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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Paul is praying that a permanent work of the Holy Spirit be done in the human spirits of these saints, that their inner spiritual capacities for understanding the truth may be the recipients of a lasting benefit, and this with a view to their knowing three things.
The first is that they may know “what is the hope of their calling.” the word “what” is tis, not “how great,” nor “of what kind,” but “what” — what the hope really is. The “His calling” is the call of which God is the author, and that is an effectual call. The hope is not the object hoped for, but the attitude of mind, the subjective hope, the assured Christian expectation.
The second is that they may know “what is the wealth of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” The words “in the saints” are locative of sphere. God’s inheritance is within the sphere of the saints. That is, the phrase “in the sphere of the saints” is definitive of the word “inheritance.” This takes us back to verse 11 where Paul says we saints were made God’s inheritance. In verse 18, Paul prays that we might know how precious the saints are in God’s eyes as His inheritance. He is glorified in His saints, and this glory is valuable. It is part of the wealth that God possesses, dearer to Him than all the splendors of creation.
The third thing Paul prays for is that the saints might know “what is the exceeding greatness of His power to us-ward who believe.” In these three clauses Paul leads the readers on from the hope itself which becomes theirs in virtue of their being called of God, to the splendor of the inheritance to which the hope points, and from this again to that in God Himself which makes the fulfillment of the hope and the possession of the inheritance certain, namely, the limitless efficiency which is His prerogative. This power of God working in our behalf with reference to our salvation is not thought of here as operating only in the future, but also at present. The word “exceeding” is huperballon, literally, “a throwing beyond,” thus metaphorically, “superiority, excellence.” It speaks of power here that is beyond measure, more than enough, of surpassing power. — Wuest, pages 53-54.
13 In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,
14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
trusted (v.13) — The word “trusted” is in italics and is therefor not in the Greek text. It is not needed. We have in the Greek what is called an interrupted construction. The translation reads, “in whom also as for you, having heard the word of the truth, the good news of your salvation, in whom having believed, you were sealed with the Spirit of the promise, the Holy (Spirit).” — Wuest, pages 48-49
sealed (v.13) — In Scripture, a seal symbolizes:
Holy Spirit (v.13) — He, Himself, is the seal.
guarantee (v.14) = earnest, money deposited by a purchased in pledge of full payment
Thus, God places the Holy Spirit in us permanently, indicating that the great transaction in which God the Son paid for sin, thus satisfying the just demand of God’s holy law, is finished; that we saints belong to Him as His heritage, and that we are eternally secure. The Holy Spirit is described as the Spirit of the promise, namely, the Spirit who was announced by promise; see Acts 2:16, Joel 2:28; Zechariah 12:10; Isaiah 32:15; Isaiah 44:3; John 7:39; Acts 1:4-8; Galatians 3:14. — Wuest, page 49
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To place earnest money down in Paul’s day, as well as in our day, meant three things:
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It was a down payment which made a contract binding.
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It represented an obligation to purchase.
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It was a foretaste of what was to come.
When purchasing property, it is a common practice to place a certain amount of earnest money down. This makes the deal binding and obligates the buyer to purchase the piece of land according to the terms of the contract. So it is with God. He has given us the earnest of the Spirit (the indwelling Spirit) as a down payment, which means He now has the obligation to honor His Word to complete the transaction. Thus, when the trump sounds God will claim His purchased possessions, ushering us home to be forever with Him (1 Thessalonians 4:17) — Sadler, pages 60-61.
purchased possession (v14) = preserving, acquiring, gaining for one’s self
In verse 6, God the Father is praised for selecting us by His mercies; in verse 12, the Son of God is praised for securing us by His mediation; and in verse 14, the Holy Spirit is praised for sealing us by His ministry.
11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will,
12 that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory.
we have obtained an inheritance (v.11) — the best manuscripts say “we were made an inheritance” or “we were designated as a heritage”
also (v.11) — we have been made an inheritance in addition to the hope we have in the future (v.10). God not only told us the mystery of our future hope but He also has made us an inheritance.
predestinated (v.11) = to mark out the boundaries or limits beforehand — so, “in whom we were made an inheritance, having been previously marked out (for this) according to the purpose of His will.
all things (v.11) — absolutely all — not just things pertaining to us
counsel (v.11) — with the idea of intelligence and deliberation
will (v.11) = desire that comes from the emotions — so, the emotions are governed by reason — and for reasons known only to God
trusted (v.12) = to hope before, to repose hope in a person or thing before events confirm it
in Christ (v.12) = in the Christ — in the Messiah
should be (v.12) — not indicating obligation (here) because our position in Christ is in view, not our experience. Here it refers to God’s ultimate objective.
