the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative singular masculine
reconcile
ἀποκαταλλάξῃapokatallaxē
G604
to reconcile fully · verb — aorist active subjunctive, 3rd person singular
both
ἀμφοτέρουςamphoterous
G297
(in plural) both · adjective — accusative plural masculine
God
θεῷtheō
G2316
figuratively · noun — dative singular masculine, a title
in
ἐνen
G1722
"in · preposition
one
ἑνὶheni
G1520
one · adjective — dative singular neuter
body
σώματιsōmati
G4983
the body (as a sound whole) · noun — dative singular neuter
by
διὰdia
G1223
through (in very wide applications · preposition
cross
σταυροῦstaurou
G4716
a stake or post (as set upright) · noun — genitive singular masculine
slain
ἀποκτείναςapokteinas
G615
to kill outright · verb — aorist active participle, nominative singular masculine
enmity
ἔχθρανechthran
G2189
hostility · noun — accusative singular feminine
thereby
ἐνen
G1722
"in · preposition
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Colossians 1:20-22 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in…
Romans 5:10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
Colossians 2:14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cros…
Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by th…
1 Peter 4:1-2 Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the fle…
Romans 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
Romans 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin,…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Ephesians 2:14–end
We have now come to the last part of the chapter, which contains an account of the great and mighty privileges that converted Jews and Gentiles both receive from Christ. The apostle here shows that those who were in a state of enmity are reconciled. Between the Jews and the Gentiles there had been a great enmity; so there is between God and every unregenerate man. Now Jesus Christ is our peace, Eph 2:14. He made peace by the sacrifice of himself; and came to reconcile, 1. Jews and Gentiles to each other. He made both one, by reconciling these two divisions of men, who were wont to malign, to hate, and to reproach each other before. He broke down the middle wall of partition, the ceremonial l…
Translate, "might altogether reconcile them both in one body (the Church, Col 3:15) unto God through His cross." The Greek for "reconcile" (apocatalaxe), found only here and in Col 1:20, expresses not only a return to favor with one (catallage), but so to lay aside enmity that complete amity follows; to pass from enmity to complete reconciliation [TITTMANN].
slain the enmity--namely, that had been between man and God; and so that between Jew and Gentile which had resulted from it. By His being slain, He slew it (compare Heb 2:14).
thereby--Greek, "therein"; "in" or "by the cross," that is, His crucifixion (Col 2:15).
Adam Clarke on Ephesians 2:16
That he might reconcile both - in one body - That the Jews and Gentiles, believing on the Lord Jesus, might lay aside all their causes of contention, and become one spiritual body, or society of men, influenced by the Spirit, and acting according to the precepts of the Gospel.
Having slain the enmity thereby - Having, by his death upon the cross, made reconciliation between God and man, and by his Spirit in their hearts removed the enmity of their fallen, sinful nature. Dr. Macknight thinks that abolishing the enmity is spoken of the removal of the hatred which the Jews and Gentiles mutually bore to each other, because of the difference of their respective religious worship; and that slaying…
"For to create in Himself of twain," for He who had made is also the same who creates (just as we have found it stated above: "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus"), "one new man, making peace" (really new, and really man-no phantom-but new, and newly born of a virgin by the Spirit of God), "that He might reconcile both unto God" (even the God whom both races had offended-both Jew and Gentile), "in one body," says he, "having in it slain the enmity by the cross." Thus we find from this passage also, that there was in Christ a fleshly body, such as was able to endure the cross.
Since then it was impossible that our life, which had been estranged from God, should of itself return to the high and heavenly place, for this cause, as saith the Apostle, He Who knew no sin is made sin for us, and frees us from the curse by taking on Him our curse as His own, and having taken up, and, in the language of the Apostle, "slain" in Himself "the enmity" which by means of sin had come between us and God,-(in fact sin was "the enmity")-and having become what we were, He through Himself again united humanity to God. For having by purity brought into closest relationship with the Father of our nature that new man which is created after God, in Whom dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, He drew with Him into the same grace all the nature that partakes of His body and is akin to Him.
