Efesus 1:6-7

1:6 to the praise of the glory of his grace ¹  that he has freely bestowed on us in his dearly loved Son. ²  1:7 In him ³  we have redemption through his blood, ⁴  the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace

Efesus 1:10

1:10 toward the administration of the fullness of the times, to head up ⁵  all things in Christ – the things in heaven ⁶  and the things on earth. ⁷ 

Efesus 1:13-14

1:13 And when ⁸  you heard the word of truth (the gospel of your salvation) – when you believed in Christ ⁹  – you were marked with the seal ¹⁰  of the promised Holy Spirit, ¹¹  1:14 who is the down payment ¹²  of our inheritance, until the redemption of God’s own possession, ¹³  to the praise of his glory.

Efesus 1:17-19

1:17 I pray that ¹⁴  the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, ¹⁵  may give you spiritual wisdom and revelation ¹⁶  in your growing knowledge of him, ¹⁷  1:18 – since the eyes of your ¹⁸  heart have been enlightened ¹⁹  – so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, ²⁰  what is the wealth of his glorious ²¹  inheritance in the saints, 1:19 and what is the incomparable ²²  greatness of his power toward ²³  us who believe, as displayed in ²⁴  the exercise of his immense strength. ²⁵ 

Efesus 2:2-3

2:2 in which ²⁶  you formerly lived ²⁷  according to this world’s present path, ²⁸  according to the ruler of the kingdom ²⁹  of the air, the ruler of ³⁰  the spirit ³¹  that is now energizing ³²  the sons of disobedience, ³³  2:3 among whom ³⁴  all of us ³⁵  also ³⁶  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 ³⁷  even as the rest… ³⁸ 

Efesus 2:7

2:7 to demonstrate in the coming ages ³⁹  the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward ⁴⁰  us in Christ Jesus.

Efesus 2:11-12

New Life Corporately

2:11 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 ⁴¹  by human hands – 2:12 that you were at that time without the Messiah, ⁴²  alienated from the citizenship of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, ⁴³  having no hope and without God in the world.

Efesus 3:2

3:2 if indeed ⁴⁴  you have heard of the stewardship ⁴⁵  of God’s grace that was given to me for you,

Efesus 3:6-7

3:6 namely, that through the gospel ⁴⁶  the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members ⁴⁷  of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus. 3:7 I became a servant of this gospel ⁴⁸  according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by ⁴⁹  the exercise of his power. ⁵⁰ 

Efesus 3:10

3:10 The purpose of this enlightenment is that ⁵¹  through the church the multifaceted wisdom ⁵²  of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms.

Efesus 3:12

3:12 in whom we have boldness and confident access ⁵³  to God ⁵⁴  because of ⁵⁵  Christ’s ⁵⁶  faithfulness. ⁵⁷ 

Efesus 3:16-17

3:16 I pray that ⁵⁸  according to the wealth of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person, 3:17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love,

Efesus 3:19

3:19 and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to ⁵⁹  all the fullness of God.

Efesus 4:1

Live in Unity

4:1 I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, ⁶⁰  urge you to live ⁶¹  worthily of the calling with which you have been called, ⁶² 

Efesus 4:3-4

4:3 making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4:4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you too were called to the one hope of your calling,

Efesus 4:7

4:7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

Efesus 4:9

4:9 Now what is the meaning of “he ascended,” except that he also descended ⁶³  to the lower regions, ⁶⁴  namely, the earth? ⁶⁵ 

Efesus 4:13-14

4:13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God – a mature person, attaining to ⁶⁶  the measure of Christ’s full stature. ⁶⁷  4:14 So ⁶⁸  we are no longer to be children, tossed back and forth by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching by the trickery of people who craftily carry out their deceitful schemes. ⁶⁹ 

Efesus 4:16

4:16 From him the whole body grows, fitted and held together ⁷⁰  through every supporting ligament. ⁷¹  As each one does its part, the body grows in love.

Efesus 4:18

4:18 They are darkened in their understanding, ⁷²  being alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts.

