CINXE.COM

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>2 Corinthians 3 NLT</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/2_corinthians/3.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="../topmenuchap/2_corinthians/3-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="../">NLT</a> > 2 Corinthians 3</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../2_corinthians/2.htm" title="2 Corinthians 2">◄</a> 2 Corinthians 3 <a href="../2_corinthians/4.htm" title="2 Corinthians 4">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top">New Living Translation</td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/p/nlt/esv/2_corinthians/3.shtml" style="color:#001320" title="Parallel Chapters"> Par ▾ </a></td></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>Are we beginning to praise ourselves again? Are we like others, who need to bring you letters of recommendation, or who ask you to write such letters on their behalf? Surely not! <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">a</span></a> hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts.</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life.</p><p class="hdg">The Glory of the New Covenant</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>The old way,<a href="#footnotes"><span class="fn">b</span></a> with laws etched in stone, led to death, though it began with such glory that the people of Israel could not bear to look at Moses’ face. For his face shone with the glory of God, even though the brightness was already fading away. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving life? <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>If the old way, which brings condemnation, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new way, which makes us right with God! <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>In fact, that first glory was not glorious at all compared with the overwhelming glory of the new way. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>So if the old way, which has been replaced, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new, which remains forever!</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>Since this new way gives us such confidence, we can be very bold. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>We are not like Moses, who put a veil over his face so the people of Israel would not see the glory, even though it was destined to fade away. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>Yes, even today when they read Moses’ writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand.</p><p class="reg"> <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. <span class="reftext"><a href="http://biblehub.com/2_corinthians/3-18.htm"><b>18</b></a></span>So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.</p><A name="footnotes"></a><hr size="1" color="DDEEFF"><span class="mainfootnotes"><span class="mainfootnoteshdg">Footnotes:</span><br><span class="fn">a</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">3:2 </span><span class="ft">Some manuscripts read </span><span class="it">your.</span><br><span class="fn">b</span><note caller="+" style="f"><span class="fr">3:7 </span><span class="ft">Or </span><span class="it">ministry;</span><span class="ft"> also in 3:8, 9, 10, 11, 12.</span><br></span></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center"><em>Holy Bible</em>, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of <a href="http://www.tyndale.com">Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.</a>, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/">Bible Hub</a></div></div></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="../2_corinthians/2.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="2 Corinthians 2"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="2 Corinthians 2" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="../2_corinthians/4.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="2 Corinthians 4"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="2 Corinthians 4" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="rightbox"><div class="padright"><div id="pic"><iframe width="100%" height="860" scrolling="no" src="//biblescan.com/mpc/2_corinthians/3-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></div></div><div id="rightbox4"><div class="padright2"><div id="spons1"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tr><td class="sp1"><iframe width="122" height="860" scrolling="no" src="../sidemenu.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhchap.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>