Text -- Ephesians 2:3 (NET)

2:3 among whom all of us also formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest…

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Robertson: Eph 2:3

We also all ( kai hēmeis pantes ).

We Jews.

Robertson: Eph 2:3

Once lived ( anestraphēmen pote ).

Second aorist passive indicative of anastrephō , old verb, to turn back and forth, to live (2Co 1:12). Cf. pote periepatēsate , of the Gentiles in Eph 2:2.

Robertson: Eph 2:3

The desires ( ta thelēmata ).

Late and rare word except in lxx and N.T., from thelō , to will, to wish. Plural here "the wishes,""the wills"of the flesh like tais epithumiais tēs sarkos just before. Gentiles had no monopoly of such sinful impulses.

Robertson: Eph 2:3

Of the mind ( tōn dianoiōn ).

Plural again, "of the thoughts or purposes."

Robertson: Eph 2:3

Were by nature children of wrath ( ēmetha tekna phusei orgēs ).

This is the proper order of these words which have been the occasion of much controversy. There is no article with tekna . Paul is insisting that Jews as well as Gentiles ("even as the rest") are the objects of God’ s wrath (orgēs ) because of their lives of sin. See Romans 2:1-3:20 for the full discussion of this to Jews unpalatable truth. The use of phusei (associative instrumental case of manner) is but the application of Paul’ s use of "all"(pantes ) as shown also in Rom 3:20; Rom 5:12. See phusei of Gentiles in Rom 2:14. The implication of original sin is here, but not in the form that God’ s wrath rests upon little children before they have committed acts of sin. The salvation of children dying before the age of responsibility is clearly involved in Rom 5:13.

Vincent: Eph 2:3

Had our conversation ( ἀνεστράφημεν )

See on the kindred noun conversation , 1Pe 1:15. Rev., more simply, lived .

Vincent: Eph 2:3

Fulfilling ( ποιοῦντες )

Rev., doing . The verb implies carrying out or accomplishing , so that the A.V. is more nearly correct. See on Rom 7:15; see on Joh 3:21.

Vincent: Eph 2:3

Desires ( θελήματα )

Lit., willings . See on Col 3:12.

Vincent: Eph 2:3

Mind ( διανοιῶν )

More strictly, thoughts . See on Mar 12:30; see on Luk 1:51.

Vincent: Eph 2:3

By nature children of wrath

See on Eph 2:2. Children (τέκνα ) emphasizes the connection by birth ; see on Joh 1:12. Wrath (ὀργῆς ) is God's holy hatred of sin; His essential, necessary antagonism to everything evil, Rom 1:18. By nature (φύσει ) accords with children , implying what; is innate. That man is born with a sinful nature, and that God and sin are essentially antagonistic, are conceded on all hands: but that unconscious human beings come into the world under the blaze of God's indignation, hardly consists with Christ's assertion that to little children belongs the kingdom of heaven. It is true that there is a birth-principle of evil, which, if suffered to develop, will bring upon itself the wrath of God. Whether Paul means more than this I do not know.

Vincent: Eph 2:3

Others ( οἱ λοιποί )

Rev., correctly, the rest .

Wesley: Eph 2:3

Jews. Also, formerly had our conversation: doing the will of the flesh - In gross, brutal sins.

Wesley: Eph 2:3

By spiritual, diabolical wickedness. In the former clause, flesh denotes the whole evil nature; in the latter, the body opposed to the soul.

Wesley: Eph 2:3

That is, in our natural state.

Wesley: Eph 2:3

Having the wrath of God abiding on us, even as the gentiles. This expression, by nature, occurs also, Gal 4:8; Rom 2:14; and thrice in Rom 11:24. But in none of these places does it signify, by custom, or practice, or customary practice, as a late writer affirms. Nor can it mean so here For this would make the apostle guilty of gross tautology, their customary sinning having been expressed already, in the former part of the verse. But all these passages agree in expressing what belongs to the nature of the persons spoken of.

JFB: Eph 2:3

That is, we also. Paul here joins himself in the same category with them, passing from the second person (Eph 2:1-2) to the first person here.

JFB: Eph 2:3

Jews and Gentiles.

JFB: Eph 2:3

"our way of life" (2Co 1:12; 1Pe 1:18). This expression implies an outwardly more decorous course, than the open "walk" in gross sins on the part of the majority of Ephesians in times past, the Gentile portion of whom may be specially referred to in Eph 2:2. Paul and his Jewish countrymen, though outwardly more seemly than the Gentiles (Act 26:4-5, Act 26:18), had been essentially like them in living to the unrenewed flesh, without the Spirit of God.

JFB: Eph 2:3

Greek, doing.

JFB: Eph 2:3

Greek, "our thoughts." Mental suggestions and purposes (independent of God), as distinguished from the blind impulses of "the flesh."

JFB: Eph 2:3

He intentionally breaks off the construction, substituting "and we were" for "and being," to mark emphatically his and their past state by nature, as contrasted with their present state by grace. Not merely is it, we had our way of life fulfilling our fleshly desires, and so being children of wrath; but we were by nature originally "children of wrath," and so consequently had our way of life fulfilling our fleshly desires. "Nature," in Greek, implies that which has grown in us as the peculiarity of our being, growing with our growth, and strengthening with our strength, as distinguished from that which has been wrought on us by mere external influences: what is inherent, not acquired (Job 14:4; Psa 51:5). An incidental proof of the doctrine of original sin.

JFB: Eph 2:3

Not merely "sons," as in the Greek, "sons of disobedience" (Eph 2:2), but "children" by generation; not merely by adoption, as "sons" might be. The Greek order more emphatically marks this innate corruption: "Those who in their (very) nature are children of wrath"; Eph 2:5, "grace" is opposed to "nature" here; and salvation (implied in Eph 2:5, Eph 2:8, "saved") to "wrath." Compare Article IX, Church of England Common Prayer Book. "Original sin (birth-sin), standeth not in the following of Adam, but is the fault and corruption of the nature of every man, naturally engendered of Adam [Christ was supernaturally conceived by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin], whereby man is very far gone from original righteousness, and is of his own nature inclined to evil; and therefore, in every person born into this world, it deserveth God's wrath and damnation." Paul shows that even the Jews, who boasted of their birth from Abraham, were by natural birth equally children of wrath as the Gentiles, whom the Jews despised on account of their birth from idolaters (Rom 3:9; Rom 5:12-14). "Wrath abideth" on all who disobey the Gospel in faith and practice (Joh 3:36). The phrase, "children of wrath," is a Hebraism, that is, objects of God's wrath from childhood, in our natural state, as being born in the sin which God hates. So "son of death" (2Sa 12:5, Margin); "son of perdition" (Joh 17:12; 2Th 2:3).

JFB: Eph 2:3

Greek, "as the rest" of mankind are (1Th 4:13).

Clarke: Eph 2:3

Among whom also we all had our conversation - We Jews, as well as you Gentiles, have lived in transgressions and sins; ανεστραφημεν, this was the course of our life; we lived in sin, walked in sin, it was woven through our whole constitution, it tinged every temper, polluted every faculty, and perverted every transaction of life. The lusts - the evil, irregular, and corrupt affections of the heart, showed themselves in the perversion of the mind as well as in our general conduct. The mind was darkened by the lusts of the flesh, and both conjoined to produce acts of unrighteousness. It was not the will of God that was done by us, but the will of the flesh and of the mind

Clarke: Eph 2:3

And were by nature the children of wrath - For the import of the phrase, by nature, φυσει, see the note on Gal 2:15, and Rom 2:14 (note). To what is said on those passages, I may add, from Dr. Macknight: - "Nature often signifies one’ s birth and education, Gal 2:15 : We, who are Jews By Nature. Also, men’ s natural reason and conscience, Rom 2:14 : The Gentiles who have not the law, do By Nature the things contained in the law, etc. Also, the general sense and practice of mankind, 1Co 11:14 : Doth not even Nature itself teach you, that if a man have long hair, etc. Also, the original constitution of any thing, Gal 4:8 : Who are not gods By Nature, Also, a disposition formed by custom and habit; thus Demetrius Phalereus said of the Lacedemonians: φυσει εβραχυλογουν Λακωνες· The Lacedemonians had naturally a concise mode of speaking. Hence our word laconic; a short speech, or much sense conveyed in a few words."The words in the text have often been quoted to prove the doctrine of original sin, but, though that doctrine be an awful truth, it is not, in my opinion, intended here; it is rather found in the preceding words, the lusts of the flesh, and the desires of the flesh and of the mind. The apostle appears to speak of sinful habits; and as we say Habit is a second nature, and as these persons acted from their originally corrupt nature - from the lusts of the flesh and of the mind, they thus became, by their vicious habits, or second nature, children of wrath - persons exposed to perdition, because of the impurity of their hearts and the wickedness of their lives. Here we see that the fallen, apostate nature produces the fruits of unrighteousness. The bad tree produces bad fruit

Children of wrath is the same as son of perdition, son of death, etc.; i.e. persons exposed to God’ s displeasure, because of their sins.

Calvin: Eph 2:3

3.Among whom also we all had our conversation Lest it should be supposed that what he had now said was a slanderous reproach against the former character of the Ephesians, or that Jewish pride had led him to treat the Gentiles as an inferior race, he associates himself and his countrymen along with them in the general accusation. This is not done in hypocrisy, but in a sincere ascription of glory to God. It may excite wonder, indeed, that he should speak of himself as having walked “in the lusts of the flesh,” while, on other occasions, he boasts that his life had been throughout irreproachable.

“Touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.” (Phi 3:6.)

And again,

“Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily, and justly, and unblamably, we behaved ourselves among you that believe.”
(1Th 2:10)

I reply, the statement applies to all who have not been regenerated by the Spirit of Christ. However praiseworthy, in appearance, the life of some may be, because their lusts do not break out in the sight of men, there is nothing pure or holy which does not proceed from the fountain of all purity.

Fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind To fulfill these desires, is to live according to the guidance of our natural disposition and of our mind. The flesh means here the disposition, or, what is called, the inclination of the nature; and the next expression (τῶν διανοιῶν) means what proceeds from the mind. Now, the mind includes reason, such as it exists in men by nature; so that lusts do not refer exclusively to the lower appetites, or what is called the sensual part of man, but extend to the whole.

And were by nature ¹²¹ children of wrath. All men without exception, whether Jews or Gentiles, (Gal 2:15,) are here pronounced to be guilty, until they are redeemed by Christ; so that out of Christ there is no righteousness, no salvation, and, in short, no excellence. Children of wrath are those who are lost, and who deserve eternal death. Wrath means the judgment of God; so that the children of wrath are those who are condemned before God. Such, the apostle tells us, had been the Jews, — such had been all the excellent men that were now in the Church; and they were so by nature, that is, from their very commencement, and from their mother’s womb.

This is a remarkable passage, in opposition to the views of the Pelagians, and of all who deny original sin. What dwells naturally in all is certainly original; but Paul declares that we are all naturally liable to condemnation; therefore sin dwells naturally in us, for God does not condemn the innocent. Pelagians were wont to object, that sin spread from Adam to the whole human race, not by descent, but by imitation. But Paul affirms that we are born with sin, as serpents bring their venom from the womb. Others who think that it is not in reality sin, are not less at variance with Paul’s language; for where condemnation is, there must unquestionably be sin. It is not with blameless men, but with sin, that God is offended. Nor is it wonderful that the depravity which we inherit from our parents is reckoned as sin before God; for the seeds of sin, before they have been openly displayed, are perceived and condemned.

But one question here arises. Why does Paul represent the Jews, equally with others, as subject to wrath and curse, while they were the blessed seed? I answer, they have a common nature. Jews differ from Gentiles in nothing but this, that, through the grace of the promise, God delivers them from destruction; but that is a remedy which came after the disease. Another question is, since God is the Author of nature, how comes it that no blame attaches to God, if we are lost by nature? I answer, there is a twofold nature: the one was produced by God, and the other is the corruption of it. This condemnation therefore which Paul mentions does not proceed from God, but from a depraved nature: for we are not born such as Adam was at first created, we are not

“wholly a right seed, but are turned into the degenerate”
(Jer 2:21)

offspring of a degenerate and sinful man.

Defender: Eph 2:3

"Conversation" is an archaic English expression for "way of life." Note that "we all" are born to this self-centered life style and need desperately to be saved and given a new nature.

Defender: Eph 2:3

In our natural state we are called both "children of disobedience" (Eph 2:2) and "children of wrath." We are also called "children of this world" (Luk 16:8) and even "children of the wicked one" (Mat 13:38) and "children of the devil" (1Jo 3:10). This is why Jesus told even such an outwardly righteous and religious man as Nicodemus: "Ye must be born again" (Joh 3:7). "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (Joh 3:3)."

TSK: Eph 2:3

we : Isa 53:6, Isa 64:6, Isa 64:7; Dan 9:5-9; Rom 3:9-19; 1Co 6:9-11; Gal 2:15, Gal 2:16, Gal 3:22; Tit 3:3; 1Pe 4:3; 1Jo 1:8-10

in times : Eph 4:17-19; Act 14:16, Act 17:30,Act 17:31; Rom 11:30; 1Pe 2:10; 1Jo 2:8

in the : Eph 4:22; Mar 4:19; Joh 8:44; Rom 1:24, Rom 6:12, Rom 13:14; Gal 5:16-24; 1Ti 6:9; Jam 4:1-3; 1Pe 1:14, 1Pe 2:11, 1Pe 4:2; 2Pe 2:18; 1Jo 2:16; Jud 1:16-18

fulfilling : Rom 8:7, Rom 8:8; 2Co 7:1; Gal 5:19-21

desires : Gr. wills, Joh 1:13

by : Gen 5:3, Gen 6:5, Gen 8:21; Job 14:4, Job 15:14-16, Job 25:4; Psa 51:5; Mar 7:21, Mar 7:22; Joh 3:1-6; Rom 5:12-19, Rom 7:18; Gal 2:15, Gal 2:16

children : Eph 2:2; Rom 9:22

even : Rom 3:9, Rom 3:22, Rom 3:23; 1Co 4:7

Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: Eph 2:3

We all had our conversation - see the notes at 2Co 1:12; compare 1Pe 4:3.

In the lusts of our flesh - Living to gratify the flesh, or the propensities of a corrupt nature. It is observable here that the apostle changes the form of the address from "ye"to "we,"thus including himself with others, and saying that this was true of "all"before their conversion. He means undoubtedly to say, that whatever might have been the place of their birth, or the differences of religion under which they had been trained, they were substantially alike by nature. It was a characteristic of all that they lived to fulfil the desires of the flesh and of the mind. The "design"of the apostle in thus grouping himself with them was, to show that he did not claim to be any better by nature than they were, and that all which any of them had of value was to be traced to the grace of God. There is much delicacy here on the part of the apostle. His object was to remind them of the former grossness of their life, and their exposure to the wrath of God. Yet he does not do it harshly. He includes himself in their number. He says that what he affirms of them was substantially true of himself - of all - that they were under condemnation, and exposed to the divine wrath.

Fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind - Margin, as in Greek, "wills."Complying with the wishes of a depraved nature. The "will of the flesh"is that to which the flesh, or the unrenewed nature of man, prompts; and Paul says that all had been engaged in fulfilling those fleshly propensities. This was clearly true of the pagan, and it was no less true of the unconverted Jew that he lived for himself, and sought to gratify the purposes of a depraved nature, though it might manifest itself in a way different from the pagan. The "will of the mind"referred to here relates to the wicked "thoughts and purposes"of the unrenewed nature - the sins which relate rather to the "intellect"than to the gross passions. Such, for instance, are the sins of pride, envy, ambition, covetousness, etc.; and Paul means to say, that before conversion they lived to gratify these propensities, and to accomplish these desires of the soul.

And were by nature - Φύσει Fusei . By birth, or before we were converted By conversion and adoption they became the children of God; before that, they were all the children of wrath. This is, I think, the fair meaning of this important declaration. It does not affirm "when"they began to be such, or that they were such as soon as they were born, or that they were such before they became moral agents, or that they became such in virtue of their connection with Adam - whatever may be the truth on these points; but it affirms that before they were renewed, they were the children of wrath. So far as This text is concerned, this might have been true at their very birth; but it does not directly and certainly prove that. It proves that at no time before their conversion were they the children of God, but that their whole condition before that was one of exposure to wrath; compare Rom 2:14, Rom 2:27; 1Co 11:14; Gal 2:15. Some people are born Jews, and some pagan; some free, and some slaves; some white, and some black; some are born to poverty, and some to wealth; some are the children of kings, and some of beggars; but, whatever their rank or condition, they are born exposed to wrath, or in a situation which would render them liable to wrath. But why this is, the apostle does not say. Whether for their own sins or for the sins of another; whether by a corrupted soul, or by imputed guilt; whether they act as moral agents as soon as born, or at a certain period of childhood, Paul does not say.

The children of wrath - Exposed to wrath, or liable to wrath. They did not by nature inherit holiness; they inherited that which would subject; them to wrath. The meaning has been well expressed by Doddridge, who refers it "to the original apostasy and corruption, in consequence of which people do, according to the course of nature, fall early into personal guilt, and so become obnoxious to the divine displeasure."Many modern expositors have supposed that this has no reference to any original tendency of our fallen nature to sin, or to native corruption, but that it refers to the "habit"of sin, or to the fact of their having been the slaves of appetite and passion. I admit that the direct and immediate sense of the passage is that they were, when without the gospel, and before they were renewed, the children of wrath; but still the fair interpretation is, that they were born to that state, and that that condition was the regular result of their native depravity; and I do not know a more strong or positive declaration that can be made to show that people are by nature destitute of holiness, and exposed to perdition.

Even as others - That is, "do not suppose that you stand alone, or that you are the worst of the species. You are indeed, by nature, the children of wrath; but not you alone. All others were the same. You have a common inheritance with them. I do not mean to charge you with being the worst of sinners, or as being alone transgressors. It is the common lot of man - the sad, gloomy inheritance to which we all are born."The Greek is, οἱ λοιποί hoi loipoi "the remainder, or the others,"- including all; compare the notes at Rom 5:19. This doctrine that people without the gospel are the children of wrath, Paul had fully defended in Rom. 1\endash 3. Perhaps no truth is more frequently stated in the Bible; none is more fearful and awful in its character. What a declaration, that we "are by nature the children of wrath!"Who should not inquire what it means? Who should not make an effort to escape from the wrath to come, and become a child of glory and an heir of life?

Poole: Eph 2:3

Among whom also we all we apostles and believers of the Jews. Either Paul by a coenosis reckons himself among them, though not guilty with them; or rather, though he were not an idolater as the Ephesians, yet he had been a blasphemer, and a persecutor, 1Ti 1:13 ; and though he were blameless as to the righteousness of the law, Phi 3:6 , yet that was only as to his outward conversation, and still he might fulfil the desires of a fleshly mind.

