1Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? or do we need, as some do, epistles of commendation to you or from you? 2You are our epistle, written in our hearts, known and read by all men; 3being made manifest that you are an epistle of Messiah, ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not on tablets of stone, but on tablets that are hearts of flesh. 4And such confidence we have through Messiah toward God: 5not that we are sufficient of ourselves, to account anything as from ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God; 6who also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter kills, but the spirit gives life. 7But if the ministry of death, written, and engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the children of Israel could not look intently upon the face of Moses for the glory of his face; which glory was passing away: 8how shall not rather the ministry of the spirit be with glory? 9For if the ministry of condemnation has glory, much rather does the ministry of righteousness exceed in glory. 10For truly that which has been made glorious has not been made glorious in this respect, by reason of the glory that surpasses it. 11For if that which passes away was with glory, much more that which remains is in glory. 12Having therefore such a hope, we use great boldness of speech, 13and are not as Moses, who put a veil upon his face, that the children of Israel should not look intently on the end of that which was passing away: 14but their minds were hardened: for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains, it not being revealed to them that it is done away in Messiah. 15But to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil lies upon their heart. 16But whenever it turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17Now the Lord is the Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18But 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.