Ephesians Series: Ephesians 2:5a-Prior to Justification, the Church Age Believer Was Spiritually Dead Because of Their Transgressions

Ephesians 2:1 Now, correspondingly, even though, each and every one of you as a corporate unit were spiritually dead ones because of your transgressions, in other words, because of your sins. 2 Each and every one of you formerly lived by means of these in agreement with the standard of the unregenerate people of this age, which is the production of the cosmic world system, in agreement with the standard of the sovereign ruler, namely the sovereign governmental authority ruling over the evil spirits residing in the earth’s atmosphere. Specifically the spirit who is presently working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience. 3 Among whom, each and every one of us also formerly for our own selfish benefit conducted our lives by means of those lusts, which are produced by our flesh. Specifically, by indulging those inclinations which are produced by our flesh, in other words, those impulses, which are the product of our flesh. Consequently, each and every one of us caused ourselves to be children who are objects of wrath because of our natural condition from physical birth. Just as the rest correspondingly caused themselves to be children who are objects of wrath because of their natural condition from physical birth. 4 But because God is rich with regards to mercy, because of the exercise of His great love with which He loved each and every one of us, 5 even though each and every one of us as a corporate unit were spiritually dead ones because of our transgressions, He caused each and every one of us to be made alive together with the one and only Christ. Each and every one of you as a corporate unit are saved because of grace! (Lecturer’s translation)

Ephesians 2:5 contains a concessive clause, which is ontas hēmas nekrous tois paraptōmasin synezōopoiēsen tō Christō (ὄντας ἡμᾶς νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασιν συνεζωοποίησεν τῷ Χριστῷ), “Even though each and every one of us as a corporate unit were spiritually dead ones because of our transgressions, He caused each and every one of us to be made alive together with the one and only Christ” (Lecturer’s translation).

It is then followed by a declarative statement, which is chariti este sesōsmenoi (χάριτί ἐστε σεσῳσμένοι), “Each and every one of you as a corporate unit are saved because of grace!” (Lecturer’s translation).

The concessive clause resumes and completes the incomplete concessive clause hymas ontas nekrous tois paraptōmasin kai tais hamartiais hymōn (ὑμᾶς ὄντας νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασιν καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν), “Even though, each and every one of you as a corporate unit were spiritually dead ones because of your transgressions, in other words, because of your sins,” which appeared in Ephesians 2:1.

The declarative statement in Ephesians 2:5 emphatically presents the implication for this completed concessive clause in Ephesians 2:5.

In Ephesians 2:5, Paul employs the ascensive use of the conjunction kai (καί), which means that the assertion which it is introducing is not only an addition to the previous assertion in Ephesians 2:4 but also out of the ordinary or unexpected and rises to a climax like the crescendo in music.

It introduces the concessive clause ontas hēmas nekrous tois paraptōmasin synezōopoiēsen tō Christō (ὄντας ἡμᾶς νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασιν συνεζωοποίησεν τῷ Χριστῷ), “Even though each and every one of us as a corporate unit were spiritually dead ones because of our transgressions, He caused each and every one of us to be made alive together with the one and only Christ” (Lecturer’s translation).

The protasis of this concessive clause is almost identical to the one in Ephesians 2:1.

The only difference between the two is that the one in Ephesians 2:1 employs the accusative second personal plural form of the personal pronoun su (σύ), which refers to the recipients of the Ephesian epistle.

On the other hand, the one in Ephesians 2:5 employs the accusative first person plural form of the personal pronoun ego (ἐγώ), which refers to both Paul and the recipients of this epistle.

Therefore, the conjunction kai (καί) here in Ephesians 2:5 introduces a concessive clause, which resumes and completes the one it introduces in Ephesians 2:1 but with a slight difference in subject.

So therefore, the ascensive use of conjunction kai (καί) here in Ephesians 2:5 indicates that the assertion in the concessive clause is out of the ordinary or unexpected and has brought Paul’s statements in Ephesians 2:1-4 to a climax like a crescendo in music.

It is out of the ordinary and unexpected because the Father did this for the church age believer when they were spiritually dead because of committing transgressions against Him.

It brings Paul’s assertions in Ephesians 2:1-4 to a climax like a crescendo in music because it completes his thought from these verses.

The accusative masculine plural present active participle conjugation of the verb eimi (εἰμί) in this concessive clause pertains to certain persons who belong to a particular group of human beings who exist in the state or condition of possessing certain characteristics.

The referent of the masculine plural form of this verb is Paul and the recipients of this epistle who are identified in Ephesians 2:11 as being Gentile Christians.

As was the case in Ephesians 2:1, the accusative masculine plural form of the adjective nekros(νεκρός) here in Ephesians 2:5 means “dead ones” referring to those members of the human race who exist in the state of being spiritually dead or who exist in an unregenerate state.

However, unlike Ephesians 2:1, here in Ephesians 2:5 the referent of this word is not only the recipients of the Ephesian epistle but also Paul.

As was the case in Ephesians 1:7 and 2:1, the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα) here in Ephesians 2:5 is in the plural and means “transgressions” referring to the deliberate violations of God’s laws by the apostle Paul and the recipients of the Ephesian epistle prior to their justification.

It functions as a dative of cause, which indicates the reason why Paul and each one of the recipients of this epistle existed in the state of being spiritually dead.

Therefore, this indicates that they existed in the state of being spiritually dead “because of” their transgressions.

Therefore, the verb eimi (εἰμί) is expressing the idea that Paul and each of these Gentile Christians belong to a particular group of people in the human race who exist in the state of being spiritually dead because of their transgressions before their justification.

The participle conjugation of this verb eimi (εἰμί) functions as a concessive participle, which implies that Paul and each of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle being made alive together with Jesus Christ is true in spite of the fact that they were spiritually dead because of their transgressions they committed against the Father.

Thus, the idea of this concessive participle is that “although” Paul and each of these Gentile Christians were spiritually dead because of their transgressions prior to their justification, the Father made them alive together with His Son, Jesus Christ.

As was the case in Ephesians 2:1, the action of the present participle conjugation of this verb eimi (εἰμί) here in Ephesians 2:5 is antecedent in time in relation to the action of the aorist tense of the main verb syzōopoieō (συζωοποιέω), “made alive together.”

Therefore, this indicates that “before” being made alive at the moment of justification through faith in Jesus Christ, Paul and each of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle were existing in the state of being spiritually dead because of their transgressions.