        
• Key
Chapter 4
- The apostle exhorts them to walk worthy of their
vocation, and to live in peace and unity, 1-6.
- Shows that God has distributed a variety of gifts, and
instituted a variety of offices in his Church, for the
building up and perfecting of the body of Christ,
7-13.
- Teaches them the necessity of being well instructed
and steady in Divine things, 14. Teaches how the
body or Church of Christ is constituted, 15,16.
- Warns
them against acting like the Gentiles, of whose conduct he
gives a lamentable description, 17-19.
- Points out
how they had been changed, in consequence of their
conversion to Christianity, 20,21.
- Gives various
exhortations relative to the purification of their
minds, their conduct to each other, and to the poor,
22-28.
- Shows them that their conversation should be chaste
and holy, that they might not grieve the Spirit of God;
that they should avoid all bad tempers, be kindly
affectioned one to another, and be of a forgiving
spirit, 29-32.
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Verse 1. I therefore
Therefore, because God has provided for you such an
abundant salvation, and ye have his testimonies among you, and
have full liberty to use all the means of grace;
The prisoner of the
Lord
Who am deprived of my liberty for the
Lord's sake.
Beseech you that ye
walk
Ye have your liberty, and may
walk; I am deprived of mine, and cannot. This is
a fine stroke, and wrought up into a strong argument. You who
are at large can show forth the virtues of him who
called you into his marvellous light; I am in
bondage, and can only exhort others by my writing, and
show my submission to God by my patient suffering.
The vocation wherewith ye are
called
The calling, κλησις, is the
free invitation they have had from God to receive the
privileges of the Gospel, and become his sons and daughters,
without being obliged to observe Jewish rites and ceremonies.
Their vocation, or calling, took in their Christian
profession, with all the doctrines, precepts, privileges,
duties, Christian religion.
Among us, a man's calling signifies his
trade, or occupation in life; that at which he
works, and by which he gets his bread; and it is
termed his calling, because it is supposed that God, in
the course of his providence, calls the person to be thus
employed, and thus to acquire his livelihood. Now, as it is a
very poor calling by which a man cannot live, so
it is a poor religion by which a man cannot get his
soul saved. If, however, a man have an honest and
useful trade, and employ himself diligently in labouring at
it, he will surely be able to maintain himself by it; but
without care, attention, and industry, he is not likely to
get, even by this providential calling, the necessaries
of life. In like manner, if a man do not walk worthy of his
heavenly calling, i.e. suitable to its prescriptions, spirit,
and design, he is not likely to get his soul saved unto
eternal life. The best trade, unpractised, will not
support any man; the most pure and holy religion of the Lord
Jesus, unapplied, will save no soul. Many suppose, because
they have a sound faith, that all is safe and well: as
well might the mechanic, who knows he has a good trade,
and that he understands the principles of it well, suppose it
will maintain him, though he brings none of its principles
into action by honest, assiduous, and well-directed labour.
Some suppose that the calling refers to the epithets
usually given to the Christians; such as children of
Abraham, children of God, true Israel of God, heirs of
God, saints, fellow citizens with the saints, and
that these honourable appellations must be a strong excitement
to the Ephesians to walk worthy of these exalted characters
But I do not find that the word κλησις, calling, is
taken in this sense any where in the New Testament; but that
it has the meaning which I have given it above is evident from
1 Corinthians
7:20: εκαστοςεντηκλησειηεκληθηενταυτημενετω. Let every
man abide in the calling to which he hath been called. The
context shows that condition, employment, or
business of life, is that to which the apostle refers.
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Verse 2. With all
lowliness
It is by acting as the apostle
here directs that a man walks worthy of this high vocation;
ταπεινοφροσυνη signifies subjection or humility of
mind.
Meekness
The
opposite to anger and irritability of disposition.
Long-suffering
μακροθυμια. Long-mindedness-never permitting a
trial or provocation to get to the end of your
patience.
Forbearing one
another
ανεχομενοιαλληλων. Sustaining
one another-helping to support each other in
all the miseries and trials of life: or, if the word be taken
in the sense of bearing with each other, it may
mean that, through the love of God working in our hearts, we
should bear with each other's infirmities, ignorance, obliged
to bear with us.
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Verse 3. Endeavouring to keep the
unity of the Spirit in the bond of
peace.
