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Ephesians from a Messianic Jewish Perspective

To Sarah, my daughter, who loves the Lord and loves her family. She is training up her girls and my granddaughters in the way they should go (Proverbs 22:6).

Ephesians resembles a typical rabbinic drash (discourse). In Chapters 1-3, Sha’ul or Paul (see the commentary on Acts, to see link click Bm – Paul’s First Missionary Journey: Paul is Sha’ul and Sha’ul is Paul), the respected rabbi, gives Torah instruction about who YHVH is and how to relate to Him as individuals and as the collective Body of Messiah. The rest of the letter lays out halakhah (mitzvot governing Jewish life), practical ways to live according to the Torah that Sha’ul has just taught. The first half of the letter has few, if any, direct quotes from the Torah, but there are many concepts from it. In the second half, which deals more with how the community functions with God and one another. Sha’ul includes several important quotations, basing his instructions squarely upon the Torah.

In 2:11-22, Sha’ul cites several problems Gentiles had, mainly because of their spiritual separation from ADONAI, their physical separation from the commonwealth of Isra’el, and their resulting separation from Isra’el’s covenants (see the commentary on Jeremiah Af – The Covenants of the TaNaKh). The verses that follow describe how in Yeshua, the Gentile’s problems are solved. Not only are they brought to God and the Messiah, but they also become fellow citizens with God’s people. Sha’ul reminds believers of this reality, and that this union of Jewish and Gentile believers as equals in the Body of Messiah is accomplished through Yeshua.

Finally, as a member of the people of Isra’el, Sha’ul welcomes the Gentiles into their midst by using familiar Torah language in 2:19. In the Torah, those who are not native-born Israelites are called foreigners and strangers (Hebrew: gerim). But in Ephesians, Sha’ul proclaims that Jewish believers in Yeshua are to consider Gentile believers as brothers and sisters in the faith.1

Authorship: Twice in this letter Paul/Sha’ul referred to himself by name as the author of the book (1:1 and 3:1). Yet, the Pauline authorship of Ephesians has been greatly disputed in recent years (It sounds to me that some people needed a topic for their doctrinal thesis!). Some critics think that the book reflects aspects of vocabulary, style, and doctrine that differ from Paul’s other writings. Though the book has a close affinity to Colossians (see below), critics claim that Ephesians is uncharacteristic of Sha’ul. They suggest that the book was pseudonymous, that is, written by someone who did not use his own name, but who instead claimed to be Paul. However, pseudonymity was not practiced by the early Church. Also, this book is regarded by many as the crown jewel of all Sha’ul’s writings. Thus, it seems strange that a disciple of Paul would be greater than the apostle in theological and spiritual perception. Furthermore, Ephesians was extensively and indisputably accepted by the early Church as Sha’ul’s letter. Sha’ul mentions that he was a prisoner of Messiah (3:1), a prisoner of the Lord (4:1), and an ambassador in chains (6:20). There is not strong reason for rejecting the Pauline authorship of Ephesians.2

Date and Destination: Paul wrote this letter from prison in Rome in 60 AD (see the commentary on Galatians Ae – Dates of Books in the B’rit Chadashah) to believers whom he had pastored. Because the phrase “who are in Ephesus” is not in many early manuscripts, and because there is no mention of a location, situation or individual believer, many scholars think this letter was encyclical, intended to be circulated among all the churches in Asia Minor (including those in Smyrna, Thyatira, and Sardis, as well as Ephesus). It may be that that letter was first sent to Ephesus and became especially associated with that church.3

Purpose: Though no particular problem is raised in the book, the reason for writing this epistle becomes clear when one considers the contacts the apostle had with the Ephesians. On the return from his third missionary journey (see the commentary on Acts Ce – Paul’s Third Missionary Journey), Sha’ul told to Ephesian elders at Miletus (57 AD) to beware of evil teachers from without and of professing believers within who would teach perverse things (see the commentary on Acts Cj – Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders). From Revelation one can see that the Ephesian church had succeeded in keeping out false teachers, but had failed to maintain the vibrancy of their first love for Messiah (see the commentary on Revelation Az – The Church at Ephesus). This is substantiated in First Timothy 1:5, when Paul wrote from Macedonia to Timothy at Ephesus (64 AD) that the purpose of his instruction was to promote love from a clean heart, from a good conscience and from sincere trust. Thus, the theme of love needed to be stressed for the Ephesians.

This is in harmony with the contents of Ephesians, for the Greek verb for love (agapo) is used 9 times in Ephesians whereas Paul used it only 23 times in all his other letters. Sha’ul used the noun for love (agape) 10 times in Ephesians compared to 65 times in all his other letters. Therefore, of the 107 times Paul used the verb or noun form of love, 19 are in Ephesians. So more than one-sixth of his references to love appear in this small letter to the Ephesians. This letter begins with love (1:4 and 6) and ends with love (6:23-24). Also, Ephesians teaches us that Jewish and Gentile believers are now one in Messiah (see Ba – The Unity of the Body), which is demonstrated by their love for one another. This love can come only from ADONAI. Possibly Sha’ul, realizing that they were beginning to abandon their first love, wrote to encourage them to love both God and each other.4

The similarity between Ephesians and Colossians: Ephesians and Colossians are two of the so-called Prison Epistles, written by Paul during his first Roman imprisonment in 60 AD. They were sent by the same messenger (Tychicus) who also carried them to Philemon. They are companion letters, not only because they were written at about the same time, but primarily because Ephesians speaks of the Body of Messiah of which He is the Head, and Colossians presents Him as the Head of the Body. Colossians was written to combat the Colossian heresy, a discussion of which the reader will find in the introduction to that book. In Colossians we find the Person of the Lord Yeshua more clearly presented than in any other of Sha’ul’s letters. The very necessity of defining His Person in view of the heresies about Him, made this imperative. While the Colossian letter was addressed to the local church at that place, the Ephesian letter appears to have been a circular letter sent from church to church.5

The Use of the Complete Jewish Bible: Because I am writing this commentary on the book of Second Corinthians from a Jewish perspective, I will be using the Complete Jewish Bible unless otherwise indicated.

The use of ADONAI: Long before Yeshua’s day, the word ADONAI had, out of respect, been substituted in speaking and in reading aloud for God’s personal name, the four Hebrew letters yod-heh-vav-heh, variously written in English as YHVH. The Talmud (Pesachim 50a) made it a requirement not to pronounce the Tetragrammaton, meaning the four-letter name of the LORD, Yod-Hey-Vav-Hey, since the ancient manuscripts do not give any vowel sounds, and this remains the rule in most modern Jewish settings. In deference to this tradition, which is unnecessary but harmless, I will be using ADONAI where YHVH is meant. In ancient times when the scribes were translating the Hebrew Scriptures, they revered the name of YHVH so much that they would use a quill to make one stroke of the name and then throw it away. Then they would make another stroke and throw that quill away until the name was completed. His name became so sacred to them that they started to substitute the phrase the Name, instead of writing or pronouncing His Name. Over centuries of doing this, the actual letters and pronunciation of His Name were lost. The closest we can come is YHVH, with no vowels. The pronunciation has been totally lost. Therefore, the name Yahweh is only a guess of what the original name sounded like. Both ADONAI and Ha’Shem are substitute names for YHVH. ADONAI is more of an affectionate name like daddy, while Ha’Shem is a more formal name like sir. Therefore, Jews, being respectful of the Third Commandment, use these words as replacements. The Talmud explains, “In the Sanctuary, the Name was pronounced as written; but beyond its confines a substitute Name was employed (Tractate Sotah VII.6). God has only one name, YHVH. All His other “names” like ADONAI Elohei-Tzva’ot, ADONAI Elohim, ADONAI Nissi, ADONAI Tzidkenu, and ADONAI-Tzva’ot, merely reflect His attributes.

Contrary to what some religious groups say today, no one can say with confidence how to pronounce God’s Name. The “name” Jehovah, for example, is a made-up word by a Franciscan monk in the dark ages. He took YHVH, and inserted vowels between the known letters to invent a new word: YeHoVaH. Jews never, NEVER, use this made-up word. The last book of the B’rit Chadashah tells us that when Yeshua returns to the earth, He will reveal the Name that no one knew but Himself (Revelation 19:12). It seems best to leave this lost pronunciation unresolved until the Messiah comes.

The use of TaNaKh: The Hebrew word TaNaKh is an acronym, based on the letters T (for “Torah”), N (for “Nevi’im,” the Prophets), and K (for “Ketuvim,” the Sacred Writings). It is the collection of the teachings of God to human beings in document form. The term “Old Covenant” implies that it is no longer valid, or at the very least outdated. Something old, to be either ignored or discarded. But Jesus Himself said: Don’t think I have come to abolish the Torah and the Prophets; I have not come to abolish but to complete (Matthew 5:17 CJB). I will be using the Hebrew acronym TaNaKh instead of the phrase the Old Testament, throughout this devotional commentary.

The Use of the phrase, “the righteous of the TaNaKh,” rather than using Old Testament saints: Messianic synagogues, and the Jewish messianic community in general, never use the phrase Old Testament saints. From a Jewish perspective, they prefer to use the phrase, “righteous of the TaNaKh.” Therefore, I will be using “the righteous of the TaNaKh,” rather than Old Testament saints throughout this devotional commentary.