Ministers of a New Covenant 1Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters {epistolōn} of recommendation to you⁺ or from you⁺? 2You⁺ yourselves are our letter {epistolē}, inscribed on our hearts, known and read by everyone. 3It is clear that you⁺ are a letter {epistolē} from Christ (the Anointed One), the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit {Pneumati} of the living God {Theou}, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 4Such confidence before God {Theon} is ours through Christ (the Anointed One). 5Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim that anything comes from us, but our competence comes from God {Theou}. 6And He has qualified us as ministers {diakonous} of a new covenant {diathēkēs}, not of the letter but of the Spirit {pneumatos}; for the letter kills, but the Spirit {pneuma} gives life. The Glory of the New Covenant 7Now if the ministry {diakonia} of death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with such glory {doxē} that the Israelites could not gaze at the face of Moses (drawn out) because of its fleeting glory {doxan}, 8will not the ministry {diakonia} of the Spirit {pneumatos} be even more glorious? 9For if the ministry {diakonia} of condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry of righteousness! 10Indeed, what was once glorious has no glory now in comparison to the glory that surpasses it. 11For if what was fading away came with glory {doxēs}, how much greater is the glory {doxē} of that which endures! 12Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. 13We are not like Moses (drawn out), who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at the end of what was fading away. 14But their minds were closed. For to this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant {diathēkēs}. It has not been lifted, because only in Christ (the Anointed One) can it be removed. 15And even to this day when Moses (drawn out) is read, a veil covers their hearts. 16But whenever anyone turns to the Lord {Kyrion}, the veil is taken away. 17Now the Lord {Kyrios} is the Spirit {Pneuma}, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (liberty). 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory {doxan} of the Lord {Kyriou}, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit {Pneumatos}. The Berean Annotated Bible (BAB) is the Annotated version of the Berean Standard Bible (BSB). The BAB includes over 50,000 points of emphasis using the following system: (Emphasis and Names) {Hebrew and Greek} [Alternate Manuscripts] \Literal translation/ <Measurements and Crossrefs> Second Person Plural: you⁺ your⁺ yours⁺ This version is an early draft and is now in the stage of proofing, consistency checking, and public comment. Please note that meanings for Biblical names are based on Hebrew and Greek roots and can be somewhat subjective. Feel free to Contact us with suggestions or corrections. We are still adding points of emphasis wherever helpful. |
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