The document explores the concept of Christians as living letters or epistles of Christ, emphasizing that their lives reflect His glory and character to the world. It argues that true transformation into Christ's image occurs when individuals engage closely with Him, allowing their hearts to be the tablets on which He writes His nature. The text ultimately highlights the responsibility of Christians to reflect the divine qualities of Christ as a means of revealing God's glory to humanity.

1. JESUS WAS A LETTER
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
2 Corinthians3:3 3You show that you are a letter
from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not
with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on
tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
"epistles Of Christ."
2 Corinthians 3:3
J.R. Thomson
Some teachers had visited the Christians of Corinth, who boastedof the letters
of introduction they brought with them, authenticating their commissionand
their ministry. Paul needed no such epistles;for the members of the Church
were themselves his epistles;and better still, they were not only his, they were
Christ's epistles, manifestly and undeniably such. The same may be saidof all
true disciples and followers ofthe Lord Jesus;it is an honourable and an
inspiriting designation.
I. THE WRITER - CHRIST. Many great men, especiallygreatthinkers, have
perpetuated their influence and have served their race by their writings. As
poets, philosophers, or moralists, they have made a place for themselves in the

2. mind of humanity. The greatestofall, the Divine Man, wrote nothing. It is
greaterto be than to write; and the Lord Jesus simply lived and worked,
suffered, died, and conquered. He could not compress and limit his mind
within the compass ofa treatise or a volume. He left his evangelists and
apostles to write of him; his earthly manifestationthus spoke a universal
language. Yet, in a sense, he has always been writing, and he is writing now.
He is still daily issuing epistles to the world.
II. THE EPISTLE - CHRISTIANS. As a friend and counsellor, whenon a
journey and at a distance, communicates by letter with those who need his
guidance and the assuranceofhis interest, so our Lord, though he has
ascendedon high, is ever sending epistles to the children of men. Every
Christian upon whom he impresses his own will, character, andpurposes,
thus becomes Christ's communication to the world, written by his hand, and
authenticated by his autograph. Every individual is a syllable, every
congregationa word, every generationof believers a line, in the ever-
lengthening scroll, which approaches its close as the ages nearthe end.
III. THE TABLET - THE HEART. God does not write on stone, as men did in
ancient monumental inscriptions, or as he once did on the tables of the Law.
Nor on waxen tablets, as men wrote of old with the stylus, in notes of ordinary
business or friendship. Nor on parchment or papyrus, as perhaps these
Epistles of Paul were written. But Christ writes on tablets that are hearts of
flesh. The expression, adapted from the Old Testament, is an impressive one.
In the Proverbs, Wisdom invites the young man to write her precepts upon
the tablets of his heart. By Jeremiah the Lord promised to write his Law upon
his people's heart. Christ takes the human soul and works upon it, and
engraves there his own characters,sets downthere his own signature, and
sends the human nature - so written upon - into the world, to tell of himself, to
convey his thought, his will.

3. IV. THE AGENCY - NOT INK, BUT THE SPIRIT OF GOD. As in the
processes ofnature we see the operationof the living God, so in grace we
discern spiritual handwriting. The Spirit of God most deeply reaches and
most blessedlyaffects the spirit of man. The Spirit carries truth and love
home to the heart with an incomparable power. He writes upon the soul in
deep, legible, sacred, and eternal characters.
V. THE HANDWRITING AND SUBSTANCE OF THE EPISTLES. What
difference there is in the appearance andin the matter of the letters we daily
receive!They vary in handwriting, in style, in tone, in matter, according to the
characterof the writer, the relation of the writer to the reader, the business
upon which they treat. But there is something characteristic in all - all tell us
something of our correspondents, andof their mind and will. So is it with
these living epistles described in the text. Every epistle tells of the Divine
Writer, bears witness to the Lord from whom it emanates, is evidently written
in his handwriting, and reveals his mind and heart. Every epistle must be so
authenticated by his signature that it cannotbe suspectedto be a forgery.
Spirituality, holiness, obedience, meekness, benevolence, -these are the proofs
that the epistle is the compositionof the Christ. This is to be manifestly,
unmistakably, declared.
VI. THE READERS - ALL MEN. There is some writing which only a few can
read; the characters maybe ill written and illegible, or they may be in cipher,
or the language may be scientific and technical. There are letters of private
business or of personalfriendship, only intended for certainindividuals. But
there is literature, such as the Bible or the law of the land, intended for the
instruction and benefit of all. So, whilst there is religious language only fully
understood by the initiated, by a selectclass -e.g. doctrines, meditations,
prayers - there is language intended for all mankind. The Christian character
and life can be read with profit by all men. They can comprehend the virtues
which adorn the Christian, and which are the manifest signs of the Lord's
spiritual presence. If we are truly Christ's, then his handwriting will be legible

4. to all men, and all men who know us may gain some advantage through
reading what the Divine hand has inscribed upon our nature. - T.
Biblical Illustrator
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are
changedinto the same image.
2 Corinthians 3:18
Mirrors of Christ
M. Dods, D. D.
1. We should substitute "reflecting" for "beholding." Christians are
representednot as persons looking into a mirror, but as themselves the
mirrors. They who uncover their souls to the influence of Christ reflectHis
glory, and by continuing to do so they attain to that glory. It is as if by some
process the image of a person who gazes into a mirror should not be merely
reflectedfor the moment, but permanently stamped upon it.
2. Recallthe incident which suggestedthe figure. When Mosescame down
from the Mount his countenance shone so as to dazzle beholders;he acted, as
it were, like a mirror to the glory of God. But Mosesknew that the reflection
would pass away, and therefore he put on a veil, that the people "might not
see the end of it." Had they done so they might have supposedthat God had
retired from him, and that no more authority belongedto him, and therefore
Moses put on the veil; but when he returned to receive new communications
from God he met God with unveiled face. But, says Paul, the wrong-
headedness ofthe Jews is perpetuating this veil. When the O. T. is read, there
is a veil preventing them from seeing the end of the glory of Mosesin Christ;
they think the glory still abides in Moses. Butwhen they return, as Moses used
to return, to the Lord, they will lay aside the veil as he did, and then the glory
of the Lord shall shine upon, and be reflectedby, them. This reflectionwill not
fade away, but increase from one glory to another — to perfect resemblance

5. to the original. This is a glory not skin-deep like that of Moses, but
penetrating the characterand changing our inmost nature into Christ's
image.
3. The idea, then, is that they who are much in Christ's presence become
mirrors to Him, reflecting more and more permanently His image until they
themselves perfectly resemble Him. This assertionrests onthe well-knownlaw
that a reflectedimage tends in many circumstances to become fixed. Your eye,
e.g., is a mirror which retains for a little the image it has been reflecting. Let
the sun shine upon it, and whereveryou look for a time you will still see the
sun. The child who grows up with a parent he respects unconsciouslyreflects
a thousand of his attitudes, looks, and ways, which gradually become the
child's own. We are all of us, to a greatextent, made by the company we keep.
There is a natural readiness in us all to reflectand respond to the emotions
expressedin our presence. If another person laughs, we canscarcelyrefrain
from laughing; if we see a man in pain, our face reflects what is passing in
him. And so every one who associateswith Christ finds that to some extent he
reflects His glory. It is His image which always reawakens in us a response to
what is goodand right. It is He who saves us from becoming altogethera
reflectionof a world lying in wickedness,from being formed by our own evil-
heartedness, and from persuading ourselves we may live as we list. His own
patient lips seemto say, "Follow Me;be in this world as I was in it." Our
duty, then, if we would be transformed into the image of Christ, is plain.
I. WE MUST ASSOCIATE WITH HIM. Even one thought of Him does some
good, but we must learn to abide with Him. It is by a series ofimpressions that
His image becomes fixed in us. As soonas we ceaseto be conscious ofChrist
we cease to reflectHim, just as when an objectpasses frombefore a mirror,
the reflectionsimultaneously goes with it. Besides,we are exposedto objects
the most destructive to Christ's image in us. As often as our hearts are
exposedto some tempting thing and respond to it, it is that reflectionwhich is

6. seenin us, mingled often with the fading reflection of Christ; the two images
forming togethera monstrous representation.
II. WE MUST BE CAREFUL TO TURN FULLY ROUND TO CHRIST. The
mirror must be set quite square to that which it is to reflect. In many positions
you cansee many other images in a mirror without seeing yourself. And so,
unless we give our full front, our direct, straightforward, whole attention to
Christ, He may see in us, not His ownimage at all, but the images of things
abhorrent to Him. The man who is not wholly satisfiedin Christ, who has
aims or purposes that Christ will not fulfil for him, is not wholly turned
towards Christ. The man who, while he prays to Christ, is keeping one eye
open towards the world, is a mirror set obliquely; so that he reflects not
Christ at all, but other things which are making him the man he is.
III. WE MUST STAND IN HIS PRESENCEWITH OPEN, UNVEILED
FACE. We may weara veil in the world, refusing to reflectit; but when we
return to the Lord we must uncover our face. A coveredmirror reflects
nothing. Others find Christ in the reading of the Word, in prayer, in the
services ofHis house, in a number of little providences — in fact everywhere,
because their eyes are unveiled. We may read the very same word and wonder
at their emotion; we may pass through the same circumstances and be quite
unconscious ofChrist; we may be at the communion table side by side with
one who is radiant with the glory of Christ and yet an impalpable veil between
us and him may hide all this from us. And our dangeris that we let the dust
gather upon us till we see and reflect no ray of that glory. We do nothing to
brush off the dust, but let Him pass by and leave no more mark on us than if
He had not been present. This veil is not like a slight dimness occasionedby
moisture on a mirror, which the warm presence of Christ will itself dry up; it
is rather an incrustation that has grownout from our ownhearts, thickly
covering them and making them thoroughly impervious to the light of
Heaven. The heart is overlaid with worldly ambitions; with fleshly appetites;
with schemes ofself-advancement. All these, and everything which has no

7. sympathy with what is spiritual and Christlike, must be removed, and the
mirror must be kept clean, if there is to be any reflection. In some persons you
might be tempted to say that the mischief is produced not so much by a veil on
the mirror as by a lack of quicksilver behind it. There is no solid backing to
the character, no material for the truth to work upon, or there is no energetic
thinking, no diligent, painstaking spiritual culture. Conclusion:
1. Observe the perfectness ofthis mode of sanctification. It is perfect —(1) In
its end; it is likeness to Christ in which it terminates. And as often as you set
yourself before Christ, and in presence ofHis perfectcharacterbegin to feel
the blemishes in your own, you forgetthe points of resemblance, and feel that
you cannot rest until the likeness is perfect. And so the Christian goes from
glory to glory, from one reflectionof Christ's image to another, until
perfection is attained.(2)In its method. It extends to the whole characterat
once. When a sculptor is cutting out a bust, or a painter filling in a likeness,
one feature may be pretty nearly finished while the rest are undiscernible; but
when a person stands before a mirror the whole face is at once reflected. And
in sanctificationthe same law holds good. Many of us take the wrong method;
we hammer and chisel awayat ourselves to produce some resemblance to
Christ in one feature or another; but the result is that either in a day or two
we quite forgetwhat grace we were trying to develop; or, succeeding
somewhat, we find that our characteras a whole is more provokingly unlike
Christ than ever. Considerhow this appears in the moulding men undergo in
society. You know in what class ofsocietya man has been brought up, not by
his accent, bearing, conversation, or look alone, but by all these together. The
societya man moves in impresses on all he does and is a certainstyle and
manner and tone. So the only effectualway of becoming like Christ in all
points is to be much in His society.
2. Some of us lament that there is so little we can do for Christ. But we can all
reflectHim, and by reflecting Him we shall certainly extend the knowledge of
Him on earth. Many who do not look at Him, look at you. As in a mirror

8. persons (looking into it from the side) see the reflections ofobjects which are
themselves invisible, so persons will see in you an image of what they do not
directly see, whichwill cause them to wonder, and turn to study for
themselves the substantial figure which produces it.
3. The mirror cannot produce an image of that which has no reality. And as
little can any man produce in himself dud of himself the characterofChrist.
(M. Dods, D. D.)
The gospelthe reflective mirror of the glory of the Lord
W. Jones.
I. WE MUST EXPLAIN THE OBJECT OF VISION. "The glory of the
Lord." Every discoverywhich the Lord has made of Himself to His rational
creatures is for the manifestationof His own glory. The works ofcreation
were intended to show forth His glory. In process oftime the Divine Being
gave a more complete revelation of His glory, by the ministry of Moses,to a
nation whom He had ordained to be the repositoryof His truth.
II. THE REFLECTIVE MEDIUM. A glass ormirror. Divine revelationis a
mirror in which we perceive, and from which is reflected, the glory of the
Lord. The ministration of the Spirit exceeds in glory the ministration of death
and condemnation, inasmuch as —
1. Its discoveries are more satisfactory.
2. The miracles by which they were attestedwere more benevolent.

9. 3. The grace of the latter is more abundant than that of the former. By grace
here we mean the bestowmentof spiritual life and salvationto the souls of
sinful men. If we look at the generalcharacterof the Israelitish nation, from
the time of Moses to the coming of Christ, we shall perceive but little
manifestation of genuine piety towards God. But how abundant was the grace
when Christ appeared, "in the fulness of time," "to put awaysin by the
sacrifice ofHimself!" Then Jews and Gentiles receivedthe gifts and graces of
the Holy Spirit in so copious a manner as to fulfil the beautiful predictions of
the prophet: "Until the Spirit be poured on us from on high, and the
wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest."
III. THE DISTINCTNESSOF ITS PERCEPTION."With open" or "unveiled
face."
IV. THE TRANSFORMING POWEROF THIS VISION. "Changedfrom
glory to glory." Thus faith in Divine revelationis a holy perception of the
mind, by which the glory of God in Christ is discovered, and this discovery
has a powerful reactionupon the soul, and as the objectis more distinctly
perceived, the progressive sanctificationofgoodmen is advanced till they
possessthe perfect image of their Lord.
V. THE DIVINE AGENT BY WHICH THIS IS EFFECTED. "The Spirit of
the Lord," or "the Lord the Spirit."
1. Here the personality and divinity of the Holy Spirit are asserted.
2. None but a Divine Being could accomplishHis work. The Spirit of God
creates the soul of every convertedman anew.Inimprovement of the subject
we have been considering I shall make only two observations.

10. 1. How greatis your privilege, and how awful your responsibility i
2. The Christian has to leave reflective mirrors for the full vision of the
Saviour's glory.
(W. Jones.)
Mirrors of Christ
W. Hay-Aitken, M. A.
I. IN EVERY REFLECTORTHERE MUST BE AN EXPOSURE OF
ITSELF TO THE SUN, SO THAT THE LIGHT MAY FALL FULL UPON
IT. So if we would reflect the glories of God, we must make a full presentation
of ourselves to God. How many of us fail to shire just because ofsome
spiritual obliquity of aim and purpose!
II. A REFLECTORCAN ONLY ANSWER ITS PURPOSE WHEN THERE
IS NOTHING INTERPOSED BETWEEN IT AND THE SOURCE OF
LIGHT. We need to have our face unveiled in order to receive the light as well
as to reflectit. The introduction of some substance renders the reflector
useless. Now observe, the sun is very seldom eclipsed, but when that is so the
world itself is in no way accountable;another orb is interposed betweenthe
earth and the sun. Even so the Christian's light may sometimes be eclipsed,
not because ofany fault of ours, but for some wise purpose which God has in
view. But it is otherwise with self-causeddarkness. The sun, while seldom
eclipsed, is frequently beclouded, and by clouds which are due to exhalations
arising from the earth. Alas! how many Christians live under a clouded sky,
for which they have only to thank themselves.

11. 1. Here is one who lives under the ominous thundercloud of care.
2. Here is another who dwells in the fog of earthly-mindedness.
3. Here is yet another who is wrapped round in the cold mist of doubts and
fears, steaming up from the restless sea ofhuman experiences.
III. IF A MIRROR IS TO REFLECT IT MUST BE KEPT CLEAN. I saw an
ancient mirror of polished steelin an old baronial hall. There it was, in just as
goodcondition as when fair ladies saw their faces reflectedin it in the days of
the Plantagenets. Butits preservationin the damp atmosphere of Cornwall
was due to the fact that generationafter generationof servants had always
kept it clean. Just think how one small spot of rust in all these hundreds of
years would have marred that surface for ever. Oh, Christian, no wonder that
thou hast lost thy reflecting power. Thou hast been carelessaboutlittle things;
but nothing canbe smallerthan the dust which robs the mirror of its
reflecting power. Or perhaps thou hast allowedthe rust spots of evil habits to
spoil thy surface. Let us see to it that we keepthe mirror bright and unsullied!
The most virulent corrosive acidcan do but little harm to the surface of
polished steel, if wiped off the moment it falls; but let it remain, and very soon
an irreparable mischief is done. Even so you may be overtakenevenin a very
serious fault; but when it has been promptly confessedand put away, the
truth is realised:"If we walk in the light, as He is in the light," etc.
IV. NOTE THE WAY IN WHICH THE ANCIENT MIRRORS WERE
FORMED. The metalhad to be smoothedand polished by friction.
1. And are we not God's workmanshipin this respect, and does He not employ
our trying experiences here just to induce this end?

12. 2. The mirror needs to be polished by a skilled hand; and as long as we are in
God's hands, He can, and will, polish us for Himself. But when we take
ourselves out of His hands, and only see chance orcircumstances orstern old
mother Nature, in our experiences, these clumsyoperators only scratchthe
surface, which needs to be polished.
V. But there comes a point when the figure breaks down, for THE MIRROR
ALWAYS REMAINS A MIRROR — dark itself, howevermuch light it may
reflect. BUT IT IS OTHERWISE WITHTHE TRUE CHRISTIAN.
1. The light not only falls on but enters into him, and becomes part of himself.
The true Christian is not only a light-giver — he is light. "Now are ye light in
the Lord." The Christian who puts a veil on his face because he does not care
to give, will find that he is also precluded by his veil from receiving;but he
who both receives and gives will also find that he keeps.
2. And that which he keeps proves within him a transforming powerby which
he is changed from glory into glory. Thank God for our capacityof change.
There are some who seemto be proud of never changing.
3. We are familiar with the idea that God is to be glorified in eachfresh stage
of spiritual experience, but are we equally familiar with the thought that each
fresh acquisition that faith lays hold of brings new glory with it to him by
whom the acquisition is made? From glory unto glory.(1) Is it not glory when
first the sinner, dead in trespasses andsing, hears Christ say, "He that
believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live"?(2) Time passes on,
and the soul cries again"Glory to God!" as he makes the discoverythat the
redemption of Christ entitles him to be free indeed from the tyrant power of
sin.(3) Time flies on, and still we change. "Gloryto God!" cries the working

13. Christian, as he presents his body a living sacrifice, andfeels the living fire
descendand consecrate the offering. "Gloryto thee, My child," the Saviour
still seems to answer;"thou art a workertogetherwith Me; thy labour is not
in vain in Me thy Lord."(4) Still we change. "Gloryto God!" cries the
advancing saint, as he sees the prize of his high calling, and presses towards it.
"Glory to thee, my child," is still the Saviour's response;"as thou hast borne
the image of the earthly, so shalt thou bear the image of the earthly, so shalt
thou bear the image of the heavenly."(5)Thus we press on from glory unto
glory until it is all glory. "Gloryto God!" exclaims the triumphant soul as he
enters the eternal home. "Gloryto thee, my child!" still seems the answer, as
Christ bids His faithful followershare His throne. Oh, may we thus reflectHis
glory for ever!
(W. Hay-Aitken, M. A.)
The transforming influence of faith
Geo. Robson.
I. THE CONTEMPLATION OF CHRIST. "We allwith open face beholding
as in a glass the glory of the Lord."
1. The object beheld. "The glory of the Lord," "He is the Lord of all" — of all
men, of all creatures, ofall things. He is the rightful Proprietor of the
universe. The primary meaning of glory is brightness, splendour; and the
secondarymeaning is excellence displayed, according to its subject, and the
nature of the object to which it is ascribed. In which of these senses is glory
here ascribedto the Lord Christ? In the latter, not in the former sense. It is
not the glory of His might, nor the glory of His majesty, nor even the glory of
His miracles, of which His personaldisciples were eye-witnesses;but the glory
of His moral perfections. God is "glorious in holiness," and "the glory of the
Lord" is His moral excellence,comprisedand displayed in all His moral
attributes. The former are displayed in His works;the latter shine brightest in
His Word. In a word, the glory of the Lord was the manifestationof His

14. Divine philanthropy — "of the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward
men."
2. The medium in which His glory is beheld. "Beholding as in a glass,"or
rather, as in a mirror. What, then, is the mirror which receives the image, and
reflects back on the eye of the beholders, the glory of the Lord? What, but the
gospelof Christ. And Christ is at once the Author, the subject, and the sum of
the gospel. It derives all the glory it possessesand reflects, from the glory of
the Lord. It receives its being, its name, its character, and its efficacyfrom
Him. It originates nothing; all that it is, all that it says, and all that it does, is
from Him, about Him, and for Him. And the image of Him which the gospel
receives as the image of the invisible God, the brightness of His glory, and the
express image of His person, it reflects back as from a burnished mirror, in all
its lineaments, and fulness, and glory, and distinctness. The glory of the gospel
of Christ, as a mirror, contrasts strikingly with the law as "a shadow of things
to come." The goodthings to come were seenby the Old Testamentsaints in
the types and ceremonies ofthe law. The view was dim as well as distant;
indistinct, uncertain, and unsatisfying. But the sight of the glory of the Lord in
the mirror of the gospelis near and not distant, luminous and not dark,
distinct and not obscure or uncertain, and transforming but not terrifying.
3. The manner. "With open face." The face is said to be open when it is
guileless, ingenuous, and benevolent, and not sinister, crafty, or malicious; or,
when the face itself is fully exposed, and not covered. This last is obviously the
meaning of the expressionemployed. With open, that is, with unveiled face.
Those who apply it to the face of the Lord make a slight transpositionof the
words to make the sense more apparent. Thus: "We all, beholding as in a
mirror the glory of the Lord with unveiled face." His face is unveiled, and His
glory is thus undimmed. It shines forth in all its splendour. If the "unveiled
face" be understoodof the beholders, according to our version, then the
reference is to the more immediate context in the fifteenth verse, and the
contrastis betweenthem, and "the veil which is upon the heart" of the

15. unbelieving Jews. Now, allthis serves to show that, while the most obvious
reference may be to the veil over the face of Mosesas contrastedwith the
glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, it is not to the exclusionof the veil
upon the heart of the Jews as contrastedwith the open, unveiled face of the
beholders of the glory of the Lord. "Which veil is done awayin Christ?"
Indeed, both veils are now removed, and done away in Christ: — the
obscurity causedby the former is removed by the luminous exhibition of the
gospelof Christ, and the blindness of mind causedby the latter is removed by
the ministration of the Spirit.
4. The beholders. Who are the persons indicated by, and included in the "we
all" who thus behold the glory of the Lord? Is it all we apostles only? or even
all we whom He hath "made able ministers of the New Testament"? The
expressionincludes all who are subjects of the new covenant, who are under
grace, and in a state of grace, "allwho have turned to the Lord" (ver. 16). Not
only do all who turn, or are converted to the Lord, possess, exercise, and
maintain their Christian liberty, but they are all "light in the Lord." The light
of the glorious gospelofChrist, the medium of spiritual vision, is not only held
up as a mirror before their eyes, as before the eyes of the world; but the organ
of spiritual vision is opened, unveiled, and directed to the image beheld there,
radiant with beauty, and reflecting back the glory of the Lord on the eyes of
the beholders.
II. CONFORMITYTO CHRIST. The change thus produced is —
1. Spiritual in its nature. All the glory seenon the summit, and around the
base, of Mount Sinai, was of a material and sensible kind. Moses sawthe glory
of the Lord with his bodily eyes;the shekinah, or symbol of the Divine glory,
made the skin of his face to shine. It is otherwise with the glory beheld, with
the medium, the manner, and the organof vision here — all is spiritual, and
not material in its nature. The gospelreveals, and holds up to view, the things

16. of the Spirit. And spiritual things must be spiritually discerned. They do not
act as a charm. Nothing can possibly affect, impress, or influence us mentally,
any longerthan it is in our thoughts; or, morally, any longer than it is in our
memory and in our heart. The gospelof Christ operates according to the
attention and receptiongiven to it, and the use we make of it.
2. Transforming in its influence. It is a law in nature, and a truth in proverb,
that "like produces like." The man who is much at court, naturally and
almost unconsciouslycatchesthe air, impress, and polish of the court, so that
he become courtly, if not courteous in spirit, in address, in manners and
deportment. In going to the house of mourning, which it is better to go to than
to the house of feasting, we almost insensibly catchthe spirit of sympathy, and
feel the spirit of mourning creeping over us. The heart softens;the
countenance saddens;the eye moistens. Constituted as we all are, how canit
be otherwise? Looking steadfastlyand intently at such moral excellence we
admire; admiring we love; loving we long to imitate it; imitation produces
likeness to Him in mind, in disposition, in will, in walk, and way. Do we thus
behold the love of Christ? "We love Him, because He first loved us." Do we
behold Him as "the Lamb of God which takethawaythe sin of the world"?
We become "deadto sin, and alive to God through Jesus Christ our Lord."
3. Glorious in its progress. The glory of Moses'countenance became more and
more dim, by distance of time and of place from the scene and sight of glory,
till it entirely disappeared. But the glory of the Lord remains the same, and
the glory of the gospelreflecting it remains the same, and the more steadfastly
and earnestlywe behold it, the more will we be changedinto the same glorious
image. The expressionemployed is an evidence that grace and glory are not
only inseparable, but in substance identical. So far from differing in kind they
are so essentiallythe same, that the sacredwriters sometimes use the words
interchangeably. Paul here uses "glory" for grace in speaking ofthe glorious
transformation of believers from grace to glory; and Peteruses "grace"for
glory in speaking of the glory " that is to be brought unto us at the revelation

17. of Jesus Christ." And the reasonis no less plain than the lessonis instructive
and important. The partakerof grace is "also a partakerof the glory that
shall be revealed."
4. Divine in efficiency, "Evenas by the Spirit of the Lord," or as the margin
has it more literally and properly. "Even as by the Lord the Spirit." It is His
prerogative, and it becomes His spiritual dominion to open and unveil the
heart, to enlighten the eyes of the understanding, to fix them on the glory of
the Lord, to quicken the spirit, and thus to make His subjects "a willing
people in the day of His power." This subject sets before us the privilege of
gospelhearers, and the honour of gospelbelievers, and the doom of gospel
despisers.Itshows —
1. The privilege of gospelhearers. All who have the Word of God, who read or
hear the gospelofChrist, are "not under the law, but under grace." Theyare
more highly privileged than were the Jews who were under the law, or the
Gentiles who have not the law, and know not God.
2. The blessedness ofgospelbelievers. Theyare the blessedpeople who know
the joyful sound; they walk in the light of God's countenance.
3. The doom of gospeldespisers. Theymake light of the gospelofChrist;
despise the Saviour it presents, and the salvation it proffers, and turn away
from "the glory of the Lord."
(Geo. Robson.)
The physiognomy and photography of Christianity

18. A. J. Parry.
I. THE PHYSIOGNOMYOF THE TEXT.
1. The open face. This is the antithesis of the coveredface of Moses,and must
therefore be Christ's (2 Corinthians 4:6). The idea is physiognomical, face
reading. Men profess to comprehend eachother's temperaments and
dispositions by the study of their faces. Thus a man's face is his character, at
leastthe keyto it. In this face of Jesus Christ shines the resplendent glory of
God; it is an index of the Divine mind and feelings towards a sinful world. The
human face becomes a profound mystery apart from the soul within. Its
wonderful expressions cannotbe understood excepton the supposition of an
indwelling spirit. When the sky is overcast, suddenly, maybe, a beam darts
through, shedding a glow of beauty over the spot upon which it gleams. The
mystery of that ray could not be solvedexcept by the existence ofa sun
behind. It is only in the same way that the characterofChrist can be
understood. DeniedHis Divine nature Christ becomes a profounder mystery
than when regardedas God incarnate.
2. It is an open face in a glass. Once it was an open face without any
intervening object, when "He dwelt among men and they beheld His glory."
But now that His bodily presence has departed we have His face reflectedin
the gospel-mirror(2 Corinthians 4:4). It is through Christ we know God, and
it is through the gospelthat we know Christ. The sun, when it has set, is
invisible to us. We then look up to the heavens, and there we observe the
moon, which reflects the, to us, invisible sun. This moon is the sun's image.
Again, looking into the placid waters of the pool, we observe in its cleardepth
the moon's reflection. God is imaged in Christ, and Christ is imaged in the
gospel. Now, the superiority of the gospeloverthe Old Testamentis
representedby the difference betweenthe glass and the veil. The veil obscures
the face, the glass reveals it. In fact the mirror is of all instruments the one
which gives the most correctrepresentationof the original. The idea of a
person conveyedby a mirror is immeasurably superior to that conveyedby
the bestpainting. The face in the painting may representa dead one, but the

19. face in the mirror must represent a living one. If the mirror excels so much
the bestpainting, how much must it excela shadow!The Old Testamentwas
only a "shadow ofgoodthings to come, and not the very image of the things."
A person's shadow will give but a very indifferent idea of him. What,
however, would be thought of the person who essayedto draw a picture of
another from his shadow? Yet, this the Jews attempted to do in relation to
Christ. So "to His own He came, and His own receivedHim not," because His
appearance did not harmonise with their preconceivedconceptions ofHim
drawn from His shadow. Men, therefore, should seek Him in the gospel
mirror, where alone He can be seenas He is.
II. THE PHOTOGRAPHYOF THE TEXT. "But we all... are changed into
the same image," etc. Here the apostle explains the effects of this transparent
clearness ofthe gospelteaching. Beholding the Lord in the gospeltransforms
the beholder into His own image. This is in accordance withthe analogyof
natural photography. The light falls upon the object, that object againreflects
it in its own form upon the prepared glass. The resplendentglory of God falls,
so to speak, upon Christ in His mediatorial character;Christ reflects it upon
the believing mind; the mind beholding Him in faith. The mind thus reflected
upon by the incomparable beauties of Christ's characteris transformed into
the same image. The work is progressive, but the first line of it is glory, and
every additional one the same — "from glory to glory."
(A. J. Parry.)
The image
J. Wells, M. A.
I. THE IMAGE. We must lay Exodus 34:33, etc., alongside ofthis chapter. So
the sight of Christ's glory does far more for us than the sight of God's glory
did for Moses. The skinof his face was lighted up; but our very souls are

20. changedinto likeness to Christ; and this change does not soonpass away, but
continues growing from glory to glory, as might be expected, seeing it is the
Spirit of the Lord who works the change in us.
1. Christ, as we see Him in the New Testament, is the most perfect image in
the world. Only a little of God's glory was revealedby Moses, but Christ is "
God manifest in the flesh."(1)God is Light, i.e., that is holiness, and how
plainly that glory is imaged in the sinless Jesus!(2)God is Love, and that love
is made perfectly plain by the life of Christ from the cradle to the cross. A
poor African could not believe that the white man loved him. His heart was
not wonby cold far-off words about a far-off people. But love for the African
became flesh in David Livingstone, and his life was a glass in which they saw
the true image of Christian love.
2. This image is not like the image of the ascending Christ, which faded into
heaven while the disciples gazedafter it on the Mount of Olives. This is an
unfading portrait. Age cannotdim it, earth's mildew cannot discolourit,
man's rude hand cannotdestroy it; it only grows brighter as it gathers fresh
beauty from the blessedchanges it is working in the world.
II. BEHOLDING OF THE IMAGE. I never saw the beauty of the sun so well
as one day in a Highland lake, whose surface was like a mirror of polished
glass. To see the naked sun face to face would have blinded me. When John
saw Christ's glory directly, though ii was only in a vision, he fell down as a
dead man, and the same glory blinded Saul of Tarsus. The Bible is a glass in
which you may gaze without fear upon the glory of the Lord therein reflected,
Moses was the one privileged man in his day. But now all Christians candraw
as near to God as Mosesdid, for where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is this
liberty, How can I rightly behold the glory of the Lord?
1. With an open or unveiled face, just as Moses took Offhis veil when he
turned to speak with Jehovah. A lady visiting a picture gallery on a wintry

21. day shields her face from the biting blast with a thick veil; but, upon entering
the gallery, she lifts up her veil that with open face she may fully behold the
images createdby sculptor and painter. Many veils hide Christ's glory. The
god of this world is busy blinding our minds by drawing a veil of prejudice,
false shame, ignorance of an earthly mind over them (2 Corinthians 4:4).
2. You are to behold the image in the glass ofthe Bible. A picture or statue
often serves only to remind me that the man is dead or far away, not so the
image of Christ in the Bible, Some images, however, fill us with a sense of
reality. Raphaelpainted the Pope, and the Pope's secretaryat first took the
image for the living man, knelt and offered pen and ink to the portrait, with
the requestthat the bill in his hand might be signed. The image we behold is
drawn by the Divine hand, and should be to us a bright and present reality, 3,
This beholding must be steadyand life-long. Unless you look often at this
image and love to do so, you will not getmuch goodfrom Christ. Even man-
made images impress only the steady beholders of them.
III. THE BEHOLDERS.
1. "Theyare changedinto the same image." Some people think that the
beholding of beautiful pictures must do greatgoodto the beholders;but when
Athens and Rome were crownedwith the most splendid pictures and statues,
the people were the most wickedthe world has yet seen. But the right
beholding of this image gains a life of the same make as Christ's. We become
what we behold. Two boys had been poring over the life of Dick Turpin and
Jack Sheppard. In that glass they beheld the image of lawless adventurers.
They admired: they would be bold heroes too. They are soonchangedinto the
image they gaze upon from shame to shame, even as by the spirit of the devil.
Here is a gentle, lovely girl. Her mother is to her the very model and mirror of
womanly perfection. She gladly yields herself up to her mother's influence,
and the neighbours say, "Thatgirl is the living image of her mother"; for she

22. receives whatshe admires, and silently grows like what she "likes" best.
When some newspapercomparedDr. Judson to one of the apostles, he was
distressed, and said, "I do not want to be like them. I want to be like Christ."
2. This change is to be always going forward from glory to glory.
3. Your beholding of Christ and likeness to Christ are both imperfect on
earth. In heaven there shall be a perfect beholding, and so a perfect likeness to
Christ (Psalm17:15). There as here being and beholding go together. We see
this change growing towards perfectness in the martyr Stephen as he stood on
the borderland betweenearth and heaven. Even his foes "saw his face as it
had been the face of an angel."
4. Christ's people are to be changedso thoroughly into His image that they
shall have a soul like His, and even a body like His. For "as we have borne the
image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly."
(J. Wells, M. A.)
The Christian's transfiguration
G. Walker, B. A.
I. WE ARE ALL TRANSFIGURED. Ifyou look back a verse or two it is
clearly seenthat St. Paul means by these words to include all Christian men.
"We all" — the words stand in vivid contrastto the literalising Jew of the
apostle's day; the Jew, who had the letter of Scripture, and worshipped it with
a veil upon his heart; so that when Moses was readin his hearing, he could not
see the meaning of the Old Testament, nor look one inch beyond the letter of
the book. His religion was stereotyped, so his heart and life could not be

23. transfigured. A religion of the letter cannot produce growth; it has no
beautifying power, it cannot transfigure. In Christ, the case is far otherwise;
where He is, there is liberty; where Christ is, there must be growth. Paul
could not believe it possible that a Christian life could remain stagnant.
Wherever there is growth, there must come, in the end, transfiguration. St.
Paul felt that every believer must re-live in some measure the perfect life of
Jesus. Here is the secretoftransformation — Christ within, Christ about us as
an atmosphere of moral growth. Fellowshipwith His perfectlife gives human
nature honour and dignity. The Thames is beautiful at Richmond, at
Twickenham, atKew, but not always so. At times the prospect, as you walk
from Twickenhamto Richmond, is spoiled by ugly flats of mud, and the air is
not over pleasant, when the heat of summer draws the miasma from the sedgy
bank. You may walk upon the bank and see but little beauty there. Wait a few
hours, the tide will return and change the entire aspectof the river. It will
become beautiful. The smallestriver or tidal basin is beautified by connection
with the sea. The pulse of ocean, if it raise the level but a few inches, adds
dignity and beauty whereverit is felt. The river repeats, on a smallerscale, the
largerlife of the ocean, answering in its ebb and flow to what the sea has done
before. So Paul felt that our nature is glorified because, through the Divine
humanity of Jesus, it is connectedwith the oceanofeternal power and grace.
The incarnation, the life, and the sacrifice ofthe Son of God have lifted
human life to higher levels; they have creatednew interests and fresh currents
in our thought and feeling. If our life flow onward towards Christ, and better
still, if His fulness flow back upon us, we must, at flood tide, partake of His
cleansing and transforming power. St. Paul does not here refer to the
resurrection, his tenses are all present, and point to a change now taking place
in our imperfect existence:"Changedfrom glory to glory." There is a glory of
Christian characterwhich we may possess evennow. "Fromglory to glory"
implies steps and stages. There is a measure of beauty, of strength, of holy
character, oftransfiguration, possible to the feeblestChristian —
transfiguration of heart and life, a glory now, a foretaste of the eternal glory, a
firstfruits of the Spirit.
II. THE CAUSE OF THE CHANGE AND THE MEANS OF ITS
ATTAINMENT. It is brought about by looking at Christ. "We all, with

24. unveiled face, beholding the glory, are changed." To be like Christ, we must
look upon Him intently. Then, on the Divine side, there is the inward change.
As we look, the Spirit works within. Both things are necessary. As we gaze, the
Divine influence comes down upon us imperceptibly. We are all much affected
by the things we look at from day to day. A man will find sights congenialto
his heart and mind. If he be artistic, he will be on the look-outfor pictures and
sculpture, or beautiful scenesin nature. If he have a turn for science,he will
find objects of study and delight in every field and wood. If we are
affectionate, with strong socialinstincts, our principal attractions will be
found in human society. Now all these objects, in turn, reactupon us. The
artistic mind grows and expands by the study of beauty. The scientific man
becomes more scientific by the study of nature; while the socialand
affectionate dispositiondeepens in the searchand attainment of its object.
Apply this to the gospel. Again, we must not forget that the way we look is also
important. Our manner of looking at Christ affects us. St. Paul says, we look
with "unveiled face." He here contrasts the Jewishwith the Christian Church.
Look at Christ, look daily, look appreciatively, lovingly, in tender sympathy,
and the spirit of Christ will possessyou. We may not be able to tell how the
change comes about, nor why, neither need we anxiously inquire, provided we
look at Christ and feel the Spirit's power. Godhas many ways. Stand before
the mirror, and you will see the light. We care not at what angle you gaze.
Look at Christ through tears of penitence, look in hope, in joy, in love; let His
light stream into the heart through any one of the many avenues of thought
and feeling.
(G. Walker, B. A.)
The change produced by faith in Jesus
J. McCosh, D. D.
I. THE BEHOLDING.

25. 1. By beholding we are to understand faith in one of its liveliest and most
important exercises. Faithis a living principle. It hath eyes, and it beholds
Christ. This beholding does not consistof a single glance, of a passing survey.
"Looking" is not a single act, but the habit of his soul. "Looking unto Jesus,"
etc.
2. With open face. Under the JewishdispensationChrist was exhibited, but it
was as it were through a veil. There was a mystery attachedto it. But now,
when Christ came, the mystery which had been hid for ages is revealed. At the
hour when Jesus said, "It is finished," the veil that hid the holiest of all, and
the innermost secrets ofthe covenant, was rent in twain from top to bottom.
3. As in a glass. We, whose eye is dimmed by sin, cannot see Godas the spirits
made perfect do in heaven. "No man hath seenGod at any time." Moses
desired on one occasionto behold the glory of God. But the requestcould not
be granted. "No man cansee God and live." Yet God gave him a signal
manifestation of His presence (Exodus 34:5). Such is the view which God gives
to the believer, of Himself in the face of His Son, as a just Godwho will by no
means clearthe guilty, and yet the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus — a
gracious and encouraging view, not indeed of His essentialglory, which the
sinner cannot behold, but of His glory as exhibited in His grace, andon which
the eye of the believer delights to rest.
II. WHAT IS BEHELD. "The glory of the Lord." The Lord, as the whole
context shows, is the Lord Christ — the proper objectof faith. We look into
the Word as into a mirror to fix our attention on the object reflected. In Him
as thus disclosedwe shall behold a glory. In His person He is "the brightness
of the Father's glory and the express image of His person." In His work all the
perfections of the Divine character meet as in a focus of surpassing brilliancy.
There was a glory in His incarnation which the company of the heavenly host
observedas they sang, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good-

26. will to the children of men." There was glory in His baptism, when the Holy
Ghostdescendedupon Him, and the voice of the Father was heard declaring,
"This is My well-belovedSon." There was an imposing glory in His
transfiguration. There was a glory, too, in His very humiliation in His sorrow,
in the curseddeath which He died. There was an evident glory in His
resurrection, when, having gone down to the dark dominions of death, He
came up a mighty conqueror, bearing the fruits of victory, and holding death
in chains as His prisoner; and angels believedthemselves honoured in
announcing that "the Lord is risen." There was a glory in His ascension.
"Thou hastascendedon high, leading captivity captive" (Psalm 24.)He is in
glory now at the right hand of God, which glory Stephen was privileged to
behold. He shall come in glory at the last day to judge the world. He shall
dwell in His glory through all eternity, and the saints shall be partakers with
Him of that glory, Now all this glory is exhibited in the volume of the Book,
just as we have seenan expansive scene of skyand cloud, of hills and plains, of
streams and woods, reflectedand exhibited before us in a mirror, and we all
with open face behold as in a glass the glory of the Lord.
III. THE EFFECT PRODUCED.. This transforming powerof faith arises
from two sources notindependent of eachother, but still separable.
1. Faith is the receiving grace ofthe Christian character, and the soul is
enriched by the treasures poured through it as a channel. Herein lies the great
efficacyof faith; it receives that which is given it, and through it the virtue
that is in Christ flows into the soul, enriches and satisfies it, and changes it
into the same image.
2. Faith produces this effect, inasmuch as it makes us look to and copy Christ.
The Spirit carries on the work of sanctificationby making us look unto Jesus,
and whateverwe look to with admiration and love we are disposedwillingly,

27. sometimes almostinvoluntarily, to imitate. We grow in likeness to Him whom
we love and admire.
IV. THE AGENT. "The Spirit of the Lord." Note —
1. The harmony betweenthe work of the Spirit and the principles of man's
mind. He does not convert or sanctify sinners againsttheir will, but by making
them a willing people in the day of His power. What He does in us He does by
us. It is when we are beholding the glory of the Lord Christ that the Spirit
changes us into the same image from glory to glory.
2. The harmony betweenthe work of Christ the Lord and the work of the
Spirit of the Lord. The Spirit is the Spirit of Christ, who takes of the things
that are Christ's and shows them unto us. The Spirit directs our eyes to
Christ, and it is when we look to the Lord Christ that we are changedinto the
same image.
(J. McCosh, D. D.)
Transformationby beholding
A. Maclaren, D. D.
I. THE CHRISTIAN LIFE IS A LIFE OF CONTEMPLATING AND
REFLECTINGCHRIST. It is a question whether the single word rendered in
our version"beholding as in a glass,"means that, or "reflecting as a glass
does." But, whatever be the exactforce of the word, the thing intended
includes both acts. There is no reflection of the light without a previous
receptionof the light. In bodily sight, the eye is a mirror, and there is no sight
without aa image of the thing perceivedformed in the perceiving eye. In

28. spiritual sight, the soul which beholds is a mirror, and at once beholds and
reflects.
1. The great truth of a direct, unimpeded vision sounds strange to many of us.
Does not Paul himself teach that we see through a glass darkly? Do we not
walk by faith and not by sight? "No man hath seenGod at any time, nor can
see Him"; and beside that absolute impossibility have we not veils of flesh and
sense, to say nothing of the covering of sin. But these apparent difficulties
drop awaywhen we take into accounttwo things —(1) The objectof vision.
"The Lord" is Jesus Christ, the manifested God, our brother. The glory which
we behold and give back is not the incomprehensible, incommunicable lustre
of the absolute Divine perfectness, but that glory which, as John says, we
beheld in Him who tabernacledwith us, full of grace and truth.(2) The real
nature of the vision itself. It is the beholding of Him with the soulby faith.
"Seeing is believing," says sense;"believing is seeing," says the spirit which
clings to the Lord, "whom having not seen" it loves. A bridge of perishable
flesh, which is not myself but my tool, connects me with the outward world. It
never touches myself at all, and I know it only by trust in my senses. But
nothing intervenes betweenmy Lord and me, when I love and trust. He is the
light, which proves its own existence by revealing itself, which strikes with
quickening impulse on the eye of the spirit that beholds by faith.
2. Note the universality of this prerogative:"We all." This vision does not
belong to any selecthandful. Christ reveals Himself to all His servants in the
measure of their desire after Him. Whatsoeverspecialgifts may belong to a
few in His Church, the greatestgiftbelongs to all.
3. This contemplationinvolves reflection. What we see we shall certainly
show. If you look into a man's eye, you will see in it little pictures of what he
beholds; and if our hearts are beholding Christ, Christ will be mirrored there.
Our characters willshow what we are looking at, and ought, in the case of
Christian people, to bear His image so plainly that men cannotbut take
knowledge ofus that we have been with Jesus. And you may be quite sure

29. that, if little light comes from a Christian character, little light comes into it;
and if it be swathedin thick veils from men, there will be no less thick veils
betweenit and God. Away then with all veils! No reserve, no fearof the
consequencesofplain speaking, no diplomatic prudence regulating our frank
utterance, no secretdoctrines for the initiated! Our power and our duty lies in
the full exhibition of the truth.
II. THIS LIFE OF CONTEMPLATION IS THEREFOREA LIFE OF
GRADUAL TRANSFORMATION.
1. The brightness on the face of Moses was onlyskin-deep. It faded away, and
left no trace. Thus the superficial lustre, that had neither permanence nor
transforming power, becomes anillustration of the powerlessness oflaw to
change the moral characterinto the likeness of the fair ideal which it sets
forth. And, in oppositionto its weakness,the apostle proclaims the great
principle of Christian progress, that the beholding of Christ leads to the
assimilationto Him.
2. The metaphor of a mirror does not wholly serve us here. When the
sunbeams fall upon it, it flashes in the light, just because they do not enter its
cold surface. The contrary is the case with these sentient mirrors of our
spirits. In them the light must first sink in before it canray out. They are not
so much like a reflecting surface as like a bar of iron, which needs to be heated
right down to its obstinate black core, before its outer skin glow with the
whiteness of a heat that is too hot to sparkle. The sunshine must fall on us, not
as it does on some lonely hillside, lighting up the greystones with a passing
gleamthat changes nothing, and fades away, leaving the solitude to its
sadness;but as it does on some cloud cradled near its setting, which it
drenches and saturates with fire till its cold heart burns, and all its wreaths of
vapour are brightness palpable, glorified by the light which lives amidst its
mists.

30. 3. And this contemplation will be gradual transformation. "We all beholding...
are changed." It is not the mere beholding, but the gaze of love and trust that
moulds us by silent sympathy into the likeness ofHis wondrous beauty, who is
fairer than the children of men. It was a deep true thought which the old
painters had when they drew John as likest to his Lord. Love makes us like.
We learn thai even in our earthly relationships. Let that pure face shine upon
heart and spirit, and as the sun photographs itself on the sensitive plate
exposedto its light, and you geta likeness ofthe sun by simply laying the thing
in the sun, so He will "be formed in you." Iron near a magnet becomes
magnetic. Spirits that dwell with Christ become Christ-like.
4. Surely this message— "behold and be like" — ought to be very joyful and
enlightening to many of us, who are weariedwith painful struggles after
isolatedpieces ofgoodness that elude our grasp. You have been trying half
your lifetime to cure faults, and make yourselves better. Try this other plan.
Live in sight of your Lord, and catchHis spirit. The man that travels with his
face northwards has it grey and cold. Let him turn to the warm south, where
the midday sun dwells, and his face will glow with the brightness that he sees.
"Looking unto Jesus" is the sovereigncure for all our ills and sins.
5. Such transformation comes gradually. "We are changed";that is a
continuous operation. "From glory to glory"; that is a course which has well-
marked transitions and degrees. Be not impatient if it be slow. Do not be
complacentover the partial transformation which you have felt. See to it that
you neither turn away your gaze nor relax your efforts till all that you have
beheld in Him is repeatedin you.
6. Likeness to Christ is the aim of all religion. To it conversionis introductory;
doctrines, ceremonies, churches, andorganisations are valuable as auxiliary.
Prize and use them as helps towards it, and remember that they are helps only

31. in proportion as they show us the Saviour, the image of whom is our
perfectness, the beholding of whom is our transformation.
III. THE LIFE OF CONTEMPLATIONFINALLY BECOMESA LIFE OF
COMPLETE ASSIMILATION. "Changedinto the same image, from glory to
glory."
1. The likeness becomes everyway perfecter, comprehends more and more of
the faculties of the man; soaksinto him, if I may say so, until he is saturated
with the glory: and in all the extent of his being, and in all the depth possible
to eachpart of that whole extent, is like his Lord. That is the hope for heaven,
towards which we may indefinitely approximate here, and at which we shall
absolutely arrive there. There we expectchanges whichare impossible here,
while compassedwith this body of sinful flesh. We look to Him to "change the
body of our lowliness, that it may be fashioned like unto the body of His
glory"; but it is better to be like Him in our hearts. His true image is that we
should feel, think, will as He does; that we should have the same sympathies,
the same loves, the same attitude towards God, and the same attitude towards
men. Whereverthere is the beginning of that oneness andlikeness ofspirit, all
the restwill come in due time. As the spirit, so the body. But the beginning
here is the main thing, which draws all the rest after it as of course. "Ifthe
Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you," etc.
2. "We are all changedinto the same image." Various as we are in disposition
and character, differing in everything but the common relation to Jesus
Christ, we are all growing like the same image, and we shall come to be
perfectly like it, and yet eachretain his own distinct individuality. Perhaps,
too, we may connectwith this idea that passagein the Ephesians in which Paul
describes our all coming to "a perfectman." The whole of us togethermake a
perfect man; the whole make one image. No one man, evenraised to the
highest pitch of perfection, can be the full image of that infinite sum of all

32. beauty; but the whole of us takentogether, with all the diversities of natural
characterretainedand consecrated, being collectivelyHis body which He
vitalises, may, on the whole, be not a wholly inadequate representationof our
perfect Lord. Just as we set round a central light sparkling prisms, eachof
which catches the glow at its own angle, and flashes it back of its own colour,
while the sovereigncompletenessofthe perfect white radiance comes from the
blending of all their separate rays, so they who stand round about the starry
throne receive eachthe light in his ownmeasure and manner, and give forth
eacha true and perfect, and altogethera complete image of Him that
enlightens them all, and is above them all.
(A. Maclaren, D. D.)
The transfiguring vision
A. Wilson, B. A.
I. THE MIRRORED GLORY.
1. Glory is the effulgence of light; the manifested perfection of moral
character.
2. In the gospelwe have an exhibition of the blended righteousness and
compassionofGod; so it is called"the gospelof the glory of the blessedGod."
And since these attributes shine with softenedsplendour in Christ, it is called
the "gospelofthe glory of Christ, who is the image of God."
3. And we may all behold it. Like the famous fresco in the ceiling of the
cathedral, which was brought within easyreachby reflecting mirrors on the
floor. We could not all be contemporaries ofthe living Jesus. But now, in the
fourfold biography, we may all at our leisure behold the glory of the Lord.

