Ephesians Series: Ephesians 2:14-Jesus Christ Destroyed the Hostility Between Jews and Gentiles Caused by the Mosaic Law

Ephesians 2:11 Therefore, each and every one of you as a corporate unit must continue to make it your habit of remembering that formerly each of you who belong to the Gentile race with respect to the human body, specifically, those who receive the designation “uncircumcision” by the those who receive the designation “circumcision” with respect to the human body performed by human hands, 12 each one of you used to be characterized as without a relationship with Christ. Each one of you used to be alienated from the nation of Israel’s citizenship. Specifically, each of you used to be strangers to the most important promise, which is the product of the covenants. Each of you used to not possess a confident expectation of blessing. Consequently, each one of you used to be without a relationship with God in the sphere of the cosmic world system. 13 However, because of your faith in and your union and identification with Christ Jesus each and every one of you as a corporate who formerly were far away have now been brought near by means of the blood belonging to this same Christ. 14 For He Himself personifies our peace. Namely, by causing both groups to be one. Specifically, by destroying the wall, which served as the barrier, that is, that which caused hostility (between the two). (Lecturer’s translation)

Ephesians 2:14 contains three assertions:

(1) Autos estin hē eirēnē hēmōn (Αὐτὸς ἐστιν ἡ εἰρήνη ἡμῶν), “He Himself personifies our peace.”

(2) ho poiēsas ta amphotera hen (ὁ ποιήσας τὰ ἀμφότερα ἓν), “Namely, by causing both groups to be one.”

(3) kai to mesotoichon tou phragmou lysas, tēn echthran (καὶ τὸ μεσότοιχον τοῦ φραγμοῦ λύσας, τὴν ἔχθραν), “Specifically, by destroying the wall, which served as the barrier, that is, that which caused hostility (between the two).”

Therefore, the reader can see that the first of these assertions is a declarative statement which presents the reason for the assertion in Ephesians 2:13.

It states that Jesus Christ Himself personifies the peace which now exists between Paul and his fellow Jewish Christians and the recipients of this letter who were Gentile Christians.

The second assertion explains how or the means by which Jesus Christ Himself personifies the peace that now exists between Jewish and Gentile Christians and states that He did this by causing both groups to be one.

He personifies the peace that now exists between the two groups by causing them to be one single entity.

The third and final assertion also explains not only the first assertion but also the second.

Thus, it explains not only how or by what means Jesus Christ personifies the peace that now exists between Jewish and Gentile Christians but also how or by what means He caused both groups to be one single entity.

It asserts that Jesus Christ personifies the peace that now exists between Jewish and Gentile Christians and caused both groups to be one by destroying the wall, which served as the barrier, that is, that which caused hostility (between the two).

This destruction is two-fold sense:

(1) By obeying the Law perfectly during His First Advent, He fulfilled the Law perfectly which the Father requires in order to enter into a relationship and fellowship with Him.

(2) By propitiating the Father by means of His substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross, He suffered the consequences of the members of the human race not fulfilling the holy requirements of the Law.

Jesus Christ fulfilled perfectly the requirements of the Mosaic Law during His First Advent.

He also suffered the wrath of God in the place of all of sinful humanity because of their failure to keep the Law perfectly by suffering a substitutionary spiritual and physical death on the cross.

His physical death brought to completion the Father’s will for His life to provide eternal salvation to all of sinful humanity.

Consequently, at the moment of His physical death, the problem of the Mosaic Law causing hostility between the Jews and the Gentiles was resolved.

By suffering the wrath of God in the place of all of sinful humanity, both Jew and Gentile, Jesus Christ redeemed the entire human out of the slave market of sin.

He also propitiated the Father and reconciled all of sinful humanity to a holy God.

By suffering the wrath of God in the place of all of sinful humanity, the Lord Jesus Christ delivered all of sinful humanity from the wrath of God in the eternal lake of fire.

He also delivered all of sinful humanity from enslavement to the sin nature, the devil and his cosmic system.

He also delivered them from condemnation from the Mosaic Law.

He also delivered them from spiritual and physical death as well as the consequences for committing sin.

This deliverance is appropriated by the unregenerate sinner, both Jew and Gentile who exercises faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior.

Simultaneously, the Father imputes His Son’s righteousness to them and declares them justified.

Simultaneously, through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the regenerate sinner is placed in union with Jesus Christ and under His headship by the Holy Spirit.

Through the baptism of the Spirit, the Holy Spirit identified both Jewish and Gentile believers with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.

Therefore, the Mosaic Law is no longer an issue between Jewish and Gentile Christians because both died to the Mosaic Law (cf. Rom. 7:1-6).

They are no longer under the jurisdiction of the Law because of Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilling the requirements of the Law and suffering the consequences for both groups failing to keep the Law perfectly.

Correspondingly, the Mosaic Law is no longer an issue between Jewish and Gentile Christians because both died to the Mosaic Law.

Both are no longer under the jurisdiction of the Law because of their union and identification with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father.

This union and identification united Jewish and Gentile believers.

There is an interpretation issue with regards to the expression tēn echthran en tē sarki autou (τὴν ἔχθραν ἐν τῇ σαρκὶ αὐτοῦ), “that which caused hostility (between the two races with each other and the two races with God).” (Lecturer’s translation)

I believe that the prepositional phrase en tē sarki autou (ἐν τῇ σαρκὶ αὐτοῦ), “by means of His human nature” (Lecturer’s translation) belongs with verse 15 and is thus modifying the nominative masculine singular aorist active participle conjugation of the verb katargeō (καταργέω), “in other words, by nullifying” (Lecturer’s translation).

This view expresses the idea that Christ destroyed the wall, which was the hostility, by means of making the law inoperative in his flesh or humanity.

I adhere to this view because it is consistent with Paul’s writings in other places, in which he states that the believer is not under the Law but died to the Law because of His identification with Christ in His death and that Christ fulfilled the Law (Rom 7:1-6; 10:4; Gal 2:19; 3:24–25).