Second Corinthians 3:14 says that the minds of Paul’s Jewish contemporaries were hardened, so that even when the Old Testament was read aloud, a veil still covered their understanding. Paul’s point is that this veil is removed only in Christ, who ends the hiding that the old covenant could not lift by itself. The verse is written by the apostle Paul to the church in Corinth, a city-church he had founded and cared for deeply.
But their minds were hardened, for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains, because in Christ it passes away.
2 Corinthians 3:14 (WEB)
What 2 Corinthians 3:14 Means
The phrase “their minds were hardened” describes a spiritual dullness, a settled resistance to seeing what God was doing. Paul is not saying the Scriptures themselves were unclear. He is saying that a reader can hear the words of Moses week after week and still miss their direction, the way a person can own a map and never open it.
The “veil” is an image Paul borrows from Exodus 34, where Moses covered his face after speaking with God. Here the veil is no longer on Moses’ face but over the hearts of the people who read his writings. The verse says this veil “remains” until it is taken away in Christ, which means Paul is describing an ongoing condition that has a real remedy.
What the verse does not promise is that every reader of the Old Testament will automatically understand it, or that intelligence or training removes the veil. Paul ties the lifting of the veil to turning toward the Lord, which is a matter of the heart and of relationship, not of technical skill.
The Context of 2 Corinthians 3:14
Second Corinthians is one of Paul’s most personal letters, written to a congregation that had questioned his authority and the sincerity of his ministry. Chapter 3 defends the new covenant that Paul preached, arguing that the ministry of the Spirit is more glorious than the ministry of the old written law that once shone on Moses’ face. The surrounding verses set up a contrast between what “passes away” and what “remains.”
Read in its setting, verse 14 explains why Paul speaks of a veil at all. In verse 13 the veil keeps Israel from looking steadily at the fading glory on Moses’ face, and in verse 14 the veil has moved from Moses’ face to the minds of those who read. Verse 16 then gives the resolution: when anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Seeing verse 14 in this flow shows that Paul is not condemning the old covenant but explaining why its promises are only fully opened through Christ.
Key Phrases in 2 Corinthians 3:14
Exodus 34:33
When Moses was done speaking with them, he put a veil on his face.
(WEB)
This is the original scene Paul draws on, where Moses covers his face after speaking with God. Reading it alongside 2 Corinthians 3:14 shows exactly where the image of the veil comes from and why Paul uses it to describe the hearts of those who still cannot see the glory of God’s word.
2 Corinthians 3:16
But whenever one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
(WEB)
The very next verse completes Paul’s thought by promising that when anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Read together, verses 14 and 16 show the problem and the remedy side by side, which is why the second verse is essential for understanding the first.
A Short Prayer From 2 Corinthians 3:14
Lord, you know the places in my heart where I have grown dull to your word. Some passages feel familiar to the point of meaninglessness, and I have not always asked you to open them to me. I turn toward you now, and I ask you to take away whatever veil keeps me from seeing your glory clearly. Let your Spirit make your word alive again in my mind and my life. Amen.
