Ephesians 4 · The Lantern

Therfor Y boundun for the Lord biseche you, that ye walke worthili in the clepyng,

"I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you, that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called," guarding against those heresies of the wicked one which have broken in upon us, to the deceiving and destruction of those that accept of them; but that ye give heed to the doctrine of the apostles, and believe both the law and the prophets: that ye reject every Jew…

Those who love Christ follow him. They are bonded with him in the ties of love. There is also another explanation [i.e., Origen's], which it is the reader's prerogative to accept or not: Suppose what is called here the prison is the body. Because Paul has taken on the body for the ministry of the gospel, he is consequently said to be in bondage to Christ.

The Apostle recalled above the divine blessings through which the Church's unity has originated and been preserved (Ch. 1-3). Now he admonishes the Ephesians to remain within this ecclesial unity. Regarding this he does two things: First, he exhorts them to persevere in unity. Secondly, he instructs them how to remain in it (4:17).

in which ye ben clepid, with al mekenesse and myldenesse, with pacience supportinge ech other in charite,

Charity is the bond of brotherhood, the foundation of peace, the holdfast and security of unity, which is greater than both hope and faith, which excels both good works and martyrdoms, which will abide with us always, eternal with God in the kingdom of heaven. Take from it patience; and deprived of it, it does not endure.

Anyone who understands what it is "forbear one another in love" will understand that this is a precept appropriate to the faithful. It is not indeed saints who have any need to "forbear one another." Rather it is those in the earlier stages of Christian life, who being human are still under the control of some passion.

When he says with all humility and mildness, with patience, supporting one another in charity, he expresses the way to fulfill his admonition, teaching them how they can behave in a worthy manner. Four virtues must be cultivated, and their four opposite vices shunned. The first vice which he rejects is pride.

bisi to kepe vnyte of spirit in the boond of pees.

Who, then, is so wicked and faithless, who is so insane with the madness of discord, that either he should believe that the unity of God can be divided, or should dare to rend it-the garment of the Lord-the Church of Christ?

As the spirit in the body encompasses and unites everything, so too does the Holy Spirit unite the Church, even though we differ in race, character, and occupation. And through the Holy Spirit we become one body. Therefore, let us strive to preserve this unity by living in peace with one another.

After this he shows the purpose of his admonition which is to maintain unity among the faithful. You ought to walk worthy of your calling and be careful to keep the unity of the spirit. Two types of unity exist. One whose purpose is to commit evil; it is wicked and might be called a unity of the flesh.

O bodi and o spirit, as ye ben clepid in oon hope of youre cleping;

Such examples, therefore, brethren, it is right that we should follow; since it is written, "Cleave to the holy, for those that cleave to them shall [themselves] be made holy." And again, in another place, [the Scripture] saith, "With a harmless man thou shalt prove thyself harmless, and with an elect man thou shalt be elect, and with a perverse man thou shalt show thyself perv…

Be of one mind, O you bishops, one with another, and be at peace with one another; sympathize with one another, love the brethren, and feed the people with care; with one consent teach those that are under you to be of the same sentiments and to be of the same opinions about the same matters, "that there may be no schisms among you; that you may be one body and one spirit, perf…

Now in man there is a twofold unity. The first is the ordered structure of the organs among themselves, the second is the union of the body and the soul constituting what neither are separately.

o Lord,

Since, also, there is but one unbegotten Being, God, even the Father; and one only-begotten Son, God, the Word and man; and one Comforter, the Spirit of truth; and also one preaching, and one faith, and one baptism; and one Church which the holy apostles established from one end of the earth to the other by the blood of Christ, and by their own sweat and toil; it behoves you al…

Ye then who in the spiritual world have so great equality of privileges, whence is it that ye are high-minded? Is it that one is wealthy and another strong? How ridiculous must this be?

After he has exhorted them to secure ecclesial unity, the Apostle offers the Ephesians, in this section, a glimpse of this unity's pattern. Since the Church is likened to a city, it is one and distinct, although this unity is not uncomposed but composed of different parts.

o feith, o baptym, o God and fadir of alle, which is aboue alle men, and bi alle thingis, and in vs alle.

Now, that this God is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Paul the apostle also has declared, [saying,] "There is one God, the Father, who is above all, and through all things, and in us all." I have indeed proved already that there is only one God; but I shall further demonstrate this from the apostles themselves, and from the discourses of the Lord.

One God contains all and guides all as is fitting and is in all. This one saying of Paul suffices by itself to express everything succinctly, when he says that God is "over all and through all and in all."

