Albert Barnes Commentary Ephesians 4

Ephesians Chapter 4

Analysis of the Chapter

This chapter is the commencement of the practical part of the epistle and is made up, like the remaining chapters, of various exhortations. It is in accordance with the usual habit of Paul to conduct an argument in his epistles and then to enforce various practical duties, either growing out of the argument he had maintained or, more commonly, adapted to some particular state of things in the church to which he wrote. The points of exhortation in this chapter are, in general, the following:

1. An exhortation to unity (Ephesians 4:1–6). He entreats them to walk worthy of their vocation (Ephesians 4:1); shows them how it could be done, or what he meant, and that, to do so, they should show meekness and kindness (Ephesians 4:2); and particularly exhorts them to unity (Ephesians 4:3), for they had one God, one Savior, one baptism, one religion (Ephesians 4:4–6).
2. He shows them that God had made ample provision for His people, so that they might be sound in the faith and in unity of life and doctrine, and need not be driven about with every wind of opinion (Ephesians 4:7–16). He assures them that to every Christian is given grace in the Redeemer adapted to his circumstances (Ephesians 4:7); that the Lord Jesus ascended to heaven to obtain gifts for His people (Ephesians 4:8–10); that He had given apostles, prophets, and evangelists for the very purpose of imparting instruction and confirming them in the faith of the gospel (Ephesians 4:11, 12); that this was so that they might attain to the highest elevation in Christian knowledge and piety (Ephesians 4:13); and particularly that they might not be driven to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14–16).
3. Having these arrangements made for their knowledge and piety, he exhorts them not to live as the Gentiles around them lived, but to show that they were under a better influence (Ephesians 4:17–24). Their understanding was darkened, and they were alienated from the life of God, or true religion (Ephesians 4:18); they were past feeling and were given over to every form of sensuality (Ephesians 4:19). The Ephesians, however, had been taught a different thing (Ephesians 4:20, 21); and the apostle exhorts them to lay aside everything pertaining to their former course of life and to become wholly conformed to the principles of the new man (Ephesians 4:22–24).
4. He exhorts them to perform particular Christian duties and to put away certain evils, of which they and all others were in danger (Ephesians 4:25). In particular, he entreats them to avoid lying (Ephesians 4:25); anger (Ephesians 4:26); theft (Ephesians 4:28); corrupt and corrupting conversation (Ephesians 4:29); grieving the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30); bitterness, evil-speaking, and malice (Ephesians 4:31); and entreats them to manifest, in their interactions with each other, a spirit of kindness and forgiveness (Ephesians 4:32).

I therefore. In view of the great and glorious truths which God has revealed, and of the grace which He has manifested towards you who are Gentiles. See the previous chapters. The sense of the word "therefore"—oun—in this place, is, "Such being your exalted privileges; since God has done so much for you; since He has revealed for you such a glorious system; since He has bestowed on you the honor of calling you into His kingdom, and making you partakers of His mercy, I entreat you to live in accordance with these elevated privileges, and to show your sense of His goodness by devoting your all to His service." The force of the word "I" they would all feel. It was the appeal and exhortation of the founder of their church—of their spiritual father—of one who had endured much for them, and who was now in bonds on account of his devotion to the welfare of the Gentile world.

The prisoner of the Lord. Margin, in. It means that he was now a prisoner, or in confinement in the cause of the Lord; and he regarded himself as having been made a prisoner because the Lord had so willed and ordered it. He did not feel particularly that he was the prisoner of Nero; he was bound and kept because the Lord willed it, and because it was in His service. (See Barnes on Ephesians 3:1).

Beseech you that you walk worthy. That you live as becomes those who have been called in this manner into the kingdom of God. The word walk is often used to denote life, conduct, etc. (See Barnes on Romans 4:12; Romans 6:4; 2 Corinthians 5:7).

Of the vocation. Of the calling—thv klhsewv. This word properly means a call, or an invitation—as to a banquet. Hence it means that Divine invitation or calling by which Christians are introduced into the privileges of the gospel. The word is translated calling in Romans 11:29; 1 Corinthians 1:26; 1 Corinthians 7:20; Ephesians 1:18; Ephesians 4:1, 4; Philippians 3:14; 2 Thessalonians 1:11; 2 Timothy 1:9; Hebrews 3:1; 2 Peter 1:10. It does not occur elsewhere.

