Ephesians

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul emphasizes the unity of believers in the inaugurated new creation. He first sets before his audience the salvation freely offered to us through faith in Christ, then applies this truth to their lives, calling them to live lives of love. In this volume, S.M. Baugh approaches this important letter from a first-century perspective, examining ancient sources to determine what Paul's words meant in their ancient context, while also interacting with recent scholarship. The result is a commentary that is academically rigorous and at the same time presents Ephesians as the good news it was meant to be. - back of book.

Letter opening (1:1-2) -- Opening benediction (1:3-14) -- Paul reports on his prayer for insight (1:15-23) -- Deliverance from death to life in Christ (2:1-10) -- The unified new creation inaugurated (2:11-22) -- The mystery of redemption and Its Revelation (3:1-13) -- Paul's resumed prayer (3:14-21) -- Paul's exhortation to unity in love (4:1-6) -- Gift from the ascended Messiah to unify his church (4:7-16) -- The new way of life versus the Old (4:17-24) -- The new creation walk in love (4:25-5:2) -- The saints and the sinful world (5:3-14) -- Summarizing exhortation to the whole church (5:15-21) -- Exhortations to Christian households: Wives and husbands (5:22-33) -- Exhortation to Christian households: children and parents in the Lord (6:1-4) -- Exhortations to christian households: slaves and masters in the Lord (6:5-9) -- The church equipped for Its struggle (6:10-20) -- Concluding thoughts and benediction (6:21-24).