Exegesis and Exposition of Ephesians 2:2

EXEGESIS AND EXPOSITION OF EPHESIANS 2:2 Pastor William E. Wenstrom Jr. WENSTROM BIBLE MINISTRIES Huntsville, AL 35801 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries Exegesis and Exposition of Ephesians 2:2 Original Text of Ephesians 2:1-2 Ephesians 2:1 Καὶ ὑμᾶς ὄντας νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασιν καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν. Καὶ ὑμᾶς ὄντας νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασιν καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις ὑμῶν, 2 ἐν αἷς ποτε περιεπατήσατε κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου, κατὰ τὸν ἄρχοντα τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος, τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ νῦν ἐνεργοῦντος ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας. (NA28) NET Bible Translation of Ephesians 2:1-2 Ephesians 2:1 And although you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you formerly lived according to this world’s present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. (NET) The Cosmic System Ephesians 2:1 And although you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you formerly lived according to this world’s present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. (NET) “In which you formerly lived according to this world’s present path” is composed of the following: (1) preposition en (ἐν), “in” (2) dative feminine plural form of the relative pronoun hos (ὅς), “which” (3) temporal particle pote (ποτέ), “formerly” (4) second person plural aorist active indicative conjugation of the verb peripateō (περιπατέω), “you lived” (5) preposition kata (κατά), “according to” (6) articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun aiōn (αἰών), “present path” (7) articular genitive masculine singular form of the noun kosmos (κόσμος), “world’s” (8) genitive masculine singular form of the demonstrative pronoun houtos (οὗτος), “this.” The dative feminine plural form of the relative pronoun hos (ὅς) pertains to a relative reference to any entity, event, or state, either occurring overtly in the immediate context or clearly implied in the discourse or setting.1 The referent of this word is the articular dative neuter plural form of the nouns paraptōma (παράπτωμα), “because of your transgressions” hamartia (ἁμαρτία), “because of your sins,” 1 Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 815). United Bible Societies. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1 which appear in Ephesians 2:1, since both of these words agree in gender (feminine), number (plural) and case (dative) with this relative pronoun. This word is the object of the preposition en (ἐν), which functions as a marker of means expressing the idea that each of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle prior to their justification lived “by means of” committing these transgressions. In other words, it is expressing the idea that they lived “by means of” committing these sins against God prior to the Father declaring them justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. The verb peripateō is a compound word composed of the preposition peri, “around” and the verb pateo, “to walk,” thus the word literally means, “to walk around.” It is one of many pateo compounds. Pateo and its compounds denote in Greek a stepping movement of the feet and was not used before Pindar. Peripateō is found in classical Greek from Aristophanes onwards. It is found only with the literal meaning of strolling, stopping (e.g. while one walks here and there in the market 2). The figurative meaning of walking, with reference to conduct, is lacking. Only in Philodemus (first century B.C.) does one find the meaning to live.3 The word became particularly associated with “walking and talking” or “walking and teaching.” This happened to such an extent that Peripatetics were recognized as a unique philosophical group. Specifically the Peripatetics were associated with Aristotle, who delivered his lectures (“walkings,” he called them) as he walked. He probably got the idea from Plato, his teacher. Gradually, however, the term lost its specificity and became linked to philosophers in general. The metaphoric sense, “to live, to conduct one’s life,” did not truly become common until the Septuagint. Liddell and Scott list the following meanings: (1) Walk up and down; walk about (2) Walk about while teaching, discourse (3) Metaphorically, walk, i.e. live.4 Peripateō appears only 31 times in the Septuagint (LXX), of which more than half come from Wisdom literature. It stands for halakh (mostly hithpael) and means initially simply to go or to walk about (1 Sm. 17:39), generally with an indication of place (e.g. Ex. 21:11) or some other more precise information (e.g. Sus. 13 according to custom). In Judges 21:24 it means go away. Several times it is used anthropomorphically of God walking or moving about (Gen. 3:8, 10; Ps. 103 [104]:3), and also of Satan (Jb. 1:7; 2:2). Only occasionally does peripateō denote in the figurative sense way of life (2 K. 20:3; Ecc. 11:9). It is used to translate the following Hebrew terms: (1) Darakh, “tread” (Job 9:8). (2) Halakh, Qal: “go” (Is. 8:7); Piel: “walk” (Ps. 104:3 [103:3], Prov. 8:20, Is. 59:9); Hithpael: “walk, walk around” (Gen. 3:8 [3:9], 2 Sm. 11:2); “go down” (Prov. 23:31). (3) Halakh, “go, walk;” Haphel: “go down” (Dn. 3:25-Aramaic). The 2 Demosthones Orations 54, 7 3 De Libertate 23,3 4 Greek-English Lexicon, page 1382 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 2 Septuagint prefers to use poreuomai, “to go,” in combination with hodos, “way,” because this can better express that one should conduct one’s way of life in the paths indicated by God. The compound verb peripateō appears 95 times in the Greek New Testament and has two basic senses: (1) Literal (2) Figurative. Peripateō occurs in every New Testament book except the Pastoral Epistles, James, Philemon and 2 Peter. Such a wide usage suggests its theological value and import to the writers. It occurs predominately in the Gospels, Acts and Revelation. Louw and Nida list the following New Testament meanings for the verb peripateō: (1) To walk along or around – ‘to walk, to go’5 (2) To live or behave in a customary manner, with possible focus upon continuity of action – ‘to live, to behave, to go about doing’ 6 A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature-Third Edition: (1) to go here and there in walking, go about, walk around (2) to conduct one’s life, comport oneself, behave, live as habit of conduct.7 The Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament provides the following list of meanings for the verb in the New Testament: (1) Walk (about) (literal and figurative) (2) Conduct oneself, live, as a rule more closely specified by the manner of such conduct (a) With en designating the condition or sphere of the “walking” (b) By the associative dative (c) By kata with accusative to designate a norm (d) By an adverb (e) By a comparison. 8 Literal walking is depicted by peripateō for the most part in the Gospels and Acts (Mt. 4:18; 9:5; Lk. 7:22; Jn. 6:19; 10:23; throughout Acts). In the fourth Gospel, however, peripateō assumes theological significance, as it becomes one of the many terms for describing the spiritual lifestyle of the individual believer. Paul employed the peripateō to describe the Christian lifestyle meaning, “to conduct oneself, live.” It is used to denote fellowship with God through the Word (2 Cor. 5:7; 1 Jn. 1:6, 7; 2:11; 2 Jn. 4, 6; 3 Jn. 3, 4) and the Spirit (Rom. 8:1, 4; Gal. 5:16). A believer can walk in either of one of two ways: (1) According to the old Adamic-nature (Rom. 8:4; cf. 1 Cor. 3:3; 2 Cor. 10:3). (2) By means of the Spirit or the new Christ-nature (Gal. 5:16). Paul admonishes believers “to walk (peripateō) worthy of the Lord” (Col. 1:10; 1 Thess. 2:12; cf. Eph. 4:1), not “according to the course of this world” (Eph. 2:2). Believers are to “walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4), “by means of divine-love” and “as children of light” (Eph. 5:2, 8). Paul’s own lifestyle stands as a model for believers (Phlp. 3:17; cf. 1 Thess. 4:1). 5 Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains volume 2, page 209 6 Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains volume 2, page 505 7 Page 803 volume 3, pages 75-76 8 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 3 There is another word in the Greek New Testament that is used of walking, stoicheo. There is a distinction between peripateō and stoicheo that the English translators failed to recognize. Since the time of Jerome, many New Testament translators have considered stoicheo to be a synonym of peripateō or poreuomai, “to walk.” This is emphatically not the case because if this were the case the New Testament would be alone in this use of stoicheo. The verb peripateō is related to self, whereas the stoicheo is related to others. Stoicheo is a verb related to the concept of unity in the body of Christ. Peripateō emphasizes the spiritual life of the individual believer, whereas stoicheo is related to individual believer’s relationship and interaction with the Trinity and the other members of the Body of Christ. Galatians 5:25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk in agreement (stoicheo) by the Spirit. (NASB95) Galatians 6:15 For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. 16 And those who will walk in agreement (stoicheo) by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God. (NASB95) Ephesians 5:8 for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; 9 walk (peripateō) as children of Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth). (NASB95) 1 John 1:6 If, any of us enters into making the claim that we have been experiencing fellowship with Him and yet we have been living (peripateō) in the darkness (of the cosmic system of Satan), then we do lie to ourselves and furthermore, we unequivocally do not obey the truth. 7 On the other hand, if any of us does at any time live (peripateō) in the light (in the presence of the Father by living according to the standards of His holiness) just as He Himself is in essence that light (holy), then, we do experience fellowship with one another (with the Father) and furthermore, the blood of Jesus, His Son does cause us to be purified from each and every sin. (Author’s translation) 1 John 2:6 The one who at any time does say, “I am abiding in Him,” in the same manner He (the Lord Jesus Christ) lived (peripateō), likewise, he himself must live (peripateō). (Author’s translation) The verb peripateō appears in Romans 6:4 where it was used in the figurative sense with reference to the conduct or lifestyle of the believer who is a sinner that has been declared justified by the Father through faith alone in Christ alone. Romans 6:4 Therefore, we have been buried with Him through baptism with respect to His physical death in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead ones through the glory of the Father, in the same way, we, ourselves will also walk in the realm of an extraordinary life. (Author’s translation) In Romans 8:4, the verb peripateō is also used in a figurative sense for the believer’s conduct or the manner in which he or she lives their life. It is used in 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 4 relation to both the sin nature and the Spirit in order to contrast the Christian conducting his life according to the sin nature with that of the Spirit. Romans 8:1 Therefore, there is now, as an eternal spiritual truth, never any condemnation, none whatsoever for the benefit of those in union with Christ who is Jesus. 2 Because, the life-giving Spirit’s authoritative power, by means of (the death and resurrection of) Christ, who is Jesus, has set you free from the sin nature’s authoritative power as well as spiritual death’s. 3 Because with reference to the Law’s inability in which it was always powerless through the flesh, God the Father accomplished by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh. 4 In fact, with regards to the sin nature, He (the Father) executed the sin nature by means of His (Son’s) human nature in order that the Law’s righteous requirement would be fulfilled in us, those of us who are not, as an eternal spiritual truth, conducting our lives in submission to the flesh but rather in submission to the Spirit. (Author’s translation) In Romans 13:13, the verb peripateō means “to conduct our lives” and is used in a figurative sense with reference to the lifestyle of Paul and his Christian readers in Rome. Romans 13:13 Let us for the duration continue to conduct our lives properly as those who, as an eternal spiritual truth, exist in the state of being in the day, not by means of drunken parties, not by means of licentious promiscuity, not by means of jealous contention. (Author’s translation) Now, in Ephesians 2:2, the second person plural aorist active indicative conjugation of the verb peripateō (περιπατέω) means “to live, to conduct one’s life” since the word pertains to living one’s life or behaving in a particular manner. In other words, it pertains to living or behaving in a customary manner, with possible focus upon continuity of action.9 The referent of the second person plural form of this verb is the recipients of the Ephesian epistle who Paul identifies in Ephesians 2:11 as Gentile Christians. The second person plural form of this verb not only speaks of these Gentile Christians as a corporate unit but is also used in a distributive sense emphasizing no exceptions. Therefore, this verb is expressing the idea that these Gentile Christians “lived their lives” in the state of committing transgressions against God. In other words, they “conducted their lives” in the state of committing sins against God prior to their justification. This verb peripateō (περιπατέω) is used in a figurative sense with reference to the lifestyle of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle prior to being declared justified by the Father through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. 9 Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 504). United Bible Societies. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 5 The aorist tense of the verb is a constative aorist meaning it is describing in summary fashion these Gentile Christians as living their lives in the state of committing transgressions against God prior to the Father declaring the justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. In other words, it is describing in summary fashion these Gentile Christians “conducting their lives” in the state or condition of committing sins against God prior to their justification. The active voice of this verb peripateō (περιπατέω) is a stative active voice, which indicates that the subject exists in the state indicated by the verb. Therefore, it is expressing the idea that the recipients of the Ephesian epistle “existed in in the state of” living their lives committing transgressions against God prior to the Father declaring the justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. In other words, it is expressing the idea that they “existed in the state of” committing sins against God prior to the Father declaring the justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. The indicative mood of the verb peripateō (περιπατέω) is declarative meaning that it is presenting this assertion as a non-contingent or unqualified statement. The indefinite temporal particle pote appears frequently in classical literature describing some unknown point of time in the past or future. More generally it means “at some time or other, at any time, ever.” When the word is used with negatives, it often means, “never.” In questions expressing surprise, tis pote is translated “who on earth…?” or “whoever in the world (would do such a thing)?” 10 Liddell and Scott list the following classical usages of the word: (1) Indefinite, At some time or other, at some time (2) In hypothetical clauses, questions, etc., at any time, ever (3) In correlative clauses it stands first, with accent, at one time, at another (4) Of some unknown point of time (5) In reference to the past, once (6) In reference to the future, at some time (7) With intensive force, in questions, who in the world.11 Pote appears 32 times in the Greek New Testament. