2 Corinthians 3:18
New International Version
And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

New Living Translation
So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the Lord—who is the Spirit—makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image.

English Standard Version
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Berean Standard Bible
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Berean Literal Bible
And we all having been unveiled in face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the Spirit.

King James Bible
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

New King James Version
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

New American Standard Bible
But we all, with unveiled faces, looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

NASB 1995
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

NASB 1977
But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

Legacy Standard Bible
But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

Amplified Bible
And we all, with unveiled face, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from [one degree of] glory to [even more] glory, which comes from the Lord, [who is] the Spirit.

Christian Standard Bible
We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit.

American Standard Version
But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit.

Contemporary English Version
So our faces are not covered. They show the bright glory of the Lord, as the Lord's Spirit makes us more and more like our glorious Lord.

English Revised Version
But we all, with unveiled face reflecting as a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord the Spirit.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
As all of us reflect the Lord's glory with faces that are not covered with veils, we are being changed into his image with ever-increasing glory. This comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Good News Translation
All of us, then, reflect the glory of the Lord with uncovered faces; and that same glory, coming from the Lord, who is the Spirit, transforms us into his likeness in an ever greater degree of glory.

International Standard Version
As all of us reflect the glory of the Lord with unveiled faces, we are becoming more like him with ever-increasing glory by the Lord's Spirit.

Majority Standard Bible
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

NET Bible
And we all, with unveiled faces reflecting the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another, which is from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

New Heart English Bible
But we all, with unveiled face looking as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the Spirit.

Webster's Bible Translation
But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Weymouth New Testament
And all of us, with unveiled faces, reflecting like bright mirrors the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same likeness, from one degree of radiant holiness to another, even as derived from the Lord the Spirit.

World English Bible
But we all, with unveiled face seeing the glory of the Lord as in a mirror, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the Spirit.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
and we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the LORD in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the LORD.

Berean Literal Bible
And we all having been unveiled in face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the Spirit.

Young's Literal Translation
and we all, with unvailed face, the glory of the Lord beholding in a mirror, to the same image are being transformed, from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Smith's Literal Translation
And we all, shown as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, with the face uncovered, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as from the Spirit of the Lord.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
But we all beholding the glory of the Lord with open face, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Yet truly, all of us, as we gaze upon the unveiled glory of the face of the Lord, are transfigured into the same image, from one glory to another. And this is done by the Spirit of the Lord.

New American Bible
All of us, gazing with unveiled face on the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, as from the Lord who is the Spirit.

New Revised Standard Version
And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
But we all, with open faces, see as in a mirror the glory of the LORD, and we shall be transformed into the same likeness, from one glory to another, just as the Spirit comes from the LORD.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
But we all see the glory of THE LORD JEHOVAH with unveiled faces, as in a mirror, and we are changed into the image from glory to glory, as from THE LORD JEHOVAH, THE SPIRIT.
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
And we all, with unvailed face, reflecting the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory, even as by the Lord the Spirit.

Godbey New Testament
But we all, with unveiled face beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Haweis New Testament
And we all with face unveiled, beholding the glory of the Lord reflected as in a mirror, according to the same image, receive a transformation from glory into glory, as by the Lord, the Spirit.

Mace New Testament
but as we lay aside the veil, the divine light gradually informs the mind, according as we attend to that spiritual sense, which points out the Lord.

Weymouth New Testament
And all of us, with unveiled faces, reflecting like bright mirrors the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same likeness, from one degree of radiant holiness to another, even as derived from the Lord the Spirit.

Worrell New Testament
But we all, with unveiled face, reflecting as a mirror the glory of the Lord, are transfigured into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Worsley New Testament
But we all with unveiled face beholding, as in a glass, the glory of the Lord, are transformed according to the same image from glory to glory, as proceeding from the Spirit of the Lord.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Glory of the New Covenant
17Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into His image with intensifying glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Cross References
Romans 8:29
For those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brothers.

Colossians 3:10
and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

1 John 3:2
Beloved, we are now children of God, and what we will be has not yet been revealed. We know that when Christ appears, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as He is.

Philippians 3:21
who, by the power that enables Him to subject all things to Himself, will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body.

1 Corinthians 13:12
Now we see but a dim reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

Ephesians 4:23-24
to be renewed in the spirit of your minds; / and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

Romans 12:2
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

John 17:22
I have given them the glory You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one—

1 Peter 1:16
for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

Hebrews 1:3
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His nature, upholding all things by His powerful word. After He had provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

Genesis 1:26-27
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness, to rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, and over all the earth itself and every creature that crawls upon it.” / So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Exodus 34:29-35
And when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hands, he was unaware that his face had become radiant from speaking with the LORD. / Aaron and all the Israelites looked at Moses, and behold, his face was radiant. And they were afraid to approach him. / But Moses called out to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke to them. ...

Psalm 17:15
As for me, I will behold Your face in righteousness; when I awake, I will be satisfied in Your presence.

Psalm 84:7
They go from strength to strength, until each appears before God in Zion.

Isaiah 60:1
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.


Treasury of Scripture

But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the LORD.

with.

2 Corinthians 3:13
And not as Moses, which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:

as in.

1 Corinthians 13:12
For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

James 1:23
For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:

the glory.

2 Corinthians 4:4,6
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them…

John 1:14
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

John 12:41
These things said Esaias, when he saw his glory, and spake of him.

are.

2 Corinthians 5:17
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Romans 8:29
For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

Romans 12:2
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

from.

Romans 8:4,7
That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit…

by the Spirit of the Lord.

2 Corinthians 3:17
Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

Jump to Previous
Beholding Bright Changed Degree Face Faces Glass Glory Holiness Image Likeness Mirror Mirrors Open Radiant Reflect Reflecting Spirit Transformed Unveiled
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Beholding Bright Changed Degree Face Faces Glass Glory Holiness Image Likeness Mirror Mirrors Open Radiant Reflect Reflecting Spirit Transformed Unveiled
2 Corinthians 3
1. Lest their false teachers should charge him with vain glory,
2. he shows the faith of the Corinthians to be a sufficient commendation of his ministry.
6. Whereupon entering a comparison between the ministers of the law and of the gospel,
12. he proves that his ministry is so far the more excellent,
17. as the gospel of life and liberty is more glorious than the law of condemnation.














And we, who with unveiled faces
The phrase "unveiled faces" draws a direct contrast to the veil that Moses wore after encountering God, as described in Exodus 34:29-35. In the Greek, "unveiled" (ἀνακεκαλυμμένῳ) signifies openness and transparency. This openness is symbolic of the new covenant believers have through Christ, where there is no longer a barrier between God and humanity. Historically, the veil represented separation and the inability to fully perceive God's glory. In Christ, this separation is removed, allowing believers to approach God directly and intimately.

all reflect the glory of the Lord
The word "reflect" (κατοπτριζόμενοι) can also be translated as "behold" or "contemplate," indicating a dual action of both seeing and reflecting. This suggests that as believers gaze upon the Lord's glory, they are simultaneously transformed to mirror it. The "glory of the Lord" refers to the divine presence and majesty of God, which in the Old Testament was often associated with the Shekinah glory that filled the temple. In the New Testament context, this glory is fully revealed in Jesus Christ, and believers are called to reflect this glory in their lives.

are being transformed into His image
The Greek word for "transformed" (μεταμορφούμεθα) is the same root used in Romans 12:2, indicating a profound change in form or nature. This transformation is not merely external but involves a deep, internal change that aligns believers with the character and likeness of Christ. The concept of being made into "His image" echoes Genesis 1:27, where humanity is created in the image of God. Through Christ, this image is being restored and perfected in believers.

