Eph Background

Ephesians Background and Overview
BACKGROUND AND HISTORY
Ephesus was an important port city during biblical times on the west coast of Asia. The city boasted about its
‘temple to Artemis,’ and the citizens even would chant, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” when they would
gather in the arena (Acts. 19:28). A diverse range of citizens would have called Ephesus home. Right outside
of the city center were many lavish houses. We even hear of guilds of silversmiths (Acts 19:24). However, like
most Roman cities, there would have been many servant-class citizens who would have called Ephesus
home.
The city of Ephesus had a particular fascination with the occult or magic. This could help explain why Paul
focuses intently on the power of God and the ascension of Christ. The Ephesian Christians needed to be
reminded that Christ is the ultimate power in their world and is the ultimate power in their own lives.
Paul was intimately acquainted with the church at Ephesus. We learn in the book of Acts that Paul planted
the church at Ephesus, devoting hours of personal instruction to the church (Acts 19:9-10). Paul spent right
around three years with the Ephesian Christians, so this congregation would have been one of the more
learned churches of Paul’s ministry. We even see his tearful final charge and goodbye to the Ephesian elders
at the end of Acts 20. This helps to shed light on the purpose and scope of the letter: it is a summary of the
Gospel teaching that Paul had left with them.
The Ephesian church would have been comprised of both Jewish and Gentile Christians, but Paul seems to
be addressing the Gentiles more so than the Jews. The reader will see the juxtaposition between the Gentiles
life before being welcomed into the family of God and life after. This is seen most explicitly in Eph. 2:11-12:
“Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision'' by what is
called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— remember that you were at that time
separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of
promise, having no hope and without God in the world.”
DATE + TIMELINE OF EVENTS
Unlike some of his other letters (even some of the others that address the church at Ephesus), this letter
seems uniquely general. There is no specific problem that Paul is addressing in the congregation. Instead, his
letter is written for the purpose of instructing and edifying the believers in Ephesus and anybody else who
would have heard the letter read or seen a copy.
When Paul leaves Ephesus (~AD 53-55), he will install his understudy Timothy as the lead pastor of the
church. Later, Paul will write additional letters addressed specifically to Timothy to help address issues of false
teaching that had arisen in the church at Ephesus (1 and 2 Timothy). The Ephesian church will also be
addressed in Revelation 2, admonishing them for neglecting their first love, Jesus Christ.
Paul is writing in ~AD 61-62 from house arrest in Rome at the time. It is worth noting the parallels between
Ephesians and Colossians. 34% of Ephesians is contained in Colossians, and 27% of Colossians is contained in
Ephesians. This suggests that the two were written at roughly the same time by Paul and written for the
same general purpose. Paul tasked his trusted friend and confidant Tychicus to deliver the letters.
-1-
BREAKDOWN OF BOOK
The content of the book is uniquely Pauline. It was typical in Paul’s writings for there to be indicatives (simple
statements or facts) followed by imperatives (Do this! Or Be this!). Paul writes in such a way where he first
presents the indicatives - what God has done - and then imperatives - in light of these indicatives, act this
way or do this. The book of Ephesians is that on a larger scale.
Paul spends chapters 1-3 detailing the great indicatives of Christian salvation and chapters 4-6 detailing the
imperatives that correspond to the aforementioned indicatives. Paul ends chapter three with a prayer for the
spiritual strength of the Ephesian Christians, effectively wrapping up the indicative section, and he begins
chapter 4 with “I, therefore… urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been
called.”
In light of this, a helpful structure of the book is listed below:

Ephesians 1:1-2 - Opening Greeting
Ephesians 1:3-3:21 - Doctrines (Indicatives) of Christian salvation
Ephesians 4:1-6:20 - Application (Imperatives) of Christian salvation
Ephesians 6:21-24 - Closing Greeting
KEY THEMES
- “In Christ” - Paul grounds all of the Christian life in the key doctrine of a believer's union with Christ.
- “Church” - There is much time and attention given to the church throughout the epistle. The church is
the ‘body’ and Christ is her ‘head.’ As the church grows “to the measure of the stature of the fullness of
Christ” (Eph. 4:13), Paul points to the unity of the church as ‘one new man’ consisting of both Jew and
Gentile that forms the ‘household of God.’ Paul grounds the church in her Christological founding, in that
the church finds her origin, identity, and calling in Christ, and her eschatological role, that the church
should rightly understand her place in redemptive history. Paul goes to such length to define the church’s
role and identity to show the Ephesian Christians who they are in relation to the world - they are holy, set
apart, a new creation, one new man, etc.
- “Powers” - Paul spends a lot of ink detailing the “powers” throughout the letter. He does this to show the
scope of the spiritual battle that is happening: “the rulers... the authorities... the cosmic powers over this
present darkness,... the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12). He pits the ‘dark’ powers
against the universal rule and reign of Christ, as they are consistently reminded of their defeat by Christ:
“so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and
authorities in the heavenly places.”
- “Cosmic reconciliation and unity to Christ” - Eph. 1:9-10 says, “making known to us the mystery of his
will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all
things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” This is the pivotal statement of Ephesians and the
high point of Paul’s opening dialogue in chapter 1. Uniting the whole created order in Christ is the
overarching goal of God; this is the mystery of God and is where the created order is headed.
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Ephesians Background and Overview

BACKGROUND AND HISTORY

DATE + TIMELINE OF EVENTS

In light of this, a helpful structure of the book is listed below:

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