Ephesians 4:1

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Summary

Ephesians 4:1

I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,

Beseech

Vocation

General references

1 Corinthians 16:14

Philippians 1:13

Bible References

Beseech

I beg you, therefore, brothers, through these mercies God has shown you, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies as a living sacrifice, devoted and well-pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service.

So I beg you, make it your habit to follow my example,

So I am an envoy to represent Christ, because it is through me that God is making His appeal. As one representing Christ I beg you, be reconciled to God.

As God's fellow-worker I beg you too not to accept God's favor and throw it away.

Now I appeal to you in person, by the gentleness and fairness of Christ, I, Paul, who am so "condescending when face to face with you, but so courageous toward you when far away!"

I beg you, brothers, take my point of view, just as I took yours. You did me no injustice then.

yet I prefer to appeal to you for love's sake, although I am such as I am, Paul an envoy of Christ Jesus but now a prisoner for Him too;

Dearly beloved, I beg you as aliens and exiles to keep on abstaining from the evil desires of your lower nature, because they are always at war with the soul.

And now I beg you, my lady, not as though I were writing you a new command, but one which we had from the beginning, that we continue to love one another.

Vocation

There is but one body and one Spirit, just as there is but one hope resulting from the call you have received;

Yes, we know that all things go on working together for the good of those who keep on loving God, who are called in accordance with God's purpose.

I am pressing onward toward the goal, to win the prize to which God through Jesus Christ is calling us upward.

With this in view we are always praying for you too, that our God may make you worthy of His call, and by His power fully satisfy your every desire for goodness, and complete every activity of your faith,

For He saved us and called us with a holy call, not in accordance with anything that we had done, but in accordance with His own purpose and unmerited favor which was shown us through union with Christ Jesus eternal ages ago,

Therefore, my Christian brothers, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the Messenger and High Priest whom we profess to follow,

never returning evil for evil or abuse for abuse, but blessing instead, because it was for this that you were called, to obtain the blessing of heirs.

And God, the giver of every spiritual blessing, who through your union with Christ has called you to His eternal glory, after you have suffered a little while, will Himself make you perfect, firm, and strong,

because His divine power has given us everything that is needful for life and piety, through our full knowledge of Him who through His glory and excellence has called us to Him.

General references

let everything be done in love.

in this way it has become well known throughout the Imperial Guard and to all the rest here that I am a prisoner in the service of Christ,