33. II. THE TRANSFIGURING VISION. In the very act of looking we are
"metamorphosed." The same Greek wordused to describe the transfiguration
of Christ.
1. Some gaze and are not changed. They have never so felt the evil of sin as to
put the whole soulinto a look. So multitudes of hearers have their minds filled
with Christian truth, but they do not gaze so long, fixedly, lovingly, as to
experience the interior and radical transformation.
2. Others gaze and are changed. Flinging away obscuring veils, and fixing the
steadfastgaze on Jesus, theyare transfigured.(1) This change is moral. By the
law of our inner life we come to resemble what we love. Love to the Lord
Jesus makes us like Him.(2) This change is gradual, progressive, "fromglory
to glory." The initial change may be the work of a moment; the complete
process is the work of a life-time. Comforting thought to those who grow
wearyand disheartened after painful struggles to reachan ideal goodness
which ever seems to elude their grasp. Cease fromworking; sit still and look;
let His image sweetlycreepinto the eye and prospectof your soul.
III. ITS GREAT AUTHOR. "The Lord the Spirit." When the veil of unbelief
is takenaway, the Lord Himself obtains accessto the heart and imparts
Himself. Where He is, there, too, is the Holy Ghost. He effects the marvellous
transformation. He supplies the-needed illumination. He reveals the saving
sight, removes obscuring veils, purges the spiritual perceptions, and dwells
within as source of the transfiguring and assimilative power.
(A. Wilson, B. A.)

34. True human greatness
D. Thomas, D. D.
1. Every man has a strong natural instinct for greatness andapplause.
2. A wrong direction of this instinct originates enormous mischief.
3. The mission of Christianity is to give a right direction to this instinct. Of all
the systems on earth it alone teaches man what true greatness is, and the way
to attain it. The text teaches three things concerning it:
I. THE IDEAL OF TRUE GREATNESS IS DIVINE. What is the glory of the
Lord? (See Exodus 18:19). This passageteachesthat the Eternal regardedHis
glory as consisting not in the immensity of His possessions, the almightiness of
His power, or the infinitude of His wisdom, but in His goodness.The true
greatness ofman consists in moral goodness.
1. This greatnessis soul-satisfying — and this alone.
2. This greatnesscommands the respectof all moral intelligence — and this
alone.
3. This greatnessis attainable by all persons — and this alone.
4. This greatnesswe carry into the other world — and this alone.

35. II. THE PATH OF TRUE GREATNESS IS MORAL TRANSFORMATION.
How is man to come into possessionofGod's glory? t. By means of an
instrument — glass. Whatis the glass? The mirror that reflects the glory of
God. Nature is a glass. Judaismis a glass. Christ is a glass. He is the brightest
glass ofall — reflects more Divine rays upon the universe than any -other.
2. By means of attention to that instrument. "By looking." Menlook at the
glitterings of worldly glory, not on the glowing beams of the Divine, and hence
they are not changedinto the Divine. Observe —(1) A concentratedlooking on
Christ commands admiration.(2) Admiration commands imitation. Christ is
the most inimitable being in the universe, because His characteris the most
admirable, the most transparent, the most unchangeable.(3)Imitation ensures
assimilation. Here, then, is the path to true glory — a path clearas day,
certain as eternity. All who tread this path must become glorious.
III. THE LAW OF TRUE GREATNESS IS PROGRESSIVE. "Fromglory to
glory." Glory in God is unprogressive, but in all intelligent creatures it is ever
advancing. Two things show that the human soul is made for endless
advancement.
1. Facts in connectionwith its nature.(1) Its appetites are intensified by its
supplies.(2)Its capacities augmentwith its attainments; the more it has the
more it is capable of receiving.(3)Its productiveness increaseswith its
productions. Not so with the soil of the earth, or the trees of the forest, all
wearthemselves out.
2. Arrangements in connectionwith its history. There are three things which
always serve to bring out the latent powers of the soul.(1) A new relationship.
The wondrous powers and experiences slumbering in every human heart of
maternity and fatherhood are brought out by relationship.(2)New sceneries.

36. New sceneriesin nature often start in the mind feelings and powers unknown
before.(3)New engagements.Manya man who was thought a mere dolt in one
occupation, transferredto another has become a brilliant genius. These three
soul-developing forces we have here, we shall have for ever.
IV. THE AUTHOR OF TRUE GREATNESSIS THE SPIRIT OF GOD. How
does He do it? As He does everything else in creation — by means;and the
means are here stated, "Beholding as in a glass."Conclusion:How
transcendently valuable is Christianity, inasmuch as it directs the human soul
to true glory and indicates the way of realising it!
(D. Thomas, D. D.)
The unfolded glory
T. Davis, Ph. D.
Man has an instinct for glory. Religiontherefore to adapt itself to this instinct.
Hence the glorious characterof the two dispensations whereofthe last is the
greater.
I. THE GOSPELIS A REFLECTIONOF GOD'S GLORY.
1. The person of Christ reflects the Divine nature.
2. The ministry of Christ reflects the Divine mind.
3. His death reveals the Divine heart.

37. II. THE BELIEVER REFLECTS THE GLORY OF GOD.
1. Spiritual mindedness (2 Peter1:4).
2. Immortal life.
III. BEHOLDING AND REFLECTING THE GLORY OF THE LORD IS
PROGRESSIVE (2 Peter2:5-7).
(T. Davis, Ph. D.)
Mortal assimilation
T. R. Stevenson.
Our moral nature is intensely assimilative. The mind gets like that which it
feeds on. Alexander the Great was incited to his deeds of conquest by reading
Homer's "Iliad." Julius CaesarandCharles the Twelfth of Swedenderived
much of their military enthusiasmfrom studying the life of Alexander. When
a sensitive, delicate boy, Cowpermet with and eagerlydevoured a treatise in
favour of suicide. Can we doubt that its plausible arguments were closely
connectedwith his four attempts to destroy himself? If, however, we cherish
thoughts of the goodand the noble, we shall become both. "Beholding, as in a
glass, the glory of the Lord, we are changedinto the same image."
Ecclesiasticaltradition declares that St. Martin once had a remarkable vision.
The Saviour stoodbefore him. Radiant with Divine beauty, there the Master
appeared. One relic of His humiliation remained. What was it? His hands
retained the marks of the nails. The spectatorgazedsympathetically and
intently. So long did he look that, when the apparition ceased, he found that
he had in his own hands marks preciselyresembling those of Christ. None but

38. the superstitious believe the story; nevertheless, it "points a moral." It
reminds us of the greatfact that devout and affectionate contemplationof our
Lord makes us Christ-like.
(T. R. Stevenson.).
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(3) Forasmuch, as ye are manifestly declared.—The metaphorappears to shift
its ground from the subjective to the objective. It is not only as written in his
heart, but as seenand known by others, that they (the Corinthians) are as a
letter of commendation. They are as a letter which Christ had written as with
the finger of God. That letter, he adds, was “ministered by us.” He had been,
that is, as the amanuensis of that letter, but Christ was the real writer.
Written not with ink.—Letters were usually written on papyrus, with a reed
pen and with a black pigment (atramentum) used as ink. (Comp. 2John 1:12.)
In contrastwith this process, he speaks ofthe Epistle of Christ as written with
the “Spirit of the living God.” It is noteworthythat the Spirit takes here the
place of the older “finger of God” in the history of the two tables of stone in
Exodus 31:18. So a like substitution is found in comparing “If I with the finger
of God castout devils,” in Luke 11:20, with “If I by the Spirit of God,” in
Matthew 12:28. Traces ofthe same thought are found in the hymn in the
Ordination service, in which the Holy Spirit is addressedas “the finger of
God’s hand.”
Not in tables of stone.—The thoughtof a letter written in the heart by the
Spirit of Godbrings three memorable passages to St. Paul’s memory:—(1) the
“heart of flesh” of Ezekiel11:19; Ezekiel36:26-27;(2) the promise that the

39. law should be written in the heart, which was to be the specialcharacteristic
of the new covenant(Jeremiah31:31-33);and (3) the whole history of the
circumstances ofthe first, or older, covenant; and, from this verse to the end
of the chapter, thought follows rapidly on thought in manifold application of
the images thus suggested.
But in fleshy tables of the heart.—The better MSS. give in tables (or, tablets),
which are hearts of flesh, reproducing the words of Ezekiel11:19. The
thought of the letter begins to disappear, and that of a law written on tablets
takes its place, as one picture succeedsanotherin a dissolving view.
MacLaren's Expositions
Jeremiah
SIN’S WRITING AND ITS ERASURE
Jeremiah17:1. - 2 Corinthians 3:3. - Colossians 2:14.
I have put these verses togetherbecausethey all deal with substantially the
same metaphor. The first is part of a prophet’s solemnappeal. It describes the
sin of the nation as indelible. It is written in two places. First, on their hearts,
which reminds us of the promise of the new covenantto be written on the
heart. The ‘red-leaved tablets of the heart’ are like waxentables on which an
iron stylus makes a deep mark, an ineradicable scar. So Judah’s sin is, as it
were, eateninto their heart, or, if we might so say, tattooedon it. It is also
written on the stone horns of the altar, with a diamond which can cut the rock
{an illustration of ancient knowledge ofthe properties of the diamond}. That
sounds a strange place for the recordof sin to appear, but the image has
profound meaning, as we shall see presently.

40. Then the two New Testamentpassages dealwith other applications of the
same metaphor. Christ is, in the first, representedas writing on the hearts of
the Corinthians, and in the second, as taking away‘the handwriting contrary
to us.’ The generalthought drawn from all is that sin’s writing on men’s
hearts is erasedby Christ and a new inscription substituted.
I. The handwriting of sin.
Sin committed is indelibly written on the heart of the doer.
‘The heart,’ of course, in Hebrew means more than merely the supposedseat
of the affections. It is figuratively the centre of the spiritual life, just as
physically it is the centre of the natural. Thoughts and affections, purposes
and desires are all included, and out of it are ‘the issues of life,’ the whole
outgoings of the being. It is the fountain and source of all the activity of the
man, the central unity from which all comes. Takenin this wide sense it is
really the whole inner self that is meant, or, as is saidin one place, ‘the hidden
man of the heart.’ And so the thought in this vigorous metaphor may be
otherwise put, that all sin makes indelible marks on the whole inward nature
of the man who does it.
Now to begin with, think for a moment of that truth that everything which we
do reacts on us the doers.
We seldomthink of this. Deeds are done, and we fancy that when done, they
are done with. They pass, as far as outward seeming goes, and their
distinguishable consequencesin the outward world, in the vast majority of
cases, soonapparently pass. All seems evanescentand irrecoverable as last

41. year’s snows, or the water that flowed over the cataracta century ago. But
there is nothing more certain than that all which we do leaves indelible traces
on ourselves. The mightiest effectof a man’s actions is on his own inward life.
The recoilof the gun is more powerful than the blow from its shot. Our
actions strike inwards and there produce their most important effects. The
river runs ceaselesslyand its waters pass away, but they bring down soil,
which is depositedand makes firm land, or perhaps they carry down grains of
gold.
This is the true solemnity of life, that in all which we do we are carrying on a
double process,influencing others indeed, but influencing ourselves far more.
Considerthe illustrations of this law in regardto our sins.
Now the lastthing people think of when they hear sermons about ‘sin’ is that
what is meant is the things that they are doing every day. I can only ask you to
try to remember, while I speak, that I mean those little acts of temper, or
triflings with truth, or yieldings to passionor anger, or indulgence in
sensuality, and above all, the living without God, to which we are all prone.
{a} All wrong-doing makes indelible marks on character. It makes its own
repetition easier. Habit strengthens inclination. Peterfound denying his Lord
three times easierthan doing it once. It weakensresistance.In going downhill
the first step is the only one that needs an effort; gravity will do the rest.
It drags after it a tendency to other evil. All wrong things have so much in
common that they lead on to one another. A man with only one vice is a rare
phenomenon. Satansends his apostles forth two by two. Sins hunt in couples,
or more usually in packs, like wolves, only now and then do they prey alone

42. like lions. Small thieves open windows for greaterones. It requires continually
increasing draughts, like indulgence in stimulants. The palate demands
cayenne tomorrow, if it has had black pepper to-day.
So, whateverelse we do by our acts, we are making our own characters, either
steadily depraving or steadily improving them. There will come a slight slow
change, almostunnoticed but most certain, as a dim film will creepover the
peach, robbing it of all its bloom, or some microscopic growthwill stealacross
a clearly cut inscription, or a breath of mist will dim a polished steelmirror.
{b} All wrong-doing writes indelible records on the memory, that awful and
mysterious powerof recalling past things out of the oblivion in which they
seemto lie. How solemn and miserable it is to defile it with the pictures of
things evil! Many a man in his later years has tried to ‘turn over a new leaf,’
and has never been able to getthe filth out of his memory, for it has been
printed on the old page in such strong colours that it shines through. I beseech
you all, and especiallyyou young people, to keepyourselves ‘innocent of much
transgression,’and ‘simple concerning evil’-to make your memories like an
illuminated missalwith fair saints and calm angels bordering the holy words,
and not an Illustrated Police News. Probablythere is no real oblivion. Each
act sinks in as if forgotten, gets overlaid with a multitude of others, but it is
there, and memory will one day bring it to us.
And all sin pollutes the imagination. It is a miserable thing to have one’s mind
full of ugly foul forms painted on the inner walls of our chamber of imagery,
like the hideous figures in some heathen temple, where gods of lust and
murder look out from every inch of space onthe walls.
{c} All wrong-doing writes indelible records on the conscience. Itdoes so
partly by sophisticating it-the sensibility to right and wrong being weakened

43. by every evil act, as a cold in the head takes awaythe sense of smell. It brings
on colour-blindness to some extent. One does not know how far one may go
towards ‘Evil! be thou my good’-orhow far towards incapacityof
distinguishing evil. But at all events the tendency of eachsin is in that
direction. So consciencemay become seared, though perhaps never so
completely as that there are no intervals when it speaks. It may long lie
dormant, as Vesuvius did, till greattrees grow on the floor of the crater, but
all the while the communication with the central fires is open, and one day
they will burst out.
The writing may be with invisible ink, but it will be legible one day. So, then,
all this solemn writing on the heart is done by ourselves. What are you
writing? There is a presumption in it of a future retribution, when you will
have to read your autobiography, with clearerlight and power of judging
yourselves. At any rate there is retribution now, which is described by many
metaphors, such as sowing and reaping, drinking as we have brewed, and
others-but this one of indelible writing is not the leaststriking.
Sin is gravendeep on sinful men’s worship.
The metaphor here is striking and not altogetherclear. The question rises
whether the altars are idolatrous altars, or Jehovah’s. If the former, the
expressionmay mean simply that the Jews’idolatry, which was their sin, was
conspicuouslydisplayed in these altars, and had, as it were, its most flagrant
record in their sacrifices. The altar was the centre point of all heathen and
Old Testamentworship, and altars built by sinners were the most conspicuous
evidences of their sins.
So the meaning would be that men’s sin shapes and culminates in their
religion; and that is very true, and explains many of the profanations and

44. abominations of heathenism, and much of the formal worship of so-called
Christianity.
For instance, a popular religion which is a mere Deism, a kind of vague belief
in a providence, and in a future state where everybody is happy, is but the
product of men’s sin, striking out of Christianity all which their sin makes
unwelcome in it. The justice of God, punishment, sinfulness of sin, high moral
tone, are all gone. And the very horns of their altars are marked with the signs
of the worshippers’sin.
But the ‘altars’ may be God’s altars, and then another idea will come in. The
horns of the altar were the places where the blood of the sacrifice was
smeared, as tokenof its offering to God. They were then a part of the ritual of
propitiation. They had, no doubt, the same meaning in the heathen ritual. And
so regarded, the metaphor means that a sense ofthe reality of sin shapes
sacrificialreligion.
There can be no doubt that a very real convictionof sin lies at the foundation
of much, if not all, of the systemof sacrifices. And it is a question well worth
considering whether a conviction so widespreadis not valid, and whether we
should not see in it the expressionof a true human need which no mere
culture, or the like, will supply.
At all events, altars stand as witnessesto the consciousnessofsin. And the
same thought may be applied to much of the popular religion of this day. It
may be ineffectual and shallow but it bears witness to a consciousness ofevil.
So its existence may be used in order to urge profounder realisationof evil on
men. You come to worship, you join in confessions,you say‘miserable
sinners’-do you mean anything by it? If all that be true, should it not produce
a deeper impressionon you?

45. But another wayof regarding the metaphor is this. The horns of the altar
were to be touched with the blood of propitiation. But look!the blood flows
down, and after it has trickled away, there, deep carven on the horns, still
appears the sin, i.e. the sin is not expiated by the sinner’s sacrifice. Jeremiahis
then echoing Isaiah’s word, ‘Bring no more vain oblations.’The picture gives
very strikingly the hopelessness,so far as men are concerned, of any attempt
to blot out this record. It is like the rock-cutcartouches ofEgypt on which
time seems to have no effect. There they abide deep for ever. Nothing that we
can do can efface them. ‘What I have written, I have written.’ Pen-knives and
detergents that we can use are all in vain.
II. Sin’s writing may be erased, and another put in its place.
The work of Christ, made ours by faith, blots it out.
{a} Its influence on conscienceandthe sense ofguilt. The accusations of
conscienceare silenced. A red line is drawn across the indictment, or, as
Colossians has it, it is ‘nailed to the cross.’There is power in His death to set
us free from the debt we owe.
{b} Its influence on memory. Christ does not bring oblivion, but yet takes
awaythe remorse of remembrance. Faith in Christ makes memory no longer
a record which we blush to turn over, or upon which we gloatwith
imaginative delight in guilty pleasures past, but a recordof our shortcomings
that humbles us with a penitence which is not pain, but serves as a beaconand
warning for the time to come. He who has a clearbeam of memory on his
backwardtrack, and a bright light of hope on his forward one, will steerright.

46. {c} Its influence on character.
We attain new hopes and tastes. ‘We become epistles of Christ known and
read of all men,’ like palimpsests, Homer or Ovid written over with the New
Testamentgospels orepistles.
Christ’s work is twofold, erasure and rewriting. For the one, ‘I will blot out as
a cloud their transgressions.’None but He can remove these. Forthe other, ‘I
will put My law into their minds and will write it on their hearts.’ He can
impress all holy desires on, and canput His greatlove and His mighty spirit
into, our hearts.
So give your hearts to Him. They are all scrawledoverwith hideous and
wickedwriting that has sunk deep into their substance. Gravenas if on rock
are your sins in your character. Your worship and sacrificeswill not remove
them, but Jesus Christ can. He died that you might be forgiven, He lives that
you may be purified. Trust yourself to Him, and leanall your sinfulness on
His atonementand sanctifying power, and the foul words and bad thoughts
that have been scoredso deep into your nature will be erased, and His own
hand will trace on the page, poor and thin though it be, which has been
whitened by His blood, the fair letters and shapes of His own likeness. Do not
let your hearts be the devil’s copybooks for all evil things to scrawltheir
names there, as boys do on the walls, but spread them before Him, and ask
Him to make them cleanand write upon them His new name, indicating that
you now belong to another, as a new owner writes his name on a book that he
has bought.
BensonCommentary
2 Corinthians 3:3-4. Forasmuchas ye — Some of whom were once so
immoral, but who are now so pious and virtuous; are manifestly declaredto
be the epistle of Christ — Which he has formed and published to the world;

47. ministered by us — Whom he has used herein as his instruments; therefore ye
are our letter also;written, not with ink — As epistles generallyare; but with
the Spirit of the living God — Influencing your hearts, and producing that
variety of graces andvirtues, which render many of you so conspicuous for
holiness and usefulness;not in tables of stone — Like the ten commandments,
which did so greatan honour, and gave such authority to Moses;but in fleshly
tables of the heart — To which no hand but that by which the heart was made
could find access, insuch a manner as to inscribe these characters there. The
sense ofthis verse, as Mr. Locke justly observes, is plainly this; “Thathe
needed no letters of commendation to them, but that their conversion, and the
gospelwritten, not with ink, but with the Spirit of God in the tables of their
hearts, by his ministry, was as clearan evidence and testimony to them of his
mission from Christ, as the law written on tables of stone was an evidence of
Moses’smission;so that he, St. Paul, neededno other recommendation.” Such
trust have we through Christ to God-ward — That is, we trust in God that
this is so. This the apostle adds, and also whatfollows, to obviate all
imputation of vanity or vain-glory, on accountof what he had advancedin the
two preceding verses.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
3:1-11 Even the appearance ofself-praise and courting human applause, is
painful to the humble and spiritual mind. Nothing is more delightful to
faithful ministers, or more to their praise, than the successoftheir ministry,
as shown in the spirits and lives of those among whom they labour. The law of
Christ was written in their hearts, and the love of Christ shed abroad there.
Nor was it written in tables of stone, as the law of God given to Moses, but on
the fleshy (not fleshly, as fleshliness denotes sensuality)tables of the heart, Eze
36:26. Their hearts were humbled and softenedto receive this impression, by
the new-creating powerof the Holy Spirit. He ascribes allthe glory to God.
And remember, as our whole dependence is upon the Lord, so the whole glory
belongs to him alone. The letter killeth: the letter of the law is the ministration
of death; and if we rest only in the letter of the gospel, we shall not be the
better for so doing: but the Holy Spirit gives life spiritual, and life eternal. The
Old Testamentdispensationwas the ministration of death, but the New
Testamentof life. The law made known sin, and the wrath and curse of God;

48. it showedus a God above us, and a God againstus; but the gospelmakes
known grace, andEmmanuel, God with us. Therein the righteousness ofGod
by faith is revealed;and this shows us that the just shall live by his faith; this
makes knownthe grace and mercy of God through Jesus Christ, for obtaining
the forgiveness ofsins and eternal life. The gospelso much exceeds the law in
glory, that it eclipses the glory of the legaldispensation. But even the New
Testamentwill be a killing letter, if shown as a mere system or form, and
without dependence on God the Holy Spirit, to give it a quickening power.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared - You are made manifest as the
epistle of Christ; or you, being made manifest, are the epistle, etc. They had
been made manifest to be such by their conversion. The sense is, it is plain, or
evident, that ye are the epistle of Christ.
To be the epistle of Christ - That which Christ has sent to be our testimonial.
He has given this letter of recommendation. He has convertedyou by our
ministry, and that is the best evidence which we can have that we have been
sent by him, and that our labor is acceptedby him. Your conversionis his
work, and it is his public attestationto our fidelity in his cause.
Ministered by us - The idea here is, that Christ had employed their ministry in
accomplishing this. They were Christ's letter, but it had been prepared by the
instrumentality of the apostles. It had not been prepared by him
independently of their labors, but in connectionwith, and as the result of
those labors. Christ, in writing this epistle, so to speak, has used our aid; or
employed us as amanuenses (copyists).
Written not with ink - Paul continues and varies the image in regardto this
"epistle," so that he may make the testimony borne to his fidelity and success
more striking and emphatic. He says, therefore, that that it was not written as
letters of introduction are, with ink - by traces drawn on a lifeless substance,

49. and in lines that easilyfade, or that may become easilyillegible, or that canbe
read only by a few, or that may be soondestroyed.
But with the Spirit of the living God - In strong contrastthus with letters
written with ink. By the Spirit of Godmoving on the heart, and producing
that variety of graces whichconstitute so striking and so beautiful an evidence
of your conversion. If written by the Spirit of the living God, it was far more
valuable, and precious, and permanent than any recordwhich could be made
by ink. Every trace of the Spirit's influences on the heart was an undoubted
proof that God had sent the apostles;and was a proof which they would much
more sensibly and tenderly feel than they could any letter of recommendation
written in ink.
Not in tables of stone - It is generallyadmitted that Paul here refers to the
evidences of the divine missionof Moses whichwas given by the Law
engravedon tablets of stone, compare 2 Corinthians 3:7. Probably those who
were false teachers among the Corinthians were Jews, and had insisted much
on the divine origin and permanency of the Mosaic institutions. The Law had
been engravedon stone by the hand of God himself; and had thus the
strongestproofs of divine origin, and the divine attestationto its pure and
holy nature. To this fact the friends of the Law, and the advocates forthe
permanency of the Jewishinstitutions, would appeal. Paul says, on the other
hand, that the testimonials of the divine favor through him were not on tablets
of stone. They were frail, and easilybroken. There was no life in them
(compare 2 Corinthians 3:6 and 2 Corinthians 3:7); and valuable and
important as they were, yet they could not be compared with the testimonials
which God had given to those who successfullypreachedthe gospel.
But in fleshly tables of the heart - In truths engravedon the heart. This
testimonial was of more value than an inscription on stone, because:

50. (1) No hand but that of God could reachthe heart, and inscribe these truths
there.
(2) because it would be attended with a life-giving and living influence. It was
not a mere dead letter.
(3) because it would be permanent. Stones, evenwhere laws were engraved by
the finger of God, would moulder and decay, and the inscription made there
would be destroyed. But not so with that which was made on the heart. It
would live forever. It would abide in other worlds. It would send its influence
into all the relations of life; into all future scenesin this world; and that
influence would be seenand felt in the world that shall never end. By all these
considerations, therefore, the testimonials which Paul had of the divine
approbation were more valuable than any mere letters of introduction, or
human commendation could have been; and more valuable even than the
attestationwhich was given to the divine mission of Moses himself.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
3. declared—The letteris written so legibly that it can be "read by all men"
(2Co 3:2). Translate, "Being manifestlyshown to be an Epistle of Christ"; a
letter coming manifestly from Christ, and "ministered by us," that is, carried
about and presented by us as its (ministering) bearers to those (the world) for
whom it is intended: Christ is the Writer and the Recommender, ye are the
letter recommending us.
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God—Paulwas the
ministering pen or other instrument of writing, as well as the ministering
bearer and presenter of the letter. "Notwith ink" stands in contrastto the
letters of commendation which "some" atCorinth (2Co 3:1) used. "Ink" is
also used here to include all outward materials for writing, such as the Sinaitic
tables of stone were. These, however, were notwritten with ink, but "graven"

51. by "the finger of God" (Ex 31:18;32:16). Christ's Epistle (His believing
members converted by Paul) is better still: it is written not merely with the
finger, but with the "Spirit of the living God"; it is not the "ministration of
death" as the law, but of the "living Spirit" that "giveth life" (2Co 3:6-8).
not in—not on tables (tablets) of stone, as the ten commandments were
written (2Co 3:7).
in fleshy tables of the heart—ALL the bestmanuscripts read, "On [your]
hearts [which are] tables of flesh." Once your hearts were spiritually what the
tables of the law were physically, tables of stone, but God has "takenawaythe
stony heart out of your flesh, given you a heart of flesh" (fleshy, not fleshly,
that is, carnal;hence it is written, "out of your flesh" that is, your carnal
nature), Eze 11:19; 36:26. Compare 2Co 3:2, "As ye are our Epistle written in
our hearts," so Christ has in the first instance made you "His Epistle written
with the Spirit in (on) your hearts." I bear on my heart, as a testimony to all
men, that which Christ has by His Spirit written in your heart [Alford].
(Compare Pr 3:3; 7:3; Jer31:31-34). This passageis quoted by Paley[Horæ
Paulinæ] as illustrating one peculiarity of Paul's style, namely, his going off at
a word into a parenthetic reflection: here it is on the word "Epistle." So
"savor," 2Co 2:14-17.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
He had told them before that they were his epistle, his epistle
recommendatory, the change which God had wrought in their hearts did
more recommend him than all the epistles in the world could; but here he tells
them that they were

52. the epistle of Christ, it was Christ that wrote his law in their hearts, (which
writing was that which commended the apostle, who himself had but a
ministration in the work), nor was it a writing
with ink, but the impression of
the Spirit of the living God. An epistle
not written in tables of stone, but in
the fleshy tables of the heart: he alludeth to the writing of the law, which was
written in
tables of stone, Exodus 31:18, and also to the promises, Ezekiel11:19 Ezekiel
36:26. That work of grace in the hearts of these Corinthians, which
recommended the apostle, was wrought by Christ, and the apostles were but
ministers in the working of it; it was a work more admirable than the writing
of the law in tables of stone, and this work (he saith) was
manifestly declared.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared,.... Butlest it should be thought that
the apostle attributed too much to himself, by saying that the Corinthians
were our epistle;here he says, they were "manifestly declared"
to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us; so that the apostles andministers
of the word were only amanuenses, Christwas the author and dictator; yea,
he himself is the very matter, sum, substance, andsubject of the epistle; he is

53. formed in the hearts of his people in conversion, his image is stamped, his
grace is implanted, his word, his Gospeldwells richly, his laws and ordinances
are written here; he also is the exemplar, believers are but copies ofhim, in
grace and duty, in sufferings, in the likeness ofhis death and resurrection:
and they are "manifestly declared" to be so, by the impresses of Christ's grace
upon them; by the fairness of the copy; by the style and language of the
epistle; by their likeness to Christ; by their having not the form only, but the
powerof godliness;and by their lives and conversations:now in writing these
epistles, the ministers of the Gospelare only instruments, "ministered by us".
They are made use of to show the sinner the black characters whichare
written upon him, and that what is written in him, and to be read by him, by
the light of nature is not sufficient for salvation;they are employed as
instruments in drawing the rough draught of grace in conversion, and in
writing the copy over again, fairer and fairer; being the happy means blessed
by God, for the building up of souls in faith and holiness, in spiritual
knowledge and comfort. These epistles are
not written with ink; of nature's power, or of rhetorical eloquence and moral
persuasion;
but with the Spirit of the living God: every grace that is implanted in the soul
is wrought there by the Spirit of God; or he it is that draws every line, and
writes every word and letter; he begins, he carries on and finishes the work of
grace on the soul; and that as "the Spirit of the living God": hence saints
become the living epistles of Christ; and every letter and stroke of his making,
is a living disposition of the soul in likeness to him; and such are written
among the living in Jerusalem, and shall live and abide for ever as the epistles
of Christ: again, the subjects of these epistles, or that on which they are
written, are

54. not tables of stone; such as the law was written upon, on Mount Sinai: of these
tables there were the first and second;the first were the work of God himself,
the latter were hewedby Moses, atthe command of God, Exodus 32:16 the
former being broken when he came down from the mount, which by the
Jewishwriters are said to be miraculously made, and not by the means and
artifice of men (l); yea, that they were made before the creationof the world
(m), and which, they commonly say, were made of sapphire; See Gill on 2
Corinthians 3:7 these, as the latter, were two stones, which, Jarchi says (n),
were of an equal size; and were, as Abarbinel says (o), in the form of small
tables, such as children are taught to write upon, and therefore are so called:
some pretend to give the dimensions of them, and say (p), that they were six
hands long, and as many broad, and three thick; nay, even the weightof them,
which is said(q) to be the weight of forty "seahs", andlook upon it as a
miracle that Mosesshould be able to carry them; on these stones were written
the ten commands; and the common opinion of the Jewishwriters is, that five
were written on one table, and five on the other; this is the opinion of
Josephus (r), Philo (s), and the Talmudic writers (t); and the tables are said to
be written on both sides, Exodus 32:15. Some think that the engraving of the
letters perforated and went through the tables, so that, in a miraculous
manner, the letters were legible on both sides;others think, only the right and
left hand of the tables are meant, on which the laws were written, five on a
side, and which folded up like the tables or pages ofa book;though others are
of opinion, that they were written upon, both behind and before, and that the
law was written twice, both upon the fore part and back part of the tables,
yea, others sayfour times; and some think the phrase only intends the literal
and mystical, the external and internal sense ofthe law: however, certainit is,
as the apostle here suggests, thatthe law was written on tables of stone, which
may denote the firmness and stability of the law; not as in the hands of Moses,
from whence the tables fell and were broken, but as in the hands of Christ, by
whom they are fulfilled; or else the hardness of man's heart, his stupidity,
ignorance of, and not subject to the law of God:
but fleshly tables of the heart: alluding to Ezekiel36:26 and designs not carnal
hearts, but such as are made soft and tender by the Spirit of God. The table of

55. the heart is a phrase to be met with in the books ofthe Old Testament;see
Proverbs 3:3 and very frequently in the writings of the Jews (u).
(l) R. Levi ben Gersomin Pentateuch, fol. 113. 2.((m) Zohar in Exod. fol. 35.
1.((n) Perushin Exodus 31.18.(o)In Pentateuch, fol. 209. 2. & 211. 3.((p) T.
Hieres Shekalim, fol. 49. 4. Shemot Rabba, c. 47. fol. 143. 2. Bartenora in
Misn. Pirke Abot, c. 5. sect. 6. (q) Targum Jon. in Exodus 31.18. & in
Deuteronomy 34.12.(r) Antiqu. l. 3. c. 5. sect. 8. (s) De Decalogo,p. 761, 768.
(t) T. Hieros. Shekalim, fol. 49. 4. Shemot Rabba, sect. 47. fol. 143. 2. Zohar in
Exod. fol. 35. 1.((u) Vid. Targum Jon. in Dent. vi. 5, & in Cant. iv. 9.
Geneva Study Bible
Forasmuchas ye are {a} manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ {b}
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the {c} living
God; {1} not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
(a) The apostle says this wisely, that by little and little he may come from the
commendation of the personto the matter itself.
(b) Which I took pains to write as it were.
(c) Along the way he sets the powerof Godagainstthe ink with which epistles
are commonly written, to show that it was accomplishedby God.
(1) He alludes along the way to the comparisonof the outward ministry of the
priesthood of Levi with the ministry of the Gospel, and the apostolical
ministry, which he handles afterward more fully.

56. EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT Commentary
2 Corinthians 3:3. Φανερούμενοι] attaches itselfin constructionto ὑμεῖς ἐστε,
to which it furnishes a more precise definition, and that in elucidative
reference to what has just been said γινωσκομένη … ἀνθρώπων: since you are
being manifested to be an epistle of Christ, i.e. since it does not remain hid,
but becomes (continually) clearto every one that you, etc. Comp. on the
construction, 1 John 2:19.
ἐπιστολὴ Χριστοῦ] genitivus auctoris (not of the contents—in oppositionto
Chrysostom, Oecumenius, Theophylact):a letter composed(dictated) by
Christ. Fritzsche, l.c. p. 23, takes the genitive as possessive, so that the sense
without figure would be: homines Christiani estis. But in what follows the
whole origin of the Epistle is very accuratelysetforth, and should the author
not be mentioned—not in that case be placedin front? Theodoretalready
gives the right vie.
ἐπιστολή is here not againspecially letter of recommendation (2 Corinthians
3:2), but letter in general;for through the characteristic:“youare an epistle
of Christ, drawn up by us,” etc., the statement above. “you are our letter of
recommendation,” is to be elucidated and made good.
In the following διακονηθεῖσα … σαρκίναις Paul presents himself and
Timothy as the writers of the epistle of Christ (διακον. ὑφʼἡμ.), the Holy
Spirit as the means of writing in lieu of ink, and human hearts, i.e. according
to the context, the hearts of the Corinthians, as the material which is written
upon. For Christ was the author of their Christian condition; Paul and
Timothy were His instruments for their conversion, and by their ministry the
Holy Spirit became operative in the hearts of the readers. In so far the
Corinthians, in their Christian character, are as it were a letter which Christ

57. has causedto be written, through Paul and Timothy, by means of the Holy
Spirit in their hearts. On the passive expressionδιακονηθ.ὑφʼἡμ., comp. 2
Corinthians 8:19 f.; Mark 10:45; note also the change of the tenses:διακονηθ.
and ἐγγεγραμμ. (the epistle is there ready); likewise the designationof the
Holy Spirit as πνεῦμα θεοῦ ζῶντος, comp. 2 Corinthians 3:6. We may add that
Paul has not mixed up heterogeneoustraits of the figure of a letter begun in 2
Corinthians 3:2 (Rückertand others), but here, too, he carries out this figure,
as it corresponds to the thing to be figured thereby. The single incongruity is
οὐκ ἐν πλαξὶ λιθίναις, in which he has not retained the conceptionof a letter
(which is written on tablets of paper), but has thought generally of a writing to
be read. Since, however, he has conceivedofsuch writing as divinely
composed(see above, πνεύματι θεοῦ ζῶντος), of which nature was the law of
Sinai, the usual supposition is right, that he has been induced to express
himself thus by the remembrance of the tables of the law (Hebrews 9:4; comp.
Jeremiah31:31-33);for we have no reasonto deny that the subsequent
mention of them (2 Corinthians 3:7) was evennow floating before his mind.
Fritzsche, indeed, thinks that “accommodate adnonnulla V. T. loca (Proverbs
3:3; Proverbs 7:3) cordis notionem per tabulas cordis expressurus erat,
quibus tabulis carneis nihil tam commode quam tabulas lapideas opponere
potuerit.” But he might quite as suitably have chosenan antithesis
corresponding to the figure of a letter (2 John 1:12; 2 Timothy 4:13); hence it
is rather to be supposed that he came to use the expressiontabulae cordis, just
because he had before his mind the idea of the tables of the law.
The antitheses in our passageare intended to bring out that here an epistle is
composedin quite another and higher sense than an ordinary letter (which
one brings into existence μέλανι σπείρων διὰ καλάμου,Plato Phaedr. p. 276
C)—a writing, which is not to be comparedeven with the Mosaic tables ofthe
law. But the purpose of a contrastwith the legalismof his opponents
(Klöpper) is not conveyed in the context.

58. That there is a specialpurpose in the use of σαρκίναις as opposedto λιθίναις,
cannot be doubted after the previous antitheses. It must imply the notion of
something better (comp. Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel36:26), namely, the thought of
the living receptivity and susceptibility: δεκτικὰς τοῦ λόγου (Theophylact,
Calvin, Stolz, Flatt, de Wette, Osiander, Ewald, and others). The distinctive
sense ofσαρκινός is correctly noted by Erasmus: “ut materiam intelligas, non
qualitatem.” Comp. on 1 Corinthians 3:1. Καρδίας is also the genitive of
material, and the contrastwould have been sufficiently denoted by ἀλλʼ ἐν
πλαξὶ καρδίας:it is, however, expressedmore concretelyand vividly by the
added σαρκίναις: in fleshy tablets of the heart.
Expositor's Greek Testament
2 Corinthians 3:3. φανερούμενοι ὅτι ἐστὲ κ.τ.λ.:being made manifest that ye
are an epistle of Christ (sc., written by Christ), ministered by us (the Apostle
conceiving of himself as his Master’s amanuensis).—ἐγγεγραμμένη οὐ μέλανι
κ.τ.λ.:written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables
of stone but in tables that are hearts of flesh. This “writing” which the
Corinthians exhibit is no writing with ink on a papyrus roll, but is the
mystical imprint of the Divine Spirit in their hearts, conveyedthrough Paul’s
ministrations; cf. Jeremiah31:33, Proverbs 7:3. And this leads him to think of
the ancient“writing” of the Law by the “finger of God” on the Twelve Tables,
and to contrastit with this epistle of Christ on tables that are not of stone but
are “hearts of flesh” (see reff.). For σάρκινος (cf. λίθινος, ὀστράκινος)see on2
Corinthians 1:12 above.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
3. Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared] The Corinthians ‘fell short in no
gift,’ but were ‘enriched by Christ in all utterance and in all knowledge,’1
Corinthians 1:7. These were notorious facts that could not be gainsaid,
capable of being ‘known of all men.’
to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us] i.e. brought into existence through
our instrumentality. It canhardly be said that St Paul has varied the figure of

59. speechhere. The Corinthians are an epistle. Of that epistle Christ is the
author; the thoughts and sentiments are His. St Paul (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:5; 1
Corinthians 3:7; 1 Corinthians 3:9; 1 Corinthians 4:1; 2 Corinthians 6:1) is
the instrument by which the epistle was written. Its characters were preserved
by no visible or perishable medium, but by the invisible operationof the
Spirit. It was graven, not on stone, but on human hearts. And it was
recognizedwhereverSt Paul went as the attestationof his claim to be
regardedas a true minister of Christ, and this equally in his own
consciousness(see lastverse)and in that of all Churches which he visited.
DeanStanley remarks on the number and variety of the similes with which
this chapter is crowded.
ink] A black pigment of some kind was usedby the ancients for all writings of
any length. For shorterwritings recourse was frequently had to waxentablets.
See Jeremiah36:18;2 John 1:12; 3 John 1:13, and articles Atramentum,
Tabulae, Stilus, Liber, in Smith’s Dictionary of Antiquities.
the Spirit of the living God] St Paul never seems to lose sight of the fact that
Christianity is a communication of life,—the life of Him who alone is the
fountain of life. See note on 1 Corinthians 15:1, and Romans 8:2; Romans
8:10. Cf. also John 1:4; John 5:26; John 5:40; John 14:6; 2 Timothy 1:10; 1
Peter2:5.
not in tables of stone] See Exodus 24:12; Exodus 34:1; Deuteronomy9:9-11;
Deuteronomy 10:1. Here the Apostle first hints at what is to be the subject of
the next sectionof the Epistle, the inferiority of the law to the Gospel. There is
a slight incongruity thus introduced into the simile. One does not write with
ink on tables of stone. But the Apostle, in the pregnant suggestiveness ofhis
style, neglects suchminor considerations whenhe has a greatlessonto convey.
DeanStanley refers us to Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel36:26-27 and also suggests
that the form of the expression‘tables of the heart,’ may be derived from

60. Proverbs 3:3; Proverbs 7:3, not howeverfrom the LXX., which there has a
different translation of the Hebrew word.
of the heart] Mostrecent editors read ‘in fleshy tables, namely, hearts.’All the
old Englishversions, however, follow the Vulgate here. It is extremely difficult
to decide betweenthe two readings, which depend upon the absence or
presence ofa single letter in the Greek. It should be noted here that the word
translated fleshy does not mean carnal, i.e. governed by the flesh, but made of
flesh.
Bengel's Gnomen
2 Corinthians 3:3. Φανερούμενοι, manifested) construed with ὑμεῖς, ye, 2
Corinthians 3:2. The reasonassigned[aetiologia, end.]why this epistle may be
read.—Χριστοῦ—ὑφʼἡμῶν, ofChrist—by us) This explains the word our, 2
Corinthians 3:2. Christ is the author of the epistle.—διακονηθεῖσα)The verb
διακονέω, has often the accusative ofthe thing, 2 Corinthians 8:19-20;2
Timothy 1:18; 1 Peter1:12; 1 Peter4:10. So Paeanius, τὴνμάχην
διακονούμενος, directing the battle, b. 7, Metaphr. Eutr. The apostles, as
ministers, διηκόνουν, presentedthe epistle. Christ, by their instrumentality,
brought spiritual light to bear on the tablets of the hearts of the Corinthians,
as a scribe applies ink to paper. Not merely ink, but parchment or paper and
a pen are necessaryfor writing a letter; but Paul mentions ink without paper
and a pen, and it is therefore a synecdoche [one material of writing put for all.
end.] Τὸ μέλαν does not exactlymean ink, but any black substance, for
example, even charcoal, by which an inscription may be made upon stone. The
mode of writing of every kind, which is done by ink and a pen, is the same as
that of the Decalogue,whichwas engravedon tables of stone. Letters were
engravedon stone, as a dark letter is written on paper. The hearts of the
Corinthians are here intended; for Paul was as it were the style or pen.—οὐ
μέλανι, not with ink) A synecdoche [ink for any means of writing]; for the
tables in the hands of Moses,divinely inscribed without ink, were at least
material substances.—ζῶντος, ofthe living) comp. 2 Corinthians 3:6-7.—
λιθίναις, of stone)2 Corinthians 3:7.—πλαξὶ καρδίας σαρκίναις, in fleshly

61. tables of the heart) Tables ofthe heart are a genus;fleshly tables, a species;
for every heart is not of flesh.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 3. - Manifestly declared. The fame and centrality of Corinth gave
peculiar prominence to the fact of their conversion. The epistle of Christ
ministered by us. The Corinthians are the epistle; it is written on the hearts of
St. Paul and his companions; Christ was its Composer;they were its
amanuenses and its conveyers. The development of the metaphor as a
metaphor would be somewhatclumsy and intricate, but St. Paul only cares to
shadow forth the essentialfactwhich he wishes them to recognize. Notwith
ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; i.e. not with visible or perishable
materials, but spiritual in its origin and character. The notion of "the finger of
God" naturally recalledthe notion of "the Spirit of God" (comp. Matthew
12:28 with Luke 11:20). Notin tables of stone. God's writing by means of the
Spirit on the heart reminds him of anotherwriting of God on the stone tablets
of the Law, which he therefore introduces with no specialregard to the
congruity of the metaphor about "an epistle." But in fleshy tables of the heart.
The overwhelming preponderance of manuscript authority supports the
reading "but in fleshen tablets - hearts." St. Paul is thinking of Jeremiah
31:33, "I will put my Law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts;"
and Ezekiel11:22, "I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give
them a heart of flesh." The tablets were not hard and fragile, but susceptible
and receptive. Our letters of introduction are inward not outward, spiritual
not material, permanent not perishable, legible to all not only by a few,
written by Christ not by man.
Vincent's Word Studies
An epistle of Christ ministered by us (ἐπιστολὴ Χριστοῦ διακονηθεῖσαὑφ'
ἡμῶν)
An epistle written by Christ through our ministry; that is, you, as the
convertedsubjects of our ministry, are an epistle of Christ. Others explain: an
epistle of which Christ forms the contents, thus making the apostles the

62. writers. For the expressionministered by us, compare 2 Corinthians 8:19, 2
Corinthians 8:20; 1 Peter1:12.
Ink (μέλανι)
From μέλας black. Only here, 2 John 1:12 (see note), and 3 John 1:13.
The Spirit
Instead of ink.
Fleshy tables of the heart (πλαξὶν καρδίας σαρκίναις)
The best texts read καρδίαις the dative case in appositionwith tables. Render,
as Rev., tables which are hearts of flesh. Compare Ezekiel11:19; Jeremiah
17:1; Jeremiah31:33. For of flesh, see on Romans 7:14.
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
SERIES:Powerthrough Weakness

63. SERMON:Living Letters
SCRIPTURE:2 Corinthians 3:1-6
SPEAKER:MichaelP. Andrus
DATE: October23, 2005
A couple of weeks agoI receiveda very nicely packagedpublic relations
folder of information from a
traveling evangelist. He sent me some information about himself, his
education, his background, his
seminars, and there is a nice picture of him, his wife, and four boys in a
window of the folder. There is
also a series ofletters from various EvangelicalFree Churches where he has
spoken. Eachletter was
apparently solicitedfrom the pastor and is designedto help convince me that
this man could do some
significant goodfor our church. That’s smart, because the folder would
probably go straight to the round
file if there weren’t some connectionto the Free Church.
Back in the first century itinerant preachers oftendid the same thing–they
produced letters from churches
they had visited as their passports to acceptanceamong other churches. But
the Apostle Paul didn’t
participate in this practice, and apparently his empty P.R. packetgothim into
trouble with his detractors
in Corinth. They had already criticized him for all the suffering he endured,
implying that if he were all
that godly he sure wouldn’t have to suffer so much. Then they had criticized
him for changing his travel

64. plans, even though he had changedthem primarily out of sensitivity for them.
Now they are criticizing
him for not having a sloughof reference letters.
Listen as Paul pours his heart out in 2 Cor. 3:1-6:
Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some
people, letters of
recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written
on our hearts, known
and read by everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result
of our ministry,
written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of
stone but on tablets of
human hearts.
Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Notthat we are
competent in ourselves
to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comesfrom God. He has
made us competent
as ministers of a new covenant—notof the letter but of the Spirit; for the
letter kills, but the Spirit
gives life.
Effective ministers see transformedlives as the proof of their ministry. (1-3)
How do we measure a successfulministry? In a very real sense that is the
question the whole book of 2
Corinthians addresses, andparticularly the passagebefore us this morning.
Paul’s enemies are calling him
a failure, and he is being forcedto defend himself–not for the sake ofhis ego
but for the sake ofthe

65. Gospelhe preached.
Having just claimedat the end of the lastchapter that in contrastto the false
teachers in Corinth
he did not peddle the Word of God for profit but preachedit sincerely, Paul
stops and asks a
couple of rhetoricalquestions which anticipate a negative answer:“Are we
beginning to
commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of
recommendation to you
2
or from you?” Wheneverhe was forcedto defend his ministry Paul was
conscious ofthe fact that
it might appear that his pride and ego were getting in the way. And, of course,
that’s always a
potential danger for us. But for Paul it wasn’tabout him; it was about Christ,
and if he had to
defend himself in order to defend the Gospel, he was willing to take the risk.
Paul answers our question, “How do we measure a successfulministry?”, by
making a negative
point first:
They don’t rely on external credentials, mere outward symbols of success.(1)
By the
way, when I talk about effective ministers today I am talking about God’s
perspective, not
man’s. Sometimes we use the term “effective” ina purely pragmatic sense–ifit
works it’s

66. effective. But I am thinking of “effective” in a spiritual sense. You could
almost substitute the
term “spiritually successful.”
It appears that Paul’s opponents in Corinth have been demanding to know,
“Where are your
credentials, Paul? What seminary did you graduate from? What degrees have
you earned? How
many best-selling books have you published?” As if these are the factors that
determine whether
a servant of God is valuable and qualified! Frankly there are many churches
and pastors that
seemto think they are! I know churches that wouldn’t think about hiring a
seniorpastor who
wasn’t Dr. So-and-so. And I know pastors who never sign their name without
adding, Ph.D., or
D. Min. behind it. I read an article not too long ago entitled “The D-
Minization of the Ministry.”
Not “demon”, but “D. Min.,” the most common doctor’s degree obtained by
pastors. We in the
church seemto be as concernedwith status as they are in academia orthe
corporate world.
I’m sure Paul could have compiled a resume, or curriculum vita, or P.R.
folder that would have
beat anything his detractors could produce. In fact, he did just that in
Philippians 3, but then
notice what he does with it–he trashes it!

