2 Corinthians 4:17

Paul introduced another paradox. Suffering now will result in glory later. He could consider the afflictions he had undergone as a servant of Christ as "light" only in comparison with the heavy weight of glory he would receive at Christ’s judgment seat (cf. 2 Corinthians 11:23-27).

"His choice of the expression ’the weight of glory’ may be influenced by the fact that in Hebrew ’weight’ and ’glory’ come from the same root kbd. It is because the coming ’glory’ is so ’weighty’ that the present ’affliction’ seems so ’slight’ (Gk elaphron, ’light’), just as the eternity of the coming ’glory’ makes the ’affliction’ seem ’momentary.’ It is not simply that the ’glory’ is the compensation for the ’affliction’ [cf. Romans 8:18] . . . rather, the ’glory’ is the product of the ’affliction,’ produced in measure ’beyond all comparison’ . . ." [Note: Bruce, p. 199.]

Paul spoke of the glory as something that he could increase by continuing to suffer, the result of following God faithfully. He was referring to his eternal reward.

"No more [i.e., Neither] does the Apostle mean that all suffering is productive of glory, as though it were an infallible means to this end. The history of the Church has shown that such a concept leads to an unscriptural self-interest and to a misconception of the true character of Christian suffering. Paul is concerned here with suffering for Jesus’ sake (2 Corinthians 4:11; cf. Acts 9:16), which means suffering in which there cannot possibly be any self-interest. It is precisely as the ’I’ decreases that Christ increases (John 3:30)." [Note: Hughes, p. 157.]