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Described by is traditionally said to have written the letter while he was in prison in Rome (around 63 A.D. ). This would be about the same time as the Epistle To The Colossians (which in many points it resembles) and the Epistle To Philemon . More recently, however, biblical scholars have questioned the authorship of the letter, and suggest a much later date for its origin. PURPOSE Ephesians does not seem to have originated in any special circumstances, but is simply a letter springing from the author's love to the church. It is an indication of his desire that they should be fully instructed in Christian Doctrine . However, unlike Romans , which is an exposition by Paul of the Gospel of Salvation , Ephesians unfolds the consequences of salvation, particularly in relation to the church. However some theologians, such as Frank Charles Thompson , agree the main theme of Ephesians is in response to the newly converted Jews who often separated themselves from their Gentile brethren. The unity of the church, especially between Jew and Gentile believers, is the keynote of the book. This is shown by the recurrence of such words and phrases as: Together: made alive together, 2:5; raised up together, sitting together, 2:6; built together, 2:22 One, indicating unity: one new man, 2:15; one body, 2:16; one Spirit, 2:18; one hope, 4:4; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, 4:5-6. OUTLINE Ephesians contains:
FOUNDING OF THE CHURCH AT EPHESUS Paul's first and hurried visit for the space of three months to 20:20, 31). From Ephesus the gospel spread abroad "almost throughout all Asia" (19:26). The word "mightily grew and prevailed" despite all the opposition and persecution he encountered. On his last journey to Jerusalem , the apostle landed at Miletus and, summoning together the elders of the church from Ephesus, delivered to them his remarkable farewell charge (Acts 20:18–35), expecting to see them no more. The following parallels between this epistle and the Milesian charge may be traced: # Acts 20:19 = Eph 4:2. The phrase "lowliness of mind" occurs nowhere else. # Acts 20:27 = Eph 1:11. The word "counsel," as denoting the divine plan, occurs only here and Heb 6:17. # Acts 20:32 = Eph 3:20. The divine ability. # Acts 20:32 = Eph 2:20. The building upon the foundation. # Acts 20:32 = Eph 1:14, 18. "The inheritance of the saints." AUTHOR AND AUDIENCE The first verse in the letter, according to later manuscripts, is: Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus. (Eph 1:1 NIV) Hence the letter would in this case explicitly designate the Ephesian church as its recipient and Paul as its writer. However, there are a few problems with this:
There are four main theories in Biblical scholarship that address the problem of Pauline authorship.These four views all come from Markus Barth, Ephesians: Introduction, Translation, and Commentary on Chapters 1-3 (New York: Doubleday and Company Inc., 1974), 38
The lack of any reference to Ephesus in the early manuscripts led Marcion to believe that the letter was actually addressed to the church at Laodecia. For more details, see the article Authorship Of The Pauline Epistles .For a thorough defense of the Pauline authorship of Ephesians, See Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary by Harold W. Hoehner, pp 2-61, from Baker Academic Press. PLACE, DATE, AND PURPOSE OF THE WRITING OF THE LETTER If we accept that Paul was the author, then it was probably written from himself seemed to be very well versed in the epistle to the Ephesians, and mirrors many of his own thoughts in his own epistle to the EphesiansSee Markus Barth, Ephesians: Introduction, Translation, and Commentary on Chapters 1–3 (New York: Doubleday and Company Inc., 1974), 50-51 There seems to have been no special occasion for the writing of this letter, as already noted. Unlike his epistle to the Colossians, which was written to refute doctrines which had sprung up in that church, Paul's object in writing Ephesians was plainly not polemical. Ephesians could have been written to sum up Paul's teaching to the church in Ephesus, or even to several churches he had founded in Asia Minor. The major theme in the letter is the Church and, in particular, its foundation in Christ as part of the will of the Father. In the Epistle To The Romans , Paul writes from the point of view of Justification by the imputed righteousness of Jesus; here he writes from the point of view specially of union with Christ, who is the head of the true church. THEOLOGY Ephesians is notable for its treatment of women. commands not only that women should submit to their husbands but that husbands should love their wives. Some who espouse a Feminist Theology have argued that submission is also included in the text because of verse 22, but this is unlikely since it would break the symmetry of wives' submission and husbands' love in the passage (cf also Col 3:18 written around the same time that speaks only to wives' submission). Contrastingly, does not demand the same reciprocity present in the aforementioned verses and instead grants men authority over women. SEE ALSO NOTES EXTERNAL LINKS Online translations of the Epistle to the Ephesians:
Ephesians as a Play:
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