The Pulpit Commentary — Ephesians — Section 8

me1ely in exietenC'e, it ie ou?B, we being in advent; the olrro.,oµ.la., or eoonomy, of the him by faith; not a privilege of the future gospel being that during whioh, in its suc- merely, but of the present &e well. Even oessi'l'e periods, all God's sohemea are to the forgiveness of our llins. •Ac/mnv denot.ee ripen or come to maturity, and be fulfilled. rel0888, eep11ration from all the consequencee To gather together under one head all thinp of our tmnsgreseione; equivalent to Ps. ciii. in Christ. 'Ava.1te4>a.>..c1,l,,rc,r8c1 is a word of 12. " As far as the eaet ie from the west, so far some diffl.oulty, It is true it is derived from bath be removed our transgressions from us.'' 1t,4>d.1'awv, not 1te4>c>..f, : therefore some have According to the riohes of his graoe. The thought th&t it does not include the idea of C'nmplet.eness of the forgiveness, its ready headshiJ! ; but the relation of 1<<4>&>.c,ov to bestowal now, the eecurity of its being con- 1t<4>a.>..-I, 1s so close that this can hardly be. tinued in the future, and such like qualities The word expressee the Divine purpose- ~how the richness of his grace (comp. Matt. what God ,rpo,8,To-which was to restore in xxiii. 27; Luke vii. 42, 47). Christ a lost unity, to bring together dis- Ver. 8.-Which he made to aboillld toward united elements, viz. all things, whether they us in all wisdom and prudence. This render- be things in heaven or things on earth. ing of the R.V. is better than the A. V., There is no hint here of a uni verse.I restora- "tDherein he hath abounded," for ns before tion. Suoh a notion would be in flat con- br•pf,rcr,u,r.,,, can he.rdly be put fortlie dative; tradiction to the doctrine of Divine eleotion, it is genith-e by attraction for the accnsative. which dominates the whole passage. God's The wisdom and prudence refer to God ; he purpose is to form a united kingdom, con- has not made his grace abound to ns in a sisting of the unfallen and the restored-the m.ndom manner, but in a carefully regnlated unfo.llen in heaven, and the restored on manner. This is more fully explained after- earth, and to gather this whole body to- wa.rda, in reference to God's concealment for gether under Christ as its Head (see eh. iii. a time of the uni.ersality of his grace, but 15). We cennot say that this purpose has ~anifestation of it now. Some have found been fully effected as yet; but things are a differenre between ,rocp!cand 4>povf,,r,s, the moving towards it, and one day it will be one being theoretical wisdom and the other wholly realized. "He that eat on the throne practical, or the one intellectue.l and the BBid, Behold, I make all things new " (Rev. other moral; but possibly they may be :x.xi. 5). meant merely to intensify the idea-the Ver. 11.-Even in him-in whom we were height of wisdom is shown in God's way of e.Iso made hie inheritanoe. Thie is the making his grace abound toward us (comp. literal rendering of i1tM1ptl,811µ.•v, and it is Rom. xi 33, " Oh, the depth of the riches more expressive than the A.V., "In whom both of the wisdom and knowledge of also we have obtained e.n inheritance." God God!"). taking us for hie own heritage involves Ver. 9.-Havingmadeknown unto ns the more than onr getting an inheritance from mystery of his will The wide extent of God (see Deut. iv. 20, "The Lord bath taken God's grace WBB a mystery, ie. a hidden you . . . to be unto him a people of inheri- connsel, before Christ came and died, but it tance"). It is implied that God will protect, is now made known. In this, and not in the care for, improve, and enjoy his own inheri- modern sense of mystery, the word µ.vtrrf,pwv tance ; he will be mnch with them and do is 1188d by PauL The thing hidden and all that is necessary for them. Formerly now revealed wae not the gospel, but God's God's inheritance was Iemel only; but now purpose with reference to its limits or sphere it is much wider. All that God wae to IBJ'Bel (aee eh. iii 6). According to hie good plea- ofold he will be to his Church now. Having Bllr8 whillh he purpoeed in himself. The been predelltinated e.ooording to the purpose, whole phraseology denotes that, in this trans- The reason why the reference to predestina- action, God wae not influenced by any tion is repeated is to show that this new extern.el consideratione ; the whole reason privilege of the whole Church as God's in- for it sprang from within. The threefold herit.a.nee is not a fortuitous benefit, but the expression brings this out: (1) liCCOrding to result of God's deliberate and etemal fore- his good pleasure (see ver. 5); (2) he pur- ordination; it rests therefore on e.n immov- posed., or formed a purpose ; (3) in himself, able foundation. Of him who worketh all without foreign aid, " For who bath known things after the conneel of hie will Pre- the mind of the Lord? or who bath been hill destination is not an exception to God's counsellor?" (Rom. xi 34). usual way of working; he works, or works Ver. 10.-With a view to the dispenaation out ( /v,p-;oiiTos) all things on the same of the fulneu of the timea (or, 1eaBOM) (vers. principle, e.ccording to the decision to which 9 and 10 are one sentence, which should not bis will comes. When we tbinlt of the be broken up). This seems to denote the Bovereign will of God e.s determining all times of the gospel generally; not, as in things, and in particular determining who Gal iv. 4, the particular iline of Christ's e.re to be his heritage, we mUBt remember how lllL I, 1-23.] THE EPISTLE TO THE EPHESIANS. 5