2 Corinthians 3:7

The Greater Glory of the Spirit’s Ministry

3:7 But if the ministry that produced death – carved in letters on stone tablets ¹  – came with glory, so that the Israelites ²  could not keep their eyes fixed on the face of Moses because of the glory of his face ³  (a glory ⁴  which was made ineffective), ⁵ 

2 Corinthians 7:12

7:12 So then, even though I wrote to you, it was not on account of the one who did wrong, or on account of the one who was wronged, but to reveal to you your eagerness on our behalf ⁶  before God.

2 Corinthians 7:14

7:14 For if I have boasted to him about anything concerning you, I have not been embarrassed by you, ⁷  but just as everything we said to you was true, ⁸  so our boasting to Titus about you ⁹  has proved true as well.

2 Corinthians 11:4

11:4 For if someone comes and proclaims ¹⁰  another Jesus different from the one we proclaimed, ¹¹  or if you receive a different spirit than the one you received, ¹²  or a different gospel than the one you accepted, ¹³  you put up with it well enough! ¹⁴ 

2 Corinthians 12:13

12:13 For how ¹⁵  were you treated worse than the other churches, except that I myself was not a burden to you? Forgive me this injustice!

[3:7]  ¹ tn Grk “on stones”; but since this is clearly an allusion to the tablets of the Decalogue (see 2 Cor 3:3) the word “tablets” was supplied in the translation to make the connection clear.

[3:7]  ² tn Grk “so that the sons of Israel.”

[3:7]  ³ sn The glory of his face. When Moses came down from Mt. Sinai with the tablets of the Decalogue, the people were afraid to approach him because his face was so radiant (Exod 34:29-30).

[3:7]  ⁴ tn The words “a glory” are not in the Greek text, but the reference to “glory” has been repeated from the previous clause for clarity.

[3:7]  ⁵ tn Or “which was transitory.” Traditionally this phrase is translated as “which was fading away.” The verb καταργέω in the corpus Paulinum uniformly has the meaning “to render inoperative, ineffective”; the same nuance is appropriate here. The glory of Moses’ face was rendered ineffective by the veil Moses wore. For discussion of the meaning of this verb in this context, see S. J. Hafemann, Paul, Moses, and the History of Israel (WUNT 81), 301-13. A similar translation has been adopted in the two other occurrences of the verb in this paragraph in vv. 11 and 13.

[7:12]  ⁶ tn Grk “but in order that your eagerness on our behalf might be revealed to you.”

[7:14]  ¹¹ tn Grk “I have not been put to shame”; the words “by you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

[7:14]  ¹² tn Grk “just as we spoke everything to you in truth.”

[7:14]  ¹³ tn The words “about you” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

[11:4]  ¹⁶ tn Or “preaches.”

[11:4]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “another Jesus whom we have not proclaimed.”

[11:4]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “a different spirit which you did not receive.”

[11:4]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “a different gospel which you did not accept.”

[11:4]  ²⁰ tn Or “you endure it very well.”

[12:13]  ²¹ tn Grk “For in what respect.”