Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Ephesians 1:2

"Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." — Ephesians 1:2 (ASV)

“Grace” (GK 5921) and “peace” (GK 1645) reflect the standard greetings in Greek and Hebrew (cf. Romans 1:7b). Paul prefers to replace the Greek chaire (“rejoice”) by charis (“grace”) as embodying the essence of the gospel. For “peace” (Heb. shalom; Gk 8934), see Ezr 4:17; 5:7; 7:12; Daniel 4:1; 6:25, et al. Paul associates “the Lord Jesus Christ” with “God our Father” as the originator of these blessings. The name of Christ appears in each of the three clauses in this opening salutation. What follows in the body of Ephesians has to do with the relationship between “the saints” and their living Lord.