Epheser 6:24 Kommentar

In this chapter, I. The apostle proceeds in the exhortation to relative duties which he began in the former, particularly he insists on the duties of children and parents, and of servants and masters (Eph 6:1-9). II. He exhorts and directs Christians how to behave themselves in the spiritual warfare with the enemies of their souls; and to the exercise of several Christian graces, which he proposes to them as so many pieces of spiritual armour, to preserve and defend them in the conflict (Eph 6:10-18). III. We have here the conclusion of the epistle, in which he takes his leave of them, recommending himself to the prayers of the believing Ephesians, and praying for them (Eph 6:19-24).

INTRODUCTION TO EPHESIANS 6 In this chapter the apostle goes on with his exhortations to relative and domestic duties, and considers those of children and parents, and of servants and masters; and next he exhorts the saints in general to constancy and perseverance in the exercise of grace, and the performance of duty in the strength of Christ, and with the use of the armour of God described by him; entreats them to pray for him; gives the reasons of sending Tychicus, who brought them this epistle, and closes it with his apostolical salutation. He begins with the duties of children to their parents, which are submission and obedience to them, honour, fear, and reverence of them; the arguments engaging thereunto are taken from the light of nature and reason, from the command of God, and the promise annexed to it, Eph 6:1. Then follow the duties of fathers to their children, who are exhorted not to use them with too much rigour, and so provoke them to wrath, but to bring them up in a religious manner, that they may serve the Lord, Eph 6:4. Next he observes the duties of servants to their masters, which are subjection and obedience, which should be done with reverence of them, with simplicity of heart, as unto Christ, not with eyeservice, as menpleasers, but with the heart, and with good will, as doing the will of God, and as if it was to the Lord, and not men; to which they are encouraged by a promise of reward which is given without respect to bond or free, Eph 6:5. And masters, they are exhorted to do what is right and just to their servants, and not terrify them with menaces; to which they are moved by the consideration of their having a master in heaven, who is no respecter of persons, Eph 6:9. From hence the apostle passes to a general exhortation to the saints to behave with firmness and constancy of mind, though they had many enemies, and these mighty and powerful, and more than a match for them; relying on the power and strength of Christ, and making use of the whole armour of God, which he advises them to take, that they might stand and withstand in the worst of times, Eph 6:10, the several parts of which he enumerates, as the girdle of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of the Gospel of peace, the shield of faith, whereby the fiery darts of Satan are quenched, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit the word of God, and spiritual prayer of every sort for all saints, attended with watching and perseverance, Eph 6:14, which last part of the spiritual armour being mentioned, leads on the apostle to entreat the Ephesians to pray for him, that he might freely and boldly preach the Gospel; which he commends from the mysterious nature and subject of it, from his character as an ambassador for it, or for Christ, the sum and substance of it, and from his being in bonds for it; which showed how great an esteem he had of it, and how heartily concerned he was to preach it without fear, Eph 6:19. And then adds, that the reasons of his sending Tychicus, whom he describes by his relation to him as a brother, and his affection for him, and by his office as a minister, and his faithfulness in it, were, that they might be acquainted with his circumstances, in what state and condition he was, both with respect to things temporal and spiritual, and that their hearts might be comforted by him, Eph 6:21. And the epistle is concluded with the apostle's salutation; and the persons saluted are the brethren of this church, and all that love Christ Jesus sincerely; and the blessings wished for are peace, love, with faith and grace; the persons from whom they are desired are God the Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, Eph 6:23.

Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ,.... Christ is the object of love, and a lovely object he is: he is to be loved because of the loveliness of his person, and the transcendent excellencies that are in him; because of his suitableness and fulness as a Saviour; and because of his great love shown to his church and people; and because of the relations he stands in to them, and the communion they have with him: love to Christ is a grace of the Spirit, and is in all believers; and though it is imperfect, and sometimes cold, it will abide for ever; it ought to be universal and superlative; all of Christ is to be loved, and he is to be loved above all: and it shows itself in a value for his Gospel, and the truths of it; in an esteem of his ordinances, and a regard to his commands; in parting with all for Christ, when called for; and in bearing all for his sake; in a well pleasedness in his company and presence, and in a concern for his absence, and in an uneasiness until he is enjoyed again: it should be fervent, and constant, and cordial, and, as here said, in sincerity; from the heart, and with all the heart, and without hypocrisy; not in word only, but in deed and in truth; which appears when he is loved, as before observed: and the apostle wishes "grace" to all such sincere and hearty lovers of him; by which may be meant a fresh discovery of the free grace, love, and favour of God in Christ to them; and a fresh supply of grace from the fulness of it in Christ; and a larger measure of the grace of the Spirit to carry on the good work begun in them; as well as a continuation of the Gospel of the grace of God with them, and an increase of spiritual gifts. Grace may be connected with the word translated "sincerity", and be rendered "grace with incorruption": or incorruptible grace, as true grace is an incorruptible seed; or "grace with immortality": and so the apostle wishes not only for grace here, but for eternal happiness and glory hereafter; and then closes the epistle with an Amen, as a confirmation and asseveration of the truth of the doctrines contained in it, and as expressive of his earnest desire that the several petitions in it might be granted, and of his faith and confidence that they would be fulfilled. The subscription, written from Rome to the Ephesians by Tychicus, seems to be right; for that this epistle is written to the Ephesians, the inscription shows; and that it was written when the apostle was at Rome, appears from Eph 3:1; and that it was sent by Tychicus, seems very likely from Eph 6:21. Next: Philippians Introduction

"Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in uncorruptness." Why does he separate the two here, placing "peace" by itself, and "grace" by itself? "In uncorruptness," he concludes. What is this, "in uncorruptness"? It either means, "in purity"; or else, "for the sake of those things which are incorruptible," as, for example, not in riches, nor in glory, but in those treasures which are incorruptible. The "in" means, "through." "Through uncorruptness," that is, "through virtue." Because all sin is corruption. And in the same way as we say a virgin is corrupted, so also do we speak of the soul. Hence Paul says, "Lest by any means your minds should be corrupted." (2 Cor. xi. 3.) And again elsewhere, he says, "In doctrine, showing uncorruptness." For what, tell me, is corruption of the body? Is it not the dissolution of the whole frame, and of its union? This then is what takes place also in the soul when sin enters. The beauty of the soul is temperance, and righteousness; the health of the soul is courage, and prudence; for the base man is hideous in our eyes, so is the covetous, so is the man who gives himself up to evil practices, and so the coward and unmanly man is sick, and the foolish man is out of health. Now that sins work corruption, is evident from this, that they render men base, and weak, and cause them to be sick and diseased. Nay, and when we say that a virgin is corrupted, we say so, strictly speaking, on this account also, not only because the body is defiled, but because of the transgression. For the mere act is natural; and if in that consisted the "corruption," then were marriage corruption. Hence is it not the act that is corruption, but the sin, for it dishonors and puts her to shame. And again, what would be corruption in the case of a house? Its dissolution. And so, universally, corruption is a change which takes place for the worse, a change into another state, to the utter extinction of the former one. For hear what the Scripture saith, "All flesh had corrupted his way" (Gen. vi. 12); and again, "In intolerable corruption" (Ex. xviii. 18); and again, "Men corrupted in mind." (2 Tim. iii. 8.) Our body is corruptible, but our soul is incorruptible. Oh then, let us not make that corruptible also. This, the corruption of the body, was the work of former sin; but sin which is after the Laver, has the power also to render the soul corruptible, and to make it an easy prey to "the worm that dieth not." For never had that worm touched it, had it not found the soul corruptible. The worm touches not adamant, and even if he touches it, he can do it no harm. Oh then, corrupt not the soul; for that which is corrupted is full of foul stench; for hearken to the Prophet who saith, "My wounds stink and are corrupt because of my foolishness." (Ps. xxxviii. 5.) However, "this corruption" of the body "shall put on incorruption" (1 Cor. xv. 53), but the other of the soul, never; for where incorruption is, there is no corruption. Thus is it a corruption which is incorruptible, which hath no end, a deathless death; which would have been, had the body remained deathless. Now if we shall depart into the next world having not corruption, we have that corruption incorruptible and endless; for to be ever burning, and not burnt up, ever wasted by the worm, is corruption incorruptible; like as was the case with the blessed Job. He was corrupted, and died not, and that through a lengthened period, and "wasted continually, scraping the clods of dust from his sore." Some such torment as this shall it undergo, when the worms surround and devour it, not for two years nor for three, nor for ten, nor for ten thousand, but for years without end; for "their worm," saith He, "dieth not."

He adds “with love undying,” or in imperishability. For his prayers are not only for the present life but for the coming one as well, which is contained in the hope and promise of Christ.