Had our conversation walked in the same way after the course of the world, &c.

In the lusts of our flesh : flesh is here taken more generally for depraved natures, the whole principle of corruption in man.

Fulfilling the desires of the flesh the inferior and sensitive faculties of the soul, as appears by the opposition of the flesh to the mind.

And of the mind the superior and rational powers, to denote the depravation of the whole man even in his best part, and which seems to have rectitude left in it: to the former belongs the filthiness of the flesh, to the latter that of the spirit, 2Co 7:1 : see Rom 8:7 Gal 5:19-21 .

And were by nature not merely by custom or imitation, but by nature as now constituted since the fall.

The children of wrath by a Hebraism, for obnoxious to wrath; as sons of death, 1Sa 26:16 , for worthy of or liable to death.

PBC: Eph 2:3

I know that throughout the scriptures the elect, people of God, are always spoken of as sheep and never goats, they are spoken of as heifers (cows), in the sense of a " backsliding heifer." It is interesting that the Lord, the Lamb of God, is typed as two goats on the day of atonement. And if in atonement He, the lamb, was made to be us, what does that make us? It is my understanding (Okay?) that even though the elect have been secure in the mind and purpose of God in covenant sense before the foundation of the world (sheep by election), by nature we are even as others. By the phrase " even as others," I understand, exactly as others. I do not understand that unregenerate elect know any more of God or about God than the non-elect do or ever will. But, in regeneration the elect are taught some basic knowledge. {Tit 2:11-14} In that knowledge that child knows to cry for protection, food, and comfort. As that child grows it is subject to more responsibility and is taught of them and the how to by the words of it’s Father, by and through the gospel of Jesus Christ. Identity is established by this knowledge, not relationship. Fellowship is gained, not sonship. Means are used? Yes, but get them in the right place. Not to regenerate, but for the regenerate. The child of God does not become more and more a child of God by means. Nor does he become more and more alive. Such thought is foolishness. I hear terms of " true children of God" or " false children of God." No such animal, you either are or you are not. " True Christians" and " False Christians?" You either are or you are not! " False professors?" No, they are truly professors, but what they profess may be false. All Christians are elect, regenerate, children of God. All regenerate are elect children of God. Not all elect, regenerate children of God are Christians. And not all Christians are Christians all the time. All means (gospel, faith, obedience, etc.) is to assist the child of God to be more active, lively, not alive!

The discussion of sheep and goats has divided and troubled many for years. It should not! God’s elect, regenerate, children have a new nature, not a rebuilt, restored, revived old nature. They are what they covenantly were purposed to be in the inner man and will be totally bodily in eternity. But, until that day of conformation, sheep have the ability still to act on the old nature. I have helped raise a couple of sheep from lambs to slaughter and I will tell you that they act just like goats more than you want to know. Now, you make of that what you will. But, I think the harmony of scripture will support the basis.

317

Haydock: Eph 2:3

Among whom, &c. St. Jerome (p. 3) refers it to trespasses or sins. ---

Were by nature; not by nature according to the state of man's first creation in paradise, but by nature infected with original sin by the fall of our first parents. ---

Even as the rest; that is, all mankind. (Witham)

Gill: Eph 2:3

Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past,.... What the apostle says of the Gentile Ephesians before conversion, he says of himself and other Jews; and this he does, partly to show that it was not from ill will, or with a design to upbraid the Gentiles, that he said what he did; and partly to beat down the pride of the Jews, who thought themselves better than the sinners of the Gentiles; as well as to magnify the grace of God in the conversion of them both: the sense is, that the apostle and other Jews in the time of their unregeneracy, had their conversation according to the customs of the world, and to the prince of the air, and among unbelievers, as well as the Gentiles; and that they were equally sinners, and lived a like sinful course of life:

in the lusts of our flesh; by "flesh" is meant, the corruption of nature; so called, because it is propagated by natural generation; and is opposed to the Spirit, or principle of grace; and has for its object fleshly things; and discovers itself mostly in the body, the flesh; and it makes persons carnal or fleshly: and this is called "our", because it belongs to human nature, and is inherent in it, and inseparable from it in this life: and the "lusts" of it, are the inward motions of it, in a contrariety to the law and will of God; and are various, and are sometimes called fleshly and worldly lusts, and the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life: and persons may be said to have their conversations in these, when these are the ground of their conversation, when they are solicitous about them, and make provision for the fulfilling of them, and constantly employ themselves in obedience to them, as follows:

fulfilling the desires of the flesh, and of the mind: or the wills of them; what they incline to, will, and crave after: various are the degrees of sin, and its several motions; and universal is the corruption of human nature; not only the body, and the several members of it, are defiled with sin, and disposed to it, but all the powers and faculties of the soul; even the more noble and governing ones, the mind, understanding, and will, as well as the affections; and great is the power and influence which lust has over them:

and were by nature children of wrath, even as others: by which is meant, not only that they were wrathful persons, living in malice, hateful, and hating one another; but that they were deserving of the wrath of God, which comes upon the children of disobedience, among whom they had their conversation; and which is revealed from heaven against such sins as they were guilty of, though they were not appointed to it: and they were such "by nature"; really, and not in opinion, and by and from their first birth: so a Jewish commentator ^s on these words, "thy first father hath sinned", Isa 43:27 has this note;

"how canst thou say thou hast not sinned? and behold thy first father hath sinned, and he is the first man, for man מוטבע בחטא, "is naturally in sin";''

or by nature a sinner, or sin is naturally impressed in him; and hence being by nature a sinner, he is by nature deserving of the wrath of God, as were the persons spoken of:

even as others; as the rest of the world, Jews as well as Gentiles; and Gentiles are especially designed, in distinction from the Jews, the apostle is speaking of; and who are particularly called in the Jewish dialect אחרים, "others"; See Gill on Luk 18:11.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Eph 2:3

¹ sn Among whom. The relative pronoun phrase that begins v. 3 is identical, except for gender, to the one that begins v. 2 (ἐν αἵς [en Jais], ἐν οἵς [en Jois]). By the structure, the author is building an argument for our hopeless condition: We lived in sin and we lived among sinful people. Our doom looked to be sealed as well in v. 2: Both the external environment (kingdom of the air) and our internal motivation and attitude (the spirit that is now energizing) were under the devil’s thumb (cf. 2 Cor 4:4).

² tn Grk “we all.”

³ tn Or “even.”

⁴ sn Children of wrath is a Semitic idiom which may mean either “people characterized by wrath” or “people destined for wrath.”

⁵ sn Eph 2:1-3. The translation of vv. 1-3 is very literal, even to the point of retaining the awkward syntax of the original. See note on the word dead in 2:1.

Geneva Bible: Eph 2:3

^{( 6 )} Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our ^{( d )} flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and ^{( 7 )} were by nature the ^{( e )} children of wrath, even as ^{( f )} others.

^{( 6 )} After he has separately condemned the Gentiles, he confesses that the Jews (among whom he numbers himself) are not the least bit better.

^{( d )} By the name of flesh in the first place, he means the whole man, which he divides into two parts: into the flesh, which is the part that the philosophers consider to be without reason, and into the thought, which they call reasonable. And so he leaves nothing in man half dead, but concludes that the whole man is by nature the son of wrath. ^{( 7 )} The conclusion: all men are born subject to the wrath and curse of God.

^{( e )} Men are said to be the children of wrath passively, that is to say, guilty of everlasting death by the judgment of God, who is angry with them.

^{( f )} Profane people who did not know God.

Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: Eph 2:1-22

1 By comparing what we were by nature, with what we are by grace,

10 he declares that we are made for good works: and being brought near by Christ, should not live as Gentiles and foreigners, as in time past, but as citizens with the saints, and the family of God.

Combined Bible: Eph 2:3

great contrast  

  

(2:3,5) The conclusion of Section two is very significant. During the first part of this segment of the epistle, we see the prior lost state laid out for our perusal. This is the foundation for Paul's assessment that men are "by (our) nature objects of wrath". That is, we are deserving of God's righteous judgment.  

  

By nature, we were objects of wrath  

  

Look at our previous life style--"all of us...lived among (those who continue in this), gratifying the (desires) of our sinful nature." He excludes no one of us. "By nature" then, we stand condemned according to His standards.  

  

  

MHCC: Eph 2:1-10

Sin is the death of the soul. A man dead in trespasses and sins has no desire for spiritual pleasures. When we look upon a corpse, it gives an awful feeling. A never-dying spirit is now fled, and has left nothing but the ruins of a man. But if we viewed things aright, we should be far more affected by the thought of a dead soul, a lost, fallen spirit. A state of sin is a state of conformity to this world. Wicked men are slaves to Satan. Satan is the author of that proud, carnal disposition which there is in ungodly men; he rules in the hearts of men. From Scripture it is clear, that whether men have been most prone to sensual or to spiritual wickedness, all men, being naturally children of disobedience, are also by nature children of wrath. What reason have sinners, then, to seek earnestly for that grace which will make them, of children of wrath, children of God and heirs of glory! God's eternal love or good-will toward his creatures, is the fountain whence all his mercies flow to us; and that love of God is great love, and that mercy is rich mercy. And every converted sinner is a saved sinner; delivered from sin and wrath. The grace that saves is the free, undeserved goodness and favour of God; and he saves, not by the works of the law, but through faith in Christ Jesus. Grace in the soul is a new life in the soul. A regenerated sinner becomes a living soul; he lives a life of holiness, being born of God: he lives, being delivered from the guilt of sin, by pardoning and justifying grace. Sinners roll themselves in the dust; sanctified souls sit in heavenly places, are raised above this world, by Christ's grace. The goodness of God in converting and saving sinners heretofore, encourages others in after-time, to hope in his grace and mercy. Our faith, our conversion, and our eternal salvation, are not of works, lest any man should boast. These things are not brought to pass by any thing done by us, therefore all boasting is shut out. All is the free gift of God, and the effect of being quickened by his power. It was his purpose, to which he prepared us, by blessing us with the knowledge of his will, and his Holy Spirit producing such a change in us, that we should glorify God by our good conversation, and perseverance in holiness. None can from Scripture abuse this doctrine, or accuse it of any tendency to evil. All who do so, are without excuse.

Matthew Henry: Eph 2:1-3

The miserable condition of the Ephesians by nature is here in part described. Observed, 1. Unregenerate souls are dead in trespasses and sins. All those who are in their sins, are dead in sins; yea, in trespasses and sins, which may signify all sorts of sins, habitual and actual, sins of heart and of life. Sin is the death of the soul. Wherever that prevails there is a privation of all spiritual life. Sinners are dead in state, being destitute of the principles, and powers of spiritual life; and cut off from God, the fountain of life: and they are dead in law, as a condemned malefactor is said to be a dead man. 2. A state of sin is a state of conformity to this world, Eph 2:2. In the first verse he speaks of their internal state, in this of their outward conversation: Wherein, in which trespasses and sins, in time past you walked, you lived and behaved yourselves in such a manner as the men of the world are used to do. 3. We are by nature bond-slaves to sin and Satan. Those who walk in trespasses and sins, and according to the course of this world, walk according to the prince of the power of the air. The devil, or the prince of devils, is thus described. See Mat 12:24, Mat 12:26. The legions of apostate angels are as one power united under one chief; and therefore what is called the powers of darkness elsewhere is here spoken of in the singular number. The air is represented as the seat of his kingdom: and it was the opinion of both Jews and heathens that the air is full of spirits, and that there they exercise and exert themselves. The devil seems to have some power (by God's permission) in the lower region of the air; there he is at hand to tempt men, and to do as much mischief to the world as he can: but it is the comfort and joy of God's people that he who is head over all things to the church has conquered the devil and has him in his chain. But wicked men are slaves to Satan, for they walk according to him; they conform their lives and actions to the will and pleasure of this great usurper. The course and tenour of their lives are according to his suggestions, and in compliance with his temptations; they are subject to him, and are led captive by him at his will, whereupon he is called the god of this world, and the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. The children of disobedience are such as choose to disobey God, and to serve the devil; in these he works very powerfully and effectually. As the good Spirit works that which is good in obedient souls, so this evil spirit works that which is evil in wicked men; and he now works, not only heretofore, but even since the world has been blessed with the light of the glorious gospel. The apostle adds, Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past, which words refer to the Jews, whom he signifies here to have been in the like sad and miserable condition by nature, and to have been as vile and wicked as the unregenerate Gentiles themselves, and whose natural state he further describes in the next words. 4. We are by nature drudges to the flesh, and to our corrupt affections, Eph 2:3. By fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, men contract that filthiness of flesh and spirit from which the apostle exhorts Christians to cleanse themselves, 2Co 7:1. The fulfilling of the desires of the flesh and of the mind includes all the sin and wickedness that are acted in and by both the inferior and the higher or nobler powers of the soul. We lived in the actual commission of all those sins to which corrupt nature inclined us. The carnal mind makes a man a perfect slave to his vicious appetite. - The fulfilling of the wills of the flesh, so the words may be rendered, denoting the efficacy of these lusts, and what power they have over those who yield themselves up unto them. 5. We are by nature the children of wrath, even as others. The Jews were so, as well as the Gentiles; and one man is as much so as another by nature, not only by custom and imitation, but from the time when we began to exist, and by reason of our natural inclinations and appetites. All men, being naturally children of disobedience, are also by nature children of wrath: God is angry with the wicked every day. Our state and course are such as deserve wrath, and would end in eternal wrath, if divine grace did not interpose. What reason have sinners then to be looking out for that grace that will make them, of children of wrath, children of God and heirs of glory! Thus far the apostle has described the misery of a natural state in these verses, which we shall find him pursuing again in some following ones.

Barclay: Eph 2:1-3

When Paul speaks of you, he is speaking of the Gentiles; when he speaks of us he is speaking of the Jews, his fellow countrymen. In this passage he shows how terrible the Christless life was for Gentile and for Jew alike.

(i) He says that that life was lived in sins and trespasses. The words he uses are interesting. The word for sin is hamartia (266); and hamartia (266) is a shooting word. It literally means a miss. A man shoots his arrow at the target; the arrow misses; that is hamartia (266). Sin is the failure to hit the target of life. That is precisely why sin is so universal.

We commonly have a wrong idea of sin. We would readily agree that the robber, murderer, the razor-slasher, the drunkard, the gangster are sinners, but, since most of us are respectable citizens, in our heart of hearts we think that sin has not very much to do with us. We would probably rather resent being called hell-deserving sinners. But hamartia (266) brings us face to face with what sin is, the failure to be what we ought to be and could be.

Is a man as good a husband as he might be? Does he try to make life easier for his wife? Does he inflict his moods on his family? Is a woman as good a wife as she might be? Does she really take an interest in her husband's work and try to understand his problems and his worries? Are we as good parents as we might be? Do we discipline and train our children as we ought, or do we often shirk the issue? As our children grow older, do we come nearer to them, or do they drift away until conversation is often difficult and we and they are practically strangers? Are we as good sons and daughters as we might be? Do we ever even try to say thank you for what has been done for us? Do we ever see the hurt look in our parents' eyes and know that we put it there? Are we as good workmen as we could be? Is every working hour filled with our most conscientious work and is every task done as well as we could possibly do it?

When we realize what sin is, we come to see that it is not something which theologians have invented. It is something with which life is permeated. It is the failure in any sphere of life to be what we ought to be and could be.

The other word Paul uses, translated trespasses is paraptoma (3900). This literally means a slip or a fall. It is used for a man losing the way and straying from the right road; it is used for a man failing to grasp and slipping away from the truth. Trespass, is taking the wrong road when we could take the right one; it is missing the truth that we should have known. Therefore it is the failure to reach the goal we ought to have reached.

Are we in life where we ought to be? Have we reached the goal of efficiency and skill that our gifts might have enabled us to reach? Have we reached the goal of service to others that we might have reached? Have we reached the goal of goodness to which we might have attained?

The central idea of sin is failure, failure to hit the target, failure to hold to the road, failure to make life what it was capable of becoming; and that definition includes every one of us.

Barclay: Eph 2:1-3

Paul speaks about people being dead in sins. What did he mean? Some have taken it to mean that without Christ men live in a state of sin which in the life to come produces the death of the soul. But Paul is not talking about the life to come; he is talking about this present life. There are three directions in which the effect of sin is deadly.

(i) Sin kills innocence. No one is precisely the same after he has sinned. The psychologists tell us that we never forget anything.

It may not be in our conscious memory, but everything we ever did or saw or heard is buried in our subconscious memories. The result is that sin leaves a permanent effect on a man.

In Du Maurier's novel Trilby there is an example of that. For the first time in his life Little Billee has taken part in a drunken debauch and has himself been drunk. "And when, after some forty-eight hours or so, he had quite slept off the fumes of that memorable Christmas debauch, he found that a sad thing had happened to him, and a strange! It was as though a tarnishing breath had swept over the reminiscent mirror of his mind and left a little film behind it, so that no past thing he wished to see therein was reflected with quite the same pristine clearness. As though the keen, quick, razor edge of his power to reach and re-evoke the by-gone charm and glamour and essence of things had been blunted and coarsened. As though the bloom of that special joy, the gift he had of recalling past emotions and sensations and situations, and making them actual once more by a mere effort of will, had been brushed away. And he never recovered the full use of that most precious faculty, the boon of youth and happy childhood, and which he had once possessed, without knowing it, in such singular and exceptional completeness.

The experience of sin had left a kind of tarnishing film on his mind and things could never be quite the same again. If we stain a garment or a carpet, we may send it to be cleaned, but it is never again quite the same. Sin does something to a man; it kills innocence; and innocence, once lost, can never be recovered.

(ii) Sin kills ideals. In the lives of so many there is a kind of tragic process. At first a man regards some wrong thing with horror; the second stage comes when he is tempted into doing it, but even as he does it, he is still unhappy and ill at ease and very conscious that it is wrong; the third stage is when he has done the thing so often that he does it without a qualm. Each sin makes the next sin easier. Wordsworth in the Intimations of Immortality wrote:

"The youth, who daily from the east

Must travel, still is Nature's priest,

And by the vision splendid

Is on his way attended;

At length the man perceives it die away,

And fade into the light of common day."

Sin is a kind of suicide, for it kills the ideals which make life worth while.

(iii) In the end sin kills the will. At first a man engages in some forbidden pleasure because he wants to do so; in the end he engages in it because he cannot help doing so. Once a thing becomes a habit it is not far from being a necessity. When a man has allowed some habit, some indulgence, some forbidden practice to master him, he becomes its slave. As the old saying has it. "Sow an act and reap a habit; sow a habit and reap a character; sow a character and reap a destiny."

