Ephesians 1:14

1:14 who is the down payment ¹  of our inheritance, until the redemption of God’s own possession, ²  to the praise of his glory.

Ephesians 2:19

2:19 So then you are no longer foreigners and noncitizens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household,

Ephesians 3:7

3:7 I became a servant of this gospel ³  according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by ⁴  the exercise of his power. ⁵ 

Ephesians 3:9

3:9 and to enlighten ⁶  everyone about God’s secret plan ⁷  – a secret that has been hidden for ages ⁸  in God ⁹  who has created all things.

Ephesians 4:24

4:24 and to put on the new man who has been created in God’s image ¹⁰  – in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth. ¹¹ 

Ephesians 5:6

Live in the Light

5:6 Let nobody deceive you with empty words, for because of these things God’s wrath comes on the sons of disobedience. ¹² 

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¹ tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit.”

sn Down payment. The Greek word ἀρραβών (arrabwn) denotes the first payment or first installment of money or goods which serves as a guarantee or pledge for the completion of the transaction. In the NT the term is used only figuratively of the Holy Spirit as the down payment of the blessings promised by God (it is used also in 2 Cor 1:22 and 5:5). In the “already – not yet” scheme of the NT the possession of the Spirit now by believers (“already”) can be viewed as a guarantee that God will give them the balance of the promised blessings in the future (“not yet”).

² tn Grk “the possession.”

³ tn Grk “of which I was made a minister,” “of which I became a servant.”

⁴ tn Grk “according to.”

⁵ sn On the exercise of his power see 1:19-20.

⁶ tn There is a possible causative nuance in the Greek verb, but this is difficult to convey in the translation.

⁷ tn Grk “what is the plan of the divine secret.” Earlier the author had used οἰκονομία (oikonomia; here “plan”) to refer to his own “stewardship” (v. 2). But now he is speaking about the content of this secret, not his own activity in relation to it.

⁸ tn Or “for eternity,” or perhaps “from the Aeons.” Cf. 2:2, 7.

⁹ tn Or “by God.” It is possible that ἐν (en) plus the dative here indicates agency, that is, that God has performed the action of hiding the secret. However, this usage of the preposition ἐν is quite rare in the NT, and even though here it does follow a perfect passive verb as in the Classical idiom, it is more likely that a different nuance is intended.

¹⁰ tn Or “in God’s likeness.” Grk “according to God.” The preposition κατά used here denotes a measure of similarity or equality (BDAG 513 s.v. B.5.b.α).

¹¹ tn Or “in righteousness and holiness which is based on truth” or “originated from truth.”

¹² sn The expression sons of disobedience is a Semitic idiom that means “people characterized by disobedience.” In this context it refers to “all those who are disobedient.” Cf. Eph 2:2-3.