Ephesians 3.4a-The Contents of Ephesians is the Means to Comprehend Paul's Insight into the Mystery of Christ
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Tuesday April 2, 2024
Ephesians Series: Ephesians 3:4a-The Contents of Ephesians is the Means to Comprehend Paul’s Insight into the Mystery of Christ
Lesson # 140
Ephesians 3:1 For this reason, I myself, Paul, the prisoner owned by and under the authority of the one and only Christ who is Jesus for the benefit of each and every one of you as a corporate unit, who are Gentiles—2 if and let us assume that it is true for the sake of argument that each and every one of you as a corporate unit have surely heard about the stewardship, which is unique to the grace, which originates from the one and only God, which was given to me for the benefit of all of you as a corporate unit without exception. (Of course, every one of you have in fact heard about it.) 3 Namely that, the mystery was made known for the benefit of myself as revelation as I wrote beforehand in a concise manner. 4 Concerning which, that is, by each one of you making it your habit of hearing read publicly, all of you will for your own benefit become able to comprehend my insight into this incomparable mystery, which is produced by your unique union and identification with Christ. (Lecturer’s translation)
Ephesians 3:4 is composed of the participial clause dynasthe anaginōskontes noēsai tēn synesin mou (δύνασθε ἀναγινώσκοντες νοῆσαι τὴν σύνεσίν μου), “that is, by each one of you making it your habit of hearing read publicly, all of you will for your own benefit become able to comprehend my insight” and is modified by two prepositional phrases.
The first is pros ho (πρὸς ὃ), “Concerning which” and the second is en tō mystēriō tou Christou (ἐν τῷ μυστηρίῳ τοῦ Χριστοῦ), “into this incomparable mystery, which is produced by your unique union and identification with Christ.”
These prepositional phrases serve as bookends to this participial clause with the first placed in the emphatic position in the clause and the second completing the clause.
In the participial clause, the nominative masculine plural present active participle conjugation of the verb anaginōskō (ἀναγινώσκω) pertains to having a particular piece of literature read publicly or aloud to people and thus involves verbalization.
The referent of the masculine plural form of this verb is the Gentile Christian community living in the various cities and towns throughout the Roman province of Asia.
This is indicated by the fact that Paul identifies the recipients of this epistle in Ephesians 2:11 as Gentile Christians and this epistle is a circular letter.
Therefore, this verb in Ephesians 3:4 refers to the contents of Ephesians being read publicly to each member of the Gentile Christian community in the Roman province of Asia who were the recipients of this epistle by their lictors and pastor-teachers.
In other words, it describes these Gentile Christians hearing read publicly the contents of this epistle, which explains in detail this mystery doctrine of the church age.
This word anaginōskō (ἀναγινώσκω) functions as a nominative in simple apposition which means that it describes the recipients of this epistle hearing the contents of this epistle read to them publicly by their lictors and pastors in the public worship service.
The present tense of this verb is a customary present, which is used to describe these Gentile Christians as “making it their habit of” hearing read publicly in the public worship service this mystery doctrine.
This verb anaginōskō (ἀναγινώσκω) also functions as a participle of means which indicates the means by which the action of a finite verb is accomplished.
This type of participle defines the action of its controlling verb and makes more explicit what the author intended to convey with the verb.
This type of participle usually follows the main verb.
In this context, the finite verb is the second person plural present middle indicative conjugation of the verb dunamai (δύναμαι), “you will be able” whose thought is completed by the aorist active infinitive conjugation of the verb noeō (νοέω), “to understand.”
Also, in this context, the verb anaginōskō (ἀναγινώσκω) follows the main verb, which we noted is the verb dunamai (δύναμαι), “you will be able.”
Therefore, the participle conjugation of the verb anaginōskō (ἀναγινώσκω) is describing the means by which the recipients of this letter will be able to comprehend Paul’s insight into this mystery of Christ.
Namely, by making it their habit of hearing read publicly the contents of this letter by their lictors and pastors in the public worship service, which explains in detail this mystery doctrine for the church age.
