2 Corinthians 3:16

3:16-18 The believer who turns to the Lord has freedom in the Spirit. We receive something Moses never knew as we become more and more like Christ (4:4; John 1:1-14; Col 1:15; Heb 1:1-4) and reflect the glory of the Lord. Divine glory in this present life leads to our being like Christ in the next life (Rom 8:29; Gal 4:19; Phil 3:21; 1 Jn 3:2).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

2Co 3:16. Ἡνίκα δʼ ἂν—περιαιρεῖται τὸ κάλυμμα, but when the veil is taken away) This is a paraphrase on Exo 34:34, ἡνίκα δʼ ἂν εἰσεπορεύετο Μωῦσης ἔναντι Κυρίου λαλεῖν αὐτῷ περιῃρεῖτο τὸ κάλυμμα. But when Moses went in before the Lord to speak to Him, the veil was taken away. Therefore ἡνίκα, meaning not if, but when, evidently affirms, as in the preceding verse, and frequently in the LXX., ἡνίκα ἐὰν, ἡνίκα ἂν, Gen 24:41; Gen 27:40; Exo 1:10; Exo 34:24; Lev 6:4; Lev 10:9; Deu 25:19. ἡνίκα δʼ ἂν, Exo 33:8; Exo 33:22; Exo 40:36.—ἐπιστρέψῃ, shall be turned) namely their heart. The truth is acknowledged by repentance, 2Ti 2:25. The method, not of disputation, but of conversion, is to be applied to the Jews.—πρὸς Κυρίον, to the Lord) Christ, 2Co 3:14. A distinguished appellation, 2Co 4:5.—περιαιρεῖτιαι) περιαιροῦμαι is passive, Act 27:20, and in the LXX., Lev 4:31; Lev 4:35; but middle very often in the LXX., and that too in the very passage to which Paul refers. The antithesis of 2Co 3:15-16 shows, however, that here the signification is passive. The veil lies [κεῖται, 2Co 3:15]; the veil is taken away. The present, is [that moment, and by that very fact] taken away, is emphatic [not as Engl. shall be taken away.]

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Co_3:16. When, however, it shall have turned to the Lord, shall have come to believe on Christ, the veil, which lies on their heart (2Co_3:15), is taken away; i.e., when Moses is read before them, it will no longer remain unperceived by them that the Old Covenant ceases in Christ. The subject to ἐπιστρέψῃ is ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν, 2Co_3:15 (Luther in the gloss, Beza, Grotius, Bengel, and several others, including Billroth, Olshausen, de Wette, Hofmann), not ὁ Ἰσραήλ (Chrysostom, Theodoret, Theophylact, Pelagius, Erasmus, and many others, including Osiander), nor Μωϋσῆς (Calvin, Estius[173]), nor the general ΤΊς (Origen, Storr, Flatt).

The common supposition, that in 2Co_3:16 there is an allegorical reference to Moses, who, returning from the people to God, conversed unveiled with God (Exo_34:34), is in itself probable from the context, and is confirmed even by the choice of the words (Ex. l.c.: ἡνίκα δʼ ἂν εἰσεπορεύετο Μ. ἔναντι κυρίου … περιῃρεῖτο τὸ κάλυμμα), though the same veil with which Moses was veiled (ΤῸ ΑὐΤῸ ΚΆΛ., 2Co_3:14) is no longer spoken of, but a veil on the hearts of the Jew.

ἩΝΊΚΑ with ἌΝ and the subjunctive aorist[174] denotes: then, when it shall have turned (Luther wrongly: when it turned itself), and that as something conceived, thought of, not as an unconditioned fact. The πρὸς κύριον, however, does not affirm: to God, who is now revealed in the Lord (Hofmann), but, in simple accordance with ἐν Χριστῷ of 2Co_3:15 : to Christ. The conversion of Israel which Paul has in view is, now that it is wholly relegated to the experience of the future, the conversion as a whole, Rom_11:25. It was, however, obvious of itself that what is affirmed finds its application to all individual cases which had already occurred and were still to be expecte.