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature: (1) Of time, at some time or other of the past once, formerly; now-now at times-at times; ede pote now at last; after negatives ever, never; in rhetorical questions that expect a negative answer (2) Indicating a supposition I presume (3) Generalizing, after relatives ever, whatever, whoever.12 Now, here in Ephesians 2:2, the indefinite temporal particle temporal particle pote (ποτέ) means “formerly, once, at one time” since it is used of an indefinite time in the past experience of these Gentile Christians who lived in the various cities and towns in the Roman province of Asia. This particle speaks of a period of time prior 10 Liddell and Scott, page 1454 Liddell and Scott, page 1454 12 page 695 11 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 6 to these Christians being declared justified by the Father through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. Thus, it refers to their pre-conversion portion of their lives as human beings on planet earth. The noun aiōn (αἰών) pertains to a particular period of history which has some distinctive feature, which is distinguished from other periods of history. The referent of the noun aiōn (αἰών) is the period which began with the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and will end with the Second Advent of Jesus Christ. The articular construction of the noun aiōn (αἰών) is “monadic” indicating that the referent of this word is “unique” or “one of a kind,” or “in a class of its own,” which is indicated by the word’s genitive adjunct, which is tou kosmou toutou (τοῦ κόσμου τούτου). Therefore, this indicates this present period of human history is unique or in a class all its own because it is the period of human history in which the citizens of planet earth are subjugated to Satan and his cosmic world system and is distinguished from Jesus Christ’s millennial reign. The articular genitive masculine singular form of the noun kosmos (κόσμος) means “cosmic world system” since it pertains to a vast system and arrangement of human affairs, earthly goods, godless governments, conflicts, riches, pleasures, culture, education, world religions, the cults and the occult dominated and negatively affected by Satan who is god of this satanic cosmos. The noun kosmos (κόσμος) functions as a genitive of production, which occurs when the genitive substantive “produces” the noun to which it stands related. Therefore, this indicates that the referent of this noun is “producing” the referent of the articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun aiōn (αἰών). Thus, this indicates that this present age in which all of unregenerate humanity is enslaved to the indwelling Adamic old sin nature as well as enslaved to Satan and his cosmic world system is “produced by” this cosmic world system. In other words, this present age is “produced by” the sinful rulership of Satan over all the earth and its sinful inhabitants. The articular construction of this noun kosmos (κόσμος) is employed with the genitive masculine singular form of the demonstrative pronoun houtos (οὗτος), “this,” which is in the predicate position to indicate an attributive function, which means that it is pointing out or singling out this noun in a special way. Therefore, it is singling out the cosmic world system of Satan in which the recipients of the Ephesian epistle existed in the state of living their lives committing transgressions against God. In other words, it is singling out the cosmic world system of Satan in which the recipients of the Ephesian epistle existed in the state of living their lives committing sins against Him prior to their being declared justified by the Father through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. The articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun aiōn (αἰών) is the object of the preposition kata (κατά), which means “according to” since it functions 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 7 as a marker of a standard indicating being in conformity or agreement with a particular standard. In context, the word is used to mark a particular in which the recipients of the Ephesian epistle lived prior being declared justified by the Father through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. So therefore, this prepositional phrase kata ton aiōna tou kosmou toutou (κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου) is expressing the idea that prior to their justification the recipients of the Ephesian epistle existed in the state of living their lives committing transgressions or sins against God “according to the standards of” this present age. In other words, this prepositional phrase indicates that their pre-justification lifestyle was “according to the standards” in which the people of this present age live. The Ruler of the Kingdom of the Air Ephesians 2:1 And although you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you formerly lived according to this world’s present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. (NET) “According to the ruler of the kingdom of the air” is composed of the following: (1) preposition kata (κατά), “according to” (2) articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun archōn (ἄρχων), “the ruler” (3) articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun exousia (ἐξουσία), “of the kingdom” (4) articular genitive masculine singular form of the noun aēr (ἀήρ), “the air.” In classical Greek, the noun archōn (ἄρχων) is actually a participial form of the verb archo and functions primarily as a term for a civil official such as a city magistrate. However, it also could be used to denote a leader or commander in general. 13 The Egyptian papyri suggest the civil aspect of this word carried over into social areas such as clubs and guilds. The religious use of the word is rare according to Delling.14 The Septuagint follows the classical usage of the word to denote leaders of tribes or nations (Numbers 2:3ff.; 34:18ff.). Archon was also used in a religious sense (Isaiah 43:28) and Daniel uses the word in relation to high-ranking angels, both elect and non-elect (Daniel 10:13). The noun archōn (ἄρχων)appears thirty-seven times in the Greek New Testament and is used to denote the following: (1) synagogue official (Matthew 9:18, 23; Luke 8:41). (2) Satan as ruler of the demons (Matthew 9:34; 12:24; Mark 3:22; Luke 11:15). (3) Satan as ruler of his cosmic system (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11; Ephesians 2:2). (4) Nicodemus as a ruler of the Jews (John 3:1) (5) Jewish leaders (Luke 14:1; 13 Liddell-Scott, page 254 14 Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, volume 1, page 488 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 8 18:18; 23:13; 24:20; 12:42; Acts 3:17; 4:5, 8; 13:27; 14:5) (6) Moses a ruler of the Jews (Acts 7:27, 35) (7) Gentile civil authorities (Acts 16:19; Romans 13:3; 1 Corinthians 2:6, 8; Revelation 1:5). Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains: (1) one who rules or governs – ‘ruler, governor’ 15 (2) a minor government official serving as a judge – ‘official, judge’16 (3) a member of the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews – ‘a member of the Council’17 (4) a supernatural power having some particular role in controlling the destiny and activities of human beings – ‘power, authority, lordship, ruler, wicked force’18 A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature-Third edition: (1) one who has eminence in a ruling capacity, ruler, lord, prince (2) one who has administrative authority, leader, official. 19 Here in Ephesians 2:2, the articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun archōn (ἄρχων) means “the ruler” since the word pertains to a supernatural being having supernatural power delegated to him by God and possessing some particular role in controlling the destiny and activities of human beings.20 The referent of this word is the angel who is called in Scripture “the devil” or “Satan,” who is the sovereign ruler of the cosmic world system, which unregenerate humanity is enslaved to since the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. The articular construction of the noun archōn (ἄρχων) is “monadic” indicating that the referent of this word is “unique” or “one of a kind,” which is indicated by the word’s genitive adjunct, which is tēs exousias tou aeros (τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος). Therefore, this indicates Satan’s sovereign rulership is unique to him because he is the sovereign ruler over the cosmic world system, which presently governs the earth until the Second Advent of Jesus Christ. The articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun exousia (ἐξουσία) means “the sovereign governmental authority” since the word pertains to a person’s authority to rule and is used in relation to Satan’s sovereign governmental authority over all of unregenerate humanity and the resources of planet earth. The articular construction of the genitive feminine singular form of the noun exousia (ἐξουσία) is anaphoric, which means that the definite article is pointing back to the articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun archōn (ἄρχων) indicating that they both share the same referent. 15 volume 2, page 478 16 volume 2, page 556 17 volume 2, page 483 18 volume 2, pages 147-148 19 Page 140 20 Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, pp. 146–147). United Bible Societies. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 9 It is also “monadic” indicating that the referent of this word is “unique” or “one of a kind,” which is indicated by the word’s genitive adjunct, which is tou aeros (τοῦ ἀέρος). Therefore, this indicates Satan’s sovereign governmental authority is unique to him because this authority is that of ruling over the earth’s atmosphere since the fall of Adam and Eve and will come to an end at the Second Advent of Christ. The noun exousia (ἐξουσία) functions as a genitive of apposition or epexegetical genitive, which means that it specifies what Paul means when he uses the articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun archōn (ἄρχων). Therefore, the former is identifying or describing the sovereign ruler of the cosmic world system as the sovereign governmental authority who rules over the earth’s atmosphere. The articular genitive masculine singular form of the noun aēr (ἀήρ) means “the air” or more specifically, “the earth’s atmosphere” since the word pertains to the region above the earth which is the first heaven and is called the earth’s atmosphere. It pertains to the space above the earth inhabited by and under the control of certain supernatural powers. 21 However, it also contains the figure of metonymy which means that the earth’s atmosphere is put for Satan’s angels whose perform their activities in the earth’s atmosphere. This interpretation is indicated by the fact that people of the first century view the earth’s atmosphere as the personal abode of evil spirits. The noun aēr (ἀήρ) functions as a genitive of subordination, which indicates that the genitive substantive specifies that which is subordinated to or under the dominion of the head noun, which in our present context is the articular construction of the genitive feminine singular form of the noun exousia (ἐξουσία). Therefore, this indicates that the earth’s atmosphere is subordinate to the sovereign governmental authority of Satan. The articular construction of the articular genitive masculine singular form of the noun aēr (ἀήρ) is generic which distinguishes one class from another. Therefore, the articular construction of this word distinguishes the earth’s atmosphere from the earth itself and its various bodies of water. The articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun archōn (ἄρχων) is the object of the preposition kata (κατά), which again functions as a marker of a standard indicating being in conformity or agreement with a particular standard. In context, the word is used to mark a particular in which the recipients of the Ephesian epistle lived prior being declared justified by the Father through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. Therefore, this prepositional phrase kata ton archonta tēs exousias tou aeros (κατὰ τὸν ἄρχοντα τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος) is expressing the idea prior to their justification the recipients of the Ephesian epistle lived their lives committing transgressions or sins against God “according to the standard” of the 21 Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 2). United Bible Societies. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 10 sovereign ruler of the cosmic world system and which ruler is Satan, the devil. In other words, it indicates that prior to their justification these Gentile Christians lived their lives “in accordance with the standard” in which Satan lives his life, namely, disobedience to God. The Sons of Disobedience Ephesians 2:1 And although you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you formerly lived according to this world’s present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. (NET) “The ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience” is composed of the following: (1) articular genitive neuter singular form of the noun pneuma (πνεῦμα), “of the spirit” (2) genitive neuter singular form of the definite article ho (ὁ), “that” (3) adverb of time nun (νῦν), “now” (4) genitive neuter singular present active participle conjugation of the verb energeō (ἐνεργέω), “is energizing” (5) preposition en (ἐν), which is not translated (6) articular dative masculine plural form of the noun huios (υἱός), “the sons” (7) articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun apeitheia (ἀπείθεια), “of disobedience.” The articular genitive neuter singular form of the noun pneuma (πνεῦμα) means “the spirit” since the word pertains to a supernatural non-material being that is selfaware with powers to affect the course of human events. The noun pneuma (πνεῦμα) functions as a genitive of apposition or epexegetical genitive, which means that it specifies what Paul means when he uses the articular accusative masculine singular form of the noun archōn (ἄρχων), “the sovereign ruler” and the articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun exousia (ἐξουσία), “the sovereign governmental authority.” Therefore, the noun pneuma (πνεῦμα) is identifying or describing this sovereign ruler and sovereign governmental authority of the cosmic world system as the spirit who since the fall of Adam and Eve is working in the lives of members of the human race who are characterized as disobedient to God. The articular construction of this word is anaphoric, which means that the definite article is pointing back to the genitive feminine singular form of the noun exousia (ἐξουσία) indicating that they both share the same referent. It is also “monadic” indicating that the referent of this word is “unique” or “one of a kind,” which is indicated by the word’s genitive adjunct, which is tou nyn energountos (τοῦ νῦν ἐνεργοῦντος). Therefore, this indicates this spirit or supernatural immaterial being is unique or in a class all his own because he is working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized as disobedient to God, i.e. they are unregenerate humanity. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 11 The articular genitive neuter singular present active participle conjugation of the verb energeō (ἐνεργέω) pertains to being engaged in some activity or function, with possible focus upon the energy or force involved.22 It speaks of a person exercising their abilities for a particular goal. The referent of the neuter singular form of this verb is the articular genitive neuter singular form of the noun pneuma (πνεῦμα) since they agree in gender (neuter), number (singular) and case (genitive) indicating that they have the same referent, which is of course, the devil. The noun huios is attested from Mycenaean Greek onwards and it denotes the son in the widest sense, as both the son of human parents 23 and the offspring of animals and plants. Further, huios can mean descendant in general (Homer, Iliad, 2, 727) with no reference to the immediate forebears, e.g. it can stand for grandson. The use of the word to denote a family relationship can disappear and give way to one of relationship of interest. The teacher-pupil relationship can be represented by the father-son relationship. Closely connected with this is the fact that membership of a particular group can be expressed by the word huios. In the genitive, the word can denote that certain things and concepts are dependent upon one another and belong together such as sons of light and sons of darkness. Among the Stoics, to whom the idea of divine sonship was suggested by doctrines of the unity of mankind. Heracles thought that God was the father of all the women and children abandoned by him, “for Heracles did not regard it as a mere phrase that Zeus, whom he held to be his own father, whom he named as such and directed his acts by him, is the father of men.” 24 The huios is used also to describe nationality. The understanding of huios in classical Greek closely parallels the understanding of ben, “son,” in Hebrew, an equivalency that occurs in the Septuagint (LXX) no less than 4,800 times. The word huios has many nuances. Of course, it can simply refer to a male child but also it can stand for a grandson. The word is used to denote descendants in general (Nm. 2:14). Huios is used to denote a people such as the “children” of the East (1 K. 4:30 [LXX 3 K. 4:30]). The high priest in Israel Eli called his disciple Samuel his “son” (1 S. 3:6 [LXX 1 K. 3:6]). Figuratively an arrow is the “son” of a bow (Job 41:28). The expression “the arrows of his quiver” is a figure of speech for children (Ps. 127:4-5 [LXX 126:4-5]). The metaphoric use of son was even more common in Israel than among the ancient Greeks. 