3 Oh, are we beginning to pat ourselves on the back again? Don’t we need written references for you all, or from you all, like some others do? 2 It’s all of you who’re our references, and having been written in our hearts, it’s known about and being read by all people. 3 [ref]It shows that you who were served by us, are now Messiah’s letter that wasn’t written with ink but with God’s living spirit—not written on stone tablets but on people’s hearts.

4 We have such confidence towards God through the messiah, 5 not that we ourselves are worthy to consider ourselves anything special, but our qualifications come from God. 6 [ref]He qualified us as servants of a new agreement—not following it by the letter, but by the spirit, because following by the letter leads to death whereas following by the spirit gives life.

7 [ref]The system which was inscribed on stone tablets and which results in death was so incredible when it was given that the Israeli’s couldn’t even bring themselves to look at Moses’ face because it shone so brightly. But if that system is being nullified, 8 won’t this system via the spirit be even greater? 9 If the system that brought condemnation was incredible, how much greater is the system that leads to righteousness, 10 because that earlier system seems ordinary now when compared with the more incredible greatness of the new system, 11 and if what ended up being replaced was incredible, how much more incredible is the system that lasts.

12 So then, since that’s our expectation, we can be very bold, 13 [ref]not just like Moses putting a veil over his face because the Israeli’s couldn’t even look at him when introducing a system that would be replaced. 14 But their thinking was inflexible because even until this very day, the same veil remains during the public reading of the Hebrew scriptures—it’s not opened up because it’s only Messiah that nullifies it. 15 So these days whenever Moses’ writings are being read, a veil lies across their hearts, 16 [ref]but whenever that heart might turn towards the master, the veil will be removed. 17 Now the master is the spirit, and there’s freedom wherever the master’s spirit is. 18 All of us who’ve had our faces unveiled are reflecting the master’s greatness, and that same image transforms us from greatness to greatness. This comes from the master who is the spirit.