with intensifying glory
The phrase "intensifying glory" (ἀπὸ δόξης εἰς δόξαν) suggests a progressive and continual increase in the manifestation of God's glory in the believer's life. This reflects the journey of sanctification, where believers grow in holiness and Christlikeness. The historical context of this phrase can be linked to the increasing revelation of God's glory throughout biblical history, culminating in the person of Jesus Christ.

which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit
This final phrase emphasizes the source of transformation and glory: the Lord, identified here as the Spirit. The Holy Spirit plays a crucial role in the believer's transformation, acting as the agent of change and empowerment. The identification of the Lord with the Spirit highlights the unity and work of the Trinity in the life of the believer. The Spirit's indwelling presence is a guarantee of the believer's ongoing transformation and ultimate glorification.

(18) But we all, with open face.--Better, And we all, with unveiled face.--The relation of this sentence to the foregoing is one of sequence and not of contrast, and it is obviously important to maintain in the English, as in the Greek, the continuity of allusive thought involved in the use of the same words as in 2Corinthians 3:14. "We," says the Apostle, after the parenthesis of 2Corinthians 3:17, "are free, and therefore we have no need to cover our faces, as slaves do before the presence of a great king. There is no veil over our hearts, and therefore none over the eyes with which we exercise our faculty of spiritual vision. We are as Moses was when he stood before the Lord with the veil withdrawn." If the Tallith were in use at this time in the synagogues of the Jews, there might also be a reference to the contrast between that ceremonial usage and the practice of Christian assemblies. (Comp. 1Corinthians 11:7; but see Note on 2Corinthians 3:15.)

Beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord.--The Greek participle which answers to the first five words belongs to a verb derived from the Greek for "mirror" (identical in meaning, though not in form, with that of 1Corinthians 13:12). The word is not a common word, and St. Paul obviously had some special reason for choosing it, instead of the more familiar words, "seeing," "beholding," "gazing stedfastly;" and it is accordingly important to ascertain its meaning. There is no doubt that the active voice signifies to "make a reflection in a mirror." There is as little doubt that the middle voice signifies to look at one's self in a mirror. Thus Socrates advised drunkards and the young to "look at themselves in a mirror," that they might learn the disturbing effects of passion (Diog. Laert. ii. 33; iii. 39). This meaning, however, is inapplicable here; and the writings of Philo, who in one passage (de Migr. Abrah. p. 403) uses it in this sense of the priests who saw their faces in the polished brass of the lavers of purification, supply an instance of its use with a more appropriate meaning. Paraphrasing the prayer of Moses in Exodus 33:18, he makes him say: "Let me not behold Thy form (idea) mirrored (using the very word which we find here) in any created thing, but in Thee, the very God" (2 Allegor. p. 79). And this is obviously the force of the word here. The sequence of thought is, it is believed, this:--St. Paul was about to contrast the veiled vision of Israel with the unveiled gaze of the disciples of Christ; but he remembers what he had said in 1Corinthians 13:12 as to the limitation of our present knowledge, and therefore, instead of using the more common word, which would convey the thought of a fuller knowledge, falls back upon the unusual word, which exactly expresses the same thought as that passage had expressed. "We behold the glory of the Lord, of the Jehovah of the Old Testament, but it is not, as yet, face to face, but as mirrored in the person of Christ." The following words, however, show that the word suggested yet another thought to him. When we see the sun as reflected in a polished mirror of brass or silver, the light illumines us: we are, as it were, transfigured by it and reflect its brightness. That this meaning lies in the word itself cannot, it is true, be proved, and it is, perhaps, hardly compatible with the other meaning which we have assigned to it; but it is perfectly conceivable that the word should suggest the fact, and the fact be looked on as a parable. . . .

