Reference: Ephesians, Epistle to
Easton
was written by Paul at Rome about the same time as that to the Colossians, which in many points it resembles.
Contents of. The Epistle to the Colossians is mainly polemical, designed to refute certain theosophic errors that had crept into the church there. That to the Ephesians does not seem to have originated in any special circumstances, but is simply a letter springing from Paul's love to the church there, and indicative of his earnest desire that they should be fully instructed in the profound doctrines of the gospel. It contains (1) the salutation (Eph 1:1-2); (2) a general description of the blessings the gospel reveals, as to their source, means by which they are attained, purpose for which they are bestowed, and their final result, with a fervent prayer for the further spiritual enrichment of the Ephesians (Eph 1:3-2:10); (3) "a record of that marked change in spiritual position which the Gentile believers now possessed, ending with an account of the writer's selection to and qualification for the apostolate of heathendom, a fact so considered as to keep them from being dispirited, and to lead him to pray for enlarged spiritual benefactions on his absent sympathizers" (Eph 2:12-3:21); (4) a chapter on unity as undisturbed by diversity of gifts (Eph 4:1-16); (5) special injunctions bearing on ordinary life (Eph 4:17-6:10); (6) the imagery of a spiritual warfare, mission of Tychicus, and valedictory blessing (Eph 6:11-24).
Planting of the church at Ephesus. Paul's first and hurried visit for the space of three months to Ephesus is recorded in Ac 18:19-21. The work he began on this occasion was carried forward by Apollos (Ac 18:24-26) and Aquila and Priscilla. On his second visit, early in the following year, he remained at Ephesus "three years," for he found it was the key to the western provinces of Asia Minor. Here "a great door and effectual" was opened to him (1Co 16:9), and the church was established and strengthened by his assiduous labours there (Ac 20:20,31). From Ephesus as a centre the gospel spread abroad "almost throughout all Asia" (Ac 19:26). The word "mightily grew and prevailed" despite all the opposition and persecution he encountered.
On his last journey to Jerusalem the apostle landed at Miletus, and summoning together the elders of the church from Ephesus, delivered to them his remarkable farewell charge (Ac 20:18-35), expecting to see them no more.
The following parallels between this epistle and the Milesian charge may be traced:
(1.) Ac 20:19 = Eph 4:2. The phrase "lowliness of mind" occurs nowhere else.
(2.) Ac 20:27 = Eph 1:11. The word "counsel," as denoting the divine plan, occurs only here and Heb 6:17.
(3.) Ac 20:32 = Eph 3:20. The divine ability.
(4.) Ac 20:32 = Eph 2:20. The building upon the foundation.
(5.) Ac 20:32 = Eph 1:14,18. "The inheritance of the saints."
Place and date of the writing of the letter. It was evidently written from Rome during Paul's first imprisonment (Eph 3:1; 4:1; 6:20), and probably soon after his arrival there, about the year 62, four years after he had parted with the Ephesian elders at Miletus. The subscription of this epistle is correct.
There seems to have been no special occasion for the writing of this letter, as already noted. Paul's object was plainly not polemical. No errors had sprung up in the church which he sought to point out and refute. The object of the apostle is "to set forth the ground, the cause, and the aim and end of the church of the faithful in Christ. He speaks to the Ephesians as a type or sample of the church universal." The church's foundations, its course, and its end, are his theme. "Everywhere the foundation of the church is the will of the Father; the course of the church is by the satisfaction of the Son; the end of the church is the life in the Holy Spirit." In the Epistle to the Romans, Paul writes from the point of view of justification by the imputed righteousness of Christ; here he writes from the point of view specially of union to the Redeemer, and hence of the oneness of the true church of Christ. "This is perhaps the profoundest book in existence." It is a book "which sounds the lowest depths of Christian doctrine, and scales the loftiest heights of Christian experience;" and the fact that the apostle evidently expected the Ephesians to understand it is an evidence of the "proficiency which Paul's converts had attained under his preaching at Ephesus."
