2
Corinthians 3:4-11 New Living Translation (NLT)
4
We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ.
5 It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification
comes from God. 6 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.
The
Glory of the New Covenant
7
The old way,[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. 8 Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now
that the Holy Spirit is giving life? 9 If the old way, which brings
condemnation, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new way, which makes
us right with God! 10 In fact, that first glory was not glorious at all
compared with the overwhelming glory of the new way. 11 So if the old way,
which has been replaced, was glorious, how much more glorious is the new, which
remains forever!
The IVP New Testament
Commentary Series
Qualifications
for Ministry (3:4-6)
It
is all too easy to be overly impressed with a list of credentials and to lose
sight of the fact that inward change, not outward achievement, is what
validates someone in God's eyes. Such a misplaced emphasis often follows from
the need for some kind of objective standard by which to evaluate a person's
competence. Paul faced this problem as well. So he tries to give the Corinthians
an objective standard by which to judge his competency as a minister of the
gospel (5:12). But he also recognizes that competency in the ministry is
something that is God-given rather than humanly achieved—a fact that is often
forgotten in a twentieth-century culture that is oriented toward such overt
signs of approval as applause and kudos.
Paul
fears that his claim to possess divine references could be construed as
overconfidence. To forestall such an allegation he interjects a series of
disclaimers. His first disclaimer is that such confidence as he exhibits before
God is his only through Christ (v. 4). Before God is better rendered
"toward God" (see note). Through Christ (dia tou Christou) defines
the basis for his confidence. Paul is probably thinking of his commissioning by
Christ on the road to Damascus as apostle to the Gentiles (Acts 9:15-19;
26:12-18). It was a commissioning uniquely his, yet not because of any
competency that he himself possessed. Indeed, Paul freely admits elsewhere that
he is the "least of the apostles" (1 Cor 15:9) and the "worst of
sinners" (1 Tim 1:15). Here he merely states, as a second disclaimer, that
he does not possess any competency in and of himself (v. 5). The Greek is
literally "not that we are competent to reckon anything as of
ourselves" (ouch hoti . . . hikanoi esmen logisasthai ti hos ex heauton).
The Greek verb for to reckon means "to credit to one's own
abilities." "There is nothing in us that allows us to claim that we
are capable of doing this work" (TEV) catches the gist of Paul's
statement. Competency in our society is largely determined by whether we are
able "to get the job done." Ministerial competency, by contrast,
issues not from self but from God, who has made us competent as ministers of a
new covenant—Paul's third and final disclaimer (vv. 5-6).
Verse
6 functions as a transition to an extended treatment of the superiority of the
new covenant or Spirit ministry over the old covenant or letter ministry. The
emphasis throughout is on ministry. The terms diakonia (ministry) and diakonos
(minister) occur five times in verses 6-11. In fact, close to 40 percent of all
Pauline uses of both nominal and verbal forms appear in 2 Corinthians. Paul's
point is that competence as a minister lies in the competency of the ministry
represented. Paul's competence stems from being a minister of a new covenant.
Diathekh should be translated covenant, not "testament" (KJV;
corrected in the NKJV), and it should not be capitalized. There were no Old and
New Testaments in Paul's day, only "the Scriptures." "New
Testament" applies to the Christian writings that were given canonical
status alongside the Jewish Scriptures. The process of canonization was a long
one. Clement of Alexandria (c. 215) and Origen (c. 250) are the earliest church
fathers to distinguish between "old" and "new testament"
writings. Canon 59, which was issued by the Synod of Laodicea in A.D. 363, is
the first church document to use the phrase "new testament" of a
distinct body of literature. The actual phrase "canon of the new
testament" does not appear until about A.D. 400 in Macarius Magnes's
Apocriticus 4.10 (Belleville 1994:375-76).
The
language of new covenant comes from Jeremiah 31:31-34, the only place in the
Old Testament where this phrase occurs: " `The time is coming,' declares
the LORD, `when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with
the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their
forefathers.'"
A
covenant, simply put, is an agreement into which too parties enter. It can be a
bilateral agreement between equals or a unilateral arrangement where the terms
are dictated by one, superior party. God's covenants with his people are of the
latter kind.