Efesus 4:22

4:22 You were taught with reference to your former way of life to lay aside ⁷³  the old man who is being corrupted in accordance with deceitful desires,

Efesus 4:24

4:24 and to put on the new man who has been created in God’s image ⁷⁴  – in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth. ⁷⁵ 

Efesus 4:29

4:29 You must let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth, but only what is beneficial for the building up of the one in need, ⁷⁶  that it may give grace to those who hear.

Efesus 5:6

Live in the Light

5:6 Let nobody deceive you with empty words, for because of these things God’s wrath comes on the sons of disobedience. ⁷⁷ 

Efesus 5:23

5:23 because the husband is the head of the wife as also Christ is the head of the church – he himself being the savior of the body.

Efesus 6:3

6:3 “that it may go ⁷⁸  well with you and that you will live ⁷⁹  a long time on the earth.” ⁸⁰ 

Efesus 6:5

6:5 Slaves, ⁸¹  obey your human masters ⁸²  with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart as to Christ,

Efesus 6:10

Exhortations for Spiritual Warfare

6:10 Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power.

Efesus 6:12

6:12 For our struggle ⁸³  is not against flesh and blood, ⁸⁴  but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, ⁸⁵  against the spiritual forces ⁸⁶  of evil in the heavens. ⁸⁷ 

Efesus 6:14-16

6:14 Stand firm therefore, by fastening ⁸⁸  the belt of truth around your waist, ⁸⁹  by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, 6:15 by fitting your ⁹⁰  feet with the preparation that comes from the good news ⁹¹  of peace, ⁹²  6:16 and in all of this, ⁹³  by taking up the shield ⁹⁴  of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

[1:6]  ¹ tn Or “to the praise of his glorious grace.” Many translations translate δόξης τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ (doxh" th" carito" autou, literally “of the glory of his grace”) with τῆς χάριτος as an attributed genitive (cf., e.g., NIV, NRSV, ESV). The translation above has retained a literal rendering in order to make clear the relationship of this phrase to the other two similar phrases in v. 12 and 14, which affect the way one divides the material in the passage.

[1:6]  ² tn Grk “the beloved.” The term ἠγαπημένῳ (hgaphmenw) means “beloved,” but often bears connotations of “only beloved” in an exclusive sense. “His dearly loved Son” picks up this connotation.

[1:6]  sn God’s grace can be poured out on believers only because of what Christ has done for them. Hence, he bestows his grace on us because we are in his dearly loved Son.

[1:7]  ³ tn Grk “in whom” (the relative clause of v. 7 is subordinate to v. 6). The “him” refers to Christ.

[1:7]  ⁴ sn In this context his blood, the blood of Jesus Christ, refers to the price paid for believers’ redemption, which is the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross.

[1:10]  ⁵ tn The precise meaning of the infinitive ἀνακεφαλαιώσασθαι (anakefalaiwsasqai) in v. 10 is difficult to determine since it was used relatively infrequently in Greek literature and only twice in the NT (here and Rom 13:9). While there have been several suggestions, three deserve mention: (1) “To sum up.” In Rom 13:9, using the same term, the author there says that the law may be “summarized in one command, to love your neighbor as yourself.” The idea then in Eph 1:10 would be that all things in heaven and on earth can be summed up and made sense out of in relation to Christ. (2) “To renew.” If this is the nuance of the verb then all things in heaven and earth, after their plunge into sin and ruin, are renewed by the coming of Christ and his redemption. (3) “To head up.” In this translation the idea is that Christ, in the fullness of the times, has been exalted so as to be appointed as the ruler (i.e., “head”) over all things in heaven and earth (including the church). That this is perhaps the best understanding of the verb is evidenced by the repeated theme of Christ’s exaltation and reign in Ephesians and by the connection to the κεφαλή- (kefalh-) language of 1:22 (cf. Schlier, TDNT 3:682; L&N 63.8; M. Barth, Ephesians [AB 34], 1:89-92; contra A. T. Lincoln, Ephesians [WBC], 32-33).

[1:10]  ⁶ tn Grk “the heavens.”

[1:10]  ⁷ sn And the things on earth. Verse 10 ends with “in him.” The redundancy keeps the focus on Christ at the expense of good Greek style. Verse 11 repeats the reference with a relative pronoun (“in whom”) – again, at the expense of good Greek style. Although the syntax is awkward, the theology is rich. This is not the first time that a NT writer was so overcome with awe for his Lord that he seems to have lost control of his pen. Indeed, it happened frequently enough that some have labeled their christologically motivated solecisms an “apostolic disease.”

[1:13]  ⁸ tn Grk “in whom you also, when…” (continuing the sentence from v. 12).

[1:13]  ⁹ tn Grk “in whom also having believed.” The relative pronoun “whom” has been replaced in the translation with its antecedent (“Christ”) to improve the clarity.

[1:13]  ¹⁰ tn Or “you were sealed.”

[1:13]  ¹¹ tn Grk “the Holy Spirit of promise.” Here ἐπαγγελίας (epangelias, “of promise”) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

[1:14]  ¹² tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit.”

[1:14]  sn Down payment. The Greek word ἀρραβών (arrabwn) denotes the first payment or first installment of money or goods which serves as a guarantee or pledge for the completion of the transaction. In the NT the term is used only figuratively of the Holy Spirit as the down payment of the blessings promised by God (it is used also in 2 Cor 1:22 and 5:5). In the “already – not yet” scheme of the NT the possession of the Spirit now by believers (“already”) can be viewed as a guarantee that God will give them the balance of the promised blessings in the future (“not yet”).

[1:14]  ¹³ tn Grk “the possession.”

[1:17]  ¹⁴ tn The words “I pray” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied to clarify the meaning; v. 17 is a subordinate clause to v. 16 (“I pray” in v. 17 is implied from v. 16). Eph 1:15-23 constitutes one sentence in Greek, but a new sentence was started here in the translation in light of contemporary English usage.

[1:17]  ¹⁵ tn Or “glorious Father.” The genitive phrase “of glory” is most likely an attributive genitive. The literal translation “Father of glory” has been retained because of the parallelism with the first line of the verse: “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory.”

[1:17]  ¹⁶ tn Or “the Spirit of wisdom and revelation,” or “a spirit of wisdom and revelation.” Verse 17 involves a complex exegetical problem revolving around the Greek term πνεῦμα (pneuma). Some take it to mean “the Spirit,” others “a spirit,” and still others “spiritual.” (1) If “the Spirit” is meant, the idea must be a metonymy of cause for effect, because the author had just indicated in vv. 13-14 that the Spirit was already given (hence, there is no need for him to pray that he be given again). But the effect of the Spirit is wisdom and revelation. (2) If “a spirit” is meant, the idea may be that the readers will have the ability to gain wisdom and insight as they read Paul’s letters, but the exact meaning of “a spirit” remains ambiguous. (3) To take the genitives following πνεῦμα as attributed genitives (see ExSyn 89-91), in which the head noun (“S/spirit”) functions semantically like an adjective (“spiritual”) is both grammatically probable and exegetically consistent.

[1:17]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “in the knowledge of him.”

[1:17]  sn The point of the knowledge of him has nothing to do with what God knows, but with what believers are to know (hence, “your…knowledge”). Further, the author’s prayer is that this knowledge of God would increase, not simply be initiated, since he is writing to believers who already know God (hence, “your growing knowledge of him”).

[1:18]  ¹⁸ tc ‡ Most witnesses, especially of the Byzantine and Western texttypes, though with a few important Alexandrian witnesses (א A D F G Ψ 0278 Ï latt sy), add ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “your”) after καρδίας (kardias, “heart”), though it is clearly implied in the shorter (Alexandrian) reading (found in Ì⁴⁶ B 6 33 1175 1739 1881 pc). The longer reading thus looks to be a clarifying gloss, as is frequently found in the Byzantine and Western traditions. The translation above also uses “your” because of English requirements, not because of textual basis.

[1:18]  tn Grk “the.”

[1:18]  ¹⁹ tn The perfect participle πεφωτισμένους (pefwtismenou") may either be part of the prayer (“that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened”) or part of the basis of the prayer (“since the eyes of your heart have been enlightened”). Although the participle follows the ἵνα (Jina) of v. 17, it is awkward grammatically in the clause. Further, perfect adverbial participles are usually causal in NT Greek. Finally, the context both here and throughout Ephesians seems to emphasize the motif of light as a property belonging to believers. Thus, it seems that the author is saying, “I know that you are saved, that you have had the blinders of the devil removed; because of this, I can now pray that you will fully understand and see the light of God’s glorious revelation.” Hence, the translation takes the participle to form a part of the basis for the prayer.

[1:18]  ²⁰ tn Or “the hope to which he has called you.”

[1:18]  sn The hope of his calling. The translation is more formally equivalent for this and the following two phrases, because of the apparently intentional literary force of the original. There is a natural cadence to the three genitive expressions (hope of his calling, wealth of his glorious inheritance, and extraordinary greatness of his power). The essence of the prayer is seen here. Paraphrased it reads as follows: “Since you are enlightened by God’s Spirit, I pray that you may comprehend the hope to which he has called you, the spiritual riches that await the saints in glory, and the spiritual power that is available to the saints now.” Thus, the prayer focuses on all three temporal aspects of our salvation as these are embedded in the genitives – the past (calling), the future (inheritance), and the present (power toward us who believe).

[1:18]  ²¹ tn Grk “of the glory of his inheritance.” Here “inheritance” is taken as an attributed genitive and the head noun, “glory,” is thus translated as an adjective, “glorious inheritance.”

[1:19]  ²² tn Or “immeasurable, surpassing”

[1:19]  ²³ tn Or “for, to”

[1:19]  ²⁴ tn Grk “according to.”

[1:19]  ²⁵ tn Grk “according to the exercise of the might of his strength.”

[1:19]  sn What has been translated as exercise is a term used only of supernatural power in the NT, ἐνέργεια (energeia).

[2:2]  ²⁶ sn The relative pronoun which is feminine as is sins, indicating that sins is the antecedent.

[2:2]  ²⁷ tn Grk “walked.”

[2:2]  sn The Greek verb translated lived (περιπατέω, peripatew) in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.

[2:2]  ²⁸ tn Or possibly “Aeon.”

[2:2]  sn The word translated present path is the same as that which has been translated [this] age in 1:21 (αἰών, aiwn).

[2:2]  ²⁹ tn Grk “domain, [place of] authority.”

[2:2]  ³⁰ tn Grk “of” (but see the note on the word “spirit” later in this verse).

[2:2]  ³¹ 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).

[2:2]  ³² tn Grk “working in.”

[2:2]  ³³ 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.

[2:3]  ³⁴ 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).

[2:3]  ³⁵ tn Grk “we all.”

[2:3]  ³⁶ tn Or “even.”

[2:3]  ³⁷ sn Children of wrath is a Semitic idiom which may mean either “people characterized by wrath” or “people destined for wrath.”

[2:3]  ³⁸ 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.

[2:7]  ³⁹ tn Or possibly “to the Aeons who are about to come.”

[2:7]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “upon.”

[2:11]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “in the flesh.”

[2:12]  ⁴² 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.”

[2:12]  ⁴³ tn Or “covenants of the promise.”

[3:2]  ⁴⁴ sn If indeed. The author is not doubting whether his audience has heard, but is rather using provocative language (if indeed) to engage his audience in thinking about the magnificence of God’s grace. However, in English translation, the apodosis (“then”-clause) does not come until v. 13, leaving the protasis (“if”-clause) dangling. Eph 3:2-7 constitute one sentence in Greek.

[3:2]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “administration,” “dispensation,” “commission.”

[3:6]  ⁴⁶ 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]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “and fellow members.”

[3:7]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “of which I was made a minister,” “of which I became a servant.”

[3:7]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “according to.”

[3:7]  ⁵⁰ sn On the exercise of his power see 1:19-20.

