An Exegesis of Ephesians 4:7-16
HEADS UP: This is a rather lengthy and in depth article that may be difficult for some to understand. But if you want to see how this verse is broken down and interpreted in a scholarly fashion, you have come to the right place!
By Joey King
Introduction
Three decades after Jesus was crucified and resurrected, Christianity became widespread throughout Asia Minor. However, the growing Christian population was sharply persecuted in Ephesus, where it was not well received by the pagans, who continued to dominate the city. Idolatry and pagan worship influenced the weak, and there was a necessity for Christians to remain strong in their faith. Despite his imprisonment, Paul wrote the letter of Ephesians to the churches of Ephesus to encourage unity and maturity within the churches.
There is an old saying that it takes a village to raise a child. The expression implies that teachers, pastors, friends, grandparents, and other family members each take part in a child’s life, which plays an integral role in their upbringing. The bestowal of Ephesians 4:7-16 is one of the most enriching and powerful passages written to the churches. An exegesis reveals the specifications of which God had called upon the apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, and teacher to build the church. The result is unity through maturity and the gifts received through the Holy Spirit. Much like parents rely on others to influence their children, Paul must rely on his fellow apostles, elders, and followers to build up the church into full maturity and to work in unison to grow.
Historical Context
The Apostle Paul was not always the God-fearing, Jesus-loving Jew that wrote thirteen of the twenty-seven books in the New Testament. Prior to becoming a believer, he was known as Saul, a Jewish-Roman citizen who first appeared in the book of Acts as he approved the execution of Stephen (Acts 8:1 English Standard Version). While on the road to Damascus with the intention to locate and persecute the followers of Jesus, a light from the heavens shone, and Jesus asked Paul why he was persecuting Him (Acts 9:4). From that moment on, Paul became not only a devout follower after being filled with the Holy Spirit, but also a vessel to carry the name of Jesus to the Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel (Acts 9:15). It was around the year A.D. 50 when “Paul became the apostle of grace” when he began detailing “God’s plan for the church,” as seen in the thirteen books he wrote in the New Testament.[1]
Ephesus, located in modern-day Turkey, was a coastal city under Roman control that flourished and flaunted oil-burning street lamps.[2] In Ephesians 1, Paul addresses that the letter was intended to reach “the saints, who are in Ephesus,” though Paul was likely in a Roman prison, or on house arrest, around A.D. 60 when he wrote Ephesians. Still, it appears that despite his imprisonment, he remained in contact with Ephesus’ churches as he stated that “I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus,” indicating that he had received word of their stability in Christ (Eph. 1:15). As a Greco-Roman coastal city, Ephesus was a central hub for trading. During the time of Paul, the city was full of impressive architectural feats, including the Temple of Diana, The Temple of Artemis, The Theatre, The Stadium, and many other notable buildings that would boast paintings and mosaics throughout.[3] This made it a popular destination for many, especially for pagan worship.
Cultural Context
Ephesus progressed in cultural and religious life as the capital of the province of Asia. The most significant idol of the city was Artemis of Ephesus. Crowds traveled far and wide to visit the great Temple of Artemis, constructed of marble, to worship the proclaimed goddess of fertility.[4] It was so crucial that, indeed, a cult culture was formed. It was noted that “It was the cult of the Ephesian Artemis which, more than anything else, made Ephesus a centre of religious life during this period.”[5]
Idolatry was a common practice in the pagan city, as they rejected the idea of one God and focused on multiple gods as their belief system, as did the Roman culture. Therefore, statues and other handmade items were used as idols to worship their many gods and goddesses. Approximately two years after Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, in chapter 19 of the Book of Acts, Luke wrote of a silversmith named Demetrius who instigated a riot in Ephesus. Demetrius and his fellow craftsman were upset at their slowing business due to the increased popularity of Jesus and the lack of the need for their handcrafted shrines of Artemis, which were considered idolatry by the Christians. Despite Artemis being the principal deity, the Christian community in Ephesus was more prominent than in any other city.[6] The Christian faith within the Jews and the Gentiles grew exponentially after Paul’s prior visits. However, it was apparent that occasionally they needed to be reminded to be wary of immortality, false teachings, idolatry, and wolves in sheep’s clothing within the culture that may have tempted the sinners of the flesh (Acts 20:28).
