Ephesians 2:8

2:8 For by grace you are saved ¹  through faith, ²  and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God;

Ephesians 2:19

2:19 So then you are no longer foreigners and noncitizens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household,

Ephesians 3:2

3:2 if indeed ³  you have heard of the stewardship ⁴  of God’s grace that was given to me for you,

Ephesians 4:30

4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Ephesians 6:6

6:6 not like those who do their work only when someone is watching ⁵  – as people-pleasers – but as slaves of Christ doing the will of God from the heart. ⁶ 

Ephesians 6:11

6:11 Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the schemes ⁷  of the devil.

Ephesians 6:17

6:17 And take the helmet of salvation ⁸  and the sword ⁹  of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

[2:8]  ¹ tn See note on the same expression in v. 5.

[2:8]  ² tc The feminine article is found before πίστεως (pistews, “faith”) in the Byzantine text as well as in A Ψ 1881 pc. Perhaps for some scribes the article was intended to imply creedal fidelity as a necessary condition of salvation (“you are saved through the faith”), although elsewhere in the corpus Paulinum the phrase διὰ τῆς πίστεως (dia th" pistew") is used for the act of believing rather than the content of faith (cf. Rom 3:30, 31; Gal 3:14; Eph 3:17; Col 2:12). On the other side, strong representatives of the Alexandrian and Western texts (א B D* F G P 0278 6 33 1739 al bo) lack the article. Hence, both text-critically and exegetically, the meaning of the text here is most likely “saved through faith” as opposed to “saved through the faith.” Regarding the textual problem, the lack of the article is the preferred reading.

[3:2]  ³ sn If indeed. The author is not doubting whether his audience has heard, but is rather using provocative language (if indeed) to engage his audience in thinking about the magnificence of God’s grace. However, in English translation, the apodosis (“then”-clause) does not come until v. 13, leaving the protasis (“if”-clause) dangling. Eph 3:2-7 constitute one sentence in Greek.

[3:2]  ⁴ tn Or “administration,” “dispensation,” “commission.”

[6:6]  ⁵ tn Grk “not according to eye-service.”

[6:6]  ⁶ tn Grk “from the soul.”

[6:11]  ⁷ tn Or “craftiness.” See BDAG 625 s.v. μεθοδεία.

[6:17]  ⁹ sn An allusion to Isa 59:17.

[6:17]  ¹⁰ sn The Greek term translated sword (μάχαιρα, macaira) refers to the Roman gladius, a short sword about 2 ft (60 cm) long, used for close hand-to-hand combat. This is the only clearly offensive weapon in the list of armor mentioned by the author (he does not, for example, mention the lance [Latin pilum]).