Ephesians 2 explained: Made Alive, Brought Near

The old life (vv. 1-3)

The readers' past is pictured as a kind of death: cut off from God, following the ways of the world and an evil spiritual ruler said to rule the air, where many ancient people believed spirits lived. In verse 3 the writer switches to 'we', likely including himself and fellow Jews, and says all were by nature facing God's anger; Western churches often link this to sin inherited from birth, while Orthodox Christians speak more of an inherited pull toward sin and death.

But God stepped in (vv. 4-7)

Out of mercy, God gives these people new life by joining them to Christ's rising from death and to his place of honor in heaven. The writer speaks of this as already done, and says its purpose is to show God's kindness for all time to come.

A gift, not a wage (vv. 8-10)

Grace here means kindness no one earned, received through faith, meaning trust; Christians differ on whether the gift that does not come from the readers themselves is faith itself or the whole rescue. Good deeds are not the price of being saved but its purpose, since people are God's own work, made for good deeds he prepared ahead of time.

Once outsiders (vv. 11-13)

Circumcision, the removal of the foreskin from Jewish baby boys, marked belonging to God's covenant with Israel, so non-Jews were labeled by its absence, though the writer points out it is only a mark made on the body by people. Readers who once stood outside Israel, its promises and any closeness to God are now brought close through Christ's death, which is what 'the blood of Christ' means here.

The wall torn down (vv. 14-18)

Many scholars think the wall between the two groups recalls a stone barrier in the Jerusalem temple that warned non-Jews not to enter the inner courts on pain of death. Through his death Christ is said to set aside the law's commands and rules, making Jews and non-Jews one new people with equal access to God, though interpreters differ on whether this means the rules that set Jews apart, like food laws, or the law's whole role in reaching God.

God's new house (vv. 19-22)

Former outsiders are now full citizens and family members in God's household, built on the apostles and prophets with Jesus as the cornerstone, the stone that holds the whole building in line. Scholars differ on whether these prophets are Israel's ancient prophets or early Christian ones, and the chapter ends by picturing the people themselves as a temple where God lives by his Spirit.

Key verse: Ephesians 2:8

Where Christians differ

Christians agree this chapter calls salvation God's free gift, but Protestants stress that it is received through faith alone, while Catholic and Orthodox Christians stress that faith and the grace-given good works of verse 10 belong together in a lifelong process of being saved.

Something to think about

What does it take for two groups who have long looked down on each other to become one, and have you ever seen that actually happen?