There can be no doubt that the
Church at Ephesus was composed partly of converted
Jews, as well as Gentiles. Now, from the
different manner in which they had been brought up, there
might be frequent causes of altercation. Indeed, the
Jews, though converted, might be envious that the Gentiles
were admitted to the same glorious privileges with themselves,
without being initiated into them by bearing the yoke
and burden of the Mosaic law. The apostle guards them
against this, and shows them that they should intensely
labour (for so the word σπουδαζειν implies) to promote and
preserve peace and unity. By the unity of the
Spirit we are to understand, not only a spiritual
unity, but also a unity of sentiments, desires, and
affections, such as is worthy of and springs from the Spirit
of God. By the bond of peace we are to understand a
peace or union, where the interests of all parties are
concentrated, cemented, and sealed; the Spirit of God being
the seal upon this knot.
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Verse 4. There is one
body
Viz. of Christ, which is his Church.
One Spirit
The
Holy Ghost, who animates this body.
One hope
Of
everlasting glory, to which glory ye have been called by the
preaching of the Gospel; through which ye have become the body
of Christ, instinct with the energy of the Holy Ghost.
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Verse 5. One Lord
Jesus Christ, who is the governor of this Church.
One faith
One
system of religion, proposing the same objects to the faith of
all.
One baptism
Administered in the name of the holy Trinity; indicative
of the influences, privileges, and effects of the Christian
religion.
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Verse 6. One God
The fountain of all being, self-existent and eternal; and
Father of all, both Jews and Gentiles, because he is
the Father of the spirits of all flesh.
Who is above
all
οεπιπαντων. Who is over all; as
the King of kings, and Lord of lords.
And through all
Pervading every thing; being present with every thing;
providing for all creatures; and by his energy supporting all
things.
And in you all.
By the energy of his Spirit, enlightening, quickening,
purifying, and comforting; in a word, making your hearts the
temples of the Holy Ghost. Some think the mystery of the
blessed Trinity is contained in this verse: God is over all,
as Father; through all, by the Logos or
Word; and in all, by the Holy Spirit.
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Verse 7. Unto every one of us is
given grace
Grace may here signify a
particular office; as if the apostle had said: Though
we are all equal in the respects already mentioned, yet
we have all different offices and situations to fill up in the
Church and in the world; and we receive a free gift
from Christ, according to the nature of the office,
that we may be able to discharge it according to his own mind.
So the free gift, which we receive from Christ, is
according to the office or function which he has given us to
fulfil; and the office is according to that free
gift, each suited to the other.
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Verse 8. Wherefore he
saith
The reference seems to be to Psalms
68:18, which, however it may speak of the removal of the
tabernacle, appears to have been intended to point out the
glorious ascension of Christ after his resurrection from the
dead. The expositions of various commentators have made the
place extremely difficult. I shall not trouble my reader with
them; they may be seen in Rosenmuller.
When he ascended up on
high
The whole of this verse, as it stands
in the psalm, seems to refer to a military triumph. Take the
following paraphrase: Thou hast ascended on high: the
conqueror was placed in a very elevated chariot.
Thou hast led captivity captive: the conquered
kings and generals were usually bound behind the chariot of
the conqueror, to grace the triumph. Thou host received
gifts for (Paul, given gifts unto) men: at
such times the conqueror was wont to throw money among
the crowd. Even to the rebellious: those who had fought
against him now submit unto him, and share his munificence;
for it is the property of a hero to be generous. That the
Lord God might dwell among them: the conqueror
being now come to fix his abode in the conquered provinces,
and subdue the people to his laws.
All this the apostle applies to the resurrection,
ascension, and glory of Christ; though it has been doubted by
some learned men whether the psalmist had this in view. I
shall not dispute about this; it is enough for me that the
apostle, under the inspiration of God, applied the verse in
this way; and whatever David might intend, and of whatever
event he might have written, we see plainly that the sense in
which the apostle uses it was the sense of the Spirit of God;
for the Spirit in the Old and New Testaments is the same. I
may venture a short criticism on a few words in the original:
Thou hast received gifts for men, lakachta mattanoth
baadam, thou hast taken gifts in man, in Adam. The gifts
which Jesus Christ distributes to man he has received
in man, in and by virtue of his incarnation; and
it is in consequence of his being made man that it may be
said, The Lord God dwells among them; for Jesus
was called Immanuel, God with us, in consequence of his
incarnation. This view of the subject is consistent with the
whole economy of grace, and suits well with the apostle's
application of the words of the psalmist in this place.
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Verse 9. But that he also
descended
The meaning of the apostle
appears to be this: The person who ascended is the
Messiah, and his ascension plainly intimates his
descension; that is, his incarnation, humiliation,
death, and resurrection.