Verse 18. - But we all. An appeal to personal experience in evidence of the freedom. With open face; rather, with unveiled face; as Moses himself spoke with God, whereas the Jews could not see even the reflected splendour on the face of Moses till he had shrouded it with a veil. Beholding as in a glass. This is at least as likely to be the true meaning as "reflecting as a mirror," which the Revised Version (following Chrysostom and others) has substituted for it. No other instance occurs in which the verb in the middle voice has the meaning of "reflecting," and the words, "With unveiled face," imply the image of "beholding." They are, in fact, a description of "the beatific vision." An additional reason for retaining the translation of our Authorized Version is that the verb is used in this sense by Philo ('Leg. Alleg.,' 3:33). The glory of the Lord. Namely, him who is "the Effulgence of God's glory" (Hebrews 1:2), the true Shechinah, "the Image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1:15). Are changed into the same image. The present tense implies a gradual transfiguration, a mystical and spiritual change which is produced in us while we contemplate Christ. From glory to glory. Our spiritual assimilation to Christ comes from his glory and issues in a glory like his (1 Corinthians 15:51; comp." from strength to strength," Psalm 84:7). (For the thought, comp. 1 John 3:2.) As by the Spirit of the Lord. This rendering (which is that of the Vulgate also) can hardly be correct. The natural meaning of the Greek is "as by the [or, from] the Lord the Spirit." Our change into glory comes from the Lord, who, as St. Paul has already explained, is the Spirit of which he has been speaking. No such abstract theological thought is here in his mind as that of the "hypostatic union," of the Son and the Holy Spirit. He is still referring to the contrast between the letter and the spirit, and his identification of this "spirit" in its highest sense with the quickening life which, by the gift of the Holy Spirit, we receive from Christ, and which is indeed identical with "the Spirit of Christ."



Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
And
δὲ (de)
Conjunction
Strong's 1161: A primary particle; but, and, etc.

we, [who]
ἡμεῖς (hēmeis)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Nominative 1st Person Plural
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.

with unveiled
ἀνακεκαλυμμένῳ (anakekalymmenō)
Verb - Perfect Participle Middle or Passive - Dative Neuter Singular
Strong's 343: To unveil, uncover. From ana and kalupto; to unveil.

faces
προσώπῳ (prosōpō)
Noun - Dative Neuter Singular
Strong's 4383: From pros and ops; the front, i.e. The countenance, aspect, appearance, surface; by implication, presence, person.

all
πάντες (pantes)
Adjective - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3956: All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.

reflect
κατοπτριζόμενοι (katoptrizomenoi)
Verb - Present Participle Middle - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 2734: To mirror, reflect.

the
τὴν (tēn)
Article - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

glory
δόξαν (doxan)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1391: From the base of dokeo; glory, in a wide application.

of [the] Lord,
Κυρίου (Kyriou)
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 2962: Lord, master, sir; the Lord. From kuros; supreme in authority, i.e. controller; by implication, Master.

are being transformed into
μεταμορφούμεθα (metamorphoumetha)
Verb - Present Indicative Middle or Passive - 1st Person Plural
Strong's 3339: To transform, transfigure. From meta and morphoo; to transform.

[His]
αὐτὴν (autēn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative Feminine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

image
εἰκόνα (eikona)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1504: An image, likeness, bust. From eiko; a likeness, i.e. statue, profile, or representation, resemblance.

with intensifying glory,
δόξαν (doxan)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1391: From the base of dokeo; glory, in a wide application.

which comes
καθάπερ (kathaper)
Adverb
Strong's 2509: Even as, just as. From katha and per; exactly as.

from
ἀπὸ (apo)
Preposition
Strong's 575: From, away from. A primary particle; 'off, ' i.e. Away, in various senses.

[the] Lord,
Κυρίου (Kyriou)
Noun - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 2962: Lord, master, sir; the Lord. From kuros; supreme in authority, i.e. controller; by implication, Master.

[who is the] Spirit.
Πνεύματος (Pneumatos)
Noun - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's 4151: Wind, breath, spirit.


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NT Letters: 2 Corinthians 3:18 But we all with unveiled face beholding (2 Cor. 2C iiC 2Cor ii cor iicor)
2 Corinthians 3:17
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