περιαιρ. has the emphasis, both of its important position at the head of the clause (removed is the veil) and of the future realized as present. The passive is all the more to be retained, seeing that the subject of ἐπιστρ. is the heart; the sense of self-liberation (Hofmann) may not be imported on account of Exo_34:34. The conversion and deliverance of Israel is Gods work. See 2Co_3:17 and Rom_11:26 f. The compound corresponds to the conception of the veil covering the heart round about. Comp. Plato, Polit. p. 288 E: δέρματα σωμάτων περιαιροῦσα, Dem. 125,26: ΠΕΡΙΕῖΛΕ ΤᾺ ΤΕΊΧΗ, 802, 5 : ΠΕΡΙῌΡΗΤΑΙ ΤΟῪς ΣΤΕΦΆΝΟΥς, Jdt_10:3 : ΤῸΝ ΣΆΚΚΟΝ, Bar_4:34; Bar_6:58; Act_27:40.

[173] Calvin thinks that Moses is here tantamount in meaning to the law, and that the sense is: When the law is referred to Christ, when Christ is sought in the law by the Jews, then will the truth dawn upon them. Estius, who refers κύριον to God, says: Moses conversus ad Dominmuatque retectam habens faciem, typum gessit populi Christiani ad Deum conversi et revelata cordis facie salutis mysteria contemplantis.

[174] See Ellendt, Lex. Soph. I. p. 773.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

2Co 3:16 . ἡνίκα δʼ ἄν κ . τ . λ .: but whensoever it, i.e. , Israel, shall turn to the Lord, the veil is taken away ; a paraphrase of Exo 34:34 , ἡνίκα δʼ ἄν εἰσεπορεύετο Μωσῆς ἔναντι Κυρίου λαλεῖν αὐτῷ , περιῃρεῖτο τὸ κάλυμμα ἔως τοῦ ἐκπορεύεσθαι .

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Moses took off the veil on entering into the presence of the Lord. So as to the Israelites whom Moses represents, "whensoever their heart (it) turns (not as English Version, 'shall turn') to the Lord, the veil is (by the very fact; not as English Version, 'shall be') taken away." Exo 34:34 is the allusion; not Exo 34:30-31, as ALFORD thinks. Whenever the Israelites turn to the Lord, who is the Spirit of the law, the veil is taken off their hearts in the presence of the Lord: as the literal veil was taken off by Moses in going before God: no longer resting on the dead letter, the veil, they by the Spirit commune with God and with the inner spirit of the Mosaic covenant (which answers to the glory of Moses' face unveiled in God's presence).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 16. When it shall turn to the Lord] When the Israelitish nation shall turn to the LORD Jesus, the veil shall be taken away; the true light shall shine; and they shall see all things clearly.

There is an evident allusion here to the case of Moses, mentioned Ex 34:34. When he came from the Lord, and spoke to the Israelites, he put the veil over his face; but when he returned to speak with the Lord, then he took off the veil. So, when the Israelitish nation shall return to speak with and pray to the Lord Jesus, the veil of darkness and ignorance shall be taken away from their hearts; but never before that time. The words seem to imply:

1. That there will be a conversion of the Jews to Christianity; and,

2. That this conversion will be en masse; that a time will come when the whole nation of the Jews, in every place, shall turn to Christ; and then the Gentiles and Jews make one fold, under one Shepherd and Bishop of all souls.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

