New Testament · Letter · book 49 of 66 · 2 min read
The book of Ephesians
Three chapters of what has happened and three of what to do about it, joined by the word therefore — the cleanest structure of any New Testament letter.
“for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,”
At a glance
- Chapters
- 6
- Author
- Paul, though authorship is debated
- Written
- Around 60 to 62 AD if by Paul; possibly later
- Written for
- Probably a circular letter to several churches
- Themes
- grace, one people, unity, standing firm
What it is about
Ephesians is unusually general for a Pauline letter — no local problems, no names, no crisis — which is why many take it as a circular sent to several churches in the region.
Its structure is the thing to know. Chapters 1 to 3 are entirely about what God has done: chosen, adopted, raised, reconciled, made one people out of two. Chapters 4 to 6 are entirely about conduct, and they begin with therefore.
The last section, the armour of God, is the most quoted part and sits at the end of an argument about a community learning to speak truthfully to each other.
Where to start
Chapter 2, which contains the letter's central claim about grace and its argument about two groups becoming one.
The chapters worth knowing
- Ephesians 2 — By grace you have been saved, and the wall of hostility broken down between two groups.
- Ephesians 4 — The therefore — where the letter turns from what God has done to how to live.
- Ephesians 6 — The armour of God, all of it defensive except one piece, followed by an instruction to pray.
What people get wrong about it
That the armour of God is about personal spiritual warfare in isolation. The passage closes a letter about a community, the pieces are all defensive except one, and the instruction attached is to pray for each other.
Questions
What is the structure of Ephesians?
Three chapters on what God has done, then three on how to live, joined by therefore at the start of chapter 4. It is the clearest example of that pattern in Paul's letters.
What is the armour of God?
Ephesians 6:10–18: truth, righteousness, readiness, faith, salvation and the word, described as equipment for standing rather than attacking, and followed immediately by an instruction to pray.