2 Corinthians 3

Paul answers the charge that he is promoting himself by pointing to the Corinthians themselves as living proof of his ministry. He then contrasts the old covenant of Moses with the new covenant of the Spirit, which is far more glorious and lasting. The chapter closes with the hope that all who turn to the Lord see his glory with unveiled faces and are changed into his image.

2 Corinthians 3:1

Paul asks whether he is starting to praise himself again. Some traveling teachers carried letters of recommendation, and Paul’s critics in Corinth wanted such papers. His question is gentle but pointed: a true ministry does not need to advertise itself.

BSA: commend (“praise, recommend”): Paul rejects self-praise as the basis of his ministry; his credentials lie elsewhere.

2 Corinthians 3:2

The Corinthian believers themselves are Paul’s letter. Their changed lives are written on his heart and can be seen by everyone. No paper reference could say more than the transformed lives of people who were once lost in sin.

BSA: letter (“epistle, a written message”): The believers are a message about Paul’s work that anyone can read.

See also: 1 Corinthians 6:11.

2 Corinthians 3:3

The Corinthians are really a letter from Christ, delivered through Paul’s ministry. It is written by the Spirit, not with ink, and on living hearts, not stone. Paul is echoing the promise of a new heart, where God’s word is written within and not merely carved outside.

BSA: Spirit (“breath, vital principle”): The Spirit is the life-giving breath of God who writes on the inner person.

Greek: ἐγγεγραμμένη (engegrammenē, G1449) — “written in, inscribed.” Paul uses the same picture twice: the letter is written on his heart in verse 2 and on the Corinthians’ hearts here. The writing is deep and personal, not surface.

See also: Jeremiah 31:33; Ezekiel 36:26.

2 Corinthians 3:4-5

Paul’s confidence before God rests entirely on Christ. He says plainly that he is not capable of producing anything of lasting worth by himself. Whatever fitness he has for ministry is a gift from God. This keeps every servant of God humble.

BSA: competent (“sufficient of ourselves”): Paul denies that he has enough in himself; God alone supplies what is needed.

See also: John 15:5.

2 Corinthians 3:6

God has made Paul able to serve a new covenant, one built on the Spirit and not on a written code alone. The law could show what is right and condemn the guilty, but it could not give power to obey. The Spirit gives life.

BSA: qualified (“made able, enabled”): God himself does the equipping; ministers do not qualify themselves. kills (“brings death, condemnation”): The written law exposes sin and pronounces a sentence it cannot lift.

Greek: ζῳοποιεῖ (zōopoiei, G2227) — “makes alive.” The word means to create life, not merely to improve or instruct. The Spirit does what the written code cannot do: he brings the dead to life.

See also: Jeremiah 31:31-33; Romans 8:2.

2 Corinthians 3:7

The law, engraved on stone, came with real glory. Moses’ face shone so brightly that Israel could not look at it. Yet Paul calls this ministry one of death, because the law sentenced sinners, and its shining glory was passing away.

BSA: fleeting (“temporary, transitory”): The shine on Moses’ face faded, a sign that the old arrangement was not final.

See also: Exodus 34:29-35.

2 Corinthians 3:8-9

If the law, which condemned, was glorious, the ministry of the Spirit is far more so. It brings a right standing with God, not a sentence of guilt. Paul argues from the lesser to the greater: the gift of righteousness outshines the verdict of condemnation.

BSA: condemnation (“judgment, sentencing”): The law pronounced judgment on lawbreakers. righteousness (“being in right standing with God”): The new covenant gives believers a standing with God, not merely a standard to meet.

See also: Romans 3:21-22.

2 Corinthians 3:10

Paul says the old glory has no glory now by comparison. A candle is real light, but it vanishes in the noon sun. The law was truly from God, yet it pointed ahead to something greater, and now that greater thing has come in Christ.

BSA: surpasses (“excels, is greater than”): The new glory so far exceeds the old that the old seems dim beside it.

2 Corinthians 3:11

What was passing away came with glory, but what remains has even more. The old covenant was temporary by design. The new covenant is lasting because it rests on Christ’s finished work and the Spirit’s presence, and it will never be replaced.

BSA: endures (“remains, stays”): The new covenant is permanent and will not fade.

Greek: καταργούμενον (katargoumenon, G2673) — “being made ineffective, passing away.” The word describes something being brought to an end, not suddenly destroyed. The old arrangement was already giving way as its purpose was fulfilled.

See also: Hebrews 8:13.

2 Corinthians 3:12

Because the hope of the new covenant is so certain, Paul speaks openly and without hiding anything. His message holds nothing back and has nothing to disguise.

BSA: bold (“with great plainness of speech”): Paul’s boldness means speaking clearly and freely, with nothing hidden.

Greek: παρρησίᾳ (parrēsia, G3954) — “plain, open speech; freedom to speak.” The word means saying everything openly without fear. It stands in sharp contrast to the veil Paul mentions next.

2 Corinthians 3:13

Moses covered his face so that Israel would not stare at the glow as it faded. Paul says he does not hide in that way. The glory of the new covenant is not fading, and the gospel can be shown plainly.

BSA: veil (“a covering to hide”): Moses’ covering kept Israel from seeing the glory vanish.

See also: Exodus 34:33-35.

2 Corinthians 3:14-15

Israel’s minds were dulled, and a veil still lies over the reading of the old covenant. Paul means that many hear Moses read and still do not see how it points to Christ. Only in Christ is the veil removed and the meaning made clear.

BSA: veil (“a covering, hiding the truth”): The veil is now a spiritual blindness that keeps the true meaning of Scripture from view. closed (“were hardened, made stubborn”): Their minds were hardened, not merely uninformed.

Greek: ἐπωρώθη (epōrōthē, G4456) — “was hardened, made dull.” The word pictures something turned thick and hard, like a callus. Understanding cannot get through until Christ softens it.

See also: Luke 24:27; Romans 11:7-8.

2 Corinthians 3:16

The veil is lifted whenever a person turns to the Lord. Paul echoes Moses, who removed his veil when he went in before the Lord. Understanding comes through turning toward him, and anyone may do so.

BSA: turns (“is converted”): This is a real turning of the whole person toward the Lord.

See also: Exodus 34:34.

2 Corinthians 3:17

Paul says the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. This is freedom from the law’s condemnation and from the veil, and freedom to know God and to become like him. Christians have long seen the Spirit as the one who makes Christ’s presence real.

BSA: freedom (“liberty from bondage”): The Spirit sets people free from the weight of condemnation and from spiritual blindness.

See also: Galatians 5:1; John 8:36.

2 Corinthians 3:18

Believers, with faces unveiled, look at the Lord’s glory as in a mirror. As they look, the Spirit changes them into his likeness, step by step and from one degree of glory to the next. The change is gradual and comes from the Lord himself, not from our effort.

BSA: reflect (“behold as in a mirror”): We see the Lord’s glory and are marked by it, as a mirror takes on what it faces. transformed (“changed, renewed”): The change is deep and real, not a surface adjustment.

Greek: μεταμορφούμεθα (metamorphoumetha, G3339) — “we are being transformed.” This is the word from which we get metamorphosis, a change of form from within. It is in a continuing, passive form: it is being done to us by the Spirit.

See also: Romans 8:29; Romans 12:2.