Efesus 5:7

5:7 Therefore do not be partakers with them, ¹ 

Efesus 4:26-27

4:26 Be angry and do not sin; ²  do not let the sun go down on the cause of your anger. ³  4:27 Do not give the devil an opportunity.

Efesus 5:17

5:17 For this reason do not be foolish, but be wise ⁴  by understanding ⁵  what the Lord’s will is.

Efesus 2:9

2:9 it is not from ⁶  works, so that no one can boast. ⁷ 

Efesus 5:11

5:11 Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather ⁸  expose them. ⁹ 

Efesus 5:18

5:18 And do not get drunk with wine, which ¹⁰  is debauchery, ¹¹  but be filled by the Spirit, ¹² 

Efesus 4:30

4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Efesus 5:3

5:3 But ¹³  among you there must not be either sexual immorality, impurity of any kind, ¹⁴  or greed, as these are not fitting for the saints. ¹⁵ 

Efesus 5:15

Live Wisely

5:15 Therefore be very careful how you live – not as unwise but as wise,

Efesus 3:13

3:13 For this reason I ask you ¹⁶  not to lose heart because of what I am suffering for you, ¹⁷  which ¹⁸  is your glory. ¹⁹ 

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, ²⁰  that it may give grace to those who hear.

Efesus 6:4

6:4 Fathers, ²¹  do not provoke your children to anger, ²²  but raise them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

Efesus 4:17

Live in Holiness

4:17 So I say this, and insist ²³  in the Lord, that you no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility ²⁴  of their thinking. ²⁵ 

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. ²⁶ 

Efesus 6:6

6:6 not like those who do their work only when someone is watching ²⁷  – as people-pleasers – but as slaves of Christ doing the will of God from the heart. ²⁸ 

Efesus 4:28

4:28 The one who steals must steal no longer; rather he must labor, doing good with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with the one who has need.

Efesus 4:14

4:14 So ²⁹  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. ³⁰ 

Efesus 5:4

5:4 Neither should there be vulgar speech, foolish talk, or coarse jesting – all of which are out of character – but rather thanksgiving.

Efesus 4:31

4:31 You must put away every kind of bitterness, anger, wrath, quarreling, and evil, slanderous talk.

Efesus 4:22

4:22 You were taught with reference to your former way of life to lay aside ³¹  the old man who is being corrupted in accordance with deceitful desires,

Efesus 6:9

6:9 Masters, ³²  treat your slaves ³³  the same way, ³⁴  giving up the use of threats, ³⁵  because you know that both you and they have the same master in heaven, ³⁶  and there is no favoritism with him.

Efesus 6:18

6:18 With every prayer and petition, pray ³⁷  at all times in the Spirit, and to this end ³⁸  be alert, with all perseverance and requests for all the saints.

Efesus 4:25

4:25 Therefore, having laid aside falsehood, each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, ³⁹  for we are members of one another.

Efesus 2:11

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 ⁴⁰  by human hands –

[5:7]  ¹ tn The genitive αὐτῶν (autwn) has been translated as a genitive of association because of its use with συμμέτοχοι (summetocoi) – a verb which implies association in the σύν- (sun-) prefix.

[4:26]  ² sn A quotation from Ps 4:4. Although several translations render the phrase Be angry and do not sin as “If you are angry, do not sin” such is unlikely on a grammatical, lexical, and historical level (see D. B. Wallace, “᾿Οργίζεσθε in Ephesians 4:26: Command or Condition?” CTR 3 [1989]: 352-72). The idea of vv. 26-27 is as follows: Christians are to exercise a righteous indignation over sin in the midst of the believing community (v. 26a; note that v. 25 is restricting the discussion to those in the body of Christ). When other believers sin, such people should be gently and quickly confronted (v. 26b), for if the body of Christ does not address sin in its midst, the devil gains a foothold (v. 27). “Entirely opposite of the ‘introspective conscience’ view, this text seems to be a shorthand expression for church discipline, suggesting that there is a biblical warrant for δικαία ὀργή [dikaia orgh] (as the Greeks put it) – righteous indignation” (ExSyn 492).

[4:26]  ³ tn The word παροργισμός (parorgismo"), typically translated “anger” in most versions is used almost exclusively of the source of anger rather than the results in Greek literature (thus, it refers to an external cause or provocation rather than an internal reaction). The notion of “cause of your anger” is both lexically and historically justified. The apparently proverbial nature of the statement (“Do not let the sun go down on the cause of your anger”) finds several remarkable parallels in Pss. Sol. 8:8-9: “(8) God laid bare their sins in the full light of day; All the earth came to know the righteous judgments of God. (9) In secret places underground their iniquities (were committed) to provoke (Him) to anger” (R. H. Charles’ translation). Not only is παροργισμός used, but righteous indignation against God’s own people and the laying bare of their sins in broad daylight are also seen.

[5:17]  ⁴ tn “become wise by understanding”; Grk “understanding.” The imperative “be wise” is apparently implied by the construction of vv. 15-21. See the following text-critical note for discussion.

[5:17]  ⁵ tc ‡ The best witnesses read the imperative here (so Ì⁴⁶ א A B P 0278 33 81 1739 pc). The participle is found primarily in the Western and Byzantine texttypes (D² Ψ 1881 Ï latt [D* F G are slightly different, but support the participial reading]). But the participle is superior on internal grounds: The structure of v. 17 almost requires an imperative after ἀλλά (alla), for this gives balance to the clause: “Do not become foolish, but understand…” If the participle is original, it may be imperatival (and thus should be translated just like an imperative), but such is quite rare in the NT. More likely, there is an implied imperative as follows: “Do not become foolish, but become wise, understanding what the will of the Lord is.” Either way, the participle is the harder reading and ought therefore to be considered original. It is significant that seeing an implied imperative in this verse affords a certain symmetry to the author’s thought in vv. 15-21: There are three main sections (vv. 15-16, v. 17, vv. 18-21), each of which provides a negative injunction, followed by a positive injunction, followed by a present adverbial participle. If συνίετε (suniete) is original, this symmetry is lost. Thus, even though the external evidence for συνιέντες (sunientes) is not nearly as weighty as for the imperative, both the transcriptional and intrinsic evidence support it.

[2:9]  ⁶ tn Or “not as a result of.”

[2:9]  ⁷ tn Grk “lest anyone should boast.”

[5:11]  ⁸ tn The Greek conjunction καὶ (kai) seems to be functioning here ascensively, (i.e., “even”), but is difficult to render in this context using good English. It may read something like: “but rather even expose them!”

[5:11]  ⁹ tn Grk “rather even expose.”

[5:18]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “in which.”

[5:18]  ¹¹ tn Or “dissipation.” See BDAG 148 s.v. ἀσωτία.

[5:18]  ¹² tn Many have taken ἐν πνεύματι (en pneumati) as indicating content, i.e., one is to be filled with the Spirit. ExSyn 375 states, “There are no other examples in biblical Greek in which ἐν + the dative after πληρόω indicates content. Further, the parallel with οἴνῳ as well as the common grammatical category of means suggest that the idea intended is that believers are to be filled by means of the [Holy] Spirit. If so there seems to be an unnamed agent. The meaning of this text can only be fully appreciated in light of the πληρόω language in Ephesians. Always the term is used in connection with a member of the Trinity. Three considerations seem to be key: (1) In Eph 3:19 the ‘hinge’ prayer introducing the last half of the letter makes a request that the believers ‘be filled with all the fullness of God’ (πληρωθῆτε εἰς πᾶν πλήρωμα τοῦ θεοῦ). The explicit content of πληρόω is thus God’s fullness (probably a reference to his moral attributes). (2) In 4:10 Christ is said to be the agent of filling (with v. 11 adding the specifics of his giving spiritual gifts). (3) The author then brings his argument to a crescendo in 5:18: Believers are to be filled by Christ by means of the Spirit with the content of the fullness of God.”

[5:3]  ¹³ tn The term “But” translates the δέ (de) in a contrastive way in light of the perfect obedience of Jesus in vv. 1-2 and the vices mentioned in v. 3.

[5:3]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “all impurity.”

[5:3]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “just as is fitting for saints.” The καθώς (kaqws) was rendered with “as” and the sense is causal, i.e., “for” or “because.” The negative particle “not” (“for these are not proper for the saints”) in this clause was supplied in English so as to make the sense very clear, i.e., that these vices are not befitting of those who name the name of Christ.

[3:13]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “I ask.” No direct object is given in Greek, leaving room for the possibility that either “God” (since the verb is often associated with prayer) or “you” is in view.

[3:13]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “my trials on your behalf.”

[3:13]  ¹⁸ sn Which. The antecedent (i.e., the word or concept to which this clause refers back) may be either “what I am suffering for you” or the larger concept of the recipients not losing heart over Paul’s suffering for them. The relative pronoun “which” is attracted to the predicate nominative “glory” in its gender and number (feminine singular), making the antecedent ambiguous. Paul’s suffering for them could be viewed as their glory (cf. Col 1:24 for a parallel) in that his suffering has brought about their salvation, but if so his suffering must be viewed as more than his present imprisonment in Rome; it would be a general description of his ministry overall (cf. 2 Cor 11:23-27). The other option is that the author is implicitly arguing that the believers have continued to have courage in the midst of his trials (as not to lose heart suggests) and that this is their glory. Philippians 1:27-28 offers an interesting parallel: The believers’ courage in the face of adversity is a sign of their salvation.

[3:13]  ¹⁹ tn Or “Or who is your glory?” The relative pronoun ἥτις (Jhti"), if divided differently, would become ἤ τίς (h ti"). Since there were no word breaks in the original mss, either word division is possible. The force of the question would be that for the readers to become discouraged over Paul’s imprisonment would mean that they were no longer trusting in God’s sovereignty.

[4:29]  ²⁰ 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.

[6:4]  ²¹ tn Or perhaps “Parents” (so TEV, CEV). The plural οἱ πατέρες (Joi patere", “fathers”) can be used to refer to both the male and female parent (BDAG 786 s.v. πατήρ 1.b).

[6:4]  ²² tn Or “do not make your children angry.” BDAG 780 s.v. παροργίζω states “make angry.” The Greek verb in Col 3:21 is a different one with a slightly different nuance.

[4:17]  ²³ tn On the translation of μαρτύρομαι (marturomai) as “insist” see BDAG 619 s.v. 2.

[4:17]  ²⁴ tn On the translation of ματαιότης (mataioth") as “futility” see BDAG 621 s.v.

[4:17]  ²⁵ tn Or “thoughts,” “mind.”

[5:6]  ²⁶ 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.

[6:6]  ²⁷ tn Grk “not according to eye-service.”

[6:6]  ²⁸ tn Grk “from the soul.”

[4:14]  ²⁹ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[4:14]  ³⁰ 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.

[4:22]  ³¹ 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.

[6:9]  ³² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:9]  ³³ tn Though the Greek text only has αὐτούς (autous, “them”), the antecedent is the slaves of the masters. Therefore, it was translated this way to make it explicit in English.

[6:9]  ³⁴ tn Grk “do the same things to them.”

[6:9]  ³⁵ tn Grk “giving up the threat.”

[6:9]  ³⁶ tn Grk “because of both they and you, the Lord is, in heaven…”

[6:18]  ³⁷ tn Both “pray” and “be alert” are participles in the Greek text (“praying…being alert”). Both are probably instrumental, loosely connected with all of the preceding instructions. As such, they are not additional commands to do but instead are the means through which the prior instructions are accomplished.

[6:18]  ³⁸ tn Grk “and toward it.”

[4:25]  ³⁹ sn A quotation from Zech 8:16.

[2:11]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “in the flesh.”