Глава 2

Eph.2:1. And you, dead in your trespasses and sins Eph.2:2. In which you once lived, according to the custom of this world, according to the will of the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience. “And you who are dead in your sins and your sins”, “sometimes you walk in them.” For the effectiveness of sin has killed us; she conceived death. "According to the age of this world". “World” he calls creation, and “century” real life. “According to the prince of the power of the air: the spirit that now works in the sons of disobedience.” The Apostle clearly taught us that in ancient times the devil was entrusted with power over the air. But, having lost it for wickedness, he became a teacher of malice and wickedness. However, he does not rule over everyone, but over those who do not accept only Divine broadcasts. For the Apostle called them “sons of disobedience,” reminding the Ephesians of God’s good deed, namely, that he made them worthy of salvation when, due to sin, they were still dead and under the power of the devil. And so that reminders of his former life would not be taken as an accusation, he counts himself among them, showing that this illness was common to everyone. Eph.2:3. Among whom we all once lived according to our carnal lusts, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and thoughts, and were by nature children of wrath, like others. “In them we all sometimes live in the lusts of our flesh, doing the will of the flesh and thoughts, and being by nature children of wrath, like others.” The Apostle showed that not only the flesh, but also the soul itself deserves blame, because it initially accepts an inclination towards the worse, and then, with the help of the flesh, it puts into action what is planned by the mind. The Apostle said: “by nature children of wrath,” that is, worthy of wrath and extreme punishment. Thus, he called the Antichrist “the son of destruction” (2 Thess. 2:3), that is, worthy of destruction. Eph.2:4. God, rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us. Eph.2:5. And He made us alive together with Christ, who were dead in trespasses; by grace you have been saved. “But God, who is rich in mercy, for His abundant love, love us with it,” “and make us alive in Christ, who are dead in sins.” But when we were so bad, the Lord God, having an abyss of goodness, “made” us partakers of the immortal life of our Lord. The Apostle understands this when he says: “come alive in Christ.” For since He was resurrected, we also hope to be resurrected, because in Him is our success. Then the Apostle shows more clearly the greatness of the gift. “Salvation comes by grace.” For we were not called because of our valiant life, but because of the love of Him who saved us. Eph.2:6. And he raised him up with him, and made him sit in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. “And rise with Him and make us sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” for He has risen, and we have risen by hope; since He is co-seated with the Father, and we share in this honor; because our head will sit together, our firstfruits will reign together. He has taken on our nature. Eph.2:7. That He might show in the ages to come the exceeding riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. “May He show in the world to come the exceeding riches of His grace through His kindness to us in Christ Jesus.” The greatness of the hoped-for blessings is now completely unknown to the unfaithful, and even to the faithful “like a mirror in fortune-telling” (1 Cor. 13:12); because they walk “by faith” and not by “sight” (2 Cor. 5:7); but then they will see “face to face.” Then both the faithful and the unfaithful will see from us the venerable nature and the co-reigning saints received for all creation. “If we die,” says the Apostle, “we will live in Him; if we endure, we will also reign with Him” (2 Tim. 2:11-12). Eph.2:8. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Eph.2:9. Not from works, so that no one can boast. “For by grace comes salvation through faith.” The grace of God has vouchsafed us these blessings, and we have brought only faith; but Divine grace is also instrumental in that. For the Apostle added this too. “And this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God”: “not from works, lest anyone should boast.” For we did not believe on our own, but, being called, we approached, and from those who approached, the Lord did not demand purity of life, but, having accepted faith alone, granted remission of sins. Eph.2:10. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to walk in. “For we are a workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God was prepared to do first, that we might walk in them.” The Apostle said here: “created,” meaning rebirth, that is, God called us by ineffable goodness, we obeyed and, believing, received salvation. But just as before baptism he did not demand active virtue from us, so after baptism he commands us to take care of it. For this is what the words mean: “Let us walk in good works.” Again, the Apostle reminds the Ephesians of the previous things in order to show the greatness of God’s good deed. Eph.2:11. Remember therefore that you who were once Gentiles in the flesh, who were called uncircumcised, were called circumcised by the circumcision of the flesh, done with hands. “Remember, like you, like the pagans sometimes” (there should be a punctuation mark here). “In the flesh, the verb is uncircumcision from the recommended circumcision in the flesh, made with hands.” And circumcision belongs to the flesh, and uncircumcision also belongs to the flesh. This means: you, “the circumcision of the flesh” (as those who had the circumcision of the flesh made with hands called you) had no fellowship in the blessings of Israel. For this shows what is added. Eph.2:12. That you were at that time without Christ, alienated from the community of Israel, strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and being atheists in the world. “For in this time we are without Christ, alienated from the life of Israel, and alienated from the covenant of promise, having no hope, and having no god in the world.” The Apostle wants to show that the Lord Christ became for them the provider of all good things. For before you believed in Him, he says, you were deprived of the knowledge of God and did not receive the benefits promised to Israel. Eph.2:13. But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once far away have been brought near by the Blood of Christ. “Now in Christ Jesus you, who were sometimes far away, are near by the speed of the blood of Christ.” For you, who live far away and are separated from Israel, the Lord Christ has made you close to Himself. This is what the Apostle expressed with the words: “near quickly.” Eph.2:14. For He is our peace, having made both one and destroyed the barrier that stood in the middle. Eph.2:15. Having abolished enmity with His flesh, and the law of commandments with teaching, in order to create in Himself one new man from the two, establishing peace. Eph.2:16. And in one body to reconcile both with God through the cross, killing the enmity on it. “For this is our peace, having created both as one and destroying the mediastinum of the fence”: “the enmity of His flesh, having abolished the law of commandments by teaching.” He became the guardian of the world, He arranged that those who believed from the Israelites and from you form one body, and put an end to the law, which, like some kind of wall, separated you from each other, and first of all, He stopped hostility towards God, giving His own flesh for us as a redemption price; and having done this, he destroyed what separated you and them. The Apostle expressed this with the words: “the law of commandments.” For Christ did not abolish this: do not commit adultery, do not kill, do not steal, do not bear false witness against your neighbor, and also this: honor your father and your mother, and this: do not covet your neighbor’s wife, and the like. The Lord Christ pointed out this very thing to those who wanted to know the path to eternal life. The Apostle called the teachings of the Gospel “studies,” because in voluntary election lies success in self-improvement. For it is said: “He who is able to contain, let him contain” (Matt. 19:12), and: “If you want to be perfect, sell your possessions” (Matt. 19, 21); and: “fast always” (Matthew 6:16). And this is not a statute, but a matter of voluntary election. It lays down the law what at the very beginning, having created our nature, he wrote in it. “Let both of them create a new man into one, creating the world”; “and he will reconcile both in one body of God with the cross, killing the enmity on it.” He killed hostility on the Cross, making an undefiled sacrifice. He reconciled both, that is, those who believed from the Gentiles and from the Jews, in one body, offered for all, so that they formed one body. And the Apostle called all believers one person, because everyone has one head - the Lord Christ, and the body is made up of those who have been worthy of salvation. Eph.2:17. And when he came, he preached peace to you, far and near. “And I came to bring good news of peace to you, far and near. He calls the pagans “distant” and the Jews “neighbors.” Eph.2:18. Because through Him we both have access to the Father in one Spirit. “Before that, the imams bring the wallpaper in one Dus to the Father.” This is similar to what the Lord said: “no one will come to the Father except by Me” (John 14:6). He brought us to the Father, says the Apostle, he brought us, making us worthy of spiritual grace. Eph.2:19. So you are no longer strangers and strangers, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household. “In the same way, for whom are strangers and strangers, but fellow saints and dreamers of God.” The Apostle here calls “saints” not only those who are under grace, but also those who are under the law and before the law. For this Apostle also said about Abraham that “while he was waiting for the foundation of a rich city, God was its maker and maker” (Heb. 11:10). You have been honored with very high dignity, says Paul, both because you have become close to God and because you have become fellow saints. Eph.2:20. Being built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone. “The Apostle and the Prophet were created on the foundation. “Prophets” here calls the prophets not of the New, but of the Old Testament. He presented the apostles to them, because through them we received the Divine preaching. “I am the chief cornerstone of Jesus Christ Himself.” Just as He called Him the head of the body, so He also calls Him the cornerstone of the building, because it closes two walls and, like an angle, unites those who believe from the Jews and from the Gentiles. Eph.2:21. In which the whole building, being put together harmoniously, grows into a holy church in the Lord. Eph.2:22. In which you also are built into a habitation of God by the Spirit. About “In this way every creation grows into a holy Church in the Lord”: about “In this way you also are created into a habitation of God by the Spirit.” In the interpretation above, he called the Church the fulfillment of God, but here he calls it a church and a dwelling. The combination of both creates an angle, and the building is completed by the grace of the Spirit, teaching Divine lessons through preachers of truth. You might be interested in: