TEXT. 19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power; 20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand, in the heavenly places, 21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, PARAPHRASE. dant glory it is to the saints to become his people, and 19 the lot of his inheritance; And what an exceeding great 20 power he has employed upon us who believe: A power corresponding to that mighty power, which he exerted in the raising Christ from the dead, and in setting him next to himself, over all things, relating to his heavenly king21 dom; Far above all principality, and power, and might, NOTES. 19 f Us," here, and "you," chap. ii. 1, and "us," chap. ii. 5, it is plain signify the same, who being dead, partook of the energy of that great power that raised Christ from the dead, i. e. the convert gentiles, and all those glorious things he, in ver. 18-23, intimates to them, by praying they may see them, he here in this 19th verse tells, is bestowed on them, as believers, and not as ob servers of the mosaical law. 20 8 'Ev Tois Tefavíos, "in heavenly places," says our translation, and so ver. 3, but possibly the marginal reading, “things," will be thought the better, if we compare ver. 22. He set him at his right hand, i. e. transferred on him his power; paviors, in his heavenly kingdom; that is to say, set him at the head of his heavenly kingdom, see ver. 22. This kingdom, in the gospel, is called indifferently, βασιλεία Θε, “ the kingdom of God;” and βασιλείς Tv pavy, "the kingdom of heaven." God had before, a kingdom and people in this world, viz. that kingdom, which he erected to himself, of the jews, selected and brought back to himself, out of the apostatized mass of revolted and rebellious mankind: with this his people he dwelt, among them he had his habitation, and ruled as their king, in a peculiar kingdom; and, therefore, we see that our Saviour calls the jews, Matt. viii. 12, "the children of the kingdom." But that kingdom, though God's, was not the Baoksia Tv pavus, “the king"dom of heaven," that came with Christ: see Matt. iii. 2, and x. 7. That was but iniya, "of the earth," compared to this fán, “heavenly king"dom," which was to be erected under Jesus Christ; and, with that sort of distinction, our Saviour seems to speak and use those words iiyez, "earthly," and inspana," heavenly," John iii. 12. In his discourse there, with Nicodemus, he tells him, "unless a man were born again, he could not see the king"dom of God.” This being born again, stuck with Nicodemus, which Christ reproaches him with, since, being a teacher in Israel, he understood not that which belonged to the jewish constitution, wherein to be baptized, for admittance into that kingdom, was called and counted to be born again; and therefore says, if, having spoken unto you iziyea, things relating to your own earthly constitution, you comprehend me not, how shall you receive what I say, if I speak to you, rà inegána, heavenly things, i. e. of that kingdom, which is purely heavenly? And according to this, St. Paul's words here, Eph. 66 TEXT. and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come. 22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church. 23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. PARAPHRASE. and dominion, and any other, either man or angel, of greater dignity or excellency, that we may come to be acquainted with, or hear the names of, either in this 22 world, or the world to come: And hath put all things in subjection to him; and him, invested with a power over all things, he hath constituted head of the church, 23 Which is his body, which is completed by him alone', NOTES. 5. 10, τα τῆς ἐν τοῖς ἐρανοῖς καὶ τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς, (which occur again, chap. iii. 15, Col. i. 16, 20) may perhaps not unfitly be interpreted" of the spiritual, "heavenly kingdom of God:" and that also of the more earthly one of the jews, whose rites and positive institutions St. Paul calls "elements of the world," Gal. iv. 3, Col. ii. 8, which were both, at the coming of the Messiah, consolidated into one, and together re-established under one head, Christ Jesus. The whole drift of this, and the two following chapters, being to declare the union of the jews and gentiles into one body, under Christ, the head of the heavenly kingdom. And he that sedately compares Eph. ii. 16, with Col. i. 20, (in both which places it is evident, the apostle speaks of the same thing, viz. God's reconciling of both jews and gentiles, by the cross of Christ) will scarce be able to avoid thinking, that "things in heaven, and things on earth," signify the people of the one and the other of these kingdoms. 21h These abstract names are frequently used in the New Testament, according to the style of the eastern languages, for those vested with power and dominion, &c. and that, not only here on earth, among men, but in heaven, among superiour beings and so often are taken to express ranks and degrees of angels: and, though they are generally agreed to do so here, yet there is no reason to exclude earthly potentates out of this text, when wons necessarily includes them; for that men in power are one sort of exai and ivota, in a scripture-sense, our Saviour's own words show, Luke xii. 11, and xx. 2. Besides, the apostle's chief aim here being to satisfy the ephesians, that they were not to be subjected to the law of Moses, and the government of those who ruled by it, but they were called to be of the kingdom of the Messiah: it is not to be supposed, that here, where he speaks of Christ's exaltation to a power and dominion paramount to all other, he should not have an eye to that little and low government of the jews, which it was beneath the subjects of so glorious a kingdom, as that of Jesus Christ, to submit themselves to. And this the next words do farther enforce. 