22 Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 510). United Bible Societies. 23 Homer, Iliad, 5, 159 24 Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, volume 8, page 337 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 12 The Hellenistic Jews of the New Testament period commonly used the terminology in this way. The documents from the Qumran community provide us with a valuable example of how extensive such usage was. The members of that group distinguish between “sons of light” and “sons of darkness,” or “sons of righteousness” and “sons of unrighteousness” and the “sons of Belial” and the “sons of the good pleasure of God.” They saw the world in dualistic terms and the line of separation is between the “sons of heaven and grace” and the “sons of the world, the sons of transgressions and destruction.” To have many children was considered a blessing in Israel (Gen. 1:28). It was a tremendous privilege to see one’s descendants (Gen. 50:23; Prov. 17:6). The birth of a child in Israel was a time of great joy and celebration (Gen. 30:23). This was even more the case if the child was a boy (Ps. 127:4-5). Daughters would leave the family when they got married and fell under the protection of the husband, but the male offspring was insured of ongoing protection and provision under the patriarchal family system. Within the family the eldest son held the privileged position among his siblings. Upon the death of his father, the eldest assumed the duties and responsibilities of his father. He received a double portion of the inheritance. The term huios acquires a unique significance when it concerns a relationship with God. The angels are called “sons of God” in the Old Testament (Gen. 6:2, 4; Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7). Adam was the son of God in that he was the first human being whose soul was not only created by the Lord Jesus Christ but also his physical body. Every member of the human race after Adam had the physical bodies produced through copulation between the man and a woman. In Exodus 4:22, the Lord called regenerated Israel “My son…my firstborn.” Sonship meant responsibility to be obedient and to serve (Is. 1:2; 44:1; 45:4). Hosea 11:1 contains the prophecy stating that incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ would be called out of Egypt. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains (volume 2): (1) An immediate male offspring – ‘son’25(2) A person of any age for whom there is a special relationship of endearment and association – ‘my child, my dear friend, my dear man, my dear one, my dear dad’ 26 (3) A non-immediate male descendant (possibly involving a gap of several generations) – ‘male descendant’27 (4) The male offspring of an animal – ‘foal, offspring’ 28 (5) (Followed by the genitive of class or kind): A person of a class or kind, specified by the following genitive construction – ‘son of…, person of…, one who…, ‘your sons’ (page 105). (6) One who is a disciple or follower of someone, with the implication of being like the one 25 page 117 26 page 110 27 page 116 28 page 39 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 13 who he follows – ‘disciple, follower’29 (7) A member of a sociopolitical group with some presumed ethnic relationship – ‘citizen’30 (8) A kind or class of persons, with the implication of possessing certain derived characteristics – ‘son of, offspring of, child of, kind of, one who has the characteristics of, person of’.31 A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature-Third Edition: γ. ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου lit. ‘the son of the man’ (the pl. form οἱ υἱοὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων appears freq. in the LXX to render ‫ = בְּ נֵי אָ דָ ם‬mortals, e.g. Gen 11:5; Ps 10:4; 11:2; cp. ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀπολείας J 17:12 [s. 2cβ]) ‘the human being, the human one, the man’ in our lit. only as a byname in ref. to Jesus and in an exclusive sense the Human One, the Human Being, one intimately linked with humanity in its primary aspect of fragility yet transcending it, traditionally rendered ‘the Son of Man.’ The term is found predom. in the gospels, where it occurs in the synoptics about 70 times (about half as oft. if parallels are excluded), and in J 12 times (s. EKlostermann, Hdb. exc. on Mk 8:31). In every case the title is applied by Jesus to himself. Nowhere within a saying or narrative about him is it found in an address to him: Mt 8:20; 9:6; 10:23; 11:19; 12:8, 32, 40; 13:37, 41; 16:13, 27f; 17:9, 12, 22; 18:10 [11] v.l.; 19:28; 20:18, 28; 24:27, 30, 37, 39, 44; 25:13 v.l., 31; 26:2, 24ab, 45, 64; Mk 2:10, 28; 8:31, 38; 9:9, 12, 31; 10:33, 45; 13:26; 14:21ab, 41, 62; Lk 5:24; 6:5, 22; 7:34; 9:22, 26, 44, 56 v.l., 58; 11:30; 12:8, 10, 40; 17:22, 24, 26, 30; 18:8, 31; 19:10; 21:27, 36; 22:22, 48, 69; 24:7.—John (FGrosheide, Υἱὸς τ. ἀνθρ. in het Evang. naar Joh.: TSt 35, 1917, 24 2–48; HDieckmann, D. Sohn des Menschen im J: Scholastik 2, 1927, 229–47; HWindisch, ZNW 30, ’31, 215–33; 31, ’32, 199–204; WMichaelis, TLZ 85, ’60, 561–78 [Jesus’ earthly presence]) 1:51; 3:13, 14; 5:27 (BVawter, Ezekiel and John, CBQ 26, ’64, 450–58); 6:27, 53, 62; 8:28; 9:35; 12:23, 34; 13:31. Whether the component of fragility (suggested by OT 29 page 471 30 page 132 31 page 588 . lit. lit. = literal(ly); literature (refererences to [scholarly] literature) . form pl. pl. = plural . in the LX freq. freq. = frequent(ly) X to render LXX LXX = Septuaginta, ed. ARahlfs, unless otherwise specified—Lists 2, beg. . Gen 11:5; Ps 10:4; 11:2; cp e.g. e.g. = exempli gratia (for example) . cp. cp. = compare, freq. in ref. to citation fr. ancient texts . only as a byname in ref lit. lit. = literal(ly); literature (refererences to [scholarly] literature) . to Jesus and in an exclusive sense ref. ref. = reference(s) . in the gospels, where it occurs in the synoptics about 70 times (about half as oft predom. predom. = predominant(ly) . if parallels are excluded), and in oft. oft. = often . exc Hdb. Hdb. = Handbuch (in connection with a specific NT book, the ref. is to a commentary in the series Handbuch zum Neuen Testament, founded by HLietzmann)—List 6 . on exc. exc. = except .; v.l. v.l. = varia lectio (variant reading) .: TS Joh. Joh. = Johannine t 35, 1917, 242 TSt TSt = Theologische Studien—List 6 W 30, ZNW ZNW = Zeitschrift für die ntl. Wissenschaft—List 6 Z 85, TLZ TLZ = Theolog. Literaturzeitung—List 6 Q 26, CBQ CBQ = Catholic Biblical Quarterly—List 6 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 14 usage in ref. to the brief span of human life and the ills to which it falls heir) or high status (suggested by traditions that appear dependent on Da 7:13, which refers to one ‘like a human being’), or a blend of the two dominates a specific occurrence can be determined only by careful exegesis that in addition to extra-biblical traditions takes account of the total literary structure of the document in which it occurs. Much neglected in the discussion is the probability of prophetic association suggested by the form of address Ezk 2:1 al. (like the OT prophet [Ezk 3: 4–11] Jesus encounters resistance).—On Israelite thought contemporary w. Jesus and alleged knowledge of a heavenly being looked upon as a ‘Son of Man’ or ‘Man’, who exercises Messianic functions such as judging the world (metaph., pictorial passages in En 46–48; 4 Esdr 13:3, 51f) s. Bousset, Re l.3 352–55; NMessel, D. Menschensohn in d. Bilderreden d. Hen. 1922; ESjöberg, Kenna 1 Henok och 4 Esra tanken på den lidande Människosonen? Sv. Ex. Årsb. 5, ’40, 163–83, D. Menschensohn im äth. Hen. ’46. This view is in some way connected w. Da 7:13; acc. to some it derives its real content fr. an eschatological tradition that ultimately goes back to Iran (WBousset, Hauptprobleme der Gnosis 1907, 160–223; Reitzenstein, Erlösungsmyst. 119ff, ZNW 20, 1921, 18–22, Mysterienrel.3 418ff; Clemen2 72ff; CKraeling, Anthropos and Son of Man: A Study in the Religious Syncretism of the Hellenistic Orient 1927); acc. to this tradition the First Man was deified; he will return in the last times and usher in the Kingdom of God.—Outside the gospels: Ac 7:56 (v.l. τοῦ θεοῦ; GKilpatrick, TZ 21, ’65, 209); Rv 1:13; 14:14 (both after Da 7:13; sim. allusion to Da in Just., D. 31, 1). The quot. fr. Ps 8:5 in Hb 2:6 prob. does not belong here, since there is no emphasis laid on υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου. In IEph 20:2 Jesus is described as υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου καὶ υἱὸς θεοῦ. Differently B 12:10 Ἰησοῦς, οὐχὶ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου ἀλλὰ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ Jesus, not a man’s son, but Son of God.—HLietzmann, Der Menschensohn T usage in ref OT OT = Old Testament . to the brief span of human life and the ills to which it falls heir) or high status (suggested by traditions that appear dependent on Da 7:13, which refers to one ref. ref. = reference(s) . (like the O al. al. =alibi (elsewhere), aliter (otherwise), alii (others) T prophet [Ezk 3:4 OT OT = Old Testament ., pictorial passages in E metaph. metaph. = metaphor(ically) n 46 En En = I Enoch—List 2 r 13:3, 51f) s. Bousset, Rel 4 Esdr 4 Esdr = POxy 1010 (15:57–59)—List 2 . Bousset, Rel. Bousset, Rel. = WB., D. Religion des Judentums im neutestamentlichen Zeitalter—List 6 v. Ex. Sv Sv (at the end of entries)=HSieben, Voces—List 6 o some it derives its real content fr acc. to acc. to = according to . an eschatological tradition that ultimately goes back to Iran (WBousset, Hauptprobleme der Gnosis 1907, 160 fr. fr. = from W 20, 1921, 18 ZNW ZNW = Zeitschrift für die ntl. Wissenschaft—List 6 n Clemen Clemen = CC., Religionsgeschichtliche Erklärung des NT—List 6 o this tradition the First Man was deified; he will return in the last times and usher in the Kingdom of God. acc. to acc. to = according to . v.l. v.l. = varia lectio (variant reading) Z 21, TZ TZ = Theologische Zeitschrift—List 6 . fr quot. quot. = quotation . Ps 8:5 in fr. fr. = from . does not belong here, since there is no emphasis laid on prob. prob. = probable, probably h 20:2 Jesus is described as IEph IEph = Ignatius to the Ephesians—List 1 B 12:10 B B = Barnabas (the Letter of), II A.D., except in series of uncial witnesses, in which case B refers to Codex Vaticanus (s. also Vat.). When the abbrv. B would ambiguous, Vat. is used for the codex.—List 1 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 15 1896; Dalman, Worte 19 1–219 (Eng. tr., 23 4–67); Wlh., Einl .2 123–30; PFiebig, Der Menschensohn 1901; NSchmidt, The Prophet of Nazareth 1905, 94–134, Recent Study of the Term ‘Son of Man’: JBL 45, 1926, 326–49; FTillmann, Der Menschensohn 1907; EKühl, Das Selbstbewusstsein Jesu 1907, 65ff; HHoltzmann, Das messianische Bewusstsein Jesu, 1907, 49–75 (lit.), Ntl. Theologi e2 I 1911, 313– 35; FBard, D. Sohn d. Menschen 1908; HGottsched, D. Menschensohn 1908; EAbbott, ‘The Son of Man’, etc., 1910; EHertlein, Die Menschensohnfrage im letzten Stadium 1911, ZNW 19, 1920, 46–48; JMoffatt, The Theology of the Gospels 1912, 150–63; WBousset, Kyrios Christos2 1921, 5–22 (the titles of the works by Wernle and Althaus opposing his first edition [1913], as well as Bousset’s answer, are found s.v. κύριος, end); DVölter, Jesus der Menschensohn 1914, Die Menschensohnfrage neu untersucht 1916; FSchulthess, ZNW 21, 1922, 24 7–50; Rtzst., Herr der G rösse 1919 (see also the works by the same author referred to above in this entry); EMeyer II 335ff; HGressmann, ZKG n.s. 4, 1922, 170ff, D. Messias 1929, 341ff; GDupont, Le Fils d’Homme 1924; APeake, The Messiah and the Son of Man 1924; MWagner, Der Menschensohn: NKZ 36, 1925, 245–78; Guillaume Baldensperger, Le Fils d’Homme: RHPR 5, 1925, 26 2–73; WBleibtreu, Jesu Selbstbez. als der Menschensohn: StKr 98/99, 1926, 16 4–211; AvGall, Βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ 1926; OProcksch, D. Menschensohn als Gottessohn: Christentum u. Wissensch. 3, 1927, 425–43; 473–81; CMontefiore, The Synoptic Gospels2 1927 I 64–80; ROtto, Reich Gottes u. Menschensohn ’34, Eng. tr. The Kgdm. of God and the Son of Man, tr. Filson and Woolf2 ’43; EWechssler, Hellas im Ev. ’36, 332ff; PParker, The Mng. of ‘Son of Man’: JBL 60, ’41, 151–57; HSharman, Son of Man and Kingdom of God ’43; JCampbell, The Origin and Mng. of the Term Son of Man: JTS 48, ’47, 145–55; HRiesenfeld, Jésus Transfiguré ’47, 307–13 (survey and lit.); TManson, ConNeot 11, ’47, 138–46 (Son of Man=Jesus and his disciples in Mk 2:27f); GDuncan, Jesus, Son of Man ’47, 135–53 (survey); JBowman, ET n, Worte 191 Dalman Dalman = GD., various works—List 6 ., 234 Eng. tr. Eng. tr. = English translation ., Einl. Wlh. Wlh. = JWellhausen, Einleitung—List 6 L 45, 1926, 326 JBL JBL = Journal of Biblical Literature—List 6 .), Ntl. Theologie lit. lit. = literal(ly); literature (refererences to [scholarly] literature) W 19, 1920, 46 ZNW ZNW = Zeitschrift für die ntl. Wissenschaft—List 6 . s.v. s.v. = sub voce (under the word, look up the word) W 21, 1922, 247 ZNW ZNW = Zeitschrift für die ntl. Wissenschaft—List 6 ., Herr der Gr Rtzst. Rtzst. = RReitzenstein—List 6 G n.s ZKG ZKG = Zeitschrift für Kirchengeschichte—List 6 . 4, 1922, 170ff, D. Messias 1929, 341ff; GDupont, Le Fils d n.s. n.s. = new series (also used to render Neue Folge) Z 36, 1925, 245 NKZ NKZ = Neue Kirchliche Zeitschrift—List 6 R 5, 1925, 262 RHPR RHPR = Revue d’histoire et de philosophie religieuses—List 6 r 98/99, 1926, 164 StKr StKr = Theologische Studien und Kritiken—List 6 . The Kgdm. of God and the Son of Man, tr Eng. tr. Eng. tr. = English translation . Filson and Woolf tr. tr. = translate, etc. L 60, JBL JBL = Journal of Biblical Literature—List 6 S 48, JTS JTS = Journal of Theological Studies—List 6 .); TManson, ConNeo lit. lit. = literal(ly); literature (refererences to [scholarly] literature) t 11, ConNeot ConNeot = Coniectanea Neotestamentica—List 6 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 16 59, ’47/48, 283–88 (background); MBlack, ET 60, ’48f, 11–15; 32–36; GKnight, Fr. Moses to Paul ’49, 163–72 (survey); TNicklin, Gospel Gleanings ’50, 237–50; TManson (Da, En and gospels), BJRL 32, ’50, 171–93; TPreiss, Le Fils d’Homme: ÉThR 26/3, ’51, Life in Christ, ’54, 43–60; SMowinckel, He That Cometh, tr. Anderson, ’54, 346–450; GIber, Überlieferungsgesch. Unters. z. Begriff des Menschensohnes im NT, dis s. Heidelb. ’53; ESjöberg, D. verborgene Menschensohn in den Ev. ’55; WGrundmann, ZNW 47, ’56, 113–33; HRiesenfeld, The Mythological Backgrd. of NT Christology, CHDodd Festschr. ’56, 81–95; PhVielhauer, Gottesreich u. Menschensohn in d. Verk. Jesu, GDehn Festschr. ’57, 51–79; ESidebottom, The Son of Man in J, ET 68, ’57, 231–35; 280–83; AHiggins, Son of Man-Forschung since (Manson’s) ‘The Teaching of Jesus’: NT Essays (TW Manson memorial vol.) ’59, 119–35; HTödt, D. Menschensohn in d. synopt. Überl. ’59 (tr. Barton ’65); JMuilenburg, JBL 79, ’60, 197–209 (Da, En); ESchweizer, JBL 79, ’60, 119–29 and NTS 9, ’63, 256–61; BvIersel, ‘Der Sohn’ in den synopt. Jesusworten, ’61 (community?); MBlack, BJRL 45, ’63, 305–18; FBorsch, ATR 45, ’63, 174–90; AHiggins, Jesus and the Son of Man, ’64; RFormesyn, NovT 8, ’66, 1–35 (barnasha=‘I’); SSandmel, HSilver Festschr. ’63, 355–67; JJeremias, Die älteste Schicht der Menschensohn-Logien, ZNW 58, ’67, 159–72; GVermes, MBlack, Aram. Approach3, ’67, 310–30; BLindars, The New Look on the Son of Man: BJRL 63, ’81, 437–62; WWalker, The Son of Man, Some Recent Developments CBQ 45, ’83, 584–607; JDonahue, Recent Studies on the Origin of ‘Son of Man’ in the Gospels, CBQ 48, ’86, 584–607; DBurkitt, The T 59, ET ET = Expository Times—List 6 T 60, ET ET = Expository Times—List 6 n and gospels), BJR En En = I Enoch—List 2 L 32, BJRL BJRL = Bulletin of the John Rylands Library—List 6 . Anderson, tr. tr. = translate, etc. T, diss NT NT = New Testament . Heidelb. diss. diss. = dissertation W 47, ZNW ZNW = Zeitschrift für die ntl. Wissenschaft—List 6 T Christology, CHDodd Festschr NT NT = New Testament . Festschr. Festschr. = Festschrift, in ref. to any honorary publication . Festschr. Festschr. = Festschrift, in ref. to any honorary publication T 68, ET ET = Expository Times—List 6 T Essays (T NT NT = New Testament W Manson memorial vol TW TW = Theologisches Wörterbuch zum NT; tr. GBromiley, Theological Dictionary of the NT—List 6 .) vol. vol. = volume . Barton tr. tr. = translate, etc. L 79, JBL JBL = Journal of Biblical Literature—List 6 n); ESchweizer, JB En En = I Enoch—List 2 L 79, JBL JBL = Journal of Biblical Literature—List 6 S 9, NTS NTS = New Testament Studies—List 6 L 45, BJRL BJRL = Bulletin of the John Rylands Library—List 6 R 45, ATR ATR = Anglican Theological Review—List 6 T 8, NovT NovT = Novum Testamentum (periodical)—List 6 . Festschr. Festschr. = Festschrift, in ref. to any honorary publication W 58, ZNW ZNW = Zeitschrift für die ntl. Wissenschaft—List 6 L 63, BJRL BJRL = Bulletin of the John Rylands Library—List 6 Q 45, CBQ CBQ = Catholic Biblical Quarterly—List 6 Q 48, CBQ CBQ = Catholic Biblical Quarterly—List 6 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 17 Nontitular Son of Man, A History and Critique: NTS 40, ’94 504–21 (lit.); JEllington, BT 40, ’89, 201–8; RGordon, Anthropos: 108–13.