2 Corinthians 3–4

Christ’s Epistle

3Do ^awe begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as some others, ^bepistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you? ^2cYou are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; ³clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ^dministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not ^eon tablets of stone but ^fon tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart.

The Spirit, Not the Letter

⁴And we have such trust through Christ toward God. ^5gNot that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but ^hour sufficiency is from God, ⁶who also made us sufficient as ⁱministers of ^jthe new covenant, not ^kof the letter but of the ¹Spirit; for ^lthe letter kills, ^mbut the Spirit gives life.

Glory of the New Covenant

⁷But if ⁿthe ministry of death, ^owritten and engraved on stones, was glorious, ^pso that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, ⁸how will ^qthe ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? ⁹For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry ^rof righteousness exceeds much more in glory. ¹⁰For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. ¹¹For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious.

¹²Therefore, since we have such hope, ^swe use great boldness of speech—¹³unlike Moses, ^twho put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at ^uthe end of what was passing away. ¹⁴But ^vtheir minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ. ¹⁵But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. ¹⁶Nevertheless ^wwhen one turns to the Lord, ^xthe veil is taken away. ¹⁷Now ^ythe Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is ^zliberty. ¹⁸But we all, with unveiled face, beholding ^aas in a mirror ^bthe glory of the Lord, ^care being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as ²by the Spirit of the Lord.

The Light of Christ’s Gospel

4Therefore, since we have this ministry, ^aas we have received mercy, we ^bdo not lose heart. ²But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor ¹handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth ^ccommending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. ³But even if our gospel is veiled, ^dit is veiled to those who are perishing, ⁴whose minds ^ethe god of this age ^fhas blinded, who do not believe, lest ^gthe light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, ^hwho is the image of God, should shine on them. ⁵ⁱFor we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ^jourselves your bondservants for Jesus’ sake. ⁶For it is the God ^kwho commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has ^lshone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Cast Down But Unconquered

⁷But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, ^mthat the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. ⁸We are ⁿhard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹persecuted, but not ^oforsaken; ^pstruck down, but not destroyed—^10qalways carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, ^rthat the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. ¹¹For we who live ^sare always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. ¹²So then death is working in us, but life in you.

¹³And since we have ^tthe same spirit of faith, according to what is written, ^u“I believed and therefore I spoke,” we also believe and therefore speak, ¹⁴knowing that ^vHe who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you. ¹⁵For ^wall things are for your sakes, that ^xgrace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.

Seeing the Invisible

¹⁶Therefore we ^ydo not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is ^zbeing renewed day by day. ¹⁷For ^aour light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, ^18bwhile we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.