Fourthly, the Church has the same goal, God. The Son leads us to the Father: "when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God and the Father; when he shall have brought to nought all principality and power and virtue" (1 Cor. 15:24). In reference to this the Apostle adds one God and Father of all. Regarding the first he has two remarks.

But to ech of vs grace is youun bi the mesure of the yyuyng of Crist;

In counseling humility, meekness, etc., he sets forth the reason why each person is called to patience and forbearance. Grace has been given to each of us according to the measure in which Christ grants it. Since therefore different people have different gifts, there is no cause for envy or refusal.

If everything, as you say, is common, then why does one person have a greater gift and another a lesser one? For this aroused envy in them, in the Corinthians and many others. Resolving this, the apostle says that to each one a gift was given in the measure that the Giver determined.

Previously the Apostle dealt with ecclesial unity in the perspective of what is common within the Church (4:5), now he manifests this same unity from the viewpoint of what is personal and specific to each of the faithful members of the Church. He states: We have in the Church one God, one faith, one baptism.

for which thing he seith, He stiynge an hiy, ledde caitifte caitif, he yaf yiftis to men.

But what is it, that he stiede vp, no but that also he cam doun first in to the lowere partis of the erthe?

It is the Son, too, who ascends to the heights of heaven, [John 3:13] and also descends to the inner parts of the earth. [Ephesians 4:9]

After having said that "Christ was put to death in the flesh, and quickened in the spirit," the apostle immediately went on to say: "in which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison; which sometime were unbelieving, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water;"…

In reflecting upon this point, it appears improper for Christ, who is true God, to lower himself, since nothing is more eminent than God. To remove any doubts on this score the Apostle asserts, Now, that he ascended, what is it, but because he also descended first.

He it is that cam doun, and that stiede on alle heuenes, that he schulde fille alle thingis.

And he yaf summe apostlis, summe prophetis, othere euangelistis, othere scheepherdis and techeris,

But the mysteries are delivered mystically, that what is spoken may be in the mouth of the speaker; rather not in his voice, but in his understanding. "God gave to the Church, some apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ."

This is a house set up and ordered by Jesus.… He does not do this in a casual manner. It is with the utmost discrimination and discretion: One is assigned to the rank of an apostle, one to the place of a prophet, others to look after the flock of Christ and to work at the divine instruction of others for those saints who are prepared to learn.

Here the Apostle expounds what was mentioned earlier (4:9) about the bestowal of gifts. The many different states and functions in the Church are designated as the gifts of Christ. Consider how, among the gifts of Christ, the Apostles are conceded the first place: And he gave some Apostles. "And he chose twelve of them whom also he named apostles" (Lk. 6:13).

to the ful endyng of seyntis, in to the werk of mynystrie, in to edificacioun of Cristis bodi,

He says that the church's order has been so formed as to join the human race together in the profession of unity, so that all may be in Christ, having Christ as their single head, that is, as the source of life.

Do you see what dignity this is? Each one speaks, acts, each one serves the edification of the Body of Christ, or the Church. Why then do you grieve, as one who has received a lesser gift? For even you contribute to the "perfecting of the saints," that is, to the benefit of the faithful and their improvement.

Next, he discloses the fruitful results of these gifts or functions. The proximate effects of the above mentioned gifts or functions are threefold. First, consider those who are placed in these functions; spiritual gifts are communicated to them that they might be at the service of God and their fellow man.

til we rennen alle, in to vnyte of feith and of knowyng of Goddis sone, in to a parfit man, aftir the mesure of age of the plente of Crist;

Such are the preparatory exercises of gnostic discipline. And since the omnipotent God Himself "gave some apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to…

In the future life we shall attain perfection. But in the present life we need all the help we can get from the apostles, the prophets and our teachers.

He goes on to discuss the ultimate fruit of the Church's preaching which can be understood in two ways. One sees it as touching on the absolutely ultimate effect: the resurrection of the saints. In this perspective two facts are asserted. First is the spiritual and corporeal convergence of all who have risen.

that we be not now litle children, mouynge as wawis, and be not borun aboute with ech wynd of teching, in the weiwardnesse of men, in sutil wit, to the disseyuyng of errour.

These are they that "stretch the warp and weave nothing," says the Scripture; prosecuting a bootless task, which the apostle has called "cunning craftiness of men whereby they lie in wait to deceive." "For there are," he says, "many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers:" Wherefore it was not said to all, "Ye are the salt of the earth." For there are some even of the hearers of…

And again in another speech Paul condemneth the heretics and sheweth that all their doctrine standeth in cunning. "Let us not be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of the deceitful doctrines of the children of men, who in their cunning act craftily to lead astray; but let us be firm in our love that we may make to grow up everything of ours in Christ.…

Having spoken of the diversity of spiritual gifts and their fruit (4:12), now the Apostle describes how we attain to that fruit. First, he removes two obstacles. Secondly, he teaches the way of gaining access to them (4:15).