23 iПńρwμa, “fulness," here, is taken in a passive sense, for a thing to be filled, or completed, as appears by the following words, "of him that filleth all "in all," i. e. it is Christ the head, who perfecteth the church, by supplying and furnishing all things to all the members, to make them what they are, and ought to be, in that body. See chap. v. 18, Col. ii. 10, and iii. 10, 11. TEXT. II. 1 And you hath he quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins, PARAPHRASE. from whom comes all, that gives any thing of excellency and perfection to any of the members of the church: where to be a jew, or a greek, circumcised, or uncircumcised, a barbarian, or a scythian, a slave, or a freeman, matters not; but to be united to him, to partake of his influence and spirit, is all in all. II. 1 And you, being also dead in trespasses and sins, NOTE. 1k Kai, "and," gives us here the thread of St. Paul's discourse, which is impossible to be understood without seeing the train of it: without that view, it would be like a rope of gold-dust, all the parts would be excellent, and of value, but would seem heaped together, without order, or connexion. This "and," here, it is true, ties the parts together, and points out the connexion and coherence of St. Paul's discourse; but yet it stands so far from ixáðiσer, “set,” in ver. 20, of the foregoing chapter; and ovve(worcings, "quickened," ver. 5, of this chapter, which are the two verbs it copulates together; that by one, not acquainted with St. Paul's style, it would scarce be observed or admitted, and therefore it may not be amiss, to lay it in its due light, so as to be visible to an ordinary reader. St. Paul v. 18-20, prays that the ephesians may be so enlightened, as to see the great advantages they received by the gospel: those that he specifies are these: 1. What great hopes he gave them. 2. What an exceeding glory accompanied the inheritance of the saints. 3. The mighty power exerted by God on their behalf, which bore some proportion to that which he employed in the raising Christ from the dead, and placing him at his right hand: upon the mention of which, his mind being full of that glorious image, he lets his pen run into a description of the exaltation of Christ, which lasts to the end of that chapter, and then re-assumes the thread of his discourse; which in short stands thus: "I pray God, that the eyes of your understandings may be en lightened, that you may see the exceeding great power of God, which is em"ployed upon us who believe: [xalà Th] corresponding to that energy, where"with he raised Christ from the dead, and seated him at his right hand; for so also has he raised you, who were dead in trespasses and sins: us, I say, who were dead in trespasses and sins, has he quickened, and raised together with Christ, and seated together with him in his heavenly kingdom." This is, in short, the train and connexion of his discourse, from chap. i. 18, to ii. 5, though it be interrupted by many incident thoughts; which, as his manner is, he enlarges upon by the way, and then returns to the thread of his discourse. For here again, in this first verse of the second chapter, we must observe, that, having mentioned their being dead in trespasses and sins, he enlarges upon that forlorn estate of the gentiles before their conversion; and then comes to what he designed, that God out of his great goodness, quickened, raised, and placed them together with Christ, in his heavenly kingdom. In all which it is plain he had more regard to the things he declared to them, than to a nice, grammatical construction of his words: for it is manifest x, "and," ver. 1, and, "and," ver. 5, copulate ovvwordings, "quickened," with ixábio, "set," ver. 20, of the foregoing chapter, which the two following words, ver. 6, make evident, TEXT. 2 Wherein, in time past, ye walked, according to the course of this PARAPHRASE. 2 In which you gentiles, before you were converted to the gospel, walked, according to the state and constitution of this world', conforming yourselves to the will and plea NOTES. έγειρε καὶ συνεκάθισεν εν ἐπυρανίοις, σε and hath raised up together, and hath made sit together in heavenly places." St. Paul, to display the great power and energy of God, showed towards the gentiles, in bringing them into his heavenly kingdom, declares it to be xalà Tgyar, proportionable to that power, wherewith he raised Jesus from the dead, and seated him at his right hand. To express the parallel, he keeps to the parallel terms concerning Christ; he says, chap. i. 20, ἐγείρας αυλὸν ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν, καὶ ἐκάθισεν ἐν δεξιᾷ αὐτοῦ ἐν τοῖς ἐπεραios, "raised him from the dead, and set him at his right hand, in heavenly "places." Concerning the gentile converts his words are, chap. ii. ver. 5, 6, καὶ ὅνας ἡμᾶς νεκρῶς τοῖς παραπλώμασι, συνεζωοποίησε τῷ Χρισῷ, καὶ συνήγειρε καὶ ovrenádioer in izugavios, "and us, being dead in trespasses, he hath quickened "together with Christ, and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together "in heavenly places.' It is also visible that vuas, “you,” v. 1, and μãs, "us," v. 5, are both governed by the verb ouve wooing, "quickened toge "ther," ver. 5, though the