Literary Context
It has been suggested that the book of Ephesians was a “circular letter” with a “clear association with the Colossians and, therefore, with Philemon.”.[7] Likely to establish a bulwark against seducers in all congregations, as it was essential to ensure that negative cultural behavior did not persuade the Christians in Ephesus. Paul recognized this, and though he had heard that they had been doing many good works, the Christians lacked the discipline to mature in Christ. Therefore, Paul continues to attempt to uplift and encourage them to “walk in a manner worthy of the calling” that each of them had been summoned (Eph. 4:1). Paul emphasized that Christians could not “recognize God in ‘complete’ fullness by means of increasing one’s knowledge given” but only through Christ and “through the love of God.” [8]
He wrote in his letter concerning the grace that each was given, containing the instruments to lead in ministry and reiterating the significance of growing upon the body of Christ (Eph. 4:7-12). The emphasis was on building up the church to create an unfaltering faith in Christ using the gifts Christ gave through the Holy Spirit. Paul compared them to “infants” and expressed avoiding deceitful human nature that would prevent them from growing into “manhood” (Eph 4:13-14). Lastly, Paul speaks of unity in that when everything is working correctly in the body of Christ, “it builds upon itself in love” (Eph. 4:16). Every part of the body should work in unison, as do the joints and bones that allow us movement.
Meaning
The passage Ephesians 4:7-16 exposes “a silver bullet: a simple, guaranteed solution for a difficult problem. … The rediscovery and reapplication of this one piece of Pauline ecclesiology has massive” ramifications in our churches today.[9] The following is an exegesis of Ephesians 4:7-16 in the context of its meaning for the purpose of understanding the significance and intention that Paul willed in his passage. His “style and composition” through the letter to the Ephesians clearly expressed his “devotion to the subjects” he discussed.[10]
The English language is limited compared to the Greek language, where derivatives of a word are used to determine a specific meaning. In contrast, the English language may only have one word that means multiple things. In this case, “But grace was given to each one of us,” the Greek word charis is translated into “grace” at the beginning of verse 4:7.[11] The word grace was used twelve times throughout Ephesians in the English Standard Version of the Bible. However, charis, in this letter, “was used in an antithetical connection: [God] made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions-it is by grace [chariti] you have been saved.”[12] In contrast to Paul’s other letters, charis used in this context as it is connected to “favor, bless, freely give”; nonetheless, it is still in relation to the “redemption through his blood” [13] In addition, charis is derived from the Greek word charisma which is where our English word for “charismatic” comes from. This passage is intended for the use of favors or gifts “since a list of ministry gifts to the church follow” in verse 4:11.[14]
At the end of verse 4:7, “according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” the Greek word metron is translated into English as “measure.” According to the ESV, the term measure is used twice in this verse. Both reference Christ as in “the fullness of Christ” and “of Christ’s gift” (Eph. 4:7). Paul uses the word measure to highlight that “God has created variety in the church and each individual is to function according to the task and ability God has given.”[15] Therefore, the presumed meaning of Ephesians 4:7 is that God bestowed each individual abilities, corresponding to their capacity, to use for His Glory.
Verses 4:8-10 say, “8 Therefore it says, When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to men. 9 (In saying, “He ascended,” what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower regions, the earth? 10 He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.).” Paul refers to Psalm 68:18 as the introduction of verse 8, discussing Christ “endowing the church with gifted people.”[16] However, Paul appears to follow a “rabbinic tradition” used in subsequent “targum that the victorious king “gave” gifts to people rather than “received” them.”[17] This has left scholars questioning why Paul chose to change from “a passive act of receiving gifts to an active giving to his people.[18] It has been argued that Paul misquoted Psalms in his writing.[19] However, he may have intentionally changed the verbiage to support his argument.[20]
Another observation of verse 4:8 states that “he led a host of captives” (Eph. 4:8). The Greek word used for “captives” is aichmaloteuo that when used as a verb, means “to make a prisoner of war” and literally translates to “one taken by spear.”[21] Paul may have implied that the captives were of the “spiritual enemies Christ defeated at the cross.”[22] Verses 9-10, Paul is taking the opportunity to remind the readers of Christ’s coming not to hell regarding “the lower regions” but to earth, referring to his incarnation and “his subsequent resurrection and ascension.” [23] Another view made by Ernest Best is that Christ descended to Hell before he Ascended to heaven and that it may even be an “almost unanimous view of the Fathers” referring to the “Fathers” meaning Irenaeus, Origen, Tertullian, Chrysostom, and Jerome as the advocates of the descent into Hell.[24]
