-and by him being appointed over the business of "feeding swine"-of tending unclean spirits, to wit-has recovered his senses so as to return to his Father,-the result will be, that, not adulterers and fornicators, but idolaters, and blasphemers, and renegades, and every class of apostates, will by this parable make satisfaction to the Father; and in this way (it may) rather (be said that) the whole "substance" of the sacrament is most truly wasted away.

And the Image, as of one substance with him, and because he is of the Father, and not the Father of him. For this is of the nature of an image, to be the reproduction of its archetype and of that whose name it bears; only that there is more here. For in ordinary language an image is a motionless representation of that which has motion, but in this case it is the living reproduction of the living one and is more exactly like than was Seth to Adam or any son to his father.

Paul is saying that unbelief is limited to this world, because in the next life the truth will be plain to everyone.

What is the face of God like? As his image, certainly, for as the apostle says, the image of the Father is the Son. With his image, therefore, may he shine upon us, that is, may he shine his image, the Son, upon us in order that he himself may shine upon us, for the light of the Father is the light of the Son. He who sees the Father sees also the Son, and he who sees the Son sees also the Father. Where there is no diversity between glory and glory, there glory is one and the same.

Every unbeliever is of this world. No one who has overcome it and been deemed worthy of the world to come is blinded in his understanding, for his eyes have been enlightened.

When, therefore, the number of men had begun to increase, God in His forethought, lest the devil, to whom from the beginning He had given power over the earth, should by his subtilty either corrupt or destroy men, as he had done at first, sent angels for the protection and improvement of the human race; and inasmuch as He had given these a free will, He enjoined them above all things not to defile themselves with contamination from the earth, and thus lose the dignity of their heavenly nature. He plainly prohibited them from doing that which He knew that they would do, that they might entertain no hope of pardon. Therefore, while they abode among men, that most deceitful ruler of the earth, by his very association, gradually enticed them to vices, and polluted them by intercourse with women. Then, not being admitted into heaven on account of the sins into which they had plunged themselves, they fell to the earth. Thus from angels the devil makes them to become his satellites and attendants. But they who were born from these, because they were neither angels nor men, but bearing a kind of mixed nature, were not admitted into hell, as their fathers were not into heaven. Thus there came to be two kinds of demons; one of heaven, the other of the earth. The latter are the wicked spirits, the authors of all the evils which are done, and the same devil is their prince. Therefore in this union of heaven and earth, the image of which is developed in man, those things which belong to God occupy the higher part, namely the soul, which has dominion over the body; but those which belong to the devil occupy the lower part, manifestly the body: for this, being earthly, ought to be subject to the soul, as the earth is to heaven.

Then because the unbelievers knew not its power, he added, this is no fault of ours, but of their own insensibility. Wherefore also he saith, "But if our Gospel is veiled, it is veiled in them that are lost; in whom the God of this world hath blinded the eyes of the unbelieving." As he said also before, "To some a savor from death unto death, to others a savor from life unto life," so he saith here too. But what is "the God of this world?" Those that are infected with Marcion's notions, affirm that this is said of the Creator, the just only, and not good; for they say that there is a certain God, just and not good. But the Manichees say that the devil is here intended, desiring from this passage to introduce another creator of the world besides the True One, very senselessly. For the Scripture useth often to employ the term God, not in regard of the dignity of that so designated, but of the weakness of those in subjection to it; as when it calls Mammon lord, and the belly god. But neither is the belly therefore God, nor Mammon Lord, save only of those who bow down themselves to them. But we assert of this passage that it is spoken neither of the devil nor of another creator, but of the God of the Universe, and that it is to be read thus; "God hath blinded the minds of the unbelievers of this world." For the world to come hath no unbelievers; but the present only. But if any one should read it even otherwise, as, for instance, "the God of this world;" neither doth this afford any handle, for this doth not show Him to be the God of this world only. For He is called "the God of Heaven," yet is He not the God of Heaven only; and we say, 'God of the present day;' yet we say this not as limiting His power to it alone. And moreover He is called the "God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob;" and yet He is not the God of them alone. […]

