That’s the title of a paper I wrote 19 years ago for a Scripture class in the seminary. It’s a study of the first few verses of the first chapter of St Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians. I tend to scrounge around for old articles and reflections when my little brain dries up (which happens fairly often these days), so I’m going back even to seminary days now! I also happen to have re-read Ephesians recently, which I think is one of Paul’s richer works, so I may have a few more reflections to offer in the near future. For now I think I’ll just assemble here some excerpts from my dazzling study, for your intellectual stimulation and spiritual edification.
“The language and style of this text have certain affinities with Hebrew literature, especially some Qumran texts, with long compound sentences and a certain hymnographical or liturgical character. In the Greek, Ephesians 1:3-10 (some say all the way to v. 14) is generally understood to be a single sentence. It is akin to a Hebrew berakah (blessing or thanksgiving), commonly used in liturgy and prayer” [Gee, I must have been pretty smart back then!].
“God is blessed, i.e., praised and thanked, precisely because He Himself blesses: ‘Blessed be God… who has blessed us…’ In this opening verse we find a distinctive New Testament designation of God. God is ‘the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ’; this expression is often found in the initial greeting of Paul’s epistles. But it is unusual to find a greeting (v. 2) and an extended blessing (vv. 3-14) followed by a thanksgiving (vv. 15-16) and a prayer (vv. 17-23), all at the beginning of a letter. It should be made clear that the blessing in vv. 3-14 is not simply a berakah in prayer-form, but also an enumeration of the various elements comprising God’s blessing as well as some explanation of their meaning and import.
“God has ‘blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places’ (v. 3b). It may be helpful at the outset to unpack the expression ‘spiritual blessing.’ The spiritual blessing is not merely the opposite of a ‘material’ blessing. It refers primarily to the presence and activity of the Holy Spirit and the fruits of incorporation into Christ which the Spirit has accomplished and is still accomplishing in Christians. This spiritual blessing was bestowed at baptism, when the initiates were ‘sealed with the promised Holy Spirit’ (v. 13). It is a dynamic gift, essentially the gift of ongoing salvation which Paul presents in many of its aspects as his blessing proceeds. ‘Every’ spiritual blessing is really the ‘full’ spiritual blessing granted by God in Christ. Having received the grace of Christ, we have received every conceivable blessing.
“‘In the heavenly places’ means the realm of the unseen, spiritual realities. This should not be too readily identified with the traditional Christian concept of heaven, because the same word (epouraniois) is used by Paul in the same epistle to designate the dwelling place of the ‘spiritual hosts of wickedness’ (6:12). But the blessings do come, of course, from God, who is ‘far above’ (1:21) all principalities and powers in the spiritual realm.
“To say that God chose us is to emphasize his sovereign initiative in our salvation. Paul frequently stresses this point. Ephesians 2:1-10 clearly spells out the truth that our election and salvation are primarily a matter of God’s initiative, mercy, and grace, and that it is through no personal worthiness or works, but rather a grace-directed response of faith—which is, however, expressed in good works (v. 10)—that we can be saved.
“In Ephesians there is a development in Paul’s thought which pushes back our election from the choice of Abraham (as in Galatians and Romans) all the way to the very beginning, before the creation of the world (1:9-10). If God chose us before all human history, yet chose us ‘in him’ (i.e., in Christ), then we have here the doctrine of the cosmic and eternal Christ, which is more explicitly stated in Colossians 1:16—‘in him were created all things in heaven and on earth.’ Reflection on the mystery of redemption, part of the secret and eternal plan of God, has enabled Paul to see Christ at the heart of that plan from its inception.
“That the elect are chosen before the world began is important for Paul’s vision of the one Church comprised of both Jews and Gentiles. In Romans and Galatians, Paul painstakingly explains how Gentiles can still be children of Abraham through faith. But here election does not depend upon the call of Abraham (who is not even mentioned in Ephesians) but only upon the universally benevolent choice of God, although the Jews are accorded a certain priority (1:12-13).
“God ‘destined us to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will.’ We are ‘destined’ because God willed us to be sons in the Son. According to his will, we are his children. But the word here translated ‘purpose’ (eudokia) admits other translations, e.g., ‘good pleasure,’ which is more correct etymologically. (It could also be translated: what God ‘thought good,’ or what ‘seemed good’ to Him.) ‘Purpose’ seems to emphasize predestination, while ‘good pleasure’ emphasizes God’s benevolence and loving initiative. The two are not, of course, mutually exclusive. The same word appears again in verse nine in the context of the mysterious plan concerning Christ’s universal headship.
“The Christian vocation is one of praise and thanksgiving in joyful acknowledgement of God’s free and superabundant gifts. One who believes in God through Jesus Christ is struck with wonder at the goodness of God and is drawn freely and spontaneously to ‘praise the glory of his grace.’ This grace is not only that of election, but also of redemption and forgiveness, as Paul presently explains. God did not merely ‘grant’ this grace as a sort of condescending concession. ‘Granted’ is a weak and inadequate translation of ekharitosen, which carries the meaning of gracious and free giving, of visiting with favor. In fact, it is formed from the same stem as the word for ‘grace’ in the same verse.
“As holds true for all of God’s activity on our behalf, grace comes through Christ, here called ‘the Beloved.’ This is based on a more tender and expressive designation in Colossians 1:13, ‘the Son of his love’ (tou huiou tes agapes autou), which is usually translated (rather unfortunately, I think) ‘his beloved Son.’ We are to stand in love before God, who destined us to divine adoption in love, and who accomplishes all things through ‘the Son of his love.’”
Well, those selections deal only with the first half of the paper, so I think I’ll go on with this in the next post. Stay tuned…