One of my commentaries says that the “we” in these verses were Jewish Christians who were the first to be offered salvation. That doesn’t make sense to me because Paul’s letter was addressed to Gentiles and I don’t see how the readers could have known that suddenly Paul wasn’t talking about them anymore.
So, are the “we who first trusted” those Christians who believed under grace when it was first offered, like Paul and those who worked with him?
Or is it saying that all those (including those of us who believe today) who have trusted Christ should be to the praise of God’s glory? In other words, was it God’s will that any who trust Christ for salvation will (in the future), by that very act, be to the praise of God’s glory? That’s the view I lean toward at this point.
I asked my pastor friend and this was his response:
Israel should have been those who first trusted in Christ. Instead it’s the Body who first trusted in Him. When Paul says the Ephesians “also” trusted in Him, he’s merely saying that they have become a part of those who first trusted in Christ. In other words, those who first trusted consists of “we” and “ye also”.
9 having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,
10 that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth — in Him.
having made known to us the mystery of His will (v.9) — continues the thought in v.8 — “He hath abounded, in that He made known”
mystery (v.9) = something not understood until revealed — and when revealed, not hard to understand for the Spirit-enlightened believer
God’s grace as manifested in redemption is a mystery in virtue of its riches and depth — as the expression of God’s very nature. The mystery of the redemption in Christ, belonging to the eternal plan of God, could be known to men only through revelation. — Wuest, pages 43-44
of His will (v.9) = pertaining to His will
will (v.9) = (here) desire based on emotions — so, based on God’s love
according to (v.9) — the Greek suggests domination, — God’s will is dominated by His good pleasure
pleasure (v.9) = that which seems good or well — choice, delight, satisfaction
purposed (v.9) = lit. “to set before oneself” — to determine
that in (v.10) = with a view to
dispensation (v.10) — It is not preceded by the definite article. The word is oikonomia, which is made up of oikos, “house,” and nomos, “law.” The compound word means, “the management of a household, or of household affairs, the management, oversight, administration of others’ property, the office of a manager, overseer, stewardship.” Thus, it speaks here of an administration by God of a certain period of human history designated as “the fulness of times.” Our word “dispensation,” used in Bible teaching nomenclature, refers to a certain period of time marked by a certain method in which God administers the affairs of mankind, such as the dispensation of grace, etc. It does not have that meaning here. Instead of referring to a dispensation itself, it speaks of the method by which God administers the particular time referred to in the words “the fulness of times.”
The Greek word translated “times” here is kairos. In Galatians 4:4 we have the words, “when the fulness of time was come.” The Greek word for “time” there is chronos, which refers to “time, contemplated simply as such, the succession of moments. In our Ephesian passage, the word is kairos … the joints or articulations in these times (chronos), the critical, epoch-making periods foreordained of God … when all that has been slowly, and often without observation, ripening through long ages is mature and comes to the birth in grand decisive events, which constitute at once the close of one period and the commencement of another.” The word could be translated “season.” The word “fulness” is pleroma, “fulness, completeness.” The kairos (“times”) refer to the various periods of human history as they have to do with Israel and the Church in which God deals with these in a particular manner, each season, age, or dispensation being marked by a separate and distinct manner of dealing, such as the Age of Law and the Age of Grace. By the fulness of these seasons is meant the time when the succession of the ages has come to a close in the plan of God. We are now living in the Age of Grace. The season or dispensation which will complete the succession of seasons is the Messianic Kingdom. — Wuest, page 45
gather together (v.10) = to bring back and gather round the main point
The dispensation of the fulness of times is the counsel of His will regarding the eternal state. In eternity God is planning to sum up all things in Christ, both in heaven and on earth. Notice that the distinction will remain between heaven and the earth throughout eternity. But there’s also an ominous omission here.
Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:9-11).
Here, as in Ephesians, the “things in heaven” is clearly the Body of Christ that will be seated with Christ in glory. And the “things in earth” is a reference to the redeemed prophetic saints who will rule and reign with Christ upon the new earth. However, it is a solemn thought that those “things under the earth,” the unsaved of all ages, aren’t included in God’s plans and purposes for eternity. When the unbelieving world is cast into the lake of fire, they are forever removed from God’s presence and the glory of His power (2 Thessalonians 1:9). — Sadler, pages 57-58.