[3:10]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “that.” Verse 10 is a subordinate clause to the verb “enlighten” in v. 9.

[3:10]  ⁵² tn Or “manifold wisdom,” “wisdom in its rich variety.”

[3:12]  ⁵³ tn Grk “access in confidence.”

[3:12]  ⁵⁴ tn The phrase “to God” is not in the text, but is clearly implied by the preceding, “access.”

[3:12]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “through,” “by way of.”

[3:12]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “his.”

[3:12]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “faith in him.” A decision is difficult here. Though traditionally translated “faith in Jesus Christ,” an increasing number of NT scholars are arguing that πίστις Χριστοῦ (pisti" Cristou) and similar phrases in Paul (here and in Rom 3:22, 26; Gal 2:16, 20; 3:22; Phil 3:9) involve a subjective genitive and mean “Christ’s faith” or “Christ’s faithfulness” (cf., e.g., G. Howard, “The ‘Faith of Christ’,” ExpTim 85 [1974]: 212-15; R. B. Hays, The Faith of Jesus Christ [SBLDS]; Morna D. Hooker, “Πίστις Χριστοῦ,” NTS 35 [1989]: 321-42). Noteworthy among the arguments for the subjective genitive view is that when πίστις takes a personal genitive it is almost never an objective genitive (cf. Matt 9:2, 22, 29; Mark 2:5; 5:34; 10:52; Luke 5:20; 7:50; 8:25, 48; 17:19; 18:42; 22:32; Rom 1:8; 12; 3:3; 4:5, 12, 16; 1 Cor 2:5; 15:14, 17; 2 Cor 10:15; Phil 2:17; Col 1:4; 2:5; 1 Thess 1:8; 3:2, 5, 10; 2 Thess 1:3; Titus 1:1; Phlm 6; 1 Pet 1:9, 21; 2 Pet 1:5). On the other hand, the objective genitive view has its adherents: A. Hultgren, “The Pistis Christou Formulations in Paul,” NovT 22 (1980): 248-63; J. D. G. Dunn, “Once More, ΠΙΣΤΙΣ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥ,” SBL Seminar Papers, 1991, 730-44. Most commentaries on Romans and Galatians usually side with the objective view.

[3:12]  sn Because of Christ’s faithfulness. Though Paul elsewhere teaches justification by faith, this presupposes that the object of our faith is reliable and worthy of such faith.

[3:16]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “that.” In Greek v. 16 is a subordinate clause to vv. 14-15.

[3:19]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “with.”

[4:1]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “prisoner in the Lord.”

[4:1]  ⁶¹ tn Grk “walk.” The verb “walk” in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.

[4:1]  ⁶² 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]  ⁶³ tc The majority of mss (א² B C³ Ψ Ï) read πρῶτον (prwton, “first”) here in conjunction with this verb: “he first descended.” The shorter reading, which lacks πρῶτον, should be considered original on the basis of both external and internal evidence: It has strong external support from the Alexandrian and Western texttypes (Ì⁴⁶ א* A C* D F G I^vid 082 6 33 81 1739 1881 pc); internally, the inclusion of πρῶτον is most likely an addition to clarify the sense of the passage.

[4:9]  ⁶⁴ 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 mss as well as the majority of Byzantine cursives (א A B C D² I Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï). Certain scribes may have deleted the word, thinking it superfluous; in addition, if the shorter reading were original one would expect to see at least a little variation in clarifying additions to the text. For these reasons the inclusion of μέρη should be regarded as original.

[4:9]  ⁶⁵ 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.

[4:13]  ⁶⁶ tn The words “attaining to” were supplied in the translation to pick up the καταντήσωμεν (katanthswmen) mentioned earlier in the sentence and the εἰς (eis) which heads up this clause.

[4:13]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” On this translation of ἡλικία (Jhlikia, “stature”) see BDAG 436 s.v. 3.

[4:14]  ⁶⁸ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[4:14]  ⁶⁹ tn While the sense of the passage is clear enough, translation in English is somewhat difficult. The Greek says: “by the trickery of men, by craftiness with the scheme of deceit.” The point is that the author is concerned about Christians growing into maturity. He is fearful that certain kinds of very cunning people, who are skilled at deceitful scheming, should come in and teach false doctrines which would in turn stunt the growth of the believers.