—B. 105; DELG. MM. EDNT. TW. Sv. 32 Theological Dictionary of the New Testament: (1) Huios without reference to God (2) Jesus as Son of Mary and Joseph (3) Father and Son as an illustration of God’s care for believers. (4) The Son as the Supreme Good. (5) Huios in a transferred sense (6) Sons of Abraham and Israel (7) Huios as a term for student (8) Huios as a term of relationship (9) Jesus as Son of God in the tradition of the community prior to the writing of the New Testament (10) Jesus (11) The Davidic Son of God. (12) The eschatological role of the Son of God and the absolute ho huios (13) The Sending of the preexistent Son of God. (14) The miraculously born and miracleworking Son of God. (15) The suffering righteous as Son of God (16) The interpretation of the divine Sonship of Jesus by the New Testament writers (17) Men as Sons of God (18) Works apart from Paul.33 Now, in Ephesians 2:2, the articular dative masculine plural form of the noun huios (υἱός) does not mean “the sons” but rather “the persons, the people, the members of the human race” since the word pertains to human beings without reference to the gender. It refers to members of the human race who are characterized by a particular way of living their lives. It speaks of a particular category of human beings who are distinguished by a particular characteristic. It denotes a particular kind or class of people with the implication of possessing certain derived characteristics. The referent of this word is unregenerate humanity. The articular construction of this word is monadic, which is indicated by its genitive adjunct which is tēs apeitheias (τῆς ἀπειθείας). This indicates that this particular group of human beings are in a class by themselves in that they are characterized as being disobedient to God. The articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun apeitheia (ἀπείθεια) means “disobedience” since the word pertains to an unwillingness or refusal to comply with the demands of some authority. Here it refers to those members of the human race who are unwilling or refuse to obey God’s authority as expressed in His Word. In other words, it speaks of those members of the human race who are unrepentant, unregenerate sinners. S 40, NTS NTS = New Testament Studies—List 6 .); JEllington, B lit. lit. = literal(ly); literature (refererences to [scholarly] literature) T 40, BT BT =Bible Translator—List 6 . 105; DEL B. B. = CDBuck, A Dictionary of Selected Synonyms—List 6 G. M- DELG DELG = PChantraine, Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque—List 6 M. EDN M-M M-M = JMoulton/GMilligan, Vocabulary of Greek Testament—Lists 4, 6 T. T EDNT EDNT = Exegetical Dictionary of the NT—List 6 W. S TW TW = Theologisches Wörterbuch zum NT; tr. GBromiley, Theological Dictionary of the NT—List 6 v. Sv Sv (at the end of entries)=HSieben, Voces—List 6 32 Arndt, W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (2000). A Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian literature (3rd ed., pp. 1026–1027). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. 33 volume 8, pages 363-397 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 18 The articular construction of this noun is generic distinguishing this group of people characterized as disobedient to God with those who are characterized as being obedient to Him. The article also has a demonstrative force. This word apeitheia (ἀπείθεια) functions as a descriptive genitive, which means that the genitive substantive describes the head noun in a loose manner. Therefore, this type of genitive is indicating these human beings are “characterized by” disobedience to God. It is also the object of the preposition en (ἐν), which is a marker of a state or condition. Therefore, this prepositional phrase en tois huiois tēs apeitheias (ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας) is expressing the idea that Satan is working in the lives of people who “exist in the state or condition of” being characterized as being disobedient to God. The articular construction of the participle conjugation of this verb energeō (ἐνεργέω) is functioning as a substantiver, which means that it is converting the participle conjugation of this verb into a substantive. The word is also functioning as a relative pronoun and can be translated “who.” The present tense of the verb energeō (ἐνεργέω) is a customary or stative present, which is used to signal an ongoing state. Therefore, here it is expressing the idea that Satan “exists in the state of” working in the lives of members of the human race who are characterized as disobedient to God. The active voice of this verb indicates that the subject exists in the state indicated by the verb. Therefore, it is expressing the idea that Satan “exists in the state of” working in the lives of members of the human race who are characterized as being disobedient to God. The articular construction of the participle conjugation of this verb energeō (ἐνεργέω) functions as a genitive of simple apposition meaning that it stands in apposition to the articular genitive neuter singular form of the noun pneuma (πνεῦμα), “the spirit.” This means that the former is simply clarifying who is this particular spirit or supernatural immaterial being, namely, he is the one who working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience to God. The adverb of time nun is a commonly used word with reference to time. It is found throughout classical writers such as Homer, Sophocles, Herodotus and Euripides, as well as in inscriptions, papyri, the LXX, Philo and Josephus. In classical writings a number of nuances are expressed with the use of nun. Not only does it express time in the sense of “this present moment” but also with the sense of “the present time generally.” Additionally, nun is employed: (1) To express time in the past. (2) To indicate the immediate sequence of one thing upon another, “then, therefore, thereafter.” (3) 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 19 To show the sequence of one thing from another, “then, therefore.” (4) To strengthen or precipitate a command or call. (5) To strengthen a question, “what, then?” Nun is used extensively in the Septuagint and is used to translate a number of Hebrew words which relate to time. In the Greek New Testament, a variety of nuances are present, carrying forward the Hebrew concepts of time. It appears approximately 140 times in the Greek New Testament. The majority of the instances in which the word appears are found in the writings of Luke, John and Paul. In the New Testament the word is used of the immediate present and to denote both a particular point in time as well as the extent of time. In this sense it occurs with a variety of verb tenses in order to give the constructions different nuances of meaning. In this way the writer could express himself according to his desire, e.g., using nun with aorist tense to make a contrast with the past, denoting the action or condition as beginning in the present. Nun is also used in conjunction with other particles such as: (1) de, “but now” (2) alla, “but now” (3) gar, “for now” (4) oude eti, “not even now” (5) kai, “even now.” There are other conjunctions as well that the word is employed with. In addition to the emphasis being placed upon the immediate present, nun is used to direct attention to the situation at a given time. Lastly, when nun is found with the article it functions as an adjective or a substantive. Now, in Ephesians 2:2, the adverb of time nun (νῦν) pertains a point of time simultaneous with the event of the discourse itself. 34 The two points of time which are simultaneous with each other are Satan working in the lives of those members of the human race who are who are characterized by disobedience to God and this age in which Satan is the ruler of his cosmic world system and also the sovereign governmental authority who rules over the earth’s atmosphere. Translation of Ephesians 2:1-2 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. (Author’s translation) 34 Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). In Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (electronic ed. of the 2nd edition., Vol. 1, p. 633). United Bible Societies. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 20 Expanded translation of Ephesians 2:1-2 Ephesians 2:1 Now, correspondingly, even though, each and every one of you as a corporate unit were existing in the state of being spiritually dead ones because of your transgressions, in other words, because of your sins. 2 Each and every one of you formerly existed in the state of living 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 at the present time exists in the state of working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience. (Author’s translation) Exposition of Ephesians 2:2 As we noted in our study of Ephesians 2:1, this verse marks not only a transition from the contents of Ephesians 1:15-23 to the contents of Ephesians 2:1-10 but is also marking the correspondence between the sections. The former records Paul’s intercessory prayer to the Father on behalf of the recipients of the epistle while on the other hand, the latter contains a discussion of the identification of the recipients of this epistle with Jesus Christ in His resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father. They correspond to each other because both speak of the Father exercising His omnipotence for the benefit of others. In Ephesians 1:15-23, Paul speaks of the Father exercising His omnipotence by raising His Son from the dead and seating Him at His right hand. On other hand in Ephesians 2:1-10, he speaks of the Father exercising His omnipotence by making the recipients of this letter alive with His Son by identifying them with His Son in His resurrection and session at His right hand at the moment of their justification through the baptism of the Spirit. “Each and every one of you” is the accusative second personal plural form of the personal pronoun su (σύ), which not only refers to the recipients of the Ephesian epistle but also is used in a distributive sense emphasizing no exceptions. Ephesians 2:11 identifies the recipients of this epistle as Gentile Christians. Therefore, the word is emphasizing that “each and every one of” these Gentile Christians without exception were made alive together with Jesus Christ and identified with Him in His resurrection and session at the Father’s right hand at the moment of justification through the baptism of the Spirit even though they were spiritually dead, enslaved to the sin nature and Satan and his cosmic system and under the wrath of God. The use of this personal pronoun su here in Ephesians 2:1 is unnecessary in Greek since the form of a finite verb in this language indicates the person, number and gender of the subject. Here in Ephesians 2:1 indicates that the accusative masculine 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 21 plural present active participle conjugation of the verb eimi (εἰμί) indicates the person, number and gender of the subject. This is what makes Greek an “inflectional” language. When the personal pronoun is used therefore, it may serve to clarify the subject or contrast the subject with someone else or for emphasis. Therefore, here in Ephesians 2:1, the accusative second personal plural form of the personal pronoun su (σύ) is used for emphasis as well as contrast. First, it is emphasizing that each one of these Gentile Christians whom Paul is describing in Ephesians 2:1-4 before their justification were made alive by the Father through faith in His Son even though they were existing in the state of being spiritually dead. Secondly, it is marking a contrast between these Gentile Christians prior to their justification and the state they now exist in as those who possess eternal life and are identified with Jesus Christ in His resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father. “Even though…were” is the accusative masculine plural present active participle conjugation of the verb eimi (εἰμί), which pertains to certain persons possessing particular inherent characteristics which identify them with a particular group. The referent of the masculine plural form of this verb is the recipients of this epistle who are identified in Ephesians 2:11 as being Gentile Christians. Therefore, this verb is expressing the idea that these Gentile Christians possessed particular inherent characteristics, which identified them with a particular group of people before their justification. These characteristics and this group are identified in Ephesians 2:1 and 2:2-3. Thus, the recipients of this epistle prior to their justification were spiritually dead in their transgressions and sins (Eph. 2:1), they lived under the rulership of Satan as unregenerate people (Eph. 2:2), and they were enslaved to the various lust patterns of their indwelling old Adamic sin nature and were thus under the wrath of God (Eph. 2:3). The participle conjugation of this verb eimi (εἰμί) functions as a concessive participle, which indicates that the participle conjugation of this verb implies that 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, enslaved to the sin nature and Satan and his cosmic system and thus under the wrath of God. The participle conjugation of this verb eimi (εἰμί) functions as a pendent accusative. This type of accusative is introduced into the sentence as if it was functioning as the direct object of the verb and here in Ephesians 2:1 this verb would be the third person singular aorist active indicative conjugation of the verb syzōopoieō (συζωοποιέω), “made alive together” (NET). However, as we can see the rest of Ephesians 2:1 is completed in a syntactically awkward manner, leaving the word verb eimi (εἰμί) dangling. In fact, the thought begun in Ephesians 2:1 is not completed until Ephesians 2:5, which thus creates an “anacoluthon” in Ephesians 2:2-4, which means that there is a break the grammar. Ephesians 2:1-4 is one 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 22 incomplete sentence in order leave the readers in suspense as to how God the Father would solve the dilemma the recipients of this epistle were in prior to their justification. So therefore, the verb eimi (εἰμί) is thrown forward to the beginning of the clause, followed by the contents of Ephesians 2:2-4. The participle conjugation of this verb is replaced by the second person plural form of the personal pronoun su (σύ) here in Ephesians 2:1, which is in the accusative case because it is required by the syntax. As we noted in our exegesis, the action of the present participle conjugation of this verb eimi (εἰμί) here in Ephesians 2:1 is antecedent in time in relation to the action of the aorist tense of the main verb syzōopoieō (συζωοποιέω), “made alive together” in Ephesians 2:5. Therefore, this indicates that prior to being made alive at the moment of justification through faith in Jesus Christ, the recipients of the Ephesian epistle were existing in the state of being spiritually dead. “Spiritually dead ones” is the accusative masculine plural form of the adjective nekros (νεκρός), which is used metaphorically for the state of the unregenerate. Specifically, it refers to the unregenerate state of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle as being spiritually dead prior to the Father giving them eternal life and declaring them justified through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. This word describes their unregenerate state as being dead to God in the sense that they possessed no relationship or fellowship with Him and had absolutely no capacity or desire to establish one with Him because they had absolutely no merit to do so anyway. Thus, the word describes unregenerate humanity as separated from the Triune God. In Ephesians 2:2-4, the apostle Paul defines for the recipients of this epistle what he means that they were spiritually dead prior to their justification. Ephesians 2:1 And although you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you formerly lived according to this world’s present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom all of us also formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest. (NET) Therefore, in these verses, Paul is describing a spiritually dead person as under the rulership of the devil and characterized as disobedient to God and living according to the desires of their indwelling old Adamic sin nature and under the wrath of God. In Ephesians 4:18-19, Paul further describes the unregenerate who are spiritually dead. Ephesians 4:18 They are darkened in their understanding, being alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardness of their hearts. 