The sense of the word, and the agency employed in calling us, are well expressed in the Westminster Shorter Catechism: "Effectual calling is the work of God's Spirit, whereby convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills, He persuades and enables us to embrace Jesus Christ freely offered to us in the gospel." This calling or vocation is through the agency of the Holy Spirit and is His appropriate work on the human heart.

It consists essentially in influencing the mind to turn to God, or to enter into His kingdom. It is the exertion of so much influence on the mind as is necessary to secure the turning of the sinner to God. In this all Christians are agreed, though there have been almost endless disputes about the actual influence exerted and the mode in which the Spirit acts on the mind.

Some suppose it is by "moral suasion;" some by physical power; some by an act of creation; some by inclining the mind to exert its proper powers in the right way and to turn to God. Perhaps we should not expect to be able to decide the precise agency employed.

. The great, the essential point is held, if it is maintained that it is by the agency of the Holy Spirit that the result is secured—and this, I suppose, is held by all evangelical Christians. But though it is by the agency of the Holy Spirit, we are not to suppose that it is without the employment of means. It is not literally like the act of creation. It is preceded and attended with means adapted to the end; means which are almost as various as the individuals who are called into the kingdom of God. Among these means are the following:

1. Preaching. Probably more are called into the kingdom by this means than any other. It is "God's great ordinance for the salvation of men." It is eminently fitted for it. The pulpit has higher advantages for acting on the mind than any other means of affecting men. The truths that are dispensed; the sacredness of the place; the peace and quietness of the sanctuary; and the appeals to the reason, the conscience, and the heart—all are fitted to affect men and to bring them to reflection. The Spirit makes use of the word preached, but in a great variety of ways. Sometimes many are impressed simultaneously; sometimes the same truth affects one mind while others are unmoved; and sometimes truth reaches the heart of a sinner which he has heard a hundred times before without being interested. The Spirit acts with sovereign power and by laws which have never yet been traced out.
2. The events of Providence are used to call men into His kingdom. God appeals to men by laying them on a bed of pain or by requiring them to follow a friend in the still and mournful procession to the grave. They feel that they must die, and they are led to ask the question whether they are prepared. Far fewer are affected in this way than we might suppose; but still there are many, in the aggregate, who can trace their hope of heaven to a fit of sickness or to the death of a friend.
3. Conversation is one of the means by which sinners are called into the kingdom of God. In some states of mind, where the Spirit has prepared the soul like mellow ground prepared for the seed, a few moments' conversation or a single remark will do more to arrest the attention than much preaching.
4. Reading is often the means of calling men into the kingdom. The Bible is the great means—and if we can get men to read that, we have very cheering indications that they will be converted. The profligate Earl of Rochester was awakened and led to the Savior by reading a chapter in Isaiah. And who can estimate the number of those who have been converted by reading Baxter's Call to the Unconverted; Alleine's Alarm; the Dairyman's Daughter; or the Shepherd of Salisbury Plain? He does good who places a good book in the way of a sinner. That mother or sister is doing good, and making the conversion of a son or brother probable, who puts a Bible in his chest when he goes to sea, or in his trunk when he goes on a journey. Never should a son be allowed to go from home without one. The time will come when, far away from home, he will read it; he will read it when his mind is pensive and tender, and the Spirit may bear the truth to his heart for his conversion.
5. The Spirit calls men into the kingdom of Christ by presiding over and directing, in some unseen manner, their own reflections or the operations of their own minds. In some way, unknown to us, He turns the thoughts to the past life; recalls forgotten deeds and plans; makes long-past sins rise to remembrance; and overwhelms the mind with conscious guilt from the memory of crime. He holds this power over the soul, and it is among the most mighty and mysterious of all the influences He has on the heart. Sometimes—a man can hardly tell how—the mind will be pensive, sad, melancholy; then conscious of guilt; then alarmed at the future. Often, by sudden transitions, it will be changed from the gay to the grave, and from the pleasant to the sad; and often, unexpectedly to himself, and by associations which he cannot trace out, the sinner will find himself reflecting on death, judgment, and eternity. It is the Spirit of God that leads the mind along. It is not by force, not by the violation of its laws, but in accordance with those laws, that the mind is thus led along to the eternal world. In such ways and by such means, men are "called" into the kingdom of God.

