The Letter of Paul to the Ephesians
Introduction
Ephesians is introduced as a letter from Paul “to the saints who are in Ephesus” (1.1). The majority of scholars doubt the veracity of both authorship and address, but these claims do explain the name of the work, and the attribution surely contributed to its canonical status.
Scholars who doubt Paul’s authorship of Ephesians point to a number of factors that distinguish this letter from those whose authorship is not in dispute (e.g., Romans, 1 Corinthians, Galatians). To begin with, the language and style of Ephesians is different from the others. More than eighty words used here do not appear in the undisputed epistles, while certain terms that are common in the others are missing here. Some terms appear to be used with different meanings (e.g., “mystery,” “inheritance”). Overall, expression tends to be repetitive and more verbose, and the sentences longer (e.g., 4.11–16 is one sentence in Gk). There are also differences in emphasis and theology. The Christology of head/body, which begins in Colossians (see Col 1.15–20), is not found in Paul’s undisputed epistles. For Paul, salvation is a future event, while in Ephesians it is a present experience (2.8). For Paul, the ‘mystery’ is the presence of the Christ dwelling in the individual believer; while in Ephesians the ‘mystery’ is the end of the dividing wall.
Scholars who accept the attribution to Paul see none of this as determinative. They note, for example, that like Ephesians, the undisputed Pauline epistles each contain many terms not found in the others. Changes in emphasis they explain as a product of changes in Paul’s emphasis at a different stage of his career. Finally, some see the differences as a product of the hand of disciples whom they posit as having collected genuine Pauline teachings, inevitably changing them. Even if one follows the majority of scholars in rejecting the attribution of Ephesians to Paul, there is no doubt that Ephesians does focus on several of Paul’s central concerns, including the elimination of the boundary between Israel and Gentiles (see Rom 2–4; Gal 2–3).
Ephesians is addressed to a Gentile audience who have left their pagan ways behind (2.1–2 and 2.11–12). To these new believers, the author represents the Christ as a saving power, the mystery of which has just been revealed. Christ’s blood, offered by God out of divine grace, revivifies believers who were “dead” on account of sin and reorders the world, creating a single, spiritual Israel that nullifies the advantage of Israel of the flesh. To accomplish this, the Law, which divides between Israel and Gentiles, must be abolished (2.15). But this reordering does not eliminate another distinction between Israel, which now includes believing Gentiles, and idolaters; righteous believers must do everything they can to distance themselves from their former sins, those of their former brothers and sisters, including licentiousness, falsehood, and other manners of sin (4.17–24).
Central to Ephesians (along with Colossians, upon which Ephesians may rely; see Col 1.15–20) is the vision of Christ as the head of the body of which the community/church is the body. This image has significant consequences, because it requires Christian society to be ordered according to the model of Christ and the church. With respect to the household, this means that those who are in the inferior position (wife, child, slave) must submit to those who are in the superior (husband, father, master). Finally, Ephesians sees the struggle between Gentile impurities or falsehoods and the righteous way of Christ as a battle of the soldiers of Christ against wicked heavenly forces, in a manner reminiscent of the apocalypses of the same broad period.
Ephesians bears striking similarities to and even parallels with Colossians (see examples in the notes). Unfortunately, these parallels allow for no firm conclusions regarding the connections between these works. By virtue of apparent allusions to Ephesians in the writings of church fathers of the early to mid-second century, it is fair to say only that Ephesians achieved essentially its canonical form by this time.
The form of the letter is quite unlike Paul’s occasional letters, written in response to particular historical circumstances and delivered to a given audience. It has been characterized as a circular letter, one that, by design, speaks not to a single community but to various audiences to which it might be circulated. In light of its impersonal tone and collection of major Pauline themes, some scholars even understood it as a kind of post-facto “introduction” to the Pauline corpus. This characterization reflects the generically Pauline, summative quality of the composition. From the time of the canonization of the letters, Ephesians has been read as a statement of fundamental Pauline assumptions and ideologies.
Much in Ephesians reflects contemporary Jewish concepts and vocabulary. This includes, for example, its focus (4.4–6) on and interpretations of what the rabbis called the Shema—Deut 6.4’s declaration of the unity of God—and its application (in Eph 5.28) of Lev 19.18 (“love your neighbor as yourself”) to a man’s wife (5.28), a move paralleled at b. Qidd. 41a. Nevertheless, the book’s loyalty to Paul’s mission to the Gentiles, requiring the destruction of the “dividing wall”—the hostility that separates Israel and the nations (2.14)—and the abolition of the Law, could only raise the wall between Jews and Gentiles higher, for Jews imbued with the teachings of the Tanakh viewed themselves as a Chosen People, united by blood and distinct from other nations. They also understood their covenant to be a covenant of Law, an inheritance that the rabbis, with their focus on Law, understood well. By virtue of these beliefs, for Jews who had not accepted Paul’s interpretations, the vision of Ephesians could only be understood as radically “other,” despite its appropriation of parts of a common tradition.