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace
8 which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence.
in Him (v.7) — in the Beloved (v.6), in Christ
have (v.7) = tense is “are having” — an abiding fact from the past, through the present, and into the future
redemption (v.7) — The definite article appears before “redemption.” It has a two-fold significance, pointing to the particular redemption spoken of in the Bible, and speaking of ownership. It is “in whom we are having our redemption.” The word “redemption” is apolutrosis which is defined as follows; the verb, “to redeem one by paying the price, to let one go free on receiving the price”; the noun, “a releasing effected by payment of ransom, deliverance, liberation procured by the payment of a ransom.” The story of redemption can be told in three Greek words; agorazo, “to buy in the slave market” (1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23, 30; 2 Peter 2:1; Revelation 5:9); the Lord Jesus bought us in the slave market of sin, the ransom price, His blood; we are his bond slaves; exagorazo, “to buy out of the slave market, to buy off, to buy for one’s self” (Galatians 3:13; 4:5); the redeemed are the possession of the Lord Jesus forever, and will never be put up for sale in any slave market again; lutroo “to liberate by payment of ransom” (Titus 2:14, 1 Peter 1:18); the redeemed are set free from the guilt and power of sin now, to be finally set free from the presence of sin at the Rapture. The particular aspect of redemption spoken of here is redemption from the guilt and condemnation of sin, for the qualifying phrase, “the forgiveness of sins” is added. — Wuest, pages 39-40
His blo0d (v.7) — Christ’s blood paid the price for our sins in the sense that it satisfied the demands of God’s law which states that the wages of sin is death — outpouring blood means death
forgiveness (v.7) = to send from one’s self, to send away, to bid to go away or depart — a release, letting them go as if they had not been committed.
Often the question is asked, “But what about the future sins that one may commit?” Judicial forgiveness is past, present and future. Stop and think: were not all of our sins future when Christ died on the cross? Furthermore, those who lived before the cross are said to be forgiven “through the forbearance of God” on the basis of the shed blood of Christ (Romans 3:25) — Sadler, page 54
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sins (v.7) — Sinners are lost today, not because they sin, but because they have not availed themselves of the salvation which is in Christ Jesus. God’s forgiveness of sin refers therefore to His act of putting sin away on a judicial basis, to His remitting the guilt and penalty. It is for the sinner to avail himself of salvation by appropriating the Lord Jesus as his Savior by faith in what He has done for him on the Cross. The particular word for “sins” here is paraptoma, from parapipto, “to fall beside a person or thing, to slip aside”; the noun form paraptoma means, “a fall beside or near something; a lapse or deviation from truth and uprightness, a sin, a misdeed, a trespass.” — Wuest, page 41.
according to (v.7) = controlled, dominated by
riches (v.7) = wealth, abundance, plenitude — here, infinite
The freeness of this divine factor in the form of grace, the unmerited nature of the divine goodness, is what Paul most frequently magnifies with praise and wonder. Here it is the mighty measure of the largess, the grace in its quality of riches, that is introduced. This magnificent conception of the wealth of the grace that is bestowed on us by God and that which is in Christ for us, is a peculiarly Pauline idea. — Wuest, page 41
which (v.8) — referring back to grace (v.7)
made to abound (v.8) = to exceed a fixed number or measure, to be over and above a certain amount, to exist in abundance — super-abound, more than enough to do the required job.
Paul used this same verb in Romans 5:20 but prefixes the preposition huper, which preposition means “above,” and the translation reads; “Where sin existed in abundance (pleonazo), grace existed in super-abundance, and then some on top of that. — Wuest, page 42.
