Ephesians 4:8

Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
Wherefore	διὸ dio	G1352	through which thing · conjunction
saith	λέγει· legei	G3004	properly · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
ascended	ἀναβὰς anabas	G305	to go up (literally or figuratively) · verb — second aorist active participle, nominative singular masculine
up	εἰς eis	G1519	to or into (indicating the point reached or entered) · preposition
high	ὕψος hupsos	G5311	elevation · noun — accusative singular neuter
led	ᾐχμαλώτευσεν ēchmalōteusen	G162	to capture (like G163 (αἰχμαλωτίζω)) · verb — aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular
captivity	αἰχμαλωσίαν, aichmalōsian	G161	captivity · noun — accusative singular feminine
captive	αἰχμαλωτεύω aichmalōteúō	G162	to capture (like G163 (αἰχμαλωτίζω))
and	καί kaí	G2532	and
gave	ἔδωκεν edōken	G1325	to give (used in a very wide application · verb — aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular
gifts	δόματα domata	G1390	a present · noun — accusative plural neuter
men	ἀνθρώποις. anthrōpois	G444	from G3700 (ὀπτάνομαι)) · noun — dative plural masculine

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

Psalms 68:18 Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive: thou hast received gifts for men; yea, for the rebellious also, that the LORD G…
Colossians 2:15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
1 Samuel 30:26 And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying, Behold a present for you of the s…
Esther 2:18 Then the king made a great feast unto all his princes and his servants, even Esther’s feast; and he made a release to the provinces, and gav…
Judges 5:12 Awake, awake, Deborah: awake, awake, utter a song: arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity captive, thou son of Abinoam.

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Ephesians 4:2-16

Here the apostle proceeds to more particular exhortations. Two he enlarges upon in this chapter: - To unity an love, purity and holiness, which Christians should very much study. We do not walk worthy of the vocation wherewith we are called if we be not faithful friends to all Christians, and sworn enemies to all sin. This section contains the exhortation to mutual love, unity, and concord, with the proper means and motives to promote them. Nothing is pressed upon us more earnestly in the scriptures than this. Love is the law of Christ's kingdom, the lesson of his school, the livery of his family. Observe, I. The means of unity: Lowliness and meekness, long-suffering, and forbearing one anot…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Ephesians 4:8

Wherefore--"For which reason," namely, in order to intimate that Christ, the Head of the Church, is the author of all these different gifts, and that giving of them is an act of His "grace" [ESTIUS]. he saith--God, whose word the Scripture is (Psa 68:18). When he ascended--GOD is meant in the Psalm, represented by the ark, which was being brought up to Zion in triumph by David, after that "the Lord had given him rest round about from all his enemies" (2Sa. 6:1-7:1; 1Ch. 15:1-29). Paul quotes it of CHRIST ascending to heaven, who is therefore GOD. captivity--that is, a band of captives. In the Psalm, the captive foes of David. In the antitypical meaning, the foes of Christ the Son of Da…

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Adam Clarke on Ephesians 4:8

Wherefore he saith - The reference seems to be to Psa 68:18, which, however it may speak of the removal of the tabernacle, appears to have been intended to point out the glorious ascension of Christ after his resurrection from the dead. The expositions of various commentators have made the place extremely difficult. I shall not trouble my reader with them; they may be seen in Rosenmuller. When he ascended up on high - The whole of this verse, as it stands in the psalm, seems to refer to a military triumph. Take the following paraphrase: Thou hast ascended on high: the conqueror was placed in a very elevated chariot. Thou hast led captivity captive: the conquered kings and generals were usual…

The Church Fathers

Now Christ was delivered from the sword, and ascended from out of Sheol, and revived and rose the third day, and so God abode for His help.
— Aphrahat the Persian Sage, Demonstration 17 (Of Christ the Son of God), Section 10

By the cross death is destroyed, and by the cross salvation shines; by the cross the gates of hell are burst, and by the cross the gates of paradise are opened... the cross is the destroyer of hell.
— Melito of Sardis, New Fragment #3:4-5, lines 24-36, as quoted by Stuart George Hall in 'Melito of Sardis: On Pascha and Fragments' (2012 revised edition), pp. 62-96

As though he had said, Why art thou high-minded? The whole is of God. The Prophet saith in the Psalm, "Thou hast received gifts among men" whereas the Apostle saith, "He gave gifts unto men." The one is the same as the other.
— John Chrysostom, Homily on Ephesians 11

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Gift — (1.) An gratuity (Prov. 19:6) to secure favour (18:16; 21:14), a thank-offering (Num. 18:11), or a dowry (Gen. 34:12). (2.) An oblation or proppitatory gift (2Sa 8:2, 6; 1Ch 18:2, 6; 2Ch 26:8; Ps.…
Ascension Of Christ, The · Prophecies respecting — Prophecies respecting
Bondage, Spiritual · Christ delivers from — Christ delivers from
Captivity · .“ — .“
Christ, The Head Of The Church · Imparts gifts — Imparts gifts
Gifts From God · UNCLASSIFIED SCRIPTURES RELATING TO BOTH TEMPORAL AND SPIRITUAL — UNCLASSIFIED SCRIPTURES RELATING TO BOTH TEMPORAL AND SPIRITUAL
Gifts Of God, The · Spiritual: Are through Christ — Spiritual: Are through Christ
Regeneration · 1:16,17,25;4:4;12:3;26:12;29:23;32:3,4,15,17;35:5,6;42:16;43:7;44:3-5;49:9;55:1-3; — 1:16,17,25;4:4;12:3;26:12;29:23;32:3,4,15,17;35:5,6;42:16;43:7;44:3-5;49:9;55:1-3;

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).

Ephesians 4:8

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Ephesians 4:2-16

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Ephesians 4:8

Adam Clarke on Ephesians 4:8

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Ephesians 4:8

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Ephesians 4:2-16

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Ephesians 4:8

Adam Clarke on Ephesians 4:8

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Gill on Ephesians 4:8

John Calvin on Ephesians 4:7-10

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Ephesians 4:8