4:18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed 1 me to proclaim good news 2 to the poor. 3
He has sent me 4 to proclaim release 5 to the captives
and the regaining of sight 6 to the blind,
to set free 7 those who are oppressed, 8
20:1 After the disturbance had ended, Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging 15 them and saying farewell, 16 he left to go to Macedonia. 17
3:1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, 21 partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, 22
3:1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, 28 partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, 29
2:1 Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.
1 sn The phrase he has anointed me is an allusion back to Jesus’ baptism in Luke 3:21-22.
2 tn Grk “to evangelize,” “to preach the gospel.”
3 sn The poor is a key term in Luke. It refers to the pious poor and indicates Jesus’ desire to reach out to those the world tends to forget or mistreat. It is like 1:52 in force and also will be echoed in 6:20 (also 1 Pet 2:11-25). Jesus is commissioned to do this.
4 tc The majority of
5 sn The release in view here is comprehensive, both at a physical level and a spiritual one, as the entire ministry of Jesus makes clear (Luke 1:77-79; 7:47; 24:47; Acts 2:38; 5:31; 10:43).
6 sn Again, as with the previous phrase, regaining of sight may well mean more than simply miraculously restoring physical sight, which itself pictures a deeper reality (Luke 1:77-79; 18:35-43).
7 sn The essence of Jesus’ messianic work is expressed in the phrase to set free. This line from Isa 58 says that Jesus will do what the nation had failed to do. It makes the proclamation messianic, not merely prophetic, because Jesus doesn’t just proclaim the message – he brings the deliverance. The word translated set free is the same Greek word (ἄφεσις, afesi") translated release earlier in the verse.
8 sn Again, as with the previous phrases, oppressed may well mean more than simply political or economic oppression, but a deeper reality of oppression by sin (Luke 1:77-79; 18:35-43).
9 tn Or “Be on your guard for” (cf. v. 29). Paul completed his responsibility to the Ephesians with this warning.
10 tn Grk “in which.”
11 tn Or “guardians.” BDAG 379-80 s.v. ἐπίσκοπος 2 states, “The term was taken over in Christian communities in ref. to one who served as overseer or supervisor, with special interest in guarding the apostolic tradition…Ac 20:28.” This functional term describes the role of the elders (see v. 17). They were to guard and shepherd the congregation.
12 tc The reading “of God” (τοῦ θεοῦ, tou qeou) is found in א B 614 1175 1505 al vg sy; other witnesses have “of the Lord” (τοῦ κυρίου, tou kuriou) here (so Ì74 A C* D E Ψ 33 1739 al co), while the majority of the later minuscule
13 tn Or “acquired.”
14 tn Or “with his own blood”; Grk “with the blood of his own.” The genitive construction could be taken in two ways: (1) as an attributive genitive (second attributive position) meaning “his own blood”; or (2) as a possessive genitive, “with the blood of his own.” In this case the referent is the Son, and the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. See further C. F. DeVine, “The Blood of God,” CBQ 9 (1947): 381-408.
15 tn Or “exhorting.”
16 tn Or “and taking leave of them.”
17 sn Macedonia was the Roman province of Macedonia in Greece.
18 tn The conditional particle εἰ (ei) together with καί (kai) here indicates a first class condition in Greek and carries a concessive force, especially when seen in contrast to the following phrase which begins with ἀλλά (alla).
19 tn Grk “rejoicing and seeing.”
20 tn The Greek word τάξις can mean “order,” “discipline,” or even “unbroken ranks” (REB).
21 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.
22 tn Grk “of our confession.”
23 sn The Greek makes the contrast between v. 5 and v. 6a more emphatic and explicit than is easily done in English.
24 tn Grk “his”; in the translation the referent (God) has been specified for clarity.
25 tn Grk “whose house we are,” continuing the previous sentence.
26 tc The reading adopted by the translation is found in Ì13,46 B sa, while the vast majority of
27 tn Grk “the pride of our hope.”
28 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.
29 tn Grk “of our confession.”