toward (v.8) = into
all (v.8) = every
wisdom (v.8) = to the Greeks, cleverness and skill in handicraft or art, skill in matters of common life, sound judgment, intelligence, practical wisdom, learning, speculative wisdom, natural philosophy and mathematics — in Scripture, striving after the best ends, using the best means, mental excellence in its highest and fullest sense — always good — when used of God, supreme intelligence
prudence (v.8) = understanding leading to right actions — the use of wisdom to obtain desired ends
This wisdom and prudence is bestowed upon the recipients of God’s grace. Sophia is the collective moral intelligence, insight into the true nature of things and in the Pauline Epistles it is this intelligence in especial as knowledge of the divine plan of salvation long hidden and now revealed; while phronesis is the practical use of wisdom, the product of wisdom, the right use and application of the phren (the mind), the faculty of discerning the proper disposition or action. The riches, the abounding riches, of the grace expended on us stood revealed in the bestowal of these gifts of spiritual discernment with reference to the deep things of the divine counsel and the divine revelation. — Wuest, page 43.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
blessed (v.3) = to speak well of — from the Greek word from which we get “eulogize” — used only of God in the New Testament
has blessed (v.3) = lit. “the One who blessed” — does us good, confers benefit
us (v.3) — Paul and the Ephesian saints and all who trust Christ in this age
spiritual (v.3) = pneumatikos — produced and given by the Holy Spirit — not just “not physical” — the blessings of grace (i.e., the assurance of immortality, the promise of resurrection, the inheritance and privilege of adoption, etc.), the sphere of relations between God and believers
in heavenly places (v.3) — “places” isn’t in the Greek — so, in the heavenlies — found in heaven and brought to us from there — blessings that come from where God is — Believers now enjoy, while in the body on earth, some of the same blessings that they will enjoy in heaven. This is distinct from the blessings promised to Israel which were all earthy, connected to the land, Jerusalem, and the temple in Jerusalem.
in Christ (v.3) — ours because we are in Him
just as (v.4) = even as, in conformity with the fact — here “in conformity with the fact that He chose” — the ground of the blessing
He chose (v.4) = to pick or choose out for one’s self
The word is used of God choosing out Israel from amongst all nations to be the channel through which He will bring salvation to all those in these other nations who will receive it. This choosing out of Israel from among the nations does not imply that those nations not chosen are rejected or refused salvation. Indeed, the salvation of Israel was for the purpose of making salvation possible to the other nations. The same usage applies in the case of individual sinners selected out from amongst mankind. These are selected for the purpose of being channels through which the knowledge of salvation might be brought to the rest of mankind, so that those who put their trust in the Lord Jesus as Savior might be saved. This precludes the idea that those not selected are rejected or refused salvation; second, the middle voice of the verb gives it the meaning of taking or setting apart something for one’s self, to seek or choose out something for one’s self; however, it is unwarranted to give special prominence either to the element of selection from among others, or to that of preference above others. The main import is appointment for a certain object or goal; third, the word is used of the act of choosing some person or thing for a definite object or calling. The middle voice in Greek represents the subject of the verb acting in his own interest or for himself. Thus, this selection of the saints in this age of grace is the act of God choosing out from among mankind, certain for Himself. These become His own, to be used for a certain purpose. — Wuest, pages 29-30.
foundation (v.4) = lit. “a laying down”
world (v.4) = a harmonious arrangement or constitution, order
that we should be (v.4) — not an obligation on our part but a statement of God’s purpose
holy and without blame (v.4) — our position in Christ
holy (v.4) = hagios, separated to God — the same word translated “saints” in v.1
without blame (v.4) = without blemish
before Him (v.4) = lit. “to see down in” — a penetrating gaze
in love (v.4) — should almost certainly belong at the beginning of v.5
having predestined (v.5) = to mark out the boundary or limits of a place or thing — to determine a destiny previously — foreordain (as in 1 Corinthians 2:7)
In the New Testament, it [predestined] is always used of God as determining from eternity, sometimes with the further definition “before the age” (1 Corinthians 2:7) — decreeing to do something (Acts 4:28); foreordaining things or persons (1 Corinthians 2:7, Romans 8:29); or as here, appointing one beforehand to something. — Wuest, pages 35-36.
to (v.5, first usage) — sometimes translated “with a view to”
adoption as sons (v.5) = to place an adult son
The apostle here used as an illustration the Roman practice of legally adopting a child, and thus not only bequeathing to him the material possessions of the one adopting, but also giving him his civil status. Thus God takes a believing sinner, regenerates him, and by means of this makes him His child (teknon, a born one). Then He takes this child and places him in a legal position as an adult son (huios). We thus become joint-heirs with Christ, having been raised to a civil status as adult sons, in which we become heirs of God, inheriting jointly with Christ all that He possesses as an heir of God the Father by virtue of His Sonship and work on the Cross. This is one object of God’s predestination. The other is that the believer is to be conformed to the image of God’s Son (Romans 8:29). — Wuest, pages 36-37.
