Authorship of the book ephesians

If such is truly the case, then paul wrote ephesians around 6163 a. The letter to the ephesian church is regarded as one of the masterworks of the nt, but it is also one of those books. Most early writers spoke of the epistle as having been addressed to the ephesians. Intro to ephesians biblica the international bible society. The book of ephesians tells how the gospel affects our. The authorship and destination of ephesians citeseerx. A source on that site says, hoehner surveys 279 commentators from 1519 to 2001, finding 54% favor pauline authorship, 39% conclude against pauline authorship, and 7% remained uncertain. Its authorship has traditionally been attributed to paul the apostle but starting in 1792, this has been challenged as deuteropauline, that is, written in pauls name by a later author strongly. It was written to encourage believers to walk as fruitful followers of christ and to serve in unity and love in the midst of persecution.

Enclosed within the book of ephesians is the discipline needed to develop into true children of god. Since the midnineteenth century, pauline authorship of the letter is routinely dismissed. Several of the early church writers site the book of ephesians, for example irenaeus and clement of alexandria both state that paul was its author. Carver described the book of ephesians as the greatest piece of writing in all history and english poet samuel taylor coleridge called it the divinest. Book of ephesians overview insight for living ministries. Start studying authorship of ephesians, the pastorals and 2 peter. According to the opening paragraph of the article for the book of ephesians on wikipedia, it is not universally held that ephesians was written by paul. But the vast majority of prominent evangelical scholars who have written commentaries, monographs, and journal articles on ephesians in recent years are convinced of pauline. Karl barth on the authorship of ephesians and colossians. Some have taken the absence of the usual personal greetings and the verbal similarity of many parts to colossians, among other reasons, as grounds for doubting authorship by the apostle paul. In the book of ephesians, it is clearly shown that the apostle paul is the indeed the author of the epistle of ephesians. Many scholars claim that paul did not write ephesians. This summary of the book of ephesians provides information about the title, author s, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of ephesians.

Works that argue for authorship by paul include markus barth, ephesians. Paul intended that all who long for christlike maturity would receive this writing. Hays 64 suggests that apocalyptic eschatology is muted in ephesians, replaced by an emphasis upon the visible unity of the church and upon the progressive redemption of the. All tradition takes the epistle as being pauline until it was first disputed by erasmus. Nevertheless, it is a question with at least some relevance to interpreting the books. While early lists of new testament books, including marcions canon and the. The church has received wondrous blessings in union with christ. It isnt easy, however, to find sane discussions of this issue.

For this reason, the authorship of a particular letter is secondary to establishing the meaning and use of the book. I offer the following commentary and summary for ephesians in this article. The church has been brought from death to life in christ. Unlike other books like romans or 1 and 2 corinthians which. The indication is that the epistles to the colossians, philemon and the ephesians were carried to their destination by tychicus and onesimus cf. I think this is mistaken and i find the arguments in favor of pseudonymity to be seriously unconvincing. Ephesus boasted international trade, a thriving silversmith guild, and a theater that seated 20,000 people. The book of ephesians clearly leaves its mark among other bible books by displaying the powerful impact of the gospel of christ jesus in the individual and corporate life of believers.

The key personalities of ephesians are the apostle paul and tychicus. The book of ephesians is a letter from paul to christians at ephesus. A common proposal is that paul wrote the letter to the colossians to deal with. Authorship of ephesians at least three different scenarios are possible, and all three have attracted considerable support from interpreters in the modern era. It deals, however, not so much with a congregation in the city of ephesus in asia minor as with the worldwide church, the head of which is christ, the purpose of which is to be the instrument for making gods plan of salvation known throughout the universe eph 3. The purpose of the book of ephesians was to warn the church elders about the false teachers that were teaching a false gospel and to maintain their first love that they held when they first became believers. In the book of ephesians, we learn how the gospel creates a new multiethnic, covenant family of god, and affects our story and how we live every day as a body of new humanity unified in love. The essence of goodspeeds theory is that toward the end of the first century pauls letters were collected, and ephesians was written by. Hoehner surveys 279 commentators from 1519 to 2001, finding 54% favor pauline authorship, 39% conclude against pauline authorship, and 7%.

The letter has the most to say about the universal church and lacks the sort of specific problems which form the occasion for each of the previous letter of paul. Because the name ephesus is not mentioned in every early manuscript, some scholars believe the letter was an encyclical, intended to be circulated and read among all the churches in asia minor and was simply. It impresses the reader with a sustained loftiness, serene thoughts, and utterances of praise breathed in the repose of prayer. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Hoehner also probably gives the most robust defense of pauline authorship of ephesians of any commentary over 100 pages. Stay connected amidst social distancing receive weekly bible studies to share with family and friends. Essay about letter to the ephesians 1186 words bartleby. It is listed among pauls letters in the early manuscripts and cited as such by early christian authors such as irenaeus against heresies 5. Goodspeeds epochmaking book, the meaning of ephesians. Paul names himself as the author of the epistle to the ephesians ephesians 1. Unlike other books like romans or 1 and 2 corinthians which are undisputedly pauline, it has been debated whether ephesians and colossians along with 2 thes. Authorship of ephesians, the pastorals and 2 peter. They are so pauline, however, that even if the letter did not bear the name of its author, it is difficult to imagine the church ever crediting its authorship to anyone but paul. Clement of alexandria, irenaeus and polycarp all acknowledged not only the book of ephesians as scripture, but also paul as the author of the book.

Pauls epistles are intended for all of those who want to know jesus christ. Ephesus was the chief city of the coastal area of asia minor. In this article well be looking at the arguments offered on both sides. However, this was probably a circular letter, intended for other churches in addition to the one in ephesus see notes on 1. Authorship of ephesians at least three scenarios for authorship of ephesians are possible, and all three have attracted considerable support from interpreters in the modern era. As for ephesians, colossians and the pastoral letters, i am of the. Overview of the book of ephesians reformed answers to. This epistle is addressed to the saints at the church in ephesus, a prosperous port city in the roman province of asia minor. What arguments are given that ephesians was not written by paul.

By the midsecond century ephesians was widely circulated and pauline authorship undisputed. To teach the christians at ephesus the wonder and practical implications of being the church in christ. External evidence for pauline authorship of ephesians christian. Karl barth on the authorship of ephesians and colossians stephen. The epistle to the ephesians, also called the letter to the ephesians and often shortened to ephesians, is the tenth book of the new testament. The book of ephesians was very likely written between a. This is a lengthy commentary on ephesians over 900 pages, but well worth the purchase. She stated that paul did not write the book of ephesians. Ephesians intro to ephesians biblica the international bible. Pauline authorship of ephesians does not appear to have been doubted in the early church.

The church is called to glorify god by displaying unity. I dont think opponents to pauline authorship come close to putting ephesians with the apocryphal books, so i cant deny its pauline authorship. Peter williamson contributed the volume on ephesians for the catholic commentary on sacred scripture. It is the height of inconsistency to maintain the letters divine inspiration or at least its moral value, on one hand, while rejecting pauline authorship, on the other. Ephesians chapters wonderfully expound the gospel while ephesians chapters 46 provide a clear picture of how those doctrines change our lives. Barth presents an internal argument for this, which means he examines the texts and compares them with other undisputed letters to. To deny pauline authorship of a book in the bible is to challenge its authority as scripture. Ephesians, theology of bakers evangelical dictionary of. The letter is addressed to the church in the city of ephesus, capital of the roman province of asia asia minor, modern turkey.

The first objections to pauls authorship of ephesians arose among scripture scholars in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century on the basis of internal evidence, that is, content that seemed inconsistent with pauls authorship. As we continue in our faith from day to day, month to month, and year to year, the temptation to get comfortable will always exist. The scholarly consensus on the authorship of ephesians is that paul did not write it. As ive preached through ephesians over the past two years, ive benefited from hoehner in many ways, and have read almost all of the. The authorship of colossians in a previous essay on the authorship of ephesians link 1 below we proposed the thesis that that letter was composed by pauls son in faith, timothy, who had been influenced by his fellow ephesian transplant, the apostle john. The language and syntax of ephesians are certainly distinctive. The author claims to be paul in the opening address much like galatians, 2 corinthians, and colossians 1. In the epistle to the romans, paul writes from the point of view of the demonstration of the righteousness of godhis covenant faithfulness and saving justicein the gospel. The book of ephesians is a prison epistle letter written while in prison.

The letter to the ephesian church is regarded as one of the masterworks of the nt, but it is also one of those books that the critics. The letter to the ephesian church is regarded as one of the masterworks of the nt, but it is also one of those books that the critics like to say wasnt authored by paul. E phesians is one of the most encouraging books in the new testament. However, paul presented the gift of god in christ and the benefits we. Ephesians is the great pauline letter about the church. Introduction from the niv study bible go to ephesians. The book of ephesians hits on a wide range of moral and ethical behaviors, designed to ensure believers are living up to our heavenly calling. The authorship of ephesians has been one of the most hotly debated issues in the critical scholarship of the letter. Polycarp, the bishop of smyrna 695, is also the first church father to call ephesians scripture. Biblical scholars are divided over the authorship of ephesians and colossians.

It was written around 60ad during pauls house arrest in rome. Marcion included it in his canon, although under the title of laodiceans c. The author of ephesians claims to be the apostle paul with personal knowledge of his readers. Those that like to get into studying the bible and its heavy doctrines prefer to study the first part of pauls letters and often treat the latter part as secondary or of less value see the right diagram where a wall separates the two sections. In fact it allegedly was not written for 100 years or more after jesus death, at which time. Ephesians was written by the apostle paul a common proposal is that paul wrote the letter to the colossians to deal.

All tradition takes the epistle as being pauline until it was first disputed by erasmus fifteenth century and by later eighteenthtwentieth century critics. Barth affirms the authorship of ephesians, and colossians with it, as pauline, but he ultimately points out that it matters very little to him either way. Some liberal critics have attempted to raise doubts, yet the authorship of the book is solidly established both by the clear statement in the book itself and by the records of the early uninspired christian writers. The first verse in the letter identifies paul as its author.