Ephesians 4:16

4:16 From him the whole body grows, fitted and held together ¹  through every supporting ligament. ²  As each one does its part, the body grows in love.

Ephesians 2:21

2:21 In him ³  the whole building, ⁴  being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,

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¹ tn The Greek participle συμβιβαζόμενον (sumbibazomenon) translated “held together” also has in different contexts, the idea of teaching implied in it.

² tn Grk “joint of supply.”

³ tn Grk “in whom” (v. 21 is a relative clause, subordinate to v. 20).

⁴ tc Although several important witnesses (א¹ A C P 6 81 326 1739^c 1881) have πᾶσα ἡ οἰκοδομή (pasa Jh oikodomh), instead of πᾶσα οἰκοδομή (the reading of א* B D F G Ψ 33 1739* Ï), the article is almost surely a scribal addition intended to clarify the meaning of the text, for with the article the meaning is unambiguously “the whole building.”

tn Or “every building.” Although “every building” is a more natural translation of the Greek, it does not fit as naturally into the context, which (with its emphasis on corporate unity) seems to stress the idea of one building.