Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Ephesians 3:5

"which in other generation was not made known unto the sons of men, as it hath now been revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit;" — Ephesians 3:5 (ASV)

Although God’s blessing intended for Gentiles through the people of God was revealed in the OT from Ge 12:3 onward, it was not proclaimed so fully or so extensively as now under the new dispensation. In particular, OT saints did not clearly realize that the old theocracy would be superseded by the body of Christ composed of Jews and Gentiles forming “one new man” (2:15). “Men” in this verse is literally “the sons of men,” a Hebraic phrase that means human beings in general, in contrast with “sons of Israel”—the normal designation of Jews. These people now form God’s new community. This further disclosure was made to the whole church of Christ (1:8–10, 17– 18) through the “apostles and prophets” (2:20), of whom Paul was one. Indeed, he was the first to receive this truth that was not immediately recognized by the rest. The apostles and prophets are designated as “holy” because they were set apart for the special task of proclaiming Christ. Paul is not arrogantly assuming moral superiority here (cf. v.8), but displays a serene and modest objectivity. The instrument of revelation, as always, is the Holy Spirit. There may well be a subtly ambiguous allusion here, as elsewhere in the NT (cf. Romans 1:4), to the interplay between the Holy Spirit and the human spirit (Ephesians 1:17; cf. 2:22; Ephesians 5:18). This is particularly relevant in the context of revelation.