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In biblical times adoption had to do with position — taking those who were already children and making them full-grown sons. Normally, there was a special gathering of friends and family at which time the father would declare his child to be his son, with all the rights and privileges that went along with this blessing. As the heir, he now held a position of esteem. — Sadler, page 50
by (v.5) — indicating the immediate agency — Christ, by His work on the cross, was God’s agent in adopting us as adult sons
Himself (v.5) — God the Father
good pleasure (v.5) = good will, delight, satisfaction, purpose, council
will (v.5) = a desire which proceeds from one’s heart or emotions
to the praise of the glory (v.6) — repeated in vs. 12 and 14
The end, God’s end, in our predestination to adoption is, that the glory, glorious nature, brightness and majesty, and kindliness and beauty, — of His grace might be the object of men and angel’s praise; both as it is in Him, ineffable and infinite — and exemplified in us, its objects. — Wuest, page 38
made us accepted (v.6) = the verb form of “grace” — “graced us”
beloved (v.6) = agapao — tense indicates a past act with continuing results
The words “election” and “predestination” are so loaded with baggage that it’s hard to study a passage of Scripture that uses them without bringing the baggage along with them. I don’t pretend to have the final answer, or even an answer at all. But I do think it is very important to make sure that each usage of those works is studied in the immediate context. In this case, Paul appears to be saying that God chose, or decided, before the world began that those He blessed would be holy and without blame in Christ.
We know Paul is referring to those already saved (“saints” in v.1). They are blessed with all spiritual blessings “just as” they were picked to be holy and without blame. So, it can be read that they are chosen because they are saints, not that they are saints because they are chosen.
As for “predestined” here, it is clearly referring to our adoption, not our salvation. He decided before the world began that those who were separated to Him (saints) would be given the legal rights of adult sons.
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Grace — The Galatians (Galatians 1:3) were legalistic (too hard) — grace is the cure. The Corinthians (1 Corinthians 1:3) were too carnal (too easy) — grace is the cure.
Grace = giving what you don’t deserve
Mercy = not giving what you do deserve
Abram = father of many — Abraham = father of a multitude. Father by faith — he believed God.
We have peace by faith.
Grace and peace, because of Calvary
Grace has to come first
By grace, through faith (Romans 4) — that the promise might be sure. If it depended on us, we could never be sure, never have peace.
Peace is the other half of God’s panacea.
Grace is the opposite of judgment (Revelation 19:11). Peace is the opposite of war.
from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ
Our issue isn’t with God now. It’s with the Son. God spent His wrath on the cross. The Son has no issue (Ephesians 1:2).
So … blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul was in prison when he wrote Ephesians.
Paul was caught up into heaven (2 Corinthians 12). He saw, but that was 20 years earlier. As with us, Paul’s secret was being in the Word.
God is the most blessed Person — Acts 20 — more blessed to give (John 3:16) than to receive.
How do we bless God?
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Hebrews 7:7 — the better blesses the lesser
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Psalm 50:12 — bless God by blessing His people
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Proverbs 19:17 — giving to poor is giving to God
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Romans 15:26 — ministering to Israel — poor saints
If Ephesians 1:3 is true (that God blesses us spiritually), it is our duty to minister to Him in physical things, speak well of Him before others, in personal devotions.
God — He is the Father of the Son, and also the God. He was Judge on the cross. My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me? (Mark 15:34)
John 20:17 — the only other place Jesus calls His Father “God”
He accepted the sacrifice — God and Father
Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus.
How do we know we can trust Paul? God Himself and other prophets vouched for him.
Why another apostle? There were 12 sent to Israel. Twelve is the number associated with Israel. Twelve legions of angels minister to Israel.
We are not spiritual Israel. You can’t serve efficiently if you don’t know who your apostle is. Paul is the apostle to the Gentiles (Romans 11:13). Apostle = sent one.
Paul was perfect for the job because he started in the other party. He was Jew and Gentile — Roman citizen, spoke Greek.
In Ephesians, Paul stands alone. Only here and in Romans, books of doctrine. All the other epistles were from Paul with others.
by the will of God — Paul could have said no. The will of God for the dispensation, not just for Paul.