19 Because they are callous, they have given themselves over to indecency for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness. (NET) 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 23 Therefore, in these verses, Paul is describing a spiritually dead person as darkened in their understanding of God, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance in their souls which is the result of the hardness of their hearts. These verses also say that they are spiritually dead because they have given themselves over to indecency for the practice of every kind of impurity with greediness because they are callous in their hearts. Now, this description of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle here in Ephesians 2:1, who were noted were Gentile Christians according to Ephesians 2:11, is not only true of these Gentile Christians but also true of each and every member of the human race-past, present and future. Everyone born into this world is spiritually dead because of the imputation of Adam’s original sin in the Garden. Romans 5:12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned. (NASB95) “And death through sin” presents the result of the sin nature entering into the human race through Adam’s disobedience and refers to “spiritual death” which is the direct result of the imputation of Adam’s sin to a human being’s genetically formed old sin nature at the moment of physical birth (Gen. 2:17; Prov. 14:12; Ezek. 18:20; Rom. 5:12; 6:23; 1 Cor. 15:22; Eph. 2:1, 5). Therefore, Romans 5:12 is presenting a progression-Adam’s original sin plus Adam’s sin nature equals “spiritual death.” This means that every member of the human race is separated from God and has absolutely no capacity to have a relationship with God who is holy. There are five major consequences for “Spiritual death”: (1) Slavery to the sin nature and the devil and his cosmic system. (2) Physical death (Genesis 5:5). (3) Imprisonment in Torments after physical death prior to the Great White Throne Judgment (Luke 16:19-31). (4) Eternal condemnation in the Lake of Fire (Revelation 20:11-15). (5) Unique voluntary substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths of Christ (Matt. 27:45-46; Mark 15:34; Phlp. 2:8; Heb. 2:9, 14). Spiritual death in the human race resulted in the Father sending His Son to die spiritually and physically on the cross as a substitute for members of the human race in order to deliver them from spiritual death and the sin nature. The problem of “spiritual death” is resolved when God gives life to those members of the human race who exercise faith alone in Christ alone (John 3:16-18). Now, in Ephesians 2:1, the articular neuter plural form of the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα), “because of your transgressions” refers to deliberate violations of God’s laws. The word refers to the transgressions of the recipients of this epistle prior to their justification. In other words, it refers to their deliberate violations of God’s laws before justification, which for these Gentile Christians would be deliberately violating the Ten Commandments, which are written in the soul of every human being as Paul asserts they are in Romans 2:14-15. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 24 Romans 2:14 For whenever the Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature the things required by the law, these who do not have the law are a law to themselves. 15 They show that the work of the law is written in their hearts, as their conscience bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or else defend them. (NET) In Romans 2:14-15, Paul is explaining that even though the Gentiles do not possess God’s law in written form like the Jews, they also have a law so to speak by which they will be judged and can be condemned without the law because their conscience (which is the work of the law written in their hearts) is enough to condemn them. Therefore, we can see that the central component of Romans 2:1214 is that the Law of God condemns both Jew and Gentile. The Jew is condemned before God because he does not obey the written document given to Moses by the Lord whereas the Gentiles are condemned before God because they do not obey the Law of God written in their hearts as manifested by the function of their conscience when they sin. The law of the Gentiles to whom Paul was writing was not in code but in conscience. They did not have a specific set of rules but they did have the basic moral concepts which are contained in the Law and in particular the Ten Commandments. Anthropologists know by research what God has revealed in His Word. There is “absolutely no” societal group that is devoid of law in the sense of a standard of right versus wrong. Also, all men know that they break their own laws and they suffer guilt. The content of the Ten Commandments is not really new since the book of Genesis reveals the fact that these formalized laws were already followed or assumed as a moral standard. All Ten Commandments had been part of the Law of God previously written on hearts instead of stone, for all ten appear, in one way or another, in Genesis. They are as follows: (1) Genesis 35:2, “Get rid of the foreign gods.” (2) Genesis 31:39, “Laban to Jacob, ‘But why did you steal my gods?’” (3) Genesis 24:3, “I want you to swear by the Lord.” (4) Genesis 2:3, “God blessed the seventh day and made it holy.” (5) Genesis 27:41, “The days of mourning my father are near.” (6) Genesis 4:9, “Where is your brother Abel?” (7) Genesis 39:9, “How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” (8) Genesis 44:4-7, “Why have you stolen my silver cup?” (9) Genesis 39:17, “[Joseph] came to me to make sport of me … but … he ran. …” (10) Genesis 12:18; 20:3, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.” Now, in Ephesians 2:1, the articular construction of the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα) functions as a dative of cause, which indicates the transgressions of these Gentile Christians was the reason why they existed in the state of being spiritually dead. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 25 “In other words” is the conjunction kai (καί), which is epexegetical, which means that the articular dative feminine plural form of the noun hamartia (ἁμαρτία), which the word introduces, is explaining from another perspective the articular neuter plural form of the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα), “transgressions.” “Because of your sins” is the articular dative feminine plural form of the noun hamartia (ἁμαρτία), which is used with reference to mental, verbal and overt acts of personal sin from the perspective that these acts miss the mark of the absolute perfection of God’s character, i.e. His holiness. This word speaks of any thought, word or action, which is in disobedience to God’s laws. Like the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα), the noun hamartia (ἁμαρτία) functions as a dative of cause, which indicates that the sins of these Gentile Christians was the reason why they existed in the state of being spiritually dead. These two words are forming the figure of hendiadys, which means that the conjunction kai (καί) is used to connect together the nouns paraptōma (παράπτωμα) and hamartia (ἁμαρτία). This figure takes place when two nouns are used to express one idea or concept and it literally means “one by means of two” and takes place when the author uses two words but only one idea is intended. The two words are of the same parts of speech, i.e., two nouns, and are always joined together by the conjunction “and” and are also always in the same case. One of the two words expresses the thing, and the other intensifies it by being changed (if a noun) into an adjective of the superlative degree, which is, by this means, made especially emphatic. Therefore, this figure indicates that the nouns paraptōma (παράπτωμα) and hamartia (ἁμαρτία) are not referring to two different concepts. Rather, they are referring to one since both of these words speak of the thoughts, words and actions of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle were in disobedience to the Father’s will and contrary to His holy character and nature before the Father declared them justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. This figure would indicate that hamartia (ἁμαρτία) is intensifying or advancing upon the idea expressed by paraptōma (παράπτωμα) in the sense that the noun hamartia (ἁμαρτία) is defining the meaning of the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα). Therefore, this indicates that when Paul asserts that the recipients of the Ephesian epistle were spiritually dead because of their paraptōmasin (παραπτώμασιν), “transgressions,” he means that they were spiritually dead because of their hamartiais (ἁμαρτίαις), “sins.” This is indicated by the fact that sin is the transgression of God’s law. Paul’s use of these two nouns paraptōma (παράπτωμα) and hamartia (ἁμαρτία) indicates that mental, verbal and overt acts which are in disobedience to the Law of God are evidence of a person being spiritually dead. For the believer, they are evidence of being out of fellowship with God, which is a temporary spiritual death. The believer out of fellowship with God is not experiencing eternal life even though 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 26 they possess it permanently because they were permanently indwelt by the Triune God and thus they are experiencing spiritual death. The spiritual death is only temporary because they are restored to fellowship with God and delivered from this spiritually dead state by confessing their sins (1 John 1:9). They maintain this fellowship by obeying the Spirit inspired Scriptures (Eph. 5:18; cf. Col. 3:16). On the other hand, the unregenerate person is delivered from spiritual death when the Father declares them justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. Simultaneously, they are regenerated and receive eternal life. Therefore, the difference between the unregenerate and regenerate in relation to spiritual death is that for the former experiencing spiritual death is a static experience while on the other hand, for the latter it is a dynamic experience. Paul’s assertion here in Ephesians 2:1 echoes his statement to the Colossian Christian community in Colossians 2:13 since he teaches the latter that prior to their conversion they were spiritually dead because of their transgressions. Colossians 2:13 In other words, even though each and every one of you existed in the state of being spiritually dead ones because of your transgressions, specifically because of the uncircumcision, which is your flesh, He caused each and every one of you to be made alive together with Him. Simultaneously for His own glory, He graciously forgave each and every one of our transgressions for the benefit of each and every one of us. (Author’s translation) The contents of Ephesians 2:2 continues Paul’s thought from Ephesians 2:1 because both speak of the transgressions or sins committed against God by the recipients of the Ephesian epistle prior to their justification. As we noted, in the latter, these pre-justification transgressions or sins were the reason why these Gentile Christians were spiritually dead. However, in the former, they are the means by which they lived their lives prior their justification. Ephesians 2:2 contains a declarative statement which is modified three prepositional phrases. The third prepositional phrase is modified by an appositional clause, which contains an articular participle, which is modified by a prepositional phrase. The declarative statement en hais pote periepatēsate (ἐν αἷς ποτε περιεπατήσατε), “Each and every one of you formerly lived by means of these” refers to the lifestyle of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle prior to the Father declaring them justified by faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. The first prepositional phrase en hais (ἐν αἷς), “by means of these” is fronted in order to link the contents of Ephesians 2:1-2. It indicates the means by which these Gentile Christians lived their lives prior to the Father declaring them justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. It expresses the idea that these Gentile Christians lived their lives “by means of their transgressions” or in other words, “by means of their sins.” 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 27 The second prepositional phrase kata ton aiōna tou kosmou toutou (κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου), “in agreement with the standard of this age, which is the production of this cosmic world system” also modifies the declarative statement because it reveals that the unregenerate lifestyle of these Gentile Christians was “in agreement with the standard of” the unregenerate people of this present age, which is the work of the cosmic world system. The third prepositional phrase kata ton archonta tēs exousias tou aeros (κατὰ τὸν ἄρχοντα τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος), “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” advances upon the previous prepositional phrase in that the unregenerate lifestyle of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle was in agreement with the standard in which the sovereign governmental ruler of this cosmic world system lives, who is the ruler over the evil spirits residing in the earth’s atmosphere and thus planet earth itself. Lastly, the appositional clause tou pneumatos tou nyn energountos en tois huiois tēs apeitheias (τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ νῦν ἐνεργοῦντος ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας), “Specifically the spirit who is presently working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience” is modifying the third prepositional phrase because it identifies or describes the sovereign ruler or sovereign governmental authority of the cosmic world system. He is the spirit who during the present age is working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience to God. Now, as we noted, the temporal clause pote periepatēsate (ποτε περιεπατήσατε), “Each and every one of you formerly lived” is modified by the prepositional phrase en hais (ἐν αἷς), “by means of these.” Together, they assert that the recipients of the Ephesian epistle, who were Gentile Christians, prior to their justification, lived their lives by means of their transgressions or in other words, lived their lives by means of their sins. In other words, their lifestyle was by means of these transgressions, i.e. by means of these sins. The prepositional phrase we noted is composed of the dative feminine plural form of the relative pronoun hos (ὅς), which is the object of the preposition en (ἐν). We also noted that the referent of the former is the articular dative neuter plural form of the nouns paraptōma (παράπτωμα), “because of your transgressions” hamartia (ἁμαρτία), “because of your sins,” which appear in Ephesians 2:1, since both of these words agree in gender (feminine), number (plural) and case (dative) with this relative pronoun. The preposition