16. But when he shall have turned to the Lord. This passage has hitherto been badly rendered, for both Greek and Latin writers have thought that the word Israel was to be understood, whereas Paul is speaking of Moses. He had said, that a veil is upon the hearts of the Jews, when Moses is read. He immediately adds, As soon as he will have turned to the Lord, the veil will be taken away. Who does not see, that this is said of Moses, that is, of the law? For as Christ is the end of it, (Romans 10:4,) to which it ought to be referred, it was turned away in another direction, when the Jews shut out Christ from it. Hence, as in the law they wander into by-paths, so the law, too, becomes to them involved like a labyrinth, until it is brought to refer to its end, that is, Christ. If, accordingly, the Jews seek Christ in the law, the truth of God will be distinctly seen by them, but so long as they think to be wise without Christ, they will wander in darkness, and will never arrive at a right understanding of the law. Now what is said of the law applies to all Scripture — that where it is not taken as referring to Christ as its one aim, it is mistakingly twisted and perverted.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(16) Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord.—Better, But when it shall turn. The allegorising process is still carried on. Moses removed the veil when he went into the tabernacle to commune with the Lord (Exo_34:35); so, in the interpretation of the parable, the veil shall be taken away when the heart of Israel shall turn, in the might of a real conversion, to the Lord of Israel. The very word for “turn” is taken from the same context: “Moses called them, and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation turned to him” (Exo_34:31).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

16. when it shall turn to the Lord] The A. V. makes (1) Israel’s heart the nominative to the verb in this sentence. Wiclif and the other Protestant translators (2) make Israel itself the nominative, while (3) the Rhemish version makes Moses the nominative, referring to the fact that in the narrative in Exodus 34 he is said in almost the same words as here, to remove the veil when he turns to God. Origen (4) would supply any one. Each rendering is defended by commentators of note, but the first seems preferable. Cf. Rom_11:23; Rom_11:26; Rom_11:32.

the vail shall be taken away] The tense in the original is present, not future, and may be interpreted, (1) with Bp. Wordsworth, ‘is in process of removal,’ or perhaps better, (2) with Dean Alford, is there and then removed, i.e. at the moment when the heart turns to the Lord, just as Moses took off the veil when he turned to speak to God. See also Isa_25:7. It is to be observed that these words are a quotation of the LXX. of Exo_34:34, substituting, however, the present for the past tense.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Nevertheless, when it shall turn to the Lord,.... The heart, upon which the veil now is; or the body of the Jewish nation, as in the latter day; when they "shall turn", or "be turned", by the Spirit, power, and grace of God, to the Lord Jesus Christ, and look upon him whom they have pierced, and mourn, and embrace him as the true Messiah and only Saviour:

the veil shall be taken away; the veil of blindness and ignorance, respecting themselves, case, state, and condition, and the way of salvation by Christ; the veil of unbelief, with regard to his person, offices, and grace, and of error in points of the greatest moment and importance; then all the darkness and obscurity that is upon the books of Moses and the prophets, and which is now upon their hearts in reading them, will be gone. The prophecies of the Old Testament will be seen in their proper light, and to be evidently fulfilled in Christ; the true nature, use, and end of the law, will be discovered; and both they and that will be freed from all darkness that now attends them. The Jews themselves acknowledge, that though the law is light, yet there is an obscurity in it, by reason of the several ways of interpreting it; and therefore,

"he that studies in it, has need to remove, , "veil after veil", which is upon the face of it, in order to come at the light of it (g):''

and intimate, that the veil on Moses's face was an emblem of this obscurity, which agrees with what the apostle hints in this context; and also own, that there is now upon them a veil of ignorance; and, say they (h), God has promised to remove, , perhaps it should be "the veil of folly off of our understanding", referring, as is thought, to Isa 25:7.

(g) R. Abraham Seba in Tzeror Hammor, fol. 90. 2. (h) Chobat Halebabot, par. 1. c. 3. apud L. Capell. in loc.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

16 Nevertheless when it shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.

Ver. 16. When it shall turn] Of the Jews’ conversion, and what hinders it. {See Trapp on "Rom 11:7"} {See Trapp on "Rom 11:8"} {See Trapp on "Rom 11:25"}

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Nevertheless - This is not always to continue. The time is coming when they shall understand their own Scriptures, and see their true beauty.