To "walk worthy of that calling" is to live as becomes a Christian, an heir of glory; to live as Christ did. It is:

1. To bear our religion with us to all places, company, and employments. Not merely to be a Christian on the Sabbath, at the communion table, and in our own land; but every day, everywhere, and in any land where we may be placed. We are to live religion, and not merely profess it. We are to be Christians in the workplace as well as in our private devotions; on the farm as well as at the communion table; among strangers and in a foreign land, as well as in our own country and in the sanctuary.
2. To do nothing inconsistent with the most elevated Christian character. In temper, feeling, and plan, we are to give expression to no emotion, use no language, and perform no deed that shall be inconsistent with the most elevated Christian character.
3. To do right always: to be just to all; to tell the simple truth; to defraud no one; to maintain a correct standard of morals; to be known to be honest. There is a correct standard of character and conduct, and a Christian should be a man so living that we may always know exactly where to find him. He should so live that we shall have no doubts that, however others may act, we shall find him to be the unflinching advocate of temperance, chastity, honesty, and of every good work—of every plan that is really fitted to alleviate human woe and benefit a dying world.
4. To live as one should who expects soon to be in heaven. Such a man will feel that the earth is not his home; that he is a stranger and a pilgrim here; that riches, honors, and pleasures are of comparatively little importance; that he ought to watch and pray, and that he ought to be holy. A man who feels that he may die at any moment will watch and pray. A man who realizes that tomorrow he may be in heaven will feel that he ought to be holy. He who begins a day on earth, feeling that at its close he may be among the angels of God and the spirits of just men made perfect—that before its close he may have seen the Savior glorified and the burning throne of God—will feel the importance of living a holy life and of being wholly devoted to the service of God. Pure should be the eyes that are soon to look on the throne of God; pure the hands that are soon to strike the harps of praise in heaven; pure the feet that are to walk the "golden streets above."

With all lowliness. This means humility. (See Acts 20:19, where the same Greek word is used). Compare also the following passages where the same Greek word occurs: Philippians 2:3, "in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than themselves;"Colossians 2:18, "in a voluntary humility;"Colossians 2:23; Colossians 3:12; 1 Peter 5:5.

The word does not occur elsewhere in the New Testament. The idea is that humility of mind is fitting for those who are "called" (Ephesians 4:1), and that we walk worthy of that calling when we demonstrate it.

And meekness. .

Meekness relates to the manner in which we receive injuries. We are to bear them patiently and not retaliate or seek revenge. The meaning here is that we adorn the gospel when we show its power in enabling us to bear injuries without anger or a desire for revenge, or with a mild and forgiving spirit. (See 2 Corinthians 10:1; Galatians 5:23; Galatians 6:1; 2 Timothy 2:25; Titus 3:2, where the same Greek word occurs).

With longsuffering, etc. This means bearing patiently with the foibles, faults, and infirmities of others. (See 1 Corinthians 13:4).

The virtue required here is one to be shown in how we receive the provocations we encounter from our fellow believers. Perhaps no virtue is more frequently demanded in our interactions with others. We do not go far with any fellow traveler on the journey of life before we find there is great occasion for its exercise.

Another person has a temperament different from our own. They may be sanguine, choleric, or melancholy, while we may be just the reverse. They have peculiarities of taste, habits, and disposition which differ greatly from ours. They have their own plans and purposes in life, and their own way and time of doing things.

They may be naturally irritable, or they may have been trained so that their modes of speech and conduct differ greatly from ours. Neighbors have occasion to remark this in their neighbors, friends in their friends, relatives in their relatives, one church member in another. A husband and wife—such is the imperfection of human nature—can find enough in each other to embitter life if they choose to magnify imperfections and become irritated at trifles. Indeed, there is no friendship that may not be spoiled in this way, if we allow it.

Therefore, if we would have life move on smoothly, we must learn to bear and forbear. We must indulge the friend we love in the little peculiarities of saying and doing things that may be important to them but may be of little consequence to us. Like children, we must allow each one to build their playhouse in their own way and not quarrel with them because they do not think our way is the best.

All usefulness and comfort can be prevented by an unkind, sour, or grouchy temper of mind—a mind that cannot bear any difference of opinion or temperament. A spirit of fault-finding; an unsatisfied temper; constant irritability; little unevennesses in the look, temper, or manner; a cloudy and dissatisfied expression—which your husband or wife cannot explain—will more than neutralize all the good you can do and make life anything but a blessing.

The happiness and usefulness of life consist in such gentle and quiet virtues as meekness and forbearance, far more than in brilliant eloquence, splendid talent, or illustrious deeds that will make one's name known to future generations. It is the bubbling spring that flows gently, the little rivulet that glides through the meadow and runs along day and night by the farmhouse, that is useful, rather than the swollen flood or the roaring cataract.

Niagara excites our wonder, and we stand amazed at the power and greatness of God there, as He "pours it from His hollow hand." But one Niagara is enough for a continent or a world, while that same world needs thousands and tens of thousands of silver fountains and gently flowing rivulets to water every farm, every meadow, and every garden, and to flow on, every day and every night, with their gentle and quiet beauty.

So it is with the acts of our lives. Good is not done only by great deeds, like those of Howard, or only by great sufferings, like those of the martyrs. Rather, it is by the daily and quiet virtues of life—the Christian temper, meek forbearance, the spirit of forgiveness in the husband, wife, father, mother, brother, sister, friend, and neighbor—that good is done. In this, all may be useful.

The unity of the Spirit. A united spirit, or oneness of spirit. This does not refer to the fact that there is one Holy Spirit, but it refers to unity of affection, of confidence, of love. It means that Christians should be united in temper and affection, and not be split up into factions and parties. It may be implied here, as is undoubtedly true, that such a unity would be produced only by the Holy Spirit; and that, as there was but one Spirit who had acted on their hearts to renew them, they should show the same feelings and views.

There was occasion among the Ephesians for this exhortation, for they were composed of Jews and Gentiles, and there might be danger of divisions and strifes, as there had been in other churches. There is always occasion for such an exhortation, for:

1. unity of feeling is eminently desirable to honor the gospel (see my commentary on John 17:21); and
2. there is always danger of discord where people are brought together in one society. There are so many different tastes and habits; there is such a variety of intellect and feeling; the modes of education have been so various, and the temperament may be so different, that there is constant danger of division. Hence the subject is so often dwelt on in the scriptures (see my commentary on 1 Corinthians 2:1 and following), and hence there is so much need of caution and of care in the churches.

In the bond of peace. This was to be by the cultivation of that peaceful temper which binds all together. The American Indians usually spoke of peace as a "chain of friendship" which was to be kept bright. The meaning here is, that they should be bound or united together in the sentiments and affections of peace.

It is not mere external unity; it is not a mere unity of creed; it is not a mere unity in the forms of public worship. It is such as the Holy Spirit produces in the hearts of Christians, when he fills them all with the same love, and joy, and peace in believing. The following verses contain the reasons for this.

There is one body. One church—for so the word body means here—denoting the body of Christ (Romans 12:5).

Compare Ephesians 1:23.

The meaning here is, that as there is really but one church on earth, there ought to be unity. The church is, at present, divided into many denominations. It has different forms of worship, and different rites and ceremonies. It embraces those of different complexions and ranks in life, and it cannot be denied that there are often unhappy contentions and jealousies in different parts of that church.

Still, there is but one—"one holy, catholic (i.e., universal) church;" and that church should feel that it is one. Christ did not come to redeem and save different churches, and to give them a different place in heaven. He did not come to save the Episcopal communion merely, or the Presbyterian or the Methodist communions only; nor did he leave the world to fit up for them different mansions in heaven.

He did not come to save merely the black man, or the red, or the white man; nor did he leave the world to set up for them separate mansions in the skies. He came that he might collect into one community a multitude of every complexion, and from every land, and unite them in one great brotherhood on earth, and ultimately assemble them in the same heaven.

The church is one. Every sincere Christian is a brother in that church, and has an equal right with all others to its privileges. Being one by the design of the Saviour, they should be one in feeling; and every Christian, no matter what his rank, should be ready to hail every other Christian as a fellow-heir of heaven.

One Spirit. The Holy Spirit. There is one and the self-same Spirit that dwells in the church. The same Spirit has awakened all; enlightened all; convicted all; converted all. Wherever they may be, and whoever they are, there has still been substantially the same work of the Spirit on the heart of every Christian. There are circumstantial differences arising from diversities of temperament, disposition, and education; there may be a difference in the depth and power of His operations on the soul; there may be a difference in the degree of conviction for sin and in the evidence of conversion, but still there are the same operations on the heart essentially, produced by the same Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:6–11).

All the gifts of prayer, and of preaching; all the zeal, the ardour, the love, the self-denial in the church, are produced by the same Spirit. There should be, therefore, unity. The church is united in the agency by which it is saved; it should be united in the feelings which influence its members.

Even as ye are called (Ephesians 4:1).

The sense is, "There is one body and one spirit, in like manner as there is one hope resulting from your calling." The same notion of oneness is found in relation to each of these things.

In one hope of your calling. In one hope resulting from your being called into His kingdom. On the meaning of the word hope (Ephesians 2:12).

The meaning here is, that Christians have the same hope, and they should therefore be one. They are looking forward to the same heaven; they hope for the same happiness beyond the grave. It is not as on earth among the people of the world, where there is a variety of hopes—where one hopes for pleasure, and another for honour, and another for gain; but there is the prospect of the same inexhaustible joy.

This hope is fitted to promote union. There is no rivalry—for there is enough for all. Hope on earth does not always produce union and harmony. Two men hope to obtain the same office; two students hope to obtain the same honour in college; two rivals hope to obtain the same hand in marriage—and the consequence is jealousy, contention, and strife.

The reason is, that but one can obtain the object. Not so with the crown of life—with the rewards of heaven. All may obtain that crown; all may share those rewards. How can Christians contend in an angry manner with each other, when the hope of dwelling in the same heaven swells their bosoms and animates their hearts?

One Lord. This evidently refers to the Lord Jesus. The "Spirit" is mentioned in the previous verse; the Father in the verse following. For the application of the word "Lord" to the Savior, see Barnes on Acts 1:24.

The argument here is that there should be unity among Christians because they have one Lord and Savior. They do not have different Saviors adapted to different classes: not one for the Jew, and another for the Greek; not one for the rich, and another for the poor; not one for the bond, and another for the free.

There is but one. He belongs in common to all as their Savior, and he has a right to rule over one as much as over another. There is no better way of promoting unity among Christians than by reminding them that they have the same Savior.

And when jealousies and heart-burnings arise, or when they are disposed to contend about trifles, when they magnify unimportant matters until they are in danger of tearing the church apart, let them feel that they have one Lord and Savior, and they will lay aside their contentions and be one again.

Let two men who have never seen each other before meet in a distant land and feel that they have the same Redeemer, and their hearts will mingle into one. They are not aliens, but friends. A cord of sympathy is struck, more tender than that which binds them to country or home; and though of different nations, complexions, or habits, they will feel that they are one. Why should contentions ever arise between those who have the same Redeemer?

One faith. This means the same belief. That is, it is either the belief of the same doctrines or faith of the same nature in the heart. The word may be taken in either sense. I see no reason why it should not include both here, or be used in the widest sense.

If so used, it means that Christians should be united because they hold the same great doctrines and also because they have the same confidence in the Redeemer in their hearts. They hold the same system, as distinguished from Judaism, Paganism, Islam, and Deism; and they should, therefore, be one. They have the same trust in Christ as a living, practical principle—and they should, therefore, be one. They may differ in other attachments, in temperament, in pursuit, in professions in life; but they have a common faith, and they should be ONE.

One baptism. This does not affirm that there is one mode of baptism, but it refers to the thing itself. They are all baptized in the name of the same Father, Savior, and Sanctifier. They have all in this manner been consecrated to God and devoted to his service. Whether by immersion, or by pouring, or by sprinkling, they have all been baptized with water; whether it is done in adult years or in infancy, the same solemn act has been performed on all—the act of consecration to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

This passage cannot be cited to prove that only one mode of baptism is lawful, unless it can be shown that the thing referred to here was the mode and not the thing itself; and unless it can be proved that Paul meant to build his argument for the unity of Christians on the fact that the same form was used in their baptism.

But this is evidently not the point of his argument. The argument is that there was really but one baptism—not that there was but one mode of baptism. I could not use this argument in this form: "Christians should be one because they have been all baptized by sprinkling"; and yet the argument would be just as compelling as to use it in this form: "Christians should be one because they have all been baptized by immersion." There is one baptism, not one mode of baptism, and no man has a right to assume that there can be but one mode and then apply this passage to that.

The essential thing in the argument before us is that there has been a consecration to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit by the application of water. Thus understood, the argument is one that will be felt by all who have been devoted to God by baptism.

They have taken the same vows upon them. They have consecrated themselves to the same God. They have made the same solemn profession of religion. Water has been applied to one and all as the emblem of the purifying influences of the Holy Spirit, and having been thus initiated in a solemn manner into the same profession of religion, they should be one.