The
word new (kainos) denotes that which is qualitatively better as compared with
what has existed until now (Haarbeck, Link and Brown 1976:670). This is borne
out in how Paul describes the new as opposed to the old arrangement between God
and his people. The character of the old covenant is that it is of letter (grammatos)
and kills. The new covenant, on the other hand, is of Spirit (pneumatos) and
gives life. Both nouns are in the genitive case and lack the article. Letter
and Spirit are therefore descriptive terms, setting forth the quality or nature
of their respective covenants. What is qualitatively better about the new
covenant is that it is not a letter covenant—that is, an external code—but a
Spirit covenant—that is, an internal power. A covenant that is letter in nature
kills because it makes external demands without giving the inward power for
obedience, while a covenant that is Spirit in character gives life because it
works internally to produce a change of nature. Paul describes this change of
nature elsewhere as a "new self" created "to be like God in true
righteousness and holiness" (Eph 4:24).
The
Superiority of the New Covenant Ministry (3:7-11)
By
a covenant of letter Paul has in mind the Mosaic covenant. His reference in
verse 7 to the shining face of Moses on his descent from Mount Sinai with the tablets
of the law makes this clear. The Mosaic covenant was a unilateral agreement
that structured every aspect of Israel's social, religious, physical and civil
existence from the time of Moses until Paul's day. The sum total of
commandments that regulated the Jew's life were numbered at 613. This did not
include rabbinic interpretations of the law (the Tannaim of the Mishnah), which
were also considered binding. Paul, however, now calls this covenant
"old" (v. 14). Ever since, Judaism—not to mention certain branches of
Christianity—has been loath to agree.
Someone
once said that "second-best is the worst enemy of the best." People
have always tended to cling to the old even when something far better is
offered (Barclay 1954:191). Most of us have been in churches with diehards who
insisted that the old way of doing something was necessarily the right way.
There is security in clinging to the familiar, even when the familiar leads
eventually to our undoing (death, v. 7; condemnation, v. 9). Paul faced this difficulty
at Corinth—How to convince the diehards in the church that the new way, and not
the old, was the right way?
Paul's
shift from letters of recommendation to a consideration of the old and new
covenants is judged problematic by most. What prompts him to consider these too
covenants in such great detail (and in such stark contrast)? Some think that a
letter written on the heart (v. 3) leads Paul to think of the new covenant
promise of Jeremiah 31:33 and, in turn, the old covenant engraved on stone tablets.
Others suppose that the letter written by the Spirit in verse 3 calls to mind
the finger of God on the stone tablets of the law. Recent studies seek an
explanation in a Moses polemic of rival missionaries (for example, Georgi
1986). This seems likely; otherwise verses 7-11 give the impression of being no
more than a temporary excursus.
Paul's
emphasis in particular on the greater glory of the new covenant suggests that
his opponents associated themselves in some fashion with Moses and the law—but
not with its legalistic side, since there is no mention of circumcision or
obedience to the law (see the introduction). In view of Paul's use of the
Jewish tradition of the overpowering splendor of the Mosaic ministry, it is
probable that these intruding missionaries appealed to Moses as a model of
spirituality and to the law as the key to a victorious Christian life. Moses,
who was accredited by God through the working of wonders, signs and miracles,
would have been the ideal figure to lend credibility to their ministry. And the
tablets of the law, which came in such a blaze of glory, would have functioned
as the perfect letter of reference.
What
to do when old ways die hard? Paul's overall approach is not to denigrate the
Mosaic covenant but rather to demonstrate the superiority of the new covenant
over the old. To do this he uses a Jewish form of argumentation called qal
wahwmer, or what today we would label an a fortiori argument (from lesser to
greater). His line of reasoning is that if the glory of the old covenant was
transient yet came with such overpowering splendor that the Israelites could
not look steadily at the face of its minister as he descended from Mount Sinai
with the tablets of the law, how much greater must the new covenant be, whose
splendor is permanent and whose glory does not fade. The implication is that
though the Mosaic covenant can impart an initial glory and credibility to its
ministers and adherents, because of its transitory character it has no lasting
effect. Therefore for these visiting preachers to link themselves with a
covenant that is fast becoming obsolete is to suggest that their competency is
fading and their credentials are of no lasting importance. It is only the new
covenant with its enduring splendor that can impart a permanent and lasting
credibility to its ministers.
Paul's
evaluation of the Mosaic ministry is even more to the point. Far from being the
key to the victorious Christian life, it is in reality a ministry that brings
nothing but death (v. 7) and condemnation (v. 9) to those of God's people who
strive to live by it. To be a minister of the old covenant is therefore to be
an instrument of death and destruction. The new covenant ministry, on the other
hand, brings the Spirit (v. 8) and righteousness (v. 9). So to be a minister of
this covenant is to be an instrument of life and salvation.