There is a certain murderous power in sin. It kills innocence; sin may be forgiven but its effect remains. As Origen had it: "The scars remain." Sin kills ideals; men begin to do without a qualm the thing which once they regarded with horror. Sin kills the will; the thing so grips a man that he cannot break free.

Barclay: Eph 2:1-3

In this passage Paul makes a kind of list of the characteristics of life without Christ.

(i) It is life lived in the way this present age lives it. That is to say, it is life lived on the world's standards and with the world's values. Christianity demands forgiveness, but the ancient writers said it was a sign of weakness to have the power to avenge oneself for injury and not to do so. Christianity demands love even to our enemies, but Plutarch said that the sign of a good man was that he was useful to his friends and terrible to his enemies. Christianity demands service, but the world cannot understand the missionary for instance, who goes away to some foreign land to teach in a school or heal in a hospital for a quarter of the salary he or she might obtain at home in some secular service. The essence of the world's standard is that it sets self in the centre, the essence of the Christian standard is that it sets Christ and others in the centre. The essence of the worldly man is, as someone has said, that "he knows the price of everything and the value of nothing." The world's motive is profit. the Christian's dynamic is the desire to serve.

(ii) It is life lived under the dictates of the prince of the air. Here again we are at something which was very real in the days of Paul but which is not so real to us. The ancient world believed strenuously in demons. They believed that the air was so crowded with these demons that there was not room to insert a pinpoint between them. Pythagoras said: "The whole air is full of Spirits." Philo said: "There are spirits flying everywhere through the air." "The air is the house of the disembodied spirits." These demons were not all bad, but many were, out to propagate evil, to frustrate the purposes of God and to ruin the souls of men. The man who is under their domination has taken sides against God.

(iii) It is a life characterized by disobedience. God has many ways of revealing his will to men. He does so by conscience, the voice of the Holy Spirit speaking within us; he does so by giving to men the wisdom and the commandments of his book; he does so through the advice of good and godly men. But the man who lives the Christless life takes his own way of things, even when he knows what God's way is.

(iv) It is a life which is at the mercy of desire. The word for desire is epithumia (1939) which characteristically means desire for the wrong and the forbidden thing. To succumb to that is inevitably to come to disaster.

One of the tragedies of the nineteenth century was the career of Oscar Wilde. He had a brilliant mind, and won the highest academic honours; he was a scintillating writer, and won the highest rewards in literature; he had all the charm in the world and was a man whose instinct it was to be kind; yet he fell to temptation and came to prison and disgrace. When he was suffering for his fall, he wrote his book De Profundis and in it he said: "The gods had given me almost everything. But I let myself be lured into long spells of senseless and sensual ease.... Tired of being on the heights I deliberately went to the depths in search for new sensation. What the paradox was to me in the sphere of thought, perversity became to me in the sphere of passion. I grew careless of the lives of others. I took pleasure where it pleased me, and passed on. I forgot that every little action of the common day makes or unmakes character, and that therefore what one has done in the secret chamber, one has some day to cry aloud from the house-top. I ceased to be lord over myself. I was no longer the captain of my soul, and did not know it. I allowed pleasure to dominate me. I ended in horrible disgrace."

Desire is a bad master, and to be at the mercy of desire is to be a slave. And desire is not simply a fleshly thing; it is the craving for any forbidden thing.

(v) It is the life which follows what the King James Version calls the desires of our flesh. We must be careful to understand what Paul means by the sins of the flesh. He means far more than sexual sins. In Gal 5:19-21Paul lists the sins of the flesh. True, he starts with adultery and fornication, but he goes on to idolatry, hatred, wrath, strife, envyings, seditions, heresies. The flesh is that part of our nature which gives sin a bridgehead and a point of attack.

The meaning of "the flesh" will vary from person to person. One man's weakness may be in his body and his risk may be sexual sin; another's may be in spiritual things and his risk in pride; another's may be in earthly things and his risk unworthy ambition; another's sin may be in his temper and his risk in envyings and strife. All these are sins of the flesh. Let no man think that, because he has escaped the grosser sins of the body, he has avoided the sins of the flesh. The flesh is anything in us which gives sin its chance; it is human nature without God. To live according to the dictates of the flesh is simply to live in such a way, that our lower nature, the worse part of us, dominates our lives.

(vi) It is life which is deserving only of the wrath of God. Many a man's life is embittered because he feels that he has never had what his talents and his work deserve; but in the sight of God no man deserves anything but condemnation. It is only his love in Christ which has forgiven men who deserved nothing but punishment from him, men who had grieved his love and broken his law.

Constable: Eph 1:3--4:1

II. THE CHRISTIAN'S CALLING 1:3--3:21

". . . the first three chapters are one long prayer, culminating in the great doxology at the end of chapter 3. There is in fact nothing like this in all Paul's letters. This is the language of lyrical prayer, not the language of argument, and controversy, and rebuke."¹⁰

Constable: Eph 1:3--2:11

A. Individual calling 1:3-2:10

Paul began the body of his letter by revealing the spiritual blessings that God has planned for believers in His Son.

Constable: Eph 2:1-10

3. The motive: grace 2:1-10

Paul concluded his revelation of the Christian's individual calling in Christ (1:3-2:10). He began this section of the epistle by explaining the purpose of our calling (i.e., the glory of God, 1:3-14). He then expounded the means whereby we appreciate our calling (i.e., knowledge given by the Holy Spirit through God's revelation, 1:15-23). Finally He enunciated the motive for our calling (i.e., the unmerited grace of God, 2:1-10).

These verses continue the theme of redemption (1:7). The pericope is a condensation of Paul's exposition of redemption in Romans. Whereas we were once dead to God (vv. 1-3), we are now alive in God (vv. 4-10).

"Having described our spiritual possessions in Christ, Paul turns to a complementary truth: our spiritual position in Christ. First he explains what God has done for all sinners in general; then he explains what God did for the Gentiles in particular."⁴⁶

Constable: Eph 2:1-3

Once dead to God 2:1-3

These verses are really preliminary to Paul's main point. They describe the Christian's condition as an unbeliever before God justified him or her. In the Greek text verses 1-7 are one sentence. The subject of this sentence is God (v. 4). The three main verbs are "made alive" (v. 5), "raised up" (v. 6), and "seated" (v. 6). The object is "us," and the prepositional phrase "with Christ" describes "us." The main point then is that God has made believers alive, raised us up, and seated us with Christ. Everything else in verse 1-7 is of subordinate importance.

2:1 Before their regeneration, believers were spiritually dead, separated from God, and unable to have fellowship with Him (cf. 4:18; John 17:3). We were living in the sphere of rebellion against God (cf. v. 2). Transgressions (false steps, cf. 1:7; 2:5) and sins (acts of missing the mark) describe deliberate offenses against God.

"There are three outstanding schools of moral pathology traceable throughout the centuries. Pelagianism asserts the convalescence of human nature. Man merely needs teaching. Semi-pelagianism admits his ill-health, but affirms that the symptoms will yield to proper treatment, to a course of tonic drugs and a scrupulous regimen. But Biblical Christianity probes the patient to the quick. Its searching diagnosis pronounces that mortification has set in and that nothing less than infusion of fresh lifeblood can work a cure. Nostrums and palliatives aggravate rather than allay the disease. Sin is an organic epidemical malady, a slow devitalizing poison issuing in moral necrosis; not a stage of arrested or incomplete development, but a seed-plot of impending ruin."⁴⁷

"The unbeliever is not sick; he is dead! He does not need resuscitation; he needs resurrection. All lost sinners are dead, and the only difference between one sinner and another is the state of decay."⁴⁸

2:2 The apostle further described the sphere in which unbelievers live in three ways. First, it is a lifestyle in which people follow the ways of the world. The philosophy that seeks to eliminate God from every aspect of life dominates this lifestyle (cf. John 15:18, 23).

Second, the unsaved follow the person who is promoting this philosophy, namely Satan. As prince of the power of the air, Satan received temporary freedom to lead this rebellion against God (cf. 1 John 5:19; 2 Cor. 4:4; Rev. 12:9). The "spirit" now working probably refers to the "power" or "kingdom" (lit. authority) of the air rather than to Satan since that word is its nearest antecedent. "Sons of disobedience" is a way of saying people marked by disobedience, as a son bears the traits of his parent. Unbelievers resemble Satan in their rebellion.

2:3 Third, not only does the philosophy of the world guide unbelievers and Satan control them, but they also indulge the flesh. The term "flesh" (NASB, Gr. sarkos) when used metaphorically as here refers to the sinful nature that everyone possesses. It is our human nature that is sinful. The unbeliever characteristically gives in to his or her fleshly desires and thoughts whereas the believer should not and need not do so (cf. Rom. 7-8).

"Children of wrath" and "sons of disobedience" are both phrases that describe unbelievers. "Children" (Gr. tekna) highlights the close relationship between a child and his or her parents. "Sons" (Gr. huioi) stresses the distinctive characteristics of the parents that the child displays. Unbelievers have a close relationship to God's wrath because of their rebellion against Him (cf. Rom. 1:18-2:29; John 3:36).

These verses (1-3) picture the hopeless unbeliever as a part of the world system, controlled by Satan, indulging the flesh, and destined to experience God's wrath. When an unbeliever trusts Jesus Christ, the world, the devil, and the flesh become his or her three-fold enemy.

College: Eph 2:1-22

EPHESIANS 2

B. GOD'S SALVATION (2:1-22)

1. Saved from Sin (2:1-10)

¹ As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, ² in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. ³ All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature ^a and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. ⁴ But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, ⁵ made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved. ⁶ And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, ⁷ in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. ⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast. ¹⁰ For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

^a 3 Or our flesh

2:1 As for you, you were dead

Paul's line of thought flows in this way: "Christ was raised from the dead to be the head of his church. You who are in his church were dead, too. Here is how God dealt with that."

"You" probably means "you Gentiles," as distinguished from "we also" in verse three. This same distinction was made in 1:12-13 and will be prominent in 2:11-13 and 3:1. They were "dead" in that they were severed and alienated from God, the only source of life.

in your transgressions and sins,

The cause of their alienation from God was their own sinful-ness. "Transgressions" (paravptwma , paraptôma ), as in 1:7, are the "missteps that fall off to the side," the specific failures to walk within the prescribed path. "Sins" (aJmartiva , hamartia ) are from a more general word which is literally "missing the mark." In Scripture "sin" is usually the state into which man falls; it is a way of life.

2:2 in which you used to live

It was not just an isolated failure here or there in their lives that separated them from God; it was their whole way of life. The way they lived (literally "walked," peripatevw , peripateô ) was a continuing lifestyle of moving away from God. Their way of life was the way of death.

when you followed the ways of this world

Paul's readers had chosen to walk a path "according to the age of this world." This "world-age" should be contrasted with the "age to come," as in 1:21. To follow the ways of this world meant to ignore the prospect of eternity and heaven, to live entirely for "the here and now." A fellow apostle of Paul later enlarged on this concept (1 John 2:15-17):

Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world - the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does - comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air,

The prince of this world is Satan (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). Those who walk the paths of transgressions and sins have chosen to follow Satan. This much is clear. But what is meant by "the kingdom of the air"?

Some of the early church fathers connected "the air" with storms and atmospheric disturbances, which supposedly were caused by the devil. Other writers have taken "air" quite literally, supposing it to be the medium in which evil spirits can exist. Attempts to link "the air" with astrological speculations of that day are not convincing. It is preferable to understand "the air" as explained by the phrase which follows it in the text itself.

the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.

The grammar of this phrase requires that "the spirit" be taken as an appositive to "the air," not as an appositive to "the ruler." The text becomes explanatory: men have followed the ruler of the authority of "the air," namely the spirit working in the sons of disobedience. The "air" is thus the pervasive attitude or "spirit" of rebellion that impels men to defy God. Satan is the ruler over this attitude of disobedience and the men who submit to it.

2:3 All of us also lived among them at one time,

Just as Paul demonstrated to the Romans (1:18-3:31), he declares that "you" Gentiles are morally bankrupt, but "we" Jews are bankrupt as well. "All of us" have conducted ourselves in the same imperfect manner; there is "no one righteous, not even one" (Rom 3:10). Paul does not hesitate to include himself among those who fell.

gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature

The purest essence of sin is not some horrible, unthinkable atrocity. It is simply living for self. The NIV is severely interpretive in this line, where the original reads that we lived "in the desires of our flesh." Our "flesh" is not labeled as sinful in the text; it is simply labeled as ours.

Jesus insisted that whoever follows him must "deny himself" (Matt 16:24). He did not say to deny the sinful part of self; he said to deny self altogether.

and following its desires and thoughts.

Literally, "doing the desires of the flesh and the mind." The "desires" are strong cravings which demand to be satisfied. Our physical nature has numerous such appetites, all of which lead to sin when they are not subjected to the will of God. And it is not only the body which has sinful passions. The desires of the mind can be just as bad - and sometimes worse, since they are less conspicuous. The mind that demands its own way in matters of anger, pride, resentment, revenge, etc., is working for the devil.

In Paul's day people were often taught by Greek philosophy that everything physical is evil. With this line of thinking they would easily understand the sinfulness of fleshly desires. It must have shocked them, however, to discover that the desires of the mind are equally sinful.

Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.

When Paul says mankind is "by nature" deserving of God's wrath, he does not mean men were born that way. Contrary to the teaching of some, men are not born "totally depraved," already deserving hell. (This would doom infants; thus originated the practice of sprinkling them.)

What Paul does mean is that men all have participated in the rebellion against God. It is not an accident of birth into the family of Adam that condemns men; it is what men themselves have done! It is not God's doing, but men's own, that has made men "children of wrath." Notice the indictments against mankind which have led to this verdict:

1. You were dead through transgressions and sins (v. 1).

2. You walked in them as a way of life (v. 2).

3. You followed the ways of this world (v. 2).

4. You followed the evil ruler (v. 2).

5. You shared the attitude (spirit) of disobedient men (v. 2).

6. We all lived by the passions of the flesh (v. 3).

7. We followed the desires of body and mind (v. 3).

2:4 But because of his great love for us,

There is a dramatic contrast (vv. 3-4) between God's wrath and God's mercy. God has wrath toward his enemies and love toward his children, and one cannot be properly understood without the other. Furthermore, he offers us a choice. We may choose to be either his enemies or his children.

The unique quality of God's love (ajgavph , agapç ) is that it is offered to us even while we are still enemies. God loves when the object of his love is unlovely and undeserving. His love does not count the cost or calculate the profit. (See John 3:16; Rom 5:8; 1 John 4:9-10.)

God, who is rich in mercy,

When this kind of love is directed toward sinners in their wretched lost state, it is called "mercy." Scripture abounds with statements about the mercy of God, a clear indication that God is rich in this resource. Mercy (e[leo" , eleos ) is an attitude of pity and compassion toward the plight of a helpless victim. The fact that we became victims of our own bad choices does not prevent God from having mercy.

2:5 made us alive with Christ

By the same power which God used to raise Jesus from the dead (1:20), he now raises his human children from spiritual death. Just as the Son now lives forever and reigns triumphantly, so should the children continue in spiritual life and triumph over the old life of human failure. What we were, we are no longer - by God's grace.

even when we were dead in transgressions

Paul picks up the line of thought from the first three verses so he can bring it to a glorious conclusion: Even though we were helplessly, hopelessly dead, God made us alive with Christ! Each believer thus enacts the grand drama of Jesus' parable; it is said of him, "This son of mine was dead, and is alive again" (Luke 15:24). Jesus also promised, "Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me . . . has crossed over from death to life" (John 5:24).

- it is by grace you have been saved.

Paul interrupts his own line of thought with a premature exclamation of triumph: by grace you are saved! "Grace" (cavri" , charis ) occurs about 100 times in Paul's writings, and is a term especially characteristic of his thought. Before the N.T. the word was not a major philosophical or religious term, but it did have strong aesthetic connotations: favor, goodwill, kindness, beauty, even pleasure and delight.

As in v. 8, where the thought finds its proper climax, "saved" (swvzw, sôzo ¯) is in the perfect tense. This tense signifies the present result of past action. For the believer, then, salvation by grace is not just a future promise - it is a present reality.

2:6 And God raised us up with Christ

Beginning with v. 5 Paul creates a chain of three key words, each linked by having the same prefix, sun- ( syn ), meaning "together with." To recreate the effect we might say that believers are "co-made alive," "co-raised up," and "co-seated" together with Christ. The second and third of these terms recall what God did for Christ in 1:20.

F. F. Bruce notes the similarity of this language with the baptismal context of Rom 6:3-11, esp. v. 5: "If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection." (See also Col 2:12-13.)

and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

The believer who is "in Christ" becomes a participant in the eternal sphere of being. He is "seated with Christ" in the heavenly realms (see 1:3), but is also involved in the struggle. While this enthronement is a present reality in the church, it also awaits a more complete fulfillment in heaven.

2:7 in order that in the coming ages

The present age is usually contrasted with the age to come; the temporal contrasted with the eternal (1:21; cf. Mark 10:30). This verse carries the contrast a step further, depicting the future as an unending series of "ages," as opposed to the age that is temporary and singular. Paul's thought is that God plans to show kindness to his children throughout all eternity.

he might show the incomparable riches of his grace,

Not only is the greatness of God's power "incomparable" (1:19), so also is his grace. This is the same "riches of his grace" which he "lavished" on us in Christ Jesus (1:6-8). God was not content to show or demonstrate (ejndeivknumi , endeiknymi ) his grace in one great act alone; he will do this forever.

expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

True love and grace will always find a way to express itself, to the benefit of the one loved. While manmade world religions have men trying to appease the wrath of their angry gods, this text shows how eager God is to display his lovingkindness. It must be noted, how-ever, that God's eternal kindness is available only "in Christ Jesus."

2:8 For it is by grace you have been saved,

This is the Hallelujah Chorus of salvation! This is the "good" of "good news." We are not saved by works of our own righteousness (which would always turn out to be too few), but by the sacrifice of the righteous Jesus Christ. Just as in the earlier outburst (v. 5), the perfect tense of "saved" emphasizes the finished reality of salvation. The perfect tense does not, however, address the issue of future permanence. Those who are saved cannot use this verse to guarantee salvation if they later choose to abandon their faith.

through faith

Faith is the response of sinners to the Savior which appropriates God's gift to themselves. Faith by no means "earns" salvation (since it is "by grace"); nor does it make the sinner "worthy" of grace. Faith is "the acceptance of Jesus Christ and commitment of the entire personality to him as Lord and Savior."

"Through faith" (diaÉ pivstew" , dia pisteôs ) appears again in 3:12 and 17 of Ephesians. The same words are used in Rom 3:25, another pivotal passage. The more frequent ejk pivstew" (ek pisteôs ) ("out of faith") is synonymous. (See Rom 3:26, 30; Gal 2:16.)

- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -

What is the meaning of "this," which is given of God and is not from yourselves? Is it "faith" that is the gift of God? Since "faith" is a word of feminine gender, and "this" and "it" are neuter gender, normal grammar disallows referring back to "faith." For the same reason "this" cannot refer back to the feminine word "grace." It is more likely that the neuter words refer to the entire situation of salvation: it is God's doing, not our own. Even our own responses, such as repenting and believing in Jesus, would not be possible unless God had invited us to do so (cf. Acts 11:18).

2:9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

No amount of good works can make up for our evil works. Keeping the law most of the time does not remove the guilt of breaking the law some of the time. While in Galatians the context is primarily works of the O.T. law, the context of Ephesians is addressed to the broader framework of the Gentile readers. No meritorious acts of service or obedience to any law will atone for sin.

When men do try to work their way into God's favor, one of two things will happen. Sincere, honest men will despair of ever succeeding; smug, ignorant men will boast. Paul addresses the second situation, showing that God's way of salvation eliminates human boasting. (See also Rom 4:2-9, "If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about." But Abraham "believed God" and his "faith was credited to him as righteousness.")

2:10 For we are God's workmanship,

We are God's "poem" (poivhma , poiçma ), something carefully crafted by his own hands. (See Rom 1:20 for the only other N.T. use of this word.) Paul's focus here is not on our original, physical creation, but on our spiritual re-creation in Christ. "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation" (2 Cor 5:17).

created in Christ Jesus to do good works,

In the old order sin produces death; in the new order life produces good works. In the believer's life works are performed "not to secure salvation but as the fruit of salvation." Thus good works are the fruit , not the root , of the tree of salvation. Those who are in Christ Jesus will bear much fruit (John 15:5), not as a requirement for admission but as a result of intimate union.

If there are no good works in a person's life, it is an evidence of an underlying problem: lack of a vital relationship with Christ. And if that person is condemned, the reason is this underlying problem, not the mere outward symptoms of it. (See James 2:26.)

which God prepared in advance for us to do.

Literally, "in order that we should walk in them." God has rescued us from walking the destructive path of sin (2:2) and has put us on the productive path of good works. Even these works are not truly our own invention, but are designed and inspired in us by God (Phil 2:13). Whatever good we do is in imitation of the Father, and patterned after the good we see in his Son.

2. Saved from Separation (2:11-22)

¹¹ Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called "uncircumcised" by those who call themselves "the circumcision" (that done in the body by the hands of men) -- ¹² remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. ¹³ But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. ¹⁴ For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, ¹⁵ by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, ¹⁶ and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. ¹⁷ He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. ¹⁸ For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. ¹⁹ Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, ²⁰ built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. ²¹ In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. ²² And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

2:11 Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth

God has not only conquered spiritual death through Jesus Christ; he has also conquered human division. Just as the first half of chapter two traced the pattern of death, rescue, new life, the second half will trace a similar pattern of division, rescue, new fellowship. "Therefore," seeing that Christ reconciles man to God, we should observe that he also reconciles man to his fellow man.

"You Gentiles" are again separated from the Jews for special consideration (as in 1:13 and 2:1). Gentiles are to remember with gratitude that they are no longer the despised people they used to be. The pious Jew thanked God daily he was not a Gentile. He was even taught, "Kill the best of Gentiles! Crush the head of the best of snakes!"

and called "uncircumcision" by those who call themselves "the circumcision" (that done in the body by the hands of men) -

The Jew's name for the Gentiles was not as polite as it appears in English. When they called them "uncircumcision" they were literally calling them "foreskin" (ajkrobustiva , akrobystia ). For the Jews this was a mark of terrible shame, to be regarded with contempt. The irony of this situation is that Greek men were proud of their foreskin and thought that Jewish circumcision was a disgusting mutilation. A further irony of Jews and Gentiles despising each other is that this point of contention was a man-made, hand-made distinction (cf. Col 2:11). At any rate, the Gentile readers are being asked to view themselves historically from the Jewish point of view, which was largely also God's point of view.

2:12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ,

As Gentiles they had no share in the expectation of the Jewish Messiah. While God's plan was to bless all the families of the earth through Christ, the Gentiles knew little, and cared less about all this.

excluded from citizenship in Israel

The Gentiles were aliens, cut off from the community of God. ("As if any Roman citizen or subject could regard as a misfortune the exclusion from a State which was an object of contempt!") And yet, even in their misfortunes, the Jews were still the nation of privilege because of their unique relationship to God and their possession of his Word (Rom 3:1-2).

and foreigners to the covenants of the promise,

As the Gentile readers considered the growing list, they must have been hit with the enormity of their estrangement. In the covenants God made with man throughout the O.T., the Gentiles were increasingly left out. The promises were for the Jews, not for the "foreigners." In classical times the word for "foreigners" (ajpallovtrioi , apallotrioi ) meant "alien to the people and the land, and hence unsuitable and even hostile."

without hope and without God in the world.

Therefore the Gentiles were without hope and without God. Though they may not have been aware of their hopeless state previously, now as Christians they can "remember" and realize how pitiable they were. The climax and conclusion is that they were without God (a[qeoi , atheoi ). Notwithstanding their many gods, they knew not God the Father, and he knew them not as sons. The list of alienation is complete:

Gentiles by birth

Called "uncircumcision"

Separate from Christ

Excluded from citizenship

Foreigners to the covenants

Without hope

Without God

2:13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away

At the beginning of this chapter the terrible predicament of spiritual death was changed by the words, "But God." Similarly, the predicament of division is changed: "But now in Christ." Those who were "without Christ" are now "in Christ." Those who were "far away" (makravn , makran , as in Acts 2:39) are now brought near. As Paul writes these words he may be recalling how the Lord directly commissioned him, "I will send you far off ( makran ) to the Gentiles" (Acts 22:21).

have been brought near through the blood of Christ.

The blood of Christ represents the death of Christ, but in a specific and important way. "By speaking of Christ's 'blood' rather than of his death, the author . . . reveals a sacrificial understanding of Christ's death." Jesus became the lamb that takes away the sins of the world (John 1:29). And the same blood that removes the stain of sin also removes the stigma of separation.

2:14 For he himself is our peace,

Peace with God (2:1-10) is the basis for peace with men, which is the focus of peace in this verse. When a man is right with God, he must also get right with his fellow men - regardless of whether they are Gentile or Jew. Jesus himself is the author and provider of peace. He not only "made peace" between Gentile and Jew (v. 15), he himself is the bridge linking the two together.

who has made the two one

The unity between Gentile and Jew was not just an organizational or mechanical union. It was a genuine "oneness" which Paul will later call "the unity of the Spirit" (4:3). Christ made two things into one; the Gentile race and the Jewish race become the Heavenly race. It is no wonder that Christians came to speak of themselves as a "third race" or "new race," which was no longer Jewish, no longer Gentile.

and has destroyed the barrier,

The barrier between Gentile and Jew, as v. 15 clearly shows, was God's own law. This law prevented the Jews from eating with the Gentiles, marrying their sons and daughters, or worshiping at their shrines. "Our lawgiver . . . fenced us round . . . that we might not mingle at all with any of the other nations, but remain pure in body and soul." However, the barrier that was necessary to create the Messianic nation could now be dismantled, for the Messiah had come.

But one must be careful to understand in what sense the law has been destroyed. The law still stands as a revelation of the character and holiness of God. "Do we, then, nullify the law by this faith? Not at all! Rather, we uphold the law" (Rom 3:31). The O.T. Scriptures still are effective to expose man's problem and point toward the solution: Christ (Gal 3:19-24; 2 Tim 3:15-16). But the law as a written code, threatening death instead of imparting life, is done away with in Christ.

the dividing wall of hostility,

While the allusion may have missed the Ephesian Gentiles, Paul himself must have connected these words to the "dividing wall" at the temple in Jerusalem. This fence, which prevented any Gentiles from proceeding into the inner courtyards or the temple itself, had played a major role in causing Paul to be "the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles" (Eph 3:1). Posted prominently along this barricade were large signs, chiseled into stone, with red paint to make the warning more bold:

No Gentile may enter inside the enclosing screen around the Temple. Whoever is caught is alone responsible for the death which follows.

When the Jews in Jerusalem started the riot against Paul, saying that "he has brought Greeks into the temple area and defiled this holy place" (Acts 21:28), they demonstrated that the ultimate dividing wall was their own inveterate hostility. While God had authorized a temporary separation for the Jews, he had never authorized their hatred.

2:15 by abolishing in his flesh the law

The law is abolished and nullified (katargevw , katargeô ) in Christ. It is "wiped out," canceled, and nailed to the cross (Col 2:14). By the shedding of his blood (v. 13), restated in this verse as "in his flesh," Christ satisfied the penalty of the law in our behalf. When Christ cried out from the cross, "It is finished" (John 19:30), he uttered the word (tetevlestai , tetelestai ) that has been found on many an ancient bill of sale: "Paid in full!"

with its commandments and regulations.

It is especially in the sense of the written "commands and dogmas" that the old law has been done away. "The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life" (2 Cor 3:6). Christ set the law aside by first fulfilling all its demands of righteousness, and then paying off the debt we owed because of unrighteousness. While our whole relationship with the law is changed, it is especially the ceremonial law that has been annulled. The wording of the text, "with its commands and regulations," seems to underscore this.

His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two,

It was in and through Jesus that mankind was created in the first place. Contrary to Jesus' will, sin caused mankind to be divided - religiously, socially, and otherwise. Now the same Jesus has acted to create "one new man" to be all that the original Adam was intended to be. The key to proper understanding of his intent lies in the words "in himself." If all that God desired was a united mankind, we could return to the tower of Babel. But reconciled men must come together "in Christ." In him, the one new man has been created out of the "old man" of sin, both Gentile and Jew.

thus making peace,

When Gentile and Jew are united in Christ, the ancient hostility has come to an end. Making peace is not just an improvement on the situation, it is the creation of something totally new. The new man is neither Jew nor Greek, but Christian.

2:16 and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross,

Reuniting mankind was a great accomplishment, but it was not Jesus' ultimate purpose. The real reason he made peace between men was so that there could also be peace between men and God. At the tower of Babel men were united in location, language, and purpose - but apart from God. So God broke them up! Not long afterward, in order to deal with sin and salvation, God separated Abraham and began the Hebrew nation. God's ultimate goal was finally completed in Jesus Christ. In Christ he could bring mankind back together, but this time in unity with himself.

Through the atonement accomplished at the cross, Jesus could "reconcile" (ajpokatallavssw , apokatallassô ) mankind to God. This word involves a change of attitude and conduct, an end of alienation. It is of interest that in Scripture God is not reconciled to man, but man to God (Rom 5:10; 1 Cor 7:11; 2 Cor 5:18-20; Col 1:20-22). Men must change and come to God; this can happen only in Christ.

by which he put to death their hostility.

The attitude in men which must change is an attitude of defiance and hostility toward God (see Col. 1:20-22). It is at the cross that Jesus "draws all men" to himself (John 12:32) and wins back their runaway hearts. As their hostility toward God is put to death, so is their hostility toward one another.

It should be noticed, then, that Jesus accomplished two great things simultaneously at the cross. By paying the ransom he changed man's standing before God - now man is no longer unacceptable. By showing such love he changed man's heart - now man is no longer hostile. (And the by-product of removing hostility in the vertical dimension is to remove it in the horizontal dimension as well.)

2:17 He came and preached peace to you who were far away

In fulfillment of the ancient promise of Isaiah (57:19) the Messiah came and proclaimed peace. And as Isaiah had earlier exclaimed, "How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace" (52:7). Though Israel probably did not realize it at the time, when this peace was preached to those "who were far away," it would not be just to the exiled Jews, but also to the Gentiles! Therefore when Paul makes allusion to the prophecy, he sees it as fulfilled in "you," the far away Gentiles of Asia Minor.

and peace to those who were near.

Those who were near were the Jews. Compared to the Gentiles, they were nearer to the Scriptures, to the covenant, and to knowledge of God. But as the history of the church was to show, this did not necessarily make them nearer to doing the will of God in accepting his Son. When the "Prince of Peace" (Isa 9:6) came proclaiming the path of peace, a defiant mob crucified him. When Paul proclaimed the Prince of Peace to the Jews scattered throughout the empire, they nearly always rejected him.

2:18 For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

It is through Christ - his blood (v. 13), his flesh (v. 15), his cross (v. 16) - that mankind gains access to the Father. The word "access" (also in 3:12 and Rom 5:12) is a key concept. It was used in Greek society for the "right to approach," as when a person received an introduction to the king. This access was more than just the opportunity to approach. Similarly, Christians do not come by their own strength, but are led to God by their "introducer." In contrast to the multiple mediators of many Hellenistic religions, Jesus is the single direct access to God. No longer is there a fence to keep out the Gentiles; no longer is there a veil to keep out every Jew except the high priest (see Heb 10:19-22).

Access to the Father is through the Son, by the Spirit. In Christ believers address God by the family name "Abba! Father!" and show evidence of being indwelt by one and the same Spirit (Rom 8:15-16). The reference in this verse to all three members of the Godhead should be noticed. The doctrine of the Trinity is similarly established in 1:12-14, 17; 3:14-17; 4:4-6, and 5:18-20.

2:19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens,

Before Christ brought the new covenant relationship, Gentiles were "foreigners and aliens" in the eyes of the Jews. The word "foreigners" (xevnoi , xenoi ) emphasizes "strangeness"; the word "aliens" (pavroikoi , paroikoi ) is also "sojourners," people who temporarily lived "beside the house." The Jews tolerated them with some distaste, but such people did not have the rights of citizenship. They were bound by Jewish laws (Exod 20:10), but were not allowed to share in sacred activities, such as a Passover supper (Exod 12:45).

but fellow citizens with God's people

In Christ Jesus there are no "half-way" citizens. No one is merely tolerated in the city of God. Gentile believers are now "co-citizens" (sumpoli'tai , sympolitai ) with God's people (literally, the "saints"). Once the "saints" were only those of the nation of Israel, who were "set apart" to God, but now the "saints" are all those in Christ Jesus.

and members of God's household,

The imagery moves from the political commonwealth to the more intimate picture of a family. Those who were formerly "without God" (2:12) are now at home in his family. Those who formerly lived "beside the house" (pavroikoi , paroikoi ) have been welcomed inside. Those who are in Christ are God's children (1 John 3:1) and will be told to exhibit the traits and characteristics of their Father (Eph 5:1). Paul's word for "household members" (oijkei'oi , oikeioi ) is found elsewhere in the N.T. in Gal 6:10 and 1 Tim 5:8.

As citizens and family members the Gentiles have the right to belong. One citizen cannot disenfranchise another citizen; a family member cannot eject his brother. Christians are in the city by the will of the King and in the family by the good pleasure of the Father.

2:20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,

Now the imagery changes again. The church is pictured as a building with a firm foundation, and Christians are built upon it (see 1 Pet 2:4-8). While Paul elsewhere calls Christ the sole foundation of the church (1 Cor 3:11), here the "apostles and prophets" form this foundation. Their foundational authority, of course, lies in the message they proclaim.

The "apostles" are those personally commissioned by Jesus (they are also seen as the "foundation" of the walls of the heavenly Jerusalem, Rev. 21:14). The "prophets" are the church leaders who have the gift of prophecy. That the O.T. prophets are not intended is shown by these considerations: (1) a single definite article links "the apostles and prophets," showing they function as one group; (2) the apostles are mentioned first; (3) in Eph 3:5 these prophets receive revelation not given in earlier generations; (4) in Eph 4:11 the prophets are part of the ascended Christ's gifts to the church.

with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.

The common understanding of "cornerstone" in English is the first and most important stone of a foundation, from which all measurements are made for the rest of the building. Jesus is certainly worthy of this appellation. However, there is convincing evidence that "cornerstone" (ajkrogwniai'o" , akrogôniaios ) should be translated as "head of the corner" or "capstone." This figure sets Christ up as the topmost stone of the building, having prominence and priority. This parallels the image of Christ as "head" of his body the church.

There is an interesting parallel in the use of this word in the Testament of Solomon , a Jewish work from the first century which describes the building of Solomon's Temple: "The Temple was being completed. And there was a great akrogôniaios stone which I was wanting to set as the head of the corner at the pinnacle of the Temple." Therefore a workman "went up the ladder bearing the stone and set it at the top of the arch of the entrance of the Temple."

2:21 In him the whole building is joined together

Christ gives the building unity and purpose, just as he unites the "body" in Eph 4:16. The church - as building or as body - grows up into its head.

The term "joined together" (sunarmologevw , synarmologeô ) comes from a root word ("harmonized together") used when all the parts made a complete whole, when different music blended in harmony, even when a man and his bride were joined in wedlock. It was used especially in fitting planks together in a ship, or fitting stones together in a building. The emphasis is the harmonious blending of diverse parts - Gentile and Jew - into a united whole.

and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.

The builder of the church (Matt 16:18) is also its head. Growing and increasing in the Lord, this building becomes a sacred temple (see 1 Cor 3:16-17; 6:19; 2 Cor 6:16; 1 Pet 2:5). The word for "temple" (naov" , naos ) has special reference to the sanctuary itself, not merely the overall temple (iJerovn , hieron ) including buildings and courtyards.

While in the O.T. the glory of God dwelt in a tent pitched in the wilderness, or in a stone temple in Jerusalem, now God dwells in a living temple. Formerly, the people could not fully approach God's dwelling; now, God has brought his dwelling into his people!

2:22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling

"You too" reminds the Gentile readers that in Christ they also are a part of God's temple. They are the "living stones" (1 Pet 2:4-8) that are built into the structure. Moreover, it is not as if the Gentiles formed one wall of the church, and the Jews formed another. All God's children are built indiscriminately into one building.

in which God lives by his Spirit.

This building becomes literally, "a place to inhabit" (katoikhthvrion , katoikçtçrion , as in Rev.18:2) by God, in the person of his Spirit. Jesus had promised that if a person loves him and keeps his word, "my Father will love him, and we will make our home in him" (John 14:23). The gospel invitation promises the indwelling gift of the Spirit (Acts 2:38), and the presence of the Spirit identifying the Christian as a child of God (Eph 1:13-14). If anyone does not have God (as the Spirit of Christ) dwelling in him, that person does not belong to God (Rom 8:9).

In these last four verses, three different figures have been employed to depict the nature of the church. In all, Ephesians uses five such pictures:

1. A body (1:23)

2. A city (2:19)

3. A family (2:19)

4. A building (both a temple and a home) (2:20-22)

5. A bride (5:23-32)

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

Commentary -- Other

Evidence: Eph 2:3

Unsaved people often try to justify themselves when confronted with their sinfulness, by saying, " It’s only natural that we sin." They’re right—sin does come naturally to us. We naturally lie, steal, lust, etc. The lifestyles of the ungodly can be clearly seen in soap operas, movies, talk shows, and tabloids. However, because it’s natural doesn’t make it right. By nature we are children of wrath. See Tit 3:3 footnote.