God’s will (1 Timothy 2:4) — God’s will — all would be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. He’s not going to make you believe. The power of salvation begins where your heart stops. His will begins with salvation but doesn’t stop there. In America, you have the right to swing your fist, but your right ends where my nose starts.
will of God
saints — set apart unto God. You’re in Adam or you’re in Christ.
The faithful in Christ Jesus — you can be sanctified but not faithful. Onesimus (Colossians 4:9) — faithful and a runaway slave
Ephesians is for those who are grounded in the Word.
1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul (v.1) = little one, small
apostle (v.1) = sent one, messenger, one sent on a commission as a representative
“Christ” is the transliteration of christos which means “anointed,” and this Greek word is the translation of the Hebrew word which we take over into English in the word “Messiah,” and which itself means “The Anointed One.” However, in the Church Epistles, the word does not refer to our Lord in His official capacity of the Messiah of the Jewish nation, but as The Anointed of God, the Person chosen from the Godhead to be the anointed Prophet, Priest and King to accomplish the purposes of God in the plan of salvation. The name “Jesus” is the transliteration of the Hebrew word which comes over into English in the name “Jehoshua.” It is Iesous in the Greek language. The Hebrew word means “Jehovah saves.” In it we find the deity, humanity, and vicarious atonement of the Lord Jesus. — Wuest, page 15.
saints (v.1) = called of God, holy (set apart to God) — The word is always used collectively in the New Testament to refer to those whose righteousness is Christ.
Paul took it [saints] right out of the terminology of the pagan Greek religions. He had to. There were no other terms which he could use so long as he was confined to the Greek language. There it meant “devoted to the gods.” For instance, a Greek worshiper would bring an offering to the god as a gift. He devoted it to that god. Or, the Greeks would build a magnificent temple and devote it to a certain god. The building was thereby set apart from any secular use, and separated to a religious one. It was consecrated to the worship of that particular Greek god. The building was therefore holy, not in our sense of the term, pure, for the Greek temples were filled with immoral practices that were part of their religious worship, but holy in the sense of being non-secular, and therefore religious in nature, set apart for the worship of the Greek divinities. The term was also used of persons who were devoted to the service of a god, separated to the service of the god, thus, hagios, consecrated, non-secular in character, but on the other hand, distinctively religious in nature and occupation.
The words, “saint, sanctify, sanctification, hallow, holy, holiness” in the New Testament are all translations of this same Greek root hagi. The verb means “to set apart for God,” and refers to the act of the Holy Spirit setting apart for God the sinner who has been elected to salvation, taking him out of the first Adam and placing him in the Last Adam. This is positional sanctification, an act performed once for all the moment the sinner places his faith in the Lord Jesus as his Savior. This is followed by progressive sanctification, a process that goes on all through the earthly life of the Christian and continues throughout eternity, in which that person is being gradually conformed to the image of the Lord Jesus. That person is called hagios, a set apart for God person, a distinctively religious person, in that he has been set apart for God, His worship and service. This he is positionally. It is easy to see that this set apart position of separateness demands a separation of life in his experience, separation from the age system of evil, separation in his own sphere of life from everything that would interfere in the least from the worship and service which is due to the God to whom he is set apart. This is a saint in the Bible sense of the term. — Wuest, pages 16-18.
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faithful (v.1) — When we come to the noun, we have the meaning of “faith and confidence, fidelity and faithfulness.” The adjective gives us “faithful and trustworthy.” Paul uses the word in his directions to the Philippian jailer, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and though shalt be saved, and thy house” (Acts 16:31). He exhorts him to consider the Lord Jesus worthy of trust as to His character and motives. he exhorts him to place his confidence in His ability to do just what He says He will do. He exhorts him to entrust the salvation of his soul into the hands of the Lord Jesus. He exhorts him to commit the work of saving his soul to the care of the Lord. That means a definite taking of one’s self out of one’s own keeping and entrusting one’s self into the keeping of the Lord Jesus. That is what is meant by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The words, “the faithful,” refer in this context not to the fact that the saints at Ephesus were faithful in the sense of being true to the Lord Jesus in their lives, but to the fact that they were those who had put their trust in Him. They were believers as contrasted to unbelievers. The word “and” (kai) should here be translated “even.” Paul is writing to the saints. He identifies these saints as believing ones in Christ Jesus. There were two kinds of saints (hagios) in Ephesus, those who were devotees of the pagan religions, and those who were devotees of Christianity. The Greek word was taken by Paul from the Greek mystery religions and transplanted into Christianity. it therefor needed careful definition. It was the saints who were believers in Christ Jesus to whom Paul was writing, not the “saints” in the pagan religions. — Wuest, pages 19-21.