Grace is not simply bestowed indiscriminately upon all but on those who love the Lord and especially upon those who, as well as loving, keep his life-giving laws. Let us keep them also. By keeping them our love for him will be confirmed.

The letter to the Ephesians was written from Rome by the hand of Tychicus.

Here he separated peace from grace, setting each apart, although everywhere he joined them together. "In incorruption" (that is, unchangeably), meaning in purity, or those who love Christ not in wealth and glory, but in incorruptible goods, that is, for the sake of the incorruptible; or, that the one who loves Christ loves Him through His virtue. For sin is corruption, and virtue is incorruption. For just as we say of a virgin that she is corrupted, so also of the soul; therefore Paul also says: "lest your minds should be corrupted" (2 Cor. 11:3), and "men of corrupt minds" (2 Tim. 3:8). Therefore it behooves us also to show our love for Christ through purity of life and the pursuit of those incorruptible goods, and in general through every virtuous life that keeps the soul blameless, not corrupted either by false teaching or by ungodliness, keeping it in Christ Himself, the blameless Bridegroom of virgin and blameless souls, to Whom be glory unto the ages of ages. Amen.

Peace and charity contribute greatly toward the preservation of grace; yet, since they always presuppose grace—they could not be had without it—on this account he prays that they receive grace. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in incorruption. Amen.

Children should obey their parents, that they may live long and be happy, Eph 6:1-3. Parents should be tender towards their children, Eph 6:4. Servants should show all obedience and fidelity to their masters, Eph 6:5-8. And masters should treat their servants with humanity, Eph 6:9. All should be strong in the Lord, and be armed with his armor, because of their wily, powerful, and numerous foes, Eph 6:10-13. The different parts of the Christian armor enumerated, Eph 6:14-17. The necessity of all kinds of prayer and watchfulness, Eph 6:18-20. Tychicus is commissioned to inform the Ephesians of the apostle's affairs, Eph 6:21, Eph 6:22. The apostolic benediction and farewell, Eph 6:23, Eph 6:24.

