Unity and Maturity in the Body of Christ
4 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it [Or God] says:
“When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”[Psalm 68:18]
9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions [Or the depths of the earth]? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
Instructions for Christian Living
17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.
20 That, however, is not the way of life you learned 21 when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 “In your anger do not sin”[Psalm 4:4 (see Septuagint)]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
NOTES:
4:1–16 A general plea for unity in the church. Christians
have been fashioned through the Spirit into a single harmonious religious
community (one body, Eph 4:4, 12; cf. Eph 4:16), belonging to a single Lord (in
contrast to the many gods of the pagan world), and by one way of salvation
through faith, brought out especially by the significance of baptism (Eph
4:1–6; cf. Rom 6:1–11). But Christian unity is more than adherence to a common
belief. It is manifested in the exalted Christ’s gifts to individuals to serve
so as to make the community more Christlike (Eph 4:11–16). This teaching on
Christ as the source of the gifts is introduced in Eph 4:8 by a citation of Ps
68:18, which depicts Yahweh triumphantly leading Israel to salvation in
Jerusalem. It is here understood of Christ, ascending above all the heavens,
the head of the church; through his redemptive death, resurrection, and
ascension he has become the source of the church’s spiritual gifts. The
“descent” of Christ (Eph 4:9–10) refers more probably to the incarnation (cf.
Phil 2:6–8) than to Christ’s presence after his death in the world of the dead
(cf. 1 Pt 3:19).
4:4–6 The “seven unities” (church, Spirit, hope; Lord, faith
in Christ [Eph 1:13], baptism; one God) reflect the triune structure of later creeds
in reverse.
4:8–10 While the emphasis is on an ascension and gift-giving
by Christ, there is also a reference in taking prisoners captive to the aeons
and powers mentioned at Eph 1:21; 2:2; 3:10; 6:12.
4:11 Concerning this list of ministers, cf. 1 Cor 12:28 and
Rom 12:6–8. Evangelists: missionary preachers (cf. Acts 21:8; 2 Tm 4:5), not
those who wrote gospels. Pastors and teachers: a single group in the Greek,
shepherding congregations.
4:12 The ministerial leaders in Eph 4:11 are to equip the
whole people of God for their work of ministry.
4:13 Mature manhood: literally, “a perfect man” (cf. Col
1:28), possibly the “one new person” of Eph 2:15, though there anthrōpos
suggests humanity, while here anēr is the term for male. This personage becomes
visible in the church’s growing to its fullness in the unity of those who
believe in Christ.
4:15–16 The head, Christ: cf. Col 1:18 and contrast 1 Cor
12:12–27 and Rom 12:4–5 where Christ is identified with the whole body,
including the head. The imagery may derive from ancient views in medicine, the
head coordinating and caring for the body, each ligament (perhaps the ministers
of Eph 4:11) supporting the whole. But as at Eph 2:19–22, where the temple is
depicted as a growing organism, there may also be the idea here of growing
toward the capstone, Christ.
4:17–24 Paul begins to indicate how the new life in Christ
contrasts with the Gentiles’ old way of existence. Literally, the old self (Eph
4:22) and the new self (Eph 4:24) are “the old man” and “the new man”
(anthrōpos, person), as at Eph 2:15; cf. note on Eph 4:13.
4:24 Put on: in baptism. See note on Gal 3:27.
4:25–6:20 For similar exhortations to a morally good life in
response to God’s gift of faith, see notes on Rom 12:1–13:14 and Gal 5:13–26.
4:26 If angry, seek reconciliation that day, not giving the
devil (Eph 6:11) opportunity to lead into sin.
4:28 Honest work: literally, “the good.” His [own] hands:
some manuscripts have the full phrase as in 1 Cor 4:12.
4:30 See note on Eph 1:13.
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