Commentary - Ephesians 2:1-10

Bird's-eye view

In this magnificent passage, Paul lays out the gospel in its starkest and most glorious terms. He does not begin with a gentle suggestion for self-improvement. He begins with an autopsy report. We were dead. Not sick, not struggling, not in a bad way, but dead. Corpses. From this utterly hopeless condition, a state of bondage to the world, the flesh, and the devil, Paul pivots on two of the greatest words in Scripture: "But God." What follows is the pure, unadulterated grace of God in action. God, motivated by His own rich mercy and great love, unilaterally made us alive, raised us up, and seated us in the heavenlies with Christ. This is the foundation. Paul then distills the principle for us: salvation is by grace, apprehended through a faith that is itself a gift, so that no man may boast. The result is not idleness, but rather a new creation. We are God's workmanship, His poem, created in Christ Jesus for a life of good works that God Himself has already prepared for us. This is the gospel from top to bottom, from death to life, from the graveyard to the workshop.

Outline

Context In Ephesians

Chapter 2 flows directly out of the magnificent prayer that concludes chapter 1. There, Paul prayed that the Ephesians would know the "surpassing greatness of his power toward us who believe" (Eph 1:19). What is this power? It is the same power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him at God's right hand (Eph 1:20). Now, in chapter 2, Paul shows that this very same resurrection power has been exerted upon us. The logic is tight: the power that raised the physically dead Christ is the same power that raises the spiritually dead sinner. Chapter 1 details our spiritual riches in Christ; chapter 2 details the radical transformation necessary to receive them, moving from being "dead in sins" to being "seated...in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus."

Clause-by-Clause Commentary

Verse 1: And you were dead in your transgressions and sins,

Paul does not mince words. The natural state of man is not one of spiritual sickness, or weakness, or disadvantage. It is death. A corpse in a graveyard is not capable of contributing to its own resurrection. It cannot cooperate with the undertaker. It cannot decide to start breathing again. It is dead. This is the radical biblical diagnosis of our condition apart from Christ. We were not just offenders; we were spiritual corpses, utterly unable and unwilling to seek God. The "transgressions and sins" are not just the cause of death; they are the very atmosphere and environment of that death. We were dead in them, surrounded by them, defined by them.

Verse 2: in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience,

Though we were dead, we were not inactive. Spiritual corpses are quite animated, like zombies on the march. We "walked." But this walk was not a free stroll; it was a lockstep march under a threefold tyranny. First, we walked according to the course of this world. This refers to the prevailing spirit of the age, the cultural consensus of fallen humanity. We did what everyone else was doing. Second, we walked according to the ruler of the power of the air. This is a direct reference to Satan. He is the prince who holds sway in this fallen realm, and we were his subjects, marching to his drumbeat. Third, this satanic spirit is the one now working in the sons of disobedience. This is the internal engine of our rebellion. The spirit of the age and the devil outside of us found a willing collaborator in the sinful nature within us.

Verse 3: among whom we all also formerly conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, doing the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

Lest any of the Jewish Christians think this only applied to the Gentiles, Paul includes everyone: we all also. No one gets a pass. Our conduct was driven by the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires not just of the body but also of the mind. Sin is not just a bodily issue; our fallen reason and intellect are just as corrupt. The conclusion is stark: we were by nature children of wrath. This is our native condition, our inheritance from Adam. It is not something we grow into; it is what we are from conception. We are born under the righteous and settled judicial anger of a holy God. And this is the universal condition of all mankind: "even as the rest."

Verse 4: But God, being rich in mercy because of His great love with which He loved us,

Here is the hinge of all history and of every personal salvation. The narrative was one of death, bondage, and wrath. There was no hope from our side. But God. These two words reverse the flow of the entire story. The initiative is entirely God's. And what motivates Him? Not something He saw in us, but something inherent in His own character. He is rich in mercy. Not just merciful, but wealthy in it. And this mercy flows from His great love. God's love is the ultimate source of our salvation. He loved us not because we were lovely, but because He is love.

Verse 5: even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ, by grace you have been saved,

Paul reiterates our condition at the moment of God's intervention: even when we were dead. God did not wait for us to show a flicker of life. He acted upon us as corpses. And what did He do? He made us alive together with Christ. Our spiritual resurrection is not an isolated event. It is a direct result of our union with Christ in His resurrection. When He was made alive, we were made alive in Him. Paul cannot help but interject the central thesis: by grace you have been saved. It is all a gift. There is no other explanation.

Verse 6: and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

The action continues. Because we are united to Christ, His story becomes our story. He was raised, so we were raised up with Him. He ascended and was seated at the right hand of the Father, so we were seated us with Him in the heavenly places. From God's perspective, this is an accomplished reality. In Christ, our position is already secured. We are reigning with Him. Our earthly walk is a matter of living out the implications of a status that is already ours in Christ.

Verse 7: so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

What is the ultimate purpose of this grand rescue operation? It is a cosmic display. God saved us so that for all of eternity, in the ages to come, He could put us on display as trophies of His grace. We are the evidence, the exhibit A, of the surpassing riches of His grace. The kindness He has shown to us in Christ will be a subject of study and adoration for angels and saints forever.

Verse 8: For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

Paul now summarizes the mechanism. He has already established that grace is the source. The means by which we receive this grace is through faith. Faith is the empty hand that receives the gift. But lest we think that our act of believing is our contribution, Paul immediately clarifies: and this not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. The "this" refers to the whole process of salvation by grace through faith. Even the faith to believe is a gift, sovereignly bestowed by God. He provides the gift and He provides the hand to receive it.

Verse 9: not of works, so that no one may boast.

The reason salvation must be entirely of God is to eliminate the one thing that God will not tolerate: human pride. If our works contributed in any way, we would have grounds for boasting. But salvation is designed from start to finish to ensure that no one may boast. All the glory goes to God, and all our pride is crucified.

Verse 10: For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

This is the glorious conclusion. We are not saved by works, but we are most certainly saved for works. We are His workmanship, the Greek is poiema, from which we get our word "poem." We are God's masterpiece, His work of art. This new creation happens in Christ Jesus. And the purpose of this new creation is a life of good works. But these are not works we invent or drum up on our own. They are works that God prepared beforehand. Before time began, God mapped out the specific path of obedience and service for each of His children. Our task is simply to walk in them. He builds the road, and by grace, He gives us the legs to walk on it.

Application

This passage should accomplish two things in us. First, it should utterly destroy our pride. We were dead. We contributed nothing to our salvation but the sin that made it necessary. Every part of it, from the initial love of God to the final good work we perform, is a gift of grace. There is absolutely no room for boasting.

Second, it should give us unshakable assurance and a profound sense of purpose. Our salvation does not depend on our fluctuating feelings or our spotty performance. It depends on the finished work of Christ and the character of a God who is rich in mercy. We are already seated with Christ in the heavenlies. And our life here is not a meaningless ramble. We are God's artwork, and He has prepared a gallery of good works for us to walk in. Therefore, we should walk with humility, with confidence, and with a joyful diligence, knowing that the God who began this good work in us will certainly bring it to completion.