"And might reconcile them both in one body unto God through the Cross." He saith, not merely "might reconcile," but "might reconcile thoroughly" indicating that heretofore human nature had been easily reconciled, as, e.g., in the case of the saints and before the time of the Law. "In one body," saith he, and that His own, "unto God." How is this effected? By Himself, he means, suffering the due penalty. "Through the cross having slain the enmity thereby." Nothing can be more decisive, nothing more expressive than these words. His death, saith the Apostle, hath "slain" the enmity. He hath "wounded" and "killed" it, not by giving charge to another, nor by what He wrought only, but also by what He suffered. He does not say "having dissolved," he does say "having cancelled," but what is stronger than all, "having slain," so that it never should rise again. How then is it that it does rise again? From our exceeding depravity. For as long as we abide in the body of Christ, as long as we are united, it rises not again, but lies dead; or rather that former enmity never rises again at all. But if we breed another, it is no longer because of Him, who hath destroyed and put to death the former one. It is thou, forsooth, that travailest with a fresh one. "For the mind of the flesh," saith he, "is enmity against God;" if we are in nothing carnally-minded, there will be no fresh enmity produced, but that "peace" shall remain.
Dictionary and topics
Church — Derived probably from the Greek kuriakon (i.e., “the Lord’s house”), which was used by ancient authors for the place of worship. In the New Testament it is the translation of the Greek word ecclesia,…
Cross — In the New Testament the instrument of crucifixion, and hence used for the crucifixion of Christ itself (Eph. 2:16; Heb. 12:2; 1 Cor. 1:17, 18; Gal. 5:11; 6:12, 14; Phil. 3:18). The word is also used…
Death — May be simply defined as the termination of life. It is represented under a variety of aspects in Scripture: (1.) “The dust shall return to the earth as it was” (Eccl. 12:7). (2.) “Thou takest away…
Enmity — Deep-rooted hatred. “I will put enmity between thee and the woman, between thy seed and her seed” (Gen. 3:15). The friendship of the world is “enmity with God” (James 4:4; 1 John 2:15, 16). The…
Law — A rule of action. (1.) The Law of Nature is the will of God as to human conduct, founded on the moral difference of things, and discoverable by natural light (Rom. 1:20; 2:14, 15). This law binds all…
Reconcilation — A change from enmity to friendship. It is mutual, i.e., it is a change wrought in both parties who have been at enmity. (1.) In Col. 1:21, 22, the word there used refers to a change wrought in the…
Atonement, The · Reconciliation to God effected by — Reconciliation to God effected by
Catholicity · INCUL — INCUL
Christ, The Mediator · In virtue of his atonement — In virtue of his atonement
And that he might reconcile both unto God,.... This is another end of the abrogation of the ceremonial law: the Jews had run up a long score against the ceremonial law, as well as against the moral law; and Christ by fulfilling it for them, and thereby abrogating it, reconciled them; and the Gentiles could not be reconciled together with them, without the abrogation of it: and this reconciliation of them is made to God, who was the person offended; and who yet first set on foot a reconciliation, in which his glory is greatly concerned; and reconciliation with others depends upon reconciliation with him: and this is made
in one body by the cross; by which "body" is meant, the human body of C…
Ephesians 2:14-16
14. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
14. Ipse enim est pax nostra, qui fecit utraque unum, et interstitium maceriae solvens, inimicitias in carne sua;
15. Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
15. Legem mandatorum in decretis positam abolens, ut duos conderet in se ipso, in unum novum hominem, faciens pacem;
16. And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby.
16. Ut reconciliaret ambos in uno corpore Deo per crucem, inimiciti…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Jews, The · Gentiles made one with, under the gospel — Gentiles made one with, under the gospel
Peace · SPIRITUAL — SPIRITUAL
Reconciliation · BETWEEN GOD AND MAN — BETWEEN GOD AND MAN
Reconciliation With God · Blotting out the hand-writing of ordinances is necessary to — Blotting out the hand-writing of ordinances is necessary to
Types Of Christ · Peace offerings — Peace offerings
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