Verses 4:11 lists five scripture providers: apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teachers. This is a continuation of Eph. 4:8, which refers to his gifts to men. As observed in Luke 9:1, Jesus had twelve original apostles whom he had instructed to heal, drive out demons, and “proclaim the Kingdom of God.” Paul, an apostle himself, and others such as James, Barnabas, Junias, Andronicus, and Epaphroditus, were messengers tasked with what could be referred to as missionary work.[25] The messengers were the apostles who were sent out on missions to spread the gospel, “which is the identifying message” “to the ends of the earth.”[26]
Prophets were people to “whom God made known a message for his people that was appropriate to their particular need or situation.” [27] “A prophet is one who is divinely inspired to communicate God’s will to His people and to disclose the future to them.”[28] Evangelists disseminate the news of Jesus’ death on the cross, burial, resurrection, and ascension.[29] The English Standard Version of verse Eph. 4:11 refers to a “shepherd” as one of the five scripture providers. However, the New King James Version, New Living Translation, and the New International Version all translate “shepherds” to “pastors” in verse Eph. 4:11. Poimen is interchangeably used in Greek for “shepherd” and “pastor.”[30] But it is most notably “found in John 10 where Jesus is revealed as the good shepherd.”[31] Pastors and teachers are likely closely related, although Paul must have seen them as having their place in bearing the gift. “Teachers were expounders of the Scriptures and the Jesus tradition. If they functioned like Jewish teachers, they probably offered Biblical instruction to the congregation and trained others to expound the Scriptures as well”[32]
Verse 4:12 distinguishes what the beforementioned roles in 4:11 are to achieve, which is to “equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ”. Equipping may be inferred to as to train or prepare, especially in the pretext to “equip the saints” used in verse 4:12. Additionally, this collaborates with the purpose of the gifts given to men noted earlier in verse 4:8. The last part of the verse, “building up the body of Christ” refers to building up the church. According to the New King James Version, “edifying” is used instead of “building” used in the English Standard Version. Additionally, Strong’s Expanded Concordance translates edifying from Greek as oikodome, meaning to strengthen the effect of teaching or ministry. The “building here is not inanimate, but a living and growing organism made up of living believers.”[33] The body of Christ is commonly understood as “the close and inseparable relationship between Jesus and the church. The image expresses the notion that the Anointed is the Representative of God’s people, and the members have been incorporated or included in himself when he brought salvation.”[34] Therefore, the “Spiritual gifts are for the body, the church, and are not to be exercised individualistically”[35] It would suffice to otherwise paraphrase for clarity that the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers are given the ability to prepare believers for the work of ministry to build up the church in God’s glory.
Verse 4:13 reads, “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” The meaning of the beginning of 4:13 is not “a matter of a loving attitude or religious feeling; it is also a matter of truth and a common understanding about God’s Son.”[36] To attain means “to come to or arrive at” and unity in reference to unanimity or oneness.”[37] Maturity is a crucial word in this verse which means “all Christians together as the church, ultimately attaining a state of oneness of the contents of faith and acceptance and possession of complete, correct and full understanding of Christ.”[38]
Verse 4:14, “so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” is the continuation of verse 13. Children are documented in this verse to contrast the maturity and to grow-up referenced in verse 4:15 and depict instability in the Christian faith.[39] The “wind” and the “waves” are figurative references for the inclination that causes one to go from one belief to another.[40] The purpose of Paul’s message is to become mature in the faith so that deliberate and seemingly innocent influences of evil and false teachings cannot draw Christians from their faith and the will of God.
Verse 4:15 begins to bring the passage home, “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.” There are four Greek meanings to the word “love,” used in the Bible, though “agape” is used in this verse in the original scrolls. Agape is primarily used to depict “affection” or “benevolence”[41] To speak the “truth in love” is to speak God’s word truthfully with affection. “To grow up in every way” is to grow into maturity in the fullness of Christ. The “head,” as in the head of Christ’s body, which of course the body is referring to the church.[42] Thus, Christ is the head of the church.
The passage ends on 4:16, “from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” This last verse is an analogy of the physical body growing under the direction of the head.[43] It concludes that the entire body “will grow from Jesus and be joined together” as individuals uphold their role in satisfying God’s “purpose of unity.”[44] Maturity and unity are impossible without love, as mentioned in this verse.[45] Therefore, the body (church) grows in a loving manner.
