2 Corinthians 3:6

2 Corinthians 3:6 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.
• English Standard Version (ESV)who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
• New King James Version (NKJV)who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
• New Living Translation (NLT)He has enabled us to be ministers of his new covenant. This is a covenant not of written laws, but of the Spirit. The old written covenant ends in death; but under the new covenant, the Spirit gives life.

Context of 2 Corinthians 3:6

4Such confidence we have through Christ before God. 5Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 7Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, 8will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?

2 Corinthians 3:6 word by word

ὃς καὶ ἱκάνωσεν ἡμᾶς διακόνους καινῆς διαθήκης, οὐ γράμματος ἀλλὰ πνεύματος· τὸ γὰρ γράμμα ἀποκτέννει, τὸ δὲ πνεῦμα ζῳοποιεῖ.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Whoὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• alsoκαίkai · andG2532
• hath madeἱκανόωhikanoō · to qualifyG2427
• usἐγώegō · I/weG1473
• able ministersδιάκονοςdiakonos · servantG1249
• of the newκαινόςkainos · newG2537
• testamentδιαθήκηdiathēkē · covenantG1242
• notοὐou · noG3756
• of the letterγράμμαgramma · something writtenG1121
• butἀλλάalla · butG235
• of the spiritπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151
• forγάρgar · forG1063
• killethἀποκτείνωapokteinō · to killG615
• butδέde · thenG1161
• giveth lifeζωοποιέωzōopoieō · to make aliveG2227

Cross-references for 2 Corinthians 3:6

• 2 Corinthians 5:18All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:
• Matthew 13:52He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.”
• Romans 1:5Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake.
• 1 Corinthians 3:5What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task.
• 1 Corinthians 12:28And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.
• Ephesians 3:7I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power.
• Ephesians 4:11So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,
• Colossians 1:25I have become its servant by the commission God gave me to present to you the word of God in its fullness—
• 1 Timothy 1:11that conforms to the gospel concerning the glory of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
• 1 Timothy 4:6If you point these things out to the brothers and sisters, you will be a good minister of Christ Jesus, nourished on the truths of the faith and of the good teaching that you have followed.
• 2 Timothy 1:11And of this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher.
• 2 Corinthians 3:14But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away.
• Jeremiah 31:31“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.
• Matthew 26:28This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
• Mark 14:24“This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them.
• Luke 22:20In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

Commentaries on 2 Corinthians 3:6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6Who hath made us able ministers - This is a more formal answer to the question, Who is sufficient for these things? ̔ ; 1 Corinthians 2:16. God, says the apostle, has made us able ministers; ̔ ̔ , he has made us sufficient for these things; for the reader will observe that he uses the same word in both places. We apostles execute, under the Divine influence, what God himself has devised. We are ministers of the new covenant; of this new dispensation of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6Who also hath made us able ministers … - This translation does not quite meet the force of the original. It would seem to imply that Paul regarded himself and his fellowlaborers as people of talents, and of signal ability; and that he was inclined to boast of it. But this is not the meaning. It refers properly to his sense of the responsibility and difficulty of the work of the ministry; and to the fact that he did not esteem himself to be sufficient for…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-6The old written covenant refers to the law of Moses as interpreted by Jewish rabbis. It results in death for those who see it as a path to salvation. The law is good (Romans 7:12–14), but those who try to earn merit through it fail. Earning merit through the law leads to either wrongdoing or pride. In both cases, the law brings condemnation (2 Corinthians 3:9).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. able--rather, as the Greek is the same, corresponding to 2Co 3:5, translate, "sufficient as ministers" (Ep 3:7; Col 1:23). the new testament--"the new covenant" as contrasted with the Old Testament or covenant (1Co 11:25; Ga 4:24). He reverts here again to the contrast between the law on "tables of stone," and that "written by the Spirit on fleshly tables of the heart" (2Co 3:3). not of the letter--joined with "ministers"; ministers not of the mere…Read the comment

Topics related to 2 Corinthians 3:6

• Gospel
• Holy Spirit
• Minister, Christian
• Quickening
• Word of God
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• New Testament
• Corinthians, Second Epistle to the
• Letter
• Plainness
• Sufficiency
• Untaken
• Able
• Bible, the
• Church
• Corinthians, Second Epistle to the

Commentaries on 2 Corinthians 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings