Tyndale Open Study Notes

Verse 1

1:1-2 Paul follows the normal pattern of ancient Greek letters: He begins with a few words about himself followed by greetings. He expands this pattern in a Christian way by referring to his divine calling as an apostle, by describing his recipients as God’s holy people and as faithful followers of Christ, and by his invocation of grace and peace.

1:1 The frequent emphasis on the will of God (see 1:5, 9, 11; 5:17; 6:6) underscores God’s sovereignty in fulfilling his plan. • God’s holy people: Literally the holy ones, who are dedicated to God (see also 1:15, 18; 2:19; 3:8, 18; 4:12; 5:3; 6:18). • The most ancient manuscripts do not include in Ephesus, and there are no personal greetings in this letter. Many scholars believe that the letter was originally sent to be circulated to a number of churches in the area rather than to the church in Ephesus alone.

Verse 2

1:2 Paul usually invokes God’s grace and peace on those to whom he is writing. Grace is undeserved blessing that comes from God’s kindness; peace is a sense of well-being and contentedness rooted in the Good News and brought about by the Holy Spirit (see Gal 5:22). Both are gifts from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ (see Rom 5:1-2).

Verse 3

1:3–3:21 Ephesians is divided into two sections: Chs 1–3 praise God for his amazing grace, and chs 4–6 instruct believers on how to live in grateful response.

1:3-14 Paul praises God for all the spiritual blessings he has graciously provided through Jesus Christ, for Gentiles as well as for Jews. • This section is a single, complex sentence in Greek—one of the longest in Paul’s letters, with long sentences being typical of Paul’s writing (also in 1:15-23; 2:1-7, 14-16; 3:1-12, 14-19; Col 1:3-29; 2:1-3, 8-15). The interwoven nature of these sentences reflects the interconnectedness of their ideas.

1:3 Paul describes every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in 1:4-8, 13-14. Paul’s focus is not on physical blessings, but on what God has done through Christ to bring people into a saving relationship with himself.

Verse 4

1:4 God’s people are holy and without fault in his eyes because they trust in Christ’s atoning sacrifice for their sins (see 1:7; 5:25-27; Col 1:22; Titus 3:5-7; Jude 1:24).

Verse 5

1:5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family: By his sovereign initiative, God embraces and blesses as his children those who trust in Christ. They become heirs to all the promises God has made to his people (see 1:11, 14; 2:19; Rom 8:15-17, 29-30; Gal 4:5).

Verse 6

1:6 Believers praise God, who has richly blessed them with his forgiving grace. • his dear Son: Literally the beloved, a Messianic title for Jesus; see Matt 3:17; 17:5; Col 1:13.

Verse 7

1:7 he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son: Believers, who were once prisoners of sin, are free from God’s judgment and from bondage to sin because of Christ’s sacrificial death (see 1:14; 4:30; Rom 3:24; 1 Cor 6:20; Col 1:14; cp. Matt 26:28; Mark 10:45; Heb 9:11-12, 26; 1 Pet 1:18-19).

Verse 8

1:8-10 Wisdom and understanding come from the revelation of God’s mysterious will regarding Christ. In Paul’s writings, mysterious will (traditionally mystery) often refers to a divine truth formerly hidden but now revealed in the Good News (see 3:9). Here it refers to how God will bring everything together under the authority of Christ, so that he may be universally recognized and respected as Lord (see Phil 2:9-11; Col 1:16-20, 26-27; 2:2, 19; 4:3). Ephesians focuses specifically on the inclusion of Gentiles as well as Jews in God’s redeemed people (see Eph 3:3-6; 6:19; cp. Rom 16:25-26).

Verse 11

1:11 we have received an inheritance from God: Paul often talks about salvation as an inheritance, something promised to our spiritual ancestors and received by us (see Rom 8:17; Gal 3:29; 4:7; Col 1:12; 3:24). • Because God is sovereign, he makes everything work out according to his plan (cp. Rom 8:28-30).

Verse 12

1:12-13 we Jews . . . you Gentiles: Literally we . . . you; the reference to Jews and Gentiles is implied.

Verse 13

1:13 he identified you as his own (or he put his seal on you): Just as a seal signifies authentic ownership, the Holy Spirit in a believer’s life signifies God’s ownership (4:30; 2 Cor 1:22).

Verse 14

1:14 The Spirit is both God’s guarantee of future blessings and a foretaste of eternal life and power. The believer’s eternal inheritance includes everything he promised (see also 1:18; Rom 8:17; 2 Cor 1:22; 5:5; Gal 3:29; 4:7; Col 1:12; 3:24; Titus 3:7).

Verse 15

1:15-23 Paul prays that his readers may have the spiritual understanding to grasp the full significance of God’s gifts (1:3-14).

1:15 Paul links faith in Christ with love for God’s people. Personal faith in Christ brings salvation, and salvation is expressed, above all, by a life of love (see Gal 5:6; Col 1:4; 1 Thes 1:3; 3:6; 5:8; 2 Thes 1:3; 1 Tim 1:14; 2:15; Titus 2:2).

Verse 17

1:17 spiritual wisdom (or the Spirit of wisdom): The word spirit can refer either to the Holy Spirit or to the human spirit. • Knowledge of God is to know God personally and experientially, not just to know about him intellectually (see John 17:3).

Verse 18

1:18 Confident hope for believers is the anticipation of Christ’s return and his future blessings that they will share. Joined with Christ, believers become joint heirs with him of all God’s promised blessings.

Verse 19

1:19-20 God’s power for us who believe him is the power of his Spirit at work in and through his people, because they are joined to the resurrected Christ (see Rom 6:4-14; Col 2:12). Paul longed to experience the power of Christ’s resurrection in his own life (Phil 3:10). • In biblical times, the place of honor was always at a person’s right hand (Ps 110:1; Acts 7:56).

Verse 21

1:21 he is far above: Jesus’ power and authority transcend all rival powers, whether human or spiritual, in this age and the coming age (see 3:10; 6:12; John 12:31; Rom 8:38-39; 1 Cor 15:24; Col 1:13; 2:10, 15; 1 Pet 3:22; Rev 12:7-9).

Verse 22

1:22 under the authority of Christ (literally under his feet): In pictures from the ancient Near East, victorious kings have their feet on the necks of their defeated enemies. Paul is graphically picturing the way Christ has defeated all his enemies and reigns as king of all things (see Ps 110:1; 1 Cor 15:25-28).

Verse 23

1:23 it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself (or it is the full expression of the one who fills everything everywhere): This difficult phrase probably means that the church, as his body, is the full expression of Christ in this world. His presence, which fills the entire universe (4:10), is reflected in and works through his body.