But do we treuthe in charite, and wexe in him by alle thingis, that is Crist oure heed;

Considering the love of Christ by which he loved us and gave himself up for us, we should make everything subject to him, knowing that he is the author of life for all. This is the truth. We are to be subject to him as members of the body are to the head.

Having pointed out the impediments of immaturity and erroneous doctrine which prevent one from acquiring the fruit of spiritual gifts, he discloses here how that fruit can be attained. He argues this way: It was said just now that to obtain the fruit of these spiritual gifts we must stop being children and grow up into mature adults.

of whom alle the bodi set togidere, and boundun togidere bi ech ioynture of vnder seruyng, bi worching in to the mesure of ech membre, makith encreesyng of the bodi, in to edificacioun of it silf in charite.

But if any one believes in [only] one God, who also made all things by the Word, as Moses likewise says, "God said, Let there be light: and there was light;" and as we read in the Gospel, "All things were made by Him; and without Him was nothing made;" and the Apostle Paul [says] in like manner, "There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father, who is above all, a…

This entire upbuilding, by which the body of the church increases cell by cell, is being accomplished through the mutual love of one for another.… This does not imply that to each member will be distributed the same level of maturity. It is an error to assume, for example, that all human beings will be formed anew into angels.

Next, he speaks about the truth of Christ through whom we ought to grow. Three points concerning an organic body are to be kept in mind: its organs are interrelated, they are bound together by tendons, each member serves the rest. "If the foot should say: because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?

Therfor Y seie and witnesse this thing in the Lord, that ye walke not now, as hethene men walken, in the vanyte of her wit;

Branding, in fine, such as had denied themselves-Christians, to wit-on the score of having "delivered themselves up to the working of every impunity," "But ye," he says, "not so have learnt Christ.

These words are not addressed to the Ephesians only, but are now addressed also to you; and that, not from me, but from Paul; or rather, neither from me nor from Paul, but from the grace of the Spirit. And we then ought so to feel, as though that grace itself were uttering them. And now hear what it saith.

The Apostle previously admonished the Ephesians to persevere in ecclesial unity by describing to them its quality and pattern (4:1). In the part that follows he teaches them the way to remain within the Church's unity. First, he gives them precepts by which they can remain in ecclesial unity. First, he sets down precepts for everyone.

that han vndurstondyng derkned with derknessis, and ben alienyd fro the lijf of God, bi ignoraunce that is in hem, for the blyndenesse of her herte.

So then, brothers and sisters, after the God of truth I address to you an appeal that you may give heed to the words written, that you may save both yourselves and him who reads an address in your midst. For as a reward I ask of you repentance with the whole heart, while you bestow upon yourselves salvation and life.

By "hardness of heart" he means a complete lack of remorse. When parts of the body are hardened, they feel no sensation, as though they were completely dead. This may happen to the heart.

Why did the Gentiles walk in vanity? Obviously because in performing such acts their reason is not guided by an enlightened understanding, but an erroneous one. This is what he says about them having their understanding darkened. "Their foolish heart was darkened" (Rom. 1:21), and "they have not known nor understood: they walk on in darkness" (Ps. 81:5).

Which dispeirynge bitoken hem silf to vnchastite, in to the worchyng of al vnclennesse in coueitise.

They have lost their moral compass through lack of hope in a future life. Living now as if they had no future, they pollute their own lives with the foulest behaviors. They refuse to submit themselves to the most elementary requirement of faith, which brings their pleasure-seeking into accountability in relation to the future life.

Do you not see that of their own free will they became so insensible? "Having become callous," that is, having grown completely lazy, not wishing to do anything good, having reached complete insensibility and having become as if mad, "they gave themselves over to licentiousness." For what purpose?

Then the Apostle goes on to portray how their exterior manner of life was once they lost hope, a loss due to their alienation from life. "I have done with hope. I shall now live no longer" (Job 7:16). "And they said: We have no hopes; for we will go after our own thoughts and we will do everyone according to the perverseness of his evil heart" (Jer. 18:12).

But ye han not so lerud Crist, if netheles ye herden hym,

and ben tauyt in hym, as is treuthe in Jhesu.

It is Christ himself who teaches us about himself! When we are "taught in him," we learn who he is, how great we should reckon him to be and what hope is in him. We learn "in him" what sort of people believers ought to be. Any one who has "learned Christ" knows that he rose from the dead to be the pattern for the faithful.