grammatical construction be somewhat broken, but is repaired in the sense, which lies thus: "God, by his mighty power, raised "Christ from the dead; by the like power you, gentiles of Ephesus, being dead "in trespasses and sins; what do I say, you of Ephesus; nay, us all, converts of "the gentiles, being dead in trespasses, has he quickened and raised from the dead. "You ephesians were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, "the spirit that yet worketh in the children of disobedience, and so were we, "all the rest of us, who are converted from gentilism; we, all of us, of the "same stamp and strain, involved in the same conversation, living, heretofore, "according to the lusts of our flesh, to which we were perfectly obedient, doing "what our carnal wills and blinded minds directed us, being then no less chil"dren of wrath, no less liable to wrath and punishment, than those that re"mained still children of disobedience, i. e. unconverted; but God, rich in "mercy, for his great love, wherewith he loved us, hath quickened us all, being "dead in trespasses, (for it is by grace ye are saved) and raised us, &c." This is St. Paul's sense, drawn out more at length, which, in his compendious way of writing, wherein he crowds many ideas together, as they abounded in his mind, could not easily be ranged under rules of grammar. The promiscuous use St. Paul here makes of "we" and "you," and his so easy changing one into the other, plainly shows, as we have already observed, that they both stand for the same sort of persons, i. e. christians, that were formerly pagans, whose state and life, whilst they were such, he here expressly describes. 21 Alay may be observed, in the New Testament, to signify the lasting state and constitution of things, in the great tribes, or collections of men, considered in reference to the kingdom of God; whereof there were two most eminent, and principally intended, if I mistake not, by the word ans, when that is used alone: and that is ò vv aid, “this present world,” which is taken for that state of the world, wherein the children of Israel were his people, and made up his kingdom upon earth, the gentiles, i.e. all the other nations of the world, being TEXT. world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience. 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past, in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh, and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. PARAPHRASE. sure of the prince of the power of the air", the spirit that now yet possesses and works" in the children of disobe3 dience. Of which number even we all having formerly been, lived in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires NOTES. in a state of apostacy and revolt from him, the professed vassals and subjects of the devil, to whom they paid homage, obedience, and worship; and aivov, "the world to come," i. e. the time of the gospel, wherein God, by Christ, broke down the partition-wall between jew and gentile, and opened a way for reconciling the rest of mankind, and taking the gentiles again into his kingdom under Jesus Christ, under whose rule he had put it. m In these words St. Paul points out the devil, the prince of the revolted part of the creation, and head of that kingdom, which stood in opposition to, and was at war with, the kingdom of Jesus Christ. 'Evegyon is the proper term, whereby, in the greek, is signified the possession and acting of any person by an evil spirit. • "Children of disobedience," are those of the gentiles, who continued still in their apostacy, under the dominion of Satan, who ruled and acted them, and returned not from their revolt, described Rom. i. 18, &c. into the kingdom of God, now that Jesus Christ had opened an entrance into it, to all those who dis obeyed not his call; and thus they are called, chap. v. 6. 3 P 'Ev ois cannot signify "amongst whom we also all had our conversation:" for if us, "we," stands for either the converted jews, or converts in general, it is not true. If "we," stands (as is evident it doth) for the converted gen tiles, of what force or tendency is it for the apostle to say we, the converted gentiles, heretofore lived among the unconverted gentiles? But it is of great force, and to his purpose, in magnifying the free grace of God to them, to say 66 we of the gentiles, who are now admitted to the kingdom of God, were for"merly of that very sort of inen, in whom the prince of the power of the air "ruled, leading lives in the lusts of the flesh, obeying the will and inclinations "thereof, and so as much exposed to the wrath of God as those who still remain " in their apostacy under the dominion of the devil.” 4 This was the state that the gentile world were given up to. See Rom. i. 21, 24. Parallel to this 3d verse of this 2d chapter, we have a passage in chap. iv. 17-20, of this same epistle, where xabuç xai rà λoima on, "even as the other "gentiles" plainly answers as xal of Aool, "even as the others," here; and i, μαλαιότηλι τοῦ νοὸς ἀυἱῶν, ἐσκυλισμένοι τῇ διανοία, “ in the vanity of their minds, * having their understandings darkened,” answers ἐν ταῖς ἐπιθυμίαις τῆς σαρκὸς ἡμῶν, ποιοῦντες τὰ θελήματα της σαρκὸς καὶ τῶν διανοιῶν, “ in the lusts of our "flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind." He that compares these places, and considers that, what is said in the fourth chapter, contains the character of the gentile world, of whom it is spoken; I say, he that reads and considers these two places well together, and the correspondency between them, 66 |