Steven Long Ephesians 1:3-10 Last Updated: 10/03/2009

Steven Long Ephesians 1:3-10 Last updated: 10/03/2009

3a

3b

4a

Εὐλογητὸς| ὁ| θεὸς| Blessed| be| the| God| and| Father| of| our| Lord| καὶ| πατὴρ| τοῦ| Ac Jesus| Christ, κυρίου| ἡμῶν| Ἰησοῦ| Χριστοῦ, L ὁ| εὐλογήσας| ἡμᾶς| who| has| blessed| us| in| Christ| with| every| ἐν| πάσῃ| εὐλογίᾳ| spiritual| blessing| in| the| Mn πνευματικῇ| ἐν| τοῖς|heavenly| places, ἐπουρανίοις| ἐν| Χριστῷ,

καθὼς| ἐξελέξατο| even| as| he| chose| us| in| him| before| the| ἡμᾶς| ἐν| αὐτῷ| πρὸ| foundation| of| the| world, καταβολῆς| κόσμου,

Ac

4b

εἶναι| ἡμᾶς| ἁγίους| καὶ| ἀμώμους| κατενώπιον| αὐτοῦ

that| we| should| be| holy| Pur and| blameless| before| him.

4c5a

ἐν| ἀγάπῃ,| προορίσας| ἡμᾶς

In| love| he| predestined| Mn us

5b

εἰς| υἱοθεσίαν| διὰ| Ἰησοῦ| Χριστοῦ

for| adoption| as| sons| through| Jesus| Christ,

εἰς| αὐτόν,| κατὰ| τὴν| εὐδοκίαν| τοῦ| θελήματος| αὐτοῦ,

according| to| the| purpose| of| his| will,

Id

5c

6a

εἰς| ἔπαινον| δόξης| τῆς| χάριτος| αὐτοῦ

to| the| praise| of| his| glorious| grace,

Gb

6b

ἧς| ἐχαρίτωσεν| ἡμᾶς| ἐν| τῷ| ἠγαπημένῳ,

with| which| he| has| blessed| us| in| the| Beloved.

7a

ἐν| ᾧ| ἔχομεν| τὴν| In| him| we| have| redemption| through| his| ἀπολύτρωσιν| διὰ| blood, τοῦ| αἵματος| αὐτοῦ,

Ga

Mn Exp

Id

τὴν| ἄφεσιν| τῶν| παραπτωμάτων,

the| forgiveness| of| our| trespasses,

Exp

7c

κατὰ| τὸ| πλοῦτος| τῆς| χάριτος| αὐτοῦ,

according| to| the| riches| of| his| grace,

G

8

A

Ac

7b

ἧς| ἐπερίσσευσεν| which| he| lavished| upon| us,| in| all| wisdom| and| εἰς| ἡμᾶς| ἐν| πάσῃ| insight σοφίᾳ| καὶ| φρονήσει

L

L

Ac

Res

L

9a

9b10a

γνωρίσας| ἡμῖν| τὸ| μυστήριον| τοῦ| θελήματος| αὐτοῦ,

making| known| to| us| the| mystery| of| his| will,

κατὰ| τὴν| εὐδοκίαν| according| to| his| purpose,| which| he| set| αὐτοῦ| ἣν| προέθετο| forth| in| Christ| as| a| plan| for| the| fullness| of| time, ἐν| αὐτῷ| εἰς| οἰκονομίαν| τοῦ| πληρώματος| τῶν| καιρῶν,

10b

ἀνακεφαλαιώσασθαιto| unite| all| things| in| him, τὰ| πάντα| ἐν| τῷ| Χριστῷ,

10c

τὰ| ἐπὶ| τοῖς| οὐρανοῖς| καὶ| τὰ| ἐπὶ| τῆς| γῆς·| ἐν| αὐτῷ,

Id

L

things| in| heaven| and| things| on| earth.

Exp

Notes

. . .To His Glorious Praise (Re-worked) My original arc only went to verse 9 but upon further reading I discovered that I had cut it out in the middle of a clause. This new arc included verse 10.

The Locative phrase In Him is the central idea of this passage. It is in Christ to which the following blessings for the believer have been sanctioned:

     

Every spiritual blessing in the heaveanlies (v.3) Chosen for salvation (v.4a) Holy and blameless (v.4b) Predestined for adoption as sons (v.5a) Redemption and forgiveness of sins (v.7a,b) Recievers of the mystery, the gospel (v.9a)