Relation between this epistle and that to the Colossians (q.v.). "The letters of the apostle are the fervent outburst of pastoral zeal and attachment, written without reserve and in unaffected simplicity; sentiments come warm from the heart, without the shaping out, pruning, and punctilious arrangement of a formal discourse. There is such a fresh and familiar transcription of feeling, so frequent an introduction of coloquial idiom, and so much of conversational frankness and vivacity, that the reader associates the image of the writer with every paragraph, and the ear seems to catch and recognize the very tones of living address." "Is it then any matter of amazement that one letter should resemble another, or that two written about the same time should have so much in common and so much that is peculiar? The close relation as to style and subject between the epistles to Colosse and Ephesus must strike every reader. Their precise relation to each other has given rise to much discussion. The great probability is that the epistle to Colosse was first written; the parallel passages in Ephesians, which amount to about forty-two in number, having the appearance of being expansions from the epistle to Colosse. Compare:
The style of this epistle is exceedingly animated, and corresponds with the state of the apostle's mind at the time of writing. Overjoyed with the account which their messenger had brought him of their faith and holiness (Eph 1:15), and transported with the consideration of the unsearchable wisdom of God displayed in the work of man's redemption, and of his astonishing love towards the Gentiles in making them partakers through faith of all the benefits of Christ's death, he soars high in his sentiments on those grand subjects, and gives his thoughts utterance in sublime and copious expression.
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When they reached Ephesus, Paul left them there. He went to the synagogue and argued with the Jews, who asked him to stay for a while. But he would not consent; read more. he said goodbye to them, telling them, "I will come back to you, if it is the will of God." Then, sailing from Ephesus,
There came to Ephesus a Jew called Apollos, who was a native of Alexandria, a man of culture, strong in his knowledge of the scriptures. He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord and he preached and taught about Jesus with ardour and accuracy, though all the baptism he knew was that of John. read more. In the synagogue he was very outspoken at first; but when Aquila and Priscilla listened to him, they took him home and explained more accurately to him what the Way of God really meant.
You also see and hear that not only at Ephesus but almost all over Asia this fellow Paul has drawn off a considerable number of people by his persuasions. He declares that hand-made gods are not gods at all.
When they came to him, he said, "You know quite well how I lived among you all the time ever since I set foot in Asia, how I served the Lord in all humility, with many a tear and many a trial which I encountered owing to the plots of the Jews,
how I served the Lord in all humility, with many a tear and many a trial which I encountered owing to the plots of the Jews, how I never shrank from letting you know anything for your good, or from teaching you alike in public and from house to house,
how I never shrank from letting you know anything for your good, or from teaching you alike in public and from house to house, bearing my testimony, both to Jews and Greeks, of repentance before God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. read more. Now here I go to Jerusalem under the binding force of the Spirit. What will befall me there, I do not know. Only, I know this, that in town after town the holy Spirit testifies to me that bonds and troubles are awaiting me. But then, I set no value on my own life as compared with the joy of finishing my course and fulfilling the commission I received from the Lord Jesus to attest the gospel of the grace of God. I know to-day that not one of you will ever see my face again ??not one of you among whom I moved as I preached the Reign. Therefore do I protest before you this day that I am not responsible for the blood of any of you; I never shrank from letting you know the entire purpose of God.
I never shrank from letting you know the entire purpose of God. Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock of which the holy Spirit has appointed you guardians; shepherd the church of the Lord which he has purchased with his own blood. read more. I know that when I am gone, fierce wolves will get in among you, and they will not spare the flock; yes. and men of your own number will arise with perversions of the truth to draw the disciples after them. So be on the alert, remember how for three whole years I never ceased night and day to watch over each one of you with tears.
So be on the alert, remember how for three whole years I never ceased night and day to watch over each one of you with tears. And now I entrust you to God and the word of his grace; he is able to upbuild you and give you your inheritance among all the consecrated.
And now I entrust you to God and the word of his grace; he is able to upbuild you and give you your inheritance among all the consecrated.
And now I entrust you to God and the word of his grace; he is able to upbuild you and give you your inheritance among all the consecrated.
And now I entrust you to God and the word of his grace; he is able to upbuild you and give you your inheritance among all the consecrated. Silver, gold, or apparel I never coveted; read more. you know yourselves how these hands of mine provided everything for my own needs and for my companions. I showed you how this was the way to work hard and succour the needy, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, who said, 'To give is happier than to get.'"
for I have wide opportunities here for active service ??and there are many to thwart me.
