2 Corinthians 3:14, commentary and pictures

A veil of blindness lies over mind and heart in the reading of the Old Testament, hiding its meaning, and it remains until this day until it is taken away in Christ. The veil is drawn by the readers themselves through stubborn unbelief, in refusing to accept Christ as Messiah, as the truth and life at the heart of worship, and as the righteousness of the law. It is removed when the heart turns to the Lord, and turning away from the plain word puts it back so that people do not see the Invisible. While veiled, the sacrifices, offerings and ceremonies are meaningless, but unveiled they are seen to point to the crucified Redeemer and to have met fulfillment in Jesus' death. The veiled cannot see to the end of that which was abolished, that at Christ's death type met antitype and only the ceremonial law was abrogated, while the moral law was never a type or shadow but is unchangeable and eternal, and the same veil now keeps many in the Christian world from seeing this so that they claim the moral law was nailed to the cross.

Veil Over the Reading

A veil of blindness lies over mind and heart in the reading of the Old Testament, obscuring its meaning, and it remains until this day until it is taken away in Christ. When Moses is read without turning to Christ the veil stays untaken away, so the significance of what is read cannot be seen. In Christ the veil is removed and the meaning stands out with vivid clearness and power.

The veil is not laid on by God but is drawn by the readers themselves through stubborn unbelief. For Israel it was refusal to accept Christ as Messiah, as the Angel who guided Israel in the wilderness, as the truth and life at the heart of worship, and as the righteousness of the law. Because of that refusal the good news of salvation through the crucified Redeemer stayed hidden, the types and symbols were not seen to meet fulfillment in Jesus' death, human inventions distorted those signs, and ceremonies, sacrifices and offerings became meaningless forms clung to instead of Christ to whom they pointed.

The veil is taken away when the heart turns to the Lord, who is Christ, and then prophecy is recognized as fulfilled and Jesus is received as Saviour of the world. Turning away from the plain word puts the veil back before the mind, so that people do not see clearly and do not see the Invisible. Scripture needs no dim light of tradition to make duty, privilege and character clear.

Paul wrote this to settle the minds of the church at Corinth in reference to the gospel of Christ. The difficulty came from Judaizing teachers who made trouble and caused dissension at Corinth by continually presenting the virtues of the law and the ceremonies and exalting these above the gospel. They brought Paul under condemnation because he did not urge upon the people the ceremonies that typified Christ and were therefore of no value since Christ's death.

The background is Moses in the mount, who received not only the tables of the law but the plan of salvation, seeing Christ's sacrifice prefigured by all the types and symbols of the Jewish age. The radiance on his face came from heavenly light streaming from Calvary no less than from the glory of the law, and that brightness was meant to impress Israel with the sacred, exalted character of God's law and the glory of the gospel revealed through Christ. That illumination symbolized the glory of the dispensation of which Moses was the visible mediator as representative of the one true Intercessor, illustrating the blessings to be received by God's commandment-keeping people through Christ's mediation, testifying that closer communion with God and clearer knowledge of His requirements conforms to the divine image and makes partakers of the divine nature. Moses was a type of Christ in veiling: as Israel's intercessor veiled his countenance because the people in guilt could not endure its glory, so Christ the divine Mediator veiled His divinity with humanity when He came to earth, for in heavenly brightness He could not have gained access to men in their sinful state, and therefore He humbled Himself in the likeness of sinful flesh to reach the fallen race and lift them up.

What the Veil Hides

With the veil on, the sacrifices and offerings and ceremonies lose all meaning because their significance cannot be seen. They were meant to point to the crucified Redeemer, to the truth and life at the heart of worship, to the Angel who guided Israel, and their purpose reached fulfillment in Jesus' death. The blindness comes from stubborn unbelief in refusing Christ as Messiah and as the righteousness of the law, and it lifts when the heart turns to the Lord. Human inventions distorted those types and symbols, confused understanding, and left minds clinging to ceremonial forms instead of seeing Christ to whom the ordinances pointed.