The Blessings

Every spiritual blessing - Although Paul does not precicsely state what the spiritual blessings are two things can be rightly deduced from this section: (1) They are spiritual (of the Holy Spirit) and thererfore cannot be obtained by those outside of Christ, especially considering that the theme "In Christ" is central to understanding these blessings. (2) The blessings come from the Heavenly places. The word ἐπουρανίοις contains two Greek words. The first is epi, a preposition meaning on, upon, at, in, by ect. The second word is the usual word translated as heaven, ouranos. It seems that the 'every' encompasses the entire realm and Paul will begin to name some of these blessings in the next few verses. Paul's point is the graciousness of the Giver of these blessings and this is apparrent by the doxology at the outset of the chapter. They are in the heavenly places because they belong to God and God alone. He has graciously chosen to give benevolently to the believer and reveal His character as kind and good. On this point, it is important to note that although God is gracious and kind it would be unfair to demand that He give these blessings to all. He gives them to whomever He wishes (Joh 5:21). Chosen for salvation - This is perhaps the crux of all the spiritual blessings. Without life we could have none of the others. For this reason it is the first of the blessings that Paul mentions. Chosen in Christ is certainly the most gracious of all gifts considering that all mankind is under condemnation (Ro 5:18; Jas 2:10). Lest any of us consider that we may be worthy of this choosing or that some form of goodness has caused God to choose us we should note three things: 1. 1. 1. The choosing took place before the foundation of the world. Before God had done any creative act; before He said, "Let there be light"; while the earth was yet without form and void, God had already decreed the act of redemption (1Pe 1:20). The election of His people was accomplished and "marked out in advanced" as the word προορίζω (predestined) suggests 2. It is "He" that chooses "us." This, and other passages, especially Romans 8:29 have been twisted to mean that God chooses us based upon His knowledge of our foreseen faith in Christ. But this grossly violates the text in that (1) Paul states specifically that the choosing is done by the Father. (2) The choosing is Him of us, not of us choosing Him. (3) The choosing is in Christ, i.e, unto life. This must be the case as there is no life outside of Christ (Joh 10:10). Therefore, to be in Christ is to be in Life. (4) If foreseen faith is the cause of God's choosing then it is really not God's election of us but our election of Him (to be Lord over us). This is simply another way to re-word point 2, but the truth remains nevertheless. The problem arises when man's responsibility to respond to the gospel call is done away with, and this is by no means Paul's implications as we can certainly read the rest of this book or other of his writings and conclude that he is in no way implicating this postiion. Paul's point is one of praise and adoration for God because of the blessings He has conveyed in spite of ourselves. His praise is because God has chosen us, has predestined us, has forgiven us. 3. "Just as" indicates the purpose of the choosing. The word kathos links the two clauses of verse 4 and gives a causal of the choosing (to be holy and blameless). It is also a continuing thought of verse 3 describing the manner in which the Father blesses His elect, namely the choosing of them in eternity past. It is no wonder then why Paul chose to focus upon this blessing at the outset of all other blessings. That we should be holy and blameless. This blessing builds upon election but is no less a blessing than election is. God has not saved us and raised us from the dead in order to continue to live as we have always lived, or even as we desire. But that we should be set apart from the world and to God. This setting apart is further elaborated upon in chapter 2 as Paul describes the reason that the Son of God has delivered us from our sin. We are to "walk in [good works] that God has prepared beforehand" (Eph 2:10). We are not to remain in the fruits of darkness but we are to exhibit a life worthy of the calling to which He has called us. Also included in this blessing is "blameless." The word 'blameless' simply means to be without fault. Is it possible that God could actually look upon us and see no fault or guilt with us? NO! We are all guilty and that is precicisely the miraculous nature of our being chosen "to be holy and blameless before Him." The One who is blameless is none other than Jesus Christ Himself. It is He and His righteousness that has caused the Father to look upon us with graciousness and the kindness of a benevolent God for God made Him to be sin, who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God. Note very keenly that passage. We have been made the righteousness of Christ. It is not that we ourselves have become righteous for how can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? We are powerless to be righteous until we have first been made righteous through Christ. Then, and only then, may we rejoice that we are holy and blameless before Him. Predestined for adoption as sons - If any statement flies in the face of those who oppose or re-interpret predestination then this statement must be it. What does adoption as sons mean except that of eternal life? Can one really interpret this passage another way? Only if he is not honest with the text, can he. Paul, no doubt has in mind to excite his readers by the use of this phrase. In the ancient world, adoption

