κάλυμμα

From the study of 1 Maccabees 4:6

Range of meaning

Anything that covers: a veil, a head-covering, a wrapping, a lid, a protective covering. Context decides what kind.

Against the English

English versions say 'armour' or 'armor'. That is a reasonable reading, but the Greek is vaguer and more basic: 'coverings', meaning anything that protects the body (shields, helmets, corslets of leather or linen, perhaps metal for a few).

How it drifted

'Armour' can call up the full metal suit of a medieval knight. In the second century BC most soldiers' protection was a shield plus a helmet and some body protection. Only the heavy professional troops of Hellenistic armies wore metal breastplates.

Used elsewhere in the period

In the Septuagint κάλυμμα is used for the outer coverings of the tabernacle (Exod 26:14), the cloths over the sacred furniture (Num 4), and Moses' veil (Exod 34:33–35). Paul picks up that last sense in 2 Cor 3:13–16. It is not the usual Greek military word for armor, which would be words like πανοπλία or θώραξ. This may mean the translator was rendering a Hebrew word for protective covering quite literally.

From the study of 2 Corinthians 3:14

Range of meaning

A covering, a veil, a cover laid over something.

Against the English

'Veil' is accurate. English readers may think of a bridal veil or the Temple curtain. Paul means neither. His picture is the cloth Moses put over his face (Exod 34).

Used elsewhere in the period

Greek OT Exod 34:33–35 uses it for Moses' veil, the passage Paul is reading. Exod 26:14 uses it for the coverings of the Tabernacle. In the NT it occurs only in 2 Cor 3:13–16.

From the study of 2 Corinthians 3:16

Range of meaning

Any covering: a veil, a cloth covering, a lid. In the Greek Old Testament it is used for the coverings of the tabernacle and its furniture (e.g., Exod 27:16; Num 4:5–15). In Exodus 34:33–35 it is the cloth Moses put over his face.

Against the English

'Veil' is a fair rendering. Two modern associations get in the way: a bridal veil, and the temple curtain that was torn at Jesus' death. The Gospels call that curtain katapetasma, a different word for a different object.

How it drifted

In English both objects are called 'the veil', so sermons and hymns often blend them. The Greek keeps them apart.

Used elsewhere in the period

Exodus 34:33, 34, 35 in the Greek Old Testament uses kalymma for Hebrew masveh, a word found only in this passage. Moses wore it over his face when speaking to the people and took it off when he went in before the Lord. Later Jewish writers, including Philo (Life of Moses 2.70) and the targums (Aramaic paraphrases read in synagogues), dwelt on Moses' radiant face.