05_Tack_copiaaaaa_85-112 28/04/15 12:35 Pagina 95 A FACE REFLECTING GLORY 95 On the basis of the arguments by Dupont, Belleville and Dautzenberg and the additional philological evidence mentioned above, the translation “to reflect as a mirror” has proved to be a se- rious contender. In the following sections we shall provide two ad- ditional arguments from the broader literary context of 2 Cor 3,18 in order to further consolidate this thesis. These sections intend to show how this particular translation of the participle katoptrizo,menoi contributes to a better understanding of 2 Cor 3,18 in the flow of thought of 2 Corinthians 3–4. II. The Shining Face. The Translation “to reflect” and the Literary Context of 2 Corinthians 3 The idea of self-commendation (sunista,nein e`auto,n), which is central to 2 Corinthians 40, is already brought up in 2 Cor 3,1-3, in which Paul considers his addressees as his letter of recommen- dation. According to B. Kuschnerus, Paul unfolds a multifaceted metaphor in these verses. The principal metaphor consists of the phrase “You yourselves are our letter” 41 (v. 2). In this very same evnarmo,zesqai. Text in H. DIELS – W. KRANZ, Die Fragmente der Vorsokratiker (Berlin 1951) I, 352. See DAUTZENBERG, “Beziehung”, 230. Annette Weisenrieder catalogues Empedocles’s theory under the heading of “Intromission”. This theory proposes the idea that objects themselves radiate light that is reflected in the mirror. WEISSENRIEDER, “Blick”, 322-323. 40 S. HAFEMANN, “‘Self-Commendation’ and Apostolic Legitimacy in 2 Corinthians. A Pauline Dialectic?”, NTS 36 (1990) 66-88. Hafemann, however, is not the first to address this topic. J.T. Fitzgerald in his study on the Greek catalogues of hardships already defined 2 Corinthians 1–7 as “truly a letter of recommendation” (J.T. F ITZGERALD , Cracks in an Earthen Vessel. An Examination of the Catalogue of Hardships in the Corinthian Correspondence [SBL Dissertation Series 99; Atlanta, GA 1988] 153). A year later, Belleville saw the centrality of this theme reflected in the rhetorical structure of the letter. L. BELLEVILLE, “A Letter of Apologetic Self-Commendation. 2 Cor 1,8 – 7,16”, NovT 31 (1989) 142-163. See also BELLEVILLE, Reflections, 136-163. J. Schröter considers the theme of “apostolische Selbstempfehlung” as the point of departure of his exegesis of 2 Cor 2,14 – 7,4 in SCHRÖTER, Versöhner, 2. 41 The English rendering of the New Testament is always cited from the NRSV.