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Verse 10. He that
descended
And he who descended so
low is the same who has ascended so high. He came
to the lower parts of the earth-the very deepest
abasement; having emptied himself; taken upon him; the form of
a servant, and humbled himself unto death, even the death of
the cross; now he is ascended far above all
heavens-higher than all height; he has a name above every
name. Here his descending into the lower parts of the
earth is put in opposition to his ascending far above
all heavens. His abasement was unparalleled; so also is
his exaltation.
That he might fill all
things.
That he might be the fountain
whence all blessings might flow; dispensing all good things to
all his creatures, according to their several capacities and
necessities; and, particularly, fill both converted Jews and
Gentiles with all the gifts and graces of his Holy Spirit.
Hence it follows: Ephesians
4:11
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Verse 11. He gave some,
apostles
He established several
offices in his Church; furnished these with the proper
officers; and, to qualify them for their work, gave
them the proper gifts. For a full illustration of this
verse, the reader is requested to refer to the notes on 1 Corinthians
12:6-10,28-30; and to the concluding observations at the
end of that chapter.
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Verse 12. For the perfecting of the
saints
For the complete instruction,
purification, and union of all who have believed in Christ
Jesus, both Jews and Gentiles. For the meaning of καταρτισμος,
perfecting, See Clarke on 2 Corinthians
13:9.
For the work of the
ministry
All these various officers, and
the gifts and graces conferred upon them, were judged
necessary, by the great Head of the Church, for its full
instruction in the important doctrines of Christianity. The
same officers and gifts are still necessary, and God gives
them; but they do not know their places. In most
Christian Churches there appears to be but one office, that of
preacher; and one gift, that by which he professes to
preach. The apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and
teachers, are all compounded in the class preachers;
and many, to whom God has given nothing but the gift of
exhortation, take texts to explain them; and thus lose
their time, and mar their ministry.
Edifying of the
body
The body of Christ is his Church, see
Ephesians
2:20, and its edification consists in its thorough
instruction in Divine things, and its being filled with faith
and holiness.
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Verse 13. In the unity of the
faith
Jews and Gentiles being all converted
according to the doctrines laid down in the faith-the
Christian system.
The knowledge of the Son of
God
A trite understanding of the mystery of
the incarnation; why God was manifest in the flesh, and why
this was necessary in order to human salvation.
Unto a perfect man
ειςανδρατελειον. One thoroughly instructed; the whole body
of the Church being fully taught, justified, sanctified, and
sealed.
Measure of the
stature
The full measure of knowledge,
love, and holiness, which the Gospel of Christ requires. Many
preachers, and multitudes of professing people, are studious
to find out how many imperfections and infidelities, and how
much inward sinfulness, is consistent with a safe state
in religion but how few, very few, are bringing out the fair
Gospel standard to try the height of the members of the
Church; whether they be fit for the heavenly army; whether
their stature be such as qualifies them for the ranks of the
Church militant! The measure of the stature of the
fulness is seldom seen; the measure of the stature
of littleness, dwarfishness, and emptiness, is
often exhibited.
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Verse 14. Be no more
children
Children, here, are opposed
to the perfect man in the preceding verse; and the
state of both is well explained by the apostle's allusions.
The man is grown up strong and healthy, and has attained such
a measure or height as qualifies him for the most respectable
place in the ranks of his country.
The child is ignorant, weak, and unsteady, tossed about in
the nurse's arms, or whirled round in the giddy sports or
mazes of youth; this seems to be the apostle's allusion. Being
tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of
doctrine, refers to some kind of ancient play, but what
I cannot absolutely determine; probably to something similar
to a top, or to our paper kite.
By the sleight of
men
The words εντηκυβεια refer to the arts
used by gamesters, who employ false dice that will
always throw up one kind of number, which is that by which
those who play with them cannot win.
Cunning craftiness
It is difficult to give a literal translation of the
original words: ενπανουργιαπροςτηνμεθοδειαν τηςπλανης. "By
cunning, for the purpose of using the various means of
deception." πανουργια signifies craft and
subtlety in general, cheating and
imposition: μεθοδεια, from which we have our term
method, signifies a wile, a particular
sleight, mode of tricking and deceiving; it
is applied to the arts which the devil uses to deceive
and destroy souls; see Ephesians
6:11, called there the WILES of the devil. From
this it seems that various arts were used, both by the Greek
sophists and the Judaizing teachers, to render the Gospel of
none effect, or to adulterate and corrupt it.