67. If anyone else thinks he has reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have
more:
circumcisedon the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin,
a Hebrew
of Hebrews; in regardto the law, a Pharisee, as forzeal, persecuting the
church; as for
legalistic righteousness, faultless.
But whateverwas to my profit I now considerloss for the sake ofChrist.
What is more, I
considereverything a loss comparedto the surpassing greatnessofknowing
Christ Jesus
my Lord, for whose sake Ihave lost all things. I considerthem rubbish, that I
may gain
Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness ofmy own that comes
from the
law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness thatcomes
from God
and is by faith. (Phil. 3:4b-9)
In effect Paul is saying, “Take allmy ego symbols–allmy degrees,my
successes,my churchplanter-of-the-year award, my possessions,my hopes, my
dreams, any reference letters praising
my seminars in Thessalonica orPhilippi–and all togetherit’s a pile of garbage
compared to the
surpassing greatnessofknowing Jesus.”In fact, he seems to be saying that
these things actually
3

68. get in the way of knowing Jesus. Friends, Goddoesn’t grade us the way we
grade one another.
Our external credentials are, in the long haul, meaningless.
Well, if letters of reference from previous ministries are not an accurate
measure of successin
ministry, what is? Paul now answers the question positively.
Effective ministers appealto a whole different kind of “letter of
recommendation.”
(2, 3) I love Paul’s imagery in these verses. He doesn’t deny that he has a letter
of
commendation; he simply denies that he carries it in his brief case. He can
actually produce a far
superior letter that proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that he is an apostle
of Jesus Christ. In
verse 2 he identifies that letter, “You yourselves are our letter.” The converts
whom Paul won to
Christ and then discipled are the only reference letterhe has any interest in.
By the way, in view of the waywe gauge effectiveness in ministry today, I find
it fascinating
that in all his 12 or 13 epistles in the NT, Paul never gives us any attendance
statistics from his
churches;never tells us how many baptisms were performed in a given year;
never reports on the
number of new programs he started; and he never even tells us how the giving
was doing
compared to budget! ForPaul the only thing that matters is the transformed
lives of converts, as

69. he is faithful to the call of God on his life. J. Philip Arthur asks,
How does a pastorestablish beyond doubt that he is a genuine servant of the
gospel? His
mother has a framed photograph on her mantel piece takenat [his
installation] service.
Lying somewhere in a drawer of his desk that hardly ever gets opened is the
graduation
certificate from seminary. But can he point instead, as Paul could, to a
number of people
who have been altered for the better because ofhis ministry?i
And what about the rest of us? You know, we are all ministers; we may not be
professionals but
we are all called to ministry. Do we have any living letters of commendation?
Our children?
Hopefully! Any colleagues atwork? Any neighbors? Any fellow-believers
whom we have
discipled and encouraged?
Now in describing his living letter of reference, Paulanswers a number of
questions that might
come to our minds.
Where is this letter written? He says it is “written on our hearts.” These
young
believers are not just notches on Paul’s Bible; they are individuals he loves
and prays for. He has
literally poured his life into them, and he carries their burdens and hopes and
dreams in his heart

70. everywhere he goes. I think one of the indications of whether we have any
living letters in our
hearts is our prayer life. Samuel said of the people God assignedto him, “God
forbid that I
should sin againstthe Lord by failing to pray for you. And I will teachyou the
way that is good
and right” (1 Samuel 12:23). For whom do we pray daily (or even weekly),
that God will
transform them into the image of His Son?
Who reads it? Paul says this letter is “knownand read by everybody.” Most
reference
4
letters are private and are read only by a selectfew who happen to be in on
the process of
deciding whether someone is going to be invited to speak or not, or in the case
of a search
committee, to decide whether they will be hired or not. The reference letter
Paul talks about is
public. Anyone who opens his eyes cansee it and read it. They cansee that so-
and-so’s life has
been transformed and he is no longerthe person they knew him to be
previously.
Don’t forget that some of the people in the Corinthians church had rap sheets
a mile long. Here’s
what Paul says about them in 1 Corinthians 6:9-11:
Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers
nor male

71. prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor
drunkards nor
slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what
some of you
were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the
name of the
Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
Some of the pillars of the Corinthian church were former addicts, having
struggledwith drugs
and alcoholfor years. Some were converted out of a gay lifestyle. Some had
been executives at
Enron. But their lives had been changedin a profound way. If anyone
required proof that Paul
was an able and effective minister of the Gospel, allhe had to do was look
around at this
congregation. Manyfaces told amazing stories of radical transformation,
wastedlives made
productive, hopeless lives that now had greatpotential. We have some of those
here at First Free,
too, of course, but we aren’t nearly as comfortable admitting it as they
apparently were at
Corinth. There’s a downside to that, and it is that God doesn’t get the glory
He deserves (for
transforming lives). Also people don’t get to see the “before” and “after”
pictures that convince
them that they too can experience transformation. Living letters should be
known and read by

72. everybody.
Who writes it and sends this letter? Verse 3: “You show that you are a letter
from
Christ, the result of our ministry.” I see a dual authorship being alluded to
here. Certainly Jesus
Christ is the ultimate author and senderof the letter of changedlives. If it
weren’t for His
sacrifice onthe cross and the righteousness that He imputes and imparts to
those who put their
faith in Him, there would be no transformation. But we must not overlook the
fact that He uses
gifted servants as His tools of transformation. Rarely, if ever, does anyone
pass from death into
life without a spiritual midwife or obstetricianbeing involved. I think that is
what Paul is saying
in Romans 10 when he asks a series of questions:
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can
they believe
in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without
someone
preaching to them? And how can they preachunless they are sent?
Theoretically, ofcourse, Godcould send an angelto share the Gospel, or raise
up a stone to
speak, but He doesn’t. He uses people, and Paul was profoundly grateful that
God chose him to
be one of those messengers.He is not one to exhibit the kind of false humility
that says, “It’s all

73. of God; I had nothing to do with it.” He didn’t produce the harvest, but he
sure planted the seed!
5
He didn’t write the letter by himself, but he sure cooperatedin the writing of
it.
What is it written with? Look at the middle of verse 3: “written not with ink
but with
the Spirit of the living God.” Ink fades, the Spirit’s work lasts. You know, the
novel that
constitutes the life of the ordinary unbeliever is written largely with ink. Ink
speaks ofhuman
influence, societalpressures, cultural distinctives. The education he receives in
grade school,
high school, and college is all written with ink. His careerwrites a chapterof
his life with ink.
When he goes to a psychologistora medical doctor his file is written with ink.
And sadly, he
may even go to church and discoverthat his pastor writes only with ink. As I
was traveling this
week my wife and I heard a radio preacherwho gave a very eloquent sermon
that never
mentioned Christ or the Bible–it was a wonderful story with a fine moral
application, but it was
just ink.
However, when a person is born againby faith in Jesus Christ, God begins to
write chapters in

74. his novel, not with ink but with His Holy Spirit, and that novel comes to life.
The fruit of the
Spirit becomes evident–love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, selfcontrol. Theseletters don’t fade with time; in fact, the opposite
happens–the writing becomes
more distinct and Christ-like as time goes on.
Let me just stop here and ask a question: Is there evidence of anything but ink
in the writing of
your life’s novel? Are there chapters in your novel that have no human
explanation, that reveal
the fingerprints of God and demonstrate the work of the Holy Spirit?
What is it written on? The answer:not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of
human
hearts. Paul may be thinking here of the stone tablets on which the Ten
Commandments were
written, because he refers to them in the next few verses, but I think the
ultimate point here
comes from Ezekiel36:25-27, where the prophet is predicting the return of
God’s people from
captivity and a major spiritual renewal:
I will sprinkle cleanwateron you, and you will be clean;I will cleanse you
from all your
impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new
spirit in
you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will

75. put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to
keepmy laws.
The problem with God’s people in the OT was largely one of hardness of
heart. They knew what
God desired and what He required, but their hearts were often like stone, and
stone is not easyto
write on, you know. It takes a hammer and chisel, and a lot of effort. How
much easierit would
be if the people’s hearts were softand pliable! The prophet predicts that a
time would come
when God would give His people just that–a tender heart.
When would that happen? Well, Ezekielsays that cleansing or forgiveness has
to come first
(which historically was offeredthrough the sacrifice ofChrist); then God
would put His Holy
Spirit within them (which historicallyhappened on the Day of Pentecost).
Then, and only then,
would there be the potential for lives of heart-felt obedience.
6
You see, in the OT the Holy Spirit came upon certainpeople for special
purposes, but only in the
NT does the Holy Spirit indwell every believerand provide the powerfor holy
living. In other
words, as people are savedby faith in Christ and subsequently indwelt by the
Holy Spirit, they
receive a new heart upon which the Spirit can write a living letter of
transformation.

76. What an amazing picture Paulhas drawn for us here to describe the living
letters of
commendation that validate true effectivenessin ministry! ScottHafemann
has written a
powerful application of this passageto the church today:
Paul’s understanding of the nature of Christian ministry strikes a piercing
blow against
all attempts, whether in Paul’s day or our own, to fashion ministries and
messages
around techniques and technology. As children of the entertainment age, our
culturally
conditioned reflex is to make creating right environments for hearing the
gospelour
priority, insteadof relying first and foremoston the powerof the Spirit to call
people to
repentance. Our tendency is to concentrate on“working the angles” insteadof
relying
on Christ to work. Rather than viewing the pastor as a mediator of the Spirit
in
conjunction with the proclamationof the Word, the minister becomes a
“professional”
whose job it is to manage the corporate life of the congregationand oversee
the creation
of meaningful worship “events.”ii
Now Paul recognizes thatwhat he has claimedhere in terms of the
transformed lives of his

77. converts might seem to be prideful, so he quickly moves to correctthat
impression.
Effective ministers spurn self-promotion and self-confidence in favor of God-
confidence.
(4-6a)
Verse 4: “Suchconfidence as this is ours through Christ before God.” He is
not bragging;he is
not expressing self-confidence;rather it is God-confidence, Christ-confidence.
Then he speaks
even more bluntly: “Notthat we are competent in ourselves to claim anything
for ourselves, but
our competence comesfrom God. He has made us competent . . .” Paul
acknowledgesthathis
effectiveness atCorinth had not been the result of his natural gifts. God, of
course, uses our
natural gifts and talents, but without His powerand enabling, the very bestof
natural gifts
produce only spiritual chaff. Clearly there had been a force at work in that
city which made
promiscuous people faithful; sexualperverts gave up their depravity; drunks
became sober;
financial sharks became honestand trustworthy. The only explanation is that
God was at work.
Before we move on, let me ask all of us a question: Do we really realize and
acceptthe truth that
Paul is driving home here–that Godis the source and supply of everything
goodin our lives? In

78. 1 Cor. 4:7 Paul asks, “Whatdo you have that you did not receive? And if you
did receive it, why
do you boastas though you did not?” It’s all of God. He is the originator, the
owner, the
equipper, the motivator, the producer; we are but clay in His hands.
Finally this morning, I want to just introduce an idea that we will examine in
detail next Lord’s
7
day:
Effective ministers focus on the New Covenantmessage. (6)
Verse 6: “He has made us competentas ministers of a new covenant–notof
the letter but of the
Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” What is Paul talking about
when he speaksof
“ministers of a new covenant?” Well, the clearinference is that there must
have been an old
covenant. The Old Covenant was the agreementGod made with the children
of Israel in Moses’
day, encapsulatedin the TenCommandments but including all the civil,
ceremonial, and dietary
laws in the OT. It was a Covenantthat promised blessing for obedience and
judgment for
disobedience. There wasn’tanything intrinsically wrong with the Old
Covenant–infact, its laws
were goodand perfect; the fault was with the people and the fact that most of
them, at least,
failed to internalize it.

79. The New Covenantthat Paul speaks ofis mentioned only once in the OT
where it is predicted by
the OT prophet Jeremiah. Look at 31:31-33:
"The time is coming," declares the LORD, "whenI will make a new covenant
with the
house of Israeland with the house of Judah.
It will not be like the covenantI made with their forefathers when I took them
by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt [clearly referring to the Mosaic Law], because they
broke my
covenant, though I was a husband to them," declares the LORD.
"This is the covenantI will make with the house of Israel after that time,"
declares the
LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be
their God,
and they will be my people."
This New Covenantwas ratified and inaugurated by the death of Christ. Do
you recallthe words
of Jesus at the Last Supper, “This is the new covenant in my blood”? When
Jesus died He made
possible a whole new kind of relationship betweenGodand His people. It is
different, Paul says,
in two important ways:
1. The Old Covenant is “ofthe letter”; the New is “of the Spirit”. Under the
Old

80. Covenant, Israel as a whole receivedthe Law, but only a few receivedthe
Spirit, and only
temporarily. And the Law without the Spirit to energize and motivate the
reader is merely a
lifeless “letter.” But when Jesus sealedthe New Covenant with His blood He
promised that He
would send the Holy Spirit to live permanently in the believer’s life. God’s law
would be
internalized, and the power to obey it would come from within. Secondly, Paul
says . . .
2. The letter kills; the Spirit gives life. There are few statements in the Bible
that have
been subject to more misinterpretation than this one. The church of the
Middle Ages used it to
justify allegoricalinterpretations of the Scripture. They held that “letter”
means “literal” while
“Spirit” refers to “allegorical.”This alloweda text to mean just about
whateverthe church
8
wanted it to mean. Those who promote situation ethics love to quote this
verse, “the letter kills;
the Spirit gives life,” because theycontend it allows them to ignore specific
commandments so
long as they are seeking to live in the spirit of love, which means “whatever
you want to do.”
And there are certaincharismatics in our ownday who use it to say that the
Bible is mere ink on

81. paper, lifeless and sterile. Why not bypass all that and deal directly with the
Holy Spirit? Words
of faith and knowledge from the Spirit are superior.
iii
But all of these interpretations are bogus. The contrastPaul is setting up
betweenletter and Spirit
is really a contrastbetweenLaw and Gospel, two periods of redemptive
history. The Law is said
to “kill” because ofits demand for absolute obedience and its corresponding
condemnation of all
those who failed to keepit perfectly. All is not lost, however, for the law forces
the sinner to
despair under its demands, thereby driving some to the life-giving promise of
forgiveness and
powerfound in the Gospel. As Paul states in Galatians 3:24, “the Law was put
in charge of us to
lead us to Christ.” The “letter” kills in order that the “Spirit” might make us
alive.
Effective ministers focus on the New Covenantmessage. Thatis, they don’t
tell people they can
earn God’s favor by keeping laws or performing deeds of righteousness.
Rather they tell them
that the only way to get right with God is by trusting in the death of Jesus
Christ and accepting
His righteousness inplace of one’s own self-righteousness.

82. Conclusion:I wish to return where we startedtoday. What does your P.R.
portfolio look like? If
askedto justify your time on earth at the Judgment Seatof Christ, what kind
of letter are you
going to have to offer Him? Will you have more than a picture of your family,
a personal
resume, a few letters from friends verifying that you’re a nice person, a
certificate of baptism, a
plaque to signify that you learned all your verses in AWANA, a letter of
thanks from the
Children’s Pastorfor teaching a S.S. class?Do you have any living letters to
present to the
Savior? May God help us to pour our energies and gifts into people so they
can be transformed
by the powerof the Holy Spirit.
WILLIAM BARCLAY
EACH MAN A LETTER OF CHRIST (2 Corinthians 3:1-3)
3:1-3 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Surelyyou do not think
that we need--as some people need--letters of commendation neither to you or
from you? You are our letter, written on our hearts, known and readby all
men. It is plain to see that you are a letter written by Christ, produced under
our ministry, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God, not on
tablets of stone, but on tablets which are living, beating, human hearts.

83. Behind this passage lies the thought of a customwhich was common in the
ancient world, that of sending letters of commendation with a person. If
someone was going to a strange community, a friend of his who knew someone
in that community would give him a letter of commendation to introduce him
and to testify to his character.
Here is such a letter, found among the papyri, written by a certain Aurelius
Archelaus, who was a beneficiarius, that is a soldier privileged to have special
exemption from all menial duties, to his commanding officer, a military
tribune calledJulius Domitius. It is to introduce and commend a certain
Theon. "To Julius Domitius, military tribune of the legion, from Aurelius
Archelaus, his beneficiarius, greeting. I have already before this
recommended to you Theon, my friend, and now also, I ask you, sir, to have
him before your eyes as you would myself. For he is a man such as to deserve
to be loved by you, for he left his ownpeople, his goods and his business and
followedme, and through all things he has kept me safe. I therefore pray you
that he may have the right to come and see you. He can tell you everything
about our business...Ihave loved the man...I wish you, sir, greathappiness
and long life with your family and goodhealth. Have this letter before your
eyes and let it make you think that I am speaking to you. Farewell."
That was the kind of commendatory letter, or reference, ofwhich Paul was
thinking. There is one such in the New Testament. Romans 16:1-27 is a letter
of commendation written to introduce Phoebe, a member of the Church at
Cenchrea, to the Church at Rome.
In the ancient world, as nowadays, sometimes written testimonials did not
mean very much. A man once askedDiogenes, the Cynic philosopher, for such
a letter. Diogenesanswered, "Thatyou are a man he will know at a glance;
but whether you are a goodor a bad man he will discoverif he has the skill to

84. distinguish betweengoodand bad, and if he is without that skill he will not
discoverthe facts even though I write to him thousands of times." Yet in the
Christian Church such letters were necessary, foreven Lucian, the pagan
satirist, noted that any charlatan could make a fortune out of the simple-
minded Christians, because they were so easily imposed upon.
The previous sentences ofPaul's letter seemedto read as if he was giving
himself a testimonial. He declares that he has no need of such commendation.
Then he takes a side-glance atthose who have been causing trouble in
Corinth. "There may be some," he says, "who brought you letters of
commendation or who got them from you." In all probability these were
emissaries ofthe Jews who had come to undo Paul's work and who had
brought introductory letters from the Sanhedrin to accreditthem. Once Paul
had had such letters himself, when he setout to Damascus to obliterate the
Church. (Acts 9:2). He says that his only testimonial is the Corinthians
themselves. The change in their characterand life is the only commendation
that he needs.
He goes on to make a greatclaim. Every one of them is a letter of Christ. Long
ago Plato had saidthat the goodteacherdoes not write his messagein ink that
will fade; he writes it upon men. That is what Jesus had done. He had written
his messageonthe Corinthians, through his servant, Paul, not with fading ink
but with the Spirit, not on tablets of stone as the law was first written, but on
the hearts of men.
There is a greattruth here, which is at once an inspiration and an awful
warning--every man is an open letter for Jesus Christ. Every Christian,
whether he likes it or not, is an advertisementfor Christianity. The honour of
Christ is in the hands of his followers. We judge a shopkeeperby the kind of
goods he sells;we judge a craftsmanby the kind of articles he produces; we
judge a Church by the kind of men it creates;and therefore men judge Christ

85. by his followers. Dick Sheppard, after years of talking in the open air to
people who were outside the Church, declaredthat he had discoveredthat
"the greatesthandicapthe Church has is the unsatisfactorylives of professing
Christians." When we go out into the world, we have the awe-inspiring
responsibility of being open letters, advertisements, for Christ and his
Church.
BRIAN BELL
1 Intro:
A. Slide#2 Everything continues in a state of rest unless it is compelledto
change by forces
impressed upon it. Issac Newton, FirstLaw of Motion.
1. As human beings we normally do not like change, but it is inevitable.
2. As Christians we normally do not like change, but it is inevitable.
B. Have you ever cried out to God, “God, what are You doing? What do you
want from me?
Why did you leave me here”
1. If He only had 1 verse to sum up what He wants...Ithink He’d answer
2Cor.3:18.
a) It is vital that day by day we live w/in this conceptualframework so that in
everything we
do or think we promote the growth of Christlikeness (orglorification) within
our lives.1
b) See, the gospelof Christ not only illuminates our darkened lives; equally
remarkably, it

86. transforms them little by little so that they increasinglyresemble the moral &
spiritual
characterof the Lord Jesus.
C. Slide#3 Paul points out to us 4 greatcomparisons betweenthe OT Law &
the NT Grace:
1. [1] From Tablets of Stone to Tablets of Flesh [2] From Deathto Life
[3] From Fading Glory to Lasting Glory [4] From Bondage to Freedom
II. Slide#4 FROM TABLETS OF STONE TO TABLETS OF FLESH! (1-3)
A. (1) Commendations & Credentials!
B. Paul here defends himself againstthe Jewishlegalists.
C. Slide#5,6 Diogenes, the cynic philosopher, was once askedto give a letter of
commendation for
someone & he answered, Thatyou are a man he will know at a glance;but
whether you are a
goodor a bad man he will discoverif he has the skill to distinguish between
good& bad, & if
he is without that skill he will not discoverthe facts even though I write to him
1000’s oftimes.
D. These letters were popular in Paul’s day.
1. Here’s one that was found on papyri, “To Julius Domitius, military tribune
of the
legion, from Aurelius Archelaus, his beneficiaries (a soldierexempt from
menial
duties), greeting. I have already before this recommended to you Theon, my
friend

87. & now also, I ask you sir, to have him before your eyes as you would myself.
For he
is man such as to deserve to be loved by you, for he left his own people, his
goods
& his business & followedme, & through all things he has kept me safe. I
therefore
pray you that he may have the right to come & see you. He can tell you
everything
about our business…Ihave loved the man…I wish you, sir, greathappiness &
long
1
1 Paul Barnett, BST, Pg.75
life w/your family & goodhealth. Have this letter before your eyes & let it
make you
think that I am speaking to you. Farewell.”
E. Paul sees a need to give one of these commendations in Rom.16:1,2 I
commend to you Phoebe
our sister, who is a servantof the church in Cenchrea, that you may receive
her in the Lord in a
manner worthy of the saints, and assisther in whatever business she has need
of you; for indeed
she has been a helper of many and of myself also.
1. Yet Paul here says he needs no letter of commendation…because “the
Corinthian
believers” were his commendation!
a) The change in their character& life is the only commendation that he
needs.

88. F. Slide#7,8 Notw/ink – years before Plato had said, “The goodteacherdoes
not write his
messagein ink that will fade; he writes it upon men.”
1. Jobsaid, Oh, that my words were written! Oh, that they were inscribed in a
book!
That they were engravedon a rock With an iron pen and lead, forever!
19:23,24.
2. This is what Jesus had done. He wrote His messageupon the Corinthians
hearts,
…through his servant Paul. - Notw/Fading Ink but w/His Permanent Marker
Spirit; not on tablets of stone (as they were 1stwritten) but on the tablet of
their hearts.
a) The Law was external - You could hold the tablets of stones in your hands
your whole
life & it could never change your life.
b) The NT ministry is internal – The Spirit of God living inside & empowering
you.
3. We ought to be Christians in large type, in bold font, underlined,
highlighted, &
exclamationmarked!
G. The Law only reveals sin; it cannot do anything about it!
H. (2) All men - Christianity is essentiallya lay movement.
1. Every believer is an open letter for Jesus.
2. Every Christian is an advertisement for Christianity.
a) We judge a store by the quality of goods it sells;

89. We judge a craftsman on his quality of work;
We judge a Church by the kind of Christians it produces;& therefore
The world judges Christ by His Followers!
(1) Dick Sheppard said, “The greatesthandicapthe church has is the
unsatisfactorylives of professing Christians. ”
b) Slide#9 When we step out into our world everyday we are “openletters”,
“advertisements” forChrist & His church. We are “Sandwichboards for the
Savior”!
3. Slide#10 Poem:You are writing a Gospel, a chapter every day,
By the deeds that you do & the words that you say.
2
Men read what you write, whether faithful or true.
Just what is the gospelaccording to you?
I. The Spirit wants to write a new version of His Word on your heart…Will
you let Him?
J. George Whitefieldsaid, “Godhas condescendedto become an Author, and
yet people will not
read his writings. There are very few that evergave this Book of God, the
grand charter of
salvation, one fair reading through.”
K. What are your thoughts when I say, “you may be the only letter from
Christ that some people
ever read?”

90. J. H. BERNARD
Verse 3
2 Corinthians 3:3. φανερούμενοι ὅτι ἐστὲ κ. τ. λ.: being made manifest that ye
are an epistle of Christ (sc., written by Christ), ministered by us (the Apostle
conceiving of himself as his Master’s amanuensis).— ἐγγεγραμμένη οὐ μέλανι
κ. τ. λ.: written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables
of stone but in tables that are hearts of flesh. This “writing” which the
Corinthians exhibit is no writing with ink on a papyrus roll, but is the
mystical imprint of the Divine Spirit in their hearts, conveyedthrough Paul’s
ministrations; cf. Jeremiah31:33, Proverbs 7:3. And this leads him to think of
the ancient“writing” of the Law by the “finger of God” on the Twelve Tables,
and to contrastit with this epistle of Christ on tables that are not of stone but
are “hearts of flesh” (see reff.). For σάρκινος (cf. λίθινος, ὀστράκινος)see on2
Corinthians 1:12 above.
CALVIN
3. Ye are the Epistle of Christ Pursuing the metaphor, he says that the Epistle
of which he speaks was writtenby Christ, inasmuch as the faith of the
Corinthians was his work. He says that it was ministered by him, as if
meaning by this, that he had been in the place of ink and pen. In fine, he
makes Christ the author and himself the instrument, that calumniators may
understand, that it is with Christ that they have to do, if they continue to
speak againsthim 365 with malignity. What follows is intended to increase the
authority of that Epistle. The secondclause, 366however, has alreadya
reference to the comparisonthat is afterwards drawn betweenthe law and the
gospel. Forhe takes occasionfrom this shortly afterwards, as we shall see, to

91. enter upon a comparisonof this nature. The antitheses here employed — ink
and Spirit, stones and heart — give no small degree of weightto his
statements, by way of amplification. For in drawing a contrastbetweenink
and the Spirit of God, and betweenstones and heart, he expressesmore than
if he had simply made mention of the Spirit and the heart, without drawing
any comparison.
Not on tables of stone He alludes to the promise that is recordedin Jeremiah
31:31, and Ezekiel37:26, concerning the grace ofthe New Testament.
I will make, says he, a new covenant with them, not such as I had made with
their fathers; but I will write my laws upon their hearts, and engrave them on
their inward parts. Farther, I will take awaythe stony heart from the midst of
thee, and will give thee a heart of flesh, that thou mayestwalk in my precepts.
(Ezekiel36:26, 27.)
Paul says, that this blessing was accomplishedthrough means of his
preaching. Hence it abundantly appears, that he is a faithful minister of the
New Covenant — which is a legitimate testimony in favor of his apostleship.
The epithet fleshly is not takenhere in a bad sense, but means soft and
flexible, 367 as it is contrastedwith stony, that is, hard and stubborn, as is the
heart of man by nature, until it has been subdued by the Spirit of God. 368
RICH CATHERS
2 Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:

92. The only recommendationPaul needs are the lives of the Corinthians
themselves. All they need to do to realize whether or not Paul is legitimate or
not, is to look at what effectPaul’s ministry has had on them.
:3 Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart.
(2 Cor 3:3 NLT) Clearly, you are a letter from Christ prepared by us. It is
written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved
not on stone, but on human hearts.
The Ten Commandments were written on stone tablets. God wants to write on
our hearts.
Lesson
You are the only Scripture some people will ever read.
We talkedabout this morning (Isa 55:5) that God desires that we be
"attractive witnesses" forHim. We ought to be living examples of what God
can do in a person’s life.
Illustration

93. The world knows how British journalist Henry Stanley went to Africa to find
the famed missionary, Dr. David Livingstone. Stanley's greeting, "Dr.
Livingstone, I presume?" is world famous, but few know the restof the story.
After the two had been together for some time, Stanleysaw what Livingstone
endured and wrote, "I went to Africa as prejudiced as the biggestatheistin
London. But there came for me a long time for reflection. I saw this solitary
old man there and askedmyself, 'How on earth does he stop here -- is he
cracked, orwhat? What is it that inspires him so?'For months after we met I
found myself wondering at the old man carrying out all that was said in the
Bible -- 'Leave all things and follow Me.'But little by little his sympathy for
others became contagious;my sympathy was aroused;seeing his piety, his
gentleness, his zeal, his earnestness, andhow he went about his business, I was
convertedby him."
Illustration
Habitat for Humanity started officially in 1976 but unofficially when founder
Millard Fuller went to Zaire with a church group to build not-for-profit
houses in 1968. With a beginning undergirded with little except prayer and
vision for what God could do, Habitat has growninto one of the nation’s
largesthome builders.
Fuller describes Habitat as an "alive, dynamic, Christ-centeredmovement"
that welcomes Christians and non-Christians to participate in building houses
for the poor.
Fuller takes specialdelight when people listen to the messagebehind the
sweat, nails and saws. Recently, he returned to the sight of a Jimmy Carter
Work Projectin Charlotte, N.C. He spotted a five year-old boy playing in the
yard of the house that Carter had helped build.

94. After complimenting the boy on his beautiful home, he askedhim who built it,
expecting to hear the boy say, "Jimmy Carter."
Instead, the boy said, "Jesus built my house."
-- The Columbus Dispatch, 6-20-92,p. 8H
I wish that could be the way we worked. Instead of people seeing us do the
work, they would see Jesus.
ADAM CLARKE
Verse 3
Manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ - Ye are in our hearts, and
Christ has written you there; but yourselves are the epistle of Christ; the
change produced in your hearts and lives, and the salvationwhich you have
received, are as truly the work of Christ as a letter dictated and written by a
man in his work.
Ministered by us - Ye are the writing, but Christ used me as the pen; Christ
dictated, and I wrote; and the Divine characters are not made with ink, but by
the Spirit of the living God; for the gifts and graces thatconstitute the mind
that was in Christ are produced in you by the Holy Ghost.

95. Not in tables of stone - Where men engrave contracts, orrecord events; but in
fleshly tables of the heart - the work of salvationtaking place in all your
affections, appetites, and desires;working that change within that is so
signally manifested without. See the parts of this figurative speech:
Jesus Christ dictates.
The apostle writes.
The hearts of the Corinthians are the substance on which the writing is made.
And,
The Holy Spirit produces that influence by which the traces are made, and the
mark becomes evident.
Here is not only an allusion to making inscriptions on stones, where one
dictates the matter, and another cuts the letters;(and probably there were
certain caseswhere some colouring matter was used to make the inscription
the more legible;and when the stone was engraved, it was setup in some
public place, as monuments, inscriptions, and contracts were, that they might
be seen, known, and read of all men); but the apostle may here refer to the ten
commandments, written by the finger of God upon two tables of stone;which
writing was an evidence of the Divine mission of Moses, as the conversionof
the Corinthians was an evidence of the mission of St. Paul. But it may be as
well to take the words in a generalsense, as the expressionis not unfrequent
either in the Old Testament, or in the rabbinical writers. See Schoettgen.
BOB DEFFINBAUGH
Who Needs Commending?
(3:1-3)

96. 1 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, as some,
letters of commendation to you or from you? 2 You are our letter, written in
our hearts, knownand read by all men; 3 being manifested that you are a
letter of Christ, caredfor by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the
living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.
From 2 Corinthians 2:17, it should be clearto us, as it was to the ancient
readers of this epistle, that Paul distinguishes himself from the “peddlers of
the Word of God.” I can almostsee the rolling of the eyes of these false
apostles as they sigh deliberately, “There he goes again. Paulis simply trying
to use this letter to commend himself and to condemn us.” In part, this is true.
But Paul reminds everyone in Corinth that, of all people, he should not need a
letter of commendation to convince them of his integrity as an apostle.
Now letters of commendation were indeed very beneficial. Paul wrote a “letter
of commendation” to the church at Rome on behalf of Phoebe (see Romans
16:1f.). When saints traveled from one place to another, it was important for
those in the churches they visited to know something of the faith and
characterof those who met with them for worship and for instruction. This
practice is also beneficialtoday to help protectthe flock from “wolves,”and
from those who have been placed under church discipline. But certainly Paul
does not need such a letter to be receivedby the church in Corinth. He is not
only known to the Corinthians, he is their spiritual father, through whom
many have come to faith. Those who “come in” to deceive and “sell” their new
gospel(see 2 Corinthians 11:4) to the Corinthians come with some kind of
“letter of commendation,” some credentials which at leastthe gullible
Corinthians find impressive. Ultimately, it is not a letter which distinguishes a
true apostle from a false one, but rather a kind of divine certification. Paul
reminds the Corinthians of his accreditationand the kind of credentials which
setthe true preacherof the gospelapart from the false. And in so doing, Paul
also begins to contrastthe “letter” and the “spirit,” the old covenantand the
new. Paulwrites these first three verses assuming his readers recognize that

97. his imagery is biblical, basedupon the promise of the new covenantin the Old
Testament, its fulfillment in Christ, and its preaching by the apostles.
The Corinthian saints do not need a letter commending Paul; they are Paul’s
letter. They are a letter written on Paul’s heart.20 He cannot feel more
intimately “connected” with them. Of greaterimportance, Paul’s preaching is
written on their hearts. Paul’s preaching (unlike the legalismof the Judaizers)
is not of salvationby law-keeping, but of salvation by God’s grace, through
the sacrificiallife, death, burial, and resurrectionof Jesus Christ. His message
is not chiseledon stone tablets, but written on hearts of flesh, just as the Old
Testamentprophets had promised:
31 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new
covenantwith the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the
covenantwhich I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand
to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenantwhich they broke,
although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33 “But this is the
covenantwhich I will make with the house of Israelafter those days,” declares
the LORD, “I will put My law within them, and on their heart I will write it;
and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 34 And they shall not
teachagain, eachman his neighbor and eachman his brother, saying, ‘Know
the LORD,’for they shall all know Me, from the leastof them to the greatest
of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I
will remember no more” (Jeremiah 31:31-34).
19 “And I shall give them one heart, and shall put a new spirit within them.
And I shall take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of
flesh, 20 that they may walk in My statutes and keepMy ordinances, and do
them. Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God” (Ezekiel11:19-
20).

98. Playing out the “letter” imagery, Paul goes onto say that these Corinthians
are, themselves, a letter. They are the fruit of Paul’s service and of the Holy
Spirit’s work in their hearts, turning their stony hearts of unbelief into hearts
of flesh. They are not little “clones” ofPaul, but rather they reflect Jesus
Christ to a darkenedand dying world. Paul says the same of the Thessalonian
saints:
4 Knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice ofyou; 5 for our gospeldid
not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and
with full conviction;just as you know what kind of men we proved to be
among you for your sake. 6 You also became imitators of us and of the Lord,
having receivedthe word in much tribulation with the joy of the Holy Spirit, 7
so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia andin
Achaia (1 Thessalonians 1:4-7).
Why does Paul mention this word about commendation or accreditation? I
believe it is because in Paul’s day, as in ours, many things which give one
status in an unbelieving world do not offer status or authority in the church.
The wisdom and persuasive methods of these false teachers impress some of
the Corinthians. This should not be so. Todaywe have “letters” (a play on
words), like “Ph.D.” and “Th.M.” whichmay impress some. Recently, the
D.Min. (Doctorof Ministry) has been introduced in Christian institutions of
higher learning. For a very challenging perspective of this recent
phenomenon,21 I suggestreading David Wells’excellentchapter entitled,
“The D-Min-Ization of the Ministry” in the book, No God, But God.
I am not saying there is something evil about biblical and theological
education. I am deeply indebted to Dallas TheologicalSeminary for the tools it
gave me to better study and proclaim the Bible. Nevertheless, my degree from
the seminary does not accreditme or my ministry. There are those who have
graduated from this and other fine schools who have denied the faith and

99. taught error. Here and elsewhere, Paultells us what commends a Christian’s
integrity in ministry. A Christian’s ministry is commended first by the
practice of servanthood, rather than by an authoritative or authoritarian
leadership style. Paul reminds the Corinthians in verse 3 that he “caredfor”
them. The marginal note in the NASB informs us that literally the word is
“served.” Those whomGod has certified are servants, not “lords.” Second,
true laborers of Christ are marked by the integrity of their message andtheir
methods. They are not “peddlers” of the Word of God, but those who simply,
boldly, and truthfully proclaim the truth of God’s Word in such a waythat
men turn to God and depend upon His Word, rather than upon those servants
who proclaim it (see Acts 20:17-32).22Finally, true servants of God are
evident when men are convicted and convertedby the Word of God and the
Spirit of God, and whose lives are so changedthat the world cannot help but
notice. True servants of God may or may not have educationaldiplomas, but
the fingerprints of God are all over them and their ministries.
JAMES DENNY
LIVING EPISTLES.
2 Corinthians 3:1-3 (R.V)
"ARE we beginning again to commend ourselves?" Pauldoes not mean by
these words to admit that he had been commending himself before: he means
that he has been accusedalreadyof doing so, and that there are those at
Corinth who, when they hear such passagesofthis letter as that which has
just preceded, will be ready to repeat the accusation. In the First Epistle he
had found it necessaryto vindicate his apostolic authority, and especiallyhis
interest in the Corinthian Church as its spiritual father, [1 Corinthians 9:1-

100. 27; 1 Corinthians 4:6-21]and obviously his enemies at Corinth had tried to
turn these personalpassages againsthim. They did so on the principle Qui
s’excuse s’accuse. "He is commending himself," they said, "and self-
commendation is an argument which discredits, instead of supporting, a
cause." The Apostle had heard of these malicious speeches, andin this Epistle
makes repeatedreference to them. {see 2 Corinthians 5:12; 2 Corinthians
10:18;2 Corinthians 13:6} He entirely agreedwith his opponents that self-
praise was no honor. "Nothe who commendeth himself is approved, but he
whom the Lord commendeth." But he denied point-blank that he was
commending himself. In distinguishing as he had done in 2 Corinthians 2:14-
17 betweenhimself and his colleagues, who spoke the Word "as of sincerity, as
of God, in the sight of God," and "the many" who corrupted it, nothing was
further from his mind than to plead his cause, as a suspectedperson, with the
Corinthians. Only malignity could suppose any such thing, and the indignant
question with which the chapter opens tacitly accuseshis adversaries ofthis
hateful vice. It is pitiful to see a greatand generous spirit like Paul compelled
thus to stand upon guard, and watch againstthe possible misconstructionof
every lightest word. What needless pain it inflicts upon him, what needless
humiliation! How it checks alleffusion of feeling, and robs what should be
brotherly intercourse of everything that can make it free and glad! Further on
in the Epistle there will be abundant opportunity of speaking onthis subject
at greaterlength; but it is proper to remark here that a minister’s characteris
the whole capital he has for carrying on his business, and that nothing can be
more cruel and wickedthan to castsuspicionon it without cause. In most
other callings a man may go on, no matter what his character, provided his
balance at the bank is on the right side; but an evangelistor a pastorwho has
lost his characterhas lost everything. It is humiliating to be subject to
suspicion, painful to be silent under it, degrading to speak. At a later stage
Paul was compelledto go further than he goes here;but let the indignant
emotion of this abrupt question remind us that candoris to be met with
candor, and that the suspicious temper which would fain malign the goodeats
like a cankerthe very heart of those who cherish it.

101. From the serious tone the Apostle passes suddenly to the ironical. "Or need
we, as do some, epistles of commendation to you or from you?" The "some" of
this verse are probably the same as "the many" of 2 Corinthians 2:17. Persons
had come to Corinth in the characterof Christian teachers, bringing with
them recommendatory letters which securedtheir standing when they
arrived. An example of what is meant can be seenin Acts 18:27. There we are
told that when Apollos, who had been working in Ephesus, was minded to
pass over into Achaia, the Ephesianbrethren encouragedhim, and wrote to
the disciples to receive him-that is, they gave him an epistle of commendation,
which securedhim recognitionand welcome in Corinth. A similar case is
found in Romans 16:1, where the Apostle uses the very word which we have
here: "I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the Church
that is at Cenchreae:that ye receive her in the Lord, worthily of the saints,
and that ye assisther in whatsoevermattershe may have need of you: for she
herself also hath been a succorerof many, and of mine own self." This was
Phoebe’s introduction, or epistle of commendation, to the Church of Rome.
The Corinthians were evidently in the habit both of receiving such letters
from other Churches, and of granting them on their own account;and Paul
asks them ironically if they think he ought to bring one, or when he leaves
them to apply for one. Is that the relation which ought to obtain betweenhim
and them? The "some," to whom he refers, had no doubt come from
Jerusalem:it is they who are referred to in 2 Corinthians 11:22 ff. But it does
not follow that their recommendatoryletters had been signedby Peter, James,
and John; and just as little that those letters justified them in their hostility to
Paul. No doubt there were many-many myriads, the Book of Acts says-at
Jerusalem, whose conceptionof the Gospelwas very different from his and
who were glad to counteracthim wheneverthey could; but there were many
also, including the three who seemedto be pillars, who had a thoroughly good
understanding with him, and who had no responsibility for the "some" and
their doings. The epistles which the "some" brought were plainly such as the
Corinthians themselves could grant, and it is a complete misinterpretation to
suppose that they were a commissiongranted by the Twelve for the
persecutionof Paul.

102. The giving of recommendatory letters is a subjectof considerable practical
interest. When they are merely formal, as in our certificates ofChurch
membership, they come to mean very little. It is an unhappy state of affairs
perhaps, but no one would take a certificate ofChurch membership by itself
as a satisfactoryrecommendation. And when we go past the merely formal,
difficult questions arise. Many people have an estimate of their own character
and competence, in which it is impossible for others to share, and yet they
apply without misgiving to their friends, and especiallyto their minister or
their employer, to grant them "epistles ofcommendation." We are bound to
be generous in these things, but we are bound also to be honest. The rule
which ought to guide us, especiallyin all that belongs to the Church and its
work, is the interestof the cause, and not of the worker. To flatter is to do a
wrong, not only to the person flattered, but to the cause in which you are
trying to employ him. There is no more ludicrous reading in the world than a
bundle of certificates, ortestimonials, as they are called. As a rule, they certify
nothing but the total absence ofjudgment and consciencein the people who
have granted them. If you do not know whether a person is qualified for any
given situation or not, you do not need to say anything about it. If you know
he is not, and he asks you to saythat he is, no personalconsiderationmust
keepyou from kindly but firmly declining. I am not preaching suspicion, or
reserve, or anything ungenerous, but justice and truth. It is wickedto betray a
greatinterest by bespeaking it for incompetent hands; it is cruel to put any
one into a place for which he is unfit. Where you are confident that the man
and the work will be wellmatched, be as generous as you please;but never
forgetthat the work is to be consideredin the first place, and the man only in
the second.
Paul has been serious, and ironical, in the first verse;in 2 Corinthians 3:2 he
becomes serious again, andremains so. "You," he says, answering his ironical
question, "you are our epistle." Epistle, of course, is to be takenin the sense of
the preceding verse. "You are the commendatory letter which I show, when I
am askedformy credentials." But to whom does he show it? In the first
instance, to the captious Corinthians themselves. The tone of 2 Corinthians
9:1-15. in the First Epistle is struck here again: "WhereverI may need

103. recommendations, it is certainly not at Corinth." "If I be not an apostle to
others, yet doubtless I am to you: the sealof mine apostleshipare ye in the
Lord." Had they been a Christian community when he first visited them, they
might have askedwho he was;but they owed their Christianity to him; he was
their father in Christ; to put him to the question in this superior, suspicious
style was unnatural, unfilial ingratitude. They themselves were the living
evidence of the very thing which they threw doubt upon-the apostleshipof
Paul.
This bold utterance may well excite misgivings in those who preach
constantly, yet see no result of their work. It is common to disparage success,
the success ofvisible acknowledgedconversions, ofbad men openly
renouncing badness, bearing witness againstthemselves, and embracing a new
life. It is common to glorify the ministry which works on, patient and
uncomplaining, in one monotonous round, ever sowing, but never reaping,
ever casting the net, but never drawing in the fish, evermarking time, but
never advancing. Paul frankly and repeatedly appeals to his success in
evangelistic work as the final and sufficient proof that God had calledhim,
and had given him authority as an apostle;and searchas we will, we shall not
find any testso goodand unequivocal at this success.Paulhad seenthe Lord;
he was qualified to be a witness of the Resurrection;but these, at the very
most, were his own affair, till the witness he bore had proved its powerin the
hearts and consciences ofothers. How to provide, to train, and to test the men
who are to be the ministers of the Christian Church is a matter of the very
utmost consequence, to which sufficient attention has not yet been given.
Congregationswhichchoose their own pastorare often compelled to take a
man quite untried, and to judge him more or less on superficial grounds. They
can easilyfind out whether he is a competent scholar;they can see for
themselves what are his gifts of speech, his virtues or defects of manner; they
can getsuch an impressionas sensible people always get, by seeing and
hearing a man, of the general earnestnessorlack of earnestness in his
character. But often they feelthat more is wanted. It is not exactly more in the
way of character;the members of a Church have no right to expect that their
minister will be a truer Christian than they themselves are. A special

104. inquisition into his conversion, or his religious experience, is mere hypocrisy;
if the Church is not sufficiently in earnestto guard herselfagainstinsincere
members, she must take the risk of insincere ministers. What is wanted is
what the Apostle indicates here-that intimation of God’s concurrence which is
given through successin evangelistic work. No other intimation of God’s
concurrence is infallible-no call by a congregation, no ordination by a
presbytery or by a bishop. Theological educationis easily provided, and easily
tested; but it will not be so easyto introduce the reforms which are needed in
this direction. Greatmasses ofChristian people, however, are becoming alive
to the necessityfor them; and when the pressure is more strongly felt, the way
for actionwill be discovered. Only those who canappeal to what they have
done in the Gospelcanbe knownto have the qualifications of Gospel
ministers; and in due time the fact will be frankly recognized.
The conversionand new life of the Corinthians were Paul’s certificate as an
apostle. They were a certificate known, he says, and read by all men. Often
there is a certain awkwardnessin the presenting of credentials. It embarrasses
a man when he has to put his hand into his breast pocket, and take out his
character, and submit it for inspection. Paul was savedthis embarrassment.
There was a fine unsought publicity about his testimonials. Everybody knew
what the Corinthians had been, everybody knew what they were;and the man
to whom the change was due needed no other recommendationto a Christian
society. Whoeverlookedatthem saw plainly that they were an epistle of
Christ; the mind of Christ could be read upon them, and it had been written
by the intervention of Paul’s hand. This is an interesting though a well-worn
conceptionof the Christian character. Everylife has a meaning, we say, every
face is a record; but the text goes further. The life of the Christian is an
epistle; it has not only a meaning, but an address;it is a message fromChrist
to the world. Is Christ’s messageto men legible on our lives? When those who
are without look at us, do they see the hand of Christ quite unmistakably?
Does it ever occurto anybody that there is something in our life which is not
of the world, but which is a messageto the world from Christ? Did you ever,
startled by the unusual brightness of a true Christian’s life, ask as it were
involuntarily, "Whose image and superscription is this?" and feel as you

105. askedit that these features, these characters, couldonly have been tracedby
one hand, and that they proclaimed to all the grace and power of Jesus
Christ? Christ wishes so to write upon us that men may see whatHe does for
man. He wishes to engrave His image on our nature, that all spectators may
feel that it has a message forthem, and may crave the same favor. A
congregationwhich is not in its very existence and in all its works and ways a
legible epistle, an unmistakable messagefrom Christ to man, does not answer
to this New Testamentideal.
Paul claims no part here but that of Christ’s instrument. The Lord, so to
speak, dictatedthe letter, and he wrote it. The contents of it were prescribed
by Christ, and through the Apostle’s ministry became visible and legible in
the Corinthians. More important is it to notice with what the writing was
done: "not with ink," says St. Paul, "but with the Spirit of the living God." At
first sight this contrastseems formal and fantastic; nobody, we think, could
ever dream of making either of these things do the work of the other, so that it
seems perfectly gratuitous in Paul to say, "not with ink, but with the Spirit."
Yet ink is sometimes made to bear a greatdeal of responsibility. The
characters ofthe τινες ("some")in 2 Corinthians 3:1. were only written in
ink; they had nothing, Paul implies, to recommend them but these documents
in black and white. That was hardly sufficient to guarantee their authority, or
their competence as ministers in the Christian dispensation. But do not
Churches yet accepttheir ministers with the same inadequate testimonials? A
distinguished careeratthe University, or in the Divinity Schools, proves that a
man can write with ink, under favorable circumstances;it does not prove
more than that; it does not prove that he will be spiritually effective, and
everything else is irrelevant. I do not saythis to disparage the professional
training of ministers; on the contrary, the standard of training ought to be
higher than it is in all the Churches: I only wish to insist that nothing which
can be representedin ink, no learning, no literary gifts, no critical
acquaintance with the Scriptures even, can write upon human nature the
Epistle of Christ. To do that needs "the Spirit of the living God." We feel, the
moment we come upon those words, that the Apostle is anticipating; he has in
view already the contrasthe is going to develop betweenthe old dispensation

106. and the new, and the irresistible inward powerby which the new is
characterized. Others might boastof qualifications to preach which could be
certified in due documentary form, but he carried in him whereverhe went a
powerwhich was its own witness, and which overruled and dispensedwith
every other. Let all of us who teachor preach concentrate ourinterest here. It
is in "the Spirit of the living God," not in any requirements of our own, still
less in any recommendations of others, that our serviceableness as ministers of
Christ lies. We cannot write His epistle without it. We cannotsee, let us be as
diligent and indefatigable in our work as we please, the image of Christ
gradually come out in those to whom we minister. Parents, teachers,
preachers, this is the one thing needful for us all. "Tarry," said Jesus to the
first evangelists, "tarryin the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with
powerfrom on high" it is of no use to begin without that.
This idea of the "epistle" has takensuch a hold of the Apostle’s mind, and he
finds it so suggestive whicheverway he turns it, that he really tries to say too
much about it in one sentence. The crowding of his ideas is confusing. One
learned critic enumerates three points in which the figure becomes
inconsistentwith itself, and anothercan only defend the Apostle by saying
that this figurative letter might wellhave qualities which would be self-
contradictory in a real one. This kind of criticism smells a little of ink, and the
only real difficulty in the sentence has never misled any one who read it with
sympathy. It is this-that St. Paulspeaks ofthe letter as written in two different
places. "Ye are an epistle," he says at the beginning, "written in our hearts";
but at the end he says, "writtennot on tables of stone, but on tables that are
hearts of flesh"-meaning evidently on the hearts of the Corinthians. Of course
this lastis the sense which coheres withthe figure. Paul’s ministry wrote the
Epistle of Christ upon the Corinthians, or, if we prefer it, wrought such a
change in their hearts that they became an epistle of Christ, an epistle to
which he appealedin proof of his apostolic calling. In expressing himself as he
does about this, he is againanticipating the coming contrastof Law and
Gospel. Nobodywould think of writing a letter on tables of stone, and he only
says "not on stone tables" because he has in his mind the difference between
the Mosaic andthe Christian dispensation. It is quite out of place to refer to

107. Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel36:26, and to drag in the contrastbetweenhard and
tender hearts. What Paul means is that the Epistle of Christ is not written on
dead matter, but on human nature, and that too at its finest and deepest.
When we remember the sense ofdepth and inwardness which attaches to the
heart in Scripture, it is not forcing the words to find in them the suggestion
that the Gospelworks no merely outward change. It is not written on the
surface, but in the soul. The Spirit of the living God finds accessfor itself to
the secretplaces ofthe human spirit; the most hidden recessesofour nature
are open to it, and the very heart is made new. To be able to write there for
Christ, to point not to anything dead, but to living men and women, not to
anything superficial, but to a change that has reachedthe very core of man’s
being, and works its way out from thence, is the testimonial which guarantees
the evangelist;it is the divine attestationthat he is in the true apostolical
succession.
What, then, does Paul mean by the other clause "ye are our epistle, written on
our hearts?" I do not think we can get much more than an emotional
certainty about this expression. When a man has been an intensely interested
spectator, still more an intensely interested actor, in any greataffair, he might
say afterwards that the whole thing and all its circumstances were engraved
upon his heart. I imagine that is what St. Paul means here. The conversionof
the Corinthians made them an epistle of Christ: in making them believers
through St. Paul’s ministry, Christ wrote on their hearts what was really an
epistle to the world; and the whole transaction, in which Paul’s feelings had
been deeply engaged, stoodwritten on his heart for ever. Interpretations that
go beyond this do not seemto me to be justified by the words. Thus Heinrici
and Meyersay, "We have in our ownconsciousnessthe certainty of being
recommended to you by yourselves and to others by you"; and they elucidate
this by saying, "The Apostle’s own goodconsciousness was, as it were, the
tablet on which this living epistle of the Corinthians stood, and that had to be
left unassailedevenby the most malevolent." A sense so pragmaticaland
pedantic, even if one cangrasp it at all, is surely out of place, and many
readers will fail to discoverit in the text. What the words do convey is the
warm love of the Apostle, who had exercisedhis ministry among the

108. Corinthians with all the passionof his nature, and who still bore on his ardent
heart the fresh impression of his work and its results.
Amid all these details let us take care not to lose the one greatlessonofthe
passage. Christianpeople owe a testimony to Christ. His name has been
pronounced over them, and all who look at them ought to see His nature. We
should discernin the heart and in the behavior of Christians the handwriting,
let us saythe characters, notof avarice, of suspicion, of envy, of lust, of
falsehood, ofpride, but of Christ. It is to us He has committed Himself; we are
the certificationto men of what He does for man; His characteris in our care.
The true epistles of Christ to the world are not those which are expounded in
pulpits; they are not even the gospels in which Christ Himself lives and moves
before us; they are living men and women, on the tables of whose hearts the
Spirit of the living God, ministered by a true evangelist, has engravedthe
likeness ofChrist Himself. It is not the written Word on which Christianity
ultimately depends; it is not the sacraments, nor so-callednecessary
institutions: it is this inward, spiritual, Divine writing which is the guarantee
of all else.
DOUG GOINS
The spiritual reality of changedlives
There are five images in verses 2 and 3 that show the absurdity of requiring
Paul, and others who ministered with him, to bring letters of introduction
wheneverthey visited:

109. "You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; being
manifested that you are a letter of Christ, caredfor by us, written not with ink
but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of
human hearts."
The first image is the paper on which this divine letter is written is hearts.
Paul calls their changedhearts "tablets of human hearts," a change that even
affects Paul's heart: "You are our letter, written in our hearts, knownand
read by all men." It is important to note that "heart", usedtwice in the two
verses, is used in a Semitic sense. It refers to the inmost self or the center of
the personalityin contrastto our popular Englishusage referring to the seat
of emotion or feeling. Biblically, the heart is the core of our spiritual
sensitivity, both rational and emotional. It is the place where Godbegins his
work of transformation and renewal. For us, the test of any relationship or
influence we might have is qualitative--whether our hearts and lives are
spiritually transformed.
Second, Paulsays the change of heart will be observedby a watching world.
The secondphrase in verse 2--"knownand read by all men"--literally means
to know something well enough that it is recognized, like reading words on a
page. It is similar to our modern expression, "You read me like a book. You
know what's going on in me." The changedlives of the Corinthian believers
were as easyto read as a letter left open on a table. Their families, friends, and
co-workerscouldsee the difference in them since they came to Christ.
The third image is in the first phrase of verse 3 in which Paul says the writer
of the letter is Christ. It is Jesus Christwho changes lives. He is the one who
reaches into our loneliness, forgives our sinful past, and removes the burden
of guilt. He is the one who heals our aching heart no matter what the
wounding. Paul is clearthat he did not write the letter, he is merely the one
who delivered it. The fourth image canbe found in the middle of verse 3 in

110. which he says the letter is "caredfor by us." Other translations say
"administered," or "delivered" by us. This living letter in Corinth was a
result of Paul's faithfulness in preaching the gospelthere.
It was difficult for Paul to carry the message to the people in Corinth. The
Acts 18 record tells us that as soonas he arrived and started preaching, there
was immediate opposition from Jewishreligious leaders and the threat of
violence. But Paul says the Lord Jesus himself appearedto him one night in a
vision and said, "...do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking, and do not
be silent; for I am with you, and no man will attack you in order to harm you,
for I have many people in this city" (Acts 18:9, 10). It gave Paul the courage
and confidence to continue carrying the mail, to be a courageous postmanin
delivering the letter. He stayed a year and a half, teaching the Word of God
and seeing many come to faith in Christ.
And, the fifth image in verse 3 is the ink with which the letter is written. Paul
says it is "written not with ink, but with the [Holy] Spirit of the living God."
Paul appeals to the indelible reality of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the
believers. Any kind of ink on any kind of writing surface will blur and fade
with time. But the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit inside a believer
in Jesus Christ guarantees the indestructibility of the Christian life. In his
letter to the Ephesians the apostle states, "It's in Christ that you, once you
heard the truth and believed it (this Messageofyour salvation), found
yourselves home free--signed, sealed, anddelivered by the Holy Spirit. This
signetfrom God is the first installment on what's coming, a reminder that
we'll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life (Eph
1:13-14, as paraphrasedin The Message).(3)
Did Paul need letters of commendation? Did he need to pump himself up, to
congratulate himself in the presence ofthese people? Absolutely not! Their
changedlives are the only commendation, the only credentials the apostle

111. needs. A powerful example of this way of living canbe seenin the life of Azad
Marshall, a friend of ours from Pakistan. Azad is the Anglican Bishopof the
Gulf States in the Middle East. There are churches in severalnations under
his care, and he is also the director of a nationally known Christian
foundation in Pakistan. I have been with him in severallarge gatherings both
here and in Pakistan, and have heard him introduced in terms of his
institutional connections and professionaldegrees. ButI saw the legitimacyof
his life and ministry in the Middle Eastwhen a team of us was visiting his
home in Lahore, Pakistan. At a literacy centerand experimental farm he
helped build and now helps operate outside Lahore we talked with several
folks who have been personally affectedby Azad's life. They are men and
women who have come to faith in Jesus Christ out of Islam, and are now
being protected from angry family members and religious leaders. I spoke
with one womanwho had been savedout of prostitution in the inner city.
There are men who are being retrained vocationally, who have been relocated
with their families to another part of the country for the sake ofsafety. All of
the people gave testimony to Azad's faithfulness in sharing the gospelof Jesus
Christ. They are Azad Marshall's "living letters of commendation," his real
credentials for life and ministry rather than his degrees andinstitutional
titles. That is what really matters, and we are calledto the same thing.
MATTHEW HENRY
. The apostle is careful not to assume too much to himself, but to ascribe all
the praise to God. Therefore, 1. He says they were the epistle of Christ, 2
Corinthians 3:3. The apostle and others were but instruments, Christ was the
author of all the goodthat was in them. The law of Christ was written in their
hearts, and the love of Christ shed abroad in their hearts. This epistle was not
written with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; nor was it written in
tables of stone, as the law of God given to Moses, but on the heart; and that
heart not a stony one, but a heart of flesh, upon the fleshy (not fleshly, as

112. fleshliness denotes sensuality)tables of the heart, that is, upon hearts that are
softenedand renewedby divine grace, according to that gracious promise, I
will take awaythe stony heart, and I will give you a heart of flesh, Ezekiel
36:26. This was the goodhope the apostle had concerning these Corinthians (2
Corinthians 3:4) that their hearts were like the ark of the covenant, containing
the tables of the law and the gospel, written with the finger, that is, by the
Spirit, of the living God. 2. He utterly disclaims the taking of any praise to
themselves, and ascribes all the glory to God: ldblquote We are not sufficient
of ourselves, 2 Corinthians 3:5. We could never have made such good
impressions on your hearts, nor upon our own. Such are our weaknessand
inability that we cannot of ourselves think a goodthought, much less raise any
goodthoughts or affections in other men. All our sufficiency is of God; to him
therefore are owing all the praise and glory of that goodwhich is done, and
from him we must receive grace and strength to do more. dblquote This is
true concerning ministers and all Christians; the bestare no more than what
the grace of God makes them. Our hands are not sufficient for us, but our
sufficiency is of God; and his grace is sufficient for us, to furnish us for every
goodword and work
IVP NEW TESTAMENTCOMMENTARIES
Paul's Letter of Recommendation
It is unthinkable in our societyto present yourself to a prospective employer
without a résumé in hand and a list of references atyour fingertips. It was
much the same in Paul's day. He lived in an equally mobile societythat placed
similar value on personalachievements and introductory letters. Itinerant
speakers,in particular, were expected to carry letters of reference with them
as they traveled from place to place. It was often the only means by which
they receivedhospitality and provisions for the journey ahead. Zenon Papyri
2026 is a typical letter of this sort:

113. Asklepiades to Zenon, greeting.
Philo, the bearer of this letter to you, has been known to me for a considerable
time. He has sailedup in order to obtain employment in certain sections ofthe
bureau of Philiskos, being recommended by Phileas and other accountants. Be
so good, therefore, as to make his acquaintance and introduce him to other
persons of standing, assisting him actively, both for my sake andfor that of
the young man himself. For he is worthy of your consideration, as will be
evident to you if you receive him into your hands.
Farewell.
Paul too wrote letters of recommendation, especiallyfor colleagues who
representedhis pastoralinterests in the various Gentile churches he had
founded. A number of his letters bear witness to this practice (e.g., Rom16:1-
2; 1 Cor 4:17; 2 Cor 8:16-24;Phil 2:19-30). He did not, however, personally
carry letters of this kind, although he made use of them prior to his
conversion(Acts 9:2; 22:5). This gave Jewish-Christianmissionaries who were
attempting to gain a foothold in the Corinthian community an opportunity to
discredit him in the eyes of the church.
At 3:1 Paul attempts to forestalla wrong conclusion. The JB captures the
sense admirably: "Does this sound like a new attempt to commend ourselves
to you?" Much as itinerant speakers wouldpresent their credentials to gain a
hearing in a given location, Paul's review of what his ministry entailed, his
commissioning by God to be Christ's representative and the divine scrutiny
that his ministry undergoes on a daily basis could well have sounded to
Corinthian ears as if he were attempting in 2:14-17 to reintroduce himself and
his coworkersall overagain to the congregation. Ordo we need, like some

114. people, letters of recommendationto you or from you? (3:1) The "many" who
peddle the word of Godfor profit (2:17) begin to take definite shape as the
some (tines) who take pride in letters of recommendation that they are able to
present to the Corinthians and solicitfrom them to carry along to the next
church on their travel circuit. To you and from you shows that these
missionaries were not interestedin planting churches through their own
efforts but profiting from (2:17) and taking credit for (from you) the efforts of
others.
Paul's approach to these intruders is quite insightful. While he does not
condemn their use of such letters, he does point out to the church that the
reasonhe and his coworkershad not brought any letters to Corinth was
because they had come as church planters, ready to begin a new evangelistic
work. So it is the church formed as a result of their labors (you yourselves),
not a letter written with ink (v. 3), that serves as their letter of reference.
Two aspects ofthis letter are highlighted in verse 2. It is a letter written on the
hearts of Paul and his coworkers (engegrammene entais kardiais hemwn) and
it is a letter known and read by everybody (ginoskomeno kaianaginoskomene
hypo panton anthropon). "Heart" is used here in the Semitic sense of the
inmost selfand centerof the personality, not in the English sense of the seatof
emotions and feelings. It is the locus of a person's spiritual and intellectual
activity and, as such, the place where God begins his work of renewal(Sorg
1976:181-83). The perfecttense, written (engegrammene), points to a letter
that has been indelibly etchedon Paul's heart. Known and readis a rather
peculiar order of things until one recognizes the play on words (ginoskomeno
kai anaginoskomene). The term for read means "to know" something well
enough that you can recognize it again (as one does with words on a page). It
is similar to our expression"he reads me well" and might best be translated
"knownand recognizedby all."

115. Paul's first comment is initially somewhatpuzzling. While it is fitting to talk
of the changedlives of his converts as the only recommendation he requires, it
is less clearhow this letter canbe written on his own heart and, even more so,
how it can be known and recognizedby all. While Paul might be pushing the
limits of his analogy, the point he is making is an important one. By written on
our hearts he means that the gospelhas an impact not only on those who hear
it but also on those who preach it. Known by everybody (v. 2) and you show
(v. 3) suggestanobvious and widely perceivedimpact. By contrast, the
Corinthian intruders present pieces of paper that are seenby only a few and
have a limited, temporary effect.
The notion of an evangelistwho does not become personallyinvolved in the
lives of his or her converts is one that is foreign to the New Testament.
Unfortunately, it is all too common today. The job of witnessing often
amounts to giving someone a tract or telling them that God has a plan for
their life.
The story is told of a new homeownerwho workedfruitlessly for severalhours
trying to geta broken lawnmowerback together. Suddenly one of his
neighbors appearedwith a handful of tools. "CanI help?" he asked. In toenty
minutes he had the mower functioning beautifully.
"Thanks a million," the new homeownersaid. "And say, what do you make
with such fine tools?"
"Mostlyfriends," the neighbor smiled. "I'm available anytime."
In a schedule-driven societylike ours, the kind of commitment to people that
this neighbor evidenced is quickly becoming extinct. Paul, however, became

116. involved in the lives of people to whom he witnessedand in so doing was
himself affected. So great, in fact, was the personalimpact that no matter
where he traveled it was evident to all. Norwas Paul's relationship with the
Corinthian church an isolatedcase. In 1 Thes-salonians 2:8 he says that he
and his coworkerssharedwith the Thessaloniansnotonly the gospelbut their
very lives, because theyhad become so dear to them.
And what about a résumé? What credentials does Paulpresent to prospective
listeners in order to gain a hearing? Again, his response is instructive. For the
only credentiala gospelpreachercan in reality bring to an unevangelized field
like Corinth is not a list of personalaccomplishments but the presence and
powerof God's Spirit working to convictthe listener of the trutes of the
messageaboutJesus Christ. You are a letter from Christ, the result of our
ministry, written . . . with the Spirit of the living God (3:3).
Four things characterize this letter of reference. First, it is a letter of Christ
(epistolh Christou). While Paul could be thinking of a letter "about Christ"
(objective genitive; Phillips), in light of the analogyemployed it is more likely
a letter "from Christ" written on Paul's behalf (genitive of source;most
modern translations).
Second, it is a letter that is mediated by Paul. The NIV the result of our
ministry is literally "ministered by us" (KJV, NKJV). The aorist
(diakonhtheisa)points to a specific ministry occasion, mostlikely Paul's
founding visit. Translations are evenly divided as to whether it is the role of a
secretary("drawnup by us"--LB, JB, NRSV) or the job of a letter carrier
("delivered by us"--TEV, RSV, NEB, REB, Phillips) that is depicted here. In
either case, the NJB's "entrusted to our care" catchesthe sense, if not the
picture.

117. Third, it is a letter written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God (v.
3). Ink, in Paul's day, was a black carbon mixed with gum or oil for use on
parchment or with a metallic substance for papyrus. It was applied by means
of a reed that was cut to a point and split like a quill pen. The phrase living
God, which is a familiar one in the Greek Old Testament, is found six times in
the Pauline writings. It is normally employed to distinguish God from lifeless
idols (Acts 14:15; 1 Thess 1:9; 2 Cor 6:16). Here it is used of what is animate
(God) as opposedto what is inanimate (ink). The new element in verse 3 is the
Spirit of the living God. The characteristic mark of Christianity as contrasted
to Judaism was, and remains, the work of the Spirit in the life of the believer
and congregation. Under the old covenant, Godmade his will known
externally through the law. Under the new covenant his presence is revealed
internally through the Spirit.
Fourth, it is a letter written on tablets of human hearts rather than on tablets
of stone (v. 3). The word tablet probably describes the form (rectangle)rather
than the material. Even so, the introduction of stone tablets is unexpected. The
writing implement used with stone surfaces was a chisel, not a reed pen with
ink. Letters in Paul's day were written on either papyrus or parchment--or, in
a pinch, on a piece of pottery. So why the shift to stone tablets? The contrast
itself is betoeenwhat is pliable ("fleshly," not the NIV human) and internal
(hearts) as opposedto what is fixed and external (stone). But the point could
have been made by following through on the analogyof the letter of
recommendation. What is Paul up to here? The connectionis to be found in
the idea of a divine composition. Stone tablets recalls the too tablets of the
Decalogue inscribedby the finger of God(Ex 31:18; Deut 9:10). "Fleshly
hearts," on the other hand, brings to mind the new covenantexpectationof
God's law written on the heart (Jer 31:33). This feat is accomplishedby God
removing the "heart of stone" and replacing it with his Spirit (Ezek 11:19;
36:26).

118. His critics solicitedhuman references.Paulturns, instead, to divine
references. Forthe credentialthat he has to offer is Christ's own letter written
with the Spirit of the living God on the hearts of his converts. His critics
boasted, as well, of the presence and power of the Spirit in their ministry. But
for them it was the Spirit's presence as manifestedin and through the working
of signs, wonders and miracles (12:11-12). Paul, on the other hand, lookedto
the inward change of heart as the primary evidence of the Spirit's presence. It
is changedlives, not sensationalfeats, that are the true sign of a Spirit-
directed ministry.
LANGE
2 Corinthians 3:1-3. What the Apostle had said in 2 Corinthians 3:15-17 was
liable to misinterpretation by ill disposedpersons, on the ground that it was a
boasting or a commendation of himself. He guards againstthis by reminding
the Corinthians that he felt no necessityofrecommending himself to them or
to others, inasmuch as the work which Christ had accomplishedby him in
their city was a sufficient recommendationfor him in every part of the
world.—Do we begin to commend ourselves.—Ἀρχόμεθαis capable of an
invidious meaning, such as might be insinuated by an opponent; do we
presume etc. (comp. Luke 3:8). Πάλιν qualifies the infinitive, and refers to
something which might be regardedas self-commendationeither in his first
Epistle ( 1 Corinthians 2-4, 1 Corinthians 7:25; 1 Corinthians 7:40; 1
Corinthians 9:14; 1 Corinthians 9:18; 1 Corinthians 15:10), or in his earlier
discourses orletters.—Orneed we like some, epistles ofrecommendation to
you, or from you?—The verb συνιστάνειν (τινί) signifies:to bring together, to
introduce, to commend ( Romans 16:1, and frequently in our Epistle). Self-
commendation in the sense ofpraising one’s self, is mentioned with
disapprobation also in 2 Corinthians 10:18. In the following sentence, if we
acceptof εὶ μὴ as the true reading, we must suppose that a decidedly negative
and ironical answerwas presupposedin it, or that the previous question goes

119. on the presumption of an absurdity, [Jelf. Gram. § 860, 5. Obs. WebsterSynt.
and Synn. of N. T, chap8. p126.]q. d.: “unless it be that we need,” i.e. only
under such a presumption could such an idea be entertained. This reading is
not really more difficult than the strongly authenticatedἥ μή, although the
latter is grammatically incorrect, inasmuch as nowhere else in the New
Testamentdoes μή occurin such a question after a ἤ, which must necessarily
exclude all which precedes it. It makes very prominent the absurdity of the
question: or do we not yet need? and it may be regardedas combining
togetherthe two constructions ἢ χρήζομενand μή χρήζομεν[Without the ἐὶ
μή, the previous question (which we might expectthe Apostle to repel by a
decided οὑδαμῶς), remains almostentirely without notice, and a new one is
started which only inferentially negatives it. If ἐὶ μὴ is taken(as all usage
requires it to be,) in the sense of nisi, (unless) the interrogative characterof
the sentence it introduces (according to our English version) ceases,and it
notices the previous question in the only way it deservednotice, viz: ironically
or even derisively. The sense would be: “I canneed no commendation either
from myself, for that would be introducing myself, or boasting where I am
already well known; or from others to you, for none know me better than you;
or from you to others, for your conversionand presentstate are better known
as our work than anything you can say. Surely then the mere mention of such
a thing is enough to show its absurdity.”] We often read of συστατικαὶ
ἐπιστολαί in the church after the death of the Apostles. When members of the
church travelled from place to place they were usually recommended from
one bishop to another, and the letters thus given became a means of
maintaining fraternal intercourse betweenthe bishops and their
congregations. [Paulhimself appears to have recognizedthe commencement
of such a custom. In Galatians 2:12, he speaks ofsome “who came from
James,” as if even then some authority was expectedfrom the Apostolic
College atJerusalem. Two years before, Apollos passing into this very city of
Corinth, did bring “letters from the brethren” of Ephesus ( Acts 18:27);and
as many of the Corinthians professedto be followers of Apollos, it is no
impossible thing that such were here aimed at. The 13 th canon of the Council
of Chalcedon(A. D451)ordained that “clergymencoming to a city where they
were unknown, should not be allowedto officiate without letters
commendatory (Epistolæ Commendariæ,) from their own bishop.” Comp.

120. Neander, Chr. Rel. vol. I, pp205, 360 ff. In the Clementine Homilies Peter
warns his hearers against“any apostle, prophet, or teacher, who does not first
compare his preaching with James, and come with witnesses;” where Paul
seems especiallyaimed at, and we have perhaps a specimen of what Paul was
contending againstin our epistle.]W. F. Besser:“ Were the Corinthians
inclined to reckontheir own Apostle among those strangers who neededsuch
letters?” The absurdity implied in the question lay in the supposition that the
Apostle [ἐαυτοὺς]who was well known not only at Corinth but everywhere,
should need any commendation from others or from himself, as if he were a
stranger. By the words ὤς τινες he evidently alludes to those antipauline
teachers, who, as his readers well knew, had brought letters of
recommendation to Corinth, and had takensuch letters from Corinth when
they departed. He thus not only shows that he needed no such letters, but he
shows this in a way which throws confusion upon his opponents, while it
honors and encourages the Corinthians themselves—ourEpistle, i.e, the
Epistle of commendation (gen. possess.;not: which we have written, for he
speaks notof his own part in composing it until 2 Corinthians 3:3, but which
we have) is yourselves.—Byplacing the predicate first he makes it more
emphatic and connects it more immediately with the preceding verse. The
close collocationofthe emphatic ὑμεῖς with ἡμῶν is also very significant. A
similar arrangementof words may be seenin 1 Corinthians 9:2. The large
Church which had been founded by him, and which had become so rich in
spiritual gifts, was a glorious work of the Holy Ghost, and so a Divine Epistle
which would commend him to all the world without any letters from men.
Besser:“it was an Epistle of a peculiar kind, for Paul was at the same time its
writer and its receiver.”—This metaphorhe carries out in the subsequent
verses in accordancewith the nature of his subject, noticing first the complete
certainty which he and Timothy possessed(this is the reasonthat καρδίαις is
in the plural as in 2 Corinthians 4:6; 2 Corinthians 7:3) for the commendation
of their work, and then the generalnotoriety of this work in all the
churches:—written in our hearts.—In these words his own feelings are
alluded to, inasmuch as he speaks ofthe writing in his own (ἡμῶν) and not
their (ἱμῶν) hearts (although ὑμῶν may be found in some authorities of no
greatimportance, comp. Meyer).[FN12]“Paulmeant that he carried this
Epistle, not in his hand to show at any time, but continually with him,

121. inasmuch as he bore the Church upon his heart.” It is not of his love that the
Apostle is here speaking (as in 2 Corinthians 7:3, and Philippians 1:7), and it
would seem altogetherinappropriate to make him allude here to the official
breast-plate of the high priest (olshausen). On such an interpretation we could
trace no connectionbetweenit and the following sentence, [in which the
Epistle is said to be known and read, not by God, but by men]. The phrase:in
our hearts, is equivalent to: in us, and the meaning of the whole expressionis:
So inscribed upon us and so carried about with us everywhere, that it becomes
known to all. This idea is yet further defined and explained in the words:—
known and read by all men:—it is a work which will be universally
recognized, a letter which every one will know to be his, and which all will
read as his [Grotius: the handwriting is first “known” and then the Epistle is
“read”](Ewald: read within and without, thoroughly). Events which had
takenplace in one of the principal cities of the world would necessarilyhave a
world-wide notoriety (comp. Romans 1:8).—In this prominent relation to all
the world we must not suppose that the Corinthians were themselves included,
as if the πρὸς ὑμᾶς of 2 Corinthians 3:1 were here againreferred to, for as the
Epistle was made up of the Corinthians, they would not be likely to be
included also among its readers.—Forasmuchas ye are manifestedto be an
Epistle of Christ, ministered by us, ( 2 Corinthians 3:3).—Grammatically the
participle: manifested(φανερούμενοι), the object of which is to give a reason
for their being knownand read of all men, is to be connectedwith the
nominative of the previous sentence (ὑμεῖς ἐστέ). χριστοῦ in ἐπιστολὴ χριστοῦ
is the gen. of the author, and it is implied that the Epistle came from Christ,
for it is of the origin and not of the contents nor of the proprietorship of the
Epistle, that the Apostle is speaking. He now speaks ofhimself in the words:
ministered by us, as Christ’s instrument in the compositionof the Epistle; and
he no longerthinks of it as a letter of commendation, but simply as an
exhibition of the way in which their faith had been drawn forth and their
Church had been founded. It had been prepared and sent by the Apostle and
his companions, acting as the ministers and servants of Christ (comp. 1
Corinthians 3:5 ff.). Λιακονεῖντι is here used as it is in 2 Corinthians 8:19.
The difference betweenthis and any ordinary Epistle was evident from the
materials with which and on which it was written.—written not with ink, but
with the Spirit of the living God; not in tablets of stone, but in fleshy tablets of

122. the heart.—The Epistle itself, the new spiritual life they had experienced, had
been produced by the Holy Spirit, whose continual agencyis here pointed out.
This agencywrought with greatpower, so as to renew their hearts, but
through the instrumentality of the Apostles and their testimony respecting
Christ. It seems inappropriate and altogethertoo dogmatic to find in the ink
here spokenof the figure of those lifeless and impotent means which were
sometimes made use of, such as the law and those doctrines which have no
quickening power, or the shadows and ceremonies ofthe Jewishritual. Some
representationof the Jewishlaw and the Sinaitic legislationmust, however,
have been floating before the Apostle’s mind, when he brought out the
additional figure of the tablets of stone. This representationis not strictly
consistentwith the metaphor of an Epistle and of ink, and we can explain it
only by the recollectionthat the Apostle was contrasting the work of the Spirit
under the New Testamentwith the work of the law under the Old Testament,
i.e, the effecting of a Divine life in the heart by the Spirit of the living God,
with the outward engraving of the Divine precepts upon tables of stone. There
may also have been in his mind some recollection ofsuch passagesas
Jeremiah31:31-33 (comp. Hebrews 9:4). The phrase πλάκες καρδίας occurs in
the Sept. of Proverbs 7:3. Fleshy(σάρκίναι.) in contrastwith stony (λίθιναι),
designates a living susceptibility (comp. Ezekiel36:26). [The ending—ινος
refers to the substance or material of which a thing is made, in distinction
from—ικος which refers to that which belongs to that thing. Our Lord was
σαρκινός (fleshy, of human flesh subsisting) but not σαρκικός (fleshly, subject
to fleshly lusts and passions). The word is used only in this place according to
the Receptus, but it is given for σαρκικός by many MSS. in Romans 7:14, and
Hebrews 7:16. Trench, Synn, Series II, p114; Webster, Synn, p232, and Web.
and Wilk. Com.]. The word hearts (καρδίας)expressesalso more definitely
the nature of the substance made use of. In speaking oftheir spiritual life, he
could very significantly say: ye are an Epistle (a writing) inscribed upon
heart-tablets. He does not exactly say: your hearts (καρδίας ὑμῶν) but
generallyκαρδίας, and he thus describes the peculiar nature of the Epistles of
Christ, i.e, they are Christ dwelling in the heart by faith ( Ephesians 3:17).
2 Corinthians 3:2-3. Every believer is an epistle in which the Holy Ghost
reveals the knowledge ofGod in Christ; he is an open epistle in which all can

123. learn something of what God can produce in the heart; and he is an epistle of
Christ, for the hands and tongues of all true teachers are the instruments
which the Holy Spirit uses to form him into the Divine image. If God’s writing
is in the heart, the willing heart, the faithful obedience and the ready tongue
will not fail to discourse of God. In such casesthere will be real life, and not
mere letters upon stone. Preachersshould never doubt, that when they
perform their parts, the appropriate fruits of their labor will infallibly follow.
Dr. S. Lewis Johnson
I like this expressionthat the apostle uses. He says that “You are our letter.”
And in verse 3 he says, “Being manifestedthat you are a letter of Christ.” The
localchurch is likened to a letter, that is, a means by which one can
communicate to someone else.
Now, we all like a letter that is legible. A letter that is not legible, that’s of no
use. And even those that are not so legible are sometimes a trial to read. Have
you ever receiveda letter like that? Why of course you’ve receivedletters like
that. This past week I receiveda letter from an individual in Toronto listening
to our Buffalo station. This man went on — I think it was a man, this man
went on to talk about how he had listened to the station for a long time. He
said our whole are up here is starved for the expositionof the word of God.
Mind you, millions of people in the Toronto area, in Toronto itself, over two
million people. In the environs of that area I don’t know how many people are
involved there. But here is a man, a Christian man, and obviously from the
letter one who had been in many churches or at leastwas acquaintedwith
many churches saying that their area was starvedfor the expositionof the
word of God.

124. Then he went on to say that he had been listening for three or four years and
also listening to our tapes. It was a very encouraging letter. It was in a sense
an inward authentication of what we were trying to say. But he also encloseda
gift, and so I thought, well, it would be nice to write him just a personalnote
and tell him how much I appreciatedthat letter. But then I lookedathis
signature. Now I considermyself pretty much an expert in reading signatures.
For forty years having taught in theologicalseminary and having observedall
kinds of handwriting, there are very few of them that I cannot ultimately
transcribe. Now, it may be a matter of some time, I’ve received many exam
papers in which I had to start out and sayokaynow where is an A and where
is a B and where is a C and constructthe alphabet as this personis writing it,
and then from that translate the exam. Occasionallyyou just have to call them
in and say, look, I can’t read your exam, please tell me what you are saying on
this piece of paper so I cangrade it.
Well at any rate, when I lookedathis man’s signature, I lookedall over the
letter for identifying letters; I couldn’t find any in it. I don’t know the name of
that individual, and I thought it would be rather unfriendly to address it
occupant[Laughter] at such and such and thank him for listening to the
ministry of the word. So I really don’t know exactly how to do this. At any
rate, the point is if we’re a letter of Christ, we ought to be legible, and people
who attend the chapelwho claim that you belong to the Lord Jesus Christor
any of you who constantlyattend other churches who happen to be here
today, you representan epistle of Christ if you come from a church that is a
Christian church and the church should be legible. I should be informative.
His letter was informative. It just wasn’t legible when we got to the conclusion
of the letter. And it should be attractive. The presence of Christ’s Messianic
Kingdom discerned even amid the shadows ofour fallen and temporal world
in redeeming in sanctifying operationof the sovereignspirit of God is a
marvelous thing. And to look out over an audience like this or a larger
audiences and see people who have really respondedto the gospelof Christ in
nineteen eighty-sevenis truly an inspiring thing. It’s an instance of — that is,
a proof of the powerof the ancient gospelof the Lord Jesus Christ.

125. Now, Paul says in the 3rd verse, “Being manifestedthat you are a letter of
Christ ministered for, by us.” Now, that reminds us of verse 14 above in
chapter 2, “Thanks be to God who always leads us in his triumph in Christ
and manifests by us,” the same Greek expression, “byus the sweetsaviorof
the knowledge ofhim.” So the apostle is not suggesting thathe is the origin of
this attractive, legible, informative epistle. It’s something God’s doing through
his servants.
H. A. Ironside used to like to say it takes the whole church to make his epistle,
but eachone of us is one little verse in that epistle. So what kind of message
are you giving as you give testimony to your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ?
Paul goes onto saywriting from the standpoint of the new covenantin verse
3, “But with the spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone like the Mosaic
Law on Mount Sinai, but on tablets of human hearts.” Internal law giving is
characteristic ofthe age today. You see, by having the Holy Spirit come to
dwell within us and having him as our guide and having as our standard the
word of God ministered to us through the Holy Spirit, there has been an
internal law giving to us.
It’s very important that we recognize that the moral law of the Old Testament
is continued in the New Testamentage with one or two minor exceptions. That
is, we don’t observe the Sabbath Day but the moral law. The moral law found
in the commandments is a test today of one’s walking by the spirit. In fact,
when Paul details the fruit of the spirit and the nine virtues that make it up,
he says, “Againstsuch there is no law.” So in the New Testament, as Paul
more than once refers to the fact that the moral law of the Old Testamenthas
its application to us today, never let us think because the Scriptures say we are
not under law but under grace that that means that therefore we canlive in an
antinomian way or againstthe Law of Mosesliving in license and sin. More
will be said about that later on.

126. The source of the Pauline confidence is describedin verses 4 and 5. The
apostle says, “And such confidence we have through Christ toward God.”
Now, I think it is important to note that that mention in verse 3, “Noton
tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts,” causesPaulto launch into a
comparisonof the old covenant, the Mosaic Covenantwith the new covenant
promised by Jeremiahratified by the Lord Jesus in his saving ministry.
So the contrasts are setforth here, and this would be, of course, a telling
argument with Judaizers and lead on to what follows. The law has no power
to touch men’s hearts because it’s external. Paul’s ministry is greater, he will
point out in the words that follow, “Forhe ministers a fresh covenant.” The
word that his used translated“new” is the word that means in our language
“fresh,” new in quality, not new in time like recent, but a fresh covenant, the
new covenant.
Now, the gospeldoes not aggregatethe law, it fulfills it in one sense. He says
it’s through Christ. In other words, it’s not by Paul’s ability that he has
confidence. It’s not by his character, his apostolic holiness, that he has
confidence, it’s not by his position as an apostle, but it’s through the mediator,
the Lord Jesus, thathe has confidence. And such confidence have through
Christ towardGod. It’s because of what Christ has done for the church of
Jesus Christ that the apostle has this confidence toward the Lord God.
YE ARE THE EPISTLES OF CHRIST
Dr. W. A. Criswell

127. 2 Corinthians 3:1-3
3-18-56 10:50 a.m.
In our preaching through the Word, we are in the secondCorinthian letter,
and the message this morning is taken from the first three verses of the third
chapter of the secondCorinthian letter. SecondCorinthians 3:1-3:
Do we begin againto commend ourselves? Orneed we, as some others,
epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendationfrom you?
Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistles of Christ
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
not in tables of stone, but in fleshen tables of the heart.

128. [2 Corinthians 3:1-3]
And the title of the messagethis morning is also the text, SecondCorinthians
3:3: Ye Are the Epistles of Christ. "Ye are the epistles of Christ . . . written
not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in
fleshen tables of the heart" – the faith of Christ written in the soul. Ye Are
the Epistles of Christ, the letters of God.
There are some of the most beautiful alliterations and similes and apostrophes
in the Holy Bible depicting what God’s people are in the earth. They’re so
varied. They’re so beautiful. They’re so colorful. It seems that the Spirit of
God has simply overburdened the English language trying to place before us
what it is that God’s people are in this earth.
For example, the Bible will say that we are fields of goldengrain ripening for
the harvest[Luke 10:2]. The Bible will say that we are branches of the vine
laden with rich fruit [John 15:1-5]. The Bible will say that we are
pomegranates andfigs refreshing and sweet. Sometimesit will saywe are like
the cedars ofLebanon standing firm in the midst of the storm. Sometimes it
will saythat we are like the stars fixed in the great heavenly places ofGod
[Daniel 12:3]. Sometimes it will saywe are as the sun ascending in His
strength into the sky lighting the world [Matthew 13:43]. Sometimes it will
say that we are as gold purified in the refiner’s fire [Job 23:10; Zechariah
13:9]. Sometimes we’llbe likenedto the jewels that flash from the diadem of
the King [Isaiah62:3; Malachi3:17]. Sometimes it will liken us in might and
in strength to the lion and the eagle [Isaiah40:31], for humility and trust to
the lamb and the sheep[John 10:3-18], for usefulness, the saltof the earth
[Matthew 5:13; Luke 14:33-35].

129. But out of all of the similes, all the comparisons in the Book to which God’s
people are likened, there could hardly be one fraught with greatermeaning
than this simile here, this apostrophe here: ye are the epistles of Christ; ye are
the letters of God [2 Corinthians 3:1-3].
And he means by that that the Word of God to be powerful, to be sharp, must
be incarnate. It must take flesh and blood. As long as the messageofGod is
in a book, it’s on a shelf somewhere:it’s in a sermon; it’s by words; it’s by a
sentence and syllable; it’s written with ink; it’s on tables of stone or on
parchment or on paper. As long as the doctrines and the revelation of Christ
are just words and pages and leaves and books, it is nothing at all.
The messageand the testimony of Christ, for it to be quickened and alive,
must be incarnate. We are the letters and the epistles and the messengersof
God. It must take rootin us. It must be written large on our souls. It must be
in our hearts and in our lives. "Ye are the epistles of Christ" [2 Corinthians
3:3]. The only effective way for any messageorany ministry of the Lord to be
delivered into this world is to be delivered through us, true incarnate – the
testimony of Jesus in flesh, in life, quickened, active, sharp, delivered, spoken
by us, walkedbefore men, exhibited before the world.
A group of men one time were talking about the Gospelaccording to
Matthew, and according to John, and according to Luke, and according to
Mark. They were speaking ofwhich one of those Gospels eachone likedthe
best. And one of them finally said, "But the Gospelthat I like best was the
Gospelaccording to my mother."
This is God’s most effective means of delivering the truth and the revelationof
heaven. As long as it’s in a book, it’s still just words and syllables. As long as

130. it’s just theology, it’s a systemof doctrine – it’s creed; it’s musty; it’s on a
shelf. But for it to have powerand movement, it must find incarnation in us.
These children that God places in our homes, it’s no way to rear those
children by precept, by sermon, by castigation, by word and language. That’s
no way. This is the way to rear a child: "Come here, son. Walk by my side.
Come here, precious little doll of a daughter. This is the way we’re going to
go. On the Lord’s Day, the prettiest little dress, finest little pin, nicestlittle
shoes, sweetestlittle ribbons – on this day, God’s Day, it’s time for church,
time for Sunday school."
This is not how to do it: "We’llsend you. Somebody else will take you," or,
"We’ll take you to the church, leave you, then come back and pick you up."
Oh, that’s the most eloquent way I know to build into the hearts and minds of
these little ones that the church is for children but it’s not for grown folks –
it’s not for mature men and women. And they’ll soongetthe idea. They’ll
look forward to that time when they’re big enough and grownenough not to
go to church anymore and not to have to attend Sunday schoolany longer. It
can’t be done that way!
The messagethat we have for these children must be incarnate in us. This is
the wayof the Lord, walking by His side. This is the way to go. This is the
place. This is the time. This is the hour. This is the stewardship. This is the
commitment. You don’t need to say so much, or to preach so long, or to be so
denunciatory in rearing up these children if there could be just in front of
them a wonderful father and a consecratedmother. "Come, Jimmy. Come,
Susie. This is the way, and we walk in it together." You are the messageof
Christ. You are the epistles of God. The truth is nothing until it is incarnate
in you.

131. Christianity: the faith of God written on the soul and in the heart is
Christianity in its most legible form, in its most persuasive form, in its most
meaningful form, in its most enduring form, in its divinest form, in its most
heavenly form – you, you. This is the message ofGod – you. This is the epistle
of Christ. This is the heavenly word – you, you. "Ye are the epistles of Christ
. . . written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of
stone, but in fleshentables of the heart" [2 Corinthians 3:3].
Then Paul says in there the little phrase that I omitted, "ministered by us" –
delivered by us [2 Corinthians 3:3] And there’s a little key to something that
characterizedPaul in his Christian life that amazes and overwhelms me as I
follow the story of his missionary ministries. There was a triumphant spirit
about Paul that is marvelous to behold: a spirit of conquest and of victory.
You’ll see it in the text that I read last Sunday night in these verses concluding
the previous chapter: "Thanks be unto God, thanks be unto God, who leadeth
us in triumph, and maketh manifest the savorof His knowledge by us in every
place" [from 2 Corinthians 2:14]. That’s typical of the apostle Paul: "Thanks
be unto God, who always causethus to triumph" – who leadeth us, who
leadeth us in victory and conquest.
Well, I’d like to ask Paul something. "Thanks be to God who leadeth us in
triumph" [2 Corinthians 2:14]. Paul, what is this triumph that you’re talking
about and what is this victory that you speak of? If what you’re doing and if
the life that you are leading is one of triumph and of victory, then what could
defeatthee and what is defeat?
At Lystra, Paul, you were stoned and draggedout for dead [Acts 14:19]. At
Philippi, Paul, you were scourgedand placed in an inner dungeon [Acts 16:19-
25]. At Athens – cultural university city – you were ridiculed and mockedby
the philosophers of the city [Acts 17:32]. In Jerusalem, you were savedout of
the violence of a mob by heathen Roman soldiers [Acts 17:27-40]. In

132. Caesarea,you were imprisoned for three years [Acts 23:23-24, 24:27]. And
finally, in Rome, you were slain. If that’s victory, what could defeatbe? If
that’s triumph, what is it to fail?
Well, I say, there’s a secretin the life of the apostle Paul, and it is simply and
humbly this. You’ll find it written in the last paragraphof the last letter that
he ever wrote saying to his sonTimothy, ". . . the time of my departure is at
hand" [2 Timothy 4:6]. Listen to him: "I have fought a goodfight, I have
finished my course, I have kept the faith" [2 Timothy 4:7].
Could I say it in my language in keeping with this text? "I have delivered
God’s message. And the rest – to be slain, to be imprisoned, to be scourged, to
be put in stocks, to face the violence of the mob – that was nothing. I have
delivered God’s message. Ihave finished my course. Ihave kept the faith."
In this Memorial Supper that we observe today, how does he start? "ForI
have delivered unto you that which also I receivedfrom Christ, that the Lord
Jesus the same night He was betrayed took bread" [1 Corinthians 11:23]. "I
have delivered unto you that which also I receivedfrom Christ."
Do you remember his definition of the gospelthat he preached in the fifteenth
chapter of the first Corinthian letter? "ForI have delivered unto you first of
all that which also I have received, how that Christ died for our sins according
to the Scriptures; that He was buried, and the third day He arose again
according to the Scriptures" [1 Corinthians 15:3-4]. I have delivered God’s
message.
Ye are the epistles of Christ. You are. You are.

133. Now, may I make an earnestappeal? The testimony of Christ is you. The
messageofChrist is you. The depositof the Christian witness is you. Our
ministry to the world is you. Each one of the members of the church is a
syllable and a word, and the whole congregationis the letter of God. Without
you, there’s not any testimony. Without you, there’s not any witness.
Without you, there’s not any great messagedeliveredto the world.
If a tract would do it, I’d do my utmost to raise all the money that I could find
and print tracts by the thousands and the thousands and scatterthem
everywhere a man would receive or take it. But it won’t work. The letter is
you. The messageis you. The epistle is you.
If we could just recordsermons and buy time on the radio and take those tape
recordings and preachthe messageonthe radio and it would do it, I’d be
doing my utmost to getall the money I could find and buy all the radio time I
could buy and preachthose sermons by tape and by recording on the radio.
But it won’t do. It won’t do.
The messageofChrist is you. It’s your heart. It’s your blood. It’s your tears.
It’s your care. It’s your concern. It’s your devotion. It’s your life. You make
it. It’s you. The testimony of God is you. Ye are the letters of God. Ye are
the epistles of Christ, and without you, there’s not any message, andthere’s
not any testimony, and there’s not any witness. It’s we. It’s – if I could use
the wrong grammar – it’s us. It’s us. Whateverpower it has, it’s in us.
Whatevergreat appealthat it has, it’s because ofus. Whatevermeaning it is
to the world, it’s us. We are the letters and the epistles of Christ.
Now, this little appeal. The letter is unsealed. It is open. It is public. It’s
before the eyes of the world. There’s no such thing as a man being a secret
disciple of the Lord for long. You just can’t. You just don’t. You just won’t.

134. To be apart and reservedand timid, it’s not in the will of Godfor our lives.
We must be avowed. We must be open. We must be professed. I must belong
to His church. I must be in the house of the Lord. I belong to the
congregationof Jesus. Iam a member of the church. On my confessionof
faith, I have been baptized. I belong to the people of God. You are that
witness and that testimony. You are that letter; and without you, it falls to the
ground.
I said not for long would one be a hesitant or secretdisciple of the Lord.
Nicodemus was for a while [John 3:1-2] – came to Jesus by night and talkedto
the Saviorin the silent hours of the darkness lesthis compatriots might see
and know that he was a friend of the despisedNazarene. But the day came
when the Lord was lifted betweenthe earth and the sky, and he saw Him die
there on the cross. And Nicodemus came out openly where all the world could
see and know, and he stood there by the cross and lookedinto the face of the
Son of God who loved him and gave His life for him.
And when Nicodemus lookedaround, there was standing by his side another
member of the Sanhedrin, the rich man, Josephof Arimathea – both of them
members of the supreme court of the Jewishworld, both of them members of
the Sanhedrin.
And Josephof Arimathea and Nicodemus of Jerusalem took down the body of
Christ from the cross, wrappedit in the long, winding sheetwith spices, and
laid it in the new rock-hewntomb of Josephof Arimathea [John 19:38-42].
I think that experience comes to every souland every life. I don’t think you
can hide it. In your heart committed to God, there will come a day, there will
come a time, when it is impossible to suppress that allegiance andthat
commitment to Christ: "I am a Christian; I am a followerof the Lamb; I am

135. a believer in the Son of God, and you take your stand with us by the cross. In
His blood, washedcleanand white. Upon a confessionofpersonalfaith,
baptized in His name. We are the letters of God. The messageis us.
That’s our appeal to your heart this morning. Some of you in your hearts
believing in the Lord Jesus, giving your life to the Lord Jesus – you, somebody
you, publically, openly, where all the church and the angels in heaven cansee.
"Pastortoday, on a confessionoffaith in Jesus Christ, I want to be baptized.
And such as I am and what I have, I commit to the messageand the ministry
of the Lord, my Savior. Here I am and here I come." Manyof you: "I’ve
already confessedmy faith in the Lord Jesus. Ihave been baptized. I want to
place my life here with these people in this church that we might witness and
work and testify with the greathost of God’s congregationhere – a letter, an
epistle, a message fromGod."
As the Lord shall say the word and lead the way this day, this hour, this holy,
holy moment, will you come? Will you come? A child, a youth, a whole
family: "Here we are, Pastor, allof us. We are coming this day taking our
stand by the cross in the fellowship of His church, a witness to the grace and
goodness andglory of Jesus our Savior; and here I am, Pastor, and here I
come."
Don’t let this Memorial Supper sayto your heart, "Some other day, some
other hour." No. Let its testimony to the sacrifice of Christ but encourage us
the sooner, the more eagerly, to come. "I’ll take the Lord, Pastor, and here I
am. I want to be baptized, Pastor. I’ve trusted Him in my heart," or, "We
want to place our lives here in the church this glorious and triumphant day."
While we sing, will you come? Will you make it now while we stand and while
we sing?