"That the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ should not dawn upon them." Not that they might disbelieve in God, but that unbelief might not see what are the things within, as also He enjoined us, commanding not to "cast the pearls before the swine." For had He revealed even to those who disbelieve, their disease would have been the rather aggravated. For if one compel a man laboring under ophthalmia to look at the sunbeams, he the rather increases his infirmity. Therefore the physicians even shut them up in darkness, so as not to aggravate their disorder. So then here also we must consider that these persons indeed became unbelievers of themselves, but having become so, they no longer saw the secret things of the Gospel, God thenceforth excluding its beams from them. As also he said to the disciples, "Therefore I speak unto them in proverbs, because hearing they hear not." But what I say may also become clearer by an example; suppose a Greek, accounting our religion to be fables. This man then, how will he be more advantaged? by going in and seeing the mysteries, or by remaining without? Therefore he says, "That the light should not dawn upon them," still dwelling on the history of Moses. For what happened to the Jews in his case, this happeneth to all unbelievers in the case of the Gospel. And what is that which is overshadowed, and which is not illuminated unto them? Hear him saying, "That the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ who is the Image of God, should not dawn upon them." Namely, that the Cross is the salvation of the world, and His glory; that this Crucified One himself is about to come with much splendor; all the other things, those present, those to come, those seen, those not seen, the unspeakable splendor of the things looked for. […]

Among those who are perishing, he says, who are many and various, are also the unbelievers. It is they whose "the god of this age has blinded the minds." The Marcionites assert that this is said about the demiurge, whom they call just (see St. …

The cause of this concealment is not on the part of the Gospel, but on account of their own guilt and malice; and this is what he adds: in their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers. This can …

In whom the god of this world hath blinded,....

Thus, as the image of God, he demonstrates the power and wisdom of God, and the grace and mercy of God for their salvation. But, (2.) The design of the devil is to keep men in ignorance; and, when he cannot keep the light of the gospel out of the world, he makes it his great business to keep it out of the hearts of men. A proof of their integrity is given,

In whom the god of this world, etc. - We see here that those whose minds are blinded, are they who believe not; and because they believe not, their minds continue in darkness, and are proper subjects for Satan to work on; and he deepens the darkness, and increases the hardness. But who is meant by the god of this world? It is generally answered, the same who is called the prince of this world, Joh 16:11. But the question recurs, who is the prince of this world? and the answer to both is, Satan.

THE practice of blinding men is a horrible process, too horrible for us to say another word about it, but there is also a spiritual blindness which comes upon some men. These are, to begin with, unbelievers. The god of this world does not blind Believers—but he blinds the minds of them which believe not. It is, therefore, a very dangerous thing not to believe on the Son of God.

He who desires to see "the glory of God," may see it "in the face of Jesus Christ" (2Co 4:6; Paul here recurs to 2Co 3:18. Christ is "the image of God," into which "same image" we, looking on it in the mirror of the Gospel, are changed by the Spirit; but this image is not visible to those blinded by Satan [ALFORD].

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

SHINING in the center of the verse, like a pearl in its setting, you find these words. Literally and accurately translated, they run thus—"The light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ." This is the form given to my text in the Revised Version and I shall follow it because, word for word, it follows the original. Paul was a man of one idea. The Gospel of Christ had saturated his soul as the dew saturated Gideon's fleece. He could think of nothing else and speak of nothing else but the glory of Christ Crucified.

I THINK in this case the Revised New Testament gives a better translation than does the Authorized Version and I will, therefore, read it, "But even if our Gospel is veiled, it is veiled in them that are perishing, in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the Gospel of the Glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn upon them."

I THINK in this case the Revised New Testament gives a better translation than does the Authorized Version and I will, therefore, read it, "But even if our Gospel is veiled, it is veiled in them that are perishing, in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the Gospel of the Glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn upon them." Paul had been speaking of Moses with the veil over his face and we lose the track of his thought if we use the word, "hid," instead of, "veiled." Our Gospel wears no veil, but exhibits all the Glory of its countenance to the sons of men. Oh that they may be able to steadfastly behold it and see in it their own salvation and the Glory of the Lord! Observe at the outset the confidence with which Paul speaks. It is abundantly evident that he has no doubt whatever that the Gospel which he proclaims is assuredly true. No, that it is so manifestly true that if those who have heard it do not accept it, it must be because the god of this world has blinded their minds! The accent of conviction makes every word emphatic. He believes and is sure! And he is convinced that those who do not believe must be under the thralldom of the devil. This is not the ordinary style in which the Gospel is preached nowadays! We hear men courteously apologize for stating anything as absolute, for they are fearful of being thought narrow-minded and bigoted! We hear them prove what is clear as noonday and back up with arguments what God, Himself, has said—as if the sun needed candles to exhibit it, or as if God's Word needed the support of human reasoning! The Apostle did not take the defensive ground at all! He carried the war across the border and assailed the unbelievers. He came forth fresh from God with a Revelation and his every word seemed to challenge men with—"This is God's Word.