Significance and Application
The significance of Paul’s letter to Ephesus enriches Christians today as he energizes and instills theological truths. Though Paul emphasized our connection through the vertical syn-compound language to the work of Christ, “Paul’s use of the syn-compound in Ephesians focuses primarily but not exclusively on the horizontal relationship between Christians—especially the Jew-Gentile relationship.”[46] Lowe and Lowe accurately state that “Paul addressed the reason for this emphasis on the connections among church members in his letter to the Ephesians, where he demonstrates in Ephesians 4:16 that horizontal connections between believers that convey spiritual nutrients necessary for their continued growth.[47]
Howard Snyder provided great “ecological insights” into the comprehension of the church relating to the body of Christ.[48] As seen in Ephesians 4:7-16, Paul similarly uses the analogy of the body of Christ to depict the church. He used the analogy to “illustrate the dynamic interconnection between Christ and his church” and to congeal the “organic interconnections between and among Christians”[49] The significance of an “ecosystem-like” functionality “of the human body” is still demonstrated today through online and in-person connections that bring Christians closer to form the body that Christ intended.[50] The multi-functionality of the body working as one is directly related to the mutual growth of Christianity that Paul describes.
The application of Ephesians 4:7-16 is vital in the ecological growth of Christianity and the relationships that develop. Much like Lowe and Lowe’s reference to the lilies that typically require a good environment, and when that is achieved, they thrive together in groups.[51] Christians may grow independently but will not likely become strong enough to reach the “fullness of Christ” described by Paul (Eph. 4:13). The statement that drives this home was that “God designed the reciprocal nature of the imperatives to provide opportunities for Christians to interact, engage, and exchange actions and attitudes in a symbiotic give-and-take empowered by the Holy Spirit.”[52]
Paul was, without a doubt, a God-fearing Christian who never appeared to waver much despite his frequent suffering and persecution. Paul, like Jesus, understood the concept of contagion.[53] It had to have been as important then as it should be today. His words influenced and spread from person to person and likely city to city. The church grows when we realize that our faith is transmissible, much like the flu, if produced in a suitable environment. Although the before mentioned appears to be a negative statement with the use of sickness, the intention is not. It is simply an expression of the connectedness achieved through social networking and personal interactions.
He also made clear in Ephesians 4:7 that we were freely given through the Holy Spirit, Christ’s gift. He even took the time to point out that we are all different, and so are our abilities. Whether an apostle, a prophet, an evangelist, a pastor, or a teacher, we are endowed with the tools necessary to minister in some form or another. “An ecological frame of reference alerts us to certain dynamic qualities of ecosystem functions that prevent us from thinking in purely personal categories about spiritual growth.”[54] Therefore we should avoid self-seeking forms of spiritual growth and create bonds with others to develop the body of Christ and, thus, achieve our own progression in faith.
Conclusion
Christianity was new, as Christ had only left the Earth 30 years or so prior. Paul took it upon himself and the other apostles to plant the churches and teach the multitude about the salvation that was granted through grace. The Christians were being persecuted and submitted to pagan ideology, creating enormous pressure on the apostles. Paul intended that his letter would reach the Ephesian churches and assist in guiding them toward working together to unite the body of Christ as the physical body works and grows as one. Ephesians 4:6-17 speaks to the Jews and Gentiles and reminds them that the immaturity in faith needed to be addressed to harmonize the body of Christ. Paul significantly understood the ecology of faith and believed it from the bottom of his heart.
His letters were some of the most impactful messages post-resurrection. It can’t be helped but be wondered if he ever thought that his letters would become such a large part of Christianity nearly two thousand years later, let alone become part of the New Testament.
Bibliography
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Brian, Michael. “Christ and the Church: Ephesians 4:8-10 as a Test of Theological Exegesis.” Pro Ecclesia: A Journal of Catholic and Evangelical Theology (Sage) 28, no. 4 (2019): 418-431.
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Kaiser Jr., Walter C., and Moises Silva. Introduction to Biblical Hermeneutics: The Search for Meaning. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2007.
Lowe, Stephen D. and Mary E. Lowe. Ecologies of Faith in a Digital Age: Spiritual Growth Through Online Education. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2018.
Martin, Gerald F. Hawthorne and Ralph P., ed. Dictionary of Paul and His Letters. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993.
Roberts, J.H. “Jewish mystical experience in the early Christian era as background to understanding Colossians.” Neotestamentica, 1998.
Strong, James. The New Strong’s Expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Red Letter. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2010.
Trebilco, Paul. “The Early Christians in Ephesus from Paul to Ignatius.” Biblische Zeitschrift (Mohr Siebeck) 51, no. 2 (2007): 283-286.
Van Wyk, Barry. “The Application of Ephesians 4:11 In The Recent Missional Debate With Reference to Scripture”.” In die Skriflig 52, no. 3 (2018): 1-8.
Wilson, Mark. “The ‘Upper Regions’ and the Route of Paul’s Third Journey From Apamea to Ephesus.” Scriptura, 2016: 5. Fig,1.