When it shall turn to the Lord - When the Jewish people shall be converted. The word “it” here refers undoubtedly to “Israel” in 2Co 3:13; and the sense is, that their blindness is not always to remain; there is to be a period when they shall turn to God, and shall understand his promises, and become acquainted with the true nature of their own religion. This subject the apostle has discussed at much greater length in the eleventh chapter of the Epistle to the Romans; see the notes on that chapter.

The vail shall be taken away - They shall then understand the true meaning of the prophecies, and the true nature of their own institutions. They shall see that they refer to the Lord Jesus, the incarnate Son of God, and the true Messiah. The genuine sense of their sacred oracles shall break upon their view with full and irresistible light. There may be an allusion in the language here to the declaration in Isa 25:7, “And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations.” This verse teaches:

(1) That the time will come when the Jews shall be converted to Christianity; expressed here by their turning unto the Lord, that is, the Lord Jesus; see the note, Act 1:24.

(2) It seems to be implied that their conversion will be a conversion of “the people” at large; a conversion that shall be nearly simultaneous; a conversion “en masse.” Such a conversion we have reason to anticipate of the Jewish nation.

(3) The effect of this will be to make them acquainted with the true sense of their own Scriptures, and the light and beauty of the sayings of their own prophets, Now they are in deep darkness on the sub ject; then they will see how entirely they meet and harmonize in the Lord Jesus.

(4) The true and only way of having a correct and full meaning of the Bible is by turning unto God. Love to Him, and a disposition to do His will, is the best means of interpreting the Bible.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

When it shall turn, may be understood of the whole, or of the generality (at least) of the Jews; when they shall be converted to the faith of Christ, or when any particular person shall be converted to Christ, then

the veil shall be taken away; not the veil with which God covered and veiled the mysteries of the gospel, (that was already taken away upon Christ’s coming in the flesh), but the veil of blindness, which they had drawn over their own souls. Though the light of the gospel shineth clearly, and Christ be unveiled, yet until men, by a true faith, receive Christ, and turn from sinful courses to the obedience of the gospel, they see little or nothing of Christ. The taking away of this veil, and the turning to the Lord, are things done in souls at the same time; therefore nothing is to be concluded here, from the apostle’s naming the removal of the impediment, after the effect of which that is a cause.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

16. Nevertheless—St. Paul relieves the dark view with a ray of light. As the vail was once upon Moses, so it is now on the Jewish heart; but as when Moses went in to the Lord the vail “was taken off,” (Exo_34:34,) so when the Jewish heart shall turn to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

When it shall turn to the Lord. The nominative of the verb is not expressed. Obviously the most natural word to supply is the one last alluded to, namely, "the heart of Israel." The verb may have been suggested by Exo_34:31. Shall be taken away; literally, is in course of removal. The tenses imply that "the moment the heart of Israel shall have turned to the Lord, the removal of the veil begins." Then "they shall look on him whom they pierced"; (Zec_12:10) "He will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations". (Isa_25:7)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

When it - Their heart. Shall turn to the Lord - To Christ, by living faith. The veil is taken away - That very moment; and they see, with the utmost clearness, how all the types and prophecies of the law are fully accomplished in him.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

But whensoever it shall turn to the Lord, the veil is taken away . [The word "end" in 2Co_3:13 is the bone of contention in this passage. It has two meanings: (1) The termination or stopping-point. (2) The purpose, design or ultimate result. Macknight, Alford and others give it the first meaning, and construe Paul as saying that Moses covered his face that the children of Israel might not see the termination of the glory, as it faded from his face. But this construction limits the typical concealment to the mere fact that the Mosaic dispensation was to pass away, and is not large enough for Paul's thought, as is shown by the context. Cameron, Barnes, etc., give it the second meaning, which we have embodied in the following paraphrase: "In dealing with the glory of our ministration we do not veil our meaning in types and shadows, as Moses showed that he did with his ministration, when he typically concealed the glory of his face by putting a veil upon it. He concealed the meaning of his ministration that the children of Israel should not look stedfastly on Christ, the end or fulfillment of that dispensation or law which was typically passing away in the fading glory of Moses' face (now, Christ is thus the end of Moses' law-- Rom_10:4 ); but the true hindrance was not the typical veil worn by Moses, but the real veil on the minds of the people, who were dull of understanding and sinfully hardened, so that from the very beginning they understood not his dispensation, nor do they yet, for even now when the law is read the great truth is not revealed to them that it is all done away, having ended in Christ. But unto this day, whensoever Moses is read, a veil is upon their heart, and they do not see that Moses preaches Christ. But whensoever the Jewish nation shall turn to the Lord, then the veil is taken away, and they see that the end or purpose of the law is to lead to Christ."-- Gal_3:24 ]

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

16. When it shall turn to the Lord. The heart. Then the veil of blindness will fall away so that they will see clearly.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

16. ἡνίκα δὲ ἐάν. But whensoever it shall turn to the Lord. The nominative is ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν, or possibly τις: ‘whensoever a man.’ The ἡνίκα here balances ἡνίκα in 2Co 3:15: whenever they hear the Law read, they fail to understand: whenever they turn to the Lord (Christ) the true meaning is revealed to them. He probably has Exo 34:34 in his mind; but περιῃρεῖτο becomes περιαιρεῖται, ‘he then and there removes.’ The verb is used of taking away what envelopes or surrounds a thing: τὰ ἱμάτια, τὸν δακτύλιον, πᾶν τὸ στέαρ (Gen 38:14; Gen 41:42; Lev 4:8), and hence τὰς ἁμαρτίας, τὰ ἀδικήματα (Heb 10:11; Zech. 3:15). As in Exod., the verb is probably middle, not passive; ‘but whenever one turns, he ipso facto takes away the veil: his own act of conversion removes it.’ The subject of the verbs is left characteristically indefinite; Israel, any typical Israelite. S. Paul saw the turning to the Lord of the ἐκλογή (Rom 11:7-10), and foresaw that of all Israel (2Co 11:25). Here he may have his own conversion in his mind. The veil was taken off by Moses, whenever he turned to the Lord; and the heart of Israel takes it off, whenever it turns to the Lord. For ἡνίκα δὲ ἐάν (אA) many authorities have ἡνίκα δʼ ἄν (BDFGKLP): but this looks like a correction. In popular language ἐάν for ἄν seems to have been common (1Co 6:18; 1Co 16:3; Gal 6:7; Mat 5:19; Mat 5:32; Mat 10:42; Mat 11:27, &c.). Winer, p. 390; Blass, § 26. 4, 65. 7. This passage may have suggested the variant κεκαλυμμένη of the δ-text in Luk 24:32.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

16.] Here, the tertium comparationis is, the having on a vail, and taking it off on going into the presence of the Lord. This Moses did; and the choice of the same words as those of the LXX, shews the closeness of the comparison; ἡνίκα δʼ ἂν εἰσεπορεύετο Μωυσῆς ἔναντι κυρίου λαλεῖν αὐτῷ, περιῃρεῖτο τὸ κάλυμμα. This shall likewise be done in the case of the Israelites: when it (i.e. ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν,—not Israel, as Chrys., Theod., Theophyl., Erasm., al.,—nor Moses, as Calv., Estius,—nor τίς, as , al.) shall turn to the Lord (here again ἐπιστρέψῃ πρός is carefully chosen, being the very expression of the LXX, when the Israelites, having been afraid of the glory of the face of Moses, returned to him after being summoned by him:—ἐφοβήθησαν ἐγγίσαι αὐτῷ· καὶ ἐκάλεσεν αὐτοὺς Μωυσῆς, καὶ ἐπεστράφησαν πρὸς αὐτὸν.…,—and κύριον appears to be used for the same reason) the vail is taken away (not, shall be, because ἡ καρδία is the subject, and thus the taking away becomes an individual matter, happening whenever and wherever conversion takes place). Let me restate this,—as it is all-important towards the understanding of vv. 17, 18. ‘When their heart goes in to speak with God,—ceases to contemplate the dead letter, and begins to commune with the Spirit of the old covenant (the Spirit of God), then the vail is removed, as it was from the face of Moses.’

