Ephesians 2
2
Generosity of God’s Plan.#The recipients of Paul’s letter have experienced, in their redemption from transgressions and sins, the effect of Christ’s supremacy over the power of the devil (Eph 2:1–2; cf. Eph 6:11–12), who rules not from the netherworld but from the air between God in heaven and human beings on earth. Both Jew and Gentile have experienced, through Christ, God’s free gift of salvation that already marks them for a future heavenly destiny (Eph 2:3–7). The language dead, raised us up, and seated us…in the heavens closely parallels Jesus’ own passion and Easter experience. The terms in Eph 2:8–9 describe salvation in the way Paul elsewhere speaks of justification: by grace, through faith, the gift of God, not from works; cf. Gal 2:16–21; Rom 3:24–28. Christians are a newly created people in Christ, fashioned by God for a life of goodness (Eph 2:10). 1#Col 1:21; 2:13. You were dead in your transgressions and sins#These verses comprise one long sentence in Greek, the main verb coming in Eph 2:5, God brought us to life, the object you/us dead in…transgressions being repeated in Eph 2:1, 5; cf. Col 2:13. 2in which you once lived following the age of this world,#Age of this world: or “aeon,” a term found in gnostic thought, possibly synonymous with the rulers of this world, but also reflecting the Jewish idea of “two ages,” this present evil age and “the age to come”; cf. 1 Cor 3:19; 5:10; 7:31; Gal 1:4; Ti 2:12. The disobedient: literally, “the sons of disobedience,” a Semitism as at Is 30:9. following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the disobedient.#6:12; Jn 12:31; Col 1:13. 3All of us once lived among them in the desires of our flesh, following the wishes of the flesh and the impulses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like the rest.#Col 3:6–7. 4But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us, 5#Rom 5:8; 6:13; Col 2:13. even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ#Our relation through baptism with Christ, the risen Lord, is depicted in terms of realized eschatology, as already exaltation, though Eph 2:7 brings in the future aspect too. (by grace you have been saved), 6raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus,#Rom 8:10–11; Phil 3:20; Col 2:12. 7that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.#1:7. 8For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God;#Rom 3:24; Gal 2:16. 9it is not from works, so no one may boast.#1 Cor 1:29. 10For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them.#4:24; Ti 2:14.
One in Christ.#The Gentiles lacked Israel’s messianic expectation, lacked the various covenants God made with Israel, lacked hope of salvation and knowledge of the true God (Eph 2:11–12); but through Christ all these religious barriers between Jew and Gentile have been transcended (Eph 2:13–14) by the abolition of the Mosaic covenant-law (Eph 2:15) for the sake of uniting Jew and Gentile into a single religious community (Eph 2:15–16), imbued with the same holy Spirit and worshiping the same Father (Eph 2:18). The Gentiles are now included in God’s household (Eph 2:19) as it arises upon the foundation of apostles assisted by those endowed with the prophetic gift (Eph 3:5), the preachers of Christ (Eph 2:20; cf. 1 Cor 12:28). With Christ as the capstone (Eph 2:20; cf. Is 28:16; Mt 21:42), they are being built into the holy temple of God’s people where the divine presence dwells (Eph 2:21–22). 11Therefore, remember that at one time you, Gentiles in the flesh, called the uncircumcision by those called the circumcision, which is done in the flesh by human hands, 12were at that time without Christ, alienated from the community of Israel#The community of Israel: or “commonwealth”; cf. Eph 4:18. The covenants: cf. Rom 9:4: with Abraham, with Moses, with David. and strangers to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world.#Rom 9:4; Col 1:21, 27. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have become near by the blood of Christ.#2:17; Is 57:19; Col 1:20.
14#The elaborate imagery here combines pictures of Christ as our peace (Is 9:5), his crucifixion, the ending of the Mosaic law (cf. Col 2:14), reconciliation (2 Cor 5:18–21), and the destruction of the dividing wall such as kept people from God in the temple or a barrier in the heavens. For he is our peace, he who made both one and broke down the dividing wall of enmity, through his flesh,#Gal 3:28. 15abolishing the law with its commandments and legal claims, that he might create in himself one new person#One new person: a corporate body, the Christian community, made up of Jews and Gentiles, replacing ancient divisions; cf. Rom 1:16. in place of the two, thus establishing peace,#2 Cor 5:17; Col 2:14. 16and might reconcile both with God, in one body, through the cross, putting that enmity to death by it.#Col 1:20, 22. 17He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near,#Is 57:19; Zec 9:10. 18for through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.#3:12.
19So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God,#Heb 12:22–23. 20built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets,#Is 28:16; Rev 21:14. with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone.#Capstone: the Greek can also mean cornerstone or keystone. 21Through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord;#1 Cor 3:16; Col 2:19. 22in him you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.#1 Pt 2:5.
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Ephesians 2
2
New Life Individually
1 And although you were#tn The adverbial participle “being” (ὄντας, ontas) is taken concessively. dead#sn Chapter 2 starts off with a participle, although you were dead, that is left dangling. The syntax in Greek for vv. 1-3 constitutes one incomplete sentence, though it seems to have been done intentionally. The dangling participle leaves the readers in suspense while they wait for the solution (in v. 4) to their spiritual dilemma. in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which#sn The relative pronoun which is feminine as is sins, indicating that sins is the antecedent. you formerly lived#tn Grk “walked.” sn The Greek verb translated lived (περιπατέω, peripatew) in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking. according to this world’s present path,#tn Or possibly “Aeon.”sn The word translated present path is the same as that which has been translated [this] age in 1:21 (αἰών, aiwn). according to the ruler of the kingdom#tn Grk “domain, [place of] authority.” of the air, the ruler of#tn Grk “of” (but see the note on the word “spirit” later in this verse). the spirit#sn The ruler of the kingdom of the air is also the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. Although several translations regard the ruler to be the same as the spirit, this is unlikely since the cases in Greek are different (ruler is accusative and spirit is genitive). To get around this, some have suggested that the genitive for spirit is a genitive of apposition. However, the semantics of the genitive of apposition are against such an interpretation (cf. ExSyn 100). that is now energizing#tn Grk “working in.” the sons of disobedience,#sn Sons of disobedience is a Semitic idiom that means “people characterized by disobedience.” However, it also contains a subtle allusion to vv. 4-10: Some of those sons of disobedience have become sons of God. 3 among whom#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). all of us#tn Grk “we all.” also#tn Or “even.” 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#sn Children of wrath is a Semitic idiom which may mean either “people characterized by wrath” or “people destined for wrath.” even as the rest…#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.