the preposition en (ἐν) we noted is a marker of means indicating the means by which the recipients of the Ephesian epistle lived their lives prior to their conversion. As we noted in our study of Ephesians 2:1, the articular dative neuter plural form of the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα), “because of your transgressions” refers to 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 28 deliberate violations of God’s laws. The word refers to the transgressions of the recipients of this epistle prior to their justification. In other words, it refers to their deliberate violations of God’s laws before justification, which for these Gentile Christians would be deliberately violating the Ten Commandments, which are written in the soul of every human being as Paul asserts they are in Romans 2:1415. We also noted in our study of Ephesians 2:1 that the articular dative feminine plural form of the noun hamartia (ἁμαρτία), “because of your sins” is used with reference to mental, verbal and overt acts of personal sin from the perspective that these acts miss the mark of the absolute perfection of God’s character, i.e. His holiness. This word speaks of any thought, word or action, which is in disobedience to God’s laws. Furthermore, we noted that these two words are forming the figure of hendiadys, which means that the conjunction kai (καί) is used to connect together the nouns paraptōma (παράπτωμα) and hamartia (ἁμαρτία). Therefore, this figure indicates that the nouns paraptōma (παράπτωμα) and hamartia (ἁμαρτία) are not referring to two different concepts. Rather, they are referring to one since both of these words speak of the thoughts, words and actions of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle were in disobedience to the Father’s will and contrary to His holy character and nature before the Father declared them justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. This figure would indicate that the noun hamartia (ἁμαρτία) is intensifying or advancing upon the idea expressed by the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα) in the sense that the noun hamartia (ἁμαρτία) is defining the meaning of the noun paraptōma (παράπτωμα). Therefore, this indicates that when Paul asserts that the recipients of the Ephesian epistle were spiritually dead because of their paraptōmasin (παραπτώμασιν), “transgressions,” he means that they were spiritually dead because of their hamartiais (ἁμαρτίαις), “sins.” This is indicated by the fact that sin is the transgression of God’s law. Therefore, the prepositional phrase en hais (ἐν αἷς), “by means of these” is identifying the transgressions or sins committed against God by these Gentile Christians prior to the Father declaring them justified through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ as the means by which they lived their lives. Therefore, this prepositional phrase indicates that the recipients of this epistle lived their lives by means of their transgression, or in other words, they lived their lives by means of their sins. We also noted in our exegesis that in this declarative statement, the verb peripateō (περιπατέω) is used in a figurative sense with reference to the lifestyle of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle prior to being declared justified by the Father through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 29 This is modified by the indefinite temporal particle temporal particle pote (ποτέ), which speaks of a period of time prior to these Christians being declared justified by the Father through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. Thus, it refers to their pre-conversion portion of their lives as human beings on planet earth. We also noted that the second prepositional phrase kata ton aiōna tou kosmou toutou (κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου), “in agreement with the standard of the unregenerate people of this age, which is the production of this cosmic world system” also modifies the declarative statement because it reveals that the unregenerate lifestyle of these Gentile Christians was in accordance with the standard in which the unregenerate people of this present age live, and which age is the work of the cosmic world system of Satan. This standard is evil which is indicated by Galatians 1:4, in which the apostle Paul describes this present age as “evil.” In its root essence, evil is independence from God, which originated in eternity past with Satan’s rebellion against God (Is. 14:12-14; Ezek. 28:12-19). Satan sought to live his life independently of his creator and seeks to establish a kingdom independently of God and which rivals God’s kingdom. As was the case when the word appeared in Ephesians 1:21, the noun aiōn (αἰών) here in Ephesians 2:2 pertains to a particular period of history which has some distinctive feature, which is distinguished from other periods of history. However, the word does not retain the same referent here in Ephesians 2:2 as it did in Ephesians 1:21 where the word’s referent was “the last days,” which began with the First Advent of Jesus Christ and will end with the Second Advent of Christ. Here in Ephesians 2:2, the referent of the noun aiōn (αἰών) is the period which began with the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and will end with the Second Advent of Jesus Christ. During this period of human history, Satan is the temporary god of this world (2 Cor. 4:4), with all of unregenerate humanity under his temporary rulership (1 John 5:19) and thus all the nations of the earth are temporarily under his rulership as well (Luke 4:5-7). This period of human history will end with the Second Advent of Jesus Christ, which ushers in His millennial reign on planet earth. The noun aiōn (αἰών) contains the figure of metonymy which means that this present age is put for the unregenerate people of this age, which is indicated by the fact that Paul in context is describing the unregenerate lifestyle of the recipients of the Ephesian epistle who we noted were Gentile Christians according to Ephesians 2:11. We noted that the articular construction of the noun aiōn (αἰών) is “monadic” indicating that this present period of human history is unique or in a class all its own because it is the period of human history in which the citizens of planet earth are subjugated to Satan and his cosmic world system and is distinguished from Jesus 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 30 Christ’s rulership over the earth during His millennial reign. It implies that this particular age or period of human history contains certain characteristics, which distinguish it from other periods of human history such as the future millennial reign of Jesus Christ. We also noted in our exegesis that the noun aiōn (αἰών) is the object of the preposition kata (κατά), which functions as a marker of a standard indicating being in conformity or agreement with a particular standard. In context, the word is used to mark a particular standard in which the recipients of the Ephesian epistle lived prior being declared justified by the Father through faith in His one and only Son, Jesus Christ. So therefore, this prepositional phrase kata ton aiōna tou kosmou toutou (κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου) is expressing the idea that prior to their justification the recipients of the Ephesian epistle existed in the state of living their lives committing transgressions or sins against God “in agreement with the standard of” the unregenerate people of this present age. This is why in Romans 12:2, Paul prohibits the Roman Christian community from conforming their behavior in accordance with the standards of this present age in which Satan is the ruler of the earth and his world system dominates and controls all of humanity. Romans 12:1 Therefore, I appeal to each and every one of you spiritual brothers and sisters on the basis of the merciful acts produced by God the Father to offer your bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing and beneficial to God the Father, which is your reasonable service. 2 Consequently, do not conform your behavior in accordance with the standards of this age. On the contrary, permit yourselves to be transformed by renovating your mind in order that each and every one of you may discern what is, as an eternal spiritual truth, God the Father’s will, that which is good as well as extremely pleasing and in addition perfect. (Author’s translation) In Ephesians 2:2, the noun kosmos (κόσμος), “cosmic world system” pertains to a vast system and arrangement of human affairs, earthly goods, godless governments, conflicts, riches, pleasures, culture, education, world religions, the cults and the occult dominated and negatively affected by Satan who is god of this satanic cosmos. This system is promoted by Satan, conformed to his ideals, aims, methods, and character, and stands perpetually in opposition to God the cause of Christ. This world system is used to seduce men away from God and the person of Christ. It is antiGod, anti-Christ, and anti-Bible, and very anti-humanity though it often appears as humanitarian as part of Satan’s masquerade as an angel of light. The noun kosmos is not only a system but also an organization. An organization is that which is organized. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 31 Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary defines the verb “organize”: (1) To form as or into a whole consisting of interdependent or coordinated parts, especially for harmonious or united action (2) To systematize. If we paraphrase this definition, we could say that the noun kosmos refers to the “formation into a whole of interdependent and coordinated parts for harmonious and united action” against God. Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary defines a “system” as “an assemblage or combination of things or parts forming a complex or unitary whole; due method or orderly manner of arrangement or procedure.” If we paraphrase this definition, we could say that the noun kosmos refers to the “assemblage of fallen angels forming a complex whole” that is under the authority of Satan. The cosmic system is not a theocratic or Christocentric society, organization or system since it is designed by Satan to seduce men away from worshipping the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan uses temptations to incorporate even believers into his system and organization that is independent of God. In our exegesis of Ephesians 2:2, we noted that the noun kosmos (κόσμος) functions as a genitive of production, which indicates that this present age in which all of unregenerate humanity is enslaved to the indwelling Adamic old sin nature as well as enslaved to Satan and his cosmic world system is “produced by” this cosmic world system. In other words, this present age is “produced by” the sinful rulership of Satan over all the earth and its sinful inhabitants. In other words, this present age, which began with the fall of Adam and Eve and continues up to the time Paul wrote this epistle, is the work of the cosmic world system of Satan. This second prepositional phrase kata ton aiōna tou kosmou toutou (κατὰ τὸν αἰῶνα τοῦ κόσμου τούτου), “in agreement with the standard of the unregenerate people of this age, which is the production of this cosmic world system” is expressing the idea that prior to their justification the recipients of the Ephesian epistle existed in the state of living their lives committing transgressions or sins against God “in agreement with the standard” in which the unregenerate people of this present age live their lives, and which age is the work or production of the cosmic world system of Satan. The fact that unregenerate humanity live according to the standard of this present evil age after the Fall and prior to the Second Advent and which age is produced by the cosmic system of Satan is why John prohibits the Christian community from loving the cosmic system in John 2:15-17. 1 John 2:15 Each one of you continue making it your habit of not loving the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone does at any time love this world, then the love for the Father is unequivocally not existing in him. 16 Secondly, each and every one of these things in the world (the flesh’s lust resulting in a person’s lust resulting in the arrogance produced by material possessions) are 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 32 unequivocally not originating from the Father. On the contrary, they are originating from this world. 17 Furthermore, this world is passing away along with its lust. However, the one who at any time does God’s will is living with reference to that which is eternal. (Author’s translation) As we noted earlier, the third prepositional phrase kata ton archonta tēs exousias tou aeros (κατὰ τὸν ἄρχοντα τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος), “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” advances upon the second prepositional phrase in that asserts that the recipients of the Ephesian epistle prior to their justification by faith in Jesus Christ lived their lives “in agreement with the standard” in which the sovereign governmental ruler of this cosmic world system lives, who is the ruler over the evil spirits residing in the earth’s atmosphere and thus planet earth itself. The referent of the articular accusative masculine form of the noun archōn (ἄρχων) is the angel who is called in Scripture “the devil” or “Satan,” who is the sovereign ruler of the cosmic world system, which unregenerate humanity is enslaved to since the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. This word expresses the idea that Satan possesses sovereign authority delegated to him by God over all of unregenerate humanity and the resources of planet earth as a result of the fall of Adam and Eve. The articular construction of the noun archōn (ἄρχων) is “monadic” indicating that Satan’s sovereign rulership is unique to him because he is the temporary sovereign authority over the earth’s atmosphere until Jesus Christ’s returns to earth at His Second Advent. It implies here that this ruler possesses certain characteristics, which distinguish him from the ruler of the millennial reign, Jesus Christ. Thus, the article and the word’s genitive adjunct implies that Satan’s rulership of planet earth is distinguished from Jesus Christ’s millennial reign in that the former rules by lies and deception and tyranny whereas the latter will rule by truth, justice and righteousness. The articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun exousia (ἐξουσία), “the sovereign governmental authority” pertains to a person’s authority to rule and is used in relation to Satan’s sovereign governmental authority over all of unregenerate humanity and the resources of planet earth. The articular construction of this word is also “monadic” indicating that Satan’s sovereign governmental authority is unique to him because this authority is that of ruling over the earth’s atmosphere. The noun exousia (ἐξουσία) functions as a genitive of apposition or epexegetical genitive, which means that it is identifying or describing the sovereign ruler of the cosmic world system as the sovereign governmental authority who rules over the earth’s atmosphere. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 33 The articular genitive masculine singular form of the noun aēr (ἀήρ), “the evil spirits residing in the earth’s atmosphere” contains the figure of metonymy which means that the earth’s atmosphere is put for Satan’s angels whose perform their activities in the earth’s atmosphere. This interpretation is indicated by the fact that people of the first century view the earth’s atmosphere as the personal abode of evil spirits. It functions as a genitive of subordination, which indicates that the angels of Satan who perform their duties in the earth’s atmosphere are subordinate to the sovereign governmental authority of Satan. In other words, it indicates that the devil is the sovereign governmental authority who rules over the angels who perform their evil activities in the earth’s atmosphere. The apostle Paul in Ephesians 3:10 and 6:12 mentions these evil spirits who are under the authority of Satan dwelling the earth’s atmosphere as well as the stellar universe and having access as well to the first heaven and the throne room of God. Ephesians 3:1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—3:2 if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3:3 that by revelation the divine secret was made known to me, as I wrote before briefly. 3:4 When reading this, you will be able to understand my insight into this secret of Christ. 