Always bearing about in the body
The Vulgate Latin, Arabic, and Ethiopic versions, read, "in our
body"; and the Syriac version, in this and the next clause,
reads, "in our bodies", and some copies in this read, "bodies";
continually carrying about with us, in these mortal bodies of
ours, wherever we go,
the dying of the Lord Jesus;
by which is meant, not the doctrine of the sufferings and death
of Christ, and of salvation by a crucified Saviour, which they
bore and carried about with them in a ministerial way, wherever
they came and preached, but the sufferings they themselves
underwent: so called, because of the likeness there is between
the sufferings of Christ, and theirs; as he was traduced as a
wicked man, a deceiver, and a stirrer up of sedition, so were
they; as he was persecuted, so were they; as he was liable to
death, and at last was delivered up to it, so were they: and also
because of the union and sympathy which were between them; Christ
and they were one body and one Spirit; so that what was endured
by the members, the head had a fellow feeling of, and sympathy
with; and reckoned what was done to them, as done to himself: and
besides, the sufferings they underwent, and death they were
exposed unto, were for his sake, as it is explained in the next
verse:
for we which live;
who are still in the land of the living, though it is almost a
miracle we are, considering the circumstances we are in:
are always delivered;
that is, continually exposed
to death for Jesus' sake:
and the end of all these sufferings, which is expressed alike in
both verses is,
that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our
body,
or "mortal flesh"; the meaning of which is, that it might appear
that Jesus, though he died, is risen again from the dead, and
lives at the Father's right hand, and ever lives to make
intercession for us; of which there is a full proof, inasmuch as
we are supported by him under all the trials and sufferings we
endure for his sake; for because he lives, we live also, amidst
so many dangers and deaths, which attend us.