And the words "as the truth is in Jesus" understand thus: you should not remain in the same state as the pagans walk. For Christ's work is not vanity, but truth, teaching, and life. Sin is a lie, for it lacks substance and has no purpose; but virtue is truth, for it is stable and has purpose.

This certainly will happen if you have heard him, for hearing is the servant of instruction. "If" here is the equivalent of "because." "And this is the declaration which you have heard," as 1 John 1 (5) expresses it in reference to the proclamation of the faith. "He that hearkeneth to me shall not be confounded" (Ecclus. 24:30).

Do ye awey bi the elde lyuyng the elde man, that is corrupt bi the desiris of errour;

The apostle clearly identifies the old man. For he "put off the old man which belongs to your former manner of life," not with respect to the decay of any substance. For he is telling us to put away not the flesh but those things that he has elsewhere shown to be oriented to the fleshly way of life, indicting not the body as such but its works.

"That ye put away as concerning your former manner of life, the old man." That is to say, It was not on these terms that thou enteredst into covenant. What is found among us is not vanity, but truth. As the doctrines are true, so is the life also. Sin is vanity and falsehood; but a right life is truth.

How should they live? He adds to put off, according to the former way of life, the old man. The passage has two variant readings. One is the infinitive, to put off; then it would be construed with what preceded to read: The truth about which you were instructed in Jesus was to put off the old man.

and be ye renewlid in the spirit of youre soule;

As there are many spirits, each has its proper abode. There is a spirit proper to your mind. When your mind is detoxified and expels confusions, the spirit of your mind renews you by taking up its dwelling within you.

We are not being renewed in our thinking process apart from the renewal of our spirits. Nor are we renewed in our spirits without thinking. We are being jointly renewed "in the spirit of our mind." Hence as we sing psalms in the spirit, so we also sing them in our thoughts. As we pray in the spirit, so we also pray in our thoughts.

Next, he indicates the new condition they are to take on. First, through what means we can obtain this newness. Secondly, in whom this newness resides (4:24a). Thirdly, what the newness is (4:24b). Regarding the first he says be renewed in the spirit of your mind. Notice that although "spirit" is frequently said to be in man, nevertheless three spirits are discernible in him.

and clothe ye the newe man, which is maad aftir God in riytwisnesse and hoolynesse of treuthe.

He is calling us to live as one whose thoughts come from the Spirit, who is himself once again becoming the spiritual man created by God. We are to live in the likeness of God, just as God intended when he said: "Let us make humanity in our own image and likeness." Admittedly God has no face or physical aspect. God is Spirit.

The metaphors of creating and establishing are never spoken of in Scripture except in great works. The world is created. A city is established. But observe that a house, however grand it may be, is more commonly said to be built than established or created.

"And put on the new man" discloses in whom this renewal takes place. Adam introduced sin into all men, and thus became for everything the primary source of oldness. Likewise, the primary source of newness and renovation is Christ. In Adam all die and in Christ all will be brought back to life.

For which thing `ye putte awei leesyng, and speke ye treuthe ech man with his neiybore, for we ben membris ech to othere.

Again he said to me, "Love the truth, and let nothing but truth proceed from your mouth, that the spirit which God has placed in your flesh may be found truthful before all men; and the Lord, who dwelleth in you, will be glorified, because the Lord is truthful in every word, and in Him is no falsehood.

To be members one of another points to a great mystery. He is speaking of those who are very close to us in faith. For people are not generally "members one of another." But the faithful indeed are members of the faithful. Christians are members of the body of Christ.

Having set down above the general admonition to put on a newness of life (4:17), now the Apostle determines on the particular precepts. First, he restrains them from committing interior sins which corrupt the spirit. Secondly, he prohibits exterior sins which corrupt the flesh (5:3). First, he forbids sins which consist in one's personal deordination.

Be ye wrooth, and nyle ye do synne; the sunne falle not doun on youre wraththe.

For I trust that ye are well versed in the Sacred Scriptures, and that nothing is hid from you; but to me this privilege is not yet granted. It is declared then in these Scriptures, "Be ye angry, and sin not," and, "Let not the sun go down upon your wrath." Happy is he who remembers this, which I believe to be the case with you.

But because I had said that the anger of God is not for a time only, as is the case with man, who becomes inflamed with an immediate excitement, and on account of his frailty is unable easily to govern himself, we ought to understand that because God is eternal, His anger also remains to eternity; but, on the other hand, that because He is endued with the greatest excellence, H…

When forbidding sins destructive of the order in the irascible emotions, he gives his warning when he says Be angry, and sin not. This is susceptible of two interpretations; for there are two types of anger, a good one and an evil one. Anger is evil when, contrary to justice, it strives inordinately for revenge.