Introduction / Outline

Robertson: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

The Epistle to the Ephesians

From Rome a.d. 63

By Way of Introduction

There are some problems of a special nature that confront us about the so-called Epistle to the Ephesians.

The Authorship

It is not admitted by all that Paul wrote it, though no other adequate explanation of its origin has ever been given. So far as subject matter and vocabulary and style are concerned, if Colossians is Pauline, there is little or nothing to be said against the Pauline authorship of this Epistle.

Relation to Colossians

As we have seen, the two Epistles were sent at the same time, but clearly Colossians was composed first. Ephesians bears much the same relation to Colossians that Romans does to Galatians, a fuller treatment of the same general theme in a more detached and impersonal manner.

The Destination

The oldest documents (Aleph and B) do not have the words en Ephesōi (in Ephesus) in Eph_1:1 (inserted by a later hand). Origen did not have them in his copy. Marcion calls it the Epistle to the Laodiceans. We have only to put here Col_4:16 " the letter from Laodicea" to find the probable explanation. After writing the stirring Epistle to the Colossians Paul dictated this so-called Epistle to the Ephesians as a general or circular letter for the churches in Asia (Roman province). Perhaps the original copy had no name in Eph_1:1 as seen in Aleph and B and Origen, but only a blank space. Marcion was familiar with the copy in Laodicea. Basil in the fourth century mentions some MSS. with no name in the address. Most MSS. were copies from the one in Ephesus and so it came to be called the Epistle to the Ephesians. The general nature of the letter explains also the absence of names in it, though Paul lived three years in Ephesus.

The Date

The same date must be assigned as for Philemon and Colossians, probably a.d. 63.

The Place of Writing

This would also be the same, that is Rome, though Deissmann and Duncan argue for Ephesus itself as the place of writing. Some scholars even suggest Caesarea.

The Character of the Epistle

The same Gnostic heresy is met as in Colossians, but with this difference. In Colossians the emphasis is on the Dignity of Christ as the Head of the Church, while in Ephesians chief stress is placed upon the Dignity of the Church as the Body of Christ the Head. Paul has written nothing more profound than chapters Ephesians 1-3 of Ephesians. Stalker termed them the profoundest thing ever written. He sounds the depths of truth and reaches the heights. Since Ephesians covers the same ground so largely as Colossians, only the words in Ephesians that differ or are additional will call for discussion.

JFB: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

THE headings (Eph 1:1, and Eph 3:1, show that this Epistle claims to be that of Paul. This claim is confirmed by the testimonies of IRENÆUS, [Against Heresies, 5.2,3; 1.8,5]; CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, [Miscellanies, 4, P. 65, and The Instructor, 1.8]; ORIGEN, [Against Celsus, 4,211]. It is quoted by VALENTINUS, A.D. 120, namely, Eph 3:14-18, as we know from HIPPOLYTUS [The Refutation of All Heresies, p. 193]. POLYCARP [Epistle to the Philippians, 12], testifies to its canonicity. So TERTULLIAN [Against Marcion, 5,17]. IGNATIUS [Epistle to the Ephesians, 12], which alludes to the frequent and affectionate mention made by Paul of the Christian state, privileges, and persons of the Ephesians in his Epistle.

Two theories, besides the ordinary one, have been held on the question, to whom the Epistle is addressed. GROTIUS, after the heretic Marcion, maintains that it was addressed to the Church at Laodicea, and that it is the Epistle to which Paul refers in Col 4:16. But the Epistle to the Colossians was probably written before that to the Ephesians, as appears from the parallel passages in Ephesians bearing marks of being expanded from those in Colossians; and Marcion seems to have drawn his notion, as to our Epistle, from Paul's allusion (Col 4:16) to an Epistle addressed by him to the Laodiceans. ORIGEN and CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA, and even TERTULLIAN, who refers to Marcion, give no sanction to his notion. No single manuscript contains the heading, "to the saints that are at Laodicea." The very resemblance of the Epistle to the Ephesians, to that to the Colossians, is against the theory; for if the former were really the one addressed to Laodicea (Col 4:16), Paul would not have deemed it necessary that the churches of Colosse and Laodicea should interchange Epistles. The greetings, moreover (Col 4:15), which he sends through the Colossians to the Laodiceans, are quite incompatible with the idea that Paul wrote an Epistle to the Laodiceans at the same time, and by the same bearer, Tychicus (the bearer of our Epistle to the Ephesians, as well as of that to Colosse, Eph 6:21; Col 4:7); for who, under such circumstances, would not send the greetings directly in the letter to the party saluted? The letter to Laodicea was evidently written some time before that to Colosse, Archbishop USHER has advanced the second theory: That it was an encyclical letter headed, as in Manuscript B., "to the saints that are . . . and to the faithful," the name of each Church being inserted in the copy sent to it; and that its being sent to Ephesus first, occasioned its being entitled, as now, the Epistle to the Ephesians. ALFORD makes the following objections to this theory: (1) It is at variance with the spirit of the Epistle, which is clearly addressed to one set of persons throughout, co-existing in one place, and as one body, and under the same circumstances. (2) The improbability that the apostle, who in two of his Epistles (Second Corinthians and Galatians) has so plainly specified their encyclical character, should have here omitted such specification. (3) The still greater improbability that he should have, as on this hypothesis must be assumed, written a circular Epistle to a district, of which Ephesus was the commercial capital, addressed to various churches within that district, yet from its very contents (as by the opponents' hypothesis) not admitting of application to the Church of that metropolis, in which he had spent so long a time, and to which he was so affectionately bound. (4) The inconsistency of this hypothesis with the address of the Epistle, and the universal testimony of the ancient Church. The absence of personal greetings is not an argument for either of the two theories; for similarly there are none in Galatians, Philippians, First and Second Thessalonians, First Timothy. The better he knows the parties addressed, and the more general and solemn the subject, the less he seems to give of these individual notices. Writing, as he does in this Epistle, on the constitution and prospects of Christ's universal Church, he refers the Ephesians, as to personal matters, to the bearer of the Epistle, Tychicus (Eph 6:21-22). As to the omission of "which are at Ephesus" (Eph 1:1), in Manuscript B., so "in Rome" (Rom 1:7) is omitted in some old manuscripts: it was probably done by churches among whom it was read, in order to generalize the reference of its contents, and especially where the subject of the Epistle is catholic. The words are found in the margin of Manuscript B, from a first hand; and are found in all the oldest manuscripts and versions.

Paul's first visit to Ephesus (on the seacoast of Lydia, near the river Cayster) is related in Act 18:19-21. The work, begun by his disputations with the Jews in his short visit, was carried on by Apollos (Act 18:24-26), and Aquila and Priscilla (Act 18:26). At his second visit, after his journey to Jerusalem, and thence to the east regions of Asia Minor, he remained at Ephesus "three years" (Act 19:10, the "two years" in which verse are only part of the time, and Act 20:31); so that the founding and rearing of this Church occupied an unusually large portion of the apostle's time and care; whence his language in this Epistle shows a warmth of feeling, and a free outpouring of thought, and a union in spiritual privileges and hope between him and them (Eph 1:3, &c.), such as are natural from one so long and so intimately associated with those whom he addresses. On his last journey to Jerusalem, he sailed by Ephesus and summoned the elders of the Ephesian Church to meet him at Miletus, where he delivered his remarkable farewell charge (Acts 20:18-35).

This Epistle was addressed to the Ephesians during the early part of his imprisonment at Rome, immediately after that to the Colossians, to which it bears a close resemblance in many passages, the apostle having in his mind generally the same great truths in writing both. It is an undesigned proof of genuineness that the two Epistles, written about the same date, and under the same circumstances, bear a closer mutual resemblance than those written at distant dates and on different occasions. Compare Eph 1:7 with Col 1:14; Eph 1:10 with Col 1:20; Eph 3:2 with Col 1:25; Eph 5:19 with Col 3:16; Eph 6:22 with Col 4:8; Eph 1:19; Eph 2:5 with Col 2:12-13; Eph 4:2-4 with Col 3:12-15; Eph 4:16 with Col 2:19; Eph 4:32 with Col 3:13; Eph 4:22-24 with Col 3:9-10; Eph 5:6-8 with Col 3:6-8; Eph 5:15-16 with Col 4:5; Eph 6:19-20 with Col 4:3-4; Eph 5:22-33; Eph 6:1-9 with Col 3:18; Eph 4:24-25 with Col 3:9; Eph 5:20-22 with Col 3:17-18. Tychicus and Onesimus were being sent to Colosse, the former bearing the two Epistles to the two churches respectively, the latter furnished with a letter of recommendation to Philemon, his former master, residing at Colosse. The date was probably about four years after his parting with the Ephesian elders at Miletus (Acts 20:6-38), about A.D. 62, before his imprisonment had become of the more severe kind, which appears in his Epistle to the Philippians. From Eph 6:19-20 it is plain he had at the time, though a prisoner, some degree of freedom in preaching, which accords with Act 28:23, Act 28:30-31, where he is represented as receiving at his lodgings all inquirers. His imprisonment began in February A.D. 61 and lasted "two whole years" (Act 28:30) at least, and perhaps longer.

The Church of Ephesus was made up of converts partly from the Jews and partly from the Gentiles (Act 19:8-10). Accordingly, the Epistle so addresses a Church constituted (Eph 2:14-22). Ephesus was famed for its idol temple of Artemis or Diana, which, after its having been burnt down by Herostratus on the night that Alexander the Great was born (355 B.C.), was rebuilt at enormous cost and was one of the wonders of the world. Hence, perhaps, have arisen his images in this Epistle drawn from a beautiful temple: the Church being in true inner beauty that which the temple of the idol tried to realize in outward show (Eph 2:19-22). The Epistle (Eph 4:17; Eph 5:1-13) implies the profligacy for which the Ephesian heathen were notorious. Many of the same expressions occur in the Epistle as in Paul's address to the Ephesian elders. Compare Eph 1:6-7; Eph 2:7, as to "grace," with Act 20:24, Act 20:32 : this may well be called "the Epistle of the grace of God" [ALFORD]. Also, as to his "bonds," Eph 3:1, and Eph 4:1 with Act 20:22-23. Also Eph 1:11, as to "the counsel of God," with Act 20:27. Also Eph 1:14, as to "the redemption of the purchased possession," with Act 20:28. Also Eph 1:14, Eph 1:18; Eph 2:20; Eph 5:5, as to "building up" the "inheritance," with Act 20:32.

The object of the Epistle is "to set forth the ground, the course, and the aim and end of THE CHURCH OF THE FAITHFUL IN CHRIST. He speaks to the Ephesians as a type or sample of the Church universal" [ALFORD]. Hence, "the Church" throughout the Epistle is spoken of in the singular, not in the plural, "churches." The Church's foundation, its course, and its end, are his theme alike in the larger and smaller divisions of the whole Epistle. "Everywhere the foundation of the Church is in the will of the Father; the course of the Church is by the satisfaction of the Son; the end of the Church is the life in the Holy Spirit" [ALFORD]. Compare respectively Eph 1:11; Eph 2:5; Eph 3:16. This having been laid down as a matter of doctrine (this part closing with a sublime doxology, Eph 3:14-21), is then made the ground of practical exhortations. In these latter also (from Eph 4:1, onward), the same threefold division prevails, for the Church is represented as founded on the counsel of "God the Father, who is above all, through all, and in all," reared by the "one Lord," Jesus Christ, through the "one Spirit" (Eph 4:4-6, &c.), who give their respective graces to the several members. These last are therefore to exercise all these graces in the several relations of life, as husbands, wives, servants, children, &c. The conclusion is that we must put on "the whole armor of God" (Eph 6:13).

The sublimity of the STYLE and LANGUAGE corresponds to the sublimity of the subjects and exceeds almost that of any part of his Epistles. It is appropriate that those to whom he so wrote were Christians long grounded in the faith. The very sublimity is the cause of the difficulty of the style, and of the presence of peculiar expressions occurring, not found elsewhere.

JFB: Ephesians (Outline)

• INSCRIPTION: ORIGIN OF THE CHURCH IN THE FATHER'S ETERNAL COUNSEL, AND THE SON'S BLOODSHEDDING: THE SEALING OF IT BY THE SPIRIT. THANKSGIVING AND PRAYER THAT THEY MAY FULLY KNOW GOD'S GRACIOUS POWER IN CHRIST TOWARDS THE SAINTS. (Eph. 1:1-23)
• GOD'S LOVE AND GRACE IN QUICKENING US, ONCE DEAD, THROUGH CHRIST. HIS PURPOSE IN DOING SO: EXHORTATION BASED ON OUR PRIVILEGES AS BUILT TOGETHER, AN HOLY TEMPLE, IN CHRIST, THROUGH THE SPIRIT. (Eph. 2:1-22)
• HIS APOSTOLIC OFFICE TO MAKE KNOWN THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST REVEALED BY THE SPIRIT: PRAYER THAT BY THE SAME SPIRIT THEY MAY COMPREHEND THE VAST LOVE OF CHRIST: DOXOLOGY ENDING THIS DIVISION OF THE EPISTLE. (Eph. 3:1-21)
• EXHORTATIONS TO CHRISTIAN DUTIES RESTING ON OUR CHRISTIAN PRIVILEGES, AS UNITED IN ONE BODY, THOUGH VARYING IN THE GRACES GIVEN TO THE SEVERAL MEMBERS, THAT WE MAY COME UNTO A PERFECT MAN IN CHRIST. (Eph. 4:1-32) Translate, according to the Greek order, "I beseech you, therefore (seeing that such is your calling of grace, the first through third chapters) I the prisoner in the Lord (that is, imprisoned in the Lord's cause)." What the world counted ignominy, he counts the highest honor, and he glories in his bonds for Christ, more than a king in his diadem [THEODORET]. His bonds, too, are an argument which should enforce his exhortation.
• EXHORTATIONS TO LOVE: AND AGAINST CARNAL LUSTS AND COMMUNICATIONS. CIRCUMSPECTION IN WALK: REDEEMING THE TIME: BEING FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT: SINGING TO THE LORD WITH THANKFULNESS: THE WIFE'S DUTY TO THE HUSBAND RESTS ON THAT OF THE CHURCH TO CHRIST. (Eph. 5:1-33)
• MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND CHILDREN: MASTERS AND SERVANTS: OUR LIFE A WARFARE: THE SPIRITUAL ARMOUR NEEDED AGAINST SPIRITUAL FOES. CONCLUSION. (Eph. 6:1-24)

TSK: Ephesians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

Overview

Eph 2:1, By comparing what we were by nature, with what we are by grace, Eph 2:10. he declares that we are made for good works, and being brought near by Christ, should not live as Gentiles and foreigners, as in time past, but as citizens with the saints, and the family of God.

Poole: Ephesians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

CHAPTER 2

MHCC: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

This epistle was written when St. Paul was a prisoner at Rome. The design appears to be to strengthen the Ephesians in the faith of Christ, and to give exalted views of the love of God, and of the dignity and excellence of Christ, fortifying their minds against the scandal of the cross. He shows that they were saved by grace, and that however wretched they once were, they now had equal privileges with the Jews. He encourages them to persevere in their Christian calling, and urges them to walk in a manner becoming their profession, faithfully discharging the general and common duties of religion, and the special duties of particular relations.

MHCC: Ephesians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

(Eph 2:1-10) The riches of God's grace towards men, shown from their deplorable state by nature, and the happy change Divine grace makes in them.

(Eph 2:11-13) The Ephesians called to reflect on their state of heathenism.

(Eph 2:14-22) And the privileges and blessings of the gospel.

Matthew Henry: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Epistle of St. Paul to the Ephesians

Some think that this epistle to the Ephesians was a circular letter sent to several churches, and that the copy directed to the Ephesians happened to be taken into the canon, and so it came to bear that particular inscription. And they have been induced the rather to think this because it is the only one of all Paul's epistles that has nothing in it peculiarly adapted to the state or case of that particular church; but it has much of common concernment to all Christians, and especially to all who, having been Gentiles in times past, were converted to Christianity. But then it may be observed, on the other hand, that the epistle is expressly inscribed (Eph 1:1) to the saints which are at Ephesus; and in the close of it he tells them that he had sent Tychicus unto them, whom, in 2Ti 4:12, he says he had sent to Ephesus. It is an epistle that bears date out of a prison: and some have observed that what this apostle wrote when he was a prisoner had the greatest relish and savour in it of the things of God. When his tribulations did abound, his consolations and experiences did much more abound, whence we may observe that the afflictive exercises of God's people, and particularly of his ministers, often tend to the advantage of others as well as to their own. The apostle's design is to settle and establish the Ephesians in the truth, and further to acquaint them with the mystery of the gospel, in order to it. In the former part he represents the great privilege of the Ephesians, who, having been in time past idolatrous heathens, were now converted to Christianity and received into covenant with God, which he illustrates from a view of their deplorable state before their conversion, ch. 1-3. In the latter part (which we have in the Eph 4:1, Eph 5:1, and Eph 6:1 chapters) he instructs them in the principal duties of religion, both personal and relative, and exhorts and quickens them to the faithful discharge of them. Zanchy observes that we have here an epitome of the whole Christian doctrine, and of almost all the chief heads of divinity.

Matthew Henry: Ephesians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

This chapter contains an account, I. Of the miserable condition of these Ephesians by nature (Eph 2:1-3) and again (Eph 2:11, Eph 2:12). II. Of the glorious change that was wrought in them by converting grace (Eph 2:4-10) and again (Eph 2:13). III. Of the great and mighty privileges that both converted Jews and Gentiles receive from Christ (Eph 2:14-22). The apostle endeavours to affect them with a due sense of the wonderful change which divine grace had wrought in them; and this is very applicable to that great change which the same grace works in all those who are brought into a state of grace. So that we have here a lively picture both of the misery of unregenerate men and of the happy condition of converted souls, enough to awaken and alarm those who are yet in their sins and to put them upon hastening out of that state, and to comfort and delight those whom God hath quickened, with a consideration of the mighty privileges with which they are invested.

Barclay: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

A GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTERS OF PAUL

The Letters Of Paul

There is no more interesting body of documents in the New Testament than the letters of Paul. That is because of all forms of literature a letter is most personal. Demetrius, one of the old Greek literary critics, once wrote, "Every one reveals his own soul in his letters. In every other form of composition it is possible to discern the writercharacter, but in none so clearly as the epistolary." (Demetrius, On Style, 227.) It is just because he left us so many letters that we feel we know Paul so well. In them he opened his mind and heart to the folk he loved so much; and in them, to this day, we can see that great mind grappling with the problems of the early church and feel that great heart throbbing with love for men, even when they were misguided and mistaken.