3:5 Now this secret was not disclosed to people in former generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit, 3:6 namely, that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus. 3:7 I became a servant of this gospel according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the exercise of his power. 3:8 To me—less than the least of all the saints—this grace was given, to proclaim to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ 3:9 and to enlighten everyone about God’s secret plan—a secret that has been hidden for ages in God who has created all things. 3:10 The purpose of this enlightenment is that through the church the multifaceted wisdom of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms. (NET) Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 6:11 Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. (NET) The prepositional phrase en tois epouraniois (ἐν τοῖς ἐπουρανίοις) not only appears in Ephesians 3:10 and 6:12 but also in Ephesians 1:3, 20 and 2:6. In each instance, it refers to the first, second and third heavens. Therefore, in Ephesians 3:10 and 6:12 Paul is teaching that the evil spirits or angels under the authority of Satan dwell in the first, second and third heavens and performing their rebellious and activities against God in each of these three levels. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 34 Clinton Arnold writes “This is the only time, however, that Paul (or for that matter, any other biblical author) speaks of ‘the air’ (ὁ ἀήρ) as the domain of Satan. The idea of ‘the air’ as a place where demons were active is well-known in Judaism. This can be seen in a first-century Jewish document: ‘For the person who fears God and loves his neighbor cannot be plagued by the aerial spirit of Beliar since he is sheltered by the fear of God’ (T. Benj. 3:4). Similarly, Philo speaks of demons as hovering in the air (Philo, On Giants 1.6, 8) and 1 Enoch as dwelling in the clouds (1 En. 15:10–11). This was also a common conception for any of Paul’s readers who had participated in magical practices, where the notion of ‘aerial spirits’ and ‘aerial powers’ was common. One magical text has the petition, “protect me from every demon in the air” (PGM IV.2699). Another one says, ‘I conjure you by the one who is in charge of the air (κατὰ τοῦ ἔχοντος τὸν ἀέρα)’ (PGM CI.39). Air is a particularly apt metaphor for the realm of spirits because they are invisible. In fact, the very word ‘spirit’ (πνεῦμα) could also be used for ‘wind.’”35 Peter O’Brien writes “According to the ancient world-view, the air formed the intermediate sphere between earth and heaven. It was the dwelling place of evil spirits (as the magical papyri 36 and the literature of Judaism attest), not an atmosphere of opinion with ideas, attitudes, and the like, which is a more recent Western understanding. The kingdom of the air, then, is another way of indicating the heavenly realm, which, according to Ephesians 6:12, is the abode of those principalities and powers, the world-rulers of this darkness and spiritual forces of wickedness, against which the people of Christ wage war. The hostile powers inhabit the heavenly realms (cf. Eph. 3:10; 6:12), a notion that has its antecedents in the Old Testament and Jewish thought. 37 If there is any distinction between the expressions the kingdom of the air and the heavenly realm, it is that the former indicates the lower reaches of that realm and therefore emphasizes the proximity of this evil power and his influence over the world.38” 39 Stephen Fowl writes “Ruling the ‘air’ is not to exercise dominion over a morally neutral space. Rather, there are numerous Hellenistic and Jewish texts which treat the ‘air’ as a realm within which forces hostile to humans dwell, and from which PGM Papyri graecae magicae: Die griechischen Zauberpapyri. Edited by K. Preisendanz. Berlin, 1928. PGM Papyri graecae magicae: Die griechischen Zauberpapyri. Edited by K. Preisendanz. Berlin, 1928. 35 Arnold, C. E. (2010). Ephesians (pp. 131–132). Zondervan. 36 PGM I.97–194; IV.2699. See Arnold, 60, who suggests that PGM CI.39 may provide the closest parallel to Ephesians 2:2: ‘And again I conjure you by the one who is in charge of the air (κατὰ τοῦ ἔχοντος τὸν ἀέρα)’. On ἀήρ see BAGD, 20, and H. Merklein, EDNT 1:34, together with the literature cited. 37 Job 1:6; Dan. 10:13, 21; 2 Macc. 5:2; cf. Philo, De Somniis 1.134–35, 141; note De Gigantibus 6, where God’s angels are said to be ‘souls that fly in the air’. 38 Lincoln, 96; cf. Schnackenburg, 91. 39 O’Brien, P. T. (1999). The letter to the Ephesians (p. 160). W.B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 35 they make their assaults on humanity (e.g., T. Levi 3.1–3; T. Benj. 3.4; Ascen. Isa. 7.9–12; Plutarch, Mor. 274B).” 40 Harold Hoehner writes “The final term ἀήρ, ‘air,’ was thought in ancient times to be that which filled the space between the earth and moon. The Greeks thought this term referred to the lower impure air, the home of the spirits, as opposed to the higher pure air, the ether. 41 It appears ten times in the LX X (only twice in the canonical books: 2 Sam 22:12; Ps 18:11 [MT 18:12; LXX 17:11]) and seven times in the NT. It appears four times in the Pauline letters and only here in Ephesians. It refers to that place above the earth (Acts 22:23; Rev 9:2; 16:17) where Christ will meet his saints (1 Thess 4:17) and is also used idiomatically ‘to beat the air’ (1 Cor 9:26) or ‘to speak into the air’ (1 Cor 14:9). In the present context it is the place or sphere of the activity of the devil. It denotes both universality 42 and locality.43 Philo makes the distinction between the physical elements of earth, water, and fire, which can be localized, and air, which is unseen and cannot be localized. 44 Although today we might conceptualize it as a spiritual matrix of inauthentic living, ideologies, or Zietgeist,45 in Paul’s day the air was considered as ‘the dwelling place of evil spirits.’ 46 Also, this air is not impersonal but, as Philo asserts, it is the abode of living beings, which the other philosophers identified as demons whereas the Scriptures label them as angels or messengers.47 Job (1:7) speaks of Satan going to and fro on the earth. Paul calls him ‘the evil one’ who controls this evil world (1 John 5:19) and also calls him ‘the god of this age’ (2 Cor 4:4). He and his emissaries presently rule from heaven (Eph 6:12) but, according to John, they will be cast from heaven to earth in the middle of the tribulation (Rev 12:7–17). Although he will continue to retain his power over the world for a time (Rev 12–13), he will eventually lose it, be bound for a thousand years (20:1–3), and ultimately will be cast into the lake of fire (20:10).” 48 In Ephesians 2:2, the prepositional phrase kata ton archonta tēs exousias tou aeros (κατὰ τὸν ἄρχοντα τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ ἀέρος), “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” is expressing the idea that prior to their justification the recipients of the Ephesian epistle existed in 40 Fowl, S. E. (2012). Ephesians: A Commentary (C. C. Black, M. E. Boring, & J. T. Carroll, Eds.; First Edition, p. 69). Westminster John Knox Press. 41 Hans Bietenhard, “Demon, Air, Cast Out [ἀήρ, δαιμόνιον],” NIDNTT 1 (1975): 449. LXX Septuaginta. Edited by Alfred Rahlfs. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1979 MT Masoretic Text LXX Septuaginta. Edited by Alfred Rahlfs. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1979 42 Carr, Angels and Principalities, 103; Wink, Naming the Powers, 83–84. 43 Arnold, Ephesians: Power and Magic, 60–61 (although later he translates it “authority” [148]). 44 Philo Gig. 1 §2; Somn. 1.22 §134. 45 As does Wink, Naming the Powers, 84. 46 Arnold, Ephesians: Power and Magic, 60–61. 47 Philo Somn. 1.19, 20 §§134–35, 140–41; cf. also Gig. 1 §2. 48 Hoehner, H. W. (2002). Ephesians: An Exegetical Commentary (p. 312). Baker Academic. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 36 the state of living their lives committing transgressions or sins against God “in agreement with the standard” in which the sovereign ruler of the cosmic world system lives his life. Lastly, as we noted earlier, the appositional clause tou pneumatos tou nyn energountos en tois huiois tēs apeitheias (τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ νῦν ἐνεργοῦντος ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας), “Specifically the spirit who is presently working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience” is modifying the third prepositional phrase because it identifies or describes the sovereign ruler or sovereign governmental authority of the cosmic world system. He is the spirit who during the present age is working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience to God. The noun pneuma (πνεῦμα), “the spirit” pertains to a supernatural non-material being that is self-aware with powers to affect the course of human events. It functions as a genitive of apposition or epexegetical genitive, which means that it is identifying or describing this sovereign ruler and sovereign governmental authority of the cosmic world system as the spirit who is now in this present age working in the lives of members of the human race who are characterized as disobedient to God. The articular construction of this noun is “monadic” indicating that this spirit or supernatural immaterial being is unique or in a class all its own because he is working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized as disobedient to God, i.e. they are unregenerate humanity. In this appositional clause, the articular genitive neuter singular present active participle conjugation of the verb energeō (ἐνεργέω) pertains to being engaged in some activity or function, with possible focus upon the energy or force involved. The articular construction of the participle conjugation of this verb functions as a genitive of simple apposition, which means that the former is simply clarifying who is this particular spirit or supernatural immaterial being, namely, he is the one who working in the lives of those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience to God. The adverb of time nun (νῦν), “presently” is modifying verb energeō (ἐνεργέω) and pertains a point of time simultaneous with the event of the discourse itself. The two points of time which are simultaneous with each other are Satan working in the lives of those members of the human race who are who are characterized by disobedience to God, i.e. unregenerate humanity and this age in which Satan is the ruler of his cosmic world system and also the sovereign governmental authority who rules over the earth’s atmosphere. The articular dative masculine plural form of the noun huios (υἱός) does not mean “the sons” but rather “the persons, the people, the members of the human race” since the word pertains to human beings without reference to the gender. It refers to members of the human race who are characterized by a particular way of living their 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 37 lives. It speaks of a particular category of human beings who are distinguished by a particular characteristic. It denotes a particular kind or class of people with the implication of possessing certain derived characteristics. Therefore, here in Ephesians 2:2, the noun huios (υἱός), “the members of the human race” is used of unrepentant, unregenerate sinners who are characterized as being disobedient to God who stand in contrast to regenerate humanity who are obeying God. It also contains the figure of metonymy which means that these people are put for their lives. The articular construction of this word is monadic, which indicates that this particular group of human beings are in a class by themselves in that they are characterized as being disobedient to God. The noun apeitheia (ἀπείθεια), “disobedience” refers to those members of the human race who are unwilling or refuse to obey God’s authority as expressed in His Word. In other words, it speaks of those members of the human race who are unrepentant, unregenerate sinners. The articular construction of this noun is generic distinguishing this group of people characterized as disobedient to God with those who are characterized as being obedient to Him. This word apeitheia (ἀπείθεια) functions as a descriptive genitive, which indicates these human beings are “characterized by” disobedience to God. It is also the object of the preposition en (ἐν), which is expressing the idea that Satan is working in the lives of people who “exist in the state or condition of” being characterized as being disobedient to God. This prepositional phrase en tois huiois tēs apeitheias (ἐν τοῖς υἱοῖς τῆς ἀπειθείας) is almost identical to the one which appears in Ephesians 5:6 and Colossians 3:6. Namely, the prepositional phrase epi tous huious tēs apeitheias (ἐπὶ τοὺς υἱοὺς τῆς ἀπειθείας), “the people characterized by disobedience” which is a Semitic idiom refers to the unregenerate and also appears in Ephesians 5:6. Ephesians 2:2 mentions two of the church age believer’s great enemies, namely, the cosmic world system (John 16:33; 1 John 5:4; Ephesians 2:2) and Satan (1 Peter 5:8-9; Ephesians 6:12; John 16:11; Colossians 2:15; but note 1 John 2:13-14) who rules over it and the third is mentioned in Ephesians 2:3, namely, the indwelling old Adamic sin nature (Rom. 7:15; 8:4-8, 13; Gal. 5:16-26). Satan Satan is the author of evil. We must remember that Satan is a created being. The Lord Jesus Christ created angels who are moral rational creatures like mankind and the greatest of these was angels was Satan. Therefore, Satan is a creature (cf. John 1:1 with Psa. 148:1-5; Col. 1:16; Ezek. 28:13). He is also a spirit being. Hebrews 1:14 describes angels as spirits and demons are called unclean spirits (Matt. 8:16; 12:45; Luke 7:21; 8:2; 11:26; Acts 19:12; Rev. 16:14). 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 38 Furthermore, the fact we are told that “we do not wrestle with flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12) also suggest that Satan and his demons are spirit beings. Finally, the fact that Paul describes them as invisible also shows they are spirit beings (Col. 1:16). Satan is not omniscient, omnipotent or omnipresent like God but rather he has limitations. He simply cannot be everywhere at once. Nor can he read your mind. Angels, though spirit beings and very powerful, are not omnipotent, omniscient, or omnipresent. They cannot be everywhere at once and this is true of Satan. However, as the chief of his demon forces or as the “prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2), he is chief of a vast host of demons who are so numerous as to make Satan’s power and presence seem to be practically ubiquitous or everywhere at once (cf. Mark 5:9). Therefore, because of this limitation, many references to Satan or the devil include his whole kingdom. The person of Satan does not personally tempt each of us for he simply cannot do that. He is only able to do so through his world system and demon hosts. In his appearance when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord (Job 1:6), in the temptation of Christ (Matt. 4:10f), and the entrance into Judas (Luke 22:3) we surely have clear references to the person of Satan himself, but in many other passages, Satan or the devil seems to stand for Satan’s kingdom (see Mark 3:23; 4:15; Luke 13:16; 1 Pet. 5:8-9; Jam. 4:7). It is also comforting to know that Satan is limited. The promise of Scripture is that “greater is He who is in us, than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). For all his power and hatred against God and man, he could do nothing against Job that God did not expressly allow. Therefore, he can be resisted and made to flee (Jam. 4:7), but only by the strength of God made available to believers in Christ (Eph. 6:10-18). Satan is a person. The Scripture states that he possesses the traits of personality. He shows intelligence (2 Cor. 11:3). He exhibits emotions (Rev. 12:17, anger; Luke 22:31, desire). He demonstrates that he has a will (Isa. 14:12-14; 2 Tim. 2:26). Satan is referred to as a person in both Old and New Testaments (Job 1; Matt. 4:1-12). If Satan were merely a personification that people have devised to express their ideas of evil, then such a personification could scarcely be held morally responsible for his actions, since, in reality, there is no being who can be held accountable. But Satan is held accountable by the Lord (Matt. 25:41), and this passage reminds us that to deny the reality of Satan requires denying the veracity of Christ’s words. We must learn from the devil’s failure. If angels like