PAUL, by the will of God an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the saints who are faithful in Jesus Christ: grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
in whom we enjoy our redemption, the forgiveness of our trespasses, by the blood he shed.
so to order it in the fulness of the ages that all things in heaven and earth alike should be gathered up in Christ ??11 in the Christ in whom we have had our heritage allotted us (as was decreed in the design of him who carries out everything according to the counsel of his will),
which is the pledge and instalment of our common heritage, that we may obtain our divine possession and so redound to the praise of his glory. Hence, as I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,
illuminating the eyes of your heart so that you can understand the hope to which He calls us, the wealth of his glorious heritage in the saints,
you are a building that rests on the apostles and prophets as its foundation, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone;
For this reason I Paul, I whom Jesus has made a prisoner for the sake of you Gentiles ??2 for surely you have heard how the grace of God which was vouchsafed me in your interests has ordered it,
Now to him who by the action of his power within us can do all things, aye far more than we ever ask or imagine,
As the Lord's prisoner, then, I beg of you to live a life worthy of your calling,
As the Lord's prisoner, then, I beg of you to live a life worthy of your calling, with perfect modesty and gentleness, showing forbearance to one another patiently, zealous in love
with perfect modesty and gentleness, showing forbearance to one another patiently, zealous in love
with perfect modesty and gentleness, showing forbearance to one another patiently, zealous in love to preserve the unity of the Spirit by binding peace upon yourselves.
to preserve the unity of the Spirit by binding peace upon yourselves. For there is one Body and one Spirit ??as you were called for the one hope that belongs to your call ??5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
For there is one Body and one Spirit ??as you were called for the one hope that belongs to your call ??5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
one God and Father of all, who is over us all, who pervades us all, who is within us all. But each one of us is granted his own grace, as determined by the full measure of Christ's gift. read more. Thus it is said, When he ascended on high he led a host captive and granted gifts to men. What does he ascended mean, except that he first descended to the nether regions of the earth? He who descended is he who ascended above all the heavens to fill the universe; he granted some men to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, some to shepherd and teach, for the equipment of the saints, for the business of the ministry, for the upbuilding of the Body of Christ, till we should all attain the unity of the faith and knowledge of God's Son, reaching maturity, reaching the full measure of development which belongs to the fulness of Christ ??14 instead of remaining immature, blown from our course and swayed by every passing wind of doctrine, by the adroitness of men who are dexterous in devising error;
we are to hold by the truth, and by our love to grow up wholly into Him. For He, Christ, is the head, and under him, as the entire Body is welded together and compacted by every joint with which it is supplied, the due activity of each part enables the Body to grow and build itself up in love.
as the entire Body is welded together and compacted by every joint with which it is supplied, the due activity of each part enables the Body to grow and build itself up in love.
you must lay aside the old nature which belonged to your former course of life, that nature which crumbles to ruin under the passions of moral deceit, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, read more. putting on the new nature, that divine pattern which has been created in the upright and pious character of the Truth.
be kind to each other, be tender-hearted, be generous to each other as God has been generous to you in Christ.
Let no one deceive you with specious arguments; these are the vices that bring down God's anger on the sons of disobedience. So avoid the company of such men. read more. For while once upon a time you were darkness, now in the Lord you are light; lead the life of those who are children of the light
Be strictly careful then about the life you lead; act like sensible men, not like thoughtless; make the very most of your time, for these are evil days.
converse with one another in the music of psalms, in hymns, and in songs of the spiritual life, praise the Lord heartily with words and music,
put on God's armour so as to be able to stand against the stratagems of the devil. For we have to struggle, not with blood and flesh but with the angelic Rulers, the angelic Authorities, the potentates of the dark present, the spirit-forces of evil in the heavenly sphere. read more. So take God's armour, that you may be able to make a stand upon the evil day and hold your ground by overcoming all the foe. Hold your ground, tighten the belt of truth about your loins, wear integrity as your coat of mail, and have your feet shod with the stability of the gospel of peace; above all, take faith as your shield, to enable you to quench all the fire-tipped darts flung by the evil one, put on salvation as your helmet, and take the Spirit as your sword (that is, the word of God), praying at all times in the Spirit with all manner of prayer and entreaty ??be alive to that, attend to it unceasingly, interceding on behalf of all the saints and on my behalf also, that I may be allowed to speak and open my lips in order to expound fully and freely that open secret of the gospel
and on my behalf also, that I may be allowed to speak and open my lips in order to expound fully and freely that open secret of the gospel for the sake of which I am in custody as its envoy. Pray that I may have freedom to declare it as I should.