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Verse 15. But, speaking the truth in
love
The truth recommended by the
apostle is the whole system of Gospel doctrine; this they are
to teach and preach, and this is opposed to the deceit
mentioned above. This truth, as it is the doctrine of God's
eternal love to mankind, must be preached in love.
Scolding and abuse from the pulpit or press, in matters of
religion, are truly monstrous. He who has the truth of
God has no need of any means to defend or propagate it, but
those which love to God and man provides.
Grow up into him
This is a continuance of the metaphor taken from the
members of a human body receiving nourishment equally and
growing up, each in its due proportion to other parts, and to
the body in general. The truth of God should be so preached to
all the members of the Church of God, that they may all
receive an increase of grace and life; so that each, in
whatever state he may be, may get forward in the way of truth
and holiness. In the Church of Christ there are persons in
various states: the careless, the penitent, the
lukewarm, the tempted, the diffident, the
little child, the young man, and the
father. He who has got a talent for the edification of
only one of those classes should not stay long in a place,
else the whole body cannot grow up in all things under
his ministry.
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Verse 16. From whom the whole
body
Dr. Macknight has a just view of this
passage, and I cannot express my own in more suitable terms:
"The apostle's meaning is, that, as the human body is formed
by the union of all the members to each other, under the head,
and by the fitness of each member for its own office and place
in the body, so the Church is formed by the union of its
members under Christ, the head. Farther, as the human body
increases till it arrives at maturity by the energy of every
part in performing its proper function, and by the sympathy of
every part with the whole, so the body or Church of Christ
grows to maturity by the proper exercise of the gifts and
graces of individuals for the benefit of the whole."
This verse is another proof of the wisdom and learning of
the apostle. Not only the general ideas here are anatomical,
but the whole phraseology is the same. The articulation
of the bones, the composition and action
of the muscles, the circulation of the
fluids, carrying nourishment to every part, and
depositing some in every place, the energy of the
system in keeping up all the functions, being
particularly introduced, and the whole terminating in the
general process of nutrition, increasing the body, and
supplying all the waste that had taken place in
consequence of labour, the apostle's language, take up this
verse, and he will be convinced that the apostle had all these
things in view. I am surprised that some of those who have
looked for the discoveries of the moderns among the
ancients, have not brought in the apostle's word
επιχορηγια, supply, from επιχορηγεω, to lead up,
lead along, minister, supply, circulation of the
blood was not unknown to St. Paul!
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Verse 17. Walk not as other Gentiles
walk
Ye are called to holiness by the
Gospel, the other Gentiles have no such calling; walk not as
they walk. In this and the two following verses the
apostle gives a most awful account of the conduct of the
heathens who were without the knowledge of the true God. I
shall note the particulars.
1. They walked in the vanity of their mind,
ενματαιοτητιτου νοοςαυτων. In the foolishness of their
mind; want of genuine wisdom is that to
which the apostle refers, and it was through this that the
Gentiles became addicted to every species of idolatry;
and they fondly imagined that they could obtain help from gods
which were the work of their own hands! Here their foolishness
was manifested.
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Verse 18. 2. Having the
understanding darkened
This is the
second instance alleged by the apostle of the
degradation of the Gentiles. Having no means of knowledge, the
heart, naturally dark, became more and more so by means of
habitual transgression; every thing in the Gentile system
having an immediate tendency to blind the eyes and darken the
whole soul.
3. Being alienated from the life
of God
The original design of God was to
live in man; and the life of God in the soul of man was
that by which God intended to make man happy, and without
which true happiness was never found by any human spirit: from
this through the ignorance that was in them,
διατηναγνοιαντηνουσαν, through the substantial or
continually existing ignorance, which there was nothing to
instruct, nothing to enlighten; for the most accurate writings
of their best philosophers left them entirely ignorant of the
real nature of God. And if they had no correct knowledge of
the true God they could have no religion; and if no religion,
no morality. Their moral state became so wretched that
they are represented as abhorring every thing spiritual
and pure, for this is the import of the word απηλλοτριωμενοι
(which we translate alienated) in some of the best
Greek writers. They abhorred every thing that had a
tendency to lay any restraint on their vicious passions and
inclinations.
4. Blindness of their
heart
διατηνπωρωσιν. Because of the
callousness of their hearts. Callous signifies a
thickening of the outward skin of any particular part,
especially on the hands and feet, by repeated exercise or use,
through which such parts are rendered insensible. This
may be metaphorically applied to the conscience of a sinner,
which is rendered stupid and insensible by repeated acts of
iniquity.
