Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Ephesians 4:32

"and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving each other, even as God also in Christ forgave you." — Ephesians 4:32 (ASV)

Having put aside these malicious traits, Christians will instead display kindness, compassion, and forgiveness. “Be” is really “become,” for Paul realizes that his readers have not yet attained “the full measure of perfection found in Christ” (v.13). To be “kind” (GK 5982) is to show a sweet and generous disposition. “Compassionate” is a rare word, related to the intestines. The ancients located the seat of the emotions in the internal organs—liver, kidneys, and larger viscera.

Mutual forgiveness is a further mark of true Christian fellowship (Colossians 3:13); it requires a give and take. Paul sets forth the strongest possible motive: Christians must forgive one another because all of them have already been forgiven by God in Christ, when he became “the atoning sacrifice... for the sins of the whole world” . “As” further implies that our forgiveness of others is to be like God’s forgiveness of us. It must flow from ungrudging love (cf. Matthew 18:23–35).