Ephesians 4:17- 5:2 Lesson 374

Ephesians 4:17- 5:2
Lesson 374

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

A call to change (4:17-20).
The old man versus the new (4:21-24).
How Christians should live (4:25-32).

"Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God." (4:30)

Study Tip:

Apply what you learn to your life.

The Epistle of Paul The Apostle To The Ephesians

The King James Bible

Ephesians 4:17- 5:2
The Christian walk

17 This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,

18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:

19 Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

20 But ye have not so learned Christ;

21 If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus:

22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;

23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;

24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

25 Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.

26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:

27 Neither give place to the devil.

28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.

29 Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice:

32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.

Ephesians 5:1-5:2

1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

Margin notes:

"Walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind." (4:17) - Which means "don't live like non-believers live (Romans 1:21; Ephesians 2:2), in the futility and foolishness of their mind." Those who trust Jesus should walk like Jesus (1 John 2:6).

"Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart." (4:18) - "Their understanding is darkened, and they are alienated from a godly life because of ignorance and blind hearts."

"Past feeling." (4:19) - "Without shame."

"Lasciviousness." (4:19) - Unbridled lust, carnal urges, sexual depravity.

"Put off concerning the former conversation the old man." (4:22) - "Put aside the (sinful) life of the old you" (Romans 6:6; Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:3-8).

"Deceitful lusts." (4:22) - "Deceitful desires."

"Be renewed in the spirit of your mind." (4:23) - "Be made new in your attitude and mind." See also Romans 12:2.

"Put on the new man." (4:24) - Be a new person with new attitudes and goals.

"Which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." (4:24) - The new you should strive to be more righteous and holy.

"Speak every man truth with his neighbour." (4:25) - Repeated from Zechariah 8:16.

"Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath." (4:26) - Many Bible scholars believe this is paraphrased from Psalm 4:4.

"Neither give place to the devil." (4:27) - Don't give Satan a foothold in your life.

"Let him that stole steal no more." (4:28) - Apparently, the church accepted members with questionably pasts looking to repent.

"Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth." (4:29) - "Don’t let evil words come out of your mouth."  Paul will repeat this advice in Ephesians 5:4.

"Edifying." (4:29) - "Strengthening."

"Grieve not the holy Spirit of God." (4:30) - "Do not sadden the Holy Spirit of God."

"Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away." (4:31) - "Let all bitterness, rage, anger, fighting and slander be over." James and Peter reinforce this message in James 1:21 and 1 Peter 2:1, respectively.

"Be ye therefore followers of God." (5:1) - The word "followers" is translated from the Greek word minhtai.  It is from minhtai that we get the word mimic. So, perhaps a better translation would be to imitate Jesus rather than merely follow Him.

"Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God." (5:2) - Jesus loves us and sacrificed Himself to atone for our sins. Despite our guilt, Jesus gave His life to ransom us from sin (Matthew 20:28; Romans 3:25; 1 John 2:2).  Why? Read Galatians 1:4.

"Sweetsmelling savour." (5:2) - "Sweet-smelling fragrance."

To learn more about how a Christian should live, read Galatians 5:16-26 and James 3:1-4:3.

New Living Translation

Ephesians 4:17-5:2
Living as Children of Light

17 With the Lord's authority I say this: Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused.

18 Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him.

19 They have no sense of shame. They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.

20 But that isn't what you learned about Christ.

21 Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him,

22 throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception.

23 Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes.

24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God-truly righteous and holy.

25 So stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body.

26 And "don't sin by letting anger control you." Don't let the sun go down while you are still angry,

27 for anger gives a foothold to the devil.

28 If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need.

29 Don't use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.

30 And do not bring sorrow to God's Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption.

31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. 32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Ephesians 5:1-2
Living in the Light

1 Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children.

2 Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word for word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's question:

1. What is the Holy Spirit of God's seal? (4:30)

Study the Bible; it has much to teach us.

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. According to "The Life Application Study Bible" (Tyndale House Publishers; Carol Stream, Illinois; page 2348), "The Holy Spirit is God's seal that we belong to him and his guarantee to us that he will do what he has promised. The Holy Spirit is like a down payment, a deposit, a validating signature on the contract. The presence of the Holy Spirit in us demonstrates the genuineness of our faith, proves that we are God's children, and secures eternal life for us. His power works in us to transform us now, and what we experience now is a taste of the total change we will experience in eternity."



Application thought for the day:

There should be a difference in the lifestyles of believers and non-believers (4:1).
Re-read this lesson and list the spiritual applications you should (4:22-32) make in your life.

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; the "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies;" "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
© 2022 evolke

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