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Verse 19. 5. Who being past
feeling
οιτινεςαπηλγηκοτες. The verb
απαλγειν signifies, 1. To throw off all sense of shame,
and to be utterly devoid of pain, for committing
unrighteous acts. 2. To be desperate, having neither
hope nor desire of reformation; in a word, to be
without remorse, and to be utterly regardless of
conduct, character, or final blessedness. Instead of
απηλγηκοτες, several excellent MSS. and versions have
απηλπικοτες, being without hope; that is, persons who,
from their manner of life in this world, could not possibly
hope for blessedness in the world to come, and who might feel
it their interest to deny the resurrection of the body,
and even the immortality of the soul.
6. Have given themselves over unto
lasciviousness
Lasciviousness,
ασελγεια, is here personified; and the Gentiles in question
are represented as having delivered themselves over to her
jurisdiction. This is a trite picture of the Gentile world:
uncleanness, lechery, and debauchery of every kind, flourished
among them without limit or restraint. Almost all their gods
and goddesses were of this character.
7. To work all uncleanness with
greediness.
This is a complete finish of
the most abandoned character; to do an unclean act is
bad, to labour in it is worse, to
labour in all uncleanness is worse still; but to do all
this in every case to the utmost extent,
ενπλεονεξια, with a desire exceeding time, place,
opportunity, and strength, is worst of all, and leaves
nothing more profligate or more abandoned to be described or
imagined; just as Ovid paints the drunken Silenus,
whose wantonness survives his strength and keeps alive his
desires, though old age has destroyed the power of
gratification:-
Te quoque, inextinctae Silene libidinis, urunt:
Nequitia est, quae te non sinit esse senem. Fast., lib.
i. v. 413.
Thee also, O Silenus, of inextinguishable lust, they
inflame; Thou art old in every thing except in lust.
Such was the state of the Gentiles before they were blessed
with the light of the Gospel; and such is the state of those
nations who have not yet received the Gospel; and such is the
state of multitudes of those in Christian countries who
refuse to receive the Gospel, endeavour to decry it, and to
take refuge in the falsities of infidelity against the
testimony of eternal truth.
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Verse 20. But ye have not so learned
Christ
Ye have received the doctrines of
Christianity, and therefore are taught differently; ye have
received the Spirit of Christ, and therefore are saved from
such dispositions. Some would point and translate the original
thus: υμειςδεουχουτως. εμαθετετονχριστον. But ye are
not thus; ye have learned Christ.
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Verse 21. If so be that ye have
heard him
ειγε, Seeing that,
since indeed, ye have heard us proclaim his eternal
truth; we have delivered it to you as we received it from
Jesus.
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Verse 22. That ye put
off
And this has been one especial part of
our teaching, that ye should abandon all these, and live a
life totally opposite to what it was before.
The old man
See
Clarke on Romans
6:6. and especially the notes on Romans
13:13,14.
Which is corrupt
The whole of your former life was corrupt and abominable;
ye lived in the pursuit of pleasure and
happiness; ye sought this in the gratification
of the lusts of the flesh; and were ever
deceived by these lusts, and disappointed in
your expectations.
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Verse 23. And be renewed in the
spirit of your mind
Their old
mode of living was to be abandoned; a new one to
be assumed. The mind is to be renovated; and not only
its general complexion, but the very spirit of
it; all its faculties and powers must be thoroughly,
completely, and universally renewed. Plautus uses a similar
expression describing deep distress, and answerable to our
phrase innermost soul:-
Paupertas, pavor territat mentem animi.
Poverty and dread alarm my innermost soul. Epid., l. 519.
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Verse 24. Put on the new
man
Get a new nature; for in Christ
Jesus-under the Christian dispensation, neither circumcision
avails any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new
creation. Therefore ye must be renewed in the spirit of
your mind.
Which after God is created in
righteousness
Here is certainly an allusion
to the creation of man. Moses tells us, Genesis
1:27, that God created man in his own image;
that is, God was the model according to which he was
formed in the spirit of his mind. St. Paul says here
that they should put on the new man, which after God
is created in righteousness and true holiness, or,
οσιοτητι τηςαληθειας, in the holiness of truth. Both certainly
refer to the same thing, and the one illustrates the other.
From the apostle we learn what Moses meant by the image of
God; it was righteousness and the truth of
holiness. See Clarke on Genesis
1:26. It is not this or the other degree of moral
good which the soul is to receive by Jesus Christ, it is the
whole image of God; it is to be formed καταθεου,
according to God; the likeness of the Divine Being is
to be traced upon his soul, and he is to bear that as fully as
his first father Adam bore it in the beginning.