Paul, no doubt has in mind to excite his readers by the use of this phrase. In the ancient world, adoption meant that the individual had the full benefits of sonship, including being an heir of the father's estate. In the same way, Paul is describing this most marvelous blessings to his audience. They understood the concept of adoption; and not any ordinary adoption but the adoption as a son or a daughter of the God of the universe; the One to whom all things rightly belong. Because this adoption is through Jesus Christ (we have become righteous through Him), and because Christ is the inheritor of all things, we too shall be inheritors with Him (Ro 8:17). Redemption and forgiveness of sins - Because we are adopted as His sons and daughters, and because of HIs great love, He has pardoned the very thing which has caused us to be separated from the Father. But again, notice the Locative In Him. The word 'Him' is not the personal pronoun as one would expect but rather is the demonstrative pronoun hos which indicates a specific thing. The passage could literally be read In this One we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. This brings out two factors: 1. The forgiveness is limited to a single individual. It is not found in another hos but this hos (Acts 4:12). The exlcusivity of the apostle should cause us to stop and think about the implications of what is being said. The deomonstrative is specific to Christ for it is Christ in which all Heavenly blessing are found. Just as Scripture has said, In Him all the fullnes of God was pleased to dwell. Now, if God is pleased to reveal Himself in Christ and cause Him to purchase His people with the blood of His own veins we must not think that forgiveness could be imparted to us any other way. Even Christ Himself has stated this truth (Joh 14:6). 2. The forgiveness is through His blood and towards us.The preposition dia (through) gives us the cause and the agent through which redemption occurs. The entire phrase here is found in the Genetive which is normally used to indicate possession but in its preostional form indicates the cause or the means by which something occurs, hence the way or the cause of our redemption. In the OT redemption always came with a price. A certain expense was required to redeem an individual, an animal, or property. The price of redemption depended upon the situation and the redeemer would have to meet the obligations of debt or other conditions before redemption could be sealed (Ex 21:30; Le 25:25; Num 18:16, ect.). And what was the price of our redemption? It was nothin less than the blood of the Son of God! That is why redemption only comes dia haimatos autou (through His blood). Making the gospel known to us - The blessings close with a summary statement of all the blessings, the revealing of the gospel message. Many try to make this mystery more than it really is. It is important to keep in mind that that this mystery, when referred to in the epistles, is usually the gospel itself. It is simply something being revealed in the present which had been hidden in the past. Christ is now revealed and the mystery uncovered. See what kind of love the Father has given to us that we should be called children of God; and so we are. This mystery revealed is the unfathomable love of our Father. And it is not a precocious thing He has done for we are told in the very next clause that all these things, the blessings that is, are according to the riches of His grace. And if they are His riches they are certainly not ours; and if it is because of His grace then He is the only who may dictate those who lay claim to it. Not that the Father is stingy or greedy for He has proclaimed, Let the one who hears say, "Come." and let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who is thirsty take the water of life without price (Re 22:17). God is most loving and gracious. Oh, how He loves us! He never will withold this fee gift from all that come to HIm. He will save to the utmost those who come through Christ Jesus. Can anything so great be wanted by any individual as to know and be completely known and satisfied with the love of our Great God?

Conclusion There are two phrases which tie this entire passage together: According to His purpose (vv. 5, 9) and To the praise of His glorious grace (v.6). These two phrases explain the action and the manner (or reason) why all of these things have taken place. First, these things are foremost according to His will. And just what does the apostle mean by this? None can be certain exactly what God's will is except that which He has already revealed to us. Neither does Paul make any attempt to explain any more than what he has just explained. God's plan and His ways for His people are now and will be a mystery until eternity comes. Despite this, there is a clue to this purpose. One key word that appears in both of these passages is the word eudokia. It is translated as 'good pleasure' in most other places and appears in both verse 5 and verse 9. The fact that it is His will and His pleasure reveals something to us: It reveals that God was pleased to have sons and daughters. God is not lonely and we should never make the assumption that He needed us. Rather, it was His benevolence that caused Him to cause us to be born again (Joh 1:12-13). He is a gracious and giving God and loves to bestow His benevolence on all that cry out to Him, Abba, Father! It was Jesus Himself that stated the good pleasure of the Fahther towards His children: If you then, who are evil, know how to

that stated the good pleasure of the Fahther towards His children: If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in Heaven give good things to those who ask Him? (Mt 7:11). Should those who are chosen and elect of God ever doubt His goodness for them? More than that, we should share this wonderful news to those who do not yet know of the Father's kindness and goodness towards us. We should be quick to tell them that, not only is God good and kind and benevolent, but that it is His pleasure to have us as sons and daughters through faith in His Son's Name. Second, these blessings are according to His purpose. This purpose is that which has been set forth in Christ. Again, this locative appears because the whole purpose and plan of God was to exalt Christ above every other name. And this plan is to unit (or give) all things to Him. And the word protithimi shows the purposeful action of God from the beginning to the end. It was a purposeful choosing of the saints; a purposeful adoption of the chosen; a purposeful forgiveness of sins and redemption; and a purposeful revealing of our salvation. For nothing God ever does is out of random thought or careless percociousness but a thoughtful intent and will and desire to do all that He has already planned. That is why the apostle declares "from the foundation of the world." But the purpose is not only for Christ, though He is the one to whom all things are united. This purpose includes those of us who have received these blessings according to the riches of His grace. And these riches truly are grace for we could never have been able to recieve them unless Christ had first marked us out from eternity past (v.5) and then called us at the proper time to recieve our adoption (Joh 6:37; Acts 13:48; Re 17:8). Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom of God! How unserachable are His judgments and how inscrutible His ways! (Ro 11:33). Need we try to explain God's goodness to us with any other words? God is great and we are not; He is benevolent and we are selfish; He is love and we are loved by Him. And no other thing but unrestrained praise and glory and honor should we give to Him, our marvelous Savior. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound Amazing love now flowing down From hands and feet that were nailed to the tree As grace flows down and covers me