for the sake of which I am in custody as its envoy. Pray that I may have freedom to declare it as I should.
for the sake of which I am in custody as its envoy. Pray that I may have freedom to declare it as I should. Our beloved brother Tychicus, a faithful minister in the Lord, will give you all information about me, so that you may know how I am; read more. that is why I am sending him to you, to let you know how I am and to encourage your hearts.
that is why I am sending him to you, to let you know how I am and to encourage your hearts. Peace and love with faith be to the brothers from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. read more. Grace be with all who have an undying love for our Lord Jesus Christ.
In him we enjoy our redemption, that is, the forgiveness of sins.
and by him it willed to reconcile in his own person all on earth and in heaven alike, in a peace made by the blood of his cross.
for I am a minister of the church by the divine commission which has been granted me in your interests, to make a full presentation of God's message ??26 of that open secret which, though concealed from ages and generations of old, has now been disclosed to the saints of God.
when you were buried with him in your baptism and thereby raised with him as you believed in the power of the God who raised him from the dead. For though you were dead in your trespasses, your flesh uncircumcised, He made you live with Christ, He forgave us all our trespasses,
instead of keeping in touch with that Head under whom the entire Body, supplied with joints and sinews and thus compacted, grows with growth divine.
things that bring down the anger of God on the sons of disobedience. Once you moved among them, when you lived in them; read more. but off with them all now, off with anger, rage, malice, slander, foul talk! Tell no lies to one another; you have stripped off the old nature with its practices, and put on the new nature which is renewed in the likeness of its Creator for the knowledge of him.
As God's own chosen, then, as consecrated and beloved, be clothed with compassion, kindliness, humility, gentleness, and good temper ??13 forbear and forgive each other in any case of complaint; as Christ forgave you, so must you forgive.
And above all you must be loving, for love is the link of the perfect life. Also, let the peace of Christ be supreme within your hearts ??that is why you have been called as members of the one Body. And you must be thankful. read more. Let the inspiration of Christ dwell in your midst with all its wealth of wisdom; teach and train one another with the music of psalms, with hymns, and songs of the spiritual life; praise God with thankful hearts.
and pray for me as well, that God may give me an opening for the word, to speak of the open secret of Christ for which I am in custody. Pray that I may unfold it as I should. read more. Let Christian wisdom rule your behaviour to the outside world; make the very most of your time;
The reason why I am sending him to you is that he may ascertain how you are, and encourage your hearts.
God, in his desire to afford the heirs of the Promise a special proof of the solid character of his purpose, interposed with an oath;
Hastings
This Epistle belongs to the group of Epistles of the Captivity, and was almost certainly, if genuine, written from Rome, and sent by Tychicus at the same time as the Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon (see Colossians).
1. Destination.
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in him you have received a wealth of all blessing, full power to speak of your faith and full insight into its meaning,
it is the mysterious Wisdom of God that we discuss, that hidden wisdom which God decreed from all eternity for our glory. None of the Powers of this world understands it (if they had, they would never have crucified the Lord of glory). read more. No, as it is written, what no eye has ever seen, what no ear has ever heard, what never entered the mind of man, God has prepared all that for those who love him. And God has revealed it to us by the Spirit, for the Spirit fathoms everything, even the depths of God.
And God has revealed it to us by the Spirit, for the Spirit fathoms everything, even the depths of God. What human being can understand the thoughts of a man, except the man's own inner spirit? So too no one understands the thoughts of God, except the Spirit of God.
We work together in God's service; you are God's field to be planted, God's house to be built. In virtue of my commission from God, I laid the foundation of the house like an expert master-builder. It remains for another to build on this foundation. Whoever he is, let him be careful how he builds. read more. The foundation is laid, namely Jesus Christ, and no one can lay any other.
Do you not know you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells within you?
(for many as we are, we are one Bread, one Body, since we all partake of the one Bread).
There are varieties of talents, but the same Spirit;
There are varieties of talents, but the same Spirit; varieties of service, but the same Lord; read more. varieties of effects, but the same God who effects everything in everyone.
