15 Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,
16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers:
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,
18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power
therefore (v.15) = on this account — on account of what Paul said of the saints in vs. 13-14.
your faith (v.15) = lit. “the down among you faith” — existing faith, day by day faith
love (v.15) = agape
Father of glory (v.17) = Father of the glory — the Father to whom glory belongs
spirit (v.17) — Are we to understand the word “spirit” which here is without the article, to refer to the human spirit or the Holy Spirit? The Ephesian saints had both. How could God give them something they already had? Certainly it would not be right to take pneuma (spirit) here as solely the Holy Spirit or as solely the spirit of man: rather as a complex idea, of the spirit of man indwelt by the Spirit of God that as such, it is His special gift of wisdom (not, which gives wisdom, but which possesses it as its character — to which appertains wisdom) and of revelation (i.e., that revelation which belongs to all Christians). The word pneuma has among its various uses the meaning, “a disposition or influence which fills and governs the soul of anyone.” What Paul is praying for is that God might so work in the lives of the Ephesian saints that they will have the spiritual wisdom and a revelation from Him that is the result of the Holy Spirit’s work of energizing their human spirit. That spiritual disposition should characterize these saints. — Wuest, page 52.
knowledge (v.17) = epignosis = knowledge that is true, accurate, thorough, full knowledge
the eyes of your understanding being enlightened (v.18) = the eyes of your heart — the emotional nature and the reason and intelligence — explaining further the act of God giving them the spirit of wisdom and revelation
being enlightened (v.18) — tense is past action with continuing results
But what is “His inheritance in the saints?” We believe this is another distinct aspect of Paul’s revelation. According to Ephesians 5:27, the Body of Christ is His inheritance. “That He might present it [the Body of Christ] to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” Think of it, unworthy sinners like us occupying a place in the heart of God! That’s grace! As the recipients of His secret purpose, we are His prized possession on the basis of the shed blood of Christ. He who made the universe is going to showcase us as the trophies of His grace. Through us God will receive honor, glory, and the worship in the ages to come. — Sadler, pages 70-71
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