136. JOHN GILL
Verse 3
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared,.... Butlest it should be thought that
the apostle attributed too much to himself, by saying that the Corinthians
were our epistle;here he says, they were "manifestly declared"
to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us; so that the apostles andministers
of the word were only amanuenses, Christwas the author and dictator; yea,
he himself is the very matter, sum, substance, andsubject of the epistle; he is
formed in the hearts of his people in conversion, his image is stamped, his
grace is implanted, his word, his Gospeldwells richly, his laws and ordinances
are written here; he also is the exemplar, believers are but copies ofhim, in
grace and duty, in sufferings, in the likeness ofhis death and resurrection:
and they are "manifestly declared" to be so, by the impresses of Christ's grace
upon them; by the fairness of the copy; by the style and language of the
epistle; by their likeness to Christ; by their having not the form only, but the
powerof godliness;and by their lives and conversations:now in writing these
epistles, the ministers of the Gospelare only instruments, "ministered by us".
They are made use of to show the sinner the black characters whichare
written upon him, and that what is written in him, and to be read by him, by
the light of nature is not sufficient for salvation;they are employed as
instruments in drawing the rough draught of grace in conversion, and in
writing the copy over again, fairer and fairer; being the happy means blessed
by God, for the building up of souls in faith and holiness, in spiritual
knowledge and comfort. These epistles are
not written with ink; of nature's power, or of rhetorical eloquence and moral
persuasion;

137. but with the Spirit of the living God: every grace that is implanted in the soul
is wrought there by the Spirit of God; or he it is that draws every line, and
writes every word and letter; he begins, he carries on and finishes the work of
grace on the soul; and that as "the Spirit of the living God": hence saints
become the living epistles of Christ; and every letter and stroke of his making,
is a living disposition of the soul in likeness to him; and such are written
among the living in Jerusalem, and shall live and abide for ever as the epistles
of Christ: again, the subjects of these epistles, or that on which they are
written, are
not tables of stone; such as the law was written upon, on Mount Sinai: of these
tables there were the first and second;the first were the work of God himself,
the latter were hewedby Moses, atthe command of God, Exodus 32:16 the
former being broken when he came down from the mount, which by the
Jewishwriters are said to be miraculously made, and not by the means and
artifice of menF12;yea, that they were made before the creationof the
worldF13, and which, they commonly say, were made of sapphire; See Gill on
2 Corinthians 3:7 these, as the latter, were two stones, which, Jarchi saysF14,
were of an equal size; and were, as Abarbinel saysF15, in the form of small
tables, such as children are taught to write upon, and therefore are so called:
some pretend to give the dimensions of them, and sayF16, that they were six
hands long, and as many broad, and three thick; nay, even the weightof them,
which is saidF17 to be the weightof forty "seahs",and look upon it as a
miracle that Mosesshould be able to carry them; on these stones were written
the ten commands; and the common opinion of the Jewishwriters is, that five
were written on one table, and five on the other; this is the opinion of
JosephusF18,PhiloF19,and the Talmudic writersF20;and the tables are said
to be written on both sides, Exodus 32:15. Some think that the engraving of
the letters perforated and went through the tables, so that, in a miraculous
manner, the letters were legible on both sides;others think, only the right and
left hand of the tables are meant, on which the laws were written, five on a
side, and which folded up like the tables or pages ofa book;though others are
of opinion, that they were written upon, both behind and before, and that the
law was written twice, both upon the fore part and back part of the tables,

138. yea, others sayfour times; and some think the phrase only intends the literal
and mystical, the external and internal sense ofthe law: however, certainit is,
as the apostle here suggests, thatthe law was written on tables of stone, which
may denote the firmness and stability of the law; not as in the hands of Moses,
from whence the tables fell and were broken, but as in the hands of Christ, by
whom they are fulfilled; or else the hardness of man's heart, his stupidity,
ignorance of, and not subject to the law of God:
but fleshly tables of the heart: alluding to Ezekiel36:26 and designs not carnal
hearts, but such as are made soft and tender by the Spirit of God. The table of
the heart is a phrase to be met with in the books ofthe Old Testament;see
Proverbs 3:3 and very frequently in the writings of the Jews
IRONSIDE
Paul had been in Corinth for a year-and-a-half, and his life had been as an
open book. They had seenfor themselves the kind of life that he lived, and
knew how genuine his professionwas. Now he is awayfrom them and is
anticipating visiting them again, and some of these Judaizers have I said, “If I
were you, before giving him the platform I would at leasttake the precaution
of asking him for his letter, and see whether he has a letter of commendation.”
It is perfectly right and proper, you know, to carry letters. When Apollos, a
total stranger, was going from Ephesus to Corinth, Priscilla and Aquila gave
him a letter commending, or recommending, him to the confidence of the
brethren in Corinth, and as Christians moved from place to place it was right
that they should carry a letter, but think of demanding anything like that
from the apostle Paul! Why, he says, “Do we then have to accreditourselves
with you, you among whom we have laboredfor a year-and-a-half, you whom
we have led to Christ? Is it necessarythat now we should have some kind of a
letter of commendation? Do we need a letter of commendation to you, or do

139. we need one from you? Is it necessarythat we should be commended by you to
other people? The fact of the matter is, if it is a letter that is wanted, you
yourselves constitute our letter. ‘Ye are our epistle written in our hearts,
known and read of all men.’ If people want to know whether we are genuine
or not, they can look at you. Who were you when we came to you? You were
poor ungodly heathen, lostin sin, in bondage to iniquity of the very vilest
kind, and what are you now? Redeemedmen and women who have been
brought into the joy and gladness ofa new life through the messagethat we
imparted to you. Is not that letter enough? Does that not prove that we are
divinely sent? Is not that the Holy Spirit’s own imprimatur, as it were, put
upon our message. ‘Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle
of Christ ministered by us.’ Through you God is showing what Christ is able
to do for sinners who trust Him. We, of course, were the instruments.”
“Ministeredby us, written not with ink, but the Spirit of the living God; not in
tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.” God, then, is manifesting
Himself to the world through His church.
In Old Testamenttimes we do not have a message going outto the world as
such. God revealedHimself to Israelon Mount Sinai, and gave them His
messageontables of stone. Stone, you know, is very hard, very cold, and very
unyielding, like the messageofthe Law itself, but that messagewas neversent
out to the Gentile world. Judaism was not a missionary religion. You never
hear of the representatives ofJudaism going out into all the world to proclaim
the glories ofthe Old Covenant. Not at all. God had not yet come out to man;
He was still dwelling in the thick darkness. The veil was unrent, and God was
testing man through one particular nation, the nation of Israel, the very best
group He could find. “Whatthings soeverthe law saith, it saith to them who
are under the law:that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may
become guilty before God” (Romans 3:19). If the very bestpeople cannot keep
the law, there is no use carrying it to the ungodly Gentiles, and so Judaism
had no missionary message. Things have changednow. God has come out to
men, the veil is rent, the light is shining out, and the messagefrom the risen
Christ is, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospelto every creature”
(Mark 16:15). And whereverthat messageis carried, men read its powerin

140. the changedlives of those who believe it. That is what the apostle means when
he says that we are the epistle of Christ.
I sometimes hear people pray, “O Lord, help us all to be epistles of Christ.”
You never get it that wayin Scripture. It does not say that you are an epistle
of Christ and I am an epistle of Christ. It takes the whole church to make His
epistle, but eachone of us is one little verse in that epistle. I should hate to
have anyone judge Christ simply by me. I hope there is a little of the grace of
God seenin my poor life, but take the church of God as a whole and see what
a wonderful letter you have. What a marvelous epistle is God’s church telling
the world what the grace ofGod can do for sinners who trust in Him. And it is
such a vital thing, such a tender thing, “written not with ink,” but by “the
Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the
heart.” God gives to believers in the gospela new heart, a new nature, a heart
made tender by divine grace, in order that men may go out and manifest the
love of Christ to a lostworld. The apostle says this gives us confidence, “Such
trust have we through Christ to God-ward.” If it were not that we could see
the change in the life of a man through believing our messagewe would lose
confidence, but when we see His grace working in this miraculous way, then
we have trust towardGod that we are indeed His chosenservants sent to
make known the exceeding riches of His grace.
Heinrich Meyer
Verse 3
2 Corinthians 3:3. φανερούμενοι]attaches itselfin constructionto ὑμεῖς ἐστε,
to which it furnishes a more precise definition, and that in elucidative
reference to what has just been said γινωσκομένη … ἀνθρώπων: since you are
being manifested to be an epistle of Christ, i.e. since it does not remain hid,
but becomes (continually) clearto every one that you, etc. Comp. on the
construction, 1 John 2:19.

141. ἐπιστολὴ χριστοῦ]genitivus auctoris (not of the contents—inopposition to
Chrysostom, Oecumenius, Theophylact):a letter composed(dictated) by
Christ. Fritzsche, l.c. p. 23, takes the genitive as possessive, so that the sense
without figure would be: homines Christiani estis. But in what follows the
whole origin of the Epistle is very accuratelysetforth, and should the author
not be mentioned—not in that case be placedin front? Theodoretalready
gives the right vie.
ἐπιστολή is here not againspecially letter of recommendation (2 Corinthians
3:2), but letter in general;for through the characteristic:“youare an epistle
of Christ, drawn up by us,” etc., the statement above. “you are our letter of
recommendation,” is to be elucidated and made good.
In the following διακονηθεῖσα … σαρκίναις Paul presents himself and
Timothy as the writers of the epistle of Christ ( διακον. ὑφʼἡμ.), the Holy
Spirit as the means of writing in lieu of ink, and human hearts, i.e. according
to the context, the hearts of the Corinthians, as the material which is written
upon. For Christ was the author of their Christian condition; Paul and
Timothy were His instruments for their conversion, and by their ministry the
Holy Spirit became operative in the hearts of the readers. In so far the
Corinthians, in their Christian character, are as it were a letter which Christ
has causedto be written, through Paul and Timothy, by means of the Holy
Spirit in their hearts. On the passive expressionδιακονηθ.ὑφʼἡμ., comp. 2
Corinthians 8:19 f.; Mark 10:45; note also the change of the tenses:διακονηθ.
and ἐγγεγραμμ. (the epistle is there ready); likewise the designationof the
Holy Spirit as πνεῦμα θεοῦ ζῶντος, comp. 2 Corinthians 3:6. We may add that
Paul has not mixed up heterogeneoustraits of the figure of a letter begun in 2
Corinthians 3:2 (Rückertand others), but here, too, he carries out this figure,
as it corresponds to the thing to be figured thereby. The single incongruity is
οὐκ ἐν πλαξὶ λιθίναις, in which he has not retained the conceptionof a letter
(which is written on tablets of paper), but has thought generally of a writing to

142. be read. Since, however, he has conceivedofsuch writing as divinely
composed(see above, πνεύματι θεοῦ ζῶντος), of which nature was the law of
Sinai, the usual supposition is right, that he has been induced to express
himself thus by the remembrance of the tables of the law (Hebrews 9:4; comp.
Jeremiah31:31-33);for we have no reasonto deny that the subsequent
mention of them (2 Corinthians 3:7) was evennow floating before his mind.
Fritzsche, indeed, thinks that “accommodate adnonnulla V. T. loca (Proverbs
3:3; Proverbs 7:3) cordis notionem per tabulas cordis expressurus erat,
quibus tabulis carneis nihil tam commode quam tabulas lapideas opponere
potuerit.” But he might quite as suitably have chosenan antithesis
corresponding to the figure of a letter (2 John 1:12; 2 Timothy 4:13); hence it
is rather to be supposed that he came to use the expressiontabulae cordis, just
because he had before his mind the idea of the tables of the law.
The antitheses in our passageare intended to bring out that here an epistle is
composedin quite another and higher sense than an ordinary letter (which
one brings into existence μέλανι σπείρων διὰ καλάμου,Plato Phaedr. p. 276
C)—a writing, which is not to be comparedeven with the Mosaic tables ofthe
law. But the purpose of a contrastwith the legalismof his opponents
(Klöpper) is not conveyed in the context.
That there is a specialpurpose in the use of σαρκίναις as opposedto λιθίναις,
cannot be doubted after the previous antitheses. It must imply the notion of
something better (comp. Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel36:26), namely, the thought of
the living receptivity and susceptibility: δεκτικὰς τοῦ λόγου (Theophylact,
Calvin, Stolz, Flatt, de Wette, Osiander, Ewald, and others). The distinctive
sense ofσαρκινός is correctly noted by Erasmus: “ut materiam intelligas, non
qualitatem.” Comp. on 1 Corinthians 3:1. καρδίας is also the genitive of
material, and the contrastwould have been sufficiently denoted by ἀλλʼ ἐν
πλαξὶ καρδίας:it is, however, expressedmore concretelyand vividly by the
added σαρκίναις: in fleshy tablets of the heart.

143. Preacher's Complete HomileticalCommentary
1. The Corinthians are "letters patent" for Paul.—Notcredentials merely to
themselves, assuring them of his true Apostolic standing. [Nor are they merely
a letter for his own personalreassurance,in any moment of faintness or
discouragement.]Theyare carried about by him unsealed, "open," to be his
credentials to all who will take pains to examine them. [When Sanballatsent
"an open letter" to Nehemiah(Neh ), the privacy of its contents unsecuredby
a seal, it was, and was meant to be, an insult. Paul is glad that, as part of the
issues of his work, men should read "the epistle from Christ" with which his
Divine Masterhas accreditedhim.] Happy that ministry whose "fruit"
guarantees that there has been no mistake as to the "call." Happy that people
whose personalexperience of blessing and life receivedthrough the human
messenger, andwhose joyful observationthat newly quickened souls are by
his words ever being added to the Church, agree to assure them that his
letters of ordination, his commissionof apostleship, still run in unabated
validity. No need, as betweenthem and him, that he should continually be
vindicating his true ministerial status. "We know what he has done for us; we
can no more doubt that he is a true minister, than that through him we have a
place in Christ ourselves. Our Paul no true apostle? Nonsense!Look at us!
Readus! You who depreciate him may bring your letters from Jerusalemand
James, [from Rome or Lambeth, or Conference, orCollege];his credentials
are sufficient for us. We are his seals."
2. A real reason, though not the strongest, foran open professionof Christ.—
"Secretdiscipleship," if such a thing were long possible, would be of no
service as a "letterof commendation." Something is due to the man, and to
the Church, by whose instrumentality the life-giving Spirit has been
"ministered" to a Christian man. [Very much is due, for the sake ofthose
whom the preacherhas still to quicken by his ministry. "Let your minister be
manifestly, and to the gaze of all, a many-lettered man. They will hear him the

144. more attentively, if your quickenedlife in the Spirit accredithim to their
heart. For their salvation's sake,be ye an unsealed‘letter,' which all may
peruse, if they will."] Something is due to Christ Who sends him. He also
needs accrediting to the unsaved. [Though the words do not mean "a letter of
commendation for Christ" (2Co ).] A man's changedlife should be an open
lettter.
3. It should be legibly and beautifully written.—[Drunken man, rolling up
againsta bishop: "You convertedme." "Yes, it looks like my work, not my
Master's."]Too many Christians are at their best badly written letters; often
the writing—though true enough—needs some discovering and deciphering.
[Like the shabby, thumbed, torn "references" whichthe professionalbeggar
brings out of his dirty pocket.] Some of these open letters accreditnobody,
with any satisfactoryevidence. [Poorcredentials of the Gospelitself. When
God's Love first came to men, with what a perfect Open Letter it came
"commended"!(Rom ).] Becausethey are a letter not for Paul's sake only, he
might read fairly the most faulty Corinthian and understand him and do him
justice, recognising in him a real work of the "quickening Spirit." But others
need to read these "letters," and will not always do it with favourable eyes.
4. Mosescame down from Sinai bearing two God-inscribed slabs of granite, as
the tokens that he had been with God, Who made him His Mediator for
Israel; he bore them in his hands. [As Paul's rivals so bore their imposing
credentials, perhaps from James.]"Look in my heart, Corinthians. See
yourselves written there, deeply gravenin my affection. ‘I have you in my
heart' (Php ), ‘in my heart, to die and live with you' (2Co 7:3). My love writes
you there, on fleshen tables. Your witness, indeed, is not for me only, or
chiefly. The tables of Sinai accreditedMoses;but they were also Jehovah's
‘testimonies'to His own holy nature and will, and the standard of the holiness
required of His people. Your ‘quickened' life—‘quickened'by no mere ‘letter'
of my message, but by ‘the Spirit' who infused Himself into it—not only
accredits me, but is a witness for Christ, of His mind and goodpleasure

145. towards His people. It is an exposition, it ought to be a standard of
measurement, of the blessedpurpose and contents of the ‘new Covenant.'
What is this purpose? To give life; to give the Spirit Who gives that life. The
embodiment for the new Order is no mere formal, external Code of rules for
conduct, but a Life, with a new Life principle in it. [A βίος which is the
outgrowth of a ζωή, as Gal 5:25.] The "letter" of the code will have its office
and its necessaryplace in such a life, at leastin that life's earlier, weaker,
formative stages. Butthe "glory" of the new life, and of the new Order to
which it belongs, will be realised, partly in the very independence of such
helps because ofthe better, higher, all-comprehending Law of the life
within,—the life of the Spirit Who quickens.
II. The very Law itself was now unveiled.—Paul and his readers were living in
one of the transition times of the world's history. Ceaselesschange,deathand
birth, the New springing out of the Old,—such are the invariable
characteristicsofthe life story of Man and his World. But these were times of
speciallyrapid and significant change. [There are "times and seasons"(Act ),
periods of time, and points of time; the stretches ofduration wherein the great
clock is quietly, surely ticking on, and the marked moments when It strikes.
Paul lived in a "season";at one of the points when the striking of the clock
proclaimed a new "time" begun.] One of those complete, but not violently,
openly, cataclysmatic abolishings ofthe Old was taking place. [At the cession
of Corfu by England to the Greeks, a large and costly and important
fortification had first to be demolished. Gun-cotton, then a somewhatnew
thing in such use, was the agentemployed; much curiosity to know what its
actionwould be Fired by electricity. A dull, deep rumbling heard, but no
great, earth-heaving convulsion seenor felt; no masonry flying into the air.
But after a few moments it was seenthat the immense fortification had quietly
disappeared. The destruction of Jerusalemand its temple, the historic
cessationofthe sacrifices andthe Jewishpolity, were more really an end
visible and catastrophic;but these had not yet taken place. Paul knew that on
Calvary and at Pentecostthe spark had been fired. He saw the old System
disappearing; his Jewish-Christianbrethren would not see, and so could not.
"Their eyes were blinded." Such criticalperiods always have men with

146. clearervision than their fellows;before the rest they discernthe times.] The
Old System, with its Shekinah-glory, its Sacrificialroutine, its laws of clean
and unclean, its separate nationphysically sealedby circumcision, was fading
away, dissolving before men's eyes, becoming plainly a shadowything. There
was appearing [projected like a new Image, a new picture, on Time's great
screen]a New System, in which the one conspicuous thing was a Person,
Christ: "the end of the Law." The old systemwas coming to an end, because
its various lines of suggestionand teaching had arrived at Christ. The streams
of history, prophecy, type, had found their way to the Sea, the end of their
journey. The very Decalogueitselfhad arrived at Christ, to stand henceforth
by His side, with a John Baptistvoice and office, pointing, sending the guilty
souls whom it "condemned" and "killed," to the "Lamb of God" with a
"Behold!" Moreover, it had reachedOne in Whose "Day" the Spirit was to
secure for it a new glory, a fulfilment such as it had never receivedwhile itself
was the distinctive, centralfact of the old order.
2. The old had been a glorious system. The new was to surpass it.—In no other
had God been so clearly revealedto men; as much as Mahometanismis
vaunted as an advance upon African fetishism and idolatry, so much was
Judaism more gloriously in advance of every other system, past, present, to
come, exceptChristianity. No nation was "so great, or had God so near to
them," as Israel (Deu ), until in Christ God createda Church, a new Israel,
and came nearerstill. Sin and Holiness had hardly any meaning outside the
Old Order of the Law; holiness had hardly any existence. God's character,
God's will, God's redeeming purpose, His remedy for the ruin which even the
heathen saw, but did not understand,—the light in Israel, at its most dim, had
on all these points been a "glory" for the old Covenant, with which there was
nothing in the world to compare. It is not Christian thought, to depreciate the
Old Testament. It had been a moon and stars ruling and illuminating the deep
night of earth. Now the Sun was arisen, and moon and stars were to lose their
lustre in competition with His. [It had been a glorious illuminant for earth's
night; now one still better had come. The gas-jetshows as a dull silhouette,
when seenprojectedupon the white, electric-lightedglobe.]The revelationof
God, of Sin and its Remedy, of the significance and the true goalof man's

147. Life, given to the world in Christ, has no serious competitor amongstthe
religions of the world. All this was dramatically told upon the top of Hermon.
For a few brief moments human eyes saw Law, Prophets, Christ, side by side,
speaking togetherof His "decease." Mensaw and heard the transfer of
testimony and office from the lesserto the Greater. The Shekinah-cloud
enveloped all three in its glory; it belongedto them all. When it was past,
Moses was gone,and Elijah. The day of the Law and the Prophets was past.
"Jesus only with themselves." Something of this had been dramatically told at
Sinai. Moses hadveiled his resplendent face;the glory had wanedand waned
awaybeneath the veil; if men might have been permitted to see, they would
have seenan ending of the glory caught on the Mount of the Law; though even
then it would not have been given to them to see the End of that which was
revealed. His day was not yet. And the Old, though God-given and "made
glorious," became a bondage, became an idol. Men gazed upon it, and saw
nothing in it but itself. Men studied it; they had to defend it, to die for it; they
beganto pique themselves upon being its faithful guardians. They huggedthe
dying or dead thing the closerto their hearts, when the life was departing or
gone. Their affectionbecame mechanicallyrigid in its grasp. Their eye grew
accustomedto the moonlight night; they resentedand refusedthe day. Their
devotion became a slavery; it fettered thought; it blinded the eye;it wove a
veil for the very heart. [All partial truth may. (To be remembered that God's
"partial truth" is absolutelytrue so far as it goes. Unlike our "partial truth,"
nothing in it needs unlearning before the new, complementary truth can be
added. Our "partial truth" is often false because only relative, and is out of
proportion, needing much adjustment before it can be made to fit into a new
discovery.)The eye must not lose its power to receive new light, must not fill
its vision with the familiar and precious thing so fully that it can see no new
object.]How had Paul and his Christian readers escaped? "Withunveiled
face" they beheld with equanimity the glory fading fast from an unveiled
Law; nay, with a new sense of "liberty" and a largerlife. Why? The Spirit
had led them into the presence of"the Lord" Christ. [Shall He one day so lead
Israelin, into the Holy Place where "the Lord" dwells? (2Co 3:16).] They
have come forth again, transformed into the same image, eachof them a
Moses withresplendent face;[albeit many of them know not how resplendent.
See Separate Homily on "Unconscious Goodness."]Theirheart has a strange

148. new sense offreedom. The old is still interesting, precious, glorious, not lightly
to be castaway;but they have grown into something larger. [The man
remembers vividly the day when the youth found himself to have grown past
running after his boyish hoop; the woman the day when, with a little shock,
she found herself growntoo big to play with her splendid doll.] Liberty has
come with the manhood of the days of the Spirit.
3. They see the ending of the Old, because they see that it has reachedits End
and has lost itself in its Fulfilments.—Now they see and understand the Law,
indeed the entire Old Testament, and see it full of Christ. Familiar experience
to every Christian readerof Old Testament. In it he (say) reads some passage,
and passes oninto the New Testament. Returning to the Old Testament, with
his mind and his vision filled with the Christ he has seenthere, he comes
across his passageagain, and finds himself saying, "Why, this might be
written of Christ. It is truer of Christ than of the man to whom it originally
belongs. Truer of Christ than of any man besides." Or, it is an incident of the
narrative; he rubs his eyes and looks wonderingly, "Is this David's history, or
Jonah's, that I am reading,—orChrist's?" Or, it is a priest, a prophet, a man,
a child; familiar enough; yet, againand again, when, with eyes and heart full
of the Christ into Whose presence he has "turned," he reads the Old
Testament, he finds the familiar features somehow transfigured. The same,
yet somehow different. As if the Old Testamentface had become tenanted,
possessed, by another personality; as if Another lookedout of the eyes of the
Old Testamentman. And this happens so often, and with such consistencyof
system and harmony, that a principle establishes itself, "The Old Testamentis
full of Christ." A tentative, working hypothesis at first, eachadded fact that
falls in with it strengthens the probability of its truth, till it rises to a practical
certainty. In the end, the man whose unveiled heart has been in and gazed
upon the glory of Christ in the New Covenant revelation—a glory which does
not wane and die awayas we are gazing on it—finds the presence of Christ, so
constantly and so clearly, in the unveiled Law; sees so oftenthe glory of the
Old fade away, and almost the very Old itself, until only Christ, "the Lord" in
His glory, is left visible; that he wonders how any heart can miss Him in the
Old Testament, in its reading and its search. [The man who has the key is

149. almost ashamedof proposing the riddle to another man, it seems so obvious.
The hidden face once discoveredin the puzzle pictures which amuse
childhood, it is then impossible not to see it.] Sometimes language so obviously
adapted to contain a largermeaning than was contemplatedby the first who
used or wrote it,—a vesselso obviously adapted for something largerand
fuller than its Old Testamentcontents;sometimes a "staringly like"
anticipation of Christ's person, or work, or Sacrifice, unexpectedlyflashing
out upon the New Testamentreader of the Old Testament;sometimes a real,
but fitful, flash of resemblance [like those seenin a "family likeness"], seen,
and then disappearing when lookedfor with closerpurpose to discoverit;
sometimes highways, sometimes byways, of history or suggestion, leading with
surprising and unlooked-for directness to Christ;—these things so continually
occurand recur, that one cannot "turn in unto" even the Old Testament
without at every turn meeting Him Who is its End, and therefore its Ending.
All this pre-eminently true of "The Law" in its narrowersense. Its ritual
system, the very details of its Sanctuary, so persistently, so consistently, lend
themselves to suggestChristand the Gospel;and often with such minuteness
of complete suggestion;that, as the instances accumulate, it becomes, even
mathematically calculated, almostas 2Co , that they should merely be
coincidences;that the correspondences shouldbe accident, and not Divine
design. But to see the Christ there, in the midst of the passing awayof the
glory of the unveiled "Law" needs the unveiled heart, which as yet Israeldoes
not possess.Sucha heart is a gift, part of the life given by the quickening Holy
Spirit, Who is the characteristic ofthe New Covenant.
Third Millennium Study Bible
Notes on 2 Corinthians 3:3
You show that you are a letter from Christ - 2 Corinthians 3:3

150. The Corinthian church was a work of God's grace alone in which God had
wonderfully used Paul and his coworkers. This living letter that the
Corinthian believers constituted was superior to the ink-only letters of Paul's
opponents because the work of the Spirit in their lives was undeniably
verifiable. Hafemann states:
That the Corinthians are "written" (lit., engraved)on Paul's heart does not
mean that he has warm feelings for them, but that he is committed to act on
their behalf as their father in the faith (cf. 1 Cor. 4:15). Paul's willingness to
support himself for the sake ofthe gospel(1 Cor. 4:11-12;9:12-23;2 Cor.
2:17; 6:3, 11-13;12:14-15), his concernfor the Corinthians' welfare (1 Cor.
4:14-15;2 Cor. 11:2-4), and his anxiety for their salvation (2 Cor. 1:12-2:13;
7:4; 11:28)make it obvious to all that these believers are on his heart as his
children (cf. 2 Cor. 7:3). Once again, his wayof life reveals the content of his
heart.
Conversely, the very existence ofthe Corinthians as Christians testifies to the
powerof the Spirit in and through Paul's ministry. This is the point of 2 Cor
3:3. The Corinthians are Paul's "letter of recommendation" (2 Cor 3:1)
because they show themselves to be "a letter from Christ," that is, those
whom Christ has "written," a metaphor referring to their conversion(2 Cor
3:3a). The force of Paul's argument resides not in their having become
Christians per se, but in their having done so as "the result of our ministry"
(2 Cor 3:3b; lit., "you are a letter of Christ, having been ministered by us").
Since the church in Corinth is a direct result of Paul's ministry, to deny him
now would be tantamount to denying their own spiritual experience as
Christians (something the pride-prone Corinthians are not inclined to do).
Paul's statement in 2 Cor. 3:2 leads him to refer in 2 Cor3:3ab to the status of
the Corinthians as believers, which in turn leads him in 2 Cor3:3c to picture
their new identity in terms of the Old Testamentimagery of Ezekiel11:19 and

151. Ezekiel36:26-27:The Corinthians, as Christ's "letter," have been written
"not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God," and written "not on
tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts." Paul here establishes two
contrasts, not one:a contrastbetween the two means of writing (human
agencyof ink versus the Spirit) and a contrastbetweenthe two spheres of the
writing (the old covenanttablets of the law versus the new covenant "tablets"
of the human heart). The apostle's ministry of "writing" with the Spirit, who
is at work in the human heart, is contrastedwith the old covenantministry of
the "writing" that took place on the stone tablets of the law (cf. Exod. 24:12;
31:18;32:15; 34:1; Deut. 9:10).
It is crucial to see that this contrastis essentiallynot one of kind, but of time
within the history of redemption. Under the old covenant, the locus of God's
activity was in the law; in the new age promised by Ezekiel, God will be at
work in human hearts by the powerof the Spirit. Paul's ministry is therefore
nothing less than a fulfillment of the promise of the new covenantas
prophesied by Ezekiel. The Corinthians need look only at themselves for proof
that the new age of the new covenant has dawned (cf. Isa. 32:15;44:3; 59:21;
Joel2:28-29;also the use of Jer. 31:31-34 in 2 Cor. 3:6). Their rejectionof
Paul's ministry, therefore, means not only a denial of their own genuine
existence as believers, but also a disavowalof God's work in Christ as the
fulfillment of the prophetic hope.
Hodge also says:
The importance or superior worth of this epistle is set forth in what follows by
a twofold contrastor comparison. First, it was not a letter written with ink,
but by the Spirit of the living God. Any man could write with ink; Christ
alone can write with the Spirit of God. This is a figurative way of expressing
the idea that the conversionof the Corinthians was a divine, supernatural
work, and therefore an irrefragable proof that Paul, by whose instrumentality

152. the work was effected, was the minister of Christ. This was a letter, therefore,
infinitely above any ordinary letter written with ink. Secondly, it was not an
outward, but an inward, spiritual work. The decalogue, writtenon tables of
stone by the finger of God, was indeed a divine work, and proved the divine
mission of Moses;but what was that to writing the law upon the fleshly tables
of the heart! The work of regenerationand sanctificationis always
representedin the Scripture as a much higher manifestation of divine power
and grace than any mere external miracle. In predicting the new dispensation
in contrastwith the old, God says, "Beholdthe days come when I will make a
new covenantwith the house of Israel - not according to the covenant that I
made with their fathers, - but I will put my law in their inward parts, and
write it in their hearts," Jeremiah31:31-33.To this the apostle evidently
refers to show that the evidence of his mission was of a higher characterthan
that of Moses, andthat his ministry was far more exalted and glorious.
BRUCE HURT
2 Corinthians 3:3 being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, caredfor by
us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of
stone but on tablets of human hearts. (NASB: Lockman)
Greek : phaneroumenoi (PPPMPN)hotieste (2PPAI) epistole Christou
diakonetheisa (APPFSN)uph' hemon, eggegrammene (RPPFSN)ou melani
alla pneumati theou zontos, (PAPMSG)ouk en plaxin lithinais all' en plaxin
kardiais sarkinais.
Amplified: You show and make obvious that you are a letter from Christ
delivered by us, not written with ink but with [the] Spirit of [the] living God,

153. not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. [Ex 24:12; 31:18;32:15,
16; Jer31:33.](Lockman)
ESV: And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written
not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but
on tablets of human hearts. (ESV)
KJV: Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
not in tables of stone, but in fleshly tables of the heart.
NET:revealing that you are a letter of Christ, delivered by us, written not
with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets but on tablets
of human hearts. (NET Bible)
NIV: You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry,
written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of
stone but on tablets of human hearts. (NIV - IBS)
NLT: 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 carvednot on tablets of stone, but on human hearts. (NLT
- Tyndale House)
Phillips: You are an open letter about Christ which we ourselves have written,
not with pen and ink but with the Spirit of the living God. Our messagehas
been engravednot in stone, but in living men and women. (Phillips:
Touchstone)

154. Wuest: You are those who are openly shown to be a letter which exhibits
Christ, this letter having been ministered [written] by us, not having been
written with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on stone tablets but on
tablets that are human hearts.
Young's Literal: manifested that ye are a letter of Christ ministered by us,
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God, not in the tablets of
stone, but in fleshy tablets of the heart,
BEING MANIFESTEDTHAT YOU ARE A LETTER OF CHRIST, CARED
FOR BY US: phaneroumenoi (PPPMPN)hotieste (2PPAI) epistole Christou
diakonetheisa (APPFSN)uph' hemon:
Letter: Ex 31:18 Rev 2:1,8,12,18 3:1,7,14,22
caredfor: 1Co 8:5-10
2 Corinthians 3 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
OPEN LETTERS
OF CHRIST
You are our letter of Christ - The famous Greek philosopherPlato agreed
with Paul writing that...
the goodteacherdoes not write his messagein ink that will fade; he writes it
upon men.

155. Pulpit Commentary...The fame and centrality of Corinth gave peculiar
prominence to the fact of their conversion....The Corinthians are the epistle;it
is written on the hearts of St. Paul and his companions;Christ was its
Composer;they were its amanuenses and its conveyers (The pulpit
commentary)
Ray Stedman quips that Paul was in essencesaying...
"As for me, I'm nothing but the postman; I just delivered the letter. God did
the work."
Paul wants these Corinthians to understand that the changes that had
occurredin their lives, the freedom they were experiencing, the deliverance
from evil habits such as immorality, adultery, homosexuality, drunkenness,
thievery -- "suchwere some of you" (1Cor6:11a) he said -- all happened
because Christhad changedthem.
When I read the New TestamentI am always impressedat the absolute lack of
word in the book of Acts and in the letters of Paul concerning the church and
its ministry. Those early Christians did not go around, as we do today, talking
about what the church cando for you, or about the value of becoming a
member of a church. We talk about that all the time in our day, but they did
not even mention it because they understoodthat the church does not do
anything for anybody. It is Christ who changes lives. It is Jesus who heals a
hurting heart, or touches a lonely spirit, or restores someone burdened with a
terrible sense ofguilt for all the wretchedness andevil of his past. It is the
Lord who forgives and changes, andthis greatapostle states that very
strongly. He wants them to understand that Christ has written this letter, not
him, but they are the witnesses, theirchangedlives are all the testimony, all
the recommendationhe needs that what he is doing is authentic Christianity.

156. If we applied that test to our churches across this country today, I wonder
how many would have a recommendationin the eyes of the community
around? (Have you got What it Takes?2 Corinthians 3:1-11) (Bolding added)
"SANDWICHBOARDS"
FOR THE SAVIOR
Brian Bell writes that...
Every Christian is an advertisement for Christianity. We judge a store by the
quality of goods it sells;We judge a craftsman on his quality of work;We
judge a Church by the kind of Christians it produces; and therefore the world
judges Christ by His Followers!. Dick Sheppard said, “The greatesthandicap
the church has is the unsatisfactorylives of professing Christians. ” When we
step out into our world everyday we are “openletters”, “advertisements”for
Christ and His church. We are “Sandwichboards for the Savior”!...Whatare
your thoughts when I say, “you may be the only letter from Christ that some
people everread? (2Corinthians 3 Sermon Notes)(Bolding added)
Being manifested - The lives of the saints at Corinth were clearly and
continually (present tense)visible "openletters" that gave obvious testimony
to all men of their radicalnew life in Christ (2Co 5:17-note). This description
implies that these saints lived authentic, transparent lives "in the open" for all
to witness and did not remain sequesteredin a "holy huddle". In the words of
Jesus they did not

157. light a lamp (their new lives in Christ), and put it under the peck-measure (a
"bushel basket"), but on the lampstand and it gives light to all who are in the
house. (Mt 5:15-note)
Being manifested (disclosed, revealed)(5319)(phaneroofrom phanerós =
manifest, visible, conspicuous in turn from phaino = give light; become visible
in turn from phos = light) is literally "to bring to light" and primarily means
"to make visible" or to cause to become visible. The basic meaning of
phaneroo is to make known, to clearlyreveal, to manifest (see Vine's
elaborationof "to be manifest" below), to cause to be seenor to make clearor
known.
Vine summarizes phaneroo...
in the active voice, “to manifest”; in the passive voice, “to be manifested”...To
be manifested, in the Scriptural sense of the word, is more than to “appear.”
A person may “appear” in a false guise or without a disclosure ofwhat he
truly is; to be manifested is to be revealedin one’s true character;this is
especiallythe meaning of phaneroo, see, e.g., John3:21; 1Co 4:5; 2Cor. 5:10,
11; Ep 5:13. (Vine, W E: Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and
New TestamentWords. 1996. Nelson)(Bolding added)
Thayer says phaneroo means...
to make manifest or visible or knownwhat has been hidden or unknown, to
manifest, whether by words, or deeds, or in any other way.

158. As noted above, Paul uses the present tense to signify that they are continually
being revealedas a letter of Christ, the best letter of commendation any
preacheror teachercould present.
MISSIVES OF
THE MESSIAH
Letter of Christ - Not a letter of Paul or Timothy but of Christ (cp He 12:2-
note "Author and Perfecter"), forthey were but servants ("deacons" -see
below) of Christ, "Who manifests through (Paul and Timothy) the sweet
aroma of the knowledge ofHim in every place." (2Co 2:14). Note that the
Spirit of Christ works in us before and in order that He might work through
us.
Paul uses the well known example of a literal literal as a metaphor. A
metaphor is a commonly used a figure of speech"in which a word or phrase is
applied to an object or action (the changedlives of the saints at Corinth) that
it does not literally denote in order to imply a resemblance" (See terms of
comparisonsimile metaphor).
Rob Salvato asks whatis...
Our strategyfor evangelismas a church? It is You. You as individuals and
families influencing your sphere of influence by living for Jesus. Your light is
going to shine – period – The question is what is it going to reflect! You will
either be drawing people to Christ or pushing them away from Christ by the
way you live, by how you conduct yourself. (2Corinthians 3 Sermon Notes)

159. Henry Alford commenting on letter of Christ writes that...
He is the Recommenderof us, the Head of the church and sender of us His
ministers. (The New Testamentfor English Readers)
Ray Stedman rightly remarks that what Paul was saying was that...
"everybody can see that Christ has done something to you." That is the only
effective witness the church has in the world today --- the change that Christ
has made so that the people you work with, rub shoulders with, the tradesmen
you do business with, the people you talk to in the normal course of carrying
out your daily affairs ought to see that change. That is the point. There ought
to be such visible evidence of God at work in you that people will say, "What
is this? What's going on? I know your name is Bill, or Jane, or Mary, but
somehow I get the feeling I'm talking to Jesus."Thatis what these early
Christians exemplified. (Have you got What it Takes?2Corinthians 3:1-11)
Hughes remarks that...
A letter of recommendationmust always come from a third party, and the
ultimate third-party recommender is Christ, the Messiahhimself. By claiming
Messiahas the author, Paul was able to claim higher authority for his
credentials than his enemies could claim for theirs. (Ibid)
Bogue comments on Christ is the "Writer" and Christians as His "Letter"...
Christ has blotted out “guilty” and written in “no condemnation.”

160. He has erased“earthly” and supplied “heavenly.”
Licentiousness has given place to purity, profanity to prayerfulness,
selfishness to love, etc. We judge of the authorship of an epistle, not merely by
the penmanship and signature, which a cleverforger might imitate, but also
by its contents.
A hypocrite, a false professor, is like a forged letter.
Its design. To convey the mind of Christ to men. Men may refuse to listen to
the gospel, but they cannel ignore the testimony of a consistentChristian life.
1. As a letter is written for the purpose of being seen, a Christian should let his
Christianity be visible. We do not write letters merely for the sake ofwriting
them, but that they may be read. So, if Christians do not let their Christianity
be seenin their lives, they defeatone chief end which Christ had in view in
making them what they are. Those who are Christians in name only are in no
sense ofthe term epistles of Christ; ii were vain to exhort such to let what
Christ has written in them be seenby men, for they have nothing to show.
2. A letter being written for the purpose of being read should be legible. A
letter may be so written that it is impossible to make out the writer’s meaning.
Such a letter may be worse than useless, for, owing to its illegibility, it may
convey a wrong meaning. When the letters of men are illegible ii is the fault of
the writers, but this is not the case withChrist’s epistles. He never writes
illegibly. The fault lies on the side of the epistles themselves. Note one or two
things which render writing illegible.

161. (1) Indistinctness of character. One word may be mistakenfor another, and
thus the whole meaning of a sentence may be altered. And Christians may be
illegible as epistles of Christ through the wavering, unsteady character
imparted to the writing that is in them by their want of decisionfor Christ
and their compromises with the world. What we want is boldness on the part
of Christians in testifying for Christ in their everyday lives.
(2) Blots. Perhaps the most important word in a sentence is completely hidden
by a blot. Alas! in how many cases is the testimony of a Christian for Christ
made of none effectby the unsightly blot of some gross inconsistency, some
dark sin, which the eye of the world rests continually on, and refuses to see
anything else.
3. A letter is written that it may be understood. What prevents letters from
being intelligible?
(1) Omissions. Were the little word “not,” e.g., left out, the meaning of a
sentence would be entirely reversed. In like manner, the lack of one essential
Christian grace-charity, e.g. — if it do not render the characterofa Christian
unintelligible, makes it less easilyunderstood.
(2) Contradictions. We cannotpossibly make out the meaning if one sentence
says one thing and the next the opposite. And haw can men understand our
testimony for Christ if we have one kind of conduct for the Church and
another for the world? (The Biblical illustrator; or, Anecdotes - Page 71)
Marvin Vincent explains a letter of Christ caredfor by us...

162. An epistle written by Christ through our ministry; that is, you, as the
convertedsubjects of our ministry, are an epistle of Christ. Others explain: an
epistle of which Christ forms the contents, thus making the apostles the
writers. (2 Corinthians 3 Word Studies in the New Testament)
Caredfor or ministered by about which John Calvin remarks that Paul...
says that it was ministered by himself, likening himself, as it were to the ink
and the pen. In other words, he makes Christ the Author and himself the
instrument in order that his detractors may understand that they have Christ
Himself to deal with if they go on speaking maliciouslyagainstHis apostle.
(Calvin's Commentary on 2 Corinthians)
Guzik comments on cared for by us...
Paul's letter of recommendationhas a pen, Paul himself. Written not with ink
but by the Spirit of the living God: Paul's letter of recommendation uses an
"ink" - the Holy Spirit. On tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart: Paul's letter of
recommendation has a "paper" – the hearts of the Corinthian Christians. (2
Corinthians 3)
Caredfor (1247)(diakoneo derivationuncertain - cp diakonis = in the dust
laboring or running through the dust or possibly diako = to run on errands;
see also study of relatednoun - diakonia)means to minister by way of
rendering service in any form or to take care of by rendering humble service.

163. The root word diakonos refers to one who serves as a waiterupon tables
performing menial duties (see Matt 8:15; 20:28;27:55; Mark 1:31; 10:45;
15:41;Luke 4:39; 10:40;12:37; 17:8; 22:26, 27;John 12:2). Diakoneo conveys
the basic idea of personalservice, and depending on the contextcan mean
specificallyto serve, to wait on, to see after or to care for someone's needs by
performing a service (conveying the sense that help is provided to the one
being served - see Mt 4:11, 25:44, Mark 1:13).
A goodpicture of the meaning of diakoneo is seenwhen Peter's mother-in-law
was healedby Jesus "andshe immediately gotup and waited(diakoneo)on
them." (Lk 4:39) What Peter's mother was doing physically (albeit still a
"spiritual" act), Paul was doing most likely primarily spiritually by
proclaiming the Word of God to the saints and in so doing "caring" for the
needs of their souls.
Mark Hepner states that
A survey of the uses of diakoneo in the NT indicates a basic meaning of
“giving someone whatis necessaryto sustain their physical life.”
Consequently the word is frequently used in the gospels to mean “setfood
before someone” or“waiton someone.”In Mt. 4:11 angels “attend” Jesus in
the wilderness afterhis very long period of fasting. Later on, Peter’s mother-
in-law “begins to waiton” Jesus and his disciples after being healed (Mk.
1:31). Luke relates Martha’s complaint to Jesus that her sister has left her
alone with the “work” ofproviding Jesus and his disciples with a meal (Lk.
10:40). There are numerous other references in the gospels and Acts where
this word is used to denote “serving food to” or “waiting table on” people, e.g.
Lk. 12:37; 17:8; 22:27;Jn. 12:2; Acts 6:2. Beyondthe idea of setting food
before someone to eat, the word may also denote any actof generositythat
supplies what is necessaryto sustain everyday physical life. Luke tells of

164. women who “supported” Jesus and his disciples out of their own means (8:3;
cf. Mt. 27:55;Mk. 15:41).
The use of diakoneo to refer to the provision of what is necessaryto sustain
material or physical life continues on into the epistles. In Ro 15:25 Paul refers
to his task of delivering and overseeing the distribution of an offering to
alleviate the material needs of impoverished believers in the church in
Jerusalemas “serving” the saints. In 2 Tim. 1:18 Paul remembers with
fondness Onesiphorus for the many ways he helped Paul in Ephesus, surely a
reference to service aimed at meeting the practicalneeds of staying alive.
Finally, the author of Hebrews reassures his readers that Godwill not forget
their past and current practice of “helping his people,” againmost likely a
reference to providing practicalassistanceto God’s people to meet the needs
of day-to-day survival, probably in the face of persecution(Heb. 6:10).
Metaphorically, diakoneo is used to refer to serving people in the interests of
preserving and enhancing their spiritual life with God. Thus Jesus came to
serve by ransoming God’s people from the forces that held them captive (Mt.
20:28). It was also a spiritual service that the prophets of old provided for the
saints in ages to come (1Pe 1:12). Whether referring to physical or spiritual
sustenance, diakoneōgenerallydenotes the practical acts of service that help
people by supplying what they need to ‘carry on with’ the business of daily
life...
To sum up, this survey of the diakonia word group indicates that the core idea
of ministry is supplying what people need to keepon living as Christ’s body in
the world. Christian ministry is fundamentally a practicalactivity, consisting
of acts of service to others for the purpose of sustaining their life as a
community of faith, promoting their maturity and growthin Christ-likeness,
and enhancing their ability to carry on the mission of Christ. Ministry is
obedient service done on behalf of the Masterfor the benefit of his people.

165. Ministry is making the needs of fellow believers equivalent to the command of
the Lord Himself and willingly distributing to them what the Masterhas
placed in their hands to meet those needs. (Waiting Table in God’s
Household- A PersonalTheologyofMinistry - Ashland TheologicalJournal
Volume 37. 2005 - Excellentarticle - or text article - scrolldown)
Note:For numerous additional insights concerning this word group
(diakonos, diakoneo, diakonia)seethe study of diakonos
Augustine rightly phrased it when he said that...We do the works, but God
works in us the doing of the works.
The group of words related to diakoneo (diakonia, diakonos)wordgroup
differs the other Greek word group, douleuo (doulos) which also means to
serve, in that the former word group connotes “service”on behalf of someone
while the latter speaks of“service”as a slave under or subordinate to someone
(as a bondservant or bondslave to the “lord” or “master”). As Richards says...
In Greek thought, both types of service were shameful. The duty of the Greek
person was to himself, to achieve his potential for excellence. To be forced to
subject his will or surrender his time and efforts for the sake ofothers was
intensely distasteful, even humiliating. But Jesus came to serve, not to be
served. In giving Himself for others, Jesus setthe pattern for a transformed
value system. In Christ, serving is the highway to greatness. In Christ we
achieve our full potential by giving, not by grasping. (Richards, L O:
Expository Dictionary of Bible Words: Regency)(Ed: Or as John Blanchard
says "Christian service has been dignified by Deity."

166. TDNT writes that...
For the Greeks service is undignified; we are born to rule, not to serve.
Service acquires value only when it promotes individual development, or the
development of the whole as service of the state (or ultimately as service of
God). If this demands some renunciation, the idea of self-sacrificialservice
finds little place...Byexalting service and relating it to love of God, Jesus both
sets forth a completely different view from that of the Greeks and purifies the
Jewishconcept.
Perhaps you think your work for the Lord is of no eternal consequence, but as
Vance Havner rightly reminds us...
There are no trivial assignments in the work of the Lord.
Every believer is an “openletter” from Christ, because their changedlife will
show God’s work within their heart.
WRITTEN NOT WITH INK BUT WITH THE SPIRIT OF THE LIVING
GOD, NOT ON TABLETS OF STONE BUT ON TABLETS OF HUMAN
HEARTS: eggegrammene (RPPFSN)ou melani alla pneumati theou zontos,
(PAPMSG)ouk en plaxin lithinais all' en plaxin kardiais sarkinais:
Living: 2Co 6:16 Jos 3:10 1Sa 17:26 Ps 42:2 84:2 Jer 10:10 Da 6:26 Mt 16:16
1Th 1:9 Heb 9:14
not: Ex 24:12 34:1
but: Ps 40:8 Jer 31:33 Eze 11:19 36:25-27 Heb 8:10 10:16

167. 2 Corinthians 3 Resources - Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
Moses records thatthe Old Covenant was also written by God...
And when He had finished speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, He gave
Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone, written by the finger
of God. (Ex 31:18)
Paul in speaking of tablets of human hearts (which speak of the New
Covenant) is led to recallthe tablets of stone (which speak of the Old
Covenant), and in the succeeding passagesis led by the Spirit to launch into a
description of the superiority of the New over the Old Covenant.
Some have suggestedthat Paul launched into a discussionof the superiority of
the New Covenantbecause some ofthe false teachers did not want to see the
Mosaic systemsetaside.
Written (1449)(eggrapho from en = in or on, + grapho = to write, engrave,
inscribe) is used again in a figurative sense. Paul's use of the perfect tense
pictures the permanence of the Spirit's "autograph" on their hearts and
indirectly speaks ofthe assurance andeternal security of their salvationin
Christ (see otherarticles on assurance). WhenI teach I use erasable markers
which means what I write on the white board is not permanent. It's as if God
used a "PermanentMarker", His Spirit writing irrevocably on our hearts!
Praise the Lord that His writing is permanent and our names can never be
erasedfrom the Lamb's book of life!
Not with ink (melan source of our English word melanin, the pigment that
gives skin its color) refers to any black concretion, which could be ink but

168. could also be something like charcoal, eitherof which could be used to write
on stone.
Many centuries earlierJob had written...
Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! That
with an iron stylus and lead They were engraved in the rock forever! (Job
19:23, 24)
Not with ink...but the Spirit - Not with visible, perishable materials but with
the invisible, spiritual hand of God's Spirit.
As Brian Bell quips...
We ought to be
Christians in LARGE TYPE!
And I would add we should all be Christians in "BOLD FONT", filled with
Holy Spirit boldness (Acts 4:31, 9:27, 28, 13:46, 14:3 18:26 19:8 Ep 6:20-note
1Th 2:2-note) making us adequate to live out and speak forth the
transforming truth of the Gospelof Grace (Ac 20:24) to a lost world in
desperate needof rescue from the wrath to come (Mt 3:7 Lk 3:7 1Th 1:10-
note)!
Spirit (4151)(pneuma from pneo = to blow, to breathe) in context (cp use 2Co
3:17) refers in this context to the Holy Spirit, the third Personof the Trinity,
Who had causedthem to be born again(Jn 3:5, 6, 7, 8)

169. Bernard feels that this descriptionof "the mystical imprint of the Divine
Spirit" on their hearts "this leads him to think of the ancient “writing” of the
Law by the “finger of God” on the Twelve Tables, and to contrastit with this
epistle of Christ on tables that are not of stone but are “hearts of flesh” (E
(The Expositor's Greek Testament)
JosephBeetcomments that "The Holy Spirit dwelling in the hearts of the
Christians at Corinth through the agencyof Paul and Timothy was an abiding
divine testimony to them, to their converts, and to others that they were sent
by God. To the converts, the presence of the Spirit was knowndirectly by the
new cry Abba, Father, put into their hearts and lips, and by victory oversin
given to them day by day; and to others, by "the fruit of the Spirit" in their
holy lives. Cp. Ro 8:13-note, Ro 8:14, 15-note, Ro 8:16-note; Ga 5:22-note, Gal
5:23-note. (2 Corinthians 3 Commentary)
James Denneywrites that...
Paul claims no part here but that of Christ’s instrument. The Lord, so to
speak, dictatedthe letter, and he wrote it. The contents of it were prescribed
by Christ, and through the Apostle’s ministry became visible and legible in
the Corinthians. More important is it to notice with what the writing was
done: “not with ink,” says St. Paul, “but with the Spirit of the living God.”
At first sight this contrastseems formal and fantastic;nobody, we think, could
ever dream of making either of these things do the work of the other, so that it
seems perfectly gratuitous in Paul to say, “not with ink, but with the Spirit.”
Yet ink is sometimes made to bear a greatdeal of responsibility. The
characters ofthe tines (“some”)in 2Co 3:1. were only written in ink; they had
nothing, Paul implies, to recommend them but these documents in black and

170. white. That was hardly sufficient to guarantee their authority, or their
competence as ministers in the Christian dispensation.
But do not Churches yet accepttheir ministers with the same inadequate
testimonials? A distinguished careerat the University, or in the Divinity
Schools, proves that a man can write with ink, under favorable circumstances;
it does not prove more than that; it does not prove that he will be spiritually
effective, and everything else is irrelevant.
I do not say this to disparage the professionaltraining of ministers; on the
contrary, the standard of training ought to be higher than it is in all the
Churches: I only wish to insist that nothing which can be representedin ink,
no learning, no literary gifts, no critical acquaintance with the Scriptures
even, canwrite upon human nature the Epistle of Christ. To do that needs
“the Spirit of the living God.”
We feel, the moment we come upon those words, that the Apostle is
anticipating; he has in view alreadythe contrasthe is going to develop
betweenthe old covenantand the new covenant, and the irresistible inward
powerby which the new is characterized. Others might boastof qualifications
to preach which could be certified in due documentary form, but he carried in
him whereverhe went a powerwhich was its ownwitness, and which
overruled and dispensed with every other.
Let all of us who teach or preach concentrate ourinterest here. It is in “the
Spirit of the living God,” not in any requirements of our own, still less in any
recommendations of others, that our serviceablenessas ministers of Christ
lies. We cannot write His epistle without it.

