Discovery BoxEphesians 3:6
Context3:6 namely, that through the gospel 1 the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members 2 of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 4:1
Context4:1 I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, 3 urge you to live 4 worthily of the calling with which you have been called, 5
Ephesians 4:4
Context4:4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling,
Ephesians 4:7
Context4:7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Ephesians 4:9
Context4:9 Now what is the meaning of “he ascended,” except that he also descended 6 to the lower regions, 7 namely, the earth? 8
Ephesians 4:22
Context4:22 You were taught with reference to your former way of life to lay aside 9 the old man who is being corrupted in accordance with deceitful desires,
Ephesians 4:24
Context4:24 and to put on the new man who has been created in God’s image 10 – in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth. 11
Ephesians 6:14
Context6:14 Stand firm therefore, by fastening 12 the belt of truth around your waist, 13 by putting on the breastplate of righteousness,
[3:6] 1 sn The phrase through the gospel is placed last in the sentence in Greek for emphasis. It has been moved forward for clarity.
[3:6] 2 tn Grk “and fellow members.”
[4:1] 3 tn Grk “prisoner in the Lord.”
[4:1] 4 tn Grk “walk.” The verb “walk” in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.
[4:1] 5 sn With which you have been called. The calling refers to the Holy Spirit’s prompting that caused them to believe. The author is thus urging his readers to live a life that conforms to their saved status before God.
[4:9] 5 tc The majority of
[4:9] 6 tc The Western texttype (D* F G it) lacks the plural noun μέρη (merh, “regions”); the shorter reading cannot be dismissed out of hand since it is also supported by Ì46 (which often has strong affinities, however, with the Western text). The inclusion of the word has strong external support from important, early
[4:9] 7 tn Grk “to the lower parts of the earth.” This phrase has been variously interpreted: (1) The traditional view understands it as a reference to the underworld (hell), where Jesus is thought to have descended in the three days between his death and resurrection. In this case, “of the earth” would be a partitive genitive. (2) A second option is to translate the phrase “of the earth” as a genitive of apposition: “to the lower parts, namely, the earth” (as in the present translation). Many recent scholars hold this view and argue that it is a reference to the incarnation. (3) A third option, which also sees the phrase “of the earth” as a genitive of apposition, is that the descent in the passage occurs after the ascent rather than before it, and refers to the descent of the Spirit at Pentecost (cf. Acts 4:11-16). Support for this latter view is found in the intertestamental and rabbinic use of Ps 68:18 (quoted in v. 8), which is consistently and solely interpreted as a reference to Moses’ ascent of Mt. Sinai to “capture” the words of the law. The probability, therefore, is that the comments here in v. 9 reflect a polemic against the interpretation of Ps 68:18 in certain circles as a reference to Moses. See W. H. Harris, The Descent of Christ (AGJU 32), 46-54; 171-204.
[4:22] 7 tn An alternative rendering for the infinitives in vv. 22-24 (“to lay aside… to be renewed… to put on”) is “that you have laid aside… that you are being renewed… that you have put on.” The three infinitives of vv. 22 (ἀποθέσθαι, apoqesqai), 23 (ἀνανεοῦσθαι, ananeousqai), and 24 (ἐνδύσασθαι, endusasqai), form part of an indirect discourse clause; they constitute the teaching given to the believers addressed in the letter. The problem in translation is that one cannot be absolutely certain whether they go back to indicatives in the original statement (i.e., “you have put off”) or imperatives (i.e., “put off!”). Every other occurrence of an aorist infinitive in indirect discourse in the NT goes back to an imperative, but in all of these examples the indirect discourse is introduced by a verb that implies a command. The verb διδάσκω (didaskw) in the corpus Paulinum may be used to relate the indicatives of the faith as well as the imperatives. This translation implies that the infinitives go back to imperatives, though the alternate view that they refer back to indicatives is also a plausible interpretation. For further discussion, see ExSyn 605.
[4:24] 9 tn Or “in God’s likeness.” Grk “according to God.” The preposition κατά used here denotes a measure of similarity or equality (BDAG 513 s.v. B.5.b.α).
[4:24] 10 tn Or “in righteousness and holiness which is based on truth” or “originated from truth.”
[6:14] 11 sn The four participles fastening… putting on…fitting…taking up… indicate the means by which believers can take their stand against the devil and his schemes. The imperative take in v. 17 communicates another means by which to accomplish the standing, i.e., by the word of God.
[6:14] 12 tn Grk “girding your waist with truth.” In this entire section the author is painting a metaphor for his readers based on the attire of a Roman soldier prepared for battle and its similarity to the Christian prepared to do battle against spiritually evil forces. Behind the expression “with truth” is probably the genitive idea “belt of truth.” Since this is an appositional genitive (i.e., belt which is truth), the author simply left unsaid the idea of the belt and mentioned only his real focus, namely, the truth. (The analogy would have been completely understandable to his 1st century readers.) The idea of the belt is supplied in the translation to clarify the sense in English.