The
role of the law in the life of the Christian is an important issue in the
church today. Is Paul saying that the Christian is to have no contact with the
law whatsoever and to do so is to bring about one's own condemnation and death?
How can this be, since elsewhere he speaks of the law as "holy, righteous
and good" and "spiritual" (Rom 7:12, 14)? The key phrase in the
discussion is "under law," which Paul uses in Romans 6:1-23 and
Galatians 3:21—4:31; 5:13-26 to refer to the role of Mosaic law in strictly
supervising every aspect of the life of God's people (Belleville 1986:59-60).
It makes clear to us our obligation, oversees our conduct and rebukes and
punishes our wrongdoing. The difficulty is that it does not give us the ability
to overcome the prevailing influence of sin in our lives. So, as with any legal
code, to break the law is to incur judgment. And we all inevitably do break
God's law because our sinful nature inclines us in this direction. Lamentably,
the penalty for breaking God's law is death (Rom 7:10-11).
Paul,
nonetheless, can say that the Mosaic law is holy, righteous and good. This is
because its demands reflect the character of its Creator. But the breaking of
the law incurs God's judgment. This is why the role of the law was only a
temporary one—"until Christ came" (Gal 3:24, TEV, RSV, JB, NEB). With
the advent of Christ came a new covenant, one that is based on a familial, not
a legal, relationship to God. We are still commanded not to kill, steal and so
on—not because it is our obligation in a covenant relationship, but because it
is appropriate behavior for a member of God's family. What is also needed is a
change of nature. This too is provided for under the new covenant. With
Christ's coming, the Spirit, rather than sin, becomes the controlling principle
in the life of the believer. The power that was lacking under the old covenant
is now there for us to be the kind of moral people God intended. This is
essentially what Paul means in verses 7-11 by the ministry that brings the
Spirit and righteousness as opposed to the ministry of death and condemnation.
The
grammar in verses 7-11 is difficult to follow, but the point in each case is
clear. Engraved in letters on stone (v. 7) recalls Moses' descent from Mount
Sinai with the too tablets of the law. Stone tablets were normally used for
royal, commemorative or religious texts, or for public copies of legal edicts.
A metal chisel or graver was used to carve the letters onto the stone face. The
tablets themselves were normally rectangular in shape and measuring no more
than 17.5 x 11.7 in. (45 x 30 cm). The use of the perfect tense (en + typow,
"to hammer in") points to a permanent, unchangeable state of affairs.
The letters that were chiseled into those too rectangular stone tablets were
there to stay.
Paul
distinguishes these tablets in too ways. First, he calls them "a ministry
of death" (v. 7). The genitive can be descriptive ("a deadly
ministry") or, more likely, objective ("a ministry that dispensed
death," NEB, RSV). Death is the penalty for being a lawbreaker under this
covenant. Second, he says that these stone tablets came with glory. The term
glory (doxa) is the LXX's translation of the Hebrew word kabod, which comes
from a root meaning "to be heavy, weighty." Here it applies to
something that is weighty in outward appearance. Nowadays we would call someone
described in this way "flashy" or "handsome." Here it
refers to the fact that Moses' face shone as he descended with the tablets of
the law. So bright in fact was this splendor that Israel could not look
steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was (v.
7). The verb atenizō means "to look
intently at," "to gaze earnestly at." Today we might say that
the Israelites could not keep their eyes glued on him, much as they were
fascinated by the spectacle of his shining face. The word for fading (kata +
a-ergon) means "to cause to become idle" or "to render
ineffective or powerless," not "to abolish" (KJV). To cause
light to become idle or inactive is effectively to cause it to "fade"
(virtually all modern translations). The present tense indicates that Moses'
splendor was "in the process" of fading (ten katargoumenhn). Paul's
point is that although the brilliance of Moses' face was overpowering, it was a
brilliance that immediately began to fade, symptomatic of the transient
character of the ministry that it represented.
By
comparison, the new covenant ministry will be even more glorious (v. 8). Why?
Because it is a ministry not of death but of the Spirit. The too genitives must
be taken in the same way. If the Mosaic covenant is a ministry that
"dispenses death," the new covenant is a ministry that
"dispenses the Spirit" (objective genitives). More than this Paul
does not say. But elsewhere it is clear that the gift of the Spirit is the
centerpiece of the new covenant (e.g., Gal 4:4-7). The future tense of the verb
is to be noted. While the old covenant ministry came (egenhthe) with glory (en
doxh), the new covenant ministry will be (estai) with glory (en doxh) (vv. 7-8).
