KJ3 Literal Translation
2 Corinthians 3
Lest their false teachers should charge him with vainglory, he shows the faith and graces of the Corinthians to be a sufficient commendation of his ministry.
1Do we begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we, as some, need commendatory letters to you, or commendatory ones from you?
2You are our letter, having been inscribed in our hearts, being known and being read by all men,
3it being made known that you are Christ’s letter, ministered by us, not having been inscribed by ink, but by the Spirit of the living God, not in tablets of stone, but in fleshly tablets of the heart.
4And we have such confidence through Christ toward God;
5not that we are sufficient of ourselves to reason out anything as being out of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God,
6who also made us able ministers of a new covenant, not of letter, but of Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit makes alive.
7But if the ministry of death having been engraved in letters in stone came to be in glory, so as that the sons of Israel could not gaze into “the face of Moses” because of the glory of his face, which was to be caused to cease,
8how much rather the ministry of the Spirit will be in glory!
9For if the ministry of condemnation was in glory, much rather the ministry of righteousness abounds in glory.
10For even not has been made glorious the thing having been made glorious in this part, because of the surpassing glory.
11For if the thing done away was through glory, much rather the thing remaining is in glory.
12Therefore having such hope, we use much boldness.
13And not as “Moses put a veil over his face,” for the sons of Israel not to look intently at the end of the thing being done away. Ex. 34:35
14But their thoughts were hardened, for until this very day the same veil remains on the reading of the Old Covenant, not being unveiled, that it is being done away in Christ.
15But until this very day, when Moses is being read, a veil lies on their heart.
16But whenever it shall have turned to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Ex. 34:34
17And the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
18But we all with our face having been unveiled, having beheld the glory of the Lord in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as from the Lord Spirit.
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