The Difficulty Of Letters

At the same time there is often nothing so difficult to understand as a letter. Demetrius (On Style, 223) quotes a saying of Artemon, who edited the letters of Aristotle. Artemon said that a letter ought to be written in the same manner as a dialogue, because it was one of the two sides of a dialogue. In other words, to read a letter is like listening to one side of a telephone conversation. So when we read the letters of Paul we are often in a difficulty. We do not possess the letter which he was answering; we do not fully know the circumstances with which he was dealing; it is only from the letter itself that we can deduce the situation which prompted it. Before we can hope to understand fully any letter Paul wrote, we must try to reconstruct the situation which produced it.

The Ancient Letters

It is a great pity that Paulletters were ever called epistles. They are in the most literal sense letters. One of the great lights shed on the interpretation of the New Testament has been the discovery and the publication of the papyri. In the ancient world, papyrus was the substance on which most documents were written. It was composed of strips of the pith of a certain bulrush that grew on the banks of the Nile. These strips were laid one on top of the other to form a substance very like brown paper. The sands of the Egyptian desert were ideal for preservation, for papyrus, although very brittle, will last forever so long as moisture does not get at it. As a result, from the Egyptian rubbish heaps, archaeologists have rescued hundreds of documents, marriage contracts, legal agreements, government forms, and, most interesting of all, private letters. When we read these private letters we find that there was a pattern to which nearly all conformed; and we find that Paulletters reproduce exactly that pattern. Here is one of these ancient letters. It is from a soldier, called Apion, to his father Epimachus. He is writing from Misenum to tell his father that he has arrived safely after a stormy passage.

"Apion sends heartiest greetings to his father and lord Epimachus.

I pray above all that you are well and fit; and that things are

going well with you and my sister and her daughter and my brother.

I thank my Lord Serapis [his god] that he kept me safe when I was

in peril on the sea. As soon as I got to Misenum I got my journey

money from Caesar--three gold pieces. And things are going fine

with me. So I beg you, my dear father, send me a line, first to let

me know how you are, and then about my brothers, and thirdly, that

I may kiss your hand, because you brought me up well, and because

of that I hope, God willing, soon to be promoted. Give Capito my

heartiest greetings, and my brothers and Serenilla and my friends.

I sent you a little picture of myself painted by Euctemon. My

military name is Antonius Maximus. I pray for your good health.

Serenus sends good wishes, Agathos Daimonboy, and Turbo,

Galloniuson." (G. Milligan, Selections from the Greek Papyri,

36.)

Little did Apion think that we would be reading his letter to his father 1800 years after he had written it. It shows how little human nature changes. The lad is hoping for promotion quickly. Who will Serenilla be but the girl he left behind him? He sends the ancient equivalent of a photograph to the folk at home. Now that letter falls into certain sections. (i) There is a greeting. (ii) There is a prayer for the health of the recipients. (iii) There is a thanksgiving to the gods. (iv) There are the special contents. (v) Finally, there are the special salutations and the personal greetings. Practically every one of Paulletters shows exactly the same sections, as we now demonstrate.

(i) The Greeting: Rom_1:1 ; 1Co_1:1 ; 2Co_1:1 ; Gal_1:1 ; Eph_1:1 ; Phi_1:1 ; Col 2 ; 1Th_1:1 ; 2Th_1:1 .

(ii) The Prayer: in every case Paul prays for the grace of God on the people to whom he writes: Rom_1:7 ; 1Co_1:3 ; 2Co_1:2 ; Gal_1:3 ; Eph_1:2 ; Phi_1:3 ; Col_1:2 ; 1Th_1:1 ; 2Th_1:2 .

(iii) The Thanksgiving: Rom_1:8 ; 1Co_1:4 ; 2Co_1:3 ; Eph_1:3 ; Phi_1:3 ; 1Th_1:3 ; 2Th_1:3 .

(iv) The Special Contents: the main body of the letters.

(v) Special Salutations and Personal Greetings: Rom 16 ; 1Co_16:19 ; 2Co_13:13 ; Phi_4:21-22 ; Col_4:12-15 ; 1Th_5:26 .

When Paul wrote letters, he wrote them on the pattern which everyone used. Deissmann says of them, "They differ from the messages of the homely papyrus leaves of Egypt, not as letters but only as the letters of Paul." When we read Paulletters we are not reading things which were meant to be academic exercises and theological treatises, but human documents written by a friend to his friends.

The Immediate Situation

With a very few exceptions, all Paulletters were written to meet an immediate situation and not treatises which he sat down to write in the peace and silence of his study. There was some threatening situation in Corinth, or Galatia, or Philippi, or Thessalonica, and he wrote a letter to meet it. He was not in the least thinking of us when he wrote, but solely of the people to whom he was writing. Deissmann writes, "Paul had no thought of adding a few fresh compositions to the already extant Jewish epistles; still less of enriching the sacred literature of his nation.... He had no presentiment of the place his words would occupy in universal history; not so much that they would be in existence in the next generation, far less that one day people would look at them as Holy Scripture." We must always remember that a thing need not be transient because it was written to meet an immediate situation. All the great love songs of the world were written for one person, but they live on for the whole of mankind. It is just because Paulletters were written to meet a threatening danger or a clamant need that they still throb with life. And it is because human need and the human situation do not change that God speaks to us through them today.

The Spoken Word

One other thing we must note about these letters. Paul did what most people did in his day. He did not normally pen his own letters but dictated them to a secretary, and then added his own authenticating signature. (We actually know the name of one of the people who did the writing for him. In Rom_16:22 Tertius, the secretary, slips in his own greeting before the letter draws to an end.) In 1Co_16:21 Paul says, "This is my own signature, my autograph, so that you can be sure this letter comes from me" (compare Col_4:18 ; 2Th_3:17 ).

This explains a great deal. Sometimes Paul is hard to understand, because his sentences begin and never finish; his grammar breaks down and the construction becomes involved. We must not think of him sitting quietly at a desk, carefully polishing each sentence as he writes. We must think of him striding up and down some little room, pouring out a torrent of words, while his secretary races to get them down. When Paul composed his letters, he had in his mindeye a vision of the folk to whom he was writing, and he was pouring out his heart to them in words that fell over each other in his eagerness to help.

INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTER TO THE EPHESIANS

The Supreme Letter

By common consent the Letter to the Ephesians ranks very high in the devotional and theological literature of the Christian Church. It has been called "The Queen of the Epistles"--and rightly so. Many would hold that it is indeed the highest reach of New Testament thought. When John Knox was very near his end, the book that was most often read to him was John CalvinSermons on the Letter to the Ephesians. Coleridge said of Ephesians that it was "the divinest composition of man." He went on: "It embraces first, those doctrines peculiar to Christianity, and, then, those precepts common with it in natural religion." Ephesians clearly has a place all its own in the Pauline correspondence.

And yet there are certain very real problems connected with it. These problems are not the product of the minds of over-critical scholars, but are plain for all to see. When, however, these problems are solved, Ephesians becomes a greater letter than ever and shines with an even more radiant light.

The Circumstances Of The Writing Of Ephesians

Before we turn to the doubtful things, let us set down the certainties. First, Ephesians was clearly written when Paul was in prison. He calls himself "a prisoner for Christ" (Eph_3:1 ); it is as "a prisoner for the Lord" that he beseeches them (Eph_4:1 ); he is "an ambassador in chains" (Eph_6:20 ). It was in prison, and very near to the end, that Paul wrote Ephesians.

Second, Ephesians has clearly a close connection with Colossians. It would seem that Tychicus was the bearer of both these letters. In Colossians Paul says that Tychicus will tell them all about his affairs (Col_4:7 ); and in Ephesians he says that Tychicus will give them all information (Eph_6:21 ). Further, there is a close resemblance between the substance of the two letters, so close that more than 55 verses in the two letters are verbatim the same. Either, as Coleridge held, Colossians is what might be called "the overflow" of Ephesians, or Ephesians is a greater version of Colossians. We shall in the end come to see that it is this resemblance which gives us the clue to the unique place of Ephesians among the letters of Paul.

The Problem

So, then, it is certain that Ephesians was written when Paul was in prison for the faith and that it has in some way the closest possible connection with Colossians. The problem emerges when we begin to examine the question of to whom Ephesians was written.

In the ancient days letters were written on rolls of papyrus. When finished, they were tied with thread, and, if they were specially private or important, the knots in the thread were then sealed. But it was seldom that any address was written on them, for the very simple reason that, for the ordinary individual, there was no postal system. There was a government post, but it was available only for official and imperial correspondence and not for the ordinary person. Letters in those days were delivered by hand and therefore no address was necessary. So the titles of the New Testament letters are not part of the original letters at all. They were inserted afterwards when the letters were collected and published for all the Church to read.

When we study Ephesians closely, we find it in the last degree unlikely that it was written to the church at Ephesus. There are internal reasons for arriving at that conclusion.

(a) The letter was written to Gentiles. The recipients were "Gentiles in the flesh, called the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision, separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise" (Eph_2:11 ). Paul urges them "no longer to live as the Gentiles do" (Eph_4:17 ). The fact that they were Gentiles did not of itself mean that the letter could not have been written to Ephesus; but it is a fact to note.

(b) Ephesians is the most impersonal letter Paul ever wrote. It is entirely without personal greetings and without the intimate personal messages of which the other letters are so full. That is doubly surprising when we remember that Paul spent longer in Ephesus than in any other city, no less than three years (Act_20:31 ). Further, there is no more intimate and affectionate passage in the whole New Testament than Act_20:17-35 where we have Paulfarewell talk to the elders of Ephesus, before he left Miletus on his last journey. It is very difficult to believe in face of all this that Paul would have sent a letter to Ephesus which was so impersonal.

(c) The indication of the letter is that Paul and the recipients did not know each other personally and that their knowledge of each other came by hearsay. In Eph_1:15 Paul writes: "Because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus." The loyalty of the people to whom he was writing was something which had come to him by information and not by experience. In Eph_3:2 he writes to them: "Assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of Godgrace that was given to me for you." That is to say: "If you have heard that God gave me the special task and office of being the apostle to Gentiles such as you." The Churchknowledge of Paul as the apostle to the Gentiles was something of which they have heard, but not something which they knew by personal contact with him. So, then, within itself the letter bears signs that it does not fit the close and personal relationship which Paul had with the Church at Ephesus.

These facts might be explained; but there is one external fact which settles the matter. In Eph_1:1 none of the great early manuscripts of the Greek New Testament contain the words in Ephesus. They all read: "Paul...to the saints who are also faithful in Christ Jesus." And we know, from the way in which they comment on it, that that was the form in which the early Greek fathers knew the text.

Was Paul The Author?

Some scholars have gone on to find still another difficulty in Ephesians. They have doubted whether Paul was the author of the letter at all. On what grounds do they base their doubts?

They say that the vocabulary, is different from the vocabulary of Paul; and it is true that there are some seventy words in Ephesians which are not found in any other letter written by Paul. That need not trouble us, for the fact is that in Ephesians Paul was saying things which he had never said before. He was travelling a road of thought along which he had not before travelled; and naturally he needed new words to express new thoughts. It would be ridiculous to demand that a man with a mind like Paulshould never add to his vocabulary and should always express himself in the same way.

They say that the style is not the style of Paul. It is true-- we can see it even in the English, let alone in the Greek--that the style of Ephesians is different from that of the other letters. The other letters are all written to meet a definite situation. But, as A. H. McNeile has said, Ephesians is "a theological tract, or rather a religious mediation." Even the use of language is different. Moffatt puts it this way--generally speaking, Paullanguage pours out like a torrent; but in Ephesians we have "a slow, bright stream, flowing steadily along, which brims its high banks." The length of the sentences in Ephesians is astonishing. In the Greek Eph_1:3-14 ; Eph_1:15-23 ; Eph_2:1-9 ; Eph_3:1-7 are each one long, meandering sentence. McNeile very beautifully and rightly calls Ephesians "a poem in prose." All this is very unlike Paulnormal style.

What is to be said to this? There is first the general fact that no great writer always writes in the same style. Shakespeare can produce the very different styles of Hamlet, A Midsummer NightDream, The Taming of the Shrew, and the Sonnets. Any great stylist--and Paul was a great stylist--writes in a style to fit his aim and his circumstances at the time of writing. It is bad criticism to say that Paul did not write Ephesians simply because he has evolved a new vocabulary and a new style.

But there is more. Let us remember how Paul wrote most of his letters. He wrote them in the midst of a busy ministry, when, for the most part, he was on the road. He wrote them to meet a demanding problem which had to be dealt with at the moment. That is to say, in most of his letters Paul was writing against time. Now let us remember that Paul, if he wrote Ephesians, wrote it when he was in prison. That is to say, he had all the time in the world to write it. Is it any wonder that the style of Ephesians; is not the style of the earlier letters?

Moreover, this difference in style, this meditative, poetical quality is most apparent in Eph 1-3, and they are one long prayer, culminating in a great doxology. There is in fact nothing like this in all Paulletters. This is the language of lyrical prayer, not the language of argument or controversy or rebuke.

The differences are far from proving that Ephesians is not by Paul.

The Thought Of The Epistle

Certain scholars wish to go on to say that the thought of Ephesians is beyond the thought of any of the other letters of Paul. Let us see what that thought is. We have seen that Ephesians is intimately connected with Colossians whose central thought is the all-sufficiency, of Jesus Christ. In Jesus Christ were hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col_2:3 ); all the fulness of God dwelt in him (Col_1:19 ); in him the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily (Col_2:9 ); he alone is necessary and sufficient for mansalvation (Col_1:14 ). The whole thought of Colossians is based on the complete sufficiency of Jesus Christ.

The thought of Ephesians is a development of that conception. It is summarized in two verses of the first chapter, in which Paul speaks of God as, "having made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fulness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth." (Eph_1:9-10 ).

The key thought of Ephesians is the gathering together of all things in Jesus Christ. In nature as it is without Christ there is nothing but disunity and disharmony; it is "red in tooth and claw." Mandominion has broken the social union which should exist between man and the beasts; man is divided from man; class from class; nation from nation; ideology from ideology; Gentile from Jew. What is true of the world of outer nature is true of human nature. In every man there is a tension; every man is a walking civil war, torn between the desire for good and the desire for evil; he hates his sins and loves them at one and the same time. According to both Greek and Jewish thought in the time of Paul, this disharmony extends even to the heavenly places. A cosmic battle is raging between the powers of evil and the powers of good; between God and the demons. Worst of all there is disharmony between God and man. Man, who was meant to be in fellowship with God, is estranged from him.

So, then, in this world without Christ, there is nothing but disunity. That disunity is not Godpurpose but it can become a unity only when all things are united in Christ. As E. F. Scott has it: "The innumerable broken strands were to be brought together in Christ, knotted again into one, as they had been in the beginning." The central thought of Ephesians is the realization of the disunity in the universe and the conviction that it can become unity only when everything is united in Christ.

The Origin Of PaulThought

How did Paul arrive at this great conception of the unity of all things in Jesus Christ? Most likely he came to it in two ways. It is surely the inevitable outcome of his conviction, stated so vividly in Colossians, that Christ is all-sufficient. But it may well be that there was something else which moved Paulmind in this direction. He was a Roman citizen and proud of it. In his journeys Paul had seen a great deal of the Roman Empire, and now he was in Rome, the imperial city. In the Roman Empire a new unity had come to the world. The pax Romana, the Roman peace, was a very real thing. Kingdoms and states and countries, which had struggled and warred with each other, were gathered into a new unity in the Empire which was Rome. It may well be that in his imprisonment Paul saw with new eyes how all this unity centred in Rome; and it may well have seemed to him a symbol of how all things must centre in Christ, if a disunited nature and world and humanity were ever to be gathered into a unity. Surely, so far from being a conception that was beyond his thinking, all Paulthinking and experience would lead him precisely to that.

The Function Of The Church

It is in Eph 1-3 that Paul deals with this conception of the unity in Christ. In the second three chapters he has much to say of the place of the Church in Godplan to bring about that unity. It is here that Paul strikes out one of his greatest phrases. The Church is the Body of Christ. The Church is to be hands to do Christwork, feet to run upon his errands, a mouth to speak for him. So, then, we have a double thesis in Ephesians. First, Christ is Godinstrument of reconciliation. Second, the Church is Christinstrument of reconciliation. The Church must bring Christ to the world; and it is within the Church that all the middle walls of separation must be broken down. It is through the Church that the unity of all the discordant elements must be achieved. As E. F. Scott has it: "The Church stands for that purpose of world-wide reconciliation for which Christ appeared, and in all their intercourse with one another Christians must seek to realize this formative idea of the Church."

Who But Paul?

This is the thought of Ephesians. As we have seen, there are some who, thinking of the vocabulary and the style and the thought of this letter, cannot believe that Paul wrote it. E. J. Goodspeed, the American scholar, has put forward an interesting--but unconvincing--theory. The probability is that it was in Ephesus about the year A.D. 90 that the letters of Paul were first collected and sent out to the Church at large. It is Goodspeedtheory that the man responsible for that collection, some disciple of Paul, wrote Ephesians as a kind of introduction to the whole collection. Surely that theory breaks down on one salient fact. Any imitation is inferior to the original. But so far from being inferior Ephesians might well be said to be the greatest of all the Pauline letters. If Paul did not write it himself, we have to postulate as its writer someone who was possibly greater than Paul. E. F. Scott very relevantly demands: "Can we believe that in the Church of Paulday there was an unknown teacher of this supreme excellence? The natural assumption is surely that an epistle so like the work of Paul at his best was written by no other man than by Paul himself." No man ever had a greater vision of Christ than this which sees in Christ the one centre in whom all the disunities of life are gathered into one. No man ever had a greater vision of the Church than this which sees in the Church Godinstrument in that world-wide reconciliation. And we may well believe that no man other than Paul could rise to a vision like that.

The Destination Of Ephesians

We must now return to the problem which earlier we left unsolved. If Ephesians was not written to Ephesus--to what church was it written?

The oldest suggestion is that it was written to Laodicea. In Col_4:16 Paul writes: "And when this letter has been read among you, have it read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you read also the letter from Laodicea." That sentence makes certain that a letter had gone from Paul to the church at Laodicea. We possess no such letter amongst Paulletters as they stand. Marcion was one of the first people to make a collection of Paulletters, just about the middle of the second century, and he actually calls Ephesians the Letter to the Laodiceans. So from very early times there must have been a feeling in the Church that Ephesians was actually sent in the first instance to Laodicea.

If we accept that interesting and attractive suggestion, we still have to explain how the letter lost its individual address to Laodicea and came to be connected with Ephesus. There could be two explanations.

