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Ephesians 02 General Notes
Structure and formatting
This chapter focuses on a Christian's life before coming to faith in Jesus. Paul then uses this information to explain how a person's former way of living is distinct from a Christian's new identity "in Christ." (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/faith)
Special concepts in this chapter
One body
Paul teaches about the church in this chapter. The church is made of two different groups of people (Jews and Gentiles) who are now one group or "body." It is also known as Jesus's body because Jesus unites them.
Important figures of speech in this chapter
"Dead in trespasses and sins"
Paul teaches that those who are not Christians are "dead" in their sin. This means that they are in bondage or enslaved to their sin, which leads to death unless they come to faith in Jesus. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/other/death, rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/sin, rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/faith and rc://en/ta/man/translate/figs-metaphor)
Metaphors for worldly living
Paul uses many different metaphors to describe how the non-Christian world acts. They "walked according to the age of this world," "walked according to the ruler of the authorities of the air," "acting according to the evil desires of our flesh," and "doing the will of the flesh and the mind."
Other possible translation difficulties in this chapter
"It is a gift of God"
Most scholars believe "it" refers to salvation, while others believe that it is faith that is the gift of God. Because of agreement in the Greek wording, it is more probable that salvation is what Paul refers to as the gift of God here.
Flesh
This is a complex issue. It is possible that "flesh" is a metaphor for a person's sinful nature. The phrase "Gentiles in the flesh" indicates the Ephesians once lived without any concern for God. "Flesh" is also used in this verse to refer to the physical part of man. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/flesh)