SHINING in the center of the verse, like a pearl in its setting, you find these words. Literally and accurately translated, they run thus—"The light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ." This is the form given to my text in the Revised Version and I shall follow it because, word for word, it follows the original. Paul was a man of one idea. The Gospel of Christ had saturated his soul as the dew saturated Gideon's fleece. He could think of nothing else and speak of nothing else but the glory of Christ Crucified. Important events in politics transpired in the Apostle's day but I cannot remember an allusion to them. Great social problems were to be solved, but his one and only solution was the preaching of that great Savior who is to cleanse the Augean stables of the world. For Paul there was but one thing worth living for and that one thing was worth dying for. He did not count even his life dear unto him that he might win Christ and be found in Him. Therefore his spirits rose or sank according to the prosperity or decline of the kingdom of Christ. When he writes an Epistle his mood varies according to the spiritual condition of the people to whom he writes. If their faith grows exceedingly and if from them sounds forth the Word of God, then he is jubilant in his tone. But if they are declining in Divine Grace Divine Grace, if there are divisions among them, if false doctrine is ravaging them like a wolf in the sheepfold— then he is solemn in spirit and he writes with a heavy hand. In this case Paul laments the condition of those who could not see what was so plain to himself—namely, the Gospel of the glory of Christ. He saw most clearly the glory of his Lord and that precious Gospel which is built up thereon and he marveled that others could not see it also.

THE practice of blinding men is a horrible process, too horrible for us to say another word about it, but there is also a spiritual blindness which comes upon some men. These are, to begin with, unbelievers. The god of this world does not blind Believers—but he blinds the minds of them which believe not. It is, therefore, a very dangerous thing not to believe on the Son of God. The penalty of unbelief is death and condemnation—and that penalty begins to fall on men when, in consequence of their unbelief, their foolish heart is darkened, their intellect loses the power to perceive spiritual ob-jects—and the god of this world blinds their mental vision. Ah, my Hearers, how anxious Satan is to secure your destruction, since, rather than that you should see the saving Light of God, he takes the trouble to blind your eyes! God grant that no man here may die under this dreadful deprivation of Light which is caused by Satanic influence upon the minds of men who have not believed in Jesus! Remember that this blindness to spiritual things is quite consistent with much sharpness as to natural things. A man may be a very keen politician. He may be a first-rate man of business. He may be an eminent scientist, a profound thinker and, yet, he may be blinded as to spiritual Truths of God. How often is it true, "You have hid these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them unto babes"! As an old writer says, "Poor, ignorant men often find the door to Heaven and enter in, while the learned are looking for the latch." Yes, a man may have clear eyes for worldly things. He may be very keen as to his insight into the problems of life and, yet, the god of this world may have blinded his eyes! What is more remarkable, still, a man may have much Scriptural knowledge. He may understand, in the letter, the things of the Kingdom of God.

In whom - In respect to whom; among whom; or in whose hearts. The design of this verse is to account for the fact that the glory of the gospel was not seen by them. It is to be traced entirely to the agency of him whom Paul here calls “the god of this world.” The god of this world - There can be no doubt that Satan is here designated by this appellation; though some of the fathers supposed that it means the true God, and Clarke inclines to this opinion. In Joh 12:31, he is called “the prince of this world.” In Eph 2:2, he is called “the prince of the power of the air.” And in Eph 6:12, the same bad influence is referred to under the names of “principalities, and powers,” “the rulers of the darkness of this world,” and “spiritual wickedness in high places.” The name “god” is here given to him, not because he has any divine attributes, but because he actually has the homage of the people of this world as their god, as the being who is really worshipped, or who has the affections of their hearts in the same way as it is given to idols. By “this world” is meant the wicked world; or the mass of people. He has dominion over the world. They obey his will; they execute his plans; they further his purposes, and they are his obedient subjects. He has subdued the world to himself, and was really adored in the place of the true God; see the note on 1Co 10:20. “They sacrificed to devils and not to God.” Here it is meant by the declaration that Satan is the god of this world: (1) That the world at large was under his control and direction. He secured the apostasy of man, and early brought him to follow his plans; and he has maintained his scepter and dominion since. No more abject submission could be desired by him than has been rendered by the mass of people. (2) The idolatrous world particularly is under his control, and subject to him; 1Co 10:20. […]