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

16. ἡνίκα δὲ ἐὰν ἐπιστρέψῃ πρὸς Κύριον. ‘But, whensoever a man shall turn to the Lord, at once the veil is taken away.’ The emphasis on περιαιρεῖται justfies ‘at once’; ‘away the veil is taken.’ The nom. to ὲπιστρέψῃ is probably τις (so Origen); anyone in the synagogue, any who hears the Law read. Others make ἡ καρδία αὐτών the nom., or Israel, or Moses as the representative, either of the old Israel, or of the new. The last is Calvin’s idea. No doubt St Paul has Exo 34:34 in his mind; ἡνίκα δʼ ἂν εἰσεπορεύετο Μωσῆς ἔναντι Κυρίον λαλεῖν αὐτῷ, περιῃρεῖτο τὸ κάλυμμα ἕως τοῦ ἐκπορεύεσθαι. But that does not prove that here he is thinking of Moses as a type, or that here περιαιρεῖται is midd., as περιῃρεῖτο is in Exodus. Whenever Moses turned to the Lord (in the tabernacle), he took off the veil from his head; whenever a Jew turns to the Lord (Christ), the veil is taken off from his heart. The compound verb expresses the removing of something which envelops.

In ἐπιστρέψη πρὸς Κύριον we have another echo of Ex. 34., and possibly more than one. When the people were afraid to come near him, Moses called them, καὶ ἐπεστράφησαν πρὸς αὐτόν. And St Paul probably says Κύριον rather than Χριστόν, because of ἔναντι Κυρίου in Exodus. Frequently the Apostle transfers to Christ expressions which in O.T. are used of Jehovah; and Κύριον here clearly means Christ, for it balances ἐν Χριστῷ, and Jews had no need to turn to Jehovah. He is speaking of devout Jews worshipping in the synagogue, and perhaps he is thinking of his own conversion.

It is difficult to decide between ἡνίκα δὲ ἐάν (א* A 17) and ἡνίκα δʼ ἄν (א3; B D E F G K L P) the latter may be assimilation to v. 15, where, however, D E F G K L P omit ἄν. There is good reason for suspecting that, independently of v. 15, ἄν may be a correction to literary form. Cf. ὃ ἐὰν ποιήση (1Co 6:18); οὓς ἐὰν δοκιμάσητε (1Co 16:3); ὃ γὰρ ἐὰν σπείρῃ (Gal 6:7). In many places WH. have restored ἐάν, in accordance with the best, MSS., where inferior texts have ἄν. The evidence of papyri is overwhelming as to this use of ἐάν for ἄν after ὅς, ὅστις, ὅπου, etc., being very common in the vernacular Greek of the first three centuries. “It seems that in this small point the uncials faithfully reproduce originals written under conditions long obsolete” (J. H. Moulton, p. 43). See Deissmann, Bible Studies, pp. 202 f.; he gives numerous examples.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

It shall turn. The heart of Israel.

Shall be taken away [περιαιρειται] . Rev., correctly, is taken away. The verb occurs twice in Acts (xxvii. 20, 40) of the taking away of hope, and of the unfastening of the anchors in Paul 's shipwreck; and in Heb 10:11, of the taking away of sins. There is an allusion here to the removal of the veil from Moses ' face whenever he returned to commune with God. See Exo 34:34.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.