171. We cannotsee, let us be as diligent and indefatigable in our work as we please,
the image of Christ gradually come out in those to whom we minister. Parents,
teachers, preachers,this is the one thing needful for us all. “Tarry,” saidJesus
to the first evangelists,“tarry in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with
powerfrom on high” it is of no use to begin without that...
Paul’s ministry wrote the Epistle of Christ upon the Corinthians, or, if we
prefer it, wrought such a change in their hearts that they became an epistle of
Christ, an epistle to which he appealedin proof of his apostolic calling. In
expressing himself as he does about this, he is again anticipating the coming
contrastof Law and Gospel. (2 Corinthians 3 Commentary)
Living God- Markedcontrastwith lifeless ink or dead, coldslabs of stone.
Living God- This greatdescription of the Eternal God appears 28x in
Scripture - Dt 5:26; Josh3:10; 1 Sam 17:26, 36;2 Kgs 19:4, 16;Ps 42:2; 84:2;
Isa 37:4, 17; Jer10:10; 23:36;Dan 6:20, 26;Hos 1:10; Matt 16:16; 26:63;Acts
14:15;Ro 9:26; 2 Cor 3:3; 6:16; 1Ti3:15; 4:10; Heb 3:12; 9:14; 10:31;12:22;
Rev 7:2
Beetadds that Living God "suggeststhe activity of God, ever blessing,
protecting, or punishing. After placing in contrastto the letters written with
ink brought by his opponents the gift of the Holy Spirit, Paul places this gift in
further contrastto the stone tablets receivedby Moses onMount Sinai. And
very suitably. Forthese tablets of stone, preserved during long ages, were an
abiding and visible and famous witness of the divine authority of Moses and of
the Covenantof which he was minister. No human hand, but the Hand which
made Sinai and the world, tracedthose venerable characters. Butthey were
written only on lifeless stone, on material apparently the most lasting yet
doomed to perish. But the divine writing of which Paul had been the pen was

172. on living human hearts, destined to retain and show forth in endless life the
handwriting of God.
Not on tablets of stone - A description of the "TenCommandments"
representative of the Old Covenant of the Law. Paul begins to contrastthe
Old Covenantand the New Covenant. The Old Covenant was clearlyexternal
and provided no internal power to live out the commandments. You could
hold the tablets of stone in your hands your entire life but it would never
change your life. The New Covenantministry is an inside job", the Spirit of
the Living God indwelling, empowering and transforming believers from the
inside out!
In other words, the New Covenant which was prophesied in the Old
Testamentprovided a "spiritual heart transplant", Ezekielrecording God's
promise that...
I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them. And I will take
the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they
may walk in My statutes and keepMy ordinances and do them. Then they will
be My people, and I shall be their God (Ezekiel11:19, 20).
Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I
will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and
you will be carefulto observe My ordinances. (Ezekiel36:26, 27)
Comment: Both of these passages in Ezekieldescribe the New Covenantwhich
was inaugurated by Christ on the Cross. See study of New CovenantPromised
in the Old Testament.

173. Jeremiahreiterates the prophetic promise of the New Covenant God
declaring...
This (Je 31:31, 32) is the covenantwhich I will make with the house of Israel
after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on
their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
(Jer 31:33).
Tablets of human hearts - "tables which are hearts of flesh" (cp God's
indictment of Judah's sin - Jer 17:1).
Tablets (4109)(plax)describes a flat, broad surface, tablet or plain (or land),
and in the NT describes a flat stone on which inscriptions are written.
Plax - 2Co 3:3 (2x), He 9:4.
Hebrews 9:4 having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant
coveredon all sides with gold, in which was a goldenjar holding the manna,
and Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant;
Plax - 33x in 21vSeptuagint (LXX) - Ex 31:18; 32:15, 16, 19;34:1, 4, 28, 29;
Dt 4:13; 5:22; 9:9, 10, 11, 15, 17;10:1, 2, 3; 1Ki 8:9; 2Chr 5:10
2 Chronicles 5:10 There was nothing in the ark except the two tablets which
Moses put there at Horeb, where the LORD made a covenantwith the sons of
Israel, when they came out of Egypt.

174. Human (4560)(sarkinos from sarx = flesh) is an adjective meaning fleshly,
describing that which is made of or consists offlesh. The suffix –inos refers to
the material from which the noun is composed.
Solomonuses a similar metaphor exhorting his readers...
Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write
them on the tablet of your heart. (Pr 3:3) (William Arnot's comment on Pr 3:3
= The Art of Printing) (Proverbs 3:3-6 J Vernon McGee'sCommentary)
Bind them ("my words" - Pr 7:1,2) on your fingers. Write them on the tablet
of your heart. (Pr 7:3)
D Thomas refers to this sectionas "Soul (Heart) Literature"...
Soul literature: — Christianity written on the soul is Christianity —
I. IN THE MOST LEGIBLE FORM.
II. IN THE MOST CONVINCING FORM. Bookshave been written on the
evidences of Christianity; but one life permeated by the Christian spirit
furnishes an argument that baffles all controversy.

175. III. IN THE MOST PERSUASIVE FORM. There is a magnetism in gospel
truth embodied which you seek forin vain in any written work. When the
“Word is made flesh” it is made “mighty through God.”
IV. IN THE MOST ENDURING FORM.The tablet is imperishable. Paper
will crumble, institutions will dissolve, marble or brass are corruptible.
V. IN THE DIVINEST FORM. The hand caninscribe it on parchment or
stone, but only God can write it on the heart, (D. Thomas, D. D.) (The Biblical
illustrator; or, Anecdotes - Page 70)
Paul Apple writes
The Only Valid Commendation for Effective Ministry = Changed Lives
A. Impressive Disciples - Changedlives evident to all
B. Imitators of Christ - Nurtured by GoodRole Models
1. Producing Christlikeness - “being manifestedthat you are a letter of
Christ”
2. Using us as Spiritual Caretakers - “caredfor by us”

176. C. Supernaturally Changed – by the Holy Spirit - “written not with ink, but
with the Spirit of the living God”
D. Internally Transformed -- a Matter of the Heart (not external reform) -
“not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts.” (2Corinthians)
David writes of the righteous that...
The law of his God is in his heart; His steps do not slip. (Ps 37:31)
Spurgeon: The best thing in the best place, producing the best results. Well
might the man's talk be so admirable when his heart was so well stored. To
love holiness, to have the motives and desires sanctified, to be in one's inmost
nature obedient to the Lord -- this is the surest method of making the whole
run of our life efficient for its greatends, and even for securing the details of
it, our steps from any serious mistake. To keepthe even tenor of one's way, in
such times as these, is given only to those whose hearts are sound towards
God, who can, as in the text, call God their God. Policyslips and trips, it twists
and tacks, andafter all is worstedin the long run, but sincerity plods on its
plain pathway and reaches the goal.
John Trapp: He hath a Bible in his head, and another in his heart; he hath a
goodtreasure within, and there hence brings goodthings.
Again David wrote...
I delight to do Thy will, O my God; Thy Law is within my heart. (Ps 40:8)

177. Spurgeon: Yea, thy law is within my heart. No outward, formal devotion was
rendered by Christ; his heart was in his work, holiness was his element, the
Father's will his meat and drink. We must eachof us be like our Lord in this,
or we shall lack the evidence of being his disciples. Where there is no heart
work, no pleasure, no delight in God's law, there can be no acceptance.Let
the devout reader adore the Saviour for the spontaneous and hearty manner
in which he undertook the greatwork of our salvation.
James Denneysums up this sectionwriting that...
Amid all these details let us take care not to lose the one greatlessonofthe
passage. Christianpeople owe a testimony to Christ. His name has been
pronounced over them, and all who look at them ought to see His nature. We
should discernin the heart and in the behavior of Christians the handwriting,
let us saythe characters, notof avarice, of suspicion, of envy, of lust, of
falsehood, ofpride, but of Christ. It is to us He has committed Himself; we are
the certificationto men of what He does for man; His characteris in our care.
The true epistles of Christ to the world are not those which are expounded in
pulpits; they are not even the gospels in which Christ Himself lives and moves
before us; they are living men and women, on the tables of whose hearts the
Spirit of the living God, ministered by a true evangelist, has engravedthe
likeness ofChrist Himself. It is not the written Word on which Christianity
ultimately depends; it is not the sacraments, nor so-callednecessary
institutions: it is this inward, spiritual, Divine writing which is the guarantee
of all else. (2 Corinthians 3 Commentary)
Here is a illustration of a living epistle from Christ = The Life of Adoniram
Judson - Many years ago when the greatmissionary Adoniram Judson was
home on furlough, he passedthrough the city of Stonington, Connecticut. A
young boy playing about the wharves at the time of Judson’s arrival was

178. struck by the man’s appearance. Neverbefore had he seensuch a light on any
human face (cp 2Co 3:18-note, 1Co 15:49). He ran up the streetto a minister
to ask if he knew who the strangerwas. The minister hurried back with him,
but became so absorbedin conversationwith Judsonthat he forgotall about
the impatient youngster standing near him. Many years afterwardthat boy—
who could never get awayfrom the influence of that wonderful face—became
the famous preacher Henry Clay Trumbull. (author of the insightful and
fascinating book The BloodCovenant A Primitive Rite And Its Bearings on
Scripture) In a book of memoirs he penned a chapterentitled: "Whata Boy
Saw in the Face ofAdoniram Judson." Thatlighted countenance had changed
his life. Even as flowers thrive when they bend to the light, so shining, radiant
faces come to those who constantly turn toward Christ!
F B Meyer's devotional "An Autograph Letter" -
THE APOSTLE Paul's life was made wearyby the incessantoppositionof his
enemies and critics, who soweddiscordin the churches which he had formed
in Europe. Amongst others, they visited Corinth and challengedhim to
produce letters of commendation from the leaders of the Church. With
justifiable indignation he cries:"Why should I carry letters, when my
converts, given me by the Lord, are circulating everywhere, with the attesting
signature of Christ upon them?" Surely they are a sufficient guarantee and
proof that I have been commissionedand sentforth by the Lord Himself.
St. Paul gave utterance to a true and striking description of a Christian
disciple. He is an autographletter, the Author and Writer is the Lord
Himself--"an epistle of Christ." The ink is "the Spirit of the Living God." The
pen is the teacheror preacher of the Gospel, "ministeredby us." The Material
is the heart and life--"not on tables of stone, but on hearts of flesh."

179. We ought to be Christians in large type, so that it would not be necessaryto be
long in our society, orto regardus through spectacles, in order to detect our
true discipleship. The message ofour lives should resemble the big
advertisements which can be read on the street-hoardings by all who pass by.
The merit of goodletter-writing is to state what the writer wants to sayas
clearly and conciselyas possible. Sometimes we have to wade through long
and wearypages before we can get at the gist of our correspondent's meaning.
Let us take care that the messageofour lives is clear, concise, and
unmistakable.
We are to be pens in the hand of Christ--our sufficiency is of God, who makes
us ministers. Milton's pen had only to yield itself relentlesslyto the hand of the
daughter or amanuensis, to whom the blind masterdictated his immortal
words. And the messages whichwe are to inscribe on the hearts and lives of
men do not originate in us, but with Christ. If others are used more than we
are, it is because they are more meet for His use (2Ti 2:15-21).
PRAYER- Live in us, blessedLord, by Thy Holy Spirit, that our lives may be
living epistles of helpfulness and blessedness. Maythe Name of the Lord Jesus
be glorified in us. AMEN.
Keep On Writing - The following poem written by Paul Gilbert is intended to
encourage us as Christians to be persuasive, flesh-and-blood testimonies for
our Savior.
You’re writing a “gospel,” Achapter eachday,
By the deeds that you do, By the words that you say;
Men read what you write, Whether faithless or true;
Say, what is the “gospel” According to you?

180. Sometimes, however, our writing is done with scratchypens. Maybe it’s badly
blurred and so illegible that God’s messagecan’tbe deciphered.
Hannah More, an outstanding witness for the gospelin 19th-century England,
sometimes felt discouragedabout the quality of her spiritual penmanship.
Although she organized schools forthe unevangelized poor and wrote many
tracts and hymns, she had a low opinion of her effectiveness.This was her
self-appraisal:“Godis sometimes pleasedto work with the most unworthy
instruments—I suppose to take awayevery shadow of doubt that it is His own
doing. It always gives me the idea of a greatauthor writing with a very bad
pen.”
Yet we need not be discouraged. God, the greatAuthor, is able to use even
scratchypens like you and me to communicate His message to people around
us. Regardlessofhow we appraise our penmanship, let’s prayerfully keepon
writing. -- Vernon C. Grounds
We're not calledto work for God,
but to let God work through us.
Living Stones - I’ve seena number of recentreports about efforts to remove
monuments with the TenCommandments from public places in the US. It’s
regrettable, for the monuments celebrate righteousness,and “righteousness
exalts a nation” (Pr 14:34). I believe that removing these reminders is a
reflectionof our crumbling moral foundations.

181. There is one enduring monument to righteousness, however, thatcannot be
removed: the truth of Christ, written on human hearts by the Spirit of God (2
Corinthians 3:3).
Those who have the law of God written on their hearts love the Lord with all
their mind, soul, and strength. They demonstrate this love to the world by
showing honor to their parents, faithfulness in their marriage, and integrity in
their work. They respecthuman life and treat all men and women with
dignity and honor. They don’t speak evil of anyone, no matter how much evil
has been done to them. They are content with God and what He has given
them, and they want nothing more. These are the outward signs that God’s
law is alive, written on our hearts “by the Spirit of the living God” (2Co 3:3).
You and I are living monuments to His grace. We must stand tall. The world
is watching. — by David H. Roper
God's laws engraved on our hearts
can never be removed from the public arena.
W Grant describes....
HOW WE MAY SO USE THIS EPISTLE (referring to the believer a letter
written by Christ) THAT IT MAY SERVE THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH IT
WAS WRITTEN.
We may commend Christ —

182. 1. With our lips. Our conversationmay be an epistle to make knownHis
praises. The circulation of the epistle written with ink — the printed Bible —
is our duty. Even so it is our duty to publish the living epistle. It was intended
to be an open letter, known and read of all men. How many are there with
whom we daily associate who neverread the written Bible, the only hope of
whose salvationis that they may read or hear the living epistle!By our silence
we concealthat epistle from them, and leave them to perish.
2. By our lives. It is in vain that we speak of Christ with our lips if our lives
belie our words. Our actions, like a pen full of ink, trace certaincharacters,
leave certain impressions on the mind and memory of those who see them. In
beholding our actions, have men been led to say of us, “These men have been
with Jesus”?
3. By our character. A man’s outward manner may be in direct opposition to
his inward character. To be true epistles of Christ we must reflectHis image,
not in word only, or in action, but in our dispositions and desires. (W. Grant.)
(The Biblical illustrator; or, Anecdotes - Page 72)
William Arnot (author of one of the better commentaries on the Book of
Proverbs [Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth] - but only comments on
selectedpassages)has a sermon entitled...
Epistles of Christ
From the example of the MasterPaulhad acquired the habit of gliding softly
and quickly from a common objectof nature to the deep things of grace. The
practice of asking and obtaining certificates seemsto have been introduced at
a very early period into the Christian Church, and already some abuses had

183. crept in along with it. We gather from this epistle that some very well
recommended missionaries had been spoiling Paul’s work at Corinth.
Virtually challengedto exhibit his own certificates, he boldly appeals to those
who had been convertedthrough his ministry, and now he glides into a
greaterthing — Christians are an epistle of Christ. Regarding these epistles,
consider—
I. THE MATERIAL WRITTEN ON.
1. Many different substances have been employed in writing; but one feature
is common to all — in their natural state they are not fit to be used as writing
materials. They must undergo a process ofpreparation. Even the primitive
material of stone must be polished ere the engraving begin. The reeds, and
leaves, and skins, too, which were used by the ancients, all needed
preparation. So with modern paper, of which rags are the raw material. These
are torn into small pieces, washed, castinto a new form, and become a “new
creature.” A similar process takesplace in the preparation of the material for
an epistle of Christ. You might as well try to write upon the rubbish from
which paper is made as to impress legible evidence for the truth and divinity
of the gospelon the life of one who is still “of the earth, earthy.”
2. The paper manufacturer is not nice in the choice of his materials. The clean
cannot be serviceable without passing through the process, andthe unclean
can be made serviceable with it. Let no man think he can go into heaven
because he is good; but neither let any one fear he will be kept out of it
because he is evil.
II. THE WRITING.

184. It is not Christianity printed in the creed, but Christ written in the heart. A
person’s charactermay be gatheredfrom his letters. How eagerlythe public
read those of a great man printed after his death! Our Lord left no letters, yet
He has not left Himself without a witness. When He desires to let the world
know what He is, He points to Christians. Nay, when He would have the
Father to behold His glory, He refers Him to the saved: “I am glorified in
them.” A Christian merchant goes to India or China. He sells manufactured
goods;he buys silk and tea. But all the time he is a living epistle, sent by
Christ to the heathen. A Christian boy becomes an apprentice, and is now,
therefore, a letter from the Lord to all his shop mates.
III. THE WRITER.
“The Spirit of the living God.”
Some writings are easilyrubbed off by rough usage or with age. Only fast
colours are truly valuable. The flowers and figures painted upon porcelain are
burned in, and therefore cannotbe blotted out. No writing on a human spirit
is certainly durable except that which the Spirit of God lays on. In conversion
there is a sort of furnace through which the new-born pass. In the widespread
religious activity of the day some marks are made on the people — not made
by the Spirit of God— shownby the event to have been only marks on the
surface made by some passing fearor nervous sympathy.
IV. THE PEN.
In photography it is the sun that makes the portrait; yet a human hand
prepares the plate and adjusts the lens. A similar place is assignedto the
ministry of men in the work of the Spirit. Printing nowadays is done by

185. machines which work with a strength and regularity and silence that are
enough to strike an onlookerwith dismay. Yet even there a watchful human
eye and alert human hand axe needed to introduce the paper into the proper
place. Agents are needed even under the ministry of the Spirit — needed to
watchfor souls.
V. THE READERS.
1. The writing is not sealedor lockedup in a desk, but exposedall the day to
public view. Some who look on the letters are enemies, and some are friends.
If an alien see Christ representedin a Christian, he may thereby be turned
from darkness to light; but, if he see sin, self, and the world, he will probably
be more hardened in his unbelief. Those who alreadyknow and love the truth
are glad when they read it clearlywritten in a neighbour’s life, are grieved
when they see a false image of the Lord held up before the eyes of men.
2. Many readers, however, fail to see the meaning of the plainest letters. None
so blind as those who will not see. Considering how defective most readers are
either in will or skill, or both, the living epistles should be written in
characters both large and fair. Some MSS. are so defectivelywritten that none
but experts can decipher them. Skilled and practisedmen canpiece them
together, and gather the sense where, to ordinary eyes, only unconnected
scrawls appear. Benevolentingenuity has produced a kind of writing that
even the blind canread. Such should be the writing of Christ’s mind on a
Christian’s conversation. It should be raisedin characters so large that even
the blind, who cannot see, may be compelled, by contactwith Christians, to
feel that Christ is passing by. (W. Arnot, D. D.) (The Biblical illustrator; or,
Anecdotes - Page 72)

186. F B Meyer
Our Daily Walk
AN AUTOGRAPH LETTER
"Ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ, ministered by us,
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the Living God."-- 2Cor3:3.
THE APOSTLE Paul's life was made wearyby the incessantoppositionof his
enemies and critics, who soweddiscordin the churches which he had formed
in Europe. Amongst others, they visited Corinth and challengedhim to
produce letters of commendation from the leaders of the Church. With
justifiable indignation he cries:"Why should I carry letters, when my
converts, given me by the Lord, are circulating everywhere, with the attesting
signature of Christ upon them?" Surely they are a sufficient guarantee and
proof that I have been commissionedand sentforth by the Lord Himself.
St. Paul gave utterance to a true and striking description of a Christian
disciple. He is an autographletter, the Author and Writer is the Lord
Himself--"an epistle of Christ." The ink is "the Spirit of the Living God." The
pen is the teacheror preacher of the Gospel, "ministeredby us." The Material
is the heart and life--"not on tables of stone, but on hearts of flesh."
We ought to be Christians in large type, so that it would not be necessaryto be
long in our society, orto regardus through spectacles, in order to detect our
true discipleship. The message ofour lives should resemble the big

187. advertisements which can be read on the street-hoardings by all who pass by.
The merit of goodletter-writing is to state what the writer wants to sayas
clearly and conciselyas possible. Sometimes we have to wade through long
and wearypages before we can get at the gist of our correspondent's meaning.
Let us take care that the messageof our lives is clear, concise, and
unmistakable.
We are to be pens in the hand of Christ--our sufficiency is of God, who makes
us ministers. Milton's pen had only to yield itself relentlesslyto the hand of the
daughter or amanuensis, to whom the blind masterdictated his immortal
words. And the messageswhichwe are to inscribe on the hearts and lives of
men do not originate in us, but with Christ. If others are used more than we
are, it is because they are more meet for His use (2Ti2:15-21).
PRAYER- Live in us, blessedLord, by Thy Holy Spirit, that our lives may be
living epistles of helpfulness and blessedness. Maythe Name of the Lord Jesus
be glorified in us. AMEN.
CHARLES SIMEON
CHRISTIANS ARE EPISTLES OF CHRIST
2 Corinthians 3:2-3. If are our epistle written in our hearts, knownand read
of all men: forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

188. HATEFUL and detestable as boasting is, there are occasions whereonit may
be proper, and even necessary. As far as a man’s own reputation merely is
concerned, he need not be forward to vindicate himself from false accusations:
if he be a holy and consistentcharacter, he may safely leave himself in God’s
hands, indifferent about the censures ofan ungodly world: but where the
honour of the Gospelis at stake, andthere is danger of its influence being
undermined by the falsehoods that are circulated, it is by no means unworthy
even of an Apostle to refute the calumnies that are raisedagainsthim. There
were at Corinth false teachers, who soughtby all possible means to destroy
the characterofthe Apostle Paul, and who even denied his claim to apostolic
authority. In answerto their malignant accusations, St. Paul, in his former
Epistle to the Corinthians, says, “Am I not an Apostle? Have I not seenJesus
Christ our Lord? Are not you my work in the Lord? If I be not an Apostle
unto others, yet doubtless I am to you: for the sealof mine apostleshipare ye
in the Lord [Note:1 Corinthians 9:1-2.].” Thus, in this epistle also he
vindicates himself as ministering, not like the false teachers, who corrupted
the word of God, but with a holy integrity befitting his high office [Note:2
Corinthians 2:17.]. Yet apprehensive lesthe should be misunderstood, as
though he felt a need of such commendations either from himself or others, he
appealedto his converts themselves as proofs sufficient of his apostleship,
even such proofs as carried, to the most thoughtless beholder, their own
evidence along with them: “Ye are our epistle, &c. &c.:” that is, ‘I need not
epistles from men, since ye yourselves are epistles from the Lord Jesus Christ,
testifying that I am his servant, and that the Gospelwhich I preachis the very
truth of God.”
In further considering these words, we may notice from them,
I. The characterof all true converts—

189. Christians are epistles of Christ, written for the instruction of the whole
world. Epistles from man to man, such as were those which the false teachers
carried with them as letters of recommendationfrom Church to Church, were
written with ink; but Christ’s epistles are written with the Spirit of the living
God; and not, as the law of the ten commandments was, in tables of stone, but
in fleshy tables of the heart; to which God alone can have access, andon
which God alone canmake any valuable impressions. Ministers indeed are
used by him as instruments, as the word also is; but these can effectno more
than a pen or ink canwithout the hand of a writer: “Paulmay plant, and
Apollos may water;but it is God alone who can give the increase [Note:1
Corinthians 3:5-7.].”
By these epistles the Lord Jesus Christ teaches men,
1. What is that change that must be wrought on every child of man—
[Christians once walkedafter the course of this world, fulfilling the desires of
the flesh and of the mind, and were children of wrath, even as others [Note:
Ephesians 2:2-3.]. But a great change has been wrought in them: they have
been “turned from darkness. unto light, and from the power of Satanunto
God.” They are become “new creatures:” their views, their desires, their
pursuits, are all new. The change that has takenplace in them is not unlike
that of a river, which, from flowing rapidly towards the ocean, is arrestedin
its course, and made by the refluent tide to return with equal rapidity towards
the fountain-head. Thus are these turned “in the spirit of their minds,” the
whole bent of which was formerly after the things of time and sense, but is
now directed to the service of the living God [Note: 1 Thessalonians 1:9.].
These being still in the world, though not of it, are living instructors to all
around them: they are epistles “knownand read of all men.” From the

190. Scriptures men will turn their eyes;but from these epistles they cannot: they
are constrainedto see the truths recorded in them: and, howeverthey may
hate the change which they behold, they are compelled to acknowledgeit: and
they are admonished by it, that, without such a change, they themselves can
never be partakers ofthe kingdom of heaven. In a word, by every true
convert, Christ speaks to all, as once he did to Nicodemus, “Verily, verily, I
say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of
heaven.”]
2. By what means that change is to be effected—
[Howeverthe followers of Christ may differ from eachother in minor points,
they all agree in founding their hopes of salvationentirely on his atoning
blood, and on the effectualoperationof his Spirit within them: the declaration
of every one amongstthem is, “Surely in the Lord, and in him alone, have I
righteousness andstrength [Note: Isaiah45:24.].”
These things then does the Lord Jesus Christ proclaim to the world by them.
By them he says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto
the Father, but by me.” “There is no other name but mine given under heaven
whereby men may be saved;” “nor is there any other foundation whereonany
man can build” his hopes. ‘And, as they look to me for their acceptancewith
God, so must they also do for the gift of my Spirit, who alone canbegin, or
carry on, or perfect, a work of grace in their souls.’It is in reality this
testimony which so offends the world. If they were taught to rely on their own
merits, or to depend on their own arm, they would extol the persons who thus
distinguished themselves by their superior attainments in holiness:but, when
they are told that all their hope must be in the righteousness ofanother, and
in strength communicated from above, they pour contempt upon it all as
foolishness. Neverthelesssuchare the lessons whichChristians teachto all

191. around them; and such are the instructions which Christ conveys by them to a
benighted world.]
Whilst they thus speak from Christ they give us just occasionalso to notice,
II. The honour they reflect on the Gospelof Christ—
They are all not merely epistles from Christ, but witnesses alsofor him. As the
Jews were witnesses forGod to all nations of the earth, since no other god
could ever have effectedwhat he had wrought for them [Note:Isaiah 43:10-
12.], and as all the persons whom Jesus healedwere witnesses forhim as the
true Messiah[Note:Matthew 11:25.], so are all true converts witnesses,
1. Of the truth of the Gospel—
[What other systemever wrought as that has done? Look at all the means
which men have devised for obtaining reconciliationwith God; and see if they
have ever operatedso powerfully, and so beneficially, on the souls of those
who have embracedthem, as has the simple doctrine of the cross? No:by no
other doctrine did God ever work, nor by any other doctrine will he ever
work, for the sanctificationand salvationof a ruined world. Go to any place
under heaven where Christ is not exaltedas the only Saviour of the world, or
where the Spirit of the living God is not honoured as the only source of all real
holiness of heart and life, and see what the state is of those who are so taught:
will there be found among them any work like that on the day of Pentecost?
Will the word preachedthere be quick, and powerful, and sharper than a two-
edgedsword? Will “the weapons usedthere be found mighty to pull down the
strong holds” of sin and Satan, and to “bring men’s thoughts into captivity to
the obedience ofChrist?” No: God does not, and will not, work by any thing

192. but a simple exhibition of Christ crucified. It is the Gospelonly that is “the
rod of his strength,” or that will ever prove “the power of God to the salvation
of the soul.” But where that is preached, these effects are wrought; multitudes
are “brought out of darkness into marvellous light,” and are enabled to shew
by their works the reality of their faith; and thus they give undoubted
evidence, that the Gospelwhich is ministered unto them is the true Gospel. As
Christ saidof the people whom he had healed, “The works that I do, the same
bear witness of me,” so may we say of these persons, that they are “seals,”
whereby God himself attests the mission of his servants, and the truth of the
doctrine which they deliver.]
2. Of the efficacyof the Gospel—
[It is not a mere external change which the Gospeleffects, but a change of the
whole soul, from sin and sorrow to holiness and joy. The “peace”whichit
introduces into the troubled mind, “passethall understanding:” and the “joy”
to which it elevates the repenting sinner, is “unspeakable andglorified.” In
respectof sanctification, it does not produce absolute perfection; for “there is
not a man on earth that liveth and sinneth not;” but it transforms the soul in a
very wonderful manner, and changes it progressively, if not perfectly, “into
the very image of God, in righteousness andtrue holiness.” In short, it brings
the Lord Jesus Christand the believer into so near an union with eachother,
that they are one body [Note: Ephesians 5:30.], and “one spirit [Note:1
Corinthians 6:17.],” partakers of the same blessings in this world [Note:John
17:13;John 17:22-23;John 17:26.], and heirs of the same glory in the world to
come [Note: Romans 8:17.].
What other doctrine everdid, or can, effect such a change as this? Noteven
God’s law, which he wrote in tables of stone, could operate to such an extent
as this: the Gospelalone is competentto such a task:as St. Paul has said;
“What the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God

193. sending his own Son in the likeness ofsinful flesh, and for sin, did; that is, he
condemned sin in the flesh; that the righteousness ofthe law might be fulfilled
in us, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit [Note:Romans 8:3-4.].”
Moreover, it is not on those only who are of a better and more pliant frame of
mind, that the Gospelthus operates, but on the vilest of the human race;as
indisputably appeared in the Corinthian Church [Note: 1 Corinthians 6:9-11.]
— — — The instances too of such efficacyare not rare, but frequent. On one
day were three thousand such converts made; and in every age from that
period to the present has the same power been exerted to change the lion to a
lamb, and “a desertto the garden of the Lord.” Such converts “shine as lights
in a dark world,” and, by “holding forth the word of life” as epistles from
Christ, they shew that “the minister has not run in vain, nor laboured in vain
[Note:Philippians 2:15-16.].”]
Address—
1. Seek to have the mind of Christ more fully inscribed upon your hearts—
[Belovedbrethren, let not a day pass without your having some divine lesson
written more clearlyand more legibly upon your souls. Bring your hearts
daily to the Lord Jesus Christ, and present them as a tablet to him, that he
may write upon them something which they have not hitherto contained. And
when you come up to the house of God, come, not to gratify curiosity, or to
perform a duty merely, but to spread your hearts again before the Lord, that,
by the instrumentality of his minister, and the operation of his word and
Spirit, he may inscribe on them some further lesson, whichshall attract the
notice of an ungodly world, and constrainthem to acknowledgethat God is
with you of a truth. If there be a blot upon your hearts, entreathim to erase it:
and whateveris but indistinctly written, entreat him to trace it over againand
again, till it shall appear in characters worthy of the Divine Author, and
convey to all who behold it a decisive proof of its divine original. And, at the

194. close ofevery day, examine the contents of the epistle, to see whatprogress
has been made, and what yet remains to be added for its perfection. Nor ever
forgetby whom the characters must be inscribed: it is “by the Spirit of the
living God,” and by the Lord Jesus Christ through him. If you look to any
other quarter, you will be disappointed: but, if you go to Christ for the gift of
his Spirit, and desire really to have his whole mind and will written upon your
hearts, it shall be done; till you are “changedinto his image from glory to
glory by the Spirit of our God.”]
2. Endeavour to exhibit the whole mind of Christ to a careless andungodly
world—
[Let there not be seenin you those tempers and dispositions which dishonour
the Christian profession, and make the Gospela stumbling-block to the world.
In too many professors ofreligion there is little seenbut pride, and
forwardness, and self-confidence, andloquacity, and uncharitableness, and a
disputatious temper, and a party spirit. But are these the characters inscribed
by Christ? No: but by that wickedone, who counterfeits the hand of Christ,
on purpose to bring him and his Gospelinto generalcontempt. Whatever
there is of such dispositions within you, getthem obliterated without delay;
and all the graces ofhumility, and meekness,and love, inscribed in their place
[Note:Colossians 3:12-13.]. Peoplewill judge of our ministry by the lives of
those who attend it; and will impute to our doctrines every evil which they can
find in you. This is unreasonable indeed: but they will do so;and we cannot
prevent it; and if they see in you what is odious, they will representit as the
necessaryfruit of the system you profess. Takecare then that “the wayof
truth be not evil spokenof through you.” Endeavourrather so to “make your
light shine before men, that all who behold it may glorify your Fatherwhich is
in heaven:” yea, “let it shine brighter and brighter unto the perfect day.”]

195. 3:1-3 God’s Commendations
Previous Next
2 Corinthians 3:1-3 “Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Ordo
we need, like some people, letters of recommendationto you or from you? You
yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, knownand read by
everybody. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our
ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on
tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.”
Ministers of the gospelare often askedto write letters of recommendation.
Landlords write to ask if people would make goodtenants: “Have they
faithfully paid the rent on your apartment?” Firms write asking for
references forjob applicants. Churches and Christian organisations write
about the consistencyofthe lives of those who want to work for them.
Sometimes they demand a very thorough statementnot only of the strengths
but the weaknessesalso ofa Christian. We personally write a number of such
letters of recommendationeachyear. We occasionallygetsuch letters sent to
us, or we request them. There is an essentialplace for such letters.
A man in South Africa once knockedon the Rev. Martin Holdt’s door and
told him that he had recently moved to the town with a new job, and that he
was intending to worship with Martin because he knew he loved the doctrines
of grace and he himself wanted to hear the whole counselof God. He had been
working with the young people in his former church and would be glad to get
stuck into such work in this church. Martin was delighted to hear the news.
The man was serious and sincere. To know of such a family soonto join the
church was exciting. The man proceededto tell him that he was having
bureaucratic difficulties in transferring his accountfrom a bank to his new

196. bank in the town, but that it would be settled in a couple of days. In the
meantime the agencyfrom which he was renting his new house required a
down-payment and he was wondering if he could borrow that sum for two
days from Martin. The pastor was very agreeable, but before he went for the
money a slight niggle made him hesitate. “Could you give me the name of your
present pastorand I shall give him a calland tell him that you are with me?”
he asked. Immediately a change came overthe man. His countenance dropped
and he began to accuse Martinof a failure to love and trust a brother. Why
did he not take him at his word. Didn’t love believe all things? But Martin
stuck by his request, and the man gotmore angry finally stalking out of the
house in a fine rage. Martin later calleda pastor in the town which the man
had mentioned. He discoveredthat the man was a rogue, not to be trusted at
all, who had behaved like this in other places. He could talk the talk, but he
did not walk the walk. Providentially Martin had savedhimself being robbed
by a con-man.
We find letters of commendation in the New Testamentitself. Onesimus, the
runaway slave, is commended to his master Philemon by the apostle Paul.
Phoebe is commended: “I commend to you our sisterPhoebe, a servant of the
church in Cenchrea. I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of
the saints and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a
greathelp to many people, including me” (Roms. 16:1&2). There is another
example concerning Apollos. He had been working with the church in
Ephesus and now he intended to go across the sea to Achaia in Greece.We are
told, “the brothers encouragedhim and wrote to the disciples there to
welcome him” (Acts 18:27). That letter was enoughto secure for Apollos the
loving trust and support from the church in Corinth. There was no hint that
New TestamentChristians would know the genuiness ofan unknown
professing Christian by instinct, or that God in some supernatural way would
let them know that someone was one ofthe electwhile another person was not
to be trusted. There is nothing like that. Even New TestamentChristians
needed letters of recommendation, and so such letters are important at every
age.

197. When we write such letters it is the cause itselfthat must transcend any
considerations ofbeing pleasantto one individual. To flatter a man is to do
wrong not only to the personbeing flattered but to the cause which is thinking
of employing him. Writing a hundred years ago, atthe height of church
attendance in the British Isles, Dr James Denney could say, “There is no more
ludicrous reading in the world than a bundle of certificates, ortestimonials, as
they are called. As a rule, they certify nothing but the total absence of
judgment and consciencein the people who have granted them. If you do not
know whether a person is qualified for any given situation or not, you do not
need to say anything about it. If you know that he is not, and he asks you to
say that he is, no personalconsiderationmust keepyou from kindly but firmly
declining … It is wickedto betray a great interestby bespeaking it for
incompetent hands; it is cruel to put anyone into a place for which he is unfit.
Where you are confident that the man and the work will be well matched, be
as generous as you please;but never forgetthat the work is to be considered
in the first place, and the man only second” JamesDenney, “The Second
Letter to the Corinthians,” p.103).
1. The Apostle Paul Did Not NeedSuch Letters of Commendation.
He says this very firmly and with deep conviction because there was more at
state than a goodreference or a testimonial: “Are we beginning to commend
ourselves again? Ordo we need, like some people, letters of commendation to
you or from you” (v.1). The apostle is saying that there are three things he
does not need:
i] Paul doesn’t need to begin to commend himself to them. There is something
very unpleasant about self-commendation, and when I might wander into
those murky waters concerning subjects for prayer and praise at the mid-
week PrayerMeeting then you will rightly think, “Geoffdoes not need to

198. begin to do this.” All our lives we are learning that we cannot glory both in the
blood of Christ and in ourselves. If we glory in the cross we pour contempt on
all our pride. If you should hear a minister underestimating the number of
people who were attending his church when he first went there, and
exaggerating the crowds turning up today you are hearing a man
commending himself. Preachers do it with their own litanies of self-praise – “I
thank God that we were only 40 attending, but now we are 400. I thank God
that there are now six young men in the ministry. I thank God that I baptised
twenty people last year. I thank God that I have written five books…” And so
on. It is all accreditedto the Holy Spirit, of course, but that does not help us
setthe man in a more modest light because then we are being told that he is a
unique instrument of the Holy Spirit in God’s hands.
I suppose Paul’s enemies were attempting to steadily assassinatehis
reputation: “Have you ever thought that he didn’t bring any letters of
commendation when he came to Corinth? That is quite significant, isn’t it? He
is just commending himself, isn’t he?” Paul knew that that is what they were
saying because he protests his contempt for that sort of thing throughout the
letter: “We are not trying to commend ourselves to you again” (5:12): “we do
not dare to classifyor compare ourselves with some who commend
themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves and compare
themselves with themselves, they are not wise” (10:12):“Forit is not the one
who commends himself who is approved. but the one whom the Lord
commends” (10:18).
So he will not commend himself. How does Paul speak? We have seenthat he
has told us of his integrity by using three prepositions, “in Christ we speak –
before God – with sincerity, like men sent from God” (2:17). There were many
others peddling the word of God for profit. Nothing was further from his
mind. So this question opens this chapter:- “do you really think we are
beginning to commend ourselves again?” It is pitiful to see a greatgenerous
spirit like Paul compelled to be on guard and watchagainstthose who would

199. misconstructhis slightestword. It prevents him sharing encouragements, and
giving them true cause to praise God, because his detractors would turn such
reports into accusations thathe was boasting. Paulis so concernedthat he
should not lost the trust of the congregationatCorinth. Once his character
has gone in their eyes he has lost everything. It is a humiliating thing to be the
objectof suspicion– “he didn’t bring to Greece anyletters of commendation
from anyone, did he?” So Paul begins this chapter by raising the issue of self-
commendation, and determining that there was no need for him to begin now
to commend himself after mortifying for many years a spirit of self-
commendation. But he goes on…
ii] Paul did not need letters of recommendation to be sent on his behalf to the
Corinthians. Paul is being ironic. Do they think when he arrived in pagan
Corinth – where there were no Christians at all (and so no church) that he
needed to brandish to the people of the city a letter from some men who lived
in a farawayplace called Jerusalemto the effectthat this man Paul had
authority from them to speak to the citizens of Corinth? To whom would he
have shown it? Their names in Jerusalemwere as obscure as his. Was he not
an apostle, and uniquely the apostle whom God had sent to the Gentiles?
Were not all the apostles onthe same level? Did he not receive his apostleship
and messagenotfrom men or by man but by Jesus Christ and God the
Father? Had he not seenJesus forhimself on the road to Damascus? Hadhe
not been commissionedby him directly? Had he not been caughtup to the
third heaven and seenand heard the most wonderful sights and words? Was
he not greatly used by God everywhere? Thenhe did not need men to
commend him. He was a divinely commended apostle of Jesus Christ by the
will of God. That was all the authority needed.
iii] Paul doesn’t need letters of commendation written on his behalf by the
Corinthian church if he should move on to Spain or North Africa or Europe.
Is he talking about his opponents when he mentions letters of
recommendation “from you”? Had they started a counter missionary

200. organisation, and were they sending out their own anti-Pauline preachers? He
asks, “Do we needletters of recommendationfrom you?” They cannotadd to
his authority by what they write. He does not depend upon them. That is not
the nature of the relationship. Does one of the young art-students of
Rembrandt add to the greatnessofthat genius by writing a letter of
recommendation saying that Rembrandt is a very goodpainter? Did Mozart
need one of his piano-pupils to speak up for him? Did Shakespeare needa bit-
player in one of his dramas to brag up the playwright’s literary skills?
Greatness stands by its own achievements. So the Word of God preached and
written by Paul, and the effectthat it had had on the lives of thousands of
people in Corinth and millions eversince is its own commendation to the
world. Christopher Wren was the architectwho built St Paul’s and a number
of other London churches after the Great Fire of London in 1666. There was
no monument erectedto commemorate Wren, just a sentence, “Ifyou seek a
monument, look around you.” That greatcathedral of St Paul’s itself is the
monument to Wren, not some little plaque. So the church at Corinth and the
life and letters of Paul are all the commendationthat the apostle needs.
On a far greaterscale, the writings of the apostles John, Peter, Matthew,
James, Pauland so on, have not needed the councils and the approval of the
church fathers of ‘Mother Church’ for Christians to take seriouslyJohn’s
gospel, orPeter’s epistles, or Paul’s letter to the Romans and believe them,
and obey what they read in them. The authority was in those documents
already by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Merely to recognise that
authority was the duty of the church, and to make sure that they did not add
to the apostolic writings their own ideas, so elevating those ideas and making
them binding. Todaythere are fine books written by such scholars as the late
F.F.Bruce thatdefend the truthfulness of the New Testamentdocuments, but
professors do not donate any reliability to the Scriptures. The Spirit of truth
himself did that. The apostles andtheir writings have no deficiencies so that
they need words of recommendationfrom men.

201. 2. EachTrue Christian is a Letter from Christ to the World.
“You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by
everybody” (v.2). In the first verse he has been ironical, but here he is not
being funny. You see Paul’s argument? “I am not going to commend myself to
you at this time in our relationship. We have known one another for some
years. Why should I do it now? After all, if I want a letter of commendation
all I have to do is to refer to you yourselves. It is you Christians at Corinth
who are my letter of commendation. Everyone knows that you were converted
under my ministry and that, as a result, I have you on my heart.”
Should Paul be askedin Corinth to present his credentials he could introduce
his interrogatorto Crispus or Gaius or Stephanas, some of the Corinthian
converts. He would sayto these men, “Tellthis questioner how you came to
know God.” Then one by one those men could speak up and say how once
their lives were in a greatmuddle, but they were invited to come and hear
Paul speaking, and after some time, in believing the gospelof Christ that the
apostle preached, their whole lives had been radically changed. All three men
would tell the same story of Christ’s redeeming grace – though personal
details would be quite different. Such men and women were Paul’s letter of
commendation; they were an open book for anyone to read. Paul had very
carefully spelled out the divine message to them, that men were in such a lost
condition because of personalsin and guilt, but God in love had sent his Son
who had become the Lamb of God who had taken awaythe sin of the world.
By acknowledging their ownsin and their need of God’s saving grace and
crying mightily to the Lord their lives had been revolutionised. Some letters
are very private, but these ‘letters’ were to be made known and forwarded to
the whole world. Charles Wesleycaptures that sentiment when he cries,
O that the world might taste and see the riches of his grace!The arms of love
that compass me would all mankind embrace.

202. So, whereverthe apostle might have needed some letters of recommendationit
was certainly not in Corinth. There is a most moving sentence in his first letter
to the Corinthians where he says to them, “Are you not the result of my work
in the Lord? Even though I may not be an apostle to others, surely I am to
you! For you are the sealof my apostleshipin the Lord” (I Cor. 9:1&2). If
there had been a group of Christians in Corinth when Paul suddenly turned
up in their fellowshipthey should have done what Martin Holdt did and
checkedup on him. Paul himself had warned the churches of the possibility of
false teachers arriving unheralded: “I know that after I leave,” he told the
elders at Ephesus, “savage wolveswill come in among you and will not spare
the flock … so be on your guard!” (Acts 20:29). So whenevera stranger
arrived in the fellowship, though his face shone, and his eyes twinkled, and he
spoke of his wonderful experiences with the most mellifluous voice, yet the
elders would turn to one another and softly ask, “Mightthis not be one of
those wolves the apostle warned us about, dressedin sheep’s clothing?” They
sought letters of recommendation from gospelchurches in other places who
might know this man. But the Corinthian congregationwere in a different
relationship to Paul. They owedtheir Christianity to the apostle. He was their
father in Christ. Now to listen to his detractors and to begin to question his
ministry was unfilial ingratitude. They themselves were living evidence of the
very thing they were being encouragedto doubt – the apostleshipof Paul.
Let me turn this passagein a very challenging way – as far as preachers are
concerned. There are those of us who preachconstantly and yet have seenno
results for our work. It is very easyto disparage success, and to doubt the
genuiness of the conversions and the growthin other congregations.It is
common for us to glorify the ministry which plods on, patiently and
uncomplainingly, ever sowing but rarely reaping, every casting the net, but
never drawing in a fish. Paul appeals to changedlives as the final and
sufficient proof that God had calledhim and given him authority as an
apostle. This is the greatmark of a man calledto the ministry – changedlives
– God’s concurrence with our pastoring and preaching by giving successin
evangelistic endeavours and Christian growth. I know just how vulnerable
such a sentence makes me. All over the Westernworld there are gospel

203. churches in their thousands like our ownwhere, in every one, there are few
conversions any year even under the most faithful lively ministries. But my
concernis not so much with this fact as with a quiet acceptanceofit. Our
judgment is not that we have failed to submit to this being a day of small
things – we know we are living under the judgment of heaven – but our
judgment is that we are not also abounding in the work of the Lord, and
failing to cry that the Lord of the harvestwill send labourers into his harvest
fields, and being prepared in seasonand out of season, and being in the pains
of childbirth until Christ is formed in men. So often at our forefathers’
ordination services the charge given to the new preacherwas basedupon the
text in the prophet Isaiah61:1, “The Spirit of the SovereignLORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me to preachgoodnews to the poor.” It was
a challenging and disturbing message,that the proof of a preacherwas the
activity of the Spirit in his whole ministry. Let the liberal church look at its
ministers! Let the sacerdotalchurch look at its ministers! Let us evangelical
churches look at our ministers too! Conversionand spiritual growth is the one
thing needful for every preacher. “Tarry,” saidJesus to the first evangelists,
“tarry in Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high”; it is of no
use to begin without that. But Paul had that in Corinth: “You yourselves are
our letter … known and read by everybody.”
Today, when a husband reads his converted wife’s life, he is confronted with
the goodnews of the wonderful change that Jesus Christmakes in one
person’s life. Is she deluded? Is this a fantasy? Or is this life the real life? If
this is not reality then what is? That was the letter which Christ himself had
written on her heart for her family and neighbours to read. You remember
Peter’s words to wives whose husbands do not believe, “if any of them do not
believe the word, they may be won over without words by the behaviour of
their wives when they see the purity and reverence ofyour lives” (I Pet.
3:1&2). They do not hear the word but they cannotavoid seeing it day after
day. They eatwith this word, and sleepwith it, and work togetherwith it day
by day.