Paul is undoubtedly thinking of "the glory that will be revealed in
us" when Christ returns (Rom 8:18). This future glory is "our
adoption, the redemption of our bodies" of which the gift of the Spirit is
the "firstfruits" (Rom 8:23). The same idea occurs in 2 Corinthians
5:5, where Paul states that God "made us for this very purpose and has
given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come." He may
also be thinking of Jesus' teaching that he will come again "on the clouds
of the sky with great power and glory" (Mk 13:26 and parallels).
To
speak of the Mosaic covenant as a ministry that dispenses death would have
sounded blasphemous to Jewish ears. It was the uniform opinion of the rabbis
that what Moses gave the people of Israel were "words of life," not
words of death (as in Exodus Rabbah 29.9).
Paul
goes even further in verse 9 to call the Mosaic covenant a "ministry of
condemnation"—something that incurs God's judgment, not his blessing. In
line with the previous genitives, the genitive here should be construed as
objective (the ministry that condemns). The Greek word for
"condemnation" (katakrisis) is a rare one, occurring in the Greek
Bible only here and in 7:3. It refers to a verdict of guilty or to the passing
of sentence against someone.
In
contrast, the new covenant is a "ministry of righteousness." The term
righteousness (dikaiosyne) is common in Paul. Normally it refers to the act of
doing what is right or what God requires. Here, however, as a counterpoint to
"condemnation" it is to be understood in the legal sense of being
declared innocent (TEV) or acquitted (NEB). Paul's contention is, then, if the
Mosaic covenant is a ministry that condemns and yet is accompanied by splendor,
how much more glorious must be the ministry that declares people innocent!
In
verses 10-11 Paul takes his argument one final step and advances the idea that
the splendor of the old covenant is not only dwindling but also completely
eclipsed by the surpassing glory of the new covenant. This is because the
Mosaic ministry is temporary, while the new covenant ministry is permanent. In
short, with the arrival of the new covenant, the Mosaic covenant is no longer
the "big kid on the block." The text reads literally: "For that
which has been endowed with splendor is now not endowed with splendor on
account of the surpassing splendor." The grammar is at best tortuous. The
idea is that the greater light obscures the lesser—or as someone once said,
"When the sun has risen the lamps cease to be of use." The covenant
that was once glorious now scarcely appears so in light of the splendor of the
new. In comparison with is literally "in this part." Paul could be
saying that the Mosaic covenant "was endowed in part with splendor"
(that is, had a limited glory) or, as is more likely, that the Mosaic covenant
"in this case had no splendor at all" (that is, on account of the
surpassing splendor of the new covenant).
The
shift from feminine (the splendor of Moses' face, v. 7) to neuter (the splendor
of the Mosaic ministry, vv. 10-11) is to be noted. The Mosaic covenant is
pictured as belonging to a vanishing order, an economy that began to fade
immediately after its inception, as was typified by the dwindling splendor of
Moses' face (M. J. Harris 1976:336). The conclusion Paul draws from this fact
is that if the ministry that was vanishing was ushered in with great pomp and
circumstance (dia doxhs), how much more spectacular must be the ministry that
lasts. These are amazing statements for a Jew to make—albeit a Christian one—and
ones to which Jews in Paul's day did not on the whole take kindly. For the Jew,
the law was eternal and lifegiving. While there are occasional expressions in
Jewish literature of an expectation that the law would suffer modification in
the messianic age, there is every belief that it would endure forever.
Back The Bible Panorama
2 Corinthians 3
V 1–3: SELF-COMMENDATION Paul refers
to letters of introduction, often used to assure new churches that those coming
to them are authentic Christians. Initially, the false apostles commended
themselves. Paul says he needs no letter of commendation when coming to the
Corinthian church, because they themselves are his letter of commendation. They
are saved because he has been there with the gospel.
V 4–6: SPIRIT’S CONFIDENCE
He quickly adds that his confidence is not based on self-effort, but on what
the Holy Spirit has done. His confidence comes because of God’s action through
Christ.
V 7–11: STRIKING COMPARISON He then
compares the fading glory on Moses’ face after the Ten Commandments were given,
with the surpassing lasting glory through the gospel. The Ten Commandments
condemn men, but the gospel saves them
. V 12–18: SUPERIOR COVENANT The Old Testament covenant can never
unveil a person’s spiritual blindness. That only happens through God the Holy
Spirit, when He gives understanding, transforming power, and glory through
faith in Christ.
Back Dictionary of Bible Themes
4018 life, spiritual
Life embraces more than physical existence; it includes humanity’s
relationship with God. Human beings come to life spiritually only through faith
in the redeeming work of God in Jesus Christ. This spiritual life is a
foretaste of the life which believers will finally enjoy to the full in the new
heaven and earth. Life in the Spirit means keeping in step with the promptings
and guidance of the Holy Spirit, and always being open to his gifts and
empowerment.
The nature of spiritual life
It is new life Ac 5:20 See also Ac 11:18; 2Pe 1:3; 1Jn 3:14
It is true life 1Ti 6:19
It is eternal life Ro 5:21 See also Da 12:2; Mt 19:29; Jn 6:27; 1Jn
5:11,20
It is abundant life Ps 16:11; Jer 17:8 See also Ps 1:3; Jn 10:10
The origins and nature of spiritual life
Spiritual life is the work of the Holy Spirit Jn 3:6,8 See also Eze
36:26; Jn 3:3,5-7; Ro 8:11; Tit 3:5-7
Spiritual life unites believers to Jesus Christ Eph 2:4-5 See also Ro
6:3-5; Ro 8:10; 1Co 12:13; Col 2:13; 1Jn 5:12
Spiritual life makes believers the children of God Jn 1:12-13 See also
Dt 30:20; Mt 6:9; Ro 8:15; Jas 1:18; 1Jn 4:7; 1Jn 5:1
Spiritual life brings people to know God Jn 17:3 See also Mt 11:27
Spiritual life brings about faith Jn 3:15; Jn 20:31 See also Jn 3:16,36;
Jn 5:24; Jn 6:40; Jn 11:25
Keeping in step with the Spirit
A new way of life is made possible Gal 5:25 See also Ro 8:5-6,9-16; Gal
5:16-18,22-24
Bondage to the written law is ended Ro 2:29 See also Ro 7:6; Ro 8:2; 2Co
3:6; Gal 5:17-18
Obedience to God is made possible Ro 8:4 See also Eze 36:27; Ro 8:13;
Gal 5:16; 1Th 4:7-8
Deepening unity is encouraged Eph 4:3 See also Col 2:13; Php 2:1-4
Strength and encouragement are received Ac 9:31
Gifts for those living in the Spirit
Gifts are given for building up the church 1Co 12:4-11 See also Ro
12:6-8; 1Co 12:27-30
Visions are given Ac 2:17; Joel 2:28; Rev 1:10,12-13; Rev 4:2; Rev 17:3;
Rev 21:10
Miracles are worked Mt 12:28 See also Ac 10:38; Ro 15:19; Gal 3:5
Ministry is enhanced 2Co 3:6 See also 2Co 3:7-9
Those living in the Spirit receive revelation and guidance
God is revealed as Father Gal 4:6 See also Ro 8:14-16
God’s purposes are revealed 1Co 2:9-10 See also Ro 15:13; 2Co 5:2-5; Gal
5:5; Eph 1:17-18
Guidance is given to believers Ac 8:29 See also Ac 10:19; Ac 11:12; Ac
13:2; Ac 16:6-7; Ac 20:22-23
Help is given to pray Ro 8:26-27; Eph 6:18; Jude 20
The Holy Spirit sanctifies those in whom he lives
Through the Spirit, Jesus Christ lives in believers Eph 3:16-17
The Spirit transforms believers 2Co 3:18 See also Ro 15:16; 2Th 2:13;
1Pe 1:2
The fruit of the Spirit is seen in believers’lives Ac 13:52; Ro 5:5; Ro
8:6; Ro 14:17; Ro 15:30; Gal 5:22-23; Col 1:8; 1Th 1:6
Examples of life in the Holy Spirit
Jesus Christ Mt 4:1 pp Mk 1:12 pp Lk 4:1; Mt 12:18,28; Lk 4:14,18; Lk
10:21; Ac 10:38
Simeon Lk 2:25-27
Peter Ac 4:8; Ac 10:19,44
Stephen Ac 6:5,10; Ac 7:55
The first Christians Ac 4:31; Ac 6:3-5; Ac 11:24,27-29; Ac 13:1-3; Ac
15:28