It may be that, when Paul died, the church at Ephesus knew that the church at Laodicea possessed a wonderful letter from Paul; and wrote to Laodicea asking for a copy. A copy may have been made and sent off, omitting only the words in Laodicea in the first verse, and leaving a blank as the earliest manuscripts have a blank there. Almost thirty years later the letters of Paul were collected for general publication. Now Laodicea was in a district which was notorious for earthquakes, and it may well have been that all its archives were destroyed; and that, therefore, when the collection was made, the only copy of the Letter to the Laodiceans was that which survived in Ephesus. That letter may then have come to be known as the Letter to the Ephesians, because it was in Ephesus that the only extant copy survived.

The second suggested explanation was propounded by Harnack, the great German scholar. In the later days the church in Laodicea sadly fell from grace. In the Revelation there is a letter to Laodicea which makes sad reading (Rev_3:14-22 ). In that letter the church of Laodicea is unsparingly condemned by the Risen Christ, so much so that he says to her in that vivid phrase: "I will spew you out of my mouth" (Rev_3:16 ). Now in the ancient world there was a custom called damnatio memoriae, the condemnation of a manmemory. A man might have rendered many a signal service to the state, for which his name might occur in books, in the state annals, in inscriptions and on memorials. But if such a man ended in some base act, some utter wreck of honour, his memory was condemned. His name was erased from all books, obliterated from all inscriptions, chiselled out of all memorials. Harnack thinks it possible that the church of Laodicea underwent a damnatio memoriae so that her very name was obliterated from the Christian records. If that were so, then the copies of the Letter to Laodicea would have no address at all; and when the collection was made at Ephesus, the name of Ephesus might well have become attached to it.

The Circular Letter

Both these suggestions are possible but still another suggestion is far more likely. We believe that Ephesians was not in fact written to any one church, but was a circular letter to all PaulAsian churches. Let us look again at Col_4:16 . He writes: "And when this letter has been read among you, have it read also in the church at Laodicea; and see that you read also the letter from Laodicea." Paul does not say that the Colossians must read the epistle to Laodicea; they must read the epistle from Laodicea. It is as if Paul said: "There is a letter circulating; at the present moment it has reached Laodicea; when it is sent on to you from Laodicea be sure to read it." That sounds very like as if there was a letter circulating among the Asian churches,. and we believe that letter was Ephesians.

The Quintessence Of Paul

If this be so, Ephesians is Paulsupreme letter. We have seen that Ephesians and Colossians are very close to each other. We believe that what happened was that Paul wrote Colossians to deal with a definite situation, an outbreak of heresy. In so doing he stumbled on his great expression of the all-sufficiency of Christ. He said to himself: "This is something that I must get across to all men." So he took the matter he had used in Colossians, removed all the local and temporary and controversial aspects, and wrote a new letter to tell all men of the all-sufficient Christ. Ephesians, as we see it, is the one letter Paul sent to all the eastern churches to tell them that the destined unity of all men and of all things could never be found except in Christ, and to tell them of the supreme task of the Church that of being Christinstrument in the universal reconciliation of man to man and of man to God. That is why Ephesians is the Queen of the Epistles.

Study Method

In Ephesians Paulargument is very closely woven together. It often proceeds in long complicated sentences which are difficult to unravel. If we are really to grasp his meaning, there are passages where it will be better to read the letter, first in fairly long sections and then break down these sections into shorter passages for detailed study.

FURTHER READING

Ephesians

T. K. Abbott, Ephesians and Colossians (ICC; G)

J. Armitage Robinson, St. PaulEpistle to the Ephesians (MmC; G)

E. F. Scott, The Epistles to Colossians, Philemon and Ephesians (MC; E)

Abbreviations

ICC: International Critical Commentary

MC: Moffatt Commentary

MmC: Macmillan Commentary

NCB; New Century Bible

E: English Text

G: Greek Text

Barclay: Ephesians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

The Christless Life And The Grace Of God (Eph_2:1-10)

2:1-10 When you were dead in your sins and trespasses, those sins and trespasses in which once you walked, living life in the way in which this present age of this world lives it, living life as the ruler of the power of the air dictates it, that spirit who now operates in the children of disobedience--and once all we too lived the same kind of life as these children of disobedience do, a life in which we were at the mercy of the desires of our lower nature, a life in which we followed the wishes of our lower nature and of our own designs, a life in which, so far as human nature goes, we deserved nothing but the wrath of God, as the others do--although we were all like that, I say, God, because he is rich in mercy, and because of his great love with which he has loved us, made us alive in Christ Jesus, even when we were dead in trespasses (it is by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Christ, and gave us a seat in the heavenly places with Christ, because of what Christ Jesus did for us. This he did so that in the age to come the surpassing riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus might be demonstrated. For it is by grace appropriated by faith that you have been saved. You had nothing to do with this. It was God's gift to you. It was not the result of works, for it was God's design that no one should be able to boast. For we are his work, created in Christ Jesus for good works, works which God prepared beforehand that we might walk in them.

In this passage Paul's thought flows on regardless of the rules of grammar; he begins sentences and never finishes them; he begins with one construction and halfway through he glides into another. That is because this is far more a lyric of the love of God than a careful theological exposition. The song of the nightingale is not to be analysed by the laws of musical composition. The lark sings for the joy of singing. That is what Paul is doing here. He is pouring out his heart, and the claims of grammar have to give way to the wonder of grace.

Life Without Christ (Eph_2:1-3)

Death In Life (Eph_2:1-3 Continued)

The Marks Of The Christless Life (Eph_2:1-3 Continued)

The Work Of Christ (Eph_2:4-10)

B.C. And A.D.

Eph_2:11-22

So then remember, that once, as far as human descent goes, you were Gentiles; you were called the uncircumcision by those who laid claim to that circumcision which is a physical thing, and a thing produced by men's hands. Remember that at that time you had no hope of a Messiah; you were aliens from the society of Israel, and strangers from the covenants on which the promises were based; you had no hope; you were in the world without God. But, as things now are. because of what Christ Jesus has done, you who were once far off have been brought near. at the price of the blood of Christ. For it is he who is our peace; it is he who made both Jew and Gentile into one, and who broke down the middle wall of the barrier between, and destroyed the enmity by coming in the flesh, and wiped out the law of commandments with all its decrees.

This he did that in himself he might make the two into one new man, by making peace between them, and that he might reconcile both to God in one body through the Cross, after he had slain the enmity between them by what he did. So he came and preached peace to you who were afar off, and peace to them who were near, because, through him, we both have the right of entry into the presence of the Father, for we come in the one Spirit. So then you are no longer strangers and foreigners resident in a land that is not their own, but you are fellow citizens with God's consecrated people and members of the family of God. It is on the foundation of the prophets and the apostles that you have been built up; and the corner stone is Christ himself. All the building that is going on is being fitted together in him, and it will go on growing until it becomes a holy temple in the Lord, a temple into which you too are built as part, that you may become the dwelling place of God, through the work of the Spirit.

Before Christ Came (Eph_2:11-12)

Hopeless And Helpless (Eph_2:11-12 Continued)

The End Of Barriers (Eph_2:13-18)

The Exclusiveness Of Christless Human Nature (Eph_2:13-18 Continued)

The Unity In Christ (Eph_2:13-18 Continued)

The Gifts Of The Unity Of Christ (Eph_2:13-18 Continued)

The Family And The Dwelling-Place Of God (Eph_2:19-22)

Constable: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

Introduction

Historical background

Almost all Christians believed in the Pauline authorship of Ephesians until the nineteenth century when destructive biblical criticism gained influence (cf. 1:1; 3:1). The critics built a case against Pauline authorship from linguistic and stylistic features, literary comparisons chiefly with Colossians, historical evidence, and doctrinal peculiarities.

"When all the objections are carefully considered it will be seen that the weight of evidence is inadequate to overthrow the overwhelming external attestation to Pauline authorship, and the Epistle's own claims."¹

Most conservative New Testament scholars hold to the tradition that Paul wrote Ephesians along with Colossians, Philemon, and Philippians, the other "Prison Epistles," during his first Roman imprisonment, 60-62 A.D. (3:1; 4:1; 6:20; cf. Acts 28:16-31). During this time Paul was under house arrest. He lived in his own rented quarters under guard by Roman soldiers. He could have visitors and could minister without hindrance as far as his confinement permitted (Acts 28:16, 30-31). He was not chained in a prison cell at this time as he was during his second Roman imprisonment when he wrote 2 Timothy (cf. 2 Tim. 1:16). For some interpreters, the reference to Paul having recently sent Tychicus to Ephesus in 2 Timothy 4:12 seems to put the composition of Ephesians in the second imprisonment (cf. Eph. 6:21-22). However the similarities between Ephesians and Colossians have led most scholars to conclude that Paul wrote these two letters at the same time. The evidence for his having written Colossians and Philemon during the first imprisonment is strong.

Paul knew Ephesus and the church in that city well. He had ministered in Asia Minor, the Roman province of which Ephesus was the capitol, with Ephesus as his headquarters for about three years, 53-56 A.D. (Acts 19:1-20:1). It appears that he sent this epistle to the Ephesian church so the Christians there would subsequently circulate it among the other churches.² Three other New Testament books went first to Ephesus: 1 and 2 Timothy, and Revelation (cf. Rev. 2:1). Tychicus evidently delivered this epistle to the Ephesian church (Eph. 6:21-22).

Purpose

Paul's frequent references to the church as a mystery, previously unknown but now revealed, identify the apostle's main purpose in writing as having been the exposition of the mystery of the church (1:9; 3:3-4, 9; 5:32; 6:19). His emphasis on the church as Christ's body in which both Jewish and Gentile believers are one suggests that Paul wrote to promote unity in the Ephesian church and in the universal church. The emphasis on the importance of love is also strong. More than one-sixth of Paul's references to love in his 13 epistles occur in Ephesians. This also shows that he wanted to promote Christian unity in the church.

Message³

The Book of Ephesians enables us to view God's creation from an alpine altitude. When we study this book, it is as though we have climbed a high mountain peak because the book gives us that kind of perspective on what God has created. Recall the opening scenes in The Sound of Music movie where Maria Von Trapp is standing in a high meadow looking over the valleys and mountains beyond. Yet the creation Ephesians opens up to our vision is not the physical creation but the church and its position and importance in the panorama of God's program. The church is the subject of Ephesians.

One of the features of this book that distinguishes it from other Pauline epistles is its universal character. Ephesians deals with matters of perspective that are important to all churches of all ages. Ephesians is not like 1 Corinthians that concerns itself with the situation of one local congregation primarily. It is more like Romans that deals with the great revelations that transcend local church polity.

Ephesians is an exposition of one of the most important statements Jesus ever uttered during His earthly ministry. That statement is in Matthew 16:18: "I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not overpower it." Other epistles similarly expound other teachings that Jesus gave while He walked this earth. For example, the Epistle of James is really an exposition of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. John's first epistle is an exposition of Jesus' Upper Room Discourse. Likewise Ephesians explains Jesus' teaching concerning the church. All the New Testament epistles deal with the church, of course. However, Ephesians lifts us above all the other revelation on this subject and puts the church in perspective in the plan of God. Paul developed both the building of the church and the conflict of the church, suggested in Jesus' statement, here.

Paul introduced the central teaching of Ephesians in its first verse. We read, "To the saints . . . in Christ Jesus." This phrase indicates the composition of the church. It alerts us to what will follow in the epistle. The phrase "the saints" reflects the diversity and differences that exist in the church. Paul had much to say in this letter about God's individual blessing of believers (e.g., 1:3-2:10). However the phrase "in Christ Jesus" emphasizes the unification of these individuals in one united church. Paul also had much to say about the corporate calling of believers in this letter (e.g., 2:11-3:19). The church is one organism that God has created from individual believers in this age whom God has united in a vital relationship with Jesus Christ. The figure of the human body with its diverse members controlled by one head (2:14-16) is the perfect illustration of the church.

As we examine the central teaching in Ephesians we can see that it falls into two parts. First, there is revelation concerning the eternal character of the church. Second, there is teaching about the temporal conduct of the church.

Consider first the revelation concerning the eternal character of the church. Ephesians tells us three things about the character of the church.

First, it reveals its conception. The church was in the plan of God from eternity past. It was not something God devised the day Jesus Christ died because the Jews had rejected their Messiah. Some dispensational expositors have referred to the church as a parenthetical part of God's eternal plan. That does not mean the church was an after-thought by God. The church is just as much a part of God's plan for human history as the nation of Israel. God did not reveal it in the Old Testament. It is a mystery, a New Testament revelation not revealed previously. Nevertheless it was always part of God's plan. This is important for us to realize because when we see that God brought the church into existence it is easier to believe that Satan will never destroy the church.

The second thing Ephesians reveals about the eternal character of the church is its construction. Whereas God viewed the church in the past as part of His eternal plan, He is constructing it in the present by His eternal power. In Ephesians there is much emphasis on power, the tremendous power of God. Paul prayed that his readers would grow in their understanding of the eternal power of God, the power that raised Jesus from the grave (1:18-19). Paul used four different Greek words for power in 1:19. This is the same power that has raised the Christian up and seated him or her with Christ in the heavenly realms now (2:4-6). Moreover it is the same power available to you and to me as we engage our spiritual enemy who is trying to tear down the church (6:10-11). Too often the church fails because Christians think it cannot succeed. We fail to appreciate the eternal divine power presently available to build the church and to defeat its foes.

The third thing we learn from this epistle about the character of the church is its consummation. This too involves an eternal perspective. Ephesians reveals that the church will serve the purpose of God throughout eternity future (2:4-7; 3:8-10). The church will demonstrate the richness of God's grace to all beings forever (2:7). It will also demonstrate the richness of God's wisdom to all beings forever (3:10).

In summary, Ephesians reveals the important place the church has in God's eternal plan for history. In the past He conceived of it as part of His eternal plan. In the present He is constructing it with His eternal power. In the future He will bring it to consummation in fulfillment of His eternal purpose.

Whereas the revelation of the church's eternal character constitutes a major portion of this epistle Paul also taught much about the temporal conduct of the church. The church's eternal character has major implications for its temporal conduct (4:1). We can organize this part of the revelation under three headings as well.

The first implication of the character of the church that I want to point out that Paul stressed relates to its construction. Since the church is what it is, the unified body of Christ, it is very important that Christians preserve this unity (4:1-3). Note that this is not a unity among professing Christians that we must achieve. It is a unity among genuine Christians that we must preserve. We must be very careful to avoid causing divisions in the body of Christ. One of the seven things Solomon wrote that the Lord hates is someone who spreads strife among his brothers (Prov. 6:19).

A second implication of the character of the church relates to its confession. The church, Paul urged, must make a confession or give testimony to God. This is the will of God (5:15-17). We do this by sanctifying all of life to God, setting it apart to Him for His honor and glory. Consequently Paul talked about the basic relationships of life--husbands and wives, parents and children, employers and employees. Our faith must have an impact on these relationships. The church makes its confession before the world not primarily by formulating creeds of belief but by demonstrating sanctification in conduct.

Third, another implication of the character of the church that Paul explained relates to its conflict with the forces opposed to God's purposes. We must arm ourselves, stay alert, and take a stand against these spiritual forces (6:10-11).

To summarize, the church must maintain unity as it grows. It must sanctify every relationship as it makes its confession to the world. It must also stand firm against its spiritual enemies as it conflicts with Satan's forces. You see how these points clarify Matthew 16:18: "I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not overpower it." The church cooperates with God as He builds it in three ways. It must remain united itself. Second, it must present a message of purity and holiness to the world by its sanctified relationships. Third, it must fight God's enemies after putting on the whole armor of God.

Attempting to summarize the teaching of Ephesians into a short message statement I would phrase it this way. Ephesians reveals that the church is part of God's eternal plan, and it grows as a result of God's power working through believers' lives, overcoming their spiritual enemies.

We come next to the abiding appeal that this letter contains. I said Paul summarized the central revelation of Ephesians in 1:1, "the saints . . . in Christ Jesus." Similarly he summarized the timeless exhortation of this letter in 4:1, "Walk . . . worthy of the calling with which you have been called."

First, we are to walk in view of God's eternal plan. That is, we should live now with God's purposes throughout eternity clearly in view. God chose us before the creation of the world so He could conform us to the image of His Son (1:4; Rom. 8:29). We are to "grow up . . . into Him . . . even Christ" (4:15). The measure in which we are living in holiness and in love is the measure in which we are conforming to God's eternal plan. Paul did not tell us to be holy because decency demands it, or because God may discipline us if we don't. We are to live thinking about God's eternal plan and remembering that God had our individual lives in His mind from eternity past.

We can walk according to God's plan only by appropriating His almighty power. God is able to enable us to walk in this plan by His power. "Now to Him who is able to do exceeding . . ." (3:20-21). We have the power to walk worthily. However, we must allow God's Spirit to control us if we want to walk in harmony with God's will (5:18).

Third, we are to walk opposing God's unseen enemies as well as in view of God's eternal plan and appropriating God's almighty power. We need to balance the passive "be filled with the Spirit" with the active "stand firm" (6:14). Our enemies are not primarily other people but the unseen demonic personalities behind them. In former years, people scoffed at the idea of demons and malignant spiritual forces. Today there is a more realistic awareness of their existence and powerful influence. We must engage spiritual enemies with spiritual arms: truthfulness, righteous conduct, the gospel, trust in God, the Word of God appropriate to the need, and prayer (6:14-18).

Finally let me make application of the message of this epistle to us.

The measure of the church's power to change the world is the measure of her other-worldliness. Many in our day criticize the church for being uninvolved, or at least not involved enough, with the physical problems of people. Ephesians teaches us that the way to help people the most is by dealing with unseen issues: unity, love, holiness, prayer, and evangelism. We do the church's work much more effectively by praying than by picketing, by protesting, and by politicking. The measure of the church's power to help the world is the measure of her other-worldliness. The church must remember her heavenly calling in the eternal plan of God to realize all God purposes for her.

Conversely the measure of the church's other-worldliness is the measure of her influence in the world. If we really see God's purpose for the church, we can never remain unconcerned about or uninvolved with the physical problems of people. Was our Lord insensitive to suffering, unconcerned about injustice, or lacking in compassion toward the oppressed? Never, and He is the Head into whom we are to grow up.

"The church of God can never help God when she ceases to be other-worldly. When she is other-worldly she helps the world; and cannot avoid doing so."⁴

Constable: Ephesians (Outline)

Outline

I. Salutation 1:1-2

II. The Christian's calling 1:3-3:21

A. Individual calling 1:3-2:10

1. The purpose: glory 1:3-14

2. The means: knowledge 1:15-23

3. The motive: grace 2:1-10

B. Corporate calling 2:11-3:19

1. Present unity 2:11-22

2. Past ignorance 3:1-13

3. Future comprehension 3:14-19

C. Doxology 3:20-21

III. The Christian's conduct 4:1-6:20

A. Spiritual walk 4:1-6:9

1. Walking in unity 4:1-16

2. Walking in holiness 4:17-32

3. Walking in love 5:1-6

4. Walking in light 5:7-14

5. Walking in wisdom 5:15-6:9

B. Spiritual warfare 6:10-20

IV. Conclusion 6:21-24

Constable: Ephesians

Ephesians

Bibliography

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

THE

EPISTLE OF ST. PAUL, THE APOSTLE,

TO THE EPHESIANS.

INTRODUCTION.

Ephesus was a famous city, the metropolis of Asia Minor, upon the Ægean Sea, now called the Archipelago. In it was the temple of Diana, one of the seven wonders of the world. St. Paul had staid there two years, and preached another year thereabouts. See Acts xx. The chief design of this Epistle was to hinder the Ephesians, and others in the neighbouring cities, from being seduced by false teachers, who were come among them. In the first three chapters he extols the grace of God, in mercifully calling the Gentiles. It was written when St. Paul was a prisoner; (see Chap. iv. 1. and vi. 20.) but whether during his first imprisonment, at Rome, an. 62 [in the year A.D. 62], or in the latter imprisonment, as others judge about an. 65, in uncertain. (Witham) ---Ephesus was the capital of Lesser Asia, and celebrated for the temple of Diana, to which the most part of the people of the East went frequently to worship. But St. Paul having preached the gospel there for two years the first time, and afterwards for about a year, converted many. He wrote his Epistle to them when he was a prisoner at Rome, and sent it by Tychicus. He admonishes them to hold firmly the faith which they had received; and warns them, and also those neighbouring cities, against the sophistry of philosophers and the doctrine of false teachers, who were come among them. The matters of faith contained in this Epistle, are exceedingly sublime, and consequently very difficult to be understood. It was written about twenty-nine years after our Lord's ascension. (Challoner) --- Ephesus was the chief city in Asia Minor, much given to superstitions, and not less to debauchery and libertinism. In it was the famous temple of Diana. St. Paul had preached in this place three years; (Acts xx.) so that all, both Jews and Gentiles, heard the word of the Lord, till he was driven away by Demetrius, the silversmith. At his departure, he left Timothy (1 Timothy i.) to maintain the purity of the gospel, and preserve them from the fables, which St. Paul had warned the Ephesians, would be introduced among them by rapacious wolves, and men talking perversely, to lead disciples after them. The Gentile converts held fast to the doctrines they had received from St. Paul: the Jews were the chief innovators. To the former the apostle writes this Epistle, praising their steadfastness, and instructing them more fully in the hidden mysteries of faith, viz. redemption, justification, call of the Gentiles, predestination, and the glorification of Christ, and his body, the Church. In the fourth, and succeeding chapters, he exhorts them to the practice of morality, and to fulfill their respective duties of parents, children, masters, servants, &c. and finally reminds all the soldiers of Christ, to be armed with spiritual weapons against all the assaults of the devil. St. Jerome observes that this Epistle, especially the first three chapters, are intricate and difficult; probably owing to the sublimity of the subject. The last three contain the most interesting morality. (Estius. passim.) See also Acts xviii. 19. et seq. and xix. 1. et sequ. --- When Cardinal Pole was consulted by what method the obscure passages of St. Paul's Epistles could be best unfolded, he replied: Let the reader begin with the latter part, where the apostle treats of morality, and practise that which is delivered there; and then let him go back to the beginning, where points of doctrine are discussed with great acuteness and subtilty.

====================

Gill: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO EPHESIANS

The city of Ephesus is, by Pliny ^a, called the other light of Asia; Miletus was one, and Ephesus the other: it was the metropolis of the lesser Asia, and one of the twelve cities of Ionia, and the first and chief of them: it is said to be built by the Amazons ^b: it was famous for the magnificent temple of Diana; and the inhabitants of it were very much given to superstition and idolatry, and even to devilish arts, Act 19:19. It abounded with orators and philosophers, and men of great wisdom and learning ^c; and was formerly a very rich, trading, flourishing city, but now a village, and a poor desolate place; it retains the name of Efeso, though the Turks call it Aia Salik. Hither the Apostle Paul first went after he had been at Corinth, though he then made but a short stay; when he came thither again, he found twelve disciples, and was the instrument of making a great many more: here he continued two or three years and formed a Gospel church, very large and flourishing, to whom he writes this epistle; and which was written by him when he was a prisoner at Rome, as appears by several passages in it, Eph 3:1, and seems to have been written much about the same time as were the epistles to the Philippians, and to the Colossians, and to Philemon. Dr. Hammond thinks it was written about the year 58, and Dr. Lightfoot places it in 59, and the fifth year of Nero. The occasion of it was the foresight the apostle had of false teachers that would spring up in this church, after his death, and spread their pernicious doctrines, and draw away disciples after them, and do great mischief in the church; wherefore the design of this epistle is to establish the saints in the doctrines of the Gospel, that so they might not be carried away with the errors of the wicked: the subject matter of it is most excellent; it treats of the most sublime doctrines of grace, of divine predestination, and eternal election, of redemption by Christ, and of peace and pardon by his blood, of conversion by the power of efficacious grace, and of salvation by the free grace of God, in opposition to works: it also very largely treats of the nature and usefulness of the Gospel ministry, and of gifts qualifying for it, and of the several duties of religion incumbent on Christians; and the method which is used is exceeding apt and beautiful, for the apostle first begins with the doctrines of the Gospel, which he distinctly handles and explains, and then proceeds to enforce the duties belonging to men, both as men and Christians.

Gill: Ephesians 2 (Chapter Introduction)

INTRODUCTION TO EPHESIANS 2

The design of the apostle in this chapter, is to magnify the riches of divine grace, in the effectual calling and salvation of sinners, by Christ Jesus; in order to which, he describes the sad estate they are in by nature, and before conversion, even God's elect among the Jews, and especially among the Gentiles; and then observes how peace is made for and between them both, by Christ the peacemaker; and the various privileges and blessings which both enjoy, in consequence of it: he begins with the Ephesians, and expresses the former state they were in by a death, which is ascribed to trespasses and sins, Eph 2:1, and represents their walk and conversation to have been according to the world, and after Satan; who is described by his dominion over other devils that dwell in the air, and by his influence upon disobedient men, Eph 2:2, and that it might not be thought that the case of these Gentile Ephesians was worse than others, the apostle observes of himself, and other saints among the Jews, that their conversation before conversion was among the men of the world, and so according to the course of it, as the Gentiles; and that it was a very carnal conversation they had spent, in fulfilling the desires and lusts of the flesh; and that they were as deserving of, and as liable to the wrath of God in themselves, as other persons, Eph 2:3, to which former state he opposes their present one; they were not now dead in sin, but were quickened; which is ascribed to God as the efficient cause, and to his rich mercy and great love as the moving cause; and to Christ as the meritorious and procuring cause, by whose grace they were saved, and in whom they were not only quickened, but raised, and made to sit together in heavenly places; and the final cause and end of all this was, to show forth the abundant grace and kindness of God, through Christ, Eph 2:4. The doctrine of salvation by grace, the apostle takes up again from Eph 2:5, and to the moving cause of salvation, the grace of God, he adds the means, or instrument by which it is received and enjoyed, which is faith; and that is denied to be owing to the power of men, but is said to be a gift of God Eph 2:8, and the end in view, in putting salvation upon the foot of grace and not works, is to prevent boasting in the creature, Eph 2:9, and that works cannot be the causes of salvation, either efficient, moving, or procuring, is evident; since though they are to be performed as being agreeable to the purposing, as well as commanding will of God, yet they are effects, both of the work of grace upon the soul in time, called a creation, and of the decrees of God from eternity, Eph 2:10, when the apostle goes on to put the Ephesians in mind of their former state in unregeneracy, with the same view as before, to magnify the grace of God, but in a different manner; not as common to them with the Jews, but as peculiar to them as Gentiles; as that they were had in contempt by the Jews, and were in a state of alienation, not only from them, but from God and Christ, and the enjoyment of various privileges, Eph 2:11, wherefore the grace of God was the more conspicuous in their present state of nearness both to God and his people, brought about by the blood of Christ, Eph 2:13, who, as the peacemaker, not only made peace by the blood of his cross between God and them, but between them and the true Israel of God among the Jews; which was done, partly by abolishing the ceremonial law, which occasioned enmity, and kept up a division among them, Eph 2:14, and partly by sending, and preaching the Gospel of peace to them both, Eph 2:17, and by opening a way of access for them both unto the Father through himself, under the direction and influence of the Spirit, Eph 2:18, from all which it appeared, that they were not in a state of distance and alienation as before, but all belonged to the same city and family, and were built on the same foundation, and were united together in the same corner stone, Jesus Christ, Eph 2:19, and as the apostle compares Christ to a foundation, and a corner stone, so the church of Christ, consisting of Jews and Gentiles, to a temple; which being fitly put together, becomes, an Holy One in the lord, and a suitable habitation for God through the Spirit, Eph 2:21.

College: Ephesians (Book Introduction)

INTRODUCTION

We are saved by grace through faith! We do not earn our salvation - it is the gift of God. This is the shocking good news of Ephesians. Even though we were dead in sin and fully deserved God's wrath, he saved us and brought us into the body of Christ. It is a glorious privilege to be a part of Christ's body, and it carries with it a glorious responsibility.

We are saved by grace, for good works. God saved us so that he could live in us and work through us. We are filled with his fullness and re-created in his likeness. We are imitators of God. His power works in us, making possible more than we could ever ask or think. We are strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. The message of Ephesians is a message of salvation: God gives it; man lives it.

THE WRITER

From earliest times the church has acknowledged Paul as the author of Ephesians. But while Ephesians has been called "the quintessence of Paulinism," it is now widely denied that Paul wrote the book. Despite the current trend in scholarly criticism, there are good and sufficient reasons for upholding Paul as the author.

Reasons to Support Paul as the Author

1. The letter claims to have been written by Paul (1:1 and 3:1), and has several personal references (1:15-16; 4:1; 6:19-20). Those who deny this claim must assume the burden of proving otherwise.

2. The letter was widely known and accepted in the early church, and no one (not even the heretic Marcion) disputed that Paul was the author.

3. The letter is filled with Pauline features. Is it more likely that an imitator copied Paul's writing style in 90 to 95% of the epistle, or that Paul himself wrote it, diverging from his usual style 5 to 10% of the time?

4. The letter closely parallels Colossians.

5. The practice of writing letters in the name of someone else was not as widely practiced in the early church as some claim.

6. A comparison with the church literature of the period from which a non-Pauline Ephesians is supposed to come (such as 1 Clement) indicates that the letter is far more akin to Paul than to the supposedly contemporary church literature of the late first century.

7. The major themes - justification by faith, grace, atonement by Christ, the place of the Jews and the law - agree with Paul's uncontroverted letters.

8. The nature of the letter accords well with what Paul would have written from prison, as a final summation of what the church is.

Challenges to Pauline Authorship

It must be admitted that many scholars have advanced reasons to reject Paul as the author of Ephesians. Their challenges will be listed and briefly answered:

1. Style and Vocabulary: The sentences are often long and complicated, with heavy use of synonyms and adjectives. Certain words and phrases ("devil," "heavenly realms") are not found in other Pauline letters.

However, it must be seriously questioned whether our collection of Paul's brief letters can establish what his style and vocabulary was. Furthermore, an author must be free to exercise flexibility in his style when he writes to a different audience on a different subject. Finally, "devil" is found in 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus (but the critics deny the Pauline authorship of all three of these as well).

2. Literary Dependence: There are so many parallels between Ephesians and other letters, especially Colossians, that Ephesians must have been copied and expanded by an admirer of Paul. Of the 155 verses in Ephesians it is estimated that 73 have verbal parallels in Colossians.

However, the similarities could more easily result because the letters all had the same author. There is good evidence that Ephesians and Colossians were written at the same time, which would account for their frequent parallels. (It should be noted that the "style and vocabulary" argument is that Ephesians is too different, while the "literary dependence" argument is that Ephesians is too much the same.)

3. Historical Considerations: The Jew/Gentile tension has ceased; the "holy apostles" are revered as in retrospect; and the "dividing wall" at the temple in Jerusalem has been torn down. Therefore, the letter must have been written after Paul had already died.

However, the Jew/Gentile tension was not as big a problem in some locations; the apostles were held in reverence from the very beginning (Acts 2:42; 5:12-13); the symbolic "dividing wall" could still stand in the temple when it had already been torn down in the church.

4. Doctrinal Arguments: The "church" is now universal, rather than local; various themes are handled differently in other Pauline letters; the view of marriage differs from 1 Cor 7.

However, these arguments are more apparent than real. From the beginning Jesus saw his church on a universal scale (Matt 16:18) and nothing prevents Paul from using this concept. Certain themes (such as "the mystery," "in Christ," the Trinity) may be expressed in different terms in Ephesians, but it is foolish to force a strict uniformity on Paul or to prohibit him from adding any insights to what he has already written.

In conclusion, it must be said that those who dispute what the church has accepted from the beginning have not proved their case. There is more than sufficient reason to accept the epistle as from Paul's own hand, and to feel his pulse beating in every line.

THE AUDIENCE

The Recipients of the Letter

There are several reasons to question whether Paul addressed this epistle to the Ephesian saints:

1. Several of the earliest manuscripts do not include the words "in Ephesus" in 1:1.

2. Marcion, while a heretic, referred to it as "the epistle to the Laodiceans" at a very early date (about A.D. 140).

3. Though Paul spent three years in Ephesus, longer than any other location on his missionary journeys, the letter is strangely impersonal. He "has heard" about their faith (1:15). Unlike his other epistles, Paul addresses no local problems, and closes without a single personal greeting.

4. The epistle has the mature, universal tone of a letter sent as an encyclical, in this instance to all the churches of Asia Minor.

At the same time, most manuscripts do include "in Ephesus" and the church has traditionally called this epistle "to the Ephesians." If Paul did intend that the letter be sent to churches throughout Asia Minor, it is logical that it would have been sent first to the leading city, and from there copies would be circulated. It is likely, then, that Paul did send this epistle to the Ephesians, but not to them alone.

The Locale

Ephesus was the most important city in the Roman province of Asia, located on the west coast of what is now Turkey. It was a leading commercial center, situated at the intersection of two major trade routes. It was a city where East met West, with the resulting exchange of ideas and philosophies. Ephesus boasted the temple of Artemis (Diana), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Four times the size of the famed Parthenon in Athens, this temple also served as the bank of Asia Minor, one of the few places where money could be safely deposited. An enormous theatre in the center of the city could seat from 25,000 to 50,000 people.

Within its population of one-third of a million, Ephesus also had a large colony of Jews. After rejection by the local Jewish community, Paul found it possible to teach daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. From this strategic center the gospel message spread "so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia heard the word of the Lord" (Acts 19:10).

Ephesus and the other cities of Asia Minor to which Paul sent this epistle are also mentioned in Rev 1:4-3:22. By that time the church in Ephesus needed to repent and return to its first love. Ephesus continued as a leading center of Christianity for several centuries.

THE DATE AND PLACE OF WRITING

Proceeding with the conclusion that Paul himself wrote this epistle, it is necessary to identify when and where he did so. We know that Paul wrote from an imprisonment (3:1; 4:1) in which he was confined with chains (6:20). We can safely assume, furthermore, that at this same time Paul also sent letters to the Colossians and to Philemon. But where was Paul imprisoned?

Rome

The traditional - and most likely correct - view is that Paul wrote from the imprisonment in Rome described in Acts 28:16-30. Paul was allowed to live in a private dwelling, with a soldier to guard him. This continued for two years, and during the latter part of this time Paul wrote Ephesians, Colossians, and Philemon - and no doubt Philippians, as well. A date around A.D. 62 is likely.

Caesarea

Paul is also known to have spent two years imprisoned in Caesarea (Acts 24:27), before his voyage to Rome. It has been suggested that Onesimus would have been more inclined to escape the 500 miles to Caesarea than to attempt the long voyage to Rome. While this location is possible, yielding a date of A.D. 58-60, no real evidence can be introduced in its support.

Ephesus

Somewhat surprisingly, some critics have attempted to make Ephesus the site of Paul's prison epistles. This would be an even more convenient location for the escape of Onesimus. However, neither the book of Acts nor church history know anything of an imprisonment in Ephesus. Paul did refer to fighting "wild beasts" in Ephesus (1 Cor 15:32), but since the city did not have a coliseum and Paul was a Roman citizen, this is probably a metaphor for the fierce men who opposed him. Because this view has no historical support, it has only its novelty to commend it.

Probable Reconstruction of Events

During his imprisonment in Rome, Paul met and converted the runaway slave Onesimus. Not long afterward, he received troubling news about doctrinal problems in Colosse (Col 1:9), the home town of Onesimus (Col 4:9). Paul determined to send the letter of Colossians to correct their errors, and decided to send Onesimus back to Philemon at the same time. Having penned letters to address these two problems, Paul also wrote a letter to the saints in Ephesus, intending that it be circulated among all the churches of Asia Minor. The resulting epistle has been called "the divinest composition of man."

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

BIBLIOGRAPHY

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-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV

College: Ephesians (Outline)

OUTLINE

I. DOCTRINE: God's Plan for Salvation - Eph 1:1-3:21

A. God's Blessings - 1:1-23

1. Salutation - 1:1-2

2. Present Blessings in Christ - 1:3-14

3. Potential Blessings in Christ - 1:15-23

B. God's Salvation - 2:1-22

1. Saved from Sin - 2:1-10

2. Saved from Separation - 2:11-22

C. God's Participation - 3:1-21

1. God Working in Paul - 3:1-13

2. God Working in All Christians - 3:14-21

II. DUTIES: The Christian's Response to Salvation - 4:1-6:24

A. The Christian in Church Life - 4:1-16

1. Unity in the Body - 4:1-6

2. Diversity in the Body - 4:7-11

3. Maturity in the Body - 4:12-16

B. The Christian in Personal Life - 4:17-5:21

1. The Old Nature vs. the New - 4:17-24

2. Members of One Body - 4:25-32

3. Walking in Love - 5:1-2

4. Walking in Light - 5:3-14

5. Walking in Wisdom - 5:15-21

C. The Christian in Domestic Life - 5:22-6:9

1. Wives and Husbands - 5:22-33

2. Children and Parents - 6:1-4

3. Slaves and Masters -6:5-9

D. The Christian in Warfare - 6:10-24

1. The Nature of the Enemy - 6:10-12

2. The Armor of God - 6:13-18

3. Paul's Own Farewell - 6:19-24

-College Press New Testament Commentary: with the NIV