David Kraemer
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To the saints who are in Ephesus and are faithfula in Christ Jesus:
2Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4just as he chose us in Christb before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. 5He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 8that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight 9he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, 10as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. 11In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance,a having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, 12so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory. 13In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; 14thisb is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s own people, to the praise of his glory.
15I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your lovec toward all the saints, and for this reason 16I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, 18so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, 19and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according to the working of his great power. 20Godd put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. 22And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
2You were dead through the trespasses and sins 2in which you once lived, following the course of this world, following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work among those who are disobedient. 3All of us once lived among them in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else. 4But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us 5even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christa—by grace you have been saved— 6and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7so that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— 9not the result of works, so that no one may boast. 10For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.
The ‘Wall of Hostility,’ ‘Abolishing the Law,’ and ‘One New Humanity’ (Eph 2.14–15)
Jewish law separated observant Jews from others. Exodus 19.6 declares that Israel should be a “holy nation,” a notion reinforced at Lev 19.2 and elsewhere. “Holiness” (Heb q-d-sh) demands separation (the early rabbinic midrash, Sifra, translates Lev 19.2, “you shall be holy,” as “you shall be separate”). The Torah’s dietary laws (Lev 11), in particular, would have created such a separation, while later extensions of the law—forbidding eating any Gentile food (e.g., Dan 1.8–12), extending new impurities to Gentiles (Sifra, zavim 1.1 to Lev 15.1) and others—would have made the wall even higher. That such separation led to enmity toward Jews on the part of some Gentiles is best exemplified by Tacitus, who wrote, “Jews are extremely loyal toward one another … but toward every other people they feel only hate and enmity. They sit apart at meals and they sleep apart …” (Hist. V, 1–2). Some Jews also felt enmity toward Gentiles, as exemplified in m. Avod. Zar. 2, which declares (among other things), “we may not keep an animal in the inns of Gentiles, for they are suspected of bestiality, and a woman should not be alone with them, for they are suspected of adultery, and a [Jewish] man should not be alone with them, for they are suspected of murder.” By abolishing those laws that differentiate between Jews and Gentiles, such as the separating mark of circumcision, Gentiles may be “brought near” (v 13) and a divided humanity made one.
11So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth,b called “the uncircumcision” by those who are called “the circumcision”—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by human hands— 12remember that you were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. 15He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, 16and might reconcile both groups to God in one bodya through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it.b 17So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; 18for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, 20built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.c 21In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; 22in whom you also are built together spirituallyd into a dwelling place for God.
3This is the reason that I Paul am a prisoner fore Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— 2for surely you have already heard of the commission of God’s grace that was given me for you, 3and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, 4a reading of which will enable you to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. 5In former generations this mysteryf was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: 6that is, the Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
7Of this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God’s grace that was given me by the working of his power. 8Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, 9and to make everyone seeg what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages inh God who created all things; 10so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11This was in accordance with the eternal purpose that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12in whom we have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith in him.a 13I pray therefore that youb may not lose heart over my sufferings for you; they are your glory.
14For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,c 15from whom every familyd in heaven and on earth takes its name. 16I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, 17and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. 18I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
20Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, 21to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
4I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.
7But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8Therefore it is said,
“When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive;
he gave gifts to his people.”
9(When it says, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descendede into the lower parts of the earth? 10He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) 11The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15But speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body’s growth in building itself up in love.
17Now this I affirm and insist on in the Lord: you must no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds. 18They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their ignorance and hardness of heart. 19They have lost all sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20That is not the way you learned Christ! 21For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus. 22You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, 23and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
25So then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors, for we are members of one another. 26Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27and do not make room for the devil. 28Thieves must give up stealing; rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy. 29Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up,a as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. 30And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption. 31Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, 32and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.b
The Household Code
Ephesians supplements a fairly standard discussion of the management of a household (oikonomia, lit., “law of the household”; see Aristotle, Pol. 1259a-b) by means of a literal application of the ancient biblical metaphor—God is to Israel as husband is to wife or as father is to child, replacing God with Christ. In each relationship, the hierarchically superior figure (husband, father, master) is in the position of Christ, to whom the inferior figure should be subject or obedient. In each case the superior is called upon to care for the inferior (husbands should love their wives as Christ loves the church), but this does not eliminate the hierarchy. Detailed regulations, reflecting and reinforcing similar hierarchies, are found in early rabbinic literature (for husband-wife, see m. Ketub. 5.5–9; for father-child, see m. Qidd. 1.7 and t. Qidd. 1.11; for master-slave, see Sifra, behar, ch 7 and par. 6), but nowhere is such a theological justification offered. The author’s urging that a husband must love his wife (vv 25 and 28) is unparalleled in the writings of the early rabbis, who do, however, value tenderness and care in the marriage relationship; see, e.g., b. Ned. 20b.
5Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, 2and live in love, as Christ loved usa and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3But fornication and impurity of any kind, or greed, must not even be mentioned among you, as is proper among saints. 4Entirely out of place is obscene, silly, and vulgar talk; but instead, let there be thanksgiving. 5Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure person, or one who is greedy (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes on those who are disobedient. 7Therefore do not be associated with them. 8For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light— 9for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true. 10Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. 11Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly; 13but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, 14for everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Sleeper, awake!
Rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, 16making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, 19as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, 20giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ.
22Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church, the body of which he is the Savior. 24Just as the church is subject to Christ, so also wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands.
25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26in order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of water by the word, 27so as to present the church to himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind—yes, so that she may be holy and without blemish. 28In the same way, husbands should love their wives as they do their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29For no one ever hates his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, 30because we are members of his body.a 31“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” 32This is a great mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the church. 33Each of you, however, should love his wife as himself, and a wife should respect her husband.
6Children, obey your parents in the Lord,b for this is right. 2“Honor your father and mother”—this is the first commandment with a promise: 3“so that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.”
4And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
5Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey Christ; 6not only while being watched, and in order to please them, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. 7Render service with enthusiasm, as to the Lord and not to men and women, 8knowing that whatever good we do, we will receive the same again from the Lord, whether we are slaves or free.
9And, masters, do the same to them. Stop threatening them, for you know that both of you have the same Master in heaven, and with him there is no partiality.
10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12For oura struggle is not against enemies of blood and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. 13Therefore take up the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14Stand therefore, and fasten the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of righteousness. 15As shoes for your feet put on whatever will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. 16With all of these,b take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17Take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18Pray in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints. 19Pray also for me, so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel,c 20for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak.
21So that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus will tell you everything. He is a dear brother and a faithful minister in the Lord. 22I am sending him to you for this very purpose, to let you know how we are, and to encourage your hearts.
23Peace be to the whole community,d and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24Grace be with all who have an undying love for our Lord Jesus Christ.e
1:Saints, Gk “hagioi,” equivalent to Heb “qedoshim,” “holy ones,” here referring to those “who … are faithful.” The Torah describes Israel as a “holy nation” (Ex 19.6) and commands that Israel “be holy” (Lev 19.2). In Ephesus, absent from some early textual witnesses, while Marcion has “to the Laodiceans.” Who … are faithful, the emphasis on faith or belief (Heb “ʾemunah”) above performance of the obligations of the Law, repeated below (2.8–9), conforms to Paul’s program; see Rom 3.21–4.25; Gal 2.15–3.25, and elsewhere. 1.3–14: Blessing. 3:Blessed be, reminiscent of the opening of blessing formulas used in the Tanakh (e.g., Gen 24.27); this formula, appearing more frequent in late Hebrew Bible texts and the Dead Sea Scrolls, became the standard opening formula in rabbinic blessings; see m. Ber. 6,9. Spiritual blessing, probably the blessing of “the seal of the promised Holy Spirit” (1.13). Heavenly places, Gk “ta epourania,” appears nowhere else in the NT. It refers to the unseen realm where God resides (1.20; 2.6). 4:Chose us … before the foundation of the world, hints at predestination, the divine determination of the future, especially with regard to salvation; biblical and rabbinic texts highlight the importance of certain objects by claiming that they predate creation (see Prov 8.22–31, Gen. Rab. 1.1). Blameless … in love, and not on account of our works. 5:Adoption as his children, divinely chosen inheritance replaces biological descent. 6:Grace (Gk “charitos”), “freely bestowed” and not earned; the rabbis (Mek. Bo, 5) explicitly reject the possibility of redemption through grace apart from works and insist upon the performance of “mitzvot,” divine commandments. Beloved, the meaning of the Heb name “David,” alluding to and affirming Jesus’ messianic status. 7:Redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, referring to the crucifixion, understood as Jesus’ self-sacrifice; the blood of the sacrifice similarly was understood to effect atonement for sin (Lev 4.13–20; 16.14–20). 9:Mystery of his will, or perhaps better, “secret,” referring to the disclosure of the truth that “Gentiles have become fellow heirs” of the covenantal promise, “members of the same body” as biological Israel; see 3.3–11. Jews were of different minds with respect to the prospect of the salvation of Gentiles. The rabbis asserted that Jews had a special claim on salvation (m. Sanh. 10.1), but some admitted that worthy Gentiles also merited salvation (t. Sanh. 13.2). 10:Fullness of time, or “fulfillment of times,” that is, the completion of one era (see Dan 12.4,9) and the birth of another, here that of Christ. 11:In Christ, lit., “in him.” 11–13:In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance … In him you also … were marked with the seal, Gk “Christ” = Heb “mašiaḥ,” hence: Messiah; biological Jews were the first to obtain an inheritance of salvation through the hoped-for Messiah, but Gentile believers in Christ now participate in the inheritance. 13:Marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit, the reference to marking suggests an allusion to the seal of circumcision (Rom 4.11; in Gen 17.11, “sign”), now construed as spiritual and not in the flesh.