Ephesians 2:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near.

NIV: He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.

NASB: And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near;

CSB: He came and proclaimed the good news of peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.

NLT: He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near.

KJV: And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.

NKJV: And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.

Jesus is our peace (Ephesians 2:14), and He explicitly preached peace (John 14:27; Matthew 5:9). Notice, too, Paul's reminder that Jesus "came" to earth. He had eternally existed prior to coming to earth (John 1:1–3), yet came to offer peace to all people, Jews and Gentiles. He offered peace both to the "distant" Gentiles, as well as to the "nearby" Jewish nation. Through the apostles and early believers, Jesus offered peace to those in Israel as well as to those "far off" in realms well beyond the Promised Land (Acts 1:8).

God has always been concerned for people beyond just the nation of Israel. Examples from Jonah (God's concern for Nineveh), Daniel (the Babylonians), and Jesus Himself reveal that God's love extends to all who believe in Him. Thanks to the cross of Christ, all people have the same access to God. This message was to be spread to all nations or people groups (Matthew 28:19–20), something already taking place during Paul's ministry to Ephesus and beyond.

Ephesians 2:11–22 explains how those who are saved, by grace through faith in Christ, have become part of a single family. Prior to the coming of Jesus, the Jewish people considered Gentiles to be unclean and inferior. Here, Paul explains how the gospel extends hope, promise, and a relationship with God to Jews and Gentiles alike. Most of the Ephesian church would have been Gentiles, and Paul frequently found himself countering anti-Gentile sentiment among various churches.

Paul repeatedly emphasizes that salvation is accomplished on the basis of grace, through faith. Good works, human effort, and our best intentions will never be enough to earn salvation. Every person is marked with sin, both deliberate and accidental, and for this reason we deserve to be separated from God. Only through His mercy and grace can we be saved, leaving no room for bragging. This also means that all who are saved, Jew and Gentile alike, are part of the same spiritual family. There is no cause for hostility between believers; we are all unworthy, and all saved by the same kindness of God.

The first three chapters of Ephesians focus on doctrinal issues; the last three show how those principles should be applied in real life. Chapter 2 makes a pair of related points about our status as saved believers. First, salvation is entirely dependent on the grace of God, not human efforts. Second, this means all Christians are part of the same family, Jew and Gentile alike. This bridges chapter 1's explanation of God's awesome glory to chapter 3's discussion of God bringing His long-awaited plan into action.

Ephesians follows a theme common in Paul's writings: connecting theory with practice. In this book, however, he goes into greater depth before making the transition. As a letter meant to be read by more than just the believers at Ephesus, this is an important look at how Christian belief should translate into Christian action. The first three chapters lay out spiritual ideas, the last three chapters show how these truths should be applied in the life of a mature believer. Paul focuses heavily on love, the unity of the Christian church, and the incredible value of our salvation through Christ.

Accessed 12/3/2024 12:21:35 PM