As the human body is one and has many members, all the members of the body forming one body for all their number, so is it with Christ. For by one Spirit we have all been baptized into one Body, Jews or Greeks, slaves or freemen; we have all been imbued with one Spirit. read more. Why, even the body consists not of one member but of many. If the foot were to say, 'Because I am not the hand, I do not belong to the body,' that does not make it no part of the body. If the ear were to say, 'Because I am not the eye, I do not belong to the body,' that does not make it no part of the body.
That is to say, God has set people within the church to be first of all apostles, secondly prophets, thirdly teachers, then workers of miracles, then healers, helpers, administrators, and speakers in 'tongues' of various kinds.
Then comes the end, when he hands over his royal power to God the Father, after putting down all other rulers, all other authorities and powers. For he must reign until all his foes are put under his feet. read more. (Death is the last foe to be put down.) For God has put everything under his feet. When it is said that everything has been put under him, plainly that excludes Him who put everything under him; and when everything is put under him, then the Son himself will be put under Him who put everything under him, so that God may be everything to everyone.
PAUL, by the will of God an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the saints who are faithful in Jesus Christ:
so to order it in the fulness of the ages that all things in heaven and earth alike should be gathered up in Christ ??11 in the Christ in whom we have had our heritage allotted us (as was decreed in the design of him who carries out everything according to the counsel of his will),
You also have heard the message of the truth, the gospel of your salvation, and in him you also by your faith have been stamped with the seal of the long-promised holy Spirit which is the pledge and instalment of our common heritage, that we may obtain our divine possession and so redound to the praise of his glory. read more. Hence, as I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,
May the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, grant you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation for the knowledge of himself,
which he exerted in raising Christ from the dead and seating him at his right hand in the heavenly sphere,
the church which is his Body, filled by him who fills the universe entirely.
to display throughout ages to come his surpassing wealth of grace and goodness toward us in Christ Jesus.
Remember, then, that once upon a time you Gentiles in the flesh, who are called 'the Uncircumcision' by that so-called 'Circumcision' which is itself the product of human hands in the flesh ??12 remember you were in those days outside Christ, aliens to the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of the Promise, devoid of hope and God within the world.
so as himself to give the death-blow to that feud by reconciling them both to God in one Body through the cross;
for it is through him that we both enjoy our access to the Father in one Spirit.
for it is through him that we both enjoy our access to the Father in one Spirit. Thus you are strangers and foreigners no longer, you share the membership of the saints, you belong to God's own household, read more. you are a building that rests on the apostles and prophets as its foundation, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone;
you are a building that rests on the apostles and prophets as its foundation, with Christ Jesus as the cornerstone; in him the whole structure is welded together and rises into a sacred temple in the Lord,
in him the whole structure is welded together and rises into a sacred temple in the Lord, and in him you are yourselves built into this to form a habitation for God in the Spirit.
which was not disclosed to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his sacred apostles and prophets by the Spirit), namely, that in Christ Jesus the Gentiles are co-heirs, companions, and co-partners in the Promise.
in terms of the eternal purpose which he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord,
So I beg of you not to lose heart over what I am suffering on your behalf; my sufferings are an honour to you.
praying Him out of the wealth of his glory to grant you a mighty increase of strength by his Spirit in the inner man.
As the Lord's prisoner, then, I beg of you to live a life worthy of your calling, with perfect modesty and gentleness, showing forbearance to one another patiently, zealous in love read more. to preserve the unity of the Spirit by binding peace upon yourselves.
to preserve the unity of the Spirit by binding peace upon yourselves.
to preserve the unity of the Spirit by binding peace upon yourselves. For there is one Body and one Spirit ??as you were called for the one hope that belongs to your call ??5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
one God and Father of all, who is over us all, who pervades us all, who is within us all. But each one of us is granted his own grace, as determined by the full measure of Christ's gift.
he granted some men to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, some to shepherd and teach, for the equipment of the saints, for the business of the ministry, for the upbuilding of the Body of Christ, read more. till we should all attain the unity of the faith and knowledge of God's Son, reaching maturity, reaching the full measure of development which belongs to the fulness of Christ ??14 instead of remaining immature, blown from our course and swayed by every passing wind of doctrine, by the adroitness of men who are dexterous in devising error;
as the entire Body is welded together and compacted by every joint with which it is supplied, the due activity of each part enables the Body to grow and build itself up in love.