What is hidden is the end of that which was abolished. At Christ's death the typical offerings ceased because type met antitype, and only the ceremonial law was abrogated. The moral law was never a type or shadow but is unchangeable and eternal, and failure to see this brings heavy darkening of understanding with hearts at war with God and not subject to His law. Even after Christ had explained the Scriptures, the meaning and purpose of what was being abolished, including His mission and the nature of His kingdom, could be understood clearly only when the veil was removed in Christ by divine illumination.

Many believing Jews still could not clearly discern that the Son of God had brought the old covenant order to an end. His death had broken down the middle wall of partition between Jew and Gentile and had opened the full privileges of the gospel to the Gentiles. Yet the veil had not been torn away from their eyes, so they could not see what Christ had brought to an end.

With the veil removed, it is understood that what Christ abolished by His death has reached its end. Worship of God is no longer confined to temples made by human hands. True believers throughout the world can worship God in Spirit and in truth.

Removal and Present Warning

At Pentecost the veil was taken away from the disciples by heavenly light. Though Christ had already explained the Scriptures, only under the Holy Spirit's illumination did they stand out with vivid clearness and power as truth. Under that illumination the disciples understood with perfect clearness the purpose of His mission and the nature of His kingdom. They then preached the plan of salvation with power, and hearers accepted the Saviour's teachings.

For Jewish individuals the veil is removed when they turn to Christ. They then recognize that prophecy concerning them has been fulfilled and receive Jesus as the Saviour of the world. They also see the great sin of their nation in rejecting and crucifying Him.

The same veil lies over the eyes and heart of the Christian world, keeping many from seeing to the end of that which was abolished. At Christ's death the typical offerings ceased because type met antitype, while the moral law was never a type or shadow but is unchangeable and eternal, yet many claim instead that the moral law was nailed to the cross. This brings heavy darkening of understanding, with hearts at war with God and not subject to His law. Christ can avail them only as they come into harmony with the rule of His government, through genuine repentance toward God for transgression of His holy law and genuine faith in Christ whose mission exalts the law. Otherwise, though they talk of Christ as Saviour, He will finally say to them, I know you not.

The same blindness that held the Jews from receiving Christ now holds professed Christians from receiving Christ into the inner sanctuary of their souls. It is a willful, hopeless blindness that refuses to open the eyes lest they see. Full of pride, self-uplifting, self-glorying and self-exaltation, with pet idols and favorite sins, they do not discern their danger, offer tainted offerings, leave the soul temple defiled and becoming entirely corrupted, walk far from the light, and are in imminent danger of losing their souls, so the Holy Spirit can do little for them. Those who transgress God's law and teach others to break it share this blindness, and even when they claim sanctification they remain sinners sustaining other sinners, not godlike, warring blindly against the law with closed eyes. Christ formed within, the hope of glory, can alone expand the blinded mind to comprehend the breadth and length and depth and height and to know the love of God which passes knowledge.

The blindness that came upon the Jews still falls on those who are not under the control of the Spirit of God. They walk in the sparks of their own kindling and cannot distinguish between the fire they have kindled and the light God has given. This blindness leads into fatal delusion when the truth of God's message is judged by the standing or falling of the men who bore it, so that if they are overthrown men conclude they had no message from God and their work was a mistake. Sympathy with the customs and practices of the world is such a veil that hides the Lord's glory. Keeping the eyes fixed on God helps people lose sight of worldly things. To see God's face in the future, people must become Christlike now and turn from anything earthly that comes between them and God.

Unbelief in God and lack of confidence in one another keeps the veil on the mind that hides Jesus from sight and keeps the Holy Spirit from working, because the power of darkness leads to suspecting brethren and standing apart as criticizers and judges. The veil is taken away in Christ when self is laid on the altar of sacrifice to be consumed, the heart is broken before God, the habit of criticizing and judging brethren is put away, and earnest prayer and confession continue until Jesus is seen clearly and great blessing comes. Prejudice and misconceptions likewise blind many minds to the truth, but contact with those who know it may lead them to recognize their error and change their feelings. Such people need the love, pity, and holiness of truth. The veil can blind the mind so a person cannot see things clearly, but the Lord tears off that veil so the person sees all things clearly.