Grace be with all them - May the Divine favor, and all the benedictions flowing from it, be with all them who love our Lord Jesus Christ, who has so loved us as to give his life to redeem ours, and to save us unto life eternal. In sincerity - Εν αφθαρσια· In incorruptibility. Those who show the genuineness of their love, by walking before him in holiness of life. Many profess to love our Lord Jesus who are corrupt in all their ways; on these the grace or favor of God cannot rest; they profess to know him, but in works deny him. Such can neither expect favor here, nor hereafter. Amen - This is wanting in ABFG, and some others. It is, however, more likely to be a genuine subscription here than most others of its kind. The apostle might have sealed his most earnest wish by this word, which means not so much, so be it! or may it be so! but rather implies the faithfulness of him who had given the promises, and whose prerogative it was to give effect to the prayers which his own Spirit had inspired. The principal subscriptions to this epistle are the following: To the Ephesians. The Epistle to the Ephesians is finished. To the Ephesians, written from Rome. To the Ephesians, written from Rome by Tychicus. (This is the subscription which we have followed; and it is that of the larger number of modern MSS. and editions.) The Epistle to the Ephesians, written from Rome, and sent by Tychicus - Syriac. To the Ephesians. - aethiopic. Vulgate, no subscription. The end of this epistle, which was written from Rome by Tychicus. Praise be to God for ever. Amen. - Arabic. Written at Rome, and sent by Tychicus. - Coptic. The Sahidic is defective. The Epistle to the Ephesians is ended, which was written at Rome by Tychicus. - Philoxenian Syriac. We have had already occasion to observe that the subscriptions to the sacred books were not written by the authors themselves, but were added in a much later age, and generally by unskillful hands. They are consequently not much to be depended on, and never should be quoted as a part of the Divine oracles. 1. It may be supposed that on the principal subject of this concluding chapter, the armor of God, I should have been much more diffuse. I answer, my constant aim is just to say enough, and no more, on any point. Whether I attain this, in general, or not, I can still say it is what I have desired. As to the Christian armor, it does not appear to me that the apostle has couched such a profusion of mystical meaning in it as to require a huge volume to explain. I believe the Ephesians did not understand it so; nor did the primitive Church of God. Men of rich imaginations may write large volumes on such subjects; but when they come to be fairly examined, they will be found not to be explanations of the text, on which they professedly treat, but immense bodies of divinity, in which the peculiar creed of the writer, both with respect to doctrine and discipline, is amply set forth. Mr. Gurnal's Christian Armor contains a great many excellences; but surely it does not require such a volume to explain the five verses of this chapter, in which the apostle speaks of the spiritual armor. The grand design of the apostle was to show that truth, righteousness, obedience to the Gospel, faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, a well grounded hope of salvation, a thorough knowledge of the word of God, and a continual dependence on and application to him by prayer, were essentially necessary to every soul who desired to walk uprightly in this life, and finally to attain everlasting blessedness. This is the obvious meaning of the apostle; in this sense it was understood by the Ephesians, and by the primitive Church; we may amplify it as we please. 2. In two or three places, in the preceding notes, I have referred to a piece on a very remarkable rule relative to the Greek article, to be introduced at the end. From the labors of several learned men this subject has acquired considerable importance, and has excited no small interest among Biblical critics. The late benevolent, learned, and excellent Mr. Granville Sharp was, I believe, the first who brought this subject fairly before the public; he was followed by the Rev. Dr. Wordsworth, a learned and intelligent clergyman of the Established Church. The Rev. Dr. Middleton, late bishop of Calcutta, has presented the subject in all its force and excellence, fortified by innumerable proofs, and a great variety of critical disquisition. The principal design of these writers was to exhibit a new and substantial mode of proving the Divinity of our Lord and Savior. Their works are before the public, and within the reach of all who are capable of judging of this mode of proof. The piece which I now subjoin is the result of the researches of one of my literary friends, H. S. Boyd, Esq., author of Translations from Chrysostom, etc., who has read the Greek writers, both sacred and profane, with peculiar attention; and has collected a vast number of additional examples, both from prose and poetic writers, for the confirmation and illustration of the rule in question, and in support of the great doctrine of the Godhead of Christ. The critical reader, who has entered into this subject, will be glad to see such a number of pointed examples brought within his reach, which at once serve the purpose both of philology and divinity. The learned author has transmitted them to me for the purpose of insertion in this place; but want of room has obliged me to omit several of his quotations. I would not wish the reader to suppose that these are the only proofs of the grand doctrine of the Godhead of Christ; they are not: the Holy Scripture, in its plain, obvious meaning, independently of such criticism, affords the most luminous and convincing proofs of the doctrine in question; but this is no sufficient reason that we should reject any additional light which may come to us in the way of Divine Providence. Finished the correction for a new edition, Dec. 15th, 1831.

MUTUAL DUTIES OF PARENTS AND CHILDREN: MASTERS AND SERVANTS: OUR LIFE A WARFARE: THE SPIRITUAL ARMOUR NEEDED AGAINST SPIRITUAL FOES. CONCLUSION. (Eph. 6:1-24) obey--stronger than the expression as to wives, "submitting," or "being subject" (Eph 5:21). Obedience is more unreasoning and implicit; submission is the willing subjection of an inferior in point of order to one who has a right to command. in the Lord--Both parents and children being Christians "in the Lord," expresses the element in which the obedience is to take place, and the motive to obedience. In Col 3:20, it is, "Children, obey your parents in all things." This clause, "in the Lord," would suggest the due limitation of the obedience required (Act 5:29; compare on the other hand, the abuse, Mar 7:11-13). right--Even by natural law we should render obedience to them from whom we have derived life.

Contrast the malediction on all who love Him not (Co1 16:22). in sincerity--Greek, "in incorruption," that is, not as English Version, but "with an immortal (constant) love" [WAHL]. Compare "that which is not corruptible" (Pe1 3:4). Not a fleeting, earthly love, but a spiritual and eternal one [ALFORD]. Contrast Col 2:22, worldly things "which perish with the using." Compare Co1 9:25, "corruptible . . . incorruptible crown." "Purely," "holily" [ESTIUS], without the corruption of sin (See on Co1 3:17; Pe2 1:4; Jde 1:10). Where the Lord Jesus has a true believer, there I have a brother [BISHOP M'IKWAINE]. He who is good enough for Christ, is good enough for me [R. HALL]. The differences of opinion among real Christians are comparatively small, and show that they are not following one another like silly sheep, each trusting the one before him. Their agreement in the main, while showing their independence as witnesses by differing in non-essentials, can only be accounted for by their being all in the right direction (Act 15:8-9; Co1 1:2; Co1 12:3). Next: Philippians Introduction