Some interpret the participle conjugation of this verb anaginōskō (ἀναγινώσκω) as a temporal participle, which in relation to its controlling verb, answers the question, “when?”
Therefore, this type of participle would be expressing the idea of the recipients of this letter will be able to comprehend Paul’s insight into this mystery of Christ “while” hearing read publicly the contents of this letter read in the public worship service.
Though a participle might have a temporal force, one must determine if a more specific semantic value is intended by the writer before interpreting the participle as being temporal.
This is the case here where anaginōskō (ἀναγινώσκω) has a more specific semantic value, namely means.
The second person plural aorist middle indicative conjugation of the verb dunamai (δύναμαι) pertains to possessing the capacity to understand a particular subject.
The referent of the second person plural of this verb is of course the recipients of this epistle who were members of the Gentile Christian community living in the various cities and towns in the Roman province of Asia.
The middle voice of this verb is an indirect middle, which would express the idea that it would be “for the benefit of” the recipients of this epistle to be able to comprehend Paul’s insight into the mystery of Christ.
The aorist active infinitive conjugation of the verb noeō (νοέω), “to understand” pertains to understanding, or comprehending on the basis of careful thought and consideration and speaks of grasping the meaning of a subject intellectually.
It functions as a complementary infinitive which means that it is completing the thought of the second person plural present middle indicative conjugation of the verb dunamai (δύναμαι) because it identifies for the reader what they will be able to do by reading the contents of this epistle.
The aorist tense of this verb noeō (νοέω) is an ingressive aorist, which indicates that the recipients of this epistle will be able to “enter into the state of” comprehending Paul’s insight into the mystery of Christ by making it their habit of hearing the contents of this epistle read to them publicly by their lictors and pastors.
The noun sunesis (σύνεσις), “insight” pertains to possessing the ability to understand the meaning and importance of something.
As was the case in Colossians 1:9, 2:2 and 2 Timothy 2:7, the noun sunesis (σύνεσις) here in Ephesians 3:4 pertains to the result of apprehending the inner nature of things or of seeing intuitively.
It pertains to the quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure, skill in discerning, and the power to see what is not evident to the average mind.
The nominative first person singular form of the personal pronoun ego (ἐγώ) means “my” and its referent is of course Paul.
Now, in the first prepositional phrase pros ho (πρὸς ὃ), “concerning which,” the referent of the accusative neuter singular form of the relative pronoun hos (ὅς) is the articular nominative neuter singular form of the noun mustērion (μυστήριον), “the mystery,” which appears in Ephesians 3:3.
The accusative neuter singular form of the relative pronoun hos (ὅς) is the object is the object of the preposition pros (πρός), which marks this mystery doctrine of the church age as being the connection between what he wrote about it in the first two chapters and what he is going to write about in Ephesians 3:5-13.
The public reading of Scripture is commanded by Paul since he instructed Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:13 to be occupied with the public reading of Scripture.
1 Timothy 4:13 Until I do arrive, continue making it your habit of being occupied with the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. (Lecturer’s translation)
“The public reading of Scripture” is the noun anagnosis (ἀνάγνωσις), which refers to “reading aloud” or “the public reading” of the Old Testament and Paul’s epistles in the local assemblies that met in various homes or school rooms or other public settings in Ephesus.
Now, not only does Paul want Timothy to be occupied with the public reading of Scripture but also the pastors in Ephesus.
Those who were faithful, to encourage them to continue and those who were unfaithful to get them back on track.
The public reading of Scripture is mentioned in 1 Thessalonians 5:27 in that Paul commanded the Thessalonian Christian community to have the contents of First Thessalonians read to each person in their community.
1 Thessalonians 5:27 I adjure each and every one of you at this particular time by the authority of the one and only Lord to have this letter read to each and every one of your brothers and sisters. (Lecturer’s translation)
Colossians 4:16 Now, after this epistle has been read in the presence of each one of you, I solemnly charge all of you to have it read in the Laodicean assembly. Likewise, I solemnly charge all of you to have the one from Laodicea read publicly by each one of you. (Lecturer’s translation)