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Verse 25. Wherefore putting away
lying
All falsity, all
prevarication, because this is opposite to the
truth as it is in Jesus, Ephesians
4:21, and to the holiness of truth, Ephesians
4:24.
Speak every man truth with his
neighbour
Truth was but of small account
among many of even the best heathens, for they taught that on
many occasions a lie was to be preferred to the
truth itself. Dr. Whitby collects some of their
maxims on this head.
κρειττονδεελεσθαιψευδοςηαληθεςκακον. "A lie is better than
a hurtful truth."-Menander.
τογαραγαθονκρειττονεστιτηςαληθειας. "Good is better
than truth."-Proclus.
ενθαγαρτιδεικαιψευγδοςλεγεσθαιλεγεσθω. "When telling a lie
will be profitable, let it be told."-Darius in
Herodotus, lib. iii. p. 101.
"He may lie who knows how to do it εςδεοντικαιρω, in a
suitable time."-Plato apud Stob., ser. 12.
"There is nothing decorous in truth but when it is
profitable; yea, sometimes
καιψευδοςωνησενανθρωρουςκαιταληθεςεβλαψεν, truth is hurtful,
and lying is profitable to men."-Maximus Tyrius, Diss.
3, p. 29.
Having been brought up in such a loose system of morality,
these converted Gentiles had need of these apostolic
directions; Put away lying; speak the truth: Let
lying never come near you; let truth be ever present with you.
We are members one of
another.
Consider yourselves as one
body, of which Jesus Christ is the head; and as
a man's right hand would not deceive or wrong his left hand,
so deal honestly with each other; for ye are members one of
another.
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Verse 26. Be ye angry, and sin
not
οργιζεσθε, here, is the same as
ειμενοργιζεσθε, IF YE be angry, do not sin. We can
never suppose that the apostle delivers this as a
precept, if we take the words as they stand in our
version. Perhaps the sense is, Take heed that ye be not
angry, lest ye sin; for it would be very difficult, even
for an apostle himself, to be angry and not sin.
If we consider anger as implying displeasure simply,
then there are a multitude of cases in which a man may be
innocently, yea, laudably angry; for he should
be displeased with every thing which is not for the glory of
God, and the good of mankind. But, in any other sense, I do
not see how the words can be safely taken.
Let not the sun go down upon your
wrath
That is: If you do get angry with any
one, see that the fire be cast with the utmost speed out of
your bosom. Do not go to sleep with any unkind or unbrotherly
feeling; anger, continued in, may produce malice and
revenge. No temper of this kind can consist with
peace of conscience, and the approbation
of God's Spirit in the soul.
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Verse 27. Neither give place to the
devil.
Your adversary will strive to
influence your mind, and irritate your spirit; watch and pray
that he may not get any place in you, or ascendancy
over you.
As the word διαβολος is sometimes used to signify a
calumniator, tale-bearer, whisperer, or
backbiter; (see in the original, 1 Timothy
3:11; ; 2 Timothy
3:3, and ; Titus
2:3;) here it may have the same signification. Do not open
your ear to the tale-bearer, to the slanderer,
who comes to you with accusations against your brethren, or
with surmisings and evil speakings. These are human devils;
they may be the means of making you angry, even without any
solid pretence; therefore give them no place, that you may not
be angry at any time; but if, unhappily, you should be
overtaken in this fault, let not the sun go down upon your
wrath; go to your brother, against whom you have found your
spirit irritated; tell him what you have heard, and what you
fear; let your ears be open to receive his own account;
carefully listen to his own explanation; and, if possible, let
the matter be finally settled, that Satan may not gain
advantage over either.
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Verse 28. Let him that stole steal
no more
It is supposed that, among the
rabbins, stealing was not entirely discountenanced, provided a
portion was given to the poor. The apostle here teaches them a
different doctrine: as they should speak truth every man with
his neighbour, so they should in every respect act
honestly, for nothing contrary to truth and
righteousness could be tolerated under the Christian
system. Let no man, under pretence of helping the poor,
defraud another; but let him labour, working with his
hands to provide that which is good, that he may
have to give to him who is in necessity. Stealing,
overreaching, defrauding, purloining, consistent with no
kind of religion that acknowledges the true God.
If Christianity does not make men honest, it does nothing for
them. Those who are not saved from dishonesty fear not
God, though they may dread man.