204. Some of us have letters we treasure which were actually written by Spurgeon,
or John Murray or Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. They are precious to us because
those men were greatChristians. But those men are dead. They tell us what
those men once were. The letters are curiosities. But Christ lives, and the
letter he has written on our lives comes from his very heart and mind, and it
proves that he lives today and has that loving influence over men and women
at this moment. Jesus choseto write it. It was an utterly voluntary actionof
his. Jesus was moved by affectionto do it. The result is life-enhancing. But
there are terrible letters mentioned in the Bible. One was written by King
David telling his commander to put brave and godly Uriah the Hittite, the
husband of Bathsheba, in the firing line and there deserthim. There is a letter
of Jezebelto the elders of Jezreelabout accusing godly Naboth of blasphemy
so that she might gain his vineyard for her husband Ahab. Terrible letters
that brought about death. But Christ writes his letters that we might have life
and have it more abundantly.
Christ writes epistles on our lives, weighty letters that show his mighty mind
dealing with eternalthemes. Think of the letter to the Romans Paul wrote by
the Spirit of the living God. It is utterly comprehensive. So too the letter
Christ writes on our hearts. It is as high as the letter to the Ephesians covering
every topic and relationship, stretching from heavento earth. What a
privilege to have the Son of God himself writing on our hearts!He never
writes illegibly. His messageis distinct and lucid. There are the forgeries – like
the man who tried to conMartin Holdt – but the day reveals that too. It would
be a terrible life if at the end when all must appear before Christ he lookedat
us and declaredthat we were forgeries. “Departfrom me. I never wrote on
your heart.”
We saythat every life has a meaning. Every life is a record of what that
person has lived for, and what that person has loved. But the Christian life
has a far richer meaning. It is an actual statementfrom the throne of the
universe made by the holy gentle Jesus Christ, the Sonof Godsaying to the

205. world, “This is life in its fulness.” Thatis what Paul is saying so very clearly:
“you are a letter from Christ” (v.3). In other words, there is something in the
life of a Christian which is not of this world, whose only explanation is that it
is from heaven. Godis speaking through that personto mankind. You
remember the Lord Jesus challenging the scribes who askedhim should they
pay tax to Caesar. He showedthem a coin and askedthem whose image and
superscription was upon it. So we point out to you scores ofmen and women
in this church, young and old, all very different from one another, and we say
to you, “Those features aboutthem, their character, this love and joy and
peace oftheirs; the waythey show such patience and forgiveness;their
affectionfor you – what has causedthis? Who has made them like that?
Whose image and superscription is this?” You might think it was their
parents, but they will tell you that their families were not like that at all.
Father was a hard man, and mother had no time for religion. They will tell
you that it was the grace and powerof the Lord Jesus Christ that has made
them the way that they are. I am saying that there are scores ofsuch living
letters who are bringing to you that same messagewhichI preach to you of
what Jesus has done for these people many of whom you know, and what he
can do for you.
The apostle says, “Iwas just the pen in the Lord’s hand. He used me to write
his letter. I told the Corinthians all that the Lord Jesus had taught and
achieved. I was under the strictestobligationto do that, not to think I was
smarter or more religious than the Lord.” That was the work of the preacher.
Then the Lord Jesus sentthe Spirit of the living God and he wrote those
words of Paul on favoured sinners’ hearts: “you are a letter from Christ, the
result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living
God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts” (v.3).
After Iola and I were engagedwe lived for a year in different continents. I
lived in Philadelphia and she lived 3000 miles awayin Swanseawe wrote
letters to one another twice a week. Telephoning was difficult and expensive,

206. and the E-mail had not been invented, so every week we wrote back and for to
one another. I would go to the mail-room at the Seminary after the first
lecture and check pigeon-hole ‘T’ and how excited I would be to geta letter in
that beautiful handwriting. Up to my room I would go to readit. Those letters
are still in two packets in our house. We never read them, but they are too
precious to destroy. Letters from those we love are loved by us because ofthe
writer. The Lord Jesus has written to every single Christian a letter, and it is
upon our hearts that that epistle is to be found.
Tattoos are so common these days, and one reasonfor this is the rarity of God
the Sonwriting on people’s hearts. Men are looking for beauty and meaning
in the outward rather than the inward, but beauty always comes from within
a life. Today many men and womenare having pictures and words written
indelibly on their bodies. God writes on our lives, but Paul makes clear“not
with ink.” “Ofcourse,” we think, “Godwould never use ink.” But he has used
ink. God has written a book. Christianity speaks notonly of the Word of God,
but it speaks of‘Scripture.’ A script is something written, and God has
superintended the process ofwriting his Word, Jesus has said, to the jots and
tittles of Old and New Testament. There was a time when the apostle John on
Patmos was about to write something in the book of Revelationwhen a voice
from heaven said, “Do not write it down” (Rev.10:4). So God did use ink very
carefully. But when he applies the written word to our lives he does not use
ink.
There is a fine sermon on Francis A. Schaeffercalled“The Mark of the
Christian” (“The Church at the End of the Twentieth Century,” Norfolk
Press, 1970, p.160)whichbegins like this, “Throughthe centuries men have
displayed many different symbols to show that they are Christians. They have
worn marks in the lapels of their coats, hung chains around their necks, even
had specialhaircuts.” But Schaeffershows that there is a much better sign,
and that is that we love one anotheras he has loved us, and this is how all men
can know that we are Christ’s disciples.

207. That is the same point that Paul is making here. A baptismal certificate, a
form of church membership, a certificate of graduation from a distinguished
seminary, a pocket New Testament – all these things are written with ink. A
T-shirt announcing that I am a Christian; a tattoo with John 3:16 written
across my chest – againthese are written in ink. All they prove is that you
may be able to read and that you possess those things. Anything that can be
written with ink, howevermuch learning or literary gifts or acquaintance
with Scripture it indicates, cannot prove that a change in human nature – in
the depths of our lives – has takenplace. And without that change we are as
lost as Judas.
There must be a letter from Jesus. He must write with the Spirit of the living
God on the tablet of the human heart. Now when we see that phrase our
minds turn immediately to Mount Sinai where Moses was summonedto
receive the ten commandments from the Lord. They were written with the
finger of God on tablets of stone. They were the stipulations of the Mosaic
covenant. That was the old dispensation, and Paul is preparing us for some of
the contrasts onwhich he going to elaborate at length concerning life under
the new dispensation. The new covenantis made in the blood of the Lord
Jesus Christ whereby he has obtained for us a reconciledGod. However,
Paul’s great concernis this, that men and womenshow that they have entered
into the blessings of the new covenantby the Spirit of the living God writing a
letter from Jesus upon their hearts.
The letter of the living Christ is not written on dead matter like a stony tablet,
but on human nature at its deepestand finest. The Holy Spirit goes in and in
and in to the very centre of that dispositional complex that the Bible refers to
as the ‘heart.’ As he is penetrating our inner being there is nothing unfamiliar
to him there. He can distinguish betweenour bones and marrow and even our
soul and spirit. So, Godis not interested in superficially changing our church-
going and recitationof prayers and our keeping resolutions about stopping

208. smoking and drinking and swearing and taking drugs. All those things canbe
done without any change of heart but the Spirit of the living God can find
access to the most secretplaces ofthe human spirit, the hidden recessesofour
nature, parts of ourselves whichwe did not know existed and which we find it
hard to access. The Spirit writes there a letter from Jesus to ourselves. Onthe
very core of our beings he writes such truths from the Bible as, “Blessedare
the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Or, “Let not your
hearts be troubled, ye believe in God, believe also in me.” When Jesus met this
very man, Saul of Tarsus, onthe road to Damascus, he wrote a unique letter
on Saul’s heart. He wrote very specific words to him because he was an
apostle, “I have appearedto you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness
of what you have seenof me and what I will show you. I will rescue you from
your own people and from the Gentiles. I am sending you to them to open
their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan
to God, so that they may receive forgiveness ofsins and a place among those
who are sanctified by faith in me” (Acts 26:16-18). Now we do not get specific
instructions like that when we become Christians because we are not made
apostles and prophets, but the Lord must write his words of holiness and
heavenly life on our hearts from the very beginning of grace, andstart to
change us.
Has the Lord Jesus writtenhis letter on your heart? In other words, I am
asking you have you become a Christian, because I am saying that there is no
person who is a Christian on whose heart Jesus has failed to write his letter.
There was once a woman who met Jesus ata well and she obviously needed
the Lord to write a letter on her heart because she had had five different
‘husbands’ and yet even the man she was living with at that time was not a
legalhusband to her. She needed a letter about forgiveness ofsins, and
righteous living and how to keepyour marriage vows and live at peace. She
needed the Lord Jesus to washawayall the handwriting of shame, anger, lust
and many falls that she had written on her heart – all that had to be erased
and new writing from Jesus himself to replace it. I am told that Christians in
the medieval period, before the invention of the printing press, could take old
faded parchments which had been inscribed with foolishpoems and doggerel,

209. and they could remove the writing and write in their place New Testament
gospels and letters.
That is what Christ cando to you. You too may have lived a life of obvious sin
in your past. Your consciencemay accuseyou of many things that are tawdry
and pathetic which show just how morally impotent you are. We are here to
say that all that canbe dealt with, and the recordof it all wiped away – every
spot, every blot, every stain, every single blemish all gone. You canhave a
cleanedup heart. There canbe totally new life begun in Jesus Christ. The
gospeloffers a new beginning and a new birth. But interestingly, the Lord
Jesus did not tell this woman that she needed to be born again, even though
she had that need. He told a very different man. Who was that? It was man
calledNicodemus. You would think that he must have been a particularly bad
man for Christ to tell him that he neededa new birth. No, he was morally a
goodperson, a deeply religious person, but even he had to be born again. The
significance is obvious. If this kind of person neededto be born againthen
every human being needs it. “You must be born of the Holy Spirit,” the Lord
told Nicodemus.
Jesus was implying that all Nicodemus’s knowledge ofthe Scriptures was
inadequate, and that he neededJesus to write his letter on his heart. That is
what happens at the new birth. We are given a change of heart and the Lord
Jesus writes on that new heart. We are born of the Spirit and at that same
time the Spirit of the living God writes a Jesus-letteron our hearts. There is
an old chorus which you canmake your prayer. It is the chorus, “Spirit of the
living God fall afreshon me.” The Spirit fell first from Jesus atPentecost, but
since that time he comes upon every Christian heart. So you should pray that
he will come upon you too:
“Spirit of the living God fall afresh on me.
Spirit of the living God fall afreshon me.

210. Take me: melt me: mold me: fill me.
Spirit of the living God fall afreshon me.”
How can you tell that this has actually happened? You will start to be drawn
to the language Christ writes. Just like immigrants move into a new country
where they discoverthat there is a community of people from their home land
in a certain town and they want to live there with them. They go to Chinatown
perhaps where they will hear their own Cantonese spokenand they will feelat
home again. So it is with Christians. When we start to hear of Jesus Christ
and become drawn to him we want to be present in church eachSunday. We
want to hear Christians pray and sing and talk of Christ. We want to hear the
teaching of Christ’s apostles explained to us. This shows that Jesus has been
writing his letter on your heart. This is the language and the themes and
discourse you want to hear about from now on. These are your people who
have the same God as you have.
It is very interesting to see how Paul describes this here: “You yourselves are
our letter, written on our hearts” (v.2). Paul could never forgetwhat
happened when he went to Philippi, how Lydia listened to them by the river
side, and receivedthe word and was baptized. He could never forget the
deliverance of the slave girl from dreadful evil influences. He always had a
soft spot for the old jailer whom he saved from suicide and told, “Believe in
the Lord Jesus Christand you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). Those people were
engravenby Paul himself upon his own heart in marks of indelible grace.
Every Christian knew of the wonderful change that had takenplace in their
lives. Every Christian read the new life of love and service which came from
those three founder members of the church at Philippi. But Paul carriedthem
about with him throughout his life; they were his very own personalletter
because they had been convertedthough him, and so he had written them on
his heart, but they were no secret. Theywere known and read by everybody.
“Give us a letter of recommendation,” cried Paul’s opponents. “Here it is,”
says Paul, “Lydia, a business woman; a former slave-girl;a former jailor.

211. Those three are the letter of commendation, and where is the letter written?
On my heart.”
You might think it is a wonderful thing to have such people written on your
heart, but it was not all warm’n’fuzzy to have, for example, two difficult
women like Euodia and Syntyche written on your heart when the two of them
were like wild cats towards one another, and the church taking sides, and you
had to pray for them and plead with them to be of one mind in the Lord. It
was not easyto have the Corinthian congregationin its fickleness and
waywardness writtenon your heart. Sometimes they did not reciprocate his
love. Sometimes the pain of knowing about them was intense. He could never
leave them. They were written on his heart.
It is part of Christian maturity to carry fellow believers about with us
constantly on our very hearts, not just the sweetand earnestones who give us
not a moment’s concernbut the wayward, the sheepwho gets lost, the
prodigal son, the weak brother, Mr Fearing. There is one place they must be,
and that is written on your heart, and Godwill give you strength to carry
them there and not give up, and not despair. There are times when you will
cry for those on your heart, “I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my
heart. For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for
the sake ofmy brothers, those of my own race” (Roms.9:3). Thatis the reality
of being a Christian, and it is a very poor life if we try to escape from all those
burdens and let other people in the fellowshipcarry them as we move to the
fringes into some imagined safe haven where no Christian gives us any trouble
because we know and love so few of them.
Samuel Johnsononce turned to his biographer and companion Boswelland
said to him: “A curious thought strikes me. We shall receive no letters in the
grave.” True. The days to speak of our affectionfor one another are now
while we live. So too Christ shall write on no soul after death. He writes while

212. we are alive, while there is the slightestlonging that Christ will hear our
prayer, while our hearts stand in need of washing away the old statements of
our condemnationand new declarations offorgiveness be written in their
place. Write on my heart, Saviour, your ownletter, before I die!
17th December2000 GEOFF THOMAS
2 Cor 3 1-3 LIVING LETTERS
William F. Snorgrass
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LIVING LETTERS
2 Cor 3:2-3
2 Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:
3 Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
(KJV)

214. 2 Cor 3:2-3
2 You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, knownand read
by everybody.
3 You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry,
written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of
stone but on tablets of human hearts.
(NIV)
2 Cor 3:2-3
2 The only letter I need is you yourselves!By looking at the goodchange
in your hearts, everyone cansee that we have done a goodwork among you.
3 They can see that you are a letter from Christ, written by us. It is not a
letter written with pen and ink, but by the Spirit of the living God; not one
carved on stone, but in human hearts.
(TLB)
NOTE:
There are different ‘kinds’ of letters

215. Some letters are written in bold for emphasis
Some letters are written containing italics to highlight
Some letters are short. (Short life)
Some letters are long. (Long life……….Annetta)
Some letters carry urgent messages
Some letters are just informative.
Some letters announce
Some letters demand…..(bill collectors)
SEEING THE BELEIVERS ARE ‘LIVING LETTERS’, WHAT DOES THE
WORLD READ WHEN IT SEES US? ARE WE ‘LETTERS OF CHRIST’?
==================
Letter Writing
Ron Walters
Letter writing is a lost art, and it's a realshame. Email, with its ease and
speed, has become the communiqué de jour. But the email phenomenon will
never duplicate the gritty characterof goodol' written letters. Can email
deliver the familiar scentof delicate perfume? Can email contain those
annoying little sparkly things that spill into your lap? Does emailallow you to
emphatically pound the exclamation keyso hard it bores a hole through the
page? No!!! In short, email has no attitude. It can't strut.

216. Without fanfare, history was recordedthrough written letters. It was in a
letter to Queen Isabella that Christopher Columbus first broke the news of
the new world. It was in a letter to his colleaguesthat Galileo first revealed the
secrets ofhis telescope. Itwas in a letter to his children that Louis Pasteur
first exposedthe medical marvel of inoculation. It was in a letter to President
Franklin Rooseveltthatpacifist Albert Einstein explained how to build, and
why we needed, the atom bomb.
Letters often tell more about the writer than they do the subject. Leonardo da
Vinci, perhaps the world's greatestartist, wrote to the Duke of Milan applying
for his dream job-that of a soldier. William Randolph Hearst, the man who
preached, "Neverlet the facts interfere with a goodstory," wrote his father
with a strategyto make the San Francisco Examinermore profitable: "Let's
hire naïve young men from the eastwho still believe there's fortune to be
found in the west."
Sometimes letters even tell us what we don't want to know. Edgar Allen Poe,
for example, wrote dark, pornographic love letters to women. On the other
hand, Benjamin Franklin sounded like a total geek when he wrote of love.
Their writings were true reflections of their souls.
WWII introduced V(ictory)-mail: A short one-page form that was fed into a
photocopier, reduced to film, and carried to military bases around the world.
The letters were then reproduced and delivered to lonely G.I.s. Unfortunately,
the technologyboggeddownas heavy lipstick imprints on the V-mails kept
jamming the photocopiers.
Flashback nineteenwide centuries:Letters, especiallyfrom the Apostle Paul,
the churches'chief correspondent, were the most talked about documents of
their day. They were the broadcasting systemof the early church. Each new
delivery was read and reread by those who were eagerto know more of their

217. newfound faith. His letters became the church's sermon notes and Sunday
schoolcurriculum all rolled into one.
So closelywas letter writing associatedwith the church, that Paul used this
metaphor when he referred to the church at Corinth as his personal"letterof
endorsement." Their changedlives validated his ministry. The proof was in
their pudding. They were an example of what God's word can do in a person's
life.
It's a gutsy move to allow your congregation-asPauldid-to be read as a
testamentof your work, for your parishioners to be living presentations of
your ministry, seenand studied for the life changing effects that come from
God's word.
But scripture is filled with living billboards whose lives took on a decidedly
different tone when confronted with the truth.
* Matthew, once a tax collectorbut now an Apostle.
* Mary Magdalene, once demonpossessedbut now a followerof Christ.
* Nicodemus, once a ruler of the Jews but now caring for the crucified Savior.
* The woman at the well, once morally bankrupt but now an evangelist.
Eachbeliever's life becomes a letter to the world, "knownand read by all
men...a letter of Christ...written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living
God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts."
Eachweek you write another chapter in their lives. Write them well; they'll be
remembered for eternity.

218. =================================
3:1–6 The false teachers in Corinth constantly attackedPaul’s competencyas
a minister of the gospel;these verses form his defense.
3:1 BecausePauldid not want to allow the false teachers to accuse him of
being proud, he beganhis defense by posing two questions rather than making
any overt claims. Do we begin againto commend ourselves? The Gr. word for
“commend” means “to introduce.” Thus Paul was asking the Corinthians if he
needed to reintroduce himself, as if they had never met, and prove himself
once more. The form of the question demanded a negative answer. letters of
commendation. The false teachers also accusedPaulof not possessing the
appropriate documents to prove his legitimacy. Such letters were often used to
introduce and authenticate someone to the first-century churches (cf. 1 Cor.
16:3, 10, 11). The false teachers undoubtedly arrived in Corinth with such
letters, which they may have forged (cf. Acts 15:1, 5) or obtained under false
pretenses from prominent members of the Jerusalemchurch. Paul’s point was
that he did not need secondhand testimony when the Corinthians had
firsthand proof of his sincere and godly character, as wellas the truth of his
messagethat regeneratedthem.
3:2 written in our hearts. An affirmation of Paul’s affectionfor the believers
in Corinth—he held them close to his heart (cf. 12:15). knownand read by all
men. The transformed lives of the Corinthians were Paul’s most eloquent
testimonial, better than any secondhandletter. Their changedlives were like
an open letter that could be seenand read by all men as a testimony to Paul’s
faithfulness and the truth of his message.

219. 3:3 epistle of Christ. The false teachers did not have a letter of commendation
signed by Christ, but Paul had the Corinthian believers’changedlives as
proof that Christ had transformed them. written not with ink. Paul’s letter
was no human document written with ink that canfade. It was a living one.
Spirit of the living God. Paul’s letter was alive, written by Christ’s divine,
supernatural power through the transforming work of the Holy Spirit (cf. 1
Cor. 2:4, 5; 1 Thess. 1:5). tablets of stone. A reference to the Ten
Commandments (see notes on Ex. 24:12;25:16). tablets of flesh … of the
heart. More than just writing His law on stone, God was writing His law on
the hearts of those people He transformed (cf. Jer. 31:33;32:38, 39; Ezek.
11:19;36:26, 27). The false teachers claimedexternal adherence to the Mosaic
law as the basis of salvation, but the transformed lives of the Corinthians
proved that salvationwas an internal change wrought by God in the heart.
3:4 such trust. The Gr. word for “trust” canmean “to win.” Paul was
confident in his ministry, and that confidence resultedin his ability to stay the
course and continue moving toward the goal(cf. Acts 4:13, 29).
3:5 sufficient. See note on 2:16. to think of anything. The Gr. word for “think”
can also mean “to consider” or “to reason.” Pauldisdained his own ability to
reason, judge, or assesstruth. Left to his own abilities, he was useless. He was
dependent on divine revelationand the Holy Spirit’s power. our sufficiency is
from God. Only God canmake a personadequate to do his work, and Paul
realized that truth (see note on 2:16; cf. 9:8, 10; 2 Thess. 2:13).
3:6 new covenant. The covenantthat provides forgiveness ofsins through the
death of Christ (see notes on Jer. 31:31–34;Matt. 26:28;Heb. 8:7–12). the
letter. A shallow, external conformity to the law that missedits most basic
requirement of absolutely holy and perfectlove for God and man (Matt.
22:34–40)anddistorted its true intention, which was to make a person
recognize his sinfulness (cf. Rom. 2:27–29). the Spirit. The Holy Spirit. the

220. letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. The letter kills in two ways: 1) it results in
a living death. Before Paul was converted, he thought he was savedby keeping
the law, but all it did was kill his peace, joy, and hope; and 2) it results in
spiritual death. His inability to truly keepthe law sentencedhim to an eternal
death (see notes on Rom. 7:9–11;cf. Rom. 5:12; Gal. 3:10). Only Jesus Christ
through the agencyofthe Holy Spirit can produce eternal life in one who
believes.
3:7–18 A true minister of God preaches the New Covenant, thus Paul featured
the glory of the New Covenantin these verses.
3:7 the ministry of death. The law is a killer (v. 6) in the sense that it brings
knowledge ofsin. It acts as a ministry of death because no one can satisfythe
demands of the law on his own and is therefore condemned (cf. Gal. 3:22; see
notes on Rom. 7:1–13;8:4; Gal. 3:10–13;3:19–4:5). was glorious. When God
gave Moses the law, His glory appeared on the mountain (Ex. 19:10–25;
20:18–26).Paulwas not depreciating the law; he was acknowledging thatit
was glorious because it reflectedGod’s nature, will, and character(see notes
on Ex. 33:18–34:9). couldnot look steadily at the face of Moses.The Israelites
could not look intently or stare at Moses’face fortoo long because the
reflective glory of God was too bright for them. It was similar to staring into
the sun (see notes on Ex. 34:29–35). the glory of his countenance. When God
manifested Himself, He did so by reducing His attributes to visible light.
That’s how God manifested Himself to Moses (Ex. 34:29), whose face in turn
reflectedthe glory of God to the people (cf. the Transfigurationof Jesus in
Matt. 17:1–8;2 Pet. 1:16–18;and His secondcoming in Matt. 24:29, 30;
25:31).
3:8, 9 ministry of the Spirit … exceeds much more in glory. The “ministry of
the Spirit” is Paul’s descriptive term for the New Covenant(see notes on Jer.
31:31–34;Matt. 26:28; 1 Cor. 11:25; Heb. 8:8, 13; 9:15; 12:24). Paul is

221. arguing that if such glory attended the giving of the law under the ministry
that brought death, how much more glorious will be the ministry of the Spirit
in the New Covenantwhich brings righteousness. The law pointed to the
superior New Covenantand thus a glory that must also be superior.
3:9 ministry of condemnation. Another name for the ministry of death (see
note on v. 7). ministry of righteousness. The New Covenant. The emphasis
here is on the righteousness it provides (cf. Rom. 3:21, 22; Phil. 3:9).
3:11 what is passing away. The law had a fading glory (cf. v. 7). It was not the
final solution or the last word on the plight of sinners. what remains. The New
Covenantis “what” remains because it is the consummation of God’s plan of
salvation. It has permanent glory.
3:12 such hope. The belief that all the promises of the New Covenant will
occur. It is hope in totaland complete forgiveness ofsins for those who believe
the gospel(cf. Rom. 8:24, 25; Gal. 5:5; Eph. 1:18; 1 Pet. 1:3, 13, 21). boldness
of speech. The Gr. word for “boldness” means “courageously.” Because ofhis
confidence, Paulpreached the New Covenant fearlessly, without any
hesitationor timidity.
3:13 Moses,who put a veil over his face. This physical action pictured the fact
that Moses did not have the confidence or boldness of Paul because the Old
Covenantwas veiled. It was shadowy. It was made up of types, pictures,
symbols, and mystery. Moses communicatedthe glory of the Old Covenant
with a certain obscurity (cf. 1 Pet. 1:10, 11).
3:14, 15 the same veil remains … a veil lies on their heart. The “veil” here
represents unbelief. Those Israelites did not grasp the glory of the Old

222. Covenantbecause of their unbelief. As a result, the meaning of the Old
Covenantwas obscure to them (cf. Heb. 3:8, 15; 4:7). Paul’s point was that
just as the Old Covenant was obscure to the people of Moses’day, it was still
obscure to those who trusted in it as a means of salvation in Paul’s day. The
veil of ignorance obscures the meaning of the Old Covenantto the hardened
heart (cf. John 5:38).
3:14 the veil is taken awayin Christ. Without Christ the OT is unintelligible.
But when a person comes to Christ, the veil is lifted and his spiritual
perception is no longer impaired (Is. 25:6–8). With the veil removed, believers
are able to see the glory of God revealedin Christ (John 1:14). They
understand that the law was never given to save them, but to lead them to the
One who would.
3:17 the Lord is the Spirit. Yahweh of the OT is the same Lord who is saving
people in the New Covenant through the agencyof the Holy Spirit. The same
God is the minister of both the Old and New Covenants. there is liberty.
Freedomfrom sin and the futile attempt to keepthe demands of the law as a
means of earning righteousness (cf. John8:32–36;Rom. 3:19, 20). The
believer is no longer in bondage to the law’s condemnation and Satan’s
dominion.
3:18 we all. Not just Moses,orprophets, apostles, and preachers, but all
believers. with unveiled face. Believers in the New Covenant have nothing
obstructing their vision of Christ and His glory as revealedin the Scripture.
beholding as in a mirror. Paul’s emphasis here is not so much on the reflective
capabilities of the mirror as it is on the intimacy of it. A person canbring a
mirror right up to his face and get an unobstructed view. Mirrors in Paul’s
day were polished metal (see note on James 1:23), and thus offered a far from
perfect reflection. Though the vision is unobstructed and intimate, believers
do not see a perfectrepresentationof God’s glory now, but will one day (cf. 1

223. Cor. 13:12). being transformed. A continual, progressive transformation(see
note on Rom. 12:2). into the same image. As they gaze at the glory of the Lord,
believers are continually being transformed into Christlikeness. The ultimate
goalof the believer is to be like Christ (cf. Rom. 8:29; Phil. 3:12–14;1 John
3:2), and by continually focusing on Him the Spirit transforms the believer
more and more into His image. from glory to glory. From one level of glory to
another level of glory—from one level of manifesting Christ to another. This
verse describes progressive sanctification. The more believers grow in their
knowledge ofChrist, the more He is revealed in their lives (cf. Phil. 3:12–14).
============================
3:1 In the latter part of 2:17, the apostle had used four distinct expressions to
describe his ministry. He realized that this might sound to some, especiallyhis
critics, as if he were commending himself. And so he begins this chapter with
the question, Do we begin againto commend ourselves? The againdoes not
imply that he had commended himself previously. Rather, it simply means
that he had been accusedofdoing so, and now he anticipates the repetition of
such a charge againsthim.
Or do we need, as some others, epistles of commendationto you or letters of
commendation from you? The some others to whom Paul is here referring are
the false teachers of2:17. They came to Corinth with epistles of
commendation, perhaps from Jerusalem. And possibly when they left
Corinth, they carriedwith them letters of commendation from the assembly
there. Letters of commendation were used in the early church by Christians
traveling from one place to the other. The apostle does not at all seek to
discourage sucha practice in this verse. Insteadhe is stating rather subtly that
the only thing these false teachers had to commend them was the letter they
carried! Otherwise they had no credentials to offer.

224. 3:2 The Judaizers who had come to Corinth raisedquestions as to Paul’s
apostolic authority. They denied that he was a true servant of Christ. Perhaps
they raisedsuch doubts in the Corinthians’ minds in order that the latter
might demand a letter of recommendationfrom the Apostle Paul the next
time he visited them. He has already askedthem if he needs such a letter. Had
he not come to Corinth when they were heathen idolaters? Had he not led
them to Christ? Had not the Lord set His sealupon the ministry of the apostle
by giving him precious souls in Corinth? That is the answer. The Corinthians
themselves were Paul’s epistle, written in his heart but knownand read by all
men. In his case there was no need of a letter written with pen and ink. They
were the fruit of his ministry, and they were enshrined in his affections. Not
only that, but they were known and read by all men in the sense that their
conversionwas a well-knownfactin the whole area. People realized that a
change had come over these people, that they had turned to God from idols,
and that they were now living separatedlives. They were the evidence of
Paul’s divine ministry.
3:3 At first glance, verse 3 seems to contradictverse 2. Paul had said that the
Corinthians were his epistle;here he says that they are an epistle of Christ. In
verse 2, he says that the epistle is written in his heart; in the latter part of
verse 3, it seems clearthat Christ has written the epistle on the hearts of the
Corinthians themselves. How canthese differences be reconciled? The answer
is that in verse 2 Paul is stating that the Corinthians were his letter of
recommendation. Verse 3 gives the explanation. Perhaps we might getthe
connectionby joining the two verses as follows:“You are our epistle ...
because you are clearly declaredto be an epistle of Christ.” In other words,
the Corinthians were Paul’s letter of recommendationbecause it was clearto
all that the Lord had done a work of grace in their lives. They were obviously
Christians. Since Paul had been the human instrument in bringing them to the
Lord, they were his credentials. This is the thought in the expression
ministered by us. The Lord Jesus is the One who had done the work in their
lives, but He did it through the ministry of Paul.

225. Whereas the letters of recommendation used by Paul’s enemies were written
with ink, Paul’s epistle was written by the Spirit of the living God and was
therefore divine. Ink, of course, is subject to fading, erasure, and destruction,
but when the Spirit of ... God writes in human hearts, it is forever. Then Paul
adds that the epistle of Christ has been written not on tablets of stone but on
tablets that are hearts of flesh. People visiting Corinth did not see Christ’s
epistle engraved on some greatmonument in the middle of the marketplace,
but rather the letter was written in the hearts and lives of the Christians there.
As Paul contrastedtablets of stone and tablets that are hearts of flesh, there is
little doubt that he also had in mind the difference betweenthe law and the
gospel. The law had, of course, been inscribed on tablets of stone on Mount
Sinai, but under the gospel, God secures obediencethrough the message of
grace and love that is written in human hearts. Paul will take up this subject
in greaterdetail shortly, so he merely alludes to it here.
This chapter is a key one, for it shows the relationship betweenthe OT
messageofLaw and the NT ministry of the Gospelof God’s grace. It seems
that the Jewishfaction at Corinth was saying that Paul was not a true apostle
because he did not have letters of commendation from the church at
Jerusalem. Apparently some teachers had arrived at Corinth with such
letters, and this lack of credentials seemedto discredit Paul. The apostle used
this accusationas an opportunity to contrastthe Gospelof grace with the Law
of Moses.
I. Written on Hearts, Not Stones (3:1–3)
“I don’tneed letters of recommendation!” says Paul. “You Christians at
Corinth are my letters, written on hearts, not on stones!” “By their fruits you
will know them” (Matt. 7:20, NKJV). A person’s life and ministry may be

226. seenin his or her work. Paulpictures himself as God’s secretary, writing the
Word into the lives of God’s people. What an amazing truth: every Christian
is an epistle of Christ being read by all men!
You are writing a Gospel, a chaptereachday,
By the deeds that you do and the words that you say.
Men read what you write, whether faithful or true.
Just what is the Gospelaccording to you?
Moses wrote God’s Law on stones, but in this age, Godwrites His Word on
our hearts (Heb. 10:16–17). The Law was an external matter; grace dwells
internally, in the heart. But Paul did not write even with ink, for that would
fade; he wrote permanently with the Spirit of God. The Law, written on stone,
held in a man’s hand, could never change his life. But the Spirit of God can
use the Word to change lives and make them like Jesus. The NT ministry,
then, is a spiritual ministry, as the Spirit writes the Word on men’s hearts.
II. Bringing Life, Not Death(3:4–6)
When Paul says, “The letter kills,” he is not talking about the “letter” of
God’s Word as opposedto its “spirit.” Often we hear confused people say, “It
is wrong to follow the letter of the Bible; we must follow the spirit of it.” Keep
in mind that by “the letter,” Paul means the OT law. In this chapter, He uses

227. different phrases when referring to the OT law: the letter (v. 6); ministry of
death (v. 7); ministry of condemnation (v. 9).
The Law was never given to impart life; it was definitely a ministry of death.
Paul was a minister of the New Covenant, not the Old Covenantof works and
death. No man was ever savedthrough the Law! Yet there were teachers at
Corinth telling the people to obey the Law and rejectPaul’s Gospelof grace.
Trace the word “life” in John’s Gospel, for example, and you will see that the
NT ministry is one of life through the Holy Spirit.
III. Lasting Glory, Not Fading Glory (3:7–13)
Certainly there was gloryto the OT ministry. Glory filled the temple; the
glory of God hovered over the people in the wilderness. The temple and its
ceremonies, andthe very giving of the Law to Moses, allhad glory attachedto
them. But it was a fading glory, not a lasting glory. Paul cites the experience of
Moses from Ex. 34:29–35. Moseshad been in God’s presence, and His glory
was reflectedon his face. But Moses knew that this glory would fade, so he
wore a veil over his face whenevertalking to the people, lest they see the glory
fade and lose confidence in his ministry. (It is commonly taught, but in error,
that Moses wore the veil to avoid frightening the people. Note v. 13, “And not
as Moses did, who put a veil over his face so no one could see the glory fade
away” (TLB). God never meant for the glory of the Old Covenant to remain;
it was to fade awaybefore the abounding glory of the Gospel. If the ministry
of condemnation (the Law) was glorious, then the ministry of righteousness
(the Gospel)is even more glorious!Paul needs no veil; he has nothing to hide.
The glory of the Gospelis there!
IV. Unveiled, NotVeiled (3:14–16)

228. Paul makes a spiritual application of Moses’veil. He states that there is still a
veil over the hearts of the Jews when they read the OT, and this veil keeps
them from seeing Christ. The OT will always be a lockedbook to the heart
that knows not Christ. Jesus removed that veil when He rent the veil of the
temple and fulfilled the OT types and prophecies. Yet Israeldoes not
recognize that the ministry of the Law is temporary; it is holding on to a
ministry that was never meant to last, a ministry with fading glory. There is a
two-fold blindness upon Israel:a blindness that affects persons, in that they
cannot recognize Christas revealedin the OT, and a judicial blindness
whereby God has blinded Israelas a nation (Rom.11:25). Satanblinds the
minds of all sinners, hiding from them the glorious Gospelof Christ (2 Cor.
4:4).
But when the heart turns to Christ, that veil is takenaway. Moses removedhis
veil when he went up to the mount to see God, and any Jew who turns
honestly to the Lord will have his spiritual veil removed and will see Christ
and receive Him as Savior. The NT ministry is one that points to Christ in the
Word of God, in both the OT and the NT. We have nothing to hide, nothing to
veil; the glory will last forever and will grow continually brighter.
V. Liberty, Not Bondage (3:17–18)
Verse 17 is grosslymisusedand quoted to excuse all kinds of unspiritual
practices. “The Lord is that Spirit”; when sinners turn to Christ, it is through
the ministry of the Spirit. And the Spirit gives liberty from spiritual bondage.
The Old Covenantwas a covenantof works and bondage (Acts 15:10). But the
New Covenantis a ministry of glorious liberty in Christ (Gal. 5:1ff). This
liberty is not license;it is freedom from fear, sin, the world, and legalistic
religious practices. EveryChristian is like Moses:with an unveiled face, we
can come into the presence of Godand enjoy His glory—yes, receive that
glory and become more like Christ!

229. In v. 18, Paul illustrates the meaning of sanctificationand growing in grace.
He compares the Word of God to a mirror (“glass”—James 1:23–25).When
the people of God look into the Word of God and see the glory of God, the
Spirit of Godtransforms them to be like the Son of God (Rom. 8:29).
“Changed” in this verse is the same as the Gk. word for “transformed” in
Rom. 12:2 and “transfigured” in Matt. 17:2, and explains how we have our
minds renewed in Christ. The Christian is not in bondage and fear; we cango
into the very presence of God and enjoy His glory and grace. We do not have
to wait for Christ to return to become like Him; we can daily grow “from
glory to glory” (v. 18).
Truly our position in Christ is a glorious one! The ministry of grace is far
superior to Judaism or any other religion, even though the NT Christian has
none of the ceremonies orvisible trappings that belongedto the Law. Ours is
a glorious ministry, and its glory will never fade.
2 Corinthians 3:3
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared
But lestit should be thought that the apostle attributed too much to himself, by
saying that the Corinthians were ourepistle; here he says, theywere
"manifestlydeclared"
to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us;
so that the apostles andministers of the word were only amanuenses, Christ
was the author and dictator; yea, he himselfis the very matter, sum, substance,

230. and subjectof the epistle; he is formed in the hearts of his people in conversion,
his image is stamped, his grace is implanted, his word, his Gospeldwells richly,
his laws andordinances are written here; he also is the exemplar, believers are
but copies ofhim, in grace andduty, in sufferings, in the likeness ofhis death
and resurrection: andthey are "manifestlydeclared" to be so, bythe impresses
of Christ's grace uponthem; by the fairness ofthe copy; by the style and
language ofthe epistle; by their likeness to Christ; bytheir having not the form
only, but the powerofgodliness; andby their lives and conversations: now in
writing these epistles, the ministers of the Gospel are onlyinstruments,
"ministeredby us". Theyare made use of to show the sinner the black
characters whichare writtenupon him, and that whatis written in him, and to
be readby him, by the light ofnature is not sufficient forsalvation; theyare
employed as instruments in drawing the rough draught of grace inconversion,
and in writing the copyover again, fairerandfairer; being the happy means
blessedby God, forthe building up of souls in faith and holiness, inspiritual
knowledge andcomfort. Theseepistlesare
not written with ink;
of nature's power, orofrhetorical eloquence andmoral persuasion;
but with the Spirit of the living God:
every grace thatis implanted in the soul is wrought there by the Spirit ofGod;
or he it is that draws everyline, and writes everyword and letter; he begins, he
carries onand finishes the work ofgrace onthe soul; and that as "the Spirit of
the living God": hence saints become the living epistles ofChrist; and every
letter and stroke ofhis making, is a living dispositionofthe soulin likeness to
him; and such are written among the living in Jerusalem, andshalllive and
abide for everas the epistles ofChrist: again, the subjects ofthese epistles, or
that on which they are written, are

231. not tables ofstone;
suchas the law was writtenupon, onMount Sinai: ofthese tables there were
the first and second; the firstwere the work ofGodhimself, the latterwere
hewedby Moses, atthe command ofGod, ( Exodus 32:16) ( 34:1 ) the former
being brokenwhenhe came downfrom the mount, which by the Jewishwriters
are saidto be miraculously made, and not by the means and artifice ofmen
F12; yea, thattheywere made before the creationofthe world F13, andwhich,
they commonly say, were made ofsapphire; (See Gillon2 Corinthians 3:7)
these, as the latter, were two stones, which, Jarchisays F14, wereofanequal
size; andwere, as Abarbinel says F15, inthe form of smalltables, suchas
children are taught to write upon, and therefore are so called: some pretendto
give the dimensions of them, and sayF16, thatthey were sixhands long, andas
many broad, andthree thick; nay, eventhe weightof them, which is said F17 to
be the weightofforty "seahs", andlook uponit as a miracle that Mosesshould
be able to carrythem; on these stones were writtenthe ten commands; andthe
common opinion ofthe Jewishwriters is, thatfive were writtenon one table,
and five on the other; this is the opinion of Josephus F18, Philo F19, andthe
Talmudic writers F20; andthe tables are saidto be written on both sides, (
Exodus 32:15) . Somethink that the engraving of the letters perforatedand
wentthrough the tables, so that, ina miraculous manner, the letters were
legible on both sides; others think, onlythe right and left hand ofthe tables are
meant, onwhich the laws were written, five on a side, andwhich folded up like
the tables orpages ofa book; thoughothers are ofopinion, that they were
written upon, both behind and before, andthat the law was writtentwice, both
upon the fore part and back part ofthe tables, yea, otherssayfourtimes; and
some think the phrase only intends the literal and mystical, the external and
internal sense ofthe law: however, certainitis, as the apostle here suggests, that
the law was writtenon tables ofstone, whichmay denote the firmness and
stability of the law; notas in the hands ofMoses, fromwhence the tables fell
and were broken, butas in the hands of Christ, by whom they are fulfilled; or
else the hardness ofman's heart, his stupidity, ignorance of, andnotsubjectto
the law of God:

232. but fleshly tables ofthe heart:
alluding to ( Ezekiel36:26) anddesigns notcarnal hearts, butsuch as are
made softand tender by the Spirit of God. The table ofthe heart is a phrase to
be met with in the books ofthe Old Testament; see( Proverbs 3:3 ) ( 7:3 ) (
Jeremiah17:1 ) andvery frequently in the writings ofthe Jews F21.
https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-
bible/2-corinthians-3-3.html
STUDYLIGHT RESOURCES
Adam Clarke Commentary
Manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ - Ye are in our hearts, and
Christ has written you there; but yourselves are the epistle of Christ; the
change produced in your hearts and lives, and the salvationwhich you have
received, are as truly the work of Christ as a letter dictated and written by a
man in his work.
Ministered by us - Ye are the writing, but Christ used me as the pen; Christ
dictated, and I wrote; and the Divine characters are not made with ink, but by
the Spirit of the living God; for the gifts and graces thatconstitute the mind
that was in Christ are produced in you by the Holy Ghost.
Not in tables of stone - Where men engrave contracts, orrecord events; but in
fleshly tables of the heart - the work of salvationtaking place in all your

233. affections, appetites, and desires;working that change within that is so
signally manifested without. See the parts of this figurative speech:
Jesus Christ dictates.
The apostle writes.
The hearts of the Corinthians are the substance on which the writing is made.
And,
The Holy Spirit produces that influence by which the traces are made, and the
mark becomes evident.
Here is not only an allusion to making inscriptions on stones, where one
dictates the matter, and another cuts the letters;(and probably there were
certain caseswhere some colouring matter was used to make the inscription
the more legible;and when the stone was engraved, it was setup in some
public place, as monuments, inscriptions, and contracts were, that they might
be seen, known, and read of all men); but the apostle may here refer to the ten
commandments, written by the finger of God upon two tables of stone;which
writing was an evidence of the Divine mission of Moses, as the conversionof
the Corinthians was an evidence of the mission of St. Paul. But it may be as
well to take the words in a generalsense, as the expressionis not unfrequent
either in the Old Testament, or in the rabbinical writers. See Schoettgen.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Bibliography
Clarke, Adam. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "The Adam Clarke
Commentary". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/acc/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1832.

234. Return to Jump List return to 'Jump List'
Albert Barnes'Notes onthe Whole Bible
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared - You are made manifest as the
epistle of Christ; or you, being made manifest, are the epistle, etc. They had
been made manifest to be such by their conversion. The sense is, it is plain, or
evident, that ye are the epistle of Christ.
To be the epistle of Christ - That which Christ has sent to be our testimonial.
He has given this letter of recommendation. He has convertedyou by our
ministry, and that is the best evidence which we can have that we have been
sent by him, and that our labor is acceptedby him. Your conversionis his
work, and it is his public attestationto our fidelity in his cause.
Ministered by us - The idea here is, that Christ had employed their ministry in
accomplishing this. They were Christ‘s letter, but it had been prepared by the
instrumentality of the apostles. It had not been prepared by him
independently of their labors, but in connectionwith, and as the result of
those labors. Christ, in writing this epistle, so to speak, has used our aid; or
employed us as amanuenses (copyists).
Written not with ink - Paul continues and varies the image in regardto this
“epistle,” so that he may make the testimony borne to his fidelity and success
more striking and emphatic. He says, therefore, that that it was not written as
letters of introduction are, with ink - by traces drawn on a lifeless substance,
and in lines that easilyfade, or that may become easilyillegible, or that canbe
read only by a few, or that may be soondestroyed.
But with the Spirit of the living God - In strong contrastthus with letters
written with ink. By the Spirit of Godmoving on the heart, and producing

235. that variety of graces whichconstitute so striking and so beautiful an evidence
of your conversion. If written by the Spirit of the living God, it was far more
valuable, and precious, and permanent than any recordwhich could be made
by ink. Every trace of the Spirit‘s influences on the heart was an undoubted
proof that God had sent the apostles;and was a proof which they would much
more sensibly and tenderly feel than they could any letter of recommendation
written in ink.
Not in tables of stone - It is generallyadmitted that Paul here refers to the
evidences of the divine missionof Moses whichwas given by the Law
engravedon tablets of stone, compare 2 Corinthians 3:7. Probably those who
were false teachers among the Corinthians were Jews, and had insisted much
on the divine origin and permanency of the Mosaic institutions. The Law had
been engravedon stone by the hand of God himself; and had thus the
strongestproofs of divine origin, and the divine attestationto its pure and
holy nature. To this fact the friends of the Law, and the advocates forthe
permanency of the Jewishinstitutions, would appeal. Paul says, on the other
hand, that the testimonials of the divine favor through him were not on tablets
of stone. They were frail, and easilybroken. There was no life in them
(compare 2 Corinthians 3:6 and 2 Corinthians 3:7); and valuable and
important as they were, yet they could not be compared with the testimonials
which God had given to those who successfullypreachedthe gospel.
But in fleshly tables of the heart - In truths engravedon the heart. This
testimonial was of more value than an inscription on stone, because:
(1) No hand but that of God could reachthe heart, and inscribe these truths
there.

236. (2) because it would be attended with a life-giving and living influence. It was
not a mere dead letter.
(3) because it would be permanent. Stones, evenwhere laws were engraved by
the finger of God, would moulder and decay, and the inscription made there
would be destroyed. But not so with that which was made on the heart. It
would live forever. It would abide in other worlds. It would send its influence
into all the relations of life; into all future scenesin this world; and that
influence would be seenand felt in the world that shall never end. By all these
considerations, therefore, the testimonials which Paul had of the divine
approbation were more valuable than any mere letters of introduction, or
human commendation could have been; and more valuable even than the
attestationwhich was given to the divine mission of Moses himself.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Bibliography
Barnes, Albert. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Barnes'Notesonthe
Whole Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bnb/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1870.
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Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible
Being made manifest that ye are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written
not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in
tables that are hearts of flesh.

237. An epistle of Christ, ministered by us ... is a clarificationof "Ye are our
epistle" in the preceding verse. Paul's position was the same in this as that of
the apostles who passedout the bread when Jesus fed the five thousand, the
apostles being not the chef on that occasionbut the waiters. So here, Paul
wrote the epistle in the sense of preaching the gospel;but the true author was
Christ who gave the gospel. Plumptre's explanation is that "Paulhad been the
amanuensis of that letter; but Christ had been the real writer."[12]
Written not with ink ... This merely forces the conclusionthat Paul was using
"epistle" in a figurative sense. He was not speaking ofany ordinary letter
written with ink upon a parchment.
Spirit ... tables ... hearts ... God had written the Decalogue with his finger
upon tables of stone;but in the new covenant, of which Paul now beganto
speak, not God's finger, but God's Spirit did the writing. Note the plural of
"hearts," a plain reference to the many Christians at Corinth, and supporting
the interpretation that Paul's letter was written upon their hearts, not upon
his own. There can be no doubt of Jeremiah's greatprophecy of the new
covenant(Jeremiah 31:31ff) being in the backgroundof Paul's thoughts in
this passage.
ENDNOTE:
[12] E. H. Plumptre, op. cit., p. 370.
Copyright Statement
James Burton Coffman Commentaries reproduced by permission of Abilene
Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. All other rights reserved.

238. Bibliography
Coffman, James Burton. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Coffman
Commentaries on the Old and New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bcc/2-corinthians-3.html.
Abilene Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. 1983-1999.
Return to Jump List return to 'Jump List'
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared,.... Butlest it should be thought that
the apostle attributed too much to himself, by saying that the Corinthians
were our epistle;here he says, they were "manifestly declared"
to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us; so that the apostles andministers
of the word were only amanuenses, Christwas the author and dictator; yea,
he himself is the very matter, sum, substance, andsubject of the epistle; he is
formed in the hearts of his people in conversion, his image is stamped, his
grace is implanted, his word, his Gospeldwells richly, his laws and ordinances
are written here; he also is the exemplar, believers are but copies ofhim, in
grace and duty, in sufferings, in the likeness ofhis death and resurrection:
and they are "manifestly declared" to be so, by the impresses of Christ's grace
upon them; by the fairness of the copy; by the style and language of the
epistle; by their likeness to Christ; by their having not the form only, but the
powerof godliness;and by their lives and conversations:now in writing these
epistles, the ministers of the Gospelare only instruments, "ministered by us".
They are made use of to show the sinner the black characters which are
written upon him, and that what is written in him, and to be read by him, by
the light of nature is not sufficient for salvation;they are employed as
instruments in drawing the rough draught of grace in conversion, and in
writing the copy over again, fairer and fairer; being the happy means blessed

239. by God, for the building up of souls in faith and holiness, in spiritual
knowledge and comfort. These epistles are
not written with ink; of nature's power, or of rhetorical eloquence and moral
persuasion;
but with the Spirit of the living God: every grace that is implanted in the soul
is wrought there by the Spirit of God; or he it is that draws every line, and
writes every word and letter; he begins, he carries on and finishes the work of
grace on the soul; and that as "the Spirit of the living God": hence saints
become the living epistles of Christ; and every letter and stroke of his making,
is a living disposition of the soul in likeness to him; and such are written
among the living in Jerusalem, and shall live and abide for ever as the epistles
of Christ: again, the subjects of these epistles, or that on which they are
written, are
not tables of stone; such as the law was written upon, on Mount Sinai: of these
tables there were the first and second;the first were the work of God himself,
the latter were hewedby Moses, atthe command of God, Exodus 32:16 the
former being broken when he came down from the mount, which by the
Jewishwriters are said to be miraculously made, and not by the means and
artifice of menF12;yea, that they were made before the creationof the
worldF13, and which, they commonly say, were made of sapphire; See Gill on
2 Corinthians 3:7 these, as the latter, were two stones, which, Jarchi saysF14,
were of an equal size; and were, as Abarbinel saysF15, in the form of small
tables, such as children are taught to write upon, and therefore are so called:
some pretend to give the dimensions of them, and sayF16, that they were six
hands long, and as many broad, and three thick; nay, even the weightof them,
which is saidF17 to be the weightof forty "seahs",and look upon it as a
miracle that Mosesshould be able to carry them; on these stones were written
the ten commands; and the common opinion of the Jewishwriters is, that five

240. were written on one table, and five on the other; this is the opinion of
JosephusF18,PhiloF19,and the Talmudic writersF20;and the tables are said
to be written on both sides, Exodus 32:15. Some think that the engraving of
the letters perforated and went through the tables, so that, in a miraculous
manner, the letters were legible on both sides;others think, only the right and
left hand of the tables are meant, on which the laws were written, five on a
side, and which folded up like the tables or pages ofa book; though others are
of opinion, that they were written upon, both behind and before, and that the
law was written twice, both upon the fore part and back part of the tables,
yea, others sayfour times; and some think the phrase only intends the literal
and mystical, the external and internal sense ofthe law: however, certainit is,
as the apostle here suggests, thatthe law was written on tables of stone, which
may denote the firmness and stability of the law; not as in the hands of Moses,
from whence the tables fell and were broken, but as in the hands of Christ, by
whom they are fulfilled; or else the hardness of man's heart, his stupidity,
ignorance of, and not subject to the law of God:
but fleshly tables of the heart: alluding to Ezekiel36:26 and designs not carnal
hearts, but such as are made soft and tender by the Spirit of God. The table of
the heart is a phrase to be met with in the books ofthe Old Testament;see
Proverbs 3:3 and very frequently in the writings of the JewsF21.
Copyright Statement
The New John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible Modernisedand adapted
for the computer by Larry Pierce of Online Bible. All Rightes Reserved,
Larry Pierce, Winterbourne, Ontario.
A printed copy of this work can be ordered from: The Baptist Standard
Bearer, 1 Iron Oaks Dr, Paris, AR, 72855
Bibliography

241. Gill, John. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "The New John Gill
Exposition of the Entire Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/2-corinthians-3.html.
1999.
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Geneva Study Bible
[Forasmuchas ye are] a manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ b
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the c living God;
1 not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
(a) The apostle says this wisely, that by little and little he may come from the
commendation of the personto the matter itself.
(b) Which I took pains to write as it were.
(c) Along the way he sets the powerof Godagainstthe ink with which epistles
are commonly written, to show that it was accomplishedby God. {(1)} He
alludes along the wayto the comparisonof the outward ministry of the
priesthood of Levi with the ministry of the Gospel, and the apostolical
ministry, which he handles afterward more fully.
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography

242. Beza, Theodore. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". "The 1599 Geneva
Study Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/gsb/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1599-1645.
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Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
declared— The letter is written so legibly that it can be “readby all men” (2
Corinthians 3:2). Translate, “Being manifestlyshown to be an Epistle of
Christ”; a letter coming manifestly from Christ, and “ministered by us,” that
is, carried about and presentedby us as its (ministering) bearers to those (the
world) for whom it is intended: Christ is the Writer and the Recommender, ye
are the letter recommending us.
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God — Paul was the
ministering pen or other instrument of writing, as well as the ministering
bearer and presenter of the letter. “Notwith ink” stands in contrastto the
letters of commendation which “some” atCorinth (2 Corinthians 3:1) used.
“Ink” is also usedhere to include all outward materials for writing, such as
the Sinaitic tables of stone were. These, however, were notwritten with ink,
but “graven” by “the finger of God” (Exodus 31:18; Exodus 32:16). Christ‘s
Epistle (His believing members converted by Paul) is better still: it is written
not merely with the finger, but with the “Spirit of the living God”;it is not the
“ministration of death” as the law, but of the “living Spirit” that “giveth life”
(2 Corinthians 3:6-8).
not in — not on tables (tablets) of stone, as the ten commandments were
written (2 Corinthians 3:7).