[4:16]  ⁷⁰ tn The Greek participle συμβιβαζόμενον (sumbibazomenon) translated “held together” also has in different contexts, the idea of teaching implied in it.

[4:16]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “joint of supply.”

[4:18]  ⁷² tn In the Greek text this clause is actually subordinate to περιπατεῖ (peripatei) in v. 17. It was broken up in the English translation so as to avoid an unnecessarily long and cumbersome statement.

[4:22]  ⁷³ 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]  ⁷⁴ 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]  ⁷⁵ tn Or “in righteousness and holiness which is based on truth” or “originated from truth.”

[4:29]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “but if something good for the building up of the need.” The final genitive τῆς χρείας (th" creia") may refer to “the need of the moment” or it may refer to the need of a particular person or group of people as the next phrase “give grace to those who hear” indicates.

[5:6]  ⁷⁷ sn The expression sons of disobedience is a Semitic idiom that means “people characterized by disobedience.” In this context it refers to “all those who are disobedient.” Cf. Eph 2:2-3.

[6:3]  ⁷⁸ tn Grk “be.”

[6:3]  ⁷⁹ tn Grk “will be.”

[6:3]  ⁸⁰ sn A quotation from Deut 5:16.

[6:5]  ⁸¹ tn Traditionally, “Servants” (KJV). Though δοῦλος (doulos) is often translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[6:5]  ⁸² tn Grk “the masters according to the flesh.” In the translation above, the article τοῖς (tois) governing κυρίοις (kuriois) is rendered in English as a possessive pronoun (i.e., “your”) and the prepositional phrase κατὰ σάρκα (kata sarka) is taken as modifying κυρίοις (indicating that the author is referring to human masters) and not modifying the imperative ὑπακούετε (Jupakouete, which would indicate that obedience was according to a human standard or limitation).

[6:12]  ⁸³ tn BDAG 752 s.v. πάλη says, “struggle against…the opponent is introduced by πρός w. the acc.”

[6:12]  ⁸⁴ tn Grk “blood and flesh.”

[6:12]  ⁸⁵ tn BDAG 561 s.v. κοσμοκράτωρ suggests “the rulers of this sinful world” as a gloss.

[6:12]  sn The phrase world-rulers of this darkness does not refer to human rulers but the evil spirits that rule over the world. The phrase thus stands in apposition to what follows (the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens); see note on heavens at the end of this verse.

[6:12]  ⁸⁶ tn BDAG 837 s.v. πνευματικός 3 suggests “the spirit-forces of evil” in Ephesians 6:12.

[6:12]  ⁸⁷ sn The phrase spiritual forces of evil in the heavens serves to emphasize the nature of the forces which oppose believers as well as to indicate the locality from which they originate.

[6:14]  ⁸⁸ 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]  ⁸⁹ 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.

[6:15]  ⁹⁰ tn The definite article τοῖς (tois) was taken as a possessive pronoun, i.e., “your,” since it refers to a part of the physical body.

[6:15]  ⁹¹ tn Grk “gospel.” However, this is not a technical term here.

[6:15]  ⁹² tn Grk “in preparation of the gospel of peace.” The genitive τοῦ εὐαγγελίου (tou euangeliou) was taken as a genitive of source, i.e., “that comes from….”

[6:16]  ⁹³ tn Grk “in everything.”

[6:16]  ⁹⁴ sn The Greek word translated shield (θυρεός, qureos) refers to the Roman soldier’s large rectangular wooden shield, called in Latin scutum, about 4 ft (1.2 m) high, covered with leather on the outside. Before a battle in which flaming arrows might be shot at them, the soldiers wet the leather covering with water to extinguish the arrows. The Roman legionaries could close ranks with these shields, the first row holding theirs edge to edge in front, and the rows behind holding the shields above their heads. In this formation they were practically invulnerable to arrows, rocks, and even spears.