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Verse 29. Let no corrupt
communication
πασλογοςσαπρος. Kypke
observes that λογοςσαπρος signifies a useless, putrid,
unsavoury, and obscene word or
conversation. 1. Useless, particularly that
which has been rendered so by old age and corruption. 2.
Putrid, impure; so Aristophanes in Lysistrat., p. 859,
calls a bad woman σαπραεμοισυλουτρονωσαπρα.
Tune, Spurca! balneum mihi parabis? 3.
Calumnious, or reproachful; whatever has a
tendency to injure the name, fame, or
interest of another. In short, it appears to mean any
word or thing obscene, any thing that injures
virtue, countenances vice, or scoffs at
religion. In the parallel place, Colossians
4:6, the apostle exhorts that our speech may be
seasoned with salt, to preserve it from
putrefaction. See Kypke and Macknight.
But that which is good to the use
of edifying
To be good for a
thing is a Graecism, as well as an
Anglicism, for, to be fit, proper,
suitable, so Achilles Tatius, lib. iv. p. 231:
αγαθονειςφιλιανοιδασε. I know thee to be good (formed)
for friendship. And Appian, de Bell.
Hisp., p. 439, terms both the Scipios,
ανδραςεςπαντααγαθουςγενομενουχ, men who were good
(suitable) for all things. And also Lucian, in
Toxari, p. 53: ουμονοναρατοξευειναγαθοιησανσκυθαι.
The Scythians were not good (expert) in
archery only. See Kypke, from whom I quote.
That it may minister
grace
ιναδωχαριν. This may be understood
thus: 1. Let your conversation be pure, wise, and holy, that
it may he the means of conveying grace, or Divine influences,
to them that hear. 2. Let it be such as to be grateful
or acceptable to the hearers. This is the meaning of
ιναδωχαριν in some of the most correct Greek writers. Never
wound modesty, truth, or religion with your discourse;
endeavour to edify those with whom you converse; and if
possible, speak so as to please them.
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Verse 30. Grieve not the Holy Spirit
of God
By giving way to any wrong temper,
unholy word, or unrighteous action. Even those who have
already a measure of the light and life of God, both of which
are not only brought in by the Holy Spirit, but maintained by
his constant indwelling, may give way to sin, and so grieve
this Holy Spirit that it shall withdraw both its
light and presence; and, in proportion as it
withdraws, then hardness and darkness take
place; and, what is still worse, a state of
insensibility is the consequence; for the
darkness prevents the fallen state from being
seen, and the hardness prevents it from being
felt.
Whereby ye are
sealed
The Holy Spirit in the soul of a
believer is God's seal, set on his heart to testify
that he is God's property, and that he should be wholly
employed in God's service. It is very likely
that the apostle had in view the words of the prophet, Isaiah
63:10: But they rebelled, and VEXED his HOLY
SPIRIT; therefore he was turned to be their enemy,
and fought against them. The psalmist refers to the same
fact in nearly the same words, Psalms
78:40: How oft did they PROVOKE him in the
wilderness, and GRIEVE him in the desert!
Let every man, therefore, take heed that he grieve not the
Spirit of God, lest God turn to be his enemy, and
fight against him.
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Verse 31. Let all
bitterness
πασαπικρια. It is astonishing
that any who profess the Christian name should indulge
bitterness of spirit. Those who are censorious,
who are unmerciful to the failings of others,
who have fixed a certain standard by which they measure
all persons in all circumstances, and unchristian every one
that does not come up to this standard, these have the
bitterness against which the apostle speaks. In the
last century there was a compound medicine, made up from a
variety of drastic acrid drugs and ardent spirits, which was
called Hiera Picra, ιερα πικρα, the holy bitter;
this medicine was administered in a multitude of cases, where
it did immense evil, and perhaps in scarcely any case did it
do good. It has ever appeared to me to furnish a proper
epithet for the disposition mentioned above, the holy
bitter; for the religiously censorious act under the
pretence of superior sanctity. I have known such
persons do much evil in a Christian society, but never knew an
instance of their doing any good.
And wrath
θυμος
is more properly anger, which may be considered the
commencement of the passion.
Anger
οργν is
more properly wrath-the passion carried to its
highest pitch, accompanied with injurious words
and outrageous acts, some of which are
immediately specified.
And clamour
κραυγη Loud and obstreperous speaking, brawling, railing,
boisterous talk, often the offspring of wrath;
all of which are highly unbecoming the meek, loving, quiet,
sedate mind of Christ and his followers.
And evil speaking
βλασφημια. Blasphemy; that is, injurious
speaking-words which tend to hurt those of whom
or against whom they are spoken.
With all malice
κακια. All malignity; as anger produces
wrath, and wrath clamour, so all together
produce malice; that is, settled, sullen, fell wrath,
which is always looking out for opportunities to revenge
itself by the destruction of the object of its indignation. No
state of society can be even tolerable where these
prevail; and, if eternity were out of the question, it
is of the utmost consequence to have these banished from
time.
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Verse 32. Be ye kind one to
another
γινεσθεχρηστοι. Be kind and
obliging to each other; study good breeding and
gentleness of manners. A Christian cannot
be a savage, and he need not be a boor.
Never put any person to needless pain.
Tender-hearted
ευσπλαγχνοι. Compassionate; having the bowels
easily moved (as the word implies) to commiserate the
state of the wretched and distressed.
Forgiving one
another
Should you receive any injury from
a brother, or from any man, be as ready to forgive him,
on his repentance and acknowledgment, as God
was, for Christ's sake, to forgive you when you repented of
your sins, and took refuge in his mercy.
- 1. THE exhortations given in this chapter, if
properly attended to, have the most direct tendency to secure
the peace of the individual, the comfort
of every family, and the welfare and
unity of every Christian society. That God never
prohibits any thing that is useful to us, is an
unshaken truth. And that he never commands what has not
the most pointed relation to our present and eternal welfare,
is not less so. How is it, then, that we do not glory
in his commandments and rejoice in his
prohibitions? If the gratification of our fleshly
propensities could do us good, that gratification had never
been forbidden. God plants thorns in the way that would
lead us to death and perdition.
- 2. From the provision which God has made for the soul's
salvation, we may see the nature, and in some sense the
extent, of the salvation provided. Much on this subject
has been said in the preceding chapter, and the same subject
is continued here. God requires that the Church shall be holy,
so that it may be a proper habitation for himself; and he
requires that each believer should be holy, and that he
should, under the influences of his grace, arrive at the
measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ! Ephesians
4:13. This is astonishing; but God is able to make all
grace abound towards us.
- 3. It is the will of God that Christians should be
well instructed; that they should become
wise and intelligent; and have their
understandings well cultivated and improved. Sound
learning is of great worth, even in religion; the
wisest and best instructed Christians are the most
steady, and may be the most useful. If a man be a
child in knowledge, he is likely to be tossed
to and fro, and carried about with every wind of
doctrine; and often lies at the mercy of interested,
designing men: the more knowledge he has, the more safe is his
state. If our circumstances be such that we have few means of
improvement, we should turn them to the best account. "Partial
knowledge is better than total ignorance; he who cannot get
all he may wish, must take heed to acquire all that he can."
If total ignorance be a bad and dangerous thing, every degree
of knowledge lessens both the evil and the
danger. It must never be forgotten that the Holy
Scriptures themselves are capable of making men wise unto
salvation, if read and studied with faith in Christ.
- 4. Union among the followers of Christ is strongly
recommended. How can spiritual brethren fall out by the way?
Have they not all one Father, all one Head? Do
they not form one body, and are they not all
members of each other? Would it not be
monstrous to see the nails pulling out the
eyes, the hands tearing off the flesh
from the body, the teeth biting out the tongue,
And is it less so to see the members of a Christian society
bite and devour each other, till they are consumed one of
another? Every member of the mystical body of Christ should
labour for the comfort and edification of the whole,
and the honour of the Head. He that would live a quiet
life, and keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace,
must be as backward to take offence as to give it.
Would all act on this plan (and surely it is as
rational as it is Christian) we should soon have
glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace and good will
among men.
- 5. A roughness of manners is to some unavoidable; it
is partly owing to the peculiar texture of their mind, and
partly to their education.
But there are others who glory in,
and endeavour to cultivate, this ungentle disposition; under
this is often concealed a great degree of spiritual pride, and
perhaps some malignity; for they think that this
roughness gives them a right to say grating, harsh, and
severe things. They should be taught another lesson; and if
they will not demean themselves as they ought, they should be
left to themselves, and no man should associate with them.
They are not Christians, and they act beneath the
character of men.
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Copyright Statement
The Adam Clarke Commentary is a derivative of an
electronic edition prepared by GodRules.net.
Bibliography
Information
Clarke, Adam. "Commentary
on Ephesians 4". "The Adam Clarke Commentary".
<http://www.studylight.org/com/acc/view.cgi?book=eph&chapter=004>.
1832.
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