Ephesians | Session 22 | 4:31-5:4

Our study today is taken from Ephesians 4:31-5:4 where Paul continues to speak of practical matters for the believer regarding how not to grieve the Holy Spirit in our relationships with others and ourselves.

Put it Away From You 

Verse 31: Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: This verse presents a bit of challenge because of the last three words, with all malace. Is he saying that the ones before it should not be done with malice or simply listing malice as another vice? Malice by definition is to do something with ill-will or with the intent to hurt the other party. Well, how can any of the afore be done without malice? (Clamour speaks of brawling). Or is it saying that the last vice of evil speaking (slander) should not be done with ill intent? Can you speak evil or slander someone without ill-intent? I don't think so. 

Even as God Hath Forgiven You 

Verse 32: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. Instead, Paul says that it is better to be kind to one another, tenderhearted, and forgiving just as Christ has forgiven us. Which leads right into the next chapter.

Chapter 5 

As Dear Children 

Verse 1: Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; Paul continues to be practical. The word followers means imitators. In other words, we are to be imitators of God as dear children. Just as a child would imitate their earthly fathers, so they should imitate their heavenly Father. 

Walk in Love 

Verse 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.  Notice that the believer is to walk in the love that Christ had for us. Christ is to be our standard (2 Corinthians 10:12). 

The rest of the verse demonstrates how much Christ loved us in that he and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God. We are to walk in that same love. That is a tall order for sure. 

As Becometh Saints 

Verse 3: But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness, let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;  Now he lists sins that should not be named among believers. Fornication includes all sexual sins. Other translations translate it as immorality. Uncleanness speaks of impurity. Covetousness means holding or desiring more or greed. These things should not be named among them as becometh saints. Becometh can be translated as fitting or proper. Believers should not be involved in these things, period, full stop. 

Giving of Thanks 

Verse 4: Neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving of thanks.  Filthiness is obscene and speaks of the portrayal of sexual matters. Foolish talking  is just silly talk or buffoonery. Jesting is turning words in a negative sense or twisting in a vulgar sense. We would call it today innuendo which is very prevalent. Not convenient simply means appropriate. In other words, we should not be doing the afore mentioned things because they are inappropriate for one who professes to believe in Christ. Instead, of doing those things, we should be giving thanks. Barnes says of this, "Instead of filthiness, foolish talk, and jesting, we should be using that time in the service of God.