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, 5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you are saved!#tn Or “by grace you have been saved.” The perfect tense in Greek connotes both completed action (“you have been saved”) and continuing results (“you are saved”). – 6 and he raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 to demonstrate in the coming ages#tn Or possibly “to the Aeons who are about to come.” the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward#tn Or “upon.” us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you are saved#tn See note on the same expression in v. 5. through faith,#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. and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 it is not from#tn Or “not as a result of.” works, so that no one can boast.#tn Grk “lest anyone should boast.” 10 For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them.#tn Grk “so that we might walk in them” (or “by them”).sn So that we may do them. Before the devil began to control our walk in sin and among sinful people, God had already planned good works for us to do.
New Life Corporately
11 Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh – who are called “uncircumcision” by the so-called “circumcision” that is performed on the body#tn Grk “in the flesh.” by human hands – 12 that you were at that time without the Messiah,#tn Or “without Christ.” Both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.” Because the context refers to ancient Israel’s messianic expectation, “Messiah” was employed in the translation at this point rather than “Christ.” alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise,#tn Or “covenants of the promise.” having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who used to be far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.#tn Or “have come near in the blood of Christ.”sn See the note on “his blood” in 1:7. 14 For he is our peace, the one who made both groups into one#tn Grk “who made the both one.” and who destroyed the middle wall of partition, the hostility, 15 when he nullified#tn Or “rendered inoperative.” This is a difficult text to translate because it is not easy to find an English term which communicates well the essence of the author’s meaning, especially since legal terminology is involved. Many other translations use the term “abolish” (so NRSV, NASB, NIV), but this term implies complete destruction which is not the author’s meaning here. The verb καταργέω (katargew) can readily have the meaning “to cause someth. to lose its power or effectiveness” (BDAG 525 s.v. 2, where this passage is listed), and this meaning fits quite naturally here within the author’s legal mindset. A proper English term which communicates this well is “nullify” since this word carries the denotation of “making something legally null and void.” This is not, however, a common English word. An alternate term like “rendered inoperative [or ineffective]” is also accurate but fairly inelegant. For this reason, the translation retains the term “nullify”; it is the best choice of the available options, despite its problems. in his flesh the law of commandments in decrees. He did this to create in himself one new man#tn In this context the author is not referring to a new individual, but instead to a new corporate entity united in Christ (cf. BDAG 497 s.v. καινός 3.b: “All the Christians together appear as κ. ἄνθρωπος Eph 2:15”). This is clear from the comparison made between the Gentiles and Israel in the immediately preceding verses and the assertion in v. 14 that Christ “made both groups into one.” This is a different metaphor than the “new man” of Eph 4:24; in that passage the “new man” refers to the new life a believer has through a relationship to Christ. out of two,#tn Grk “in order to create the two into one new man.” Eph 2:14-16 is one sentence in Greek. A new sentence was started here in the translation for clarity since contemporary English is less tolerant of extended sentences. thus making peace, 16 and to reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by which the hostility has been killed.#tn Grk “by killing the hostility in himself.” 17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near, 18 so that#tn Or “for.” BDAG gives the consecutive ὅτι (Joti) as a possible category of NT usage (BDAG 732 s.v. 5.c). through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer foreigners and noncitizens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household, 20 because you have been built#tn Grk “having been built.” on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,#sn Apostles and prophets. Because the prophets appear after the mention of the apostles and because they are linked together in 3:5 as recipients of revelation about the church, they are to be regarded not as Old Testament prophets, but as New Testament prophets. with Christ Jesus himself as#tn Grk “while Christ Jesus himself is” or “Christ Jesus himself being.” the cornerstone.#tn Or perhaps “capstone” (NAB). The meaning of ἀκρογωνιαῖος (akrogwniaio") is greatly debated. The meaning “capstone” is proposed by J. Jeremias (TDNT 1:792), but the most important text for this meaning (T. Sol. 22:7-23:4) is late and possibly not even an appropriate parallel. The only place ἀκρογωνιαῖος is used in the LXX is Isa 28:16, and there it clearly refers to a cornerstone that is part of a foundation. Furthermore, the imagery in this context has the building growing off the cornerstone upward, whereas if Christ were the capstone, he would not assume his position until the building was finished, which vv. 21-22 argue against. 21 In him#tn Grk “in whom” (v. 21 is a relative clause, subordinate to v. 20). the whole building,#tc Although several important witnesses (א1 A C P 6 81 326 1739c 1881) have πᾶσα ἡ οἰκοδομή (pasa Jh oikodomh), instead of πᾶσα οἰκοδομή (the reading of א* B D F G Ψ 33 1739* Ï), the article is almost surely a scribal addition intended to clarify the meaning of the text, for with the article the meaning is unambiguously “the whole building.”tn Or “every building.” Although “every building” is a more natural translation of the Greek, it does not fit as naturally into the context, which (with its emphasis on corporate unity) seems to stress the idea of one building. being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
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