Grace (v.2) — a traditional Greek greeting.
Charis in classical Greek referred to a favor conferred freely, with no expectation of return, and finding its only motive in the bounty and free-heartedness of the giver. This favor was always done to a friend, never to an enemy. Right here charis leaps forward an infinite distance, for the Lord Jesus died for His enemies (Romans 5:8-10), a thing unheard of in the human race.
Thus, the word charis comes to its highest and most exalted content of meaning in the New Testament. It refers to God’s offer of salvation with all that that implies, which salvation was procured at Calvary’s Cross with all the personal sacrifice which that included, offered to one who is His bitter enemy, and who is not only undeserving of that salvation but deserves condign punishment for his sins, offered without any expectation of return, but given out of the bounty and free-heartedness of the giver. — Wuest, pages 22-23.
Peace (v.2) — a traditional Hebrew greeting.
Peace is another word rich in meaning. The Greek noun is eirene, the verb, eiro. The latter means “to join.” That is, when things are disjointed, there is lack of harmony and well being. When they are joined together, there is both. — Wuest, page 24.
Grace and peace come from the Father and the Son, but by the Spirit.
The recipients of this letter were already saved — saints — so the grace here is grace for living and the peace is peace of God, not peace with God.
Paul wrote Ephesians around A.D. 64 while he was in prison in Rome. It was carried to Ephesus by Tychicus, who also carried Paul’s letters to Colossi and Philemon.
Ephesus was the queen city of Asia Minor, situated about three miles from the Aegean Sea on the Cayster River, and had a population of about 340,000. It was the capital of the proconsular province of Asia and was one of the most important cities visited by the Apostle Paul. Ephesus was noted for the Great Temple of Diana (Artemis), and open-air theater seating 25,000, a magnificent stadium, and the shrine of Serapis (an Egyptian divinity). Ephesus was famous for its rich culture: Oriental religion, Greek philosophy, Roman government and worldwide commerce.
At the close of his second missionary journey, Paul made a brief visit to Ephesus, left Priscilla and Aquila there to work in his absence, and promised to return (Acts 18:19-21). Apollos spent some time there (Acts 18:24-28). On his third missionary journey, Paul remained in Ephesus for about three years evangelizing the city and the surrounding region. On his last voyage to Jerusalem, Paul met the elders of Ephesus at Miletus (Acts 20:17-38). — King James Bible Commentary, page 1560.
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The oldest and most reliable Greek manuscripts do not have the words “which are at Ephesus.” However, the great majority of Greek manuscripts do include the words “in Ephesus,” and there are no Greek manuscripts which include the name of any other city. In Colossians 4:16, Paul mentions “the epistle from Laodicea.” Perhaps the autograph copy had a blank space in Ephesians 1:1, and since most of the manuscripts were copies of the letter sent to Ephesus, it came to be known as the Epistle to the Ephesians. No doubt it was a general or circular letter for the churches of Asia Minor. The letter lacks a personal tone; there are no personal greetings and no personal references. — King James Bible Commentary, page 1560.
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It’s great subject is “the mystery” referred to in Romans 16:25. It had been kept secret since the world began; not made known to the sons of men (Ephesians 3:5); hidden in God (Ephesians 3:9); never revealed in the Scriptures but communicated to the apostle by Christ Himself (Ephesians 3:3). This great mystery, i.e., “secret” is that of the “new man” (Ephesians 2:15), above all heavens, “the one body” of which Christ is the Head, and an election taken out of the earth and separated from it, the members. This “new man” must not be confounded with the earthly kingdom which is to be composed of all people, as foretold in the Scriptures (Genesis 12:3; Romans 15:8-12) in union with and under the head-ship of Israel. — Williams, page 919
The resources I am using for this study are:
In the Heavenlies: Practical Expository Addresses on the Epistle to the Ephesians, by H.A. Ironside. (1937) Loizeaux Brothers, Publishers, New York, New York
Paul’s Epistle to the Ephesians, by Paul M. Sadler (1999) Berean Bible Society, Germantown, Wisconsin
Ephesians and Colossians in the Greek New Testament, by Kenneth S. Wuest (1953) Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Complete Bible Commentary, by George Williams
King James Bible Commentary (1983) Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee
