See in Reader
1.2 KiB
Ephesians 04 General Notes
Structure and formatting
Some translations set each line of poetry farther to the right than the rest of the text to make it easier to read. The ULB does this with verse 8, which is quoted from the Old Testament.
Special concepts in this chapter
Spiritual gifts
Spiritual gifts are specific supernatural abilities that the Holy Spirit gives to Christians after they come to believe in Jesus. Paul lists here only some of the spiritual gifts. Some scholars believe that the Holy Spirit gave some spiritual gifts only to believers in the early church. These spiritual gifts were foundational to developing the church. (See: rc://en/tw/dict/bible/kt/faith)
Unity
Paul considers it very important that the church is united. This is a major theme of this chapter.
Other possible translation difficulties in this chapter
Old man and new man
The term "old man" probably refers to the sinful nature with which a person is born. The "new man" is the new nature or new life that God gives a person after they come to believe in Christ.