2 Corinthians 2:5-3:18

New King James Version

⁵ But ^(A)if anyone has caused grief, he has not ^(B)grieved me, but all of you to some extent—not to be too severe. ⁶ This punishment which was inflicted ^(C)by the majority is sufficient for such a man, ^7 (D)so that, on the contrary, you ought rather to forgive and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one be swallowed up with too much sorrow. ⁸ Therefore I urge you to reaffirm your love to him. ⁹ For to this end I also wrote, that I might put you to the test, whether you are ^(E)obedient in all things. ¹⁰ Now whom you forgive anything, I also forgive. For ^[a]if indeed I have forgiven anything, I have forgiven that one for your sakes in the presence of Christ, ¹¹ lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.

Triumph in Christ

¹² Furthermore, ^(F)when I came to Troas to preach Christ’s gospel, and ^(G)a ^[b]door was opened to me by the Lord, ^13 (H)I had no rest in my spirit, because I did not find Titus my brother; but taking my leave of them, I departed for Macedonia.

¹⁴ Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us ^[c]diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. ¹⁵ For we are to God the fragrance of Christ ^(I)among those who are being saved and ^(J)among those who are perishing. ^16 (K)To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And ^(L)who is sufficient for these things? ¹⁷ For we are not, as ^[d]so many, ^(M)peddling^[e] the word of God; but as ^(N)of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ.

Christ’s Epistle^(O)

3 Do ^(P)we begin again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as some others, ^(Q)epistles of commendation to you or letters of commendation from you? ^2 (R)You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; ³ clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ^(S)ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not ^(T)on tablets of stone but ^(U)on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart.

The Spirit, Not the Letter

⁴ And we have such trust through Christ toward God. ^5 (V)Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but ^(W)our sufficiency is from God, ⁶ who also made us sufficient as ^(X)ministers of ^(Y)the new covenant, not ^(Z)of the letter but of the ^[f]Spirit; for ^(AA)the letter kills, ^(AB)but the Spirit gives life.

Glory of the New Covenant

⁷ But if ^(AC)the ministry of death, ^(AD)written and engraved on stones, was glorious, ^(AE)so 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, ⁸ how will ^(AF)the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? ⁹ For if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry ^(AG)of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. ¹⁰ For even what was made glorious had no glory in this respect, because of the glory that excels. ¹¹ For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious.

¹² Therefore, since we have such hope, ^(AH)we use great boldness of speech— ¹³ unlike Moses, ^(AI)who put a veil over his face so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at ^(AJ)the end of what was passing away. ¹⁴ But ^(AK)their 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. ¹⁵ But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. ¹⁶ Nevertheless ^(AL)when one turns to the Lord, ^(AM)the veil is taken away. ¹⁷ Now ^(AN)the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is ^(AO)liberty. ¹⁸ But we all, with unveiled face, beholding ^(AP)as in a mirror ^(AQ)the glory of the Lord, ^(AR)are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as ^[g]by the Spirit of the Lord.