243. in fleshy tables of the heart — ALL the best manuscripts read, “On [your]
hearts [which are] tables of flesh.” Once your hearts were spiritually what the
tables of the law were physically, tables of stone, but God has “takenawaythe
stony heart out of your flesh, given you a heart of flesh” (fleshy, not fleshly,
that is, carnal;hence it is written, “out of your flesh” that is, your carnal
nature), Ezekiel11:19; Ezekiel36:26. Compare 2 Corinthians 3:2, “As ye are
our Epistle written in our hearts,” so Christ has in the first instance made you
“His Epistle written with the Spirit in (on) your hearts.” I bear on my heart,
as a testimony to all men, that which Christ has by His Spirit written in your
heart [Alford]. (Compare Proverbs 3:3; Proverbs 7:3; Jeremiah31:31-34).
This passageis quoted by Paley[Horae Paulinae]as illustrating one
peculiarity of Paul‘s style, namely, his going off at a word into a parenthetic
reflection: here it is on the word “Epistle.” So “savor,”2 Corinthians 2:14-17.
Copyright Statement
These files are a derivative of an electronic edition prepared from text
scannedby Woodside Bible Fellowship.
This expanded edition of the Jameison-Faussett-BrownCommentary is in the
public domain and may be freely used and distributed.
Bibliography
Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on 2
Corinthians 3:3". "Commentary Criticaland Explanatory on the Whole
Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfb/2-corinthians-
3.html. 1871-8.
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Robertson's WordPictures in the New Testament

244. An epistle of Christ (επιστολη Χριστου — epistolē Christou). He turns the
metaphor round and round. They are Christ‘s letter to men as well as Paul‘s.
Not with ink (ου μελανι — ou melani). Instrumental case ofμελας — melas
black. Plato uses το μελαν — to melan for ink as here. See also 2 John 1:12; 3
John 1:13.
Of stone (λιτιναις — lithinais). Composedofstone (λιτος — lithos and ending
ινος — ̇inos).
Of flesh (σαρκιναις — sarkinais). “Fleshen” as in 1 Corinthians 3:1; Romans
7:14.
Copyright Statement
The Robertson's WordPictures of the New Testament. Copyright �
Broadman Press 1932,33,Renewal1960. All rights reserved. Used by
permission of Broadman Press (Southern BaptistSunday SchoolBoard)
Bibliography
Robertson, A.T. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Robertson's Word
Pictures of the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/rwp/2-corinthians-3.html.
Broadman Press 1932,33.Renewal1960.
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Vincent's Word Studies
An epistle of Christ ministered by us ( ἐπιστολὴ Χριστοῦ διακονηθεῖσα ὑφ '
ἡμῶν )

245. An epistle written by Christ through our ministry; that is, you, as the
convertedsubjects of our ministry, are an epistle of Christ. Others explain: an
epistle of which Christ forms the contents, thus making the apostles the
writers. For the expressionministered by us, compare 2 Corinthians 8:19, 2
Corinthians 8:20; 1 Peter1:12.
Ink ( μέλανι )
From μέλας blackOnly here, 2 John 1:12(see note), and 3 John 1:13.
The Spirit
Instead of ink.
Fleshy tables of the heart ( πλαξὶν καρδίας σαρκίναις )
The best texts read καρδίαις the dative case in appositionwith tables. Render,
as Rev., tables which are hearts of flesh. Compare Ezekiel11:19; Jeremiah
17:1; Jeremiah31:33. For of flesh, see on Romans 7:14.
Copyright Statement
The text of this work is public domain.
Bibliography

246. Vincent, Marvin R. DD. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Vincent's
Word Studies in the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/vnt/2-corinthians-3.html.
Charles Schribner's Sons. New York, USA. 1887.
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Wesley's ExplanatoryNotes
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ ministered
by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables
of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
Manifestly declaredto be the letter of Christ — Which he has formed and
published to the world.
Ministered by us — Whom he has used herein as his instruments, therefore ye
are our letter also.
Written not in tables of stone — Like the ten commandments. But in the
tender, living tables of their hearts - God having takenawaythe hearts of
stone and given them hearts of flesh.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain and are a derivative of an electronic edition that
is available on the Christian ClassicsEtherealLibrary Website.
Bibliography

247. Wesley, John. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "John Wesley's
Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/wen/2-corinthians-3.html.
1765.
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Abbott's Illustrated New Testament
The epistle of Christ ministered by us; the work of Christ, performed by our
instrumentality.--Tables; tablets.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Bibliography
Abbott, John S. C. & Abbott, Jacob. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3".
"Abbott's Illustrated New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/ain/2-corinthians-3.html.
1878.
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Calvin's Commentary on the Bible
3.Ye are the Epistle of Christ Pursuing the metaphor, he says that the Epistle
of which he speaks was writtenby Christ, inasmuch as the faith of the
Corinthians was his work. He says that it was ministered by him, as if
meaning by this, that he had been in the place of ink and pen. In fine, he
makes Christ the author and himself the instrument, that calumniators may

248. understand, that it is with Christ that they have to do, if they continue to
speak againsthim (365)with malignity. What follows is intended to increase
the authority of that Epistle. The secondclause, (366)however, has alreadya
reference to the comparisonthat is afterwards drawn betweenthe law and the
gospel. Forhe takes occasionfrom this shortly afterwards, as we shall see, to
enter upon a comparisonof this nature. The antitheses here employed — ink
and Spirit, stones and heart — give no small degree of weightto his
statements, by way of amplification. For in drawing a contrastbetweenink
and the Spirit of God, and between stones and heart, he expressesmore than
if he had simply made mention of the Spirit and the heart, without drawing
any comparison.
Not on tables of stone He alludes to the promise that is recordedin Jeremiah
31:31, and Ezekiel37:26, concerning the grace ofthe New Testament.
I will make, says he, a new covenant with them, not such as I had made with
their fathers; but I will write my laws upon their hearts, and engrave them on
their inward parts. Farther, I will take awaythe stony heart from the midst of
thee, and will give thee a heart of flesh, that thou mayestwalk in my precepts.
(Ezekiel36:26.)
Paul says, that this blessing was accomplishedthrough means of his
preaching. Hence it abundantly appears, that he is a faithful minister of the
New Covenant — which is a legitimate testimony in favor of his apostleship.
The epithet fleshly is not takenhere in a bad sense, but means soft and
flexible, (367) as it is contrastedwith stony, that is, hard and stubborn, as is
the heart of man by nature, until it has been subdued by the Spirit of God.
(368)
Copyright Statement

249. These files are public domain.
Bibliography
Calvin, John. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Calvin's Commentary
on the Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cal/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1840-57.
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Scofield's ReferenceNotes
tables of
i.e. the ten commandments.
Copyright Statement
These files are consideredpublic domain and are a derivative of an electronic
edition that is available in the Online Bible Software Library.
Bibliography
Scofield, C. I. "ScofieldReferenceNoteson 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Scofield
Reference Notes(1917Edition)".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/srn/2-corinthians-3.html.
1917.
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James Nisbet's Church Pulpit Commentary

250. LIVING EPISTLES
‘Ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ ministered by us,
written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of
stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.’
2 Corinthians 3:3
It is impossible to study such a statementas this without grave searchings of
heart. Solemn questions must arise in all thoughtful minds which require
prayerful and honest answers.
I. There are, it is true, important differences betweenour position and that of
the early Christians which make it speciallydifficult for the handwriting of
Christ to be recognisedin us. Christianity was then a new power;its
characteristicswere clearand distinct, and their novelty attractedattention.
But now this is an old tale with which all are familiar. And just because the
handwriting of Christ has been before the world all these centuries, its
characteristic features do not attractthe same attention. But, in spite of these
difficulties, the handwriting of Christ may be seenin His true servants to-day.
The need for such epistles is as greatas ever. Men do not read their Bibles
much, but they do read our lives. We ought to be recognisedas Christ’s
epistles. Open to all the world. Legible and plain so that the passer-by may
read. Men ought to take knowledge ofus that we have been with Jesus and
have learned of Him. Thank God there are such epistles to-day. Such
beautiful characters canbe found manifesting not merely the fruits of
Christian culture or the results of carefulChurch training, but the marks of
the touch of the MasterHimself.

251. II. But what are these marks?—Whatare the specialcharacteristicsofthe
handwriting of Christ? I will mention four.
(a) The first is a deep sense of sin and of all that sin involves.
(b) A secondmark is a sense offorgiveness and peace.
(c) A third mark is the possessionof life from above.
(d) A fourth mark is the mark of the Cross.
III. But how may we become epistles of Christ?—The answeris in the text.
The writing is not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. Noton tables
of stone, but on hearts of flesh. The reference is to the giving of the Law. A
contrastis drawn betweenthe Old and the New Covenants. The Old Covenant
was a ministration of death with a glory which vanished. The New Covenantis
a ministration of righteousness and life with a glory which remains. The
Commandments of Sinai had no powerto lay hold of the heart. There they
stoodengraven in stone, revealing God’s righteous demands, but utterly
unable to awakena response ofloving and loyal obedience. Christ is the
Mediatorof a better Covenantbased upon better promises. This new
Covenantis written with the Spirit of the living God.
Rev. F. S. Webster.
Illustration

252. ‘Mostmen are betrayed by their handwriting. We all have a number of
correspondents whose letters we canidentify without opening the envelope.
The very direction shows us from whom the letter has come. Now, St. Paul
could say of the Christians at Corinth that they were “manifestly declaredto
be the epistle of Christ.” None could watchtheir changedlives and characters
without recognising the handwriting of Christ. St. Paul was the pen, but
Christ Himself was the writer. The Divine Masterhad stamped His own image
and superscription upon them. And this change was so manifest, that St. Paul
could point to it with confidence and use greatplainness of speech. Forsuch
manifestly Christian lives were the sufficient credentials of the Gospel, so
many living proofs of its Divine power and origin.’
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Nisbet, James. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". Church Pulpit
Commentary. https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cpc/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1876.
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John Trapp Complete Commentary
3 Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ
ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God;
not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

253. Ver. 3. Ministered by us] Who are devoted to the service of your faith, and are
the Lord Christ’s secretaries.
But in fleshy tables] In the softenedheart God writes his law, puts an inward
aptness, answering the law of God without, as lead answers the mould, as tally
answers tally, as indenture answers indenture.
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Trapp, John. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". John Trapp Complete
Commentary. https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jtc/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1865-1868.
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Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible
2 Corinthians 3:3. Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declared— The sense ofSt.
Paul here is plainly this: that he needed no letters of commendation to them;
but that their conversion, and the gospelwritten, not with ink, but with the
Spirit of Godin the tables of their hearts, by his ministry, and not in tables of
stone;was as clearan evidence and testimony to them of his mission from
Christ, as the law written in tables of stone was an evidence of Moses's
mission: so that he [St. Paul] needed no other recommendation. This is what
we are to understand by the verse; unless we will make the tables of stone to
have no signification here. But to say, as he does, that the Corinthians, being
written upon in their hearts, not with ink, but with the Spirit of God, by his

254. instrumentality, was Christ's commendatory letter of him.—This being a
pretty bold expression, liable to the exceptionof the captious part of the
Corinthians, to obviate all imputation of vanity or vain-glory herein, he
immediately subjoins what follows in the next verse.
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Coke, Thomas. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". Thomas Coke
Commentary on the Holy Bible.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/tcc/2-corinthians-3.html.
1801-1803.
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Greek TestamentCriticalExegeticalCommentary
3.] manifested to be (that ye are)an epistle of Christ (i.e. written by Christ,—
not, as Chrys. al., concerning Christ:—He is the Recommenderof us, the
Head of the church and Sender of us His ministers) which was ministered
(aor.) by us (i.e. carried about, servedin the way of ministration by us as
tabellarii,—not, as Meyerand De W. and al., written by us as amanuenses:see
below), having been inscribed, not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living
God (so the tables of the law were γεγραμμέναι τῷ δακτύλῳ τοῦ θεοῦ, Exodus
31:18), not on stone tables (as the old law, ib.), but on (your) hearts (which
are) tables of flesh (Meyer calls the reading καρδίαις a mistake of the pen. But
surely internal as wellas external evidence is strong in its favour, the
correctionto καρδίας being so obvious to those who found the construction
harsh). The apparent change in the figure in this verse requires explanation.

255. The Corinthians are his Epistle of recommendation, both to themselves and
others; an Epistle, written by Christ, ministered by Paul; the Epistle itself
being now the subject, viz. the Corinthians, themselves the writing of Christ,
inscribed, not on tables of stone, but on hearts, tables of flesh. The Epistle
itself, written and worn on Paul’s heart, and there known and read by all
men, consistedofthe Corinthian converts, on whose hearts Christ had written
it by His Spirit. I bear on my heart, as a testimony to all men, that which
Christ has by His Spirit written in your hearts. On the tables of stone and of
flesh, see Exod. as above; Proverbs 3:3; Proverbs 7:3; Jeremiah31:31-34, and
on the contrast, also here hinted at in the background, betweenthe heart of
stone and the heart of flesh, Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel36:26.
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Alford, Henry. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". Greek Testament
Critical ExegeticalCommentary.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/hac/2-corinthians-3.html.
1863-1878.
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Heinrich Meyer's Critical and ExegeticalCommentaryon the New Testament
2 Corinthians 3:3. φανερούμενοι]attaches itselfin constructionto ὑμεῖς ἐστε,
to which it furnishes a more precise definition, and that in elucidative
reference to what has just been said γινωσκομένη … ἀνθρώπων: since you are
being manifested to be an epistle of Christ, i.e. since it does not remain hid,

256. but becomes (continually) clearto every one that you, etc. Comp. on the
construction, 1 John 2:19.
ἐπιστολὴ χριστοῦ]genitivus auctoris (not of the contents—inopposition to
Chrysostom, Oecumenius, Theophylact):a letter composed(dictated) by
Christ. Fritzsche, l.c. p. 23, takes the genitive as possessive, so that the sense
without figure would be: homines Christiani estis. But in what follows the
whole origin of the Epistle is very accuratelysetforth, and should the author
not be mentioned—not in that case be placedin front? Theodoretalready
gives the right vie.
ἐπιστολή is here not againspecially letter of recommendation (2 Corinthians
3:2), but letter in general;for through the characteristic:“youare an epistle
of Christ, drawn up by us,” etc., the statement above. “you are our letter of
recommendation,” is to be elucidated and made good.
In the following διακονηθεῖσα … σαρκίναις Paul presents himself and
Timothy as the writers of the epistle of Christ ( διακον. ὑφʼἡμ.), the Holy
Spirit as the means of writing in lieu of ink, and human hearts, i.e. according
to the context, the hearts of the Corinthians, as the material which is written
upon. For Christ was the author of their Christian condition; Paul and
Timothy were His instruments for their conversion, and by their ministry the
Holy Spirit became operative in the hearts of the readers. In so far the
Corinthians, in their Christian character, are as it were a letter which Christ
has causedto be written, through Paul and Timothy, by means of the Holy
Spirit in their hearts. On the passive expressionδιακονηθ.ὑφʼἡμ., comp. 2
Corinthians 8:19 f.; Mark 10:45; note also the change of the tenses:διακονηθ.
and ἐγγεγραμμ. (the epistle is there ready); likewise the designationof the
Holy Spirit as πνεῦμα θεοῦ ζῶντος, comp. 2 Corinthians 3:6. We may add that
Paul has not mixed up heterogeneoustraits of the figure of a letter begun in 2
Corinthians 3:2 (Rückertand others), but here, too, he carries out this figure,

257. as it corresponds to the thing to be figured thereby. The single incongruity is
οὐκ ἐν πλαξὶ λιθίναις, in which he has not retained the conceptionof a letter
(which is written on tablets of paper), but has thought generally of a writing to
be read. Since, however, he has conceivedofsuch writing as divinely
composed(see above, πνεύματι θεοῦ ζῶντος), of which nature was the law of
Sinai, the usual supposition is right, that he has been induced to express
himself thus by the remembrance of the tables of the law (Hebrews 9:4; comp.
Jeremiah31:31-33);for we have no reasonto deny that the subsequent
mention of them (2 Corinthians 3:7) was evennow floating before his mind.
Fritzsche, indeed, thinks that “accommodate adnonnulla V. T. loca (Proverbs
3:3; Proverbs 7:3) cordis notionem per tabulas cordis expressurus erat,
quibus tabulis carneis nihil tam commode quam tabulas lapideas opponere
potuerit.” But he might quite as suitably have chosenan antithesis
corresponding to the figure of a letter (2 John 1:12; 2 Timothy 4:13); hence it
is rather to be supposed that he came to use the expressiontabulae cordis, just
because he had before his mind the idea of the tables of the law.
The antitheses in our passageare intended to bring out that here an epistle is
composedin quite another and higher sense than an ordinary letter (which
one brings into existence μέλανι σπείρων διὰ καλάμου,Plato Phaedr. p. 276
C)—a writing, which is not to be comparedeven with the Mosaic tables ofthe
law. But the purpose of a contrastwith the legalismof his opponents
(Klöpper) is not conveyed in the context.
That there is a specialpurpose in the use of σαρκίναις as opposedto λιθίναις,
cannot be doubted after the previous antitheses. It must imply the notion of
something better (comp. Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel36:26), namely, the thought of
the living receptivity and susceptibility: δεκτικὰς τοῦ λόγου (Theophylact,
Calvin, Stolz, Flatt, de Wette, Osiander, Ewald, and others). The distinctive
sense ofσαρκινός is correctly noted by Erasmus: “ut materiam intelligas, non
qualitatem.” Comp. on 1 Corinthians 3:1. καρδίας is also the genitive of
material, and the contrastwould have been sufficiently denoted by ἀλλʼ ἐν

258. πλαξὶ καρδίας:it is, however, expressedmore concretelyand vividly by the
added σαρκίναις: in fleshy tablets of the heart.
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Meyer, Heinrich. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". Heinrich Meyer's
Critical and ExegeticalCommentary on the New Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/hmc/2-corinthians-3.html.
1832.
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Johann Albrecht Bengel's Gnomonof the New Testament
2 Corinthians 3:3. φανερούμενοι, manifested)construed with ὑμεῖς, ye, 2
Corinthians 3:2. The reasonassigned[aetiologia, end.]why this epistle may be
read.— χριστοῦ— ὑφʼ ἡμῶν, of Christ—by us) This explains the word our, 2
Corinthians 3:2. Christ is the author of the epistle.— διακονηθεῖσα)The verb
διακονέω, has often the accusative ofthe thing, 2 Corinthians 8:19-20;2
Timothy 1:18; 1 Peter 1:12; 1 Peter4:10. So Paeanius, τὴνμάχην
διακονούμενος, directing the battle, b. 7, Metaphr. Eutr. The apostles, as
ministers, διηκόνουν, presentedthe epistle. Christ, by their instrumentality,
brought spiritual light to bear on the tablets of the hearts of the Corinthians,
as a scribe applies ink to paper. Not merely ink, but parchment or paper and
a pen are necessaryfor writing a letter; but Paul mentions ink without paper
and a pen, and it is therefore a synecdoche [one material of writing put for all.
end.] τὸ μέλαν does not exactly mean ink, but any black substance, for
example, even charcoal, by which an inscription may be made upon stone. The

259. mode of writing of every kind, which is done by ink and a pen, is the same as
that of the Decalogue,whichwas engravedon tables of stone. Letters were
engravedon stone, as a dark letter is written on paper. The hearts of the
Corinthians are here intended; for Paul was as it were the style or pen.— οὐ
μέλανι, not with ink) A synecdoche [ink for any means of writing]; for the
tables in the hands of Moses,divinely inscribed without ink, were at least
material substances.— ζῶντος,ofthe living) comp. 2 Corinthians 3:6-7.—
λιθίναις, of stone)2 Corinthians 3:7.— πλαξὶ καρδίας σαρκίναις, in fleshly
tables of the heart) Tables ofthe heart are a genus;fleshly tables, a species;
for every heart is not of flesh.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Bengel, JohannAlbrecht. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". Johann
Albrecht Bengel's Gnomonof the New Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jab/2-corinthians-3.html.
1897.
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Matthew Poole's EnglishAnnotations on the Holy Bible
He had told them before that they were his epistle, his epistle
recommendatory, the change which God had wrought in their hearts did
more recommend him than all the epistles in the world could; but here he tells
them that they were

260. the epistle of Christ, it was Christ that wrote his law in their hearts, (which
writing was that which commended the apostle, who himself had but a
ministration in the work), nor was it a writing
with ink, but the impression of
the Spirit of the living God. An epistle
not written in tables of stone, but in
the fleshy tables of the heart: he alludeth to the writing of the law, which was
written in
tables of stone, Exodus 31:18, and also to the promises, Ezekiel11:19 Ezekiel
36:26. That work of grace in the hearts of these Corinthians, which
recommended the apostle, was wrought by Christ, and the apostles were but
ministers in the working of it; it was a work more admirable than the writing
of the law in tables of stone, and this work (he saith) was
manifestly declared.
Copyright Statement
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261. Bibliography
Poole, Matthew, "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". Matthew Poole's
English Annotations on the Holy Bible.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mpc/2-corinthians-3.html.
1685.
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Alexander MacLaren's Expositions ofHoly Scripture
Jeremiah
SIN’S WRITING AND ITS ERASURE
Jeremiah17:1. - 2 Corinthians 3:3. - Colossians 2:14.
I have put these verses togetherbecausethey all deal with substantially the
same metaphor. The first is part of a prophet’s solemnappeal. It describes the
sin of the nation as indelible. It is written in two places. First, on their hearts,
which reminds us of the promise of the new covenantto be written on the
heart. The ‘red-leaved tablets of the heart’ are like waxentables on which an
iron stylus makes a deep mark, an ineradicable scar. So Judah’s sin is, as it
were, eateninto their heart, or, if we might so say, tattooedon it. It is also
written on the stone horns of the altar, with a diamond which can cut the rock
{an illustration of ancient knowledge ofthe properties of the diamond}. That
sounds a strange place for the recordof sin to appear, but the image has
profound meaning, as we shall see presently.
Then the two New Testamentpassages dealwith other applications of the
same metaphor. Christ is, in the first, representedas writing on the hearts of

262. the Corinthians, and in the second, as taking away‘the handwriting contrary
to us.’ The generalthought drawn from all is that sin’s writing on men’s
hearts is erasedby Christ and a new inscription substituted.
I. The handwriting of sin.
Sin committed is indelibly written on the heart of the doer.
‘The heart,’ of course, in Hebrew means more than merely the supposedseat
of the affections. It is figuratively the centre of the spiritual life, just as
physically it is the centre of the natural. Thoughts and affections, purposes
and desires are all included, and out of it are ‘the issues of life,’ the whole
outgoings of the being. It is the fountain and source of all the activity of the
man, the central unity from which all comes. Takenin this wide sense it is
really the whole inner self that is meant, or, as is saidin one place, ‘the hidden
man of the heart.’ And so the thought in this vigorous metaphor may be
otherwise put, that all sin makes indelible marks on the whole inward nature
of the man who does it.
Now to begin with, think for a moment of that truth that everything which we
do reacts on us the doers.
We seldomthink of this. Deeds are done, and we fancy that when done, they
are done with. They pass, as far as outward seeming goes, and their
distinguishable consequencesin the outward world, in the vast majority of
cases, soonapparently pass. All seems evanescentand irrecoverable as last
year’s snows, or the water that flowed over the cataracta century ago. But
there is nothing more certain than that all which we do leaves indelible traces
on ourselves. The mightiest effectof a man’s actions is on his own inward life.

263. The recoilof the gun is more powerful than the blow from its shot. Our
actions strike inwards and there produce their most important effects. The
river runs ceaselesslyand its waters pass away, but they bring down soil,
which is depositedand makes firm land, or perhaps they carry down grains of
gold.
This is the true solemnity of life, that in all which we do we are carrying on a
double process,influencing others indeed, but influencing ourselves far more.
Considerthe illustrations of this law in regardto our sins.
Now the lastthing people think of when they hear sermons about ‘sin’ is that
what is meant is the things that they are doing every day. I can only ask you to
try to remember, while I speak, that I mean those little acts of temper, or
triflings with truth, or yieldings to passionor anger, or indulgence in
sensuality, and above all, the living without God, to which we are all prone.
{a} All wrong-doing makes indelible marks on character. It makes its own
repetition easier. Habit strengthens inclination. Peterfound denying his Lord
three times easierthan doing it once. It weakensresistance.In going downhill
the first step is the only one that needs an effort; gravity will do the rest.
It drags after it a tendency to other evil. All wrong things have so much in
common that they lead on to one another. A man with only one vice is a rare
phenomenon. Satansends his apostles forth two by two. Sins hunt in couples,
or more usually in packs, like wolves, only now and then do they prey alone
like lions. Small thieves open windows for greaterones. It requires continually
increasing draughts, like indulgence in stimulants. The palate demands
cayenne tomorrow, if it has had black pepper to-day.

264. So, whateverelse we do by our acts, we are making our own characters, either
steadily depraving or steadily improving them. There will come a slight slow
change, almostunnoticed but most certain, as a dim film will creepover the
peach, robbing it of all its bloom, or some microscopic growthwill stealacross
a clearly cut inscription, or a breath of mist will dim a polished steelmirror.
{b} All wrong-doing writes indelible records on the memory, that awful and
mysterious powerof recalling past things out of the oblivion in which they
seemto lie. How solemn and miserable it is to defile it with the pictures of
things evil! Many a man in his later years has tried to ‘turn over a new leaf,’
and has never been able to getthe filth out of his memory, for it has been
printed on the old page in such strong colours that it shines through. I beseech
you all, and especiallyyou young people, to keepyourselves ‘innocent of much
transgression,’and ‘simple concerning evil’-to make your memories like an
illuminated missalwith fair saints and calm angels bordering the holy words,
and not an Illustrated Police News. Probablythere is no real oblivion. Each
act sinks in as if forgotten, gets overlaid with a multitude of others, but it is
there, and memory will one day bring it to us.
And all sin pollutes the imagination. It is a miserable thing to have one’s mind
full of ugly foul forms painted on the inner walls of our chamber of imagery,
like the hideous figures in some heathen temple, where gods of lust and
murder look out from every inch of space onthe walls.
{c} All wrong-doing writes indelible records on the conscience. Itdoes so
partly by sophisticating it-the sensibility to right and wrong being weakened
by every evil act, as a cold in the head takes awaythe sense of smell. It brings
on colour-blindness to some extent. One does not know how far one may go
towards ‘Evil! be thou my good’-orhow far towards incapacityof
distinguishing evil. But at all events the tendency of eachsin is in that

265. direction. So consciencemay become seared, though perhaps never so
completely as that there are no intervals when it speaks. It may long lie
dormant, as Vesuvius did, till greattrees grow on the floor of the crater, but
all the while the communication with the central fires is open, and one day
they will burst out.
The writing may be with invisible ink, but it will be legible one day. So, then,
all this solemn writing on the heart is done by ourselves. What are you
writing? There is a presumption in it of a future retribution, when you will
have to read your autobiography, with clearerlight and power of judging
yourselves. At any rate there is retribution now, which is described by many
metaphors, such as sowing and reaping, drinking as we have brewed, and
others-but this one of indelible writing is not the leaststriking.
Sin is gravendeep on sinful men’s worship.
The metaphor here is striking and not altogetherclear. The question rises
whether the altars are idolatrous altars, or Jehovah’s. If the former, the
expressionmay mean simply that the Jews’idolatry, which was their sin, was
conspicuouslydisplayed in these altars, and had, as it were, its most flagrant
record in their sacrifices. The altar was the centre point of all heathen and
Old Testamentworship, and altars built by sinners were the most conspicuous
evidences of their sins.
So the meaning would be that men’s sin shapes and culminates in their
religion; and that is very true, and explains many of the profanations and
abominations of heathenism, and much of the formal worship of so-called
Christianity.

266. For instance, a popular religion which is a mere Deism, a kind of vague belief
in a providence, and in a future state where everybody is happy, is but the
product of men’s sin, striking out of Christianity all which their sin makes
unwelcome in it. The justice of God, punishment, sinfulness of sin, high moral
tone, are all gone. And the very horns of their altars are marked with the signs
of the worshippers’sin.
But the ‘altars’ may be God’s altars, and then another idea will come in. The
horns of the altar were the places where the blood of the sacrifice was
smeared, as tokenof its offering to God. They were then a part of the ritual of
propitiation. They had, no doubt, the same meaning in the heathen ritual. And
so regarded, the metaphor means that a sense ofthe reality of sin shapes
sacrificialreligion.
There can be no doubt that a very real convictionof sin lies at the foundation
of much, if not all, of the systemof sacrifices. And it is a question well worth
considering whether a conviction so widespreadis not valid, and whether we
should not see in it the expressionof a true human need which no mere
culture, or the like, will supply.
At all events, altars stand as witnessesto the consciousnessofsin. And the
same thought may be applied to much of the popular religion of this day. It
may be ineffectual and shallow but it bears witness to a consciousness ofevil.
So its existence may be used in order to urge profounder realisationof evil on
men. You come to worship, you join in confessions,you say‘miserable
sinners’-do you mean anything by it? If all that be true, should it not produce
a deeper impressionon you?
But another wayof regarding the metaphor is this. The horns of the altar
were to be touched with the blood of propitiation. But look!the blood flows

267. down, and after it has trickled away, there, deep carven on the horns, still
appears the sin, i.e. the sin is not expiated by the sinner’s sacrifice. Jeremiahis
then echoing Isaiah’s word, ‘Bring no more vain oblations.’The picture gives
very strikingly the hopelessness,so far as men are concerned, of any attempt
to blot out this record. It is like the rock-cutcartouches ofEgypt on which
time seems to have no effect. There they abide deep for ever. Nothing that we
can do can efface them. ‘What I have written, I have written.’ Pen-knives and
detergents that we can use are all in vain.
II. Sin’s writing may be erased, and another put in its place.
The work of Christ, made ours by faith, blots it out.
{a} Its influence on conscienceandthe sense ofguilt. The accusations of
conscienceare silenced. A red line is drawn across the indictment, or, as
Colossians has it, it is ‘nailed to the cross.’There is power in His death to set
us free from the debt we owe.
{b} Its influence on memory. Christ does not bring oblivion, but yet takes
awaythe remorse of remembrance. Faith in Christ makes memory no longer
a record which we blush to turn over, or upon which we gloatwith
imaginative delight in guilty pleasures past, but a recordof our shortcomings
that humbles us with a penitence which is not pain, but serves as a beaconand
warning for the time to come. He who has a clearbeam of memory on his
backwardtrack, and a bright light of hope on his forward one, will steerright.
{c} Its influence on character.

268. We attain new hopes and tastes. ‘We become epistles of Christ known and
read of all men,’ like palimpsests, Homer or Ovid written over with the New
Testamentgospels orepistles.
Christ’s work is twofold, erasure and rewriting. For the one, ‘I will blot out as
a cloud their transgressions.’None but He can remove these. Forthe other, ‘I
will put My law into their minds and will write it on their hearts.’ He can
impress all holy desires on, and canput His greatlove and His mighty spirit
into, our hearts.
So give your hearts to Him. They are all scrawledoverwith hideous and
wickedwriting that has sunk deep into their substance. Gravenas if on rock
are your sins in your character. Your worship and sacrificeswill not remove
them, but Jesus Christ can. He died that you might be forgiven, He lives that
you may be purified. Trust yourself to Him, and leanall your sinfulness on
His atonementand sanctifying power, and the foul words and bad thoughts
that have been scoredso deep into your nature will be erased, and His own
hand will trace on the page, poor and thin though it be, which has been
whitened by His blood, the fair letters and shapes of His own likeness. Do not
let your hearts be the devil’s copybooks for all evil things to scrawltheir
names there, as boys do on the walls, but spread them before Him, and ask
Him to make them cleanand write upon them His new name, indicating that
you now belong to another, as a new owner writes his name on a book that he
has bought.
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269. Bibliography
MacLaren, Alexander. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". Alexander
MacLaren's Expositions ofHoly Scripture.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mac/2-corinthians-3.html.
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Justin Edwards' Family Bible New Testament
Ministered by us; written by our ministration, as his instruments.
Not in tables of stone;as a mere outward law is. The allusion is to the ten
commandments written on tables of stone.
Fleshly tables of the heart; compare Jeremiah 31:33;Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel
36:26. When ministers of the gospelare instrumental in converting men from
sin to holiness, it is proof that the Spirit of God accompaniestheir labors; and
though they are the means, he is the author of their success, andto him
belongs the glory.
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Edwards, Justin. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Family Bible New
Testament". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/fam/2-
corinthians-3.html. American TractSociety. 1851.

270. Return to Jump List return to 'Jump List'
Cambridge Greek Testamentfor Schools andColleges
3. φανερούμενοι. Nothing need be inserted: being made manifest that ye are
an epistle of Christ. No article:see on 2 Corinthians 2:16. The participles are
in logicalorder; first known as being there, then read by all, then made
manifest as an epistle of Christ. He means that Christ is the realgiver of the
commendatory letter, for it is He who sends the Apostle and his colleagues
and gives them success. In these chapters φανερόω is frequent; 2 Corinthians
4:10-11, 2 Corinthians 5:10-11, 2 Corinthians 7:12.
διακονηθεῖσα ὑφʼἡμῶν. Is the διακονία that of the amanuensis (Romans
16:22), or that of the bearer (Acts 15:30;1 Peter5:12 probably)? The latter
best accords with the idea of dissemination (ὑπὸ πάντων ἀνθρώπων, 2
Corinthians 3:2): whereverS. Paul went he spoke ofhis Corinthian friends (2
Corinthians 9:2-3).
οὐ μέλανι … οὐκ ἐν πλαξίν. We might have expectedἐν μεμβράναις (2
Timothy 4:13) or ἐν χάρτῃ (2 John 1:12): but the proverbial opposition
between‘hearts of flesh’ and ‘hearts of stone’(Ezekiel11:19; Ezekiel36:26;
Jeremiah31:33) comes into his mind, togetherwith the thought of God’s
writing His law—formerly on tables of stone, now on tables which are hearts
of flesh. We may sum the whole up thus: ‘What Christ by the Spirit of God
has written on your hearts is written on our hearts as a commendation to all
men.’ The Apostle ever “wore his heart on his sleeve.” Thesetwo verses (2, 3)
should be compared with 2 Corinthians 4:12-15, 2 Corinthians 5:13, 2
Corinthians 6:11-12. In all four places we see S. Paul’s greatlove for his
converts breaking through the subject in hand and coming to the surface.
Note the difference between the dative without ἐν and with ἐν, μέλανι and to
ἐν πλαξίν; and also betweenσαρκίναις, balancing λιθίναις, both of which refer
to material, and σαρκικαῖς (2 Corinthians 1:12, 2 Corinthians 10:4), which

271. would refer to quality. If we read καρδίαις, notκαρδίας (see criticalnote), the
dative is in apposition with πλαξίν: not on tables of stone, but on tables,
(which are)hearts of flesh. For ‘ink’ and ‘tables’ see atramentum and tabulae
in Dict. of Antiquities. The connexion with what follows seems to be close:yet
WH. begin a fresh paragraph with 2 Corinthians 3:4.
Copyright Statement
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Bibliography
"Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Cambridge Greek Testamentfor
Schools and Colleges". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cgt/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1896.
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Whedon's Commentary on the Bible
3. The italic phrase interpolated by our translators, forasmuch as ye are,
seems unnecessary.
Manifestly declared—Rather, being manifested, referring to ye in the
previous verse. They were known and read by the world as being
conspicuouslyChrist’s commendatory letter of St. Paul, their founder, to the
world. This is a beautiful enlargement of the figure of an epistle, in previous
verse.

272. Epistle of Christ—As Christ is real author of the Church, so he is real
furnisher of the epistle; and thus does Christ authenticate his apostolic
mission by the most powerful of credentials. Let those pseudo-Christians meet
that.
Ministered by us—The Church was made by Christ under the human
ministry of the apostle. He flings in this phrase to remind them that Christ’s
epistle inures to the honour of his ministry. This living epistle of Christ is
written not, as the credentials of the emissaries from Jerusalemwere, with
ink. The figure, as pushed by the lively fancy of our apostle, becomesvery
delicatelysubtile. The names of members may be written on the Church
registerwith ink; but Christ writes, with the Spirit; the Christian being
himself the inscription; and he writes this live inscription on the Christian’s
own heart. And St. Paul supplements the figure by adding that this living
inscription is written, not, like the decalogue,in tables of stone, as the
Judaizers may be figured as an inscription to be written; but, like true sons of
a gospelof the heart, in fleshly tables of the heart.
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Whedon, Daniel. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Whedon's
Commentary on the Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/whe/2-corinthians-3.html.
1874-1909.
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273. Expository Notes ofDr. Thomas Constable
Paul"s ministry and the ministry of all Christians consists of being the
instruments through whom Christ writes the messageofregenerationon the
lives of those who believe the gospel. He does this by the Holy Spirit.
"The Corinthian church is a letter of which Christ is the author; Paul is either
the messengerby whom it was "delivered" (Gk. diahonetheisa, "ministered"
or "administered") or perhaps the amanuensis who took it down; it was
"written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God." This contrast
between"ink" and "Spirit" reminds Paul of the contrastbetweenthe old
covenantand the new, but in view of the material on which the Decalogue, the
old covenantcode, was engraved, he thinks not of parchment or papyrus
(which would have been suitable for "ink")but of "tablets of stone" as
contrastedwith "tablets of human hearts" (lit. "tablets, hearts of flesh")on
which the terms of the new covenantare inscribed." [Note: Bruce, pp189-90.
Cf. Jeremiah31:33; Ezekiel11:19;36:26.]
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Constable, Thomas. DD. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Expository
Notes ofDr. Thomas Constable".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/dcc/2-corinthians-3.html.
2012.
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274. Schaff's Popular Commentary on the New Testament
2 Corinthians 3:3. being made manifest that ye are an epistle of Christ. Nearly
all modern interpreters take this to mean, ‘an epistle of which Christ is the
author.’ But with Chrysostomwe cannotbut think the meaning is, ‘an epistle
of which Christ is the subject-matter,’ as if he had said, ‘all who see you may
read Christ in you.’ The other view of the clause seems like a repetition of the
preceding one, while this presents the change on the Corinthians in a new and
striking light. Besides,if the phrase “ye are our epistle” (2 Corinthians 3:2),
means ‘an epistle commendatory of us,’ the phrase “ye are an epistle of
Christ,” may well mean ‘an epistle commendatory of Christ.’ Compare
Galatians 2:20, “Christ liveth in me,” and Philippians 1:21, “To me to live is
Christ,”—ministeredby us—as if he had said, by the change wrought through
us, ‘We wrote Christ on your character,’—written... by the Spirit of the living
God—accompanying our message,—notin tables of stone, but in fleshy tables
of the heart.(1)There is here an evident allusion to the Mosaic law as written
on tables of stone. The contrastbetweenthis and the same laws as written on
the heart is preciselythat which both Jeremiah and Ezekielhad predicted as
the grand point of contrastbetweenthe old and the new economy. “Beholdthe
days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenantwith the house of
Israeland with the house of Judah; not according to the covenantthat I made
with their fathers . . . I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in
their hearts” (Jeremiah31:31-33). In Ezekiel, it is the heart itself, which is of
stone, but this is to be takenawayand in place of it a heart of flesh is to be
given (Ezekiel36:26).
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Bibliography

275. Schaff, Philip. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Schaff's Popular
Commentary on the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/scn/2-corinthians-3.html.
1879-90.
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The Expositor's Greek Testament
2 Corinthians 3:3. φανερούμενοι ὅτι ἐστὲ κ. τ. λ.: being made manifest that ye
are an epistle of Christ (sc., written by Christ), ministered by us (the Apostle
conceiving of himself as his Master’s amanuensis).— ἐγγεγραμμένη οὐ μέλανι
κ. τ. λ.: written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables
of stone but in tables that are hearts of flesh. This “writing” which the
Corinthians exhibit is no writing with ink on a papyrus roll, but is the
mystical imprint of the Divine Spirit in their hearts, conveyedthrough Paul’s
ministrations; cf. Jeremiah31:33, Proverbs 7:3. And this leads him to think of
the ancient“writing” of the Law by the “finger of God” on the Twelve Tables,
and to contrastit with this epistle of Christ on tables that are not of stone but
are “hearts of flesh” (see reff.). For σάρκινος (cf. λίθινος, ὀστράκινος)see on2
Corinthians 1:12 above.
Copyright Statement
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Bibliography
Nicol, W. Robertson, M.A., L.L.D. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". The
Expositor's Greek Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/egt/2-corinthians-3.html.
1897-1910.

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George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary
the Scriptures be of the Holy Ghost, the proper book of Christ's doctrine is in
the hearts of the faithful, the true mansions of the holy Spirit. Hence St.
Irenæus says:"If the apostles had left no writings, ought we not to follow the
order of tradition they delivered to the persons to whom they committed the
Churches? How many barbarous nations have receivedand practised the
faith without any thing written in ink and paper? (lib. iii. chap. 4.)
Copyright Statement
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Haydock, George Leo. "Commentaryon 2 Corinthians 3:3". "George
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/hcc/2-corinthians-3.html.
1859.
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E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes
manifestly declared= manifested. Greek. phaneroo. App-106.
Christ. App-08.

277. ministered. Greek diakaneo. App-190.
by. Greek. hupo, as in 2 Corinthians 3:2.
not. Greek. ou. App-105.
with. No Preposition. Dative case.
ink. Greek. melan. Only here, 2 John 1:12. 3 John 1:13.
Spirit. App-101.
God. App-98.
tables of stone = stone tables.
tables. Greek. plax. Only here and Hebrews 9:4.
fleshy. Greek. sarkinos.This word refers to the substance or material and
carries no moral significance. Compare Hebrews 7:16, where the texts read as
here.

278. Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Bullinger, Ethelbert William. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "E.W.
Bullinger's Companion bible Notes".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bul/2-corinthians-3.html.
1909-1922.
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Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Unabridged
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ ministered
by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables
of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
Declared. The letter is so legible that it canbe 'read by all men' (2 Corinthians
3:2). Literally, '(Ye) being manifestedthat ye are an letter of Christ,' though
"our letter" (2 Corinthians 3:2), one coming manifestly from Christ, and
'ministered by us' - i:e., carried about and presented by us as its bearers to the
world. Christ is the Writer, ye are the letter recommending us. 'What God
wished to manifest to all (His Gospellaw), He hath written on your hearts: we
prepared you to receive the letters, as Moses hewedthe stone-tables'
(Chrysostom).
Written not with ink, but with the spirit of the living God. Paul was the
ministering pen, as wellas the bearer and presenterof the letter. "Notwith
ink," in contrastto the letters of commendation which "some" atCorinth (2

279. Corinthians 3:1) used. "Ink" includes all outward materials for writing on,
such as the Sinaitic tables of stone. These were not written with ink, but
"graven" by "the finger of God" (Exodus 31:18;Exodus 32:16). Christ's
letter (his believing members converted by Paul) is better: it is written not
merely with the finger, but with the "Spirit of the living God:" it is not the
"ministration of death," as the law, but of the 'living Spirit,' that "giveth life"
(2 Corinthians 3:6-8).
Not in - not on tablets of stone, as the Ten Commandments (2 Corinthians
3:7).
In fleshy tablets of the heart. So Delta f g, Vulgate. But 'Aleph (') A B C G
read [ kardiais (Greek #2588)]'On (your) hearts (which are)tables of flesh.'
Once your hearts were spiritually what the tables of the law were physically-
tables of stone;but God has 'taken awaythe stony heart out of your flesh, and
given you a heart of flesh' [ sarkinais (Greek #4560), notsarkikais;fleshy, not
fleshly - i:e., carnal; hence, 'out of your flesh' - i:e., your carnalnature]
(Ezekiel11:19;Ezekiel36:26). Compare 2 Corinthians 3:2, As "ye are our
letter written in our hearts," so Christ has first made you 'HIS letter written
with the Spirit in (on) your hearts.'I bear on my heart, as a testimony to all,
that which Christ has by His Spirit written in your heart (Alford) (cf.
Proverbs 3:3; Proverbs 7:3; Jeremiah31:31-34). This passage (Paley)
illustrates one peculiarity of Paul-namely, his going off at a word into a
parenthetic reflection: here it is on "letter." So "savour," 2 Corinthians 2:14-
17.
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280. Bibliography
Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on 2
Corinthians 3:3". "Commentary Criticaland Explanatory on the Whole Bible
- Unabridged". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfu/2-
corinthians-3.html. 1871-8.
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Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(3) Forasmuch, as ye are manifestly declared.—The metaphorappears to shift
its ground from the subjective to the objective. It is not only as written in his
heart, but as seenand known by others, that they (the Corinthians) are as a
letter of commendation. They are as a letter which Christ had written as with
the finger of God. That letter, he adds, was “ministered by us.” He had been,
that is, as the amanuensis of that letter, but Christ was the real writer.
Written not with ink.—Letters were usually written on papyrus, with a reed
pen and with a black pigment (atramentum) used as ink. (Comp. 2 John 1:12.)
In contrastwith this process, he speaks ofthe Epistle of Christ as written with
the “Spirit of the living God.” It is noteworthythat the Spirit takes here the
place of the older “finger of God” in the history of the two tables of stone in
Exodus 31:18. So a like substitution is found in comparing “If I with the finger
of God castout devils,” in Luke 11:20, with “If I by the Spirit of God,” in
Matthew 12:28. Traces ofthe same thought are found in the hymn in the
Ordination service, in which the Holy Spirit is addressedas “the finger of
God’s hand.”
Not in tables of stone.—The thoughtof a letter written in the heart by the
Spirit of Godbrings three memorable passages to St. Paul’s memory:—(1) the
“heart of flesh” of Ezekiel11:19; Ezekiel36:26-27;(2) the promise that the
law should be written in the heart, which was to be the specialcharacteristic

281. of the new covenant(Jeremiah31:31-33);and (3) the whole history of the
circumstances ofthe first, or older, covenant; and, from this verse to the end
of the chapter, thought follows rapidly on thought in manifold application of
the images thus suggested.
But in fleshy tables of the heart.—The better MSS. give in tables (or, tablets),
which are hearts of flesh, reproducing the words of Ezekiel11:19. The
thought of the letter begins to disappear, and that of a law written on tablets
takes its place, as one picture succeedsanotherin a dissolving view.
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Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Ellicott, Charles John. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "Ellicott's
Commentary for English Readers".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/ebc/2-corinthians-3.html.
1905.
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Treasuryof Scripture Knowledge
Forasmuchas ye are manifestly declaredto be the epistle of Christ ministered
by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables
of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.
the epistle
Exodus 31:18;Revelation2:1,8,12,18;3:1,7,14,22

282. ministered
1 Corinthians 8:5-10
the living
6:16; Joshua 3:10; 1 Samuel 17:26;Psalms 42:2; 84:2; Jeremiah 10:10;Daniel
6:26; Matthew 16:16; 1 Thessalonians 1:9;Hebrews 9:14
not
Exodus 24:12;34:1
but
Psalms 40:8; Jeremiah31:33; Ezekiel11:19;36:25-27;Hebrews 8:10; 10:16
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Torrey, R. A. "Commentary on 2 Corinthians 3:3". "The Treasuryof
Scripture Knowledge". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/tsk/2-
corinthians-3.html.
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The Bible Study New Testament
That Christ himself. "Christ himself wrote the letter and I delivered it by
converting you to Christ and giving you the gifts from the Spirit!" It is
written. Paul purposely associates the letters of recommendationthat some
had receivedfrom Judea, with the stone tablets of the Law. Christ does not
write with ink on stone tablets, but with the Spirit on human hearts!!! Paul is

283. saying that the Corinthian Christians are living evidence of Jeremiah's
prophecy coming true! Compare Hebrews 8:10 and notes.