2 Corinthians 3:8
New International Version
will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?

New Living Translation
Shouldn’t we expect far greater glory under the new way, now that the Holy Spirit is giving life?

English Standard Version
will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory?

Berean Standard Bible
will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?

Berean Literal Bible
how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more in glory?

King James Bible
How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?

New King James Version
how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious?

New American Standard Bible
how will the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory?

NASB 1995
how will the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory?

NASB 1977
how shall the ministry of the Spirit fail to be even more with glory?

Legacy Standard Bible
how will the ministry of the Spirit not be even more in glory?

Amplified Bible
how will the ministry of the Spirit [the new covenant which allows us to be Spirit-filled] fail to be even more glorious and splendid?

Christian Standard Bible
how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious?

Holman Christian Standard Bible
how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious?

American Standard Version
how shall not rather the ministration of the spirit be with glory?

Contemporary English Version
So won't the agreement the Spirit brings to us be even more wonderful?

English Revised Version
how shall not rather the ministration of the spirit be with glory?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Won't the ministry that brings the Spirit have even more glory?

Good News Translation
how much greater is the glory that belongs to the activity of the Spirit!

International Standard Version
will not the Spirit's ministry have even more glory?

Majority Standard Bible
will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious?

NET Bible
how much more glorious will the ministry of the Spirit be?

New Heart English Bible
won't service of the Spirit be with much more glory?

Webster's Bible Translation
How shall not the ministration of the Spirit be rather glorious?

Weymouth New Testament
will not the service of the Spirit be far more glorious?

World English Bible
won’t service of the Spirit be with much more glory?
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more in glory?

Berean Literal Bible
how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more in glory?

Young's Literal Translation
how shall the ministration of the Spirit not be more in glory?

Smith's Literal Translation
How shall not rather the service of the Spirit be in glory?
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather in glory?

Catholic Public Domain Version
how could the ministration of the Spirit not be in greater glory?

New American Bible
how much more will the ministry of the Spirit be glorious?

New Revised Standard Version
how much more will the ministry of the Spirit come in glory?
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Why then shall not the ministration of the Spirit be more glorious?

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
How shall therefore the ministry of The Spirit not be all the more with glory?
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
how shall not the ministering of the spirit be more glorious?

Godbey New Testament
how will not the ministry of the spirit be more in glory?

Haweis New Testament
how much more will not the ministry of the Spirit be attended with glory?

Mace New Testament
shall not the ministration of the spirit be more glorious?

Weymouth New Testament
will not the service of the Spirit be far more glorious?

Worrell New Testament
how shall not rather the ministration of the Spirit be with glory?

Worsley New Testament
shall not the ministration of the Spirit be more glorious?

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Glory of the New Covenant
7Now if the ministry of death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at the face of Moses because of its fleeting glory, 8 will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? 9For if the ministry of condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry of righteousness!…

Cross References
Hebrews 8:6
Now, however, Jesus has received a much more excellent ministry, just as the covenant He mediates is better and is founded on better promises.

Romans 8:2
For in Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set you free from the law of sin and death.

Galatians 3:2-5
I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith? / Are you so foolish? After starting in the Spirit, are you now finishing in the flesh? / Have you suffered so much for nothing, if it really was for nothing? ...

John 14:16-17
And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever— / the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you.

Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Romans 7:6
But now, having died to what bound us, we have been released from the law, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.

Ezekiel 36:26-27
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. / And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances.

Jeremiah 31:31-34
Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. / It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant they broke, though I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. / “But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD. I will put My law in their minds and inscribe it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they will be My people. ...

John 16:13
However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.

Romans 8:9-11
You, however, are controlled not by the flesh, but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. / But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. / And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.

Galatians 5:18
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Isaiah 11:2
The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him—the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and strength, the Spirit of knowledge and fear of the LORD.

1 John 2:20
You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth.

Acts 2:4
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Romans 15:16
to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.


Treasury of Scripture

How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?

the ministration.

2 Corinthians 3:6,17
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…

2 Corinthians 11:4
For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

Isaiah 11:2
And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;

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Attended Dispensation Fail Far Glorious Glory Greater Ministration Ministry Operation Rather Service Spirit Splendor Subsist Won't
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Attended Dispensation Fail Far Glorious Glory Greater Ministration Ministry Operation Rather Service Spirit Splendor Subsist Won't
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.














will not
The phrase "will not" in this context is a rhetorical question posed by the Apostle Paul. In Greek, the construction used here anticipates a positive answer, emphasizing certainty and assurance. Paul is confident in the superiority of the new covenant, which is characterized by the Spirit's work. This rhetorical device invites the reader to reflect on the certainty of the Spirit's glory surpassing that of the old covenant.

the ministry
The term "ministry" (Greek: διακονία, diakonia) refers to service or administration. In this passage, it specifically denotes the work and service associated with the new covenant, which is administered by the Holy Spirit. Historically, the concept of ministry in the early church was rooted in the service of others, reflecting Christ's own example. This ministry is not just a duty but a divine calling to serve in the power of the Spirit.

of the Spirit
The "Spirit" here refers to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit's role in the new covenant is transformative, bringing life and freedom. In contrast to the letter of the law, which brings death, the Spirit gives life (2 Corinthians 3:6). The presence of the Holy Spirit signifies God's active and dynamic work in believers, empowering them to live out their faith.

be even more glorious
The phrase "be even more glorious" highlights the surpassing glory of the new covenant. The Greek word for "glorious" (δόξα, doxa) conveys a sense of honor, splendor, and divine radiance. In the historical context, the glory of the old covenant was evident in the giving of the law at Sinai, accompanied by thunder, lightning, and a radiant Moses. However, Paul argues that the new covenant, marked by the Spirit's indwelling presence, exceeds this glory. This glory is not external but internal, transforming believers from within and reflecting the eternal glory of God.

(8) How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather glorious?--Better, be more in glory. The ministration of the spirit--that which has spirit for its characteristic attribute, and proceeds from the Spirit and imparts it to others--is that which St. Paul claims as his ministry. The glory of the new covenant, must be as much above the glory of the old, as the living, life-giving Spirit is above the dead and death-bringing code which he speaks of as the "letter."

Verse 8. - The ministration of the spirit. That is, "the apostolate and service of the gospel." Be rather glorious. A contrast may be intended between the ministration of the letter, which "became glorious," which had, as it were, a glory lent to it (ἐγενήθη ἐν δόξῃ), and that of the spirit, which is, of its own nature, in glory.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
will
ἔσται (estai)
Verb - Future Indicative Middle - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

not
οὐχὶ (ouchi)
Adverb
Strong's 3780: By no means, not at all. Intensive of ou; not indeed.

the
(hē)
Article - Nominative 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.

ministry
διακονία (diakonia)
Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1248: Waiting at table; in a wider sense: service, ministration. From diakonos; attendance; figuratively aid, service.

of the
τοῦ (tou)
Article - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

Spirit
πνεύματος (pneumatos)
Noun - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's 4151: Wind, breath, spirit.

{be} even more
μᾶλλον (mallon)
Adverb
Strong's 3123: More, rather. Neuter of the comparative of the same as malista; more) or rather.

glorious?
δόξῃ (doxē)
Noun - Dative Feminine Singular
Strong's 1391: From the base of dokeo; glory, in a wide application.


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NT Letters: 2 Corinthians 3:8 Won't service of the Spirit be (2 Cor. 2C iiC 2Cor ii cor iicor)
2 Corinthians 3:7
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