Nyle ye yyue stide to the deuel.

As many, therefore, as are empty, fear the devil, as possessing power. When a man has filled very suitable jars with good wine, and a few among those jars are left empty, then he comes to the jars, and does not look at the full jars, for he knows that they are full; but he looks at the empty, being afraid lest they have become sour.

An angry mind will necessarily think evil thoughts, as the devil desires. If the devil finds a mind ready for evil and slipping toward it, he deceives the person who was created for life. The thought, you see, is human. But the devil completes it.

The reason for the warning is indicated in Give not place to the devil. The devil gains entrance to us either through sin or consent to it. "The devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray him" (Jn. 13:2), after which it says: "After the morsel, Satan entered into him" (Jn. 13:27).

He that stal, now stele he not; but more trauele he in worchinge with hise hondis that that is good, that he haue whereof he schal yyue to nedi.

Further, he, who has a show of wisdom, has certain exhortations enjoined on him by the apostle: "That ye put on the new man, which after God is renewed in righteousness and true holiness. Wherefore, putting away lying, speak every man truth. Neither give place to the devil.

Those who live in the midst of this life's intense business appear to be forced, for the sake of food and necessary provisions, to buy and sell certain things and to seek unfair profit from business. It is difficult even for those who have been set free from the other passions—namely fornication, idolatry, adultery and murder—to escape being caught by this subtle vice.

Having banned the age-old corruption in man's rational and irascible powers (4:25), here he proscribes it in regard to the concupiscible emotions when they desire temporal goods inordinately. Stealing pertains to the concupiscible appetite's old ways; it arises from a corrupted and inordinate desire for a temporal object.

Ech yuel word go not of youre mouth; but if ony is good to the edificacioun of feith, that it yyue grace to men that heren.

No doubt, if any one is unwilling to follow the Gospel itself, it is in his power [to reject it], but it is not expedient. For it is in man's power to disobey God, and to forfeit what is good; but [such conduct] brings no small amount of injury and mischief.

What is "corrupt speech"? That which is said elsewhere to be also "idle, backbiting, filthy communication, jesting, foolish talking." See ye how he is cutting up the very roots of anger? Lying, theft, unseasonable conversation.

When he states Let no evil speech proceed from your mouth he begins to discuss what the old man does in relation to other men. He makes two points: First, he prohibits the old and encourages the new. Secondly, he provides an example for imitation at the beginning of Chapter Five (5:1). A person may be wrongly disposed toward his neighbor in two ways.

And nyle ye make the Hooli Goost of God sori, in which ye ben markid in the dai of redempcioun.

Al bitternesse, and wraththe, and indignacioun, and cry, and blasfemye be takun awey fro you, with al malice;

For what sort of deed is it to approach the peace of God without peace? the remission of debts while you retain them? How will he appease his Father who is angry with his brother, when from the beginning "all anger" is forbidden us? For even Joseph, when dismissing his brethren for the purpose of fetching their father, said, "And be not angry in the way.

Let us then hearken to him, let us cast out all "bitterness and all malice," that we "grieve not the Holy Spirit." Let us destroy all bitterness; let us cut it up by the very roots. Nothing good, nothing healthful, can ever come from a bitter soul; nothing but misfortunes, nothing but tears, nothing but weeping and wailing.

In what follows he discloses what specifically belongs to the old man. For at times a man will sadden his friend out of anger, at other times on set purpose. Anger, however, has three degrees. Sometimes it is constrained and remains within the heart, as when someone is only inwardly mad.

and be ye togidere benygne, merciful, foryyuynge togidere, as also God foryaf to you in Crist.

"But," say they, "God is `good, 'and `most good, ' and `pitiful-hearted, 'and `a pitier, 'and `abundant in pitiful-heartedness, ' which He holds `dearer than all sacrifice, ' `not thinking the sinner's death of so much worth as his repentance', `a Saviour of all men, most of all of believers.' And so it will be becoming for `the sons of God' too to be `pitiful-hearted' and `pea…

Paul wants us to be gentle, approachable people, people who have left anger, bitterness, wrath and slander behind. If we are merciful and serene, taking the initiative in reaching out to others, our very approachability will overcome the shyness and fear of those for whom we reach out.

Next, when he says be ye kind one to another he determines what pertains to the new man which is contrary to the above mentioned passions. Opposed to bitterness is kindness; so he says be ye kind one to another since "the spirit of wisdom is benevolent" (Wis. 1:6).

Ephesians4