Lay aside falsehood, then, let each tell his neighbour the truth, for we are members one of another. Be angry but do not sin; never let the sun set upon your exasperation, read more. give the devil no chance. Let the thief steal no more; rather let him work and put his hands to an honest task, so as to have something to contribute to the needy. Let no bad word pass your lips, but only such speech as is good for edification, as occasion may require, words that are gracious and a means of grace to those who hear them. And do not vex God's holy Spirit, by whom you have been sealed for the day of redemption.
And do not vex God's holy Spirit, by whom you have been sealed for the day of redemption. Drop all bitter feeling and passion and anger and clamouring and insults, together with all malice; read more. be kind to each other, be tender-hearted, be generous to each other as God has been generous to you in Christ.
and lead lives of love, just as Christ loved you and gave himself up for you to be a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
and lead lives of love, just as Christ loved you and gave himself up for you to be a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
(for the fruit of light consists in all that is good and right and true),
Wives, be subject to your husbands as to the Lord, for the husband is the head of the wife as Christ also (though he is the saviour of the Body) is the head of the church; read more. as the church is subject to Christ, so wives are to be subject to their husbands in every respect. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to consecrate her by cleansing her in the bath of baptism as she utters her confession,
to consecrate her by cleansing her in the bath of baptism as she utters her confession, in order to have the church as his very own, standing before him in all her glory, with never a spot or wrinkle or any such flaw, but consecrated and unblemished.
in order to have the church as his very own, standing before him in all her glory, with never a spot or wrinkle or any such flaw, but consecrated and unblemished.
And as for you masters, act by your servants in the same way, and stop threatening them; be sure that they and you have a Lord and Master in heaven, and there is no partiality about him. To conclude. Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might; read more. put on God's armour so as to be able to stand against the stratagems of the devil. For we have to struggle, not with blood and flesh but with the angelic Rulers, the angelic Authorities, the potentates of the dark present, the spirit-forces of evil in the heavenly sphere. So take God's armour, that you may be able to make a stand upon the evil day and hold your ground by overcoming all the foe.
So take God's armour, that you may be able to make a stand upon the evil day and hold your ground by overcoming all the foe. Hold your ground, tighten the belt of truth about your loins, wear integrity as your coat of mail, read more. and have your feet shod with the stability of the gospel of peace; above all, take faith as your shield, to enable you to quench all the fire-tipped darts flung by the evil one, put on salvation as your helmet, and take the Spirit as your sword (that is, the word of God), praying at all times in the Spirit with all manner of prayer and entreaty ??be alive to that, attend to it unceasingly, interceding on behalf of all the saints
praying at all times in the Spirit with all manner of prayer and entreaty ??be alive to that, attend to it unceasingly, interceding on behalf of all the saints
Our beloved brother Tychicus, a faithful minister in the Lord, will give you all information about me, so that you may know how I am; that is why I am sending him to you, to let you know how I am and to encourage your hearts.
Only, do lead a life that is worthy of the gospel of Christ. Whether I come and see you or only hear of you in absence, let me know you are standing firm in a common spirit, fighting side by side like one man for the faith of the gospel.
Only, do lead a life that is worthy of the gospel of Christ. Whether I come and see you or only hear of you in absence, let me know you are standing firm in a common spirit, fighting side by side like one man for the faith of the gospel.
Therefore God raised him high and conferred on him a Name above all names,
We are the true Circumcision, we who worship God in spirit, we who pride ourselves on Christ Jesus, we who rely upon no outward privilege.
But we are a colony of heaven, and we wait for the Saviour who comes from heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ,
Never be anxious, but always make your requests known to God in prayer and supplication with thanksgiving;
Your debt to me is fully paid and more than paid! I am amply supplied with what you have sent by Epaphroditus, a fragrant perfume, the sort of sacrifice that God approves and welcomes.
And when this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans; also, see that you read the letter that reaches you from Laodicea.
speaking of this as he has done in all his letters ??letters containing some knotty points, which ignorant and unsteady souls twist (as they do the rest of the scriptures) to their own destruction.
and all the dwellers on earth will be his worshippers, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of Life.
Let us rejoice and triumph, let us give him the glory! For now comes the marriage of the Lamb; his bride has arrayed herself,
So he carried me off, rapt in the Spirit, to a huge, high mountain, where he showed me the City, the holy Jerusalem, descending from God out of heaven,
And the wall of the City has twelve foundation-stones, bearing the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.