Satan who were so close to God gave way to the pride of seeking to be independent of God and fell in sin, we 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 39 certainly should learn from this that we might be more careful “to take heed lest we fall” (cf. 1 Cor. 10:12 with 1 Tim. 3:6-7). We should know full well, as with the temptation of Eve, Satan will seek to reduplicate his sin in us by seeking to get us to attempt to live life independently of God as though we were gods ourselves. Satan’s Original Position Let’s go back to the original angelic Eden, to a time before Satan had rebelled from God and had fallen from his privileged status. What we know about Satan in his perfect state comes mainly from the testimony of Isaiah (chapter fourteen) and Ezekiel (chapter twenty-eight). It must be remembered that in eternity past, Satan held a 3-fold office, which is now belongs to the incarnate Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan was a prophet, priest and a king in eternity past prior to his rebellion against his Creator. The devil was the preeminent creature in the universe before his fall, and each of the various characteristics described below call attention to specific aspects of this preeminence. Ezekiel 28:11 Again the word of the LORD came to me saying, 12 “Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “You had the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.” (NASB95) “Seal of Perfection” is the Hebrew chatham, “a seal of proportion, a sealer of symmetry, one sealing perfection, which are literal renderings from the Hebrew and can be expanded to the meaning “the one who puts his seal on harmoniousproportion” or, better, the “touchstone of symmetry” (that is, norms and standards of all kinds as seen from the divine point of view). Satan, in his un-fallen state, could be looked to as one who upheld, embodied and represented perfect divine standards. It is a tragic irony that he is now the prime example of all that is wicked, wrong and anti-God. In contrast to Satan, our Lord Jesus Christ is the One who died to satisfy the Father's righteous standard regarding our sin (2 Cor.5:21; 1 Pet.2:24). “Full of wisdom” is composed of the Hebrew adjective male, “full,” and the noun chokhmah, “wisdom.” The adjective male is used figuratively here in Ezekiel 28:12 indicating a high degree of wisdom by which Satan in eternity past, before his fall was characterized. This word indicates that Satan did not reject God out of ignorance. To the contrary, he was the wisest of God's creatures until he perverted that wisdom (Ezek.28:17). It is a tragic irony that Satan corrupted this wisdom and so became the “father of lies,” the adversary of God's wisdom and truth (Jn.8:44). In contrast to Satan, our Lord Jesus Christ is the very wisdom of God (1Cor.1:24). 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 40 Ezekiel 28:12 “Son of man, take up a lamentation over the king of Tyre and say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “You had the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.” (NASB95) “Perfect in beauty” is composed of the Hebrew adjective kalil, “perfect,” and the noun yophi, “beauty.” Satan before his fall in eternity past was the epitome of beauty. Ezekiel 28:13 “You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your covering: The ruby, the topaz and the diamond; The beryl, the onyx and the jasper; The lapis lazuli, the turquoise and the emerald; And the gold, the workmanship of your settings and sockets, was in you. On the day that you were created they were prepared.” (NASB95) This “Eden” in Ezekiel 28:13 refers to the original garden of Eden on the original planet earth before the earth’s renovation in Genesis 1:3 and following. Though he was the premier creature in a utopian setting, Satan was not content. It is a tragic irony that through his rebellion he has exchanged a perfect environment for eternal place in the lake of fire and is leading his followers to share his fate (Matt.25:41). In contrast to Satan, our Lord Jesus Christ has prepared a place for us (Jn.14:1-4), a place whose wonders will outstrip even those of that first Eden (Rev.2:7). The precious stones mentioned in this verse are indeed additional manifestations of Satan's beauty, but it is likely that they also mark him out as the one who represented the angels before God. The nine stones mentioned in this context bear a striking similarity to those placed on the high priest's breastplate (Ex.28:17-21; 39:10-14). In the Exodus context, each of the stones represented one of the twelve tribes of Israel and bore its name inscribed on the gem. Exodus 28:29 states that Aaron (i.e., the high priest) shall wear the breastplate with the stones inscribed with the twelve tribes “over his heart” whenever he enters the Holy Place “as a continual memorial before the Lord;” the verse also calls the breastplate so equipped “the breastplate of judgment.” Each of Israel's tribes is thus a precious jewel in God's sight and was represented before Him in this fashion whenever the high priest entered into the presence of God. Furthermore, the breastplate also served the practical function of acting as a means of communication from the Lord in designating specific tribes for specific tasks. What we see in Ezekiel's representation of a very similar apparatus on Satan, therefore, should be seen as fulfilling a similar function. As the “anointed cherub who covers,” Satan would have been continually in the presence of the Lord as the prime representative of angelic kind in the same way that our Lord Jesus Christ (symbolically represented by Israel's high priest) has been continually in His presence as the “last Adam” (1Cor.15:45) and “the Son of Man” (e.g., Jn.9:35) since His ascension. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 41 It is a tragic irony that Satan, who used to represent his angelic brethren before the Lord would go on to corrupt many of them, thus leading them to eternal punishment (Matt.25:41). In contrast to Satan, our Lord Jesus Christ is our guide to eternal life (Heb.2:10; 12:2). Ezekiel 28:14 “You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.” (NASB95) “Anointed” is the Hebrew adjective mimshach, whose cognate verb is mashach, “to anoint,” and the noun mashiach, “Anointed One, Messiah.” The Greek noun Christos, “Christ” translates the Hebrew noun for Messiah, which is mashiach. The Hebrew verb mashach means “to rub, anoint,” or “spread” a liquid. This word was used of anointing of people for special service or office such as priest (Ex. 29:7; Lev. 4:5, 16; 6:22; 21:10), prophet (1 Kings 19:16), and king (1 Sam. 2:10; 12:3; 16:6; 24:6; 2 Sam. 12:7; 19:21). The person who experienced such anointing was often called “the Lord’s anointed” (1 Sam. 26:9; 2 Sam. 23:1). In the OT 2 office bearers are expressly described as mashiach i.e. as anointed with oil: (a) High priest (b) King. The most reference in the OT is to the anointing of the King. The rite of anointing was performed on the high priest in the post-exilic community in Judah. The anointing never became a rite of initiation into the prophetic office. The prophet is discharged a specific task assigned to him by Yahweh Himself. He is anointed for this. Thus, the act of anointing confers power. So, the mashach’s Hebrew cognate adjective mimshach in Ezekiel 28:13 describes Satan as one who God conferred divine power to in order to carry out his duties. This anointing marked Satan out as God’s number one man! “Cherub” is the Hebrew noun keruv. Cherubs take the lead in worshiping God (Is.6; Rev.4:8b; 5:8,14; 7:11-12; 19:4), act as intermediaries for God in His royal manifestations (Rev.6:1-7; 15:7), and, perhaps most significantly, control access into His presence and fellowship (a duty most strikingly evident from their guarding of the “way to the tree of life” after Man's expulsion from the garden: Gen.3:24). “Who covers” refers to the fact that Satan's original position can thus be described as that of the ultimate "imperial guard", charged with warding off all that is profane from the perfect holiness of God. It is a tragic irony that Satan's position as a bulwark against the profane has been altered by his own rebellion into that of a promoter of all that is detestable to God's holiness. In contrast to Satan, Christ kept Himself experientially pure from sin, so that in fulfillment of the Father's plan He might “become sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor.5:21). Ezekiel 28:15 “You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created until unrighteousness was found in you. 16 By the abundance of your trade you were internally filled with violence, and you sinned; Therefore I have 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 42 cast you as profane from the mountain of God. And I have destroyed you, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. 17 Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom by reason of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I put you before kings, that they may see you. 18 By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries. Therefore I have brought fire from the midst of you; It has consumed you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth in the eyes of all who see you. 19 All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; You have become terrified and you will cease to be forever.” (NASB95) As we noted earlier, in the beginning the most exalted of all the angels was the anointed cherub, whom the Bible calls Satan or the devil, the son of the morning (Isa. 14:12). He was entrusted with responsibilities and was granted privileges beyond those of any other angel, but he abused his freedom through arrogance and rebellion against God (Ezek. 28:12-19). He was the anointed cherub who guarded the throne of God, he was said to be created perfect in wisdom and beauty and he was blessed with the title of Hallel Ben Shechar, “morning star, son of the dawn” (Is. 14:12). But the Scriptures teach that he led the angels in rebellion against God (Is. 14:12-14). Instead of being one will in the universe, now there was two…God’s and Satan’s. Satan had the audacity to oppose God. Now, according to Matthew 25:41 Satan was sentenced to the Lake of Fire for his rebellion, but he appealed the sentence. This sentence has not been executed since the Scriptures states that Satan is the “prince of the power of air” (Eph. 2:3), and the ruler of this world. We can accurately infer that Satan’s argument for appealing his sentence was that how could a loving God cast some of His creatures into the Lake of Fire forever and ever, thus God granted Satan his appeal. This appeal provides God an opportunity to demonstrate His incomparable love for all His creatures, both men and angels and thus vindicate His perfect character and integrity that was impugned by Satan. Therefore, God convened a trial to consider the evidence and pronounce judgment. In the prehistoric trial, God was the judge and the prosecution. Satan was the defense. God considered all the evidence and pronounced a guilty verdict and He sentenced Satan and all the fallen angels to “eternal fire” (Matt. 25:41). So “eternal fire has been prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41), but because the sentence was not immediately executed-and, in fact, will not be carried out until the end of human history (Rev. 20:10)-we can accurately infer that Satan appealed the sentence. The elapse of time between the sentence and its execution indicates that human history is part of this momentous trial, the appeal trial of Satan. Human history is the appeal trial of Satan. Further biblical evidence for the prehistoric trial of the fallen angels is found in Satan's titles. Human history was designed to resolve this conflict between God and 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 43 Satan. The words “devil” and “Satan” are not names but titles, both of which mean “accuser” or “adversary” as an attorney accuses someone in court. The Greek New Testament terms Satanas, “Satan” and Diabolos, “devil” are legal terms. The term Satanas means “adversary,” and diabolos means “slanderer, false accuser.” He is called the devil and Satan because he was the defense attorney who represented himself and the fallen angels at the prehistoric trial and because he continues to act as an attorney now that the trial has entered its appeal phase during human history (Job 1:6-12; 2:1-5; Zech. 3:1-2). Isaiah 14:12-14 gives us further insight into Satan’s rebellion. Isaiah 14:12 “How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, you who have weakened the nations!” (NASB95) “Star of the morning, son of the dawn” (English transliteration from the Hebrew: Helel Ben-Shachar). This title speaks of Satan's role in reflecting the glory of God (cf. Job 38:7, where all the elect angels are described as “stars of the morning”). “Star of the morning” (helel) literally means, “shining one” is translated in the LXX as “light bearer” and by the Latin Vulgate as “Lucifer.” “Son of the dawn” (Ben-Shachar) is an apt rendering of this title, for it denotes a heavenly body so brilliant that it can be seen even in daylight. As the prime creature of the original Eden, a place without darkness (for darkness did not exist before Satan's fall), Satan was the foremost representative of God's splendor, reflecting, for all angelic kind to behold, the brilliant glory of their Creator. It is a tragic irony that through his own choice he has now become the ruler of the domain of darkness (Eph.6:12; Col.1:13). Far from reflecting God's glory, he now opposes it in every way, but his ultimate destiny is to have his light extinguished forever (Jude 6, 13). In contrast to Satan, our Lord Jesus Christ, the new Morning Star (2 Pet.1:19; Rev.2:28; 22:16; cf. Num.24:17; Is.9:1-2; 42:6; 49:6; Matt.2:2; 2:9; 4:16; Lk.2:30-32; Jn.1:4-5; 8:12; 9:5), is the perfect reflection of the Father's glory (Heb.1:3). Isaiah 14:13 “But you said in your heart, ‘I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly in the recesses of the north. 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.’ 15 “Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, To the recesses of the pit. 16 Those who see you will gaze at you, They will ponder over you, saying, ‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble, Who shook kingdoms, who made the world like a wilderness And overthrew its cities, Who did not allow his prisoners to go home?’” (NASB95) So, we can conclude from a study of Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14 that Satan was the most talented, attractive and personable creature to come from the hand of God 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 44 (Ezek. 28:12; 2 Cor. 11:14). His force of persuasion is as compelling today as when he convinced one third of all the angels to join his prehistoric revolution against God (Rev. 12:4a). Satan’s fall and his leadership of myriad angels in revolt started the prehistoric warfare called the angelic conflict which continues today and will be concluded only with the final judgment at the end of human history. Satan’s World System and Organization First John 2:15 1 John 2:15 Each one of you continue making it your habit of not loving the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone does at any time love this world, then the love for the Father is unequivocally not existing in him. (Author’s translation) 1 John 2:15 marks a transition from the apostle John’s apostolic teaching in 1 John 2:12-14 to his teaching in 1 John 2:15-17. In the former, he affirms that the recipients of this epistle were remaining faithful to his apostolic teaching and were rejecting the false doctrine taught by the proto-Gnostic teachers. Thus, in these verses he is commending the recipients of this epistle. Now, in 1 John 2:15-17, John reminds the recipients of this epistle of their responsibilities with regards to the cosmic system of Satan. He prohibits them from loving this system in verse 15 and then provides them reasons in verses 16-17 as to why they should obey this prohibition. 1 John 2:15 is composed of two prohibitions and a fifth class conditional statement which expresses an eternal spiritual truth with regards to loving the world. It also presents the first of three reasons as to why the recipients of this epistle must obey these two prohibitions. The second reason is given by John in verse 16 and the third in verse 17. The recipients of this epistle were already obeying these two prohibitions since John affirms in 1 John 2:12-14 that they were remaining faithful to his apostolic teaching and were thus rejecting the false doctrine taught by the proto-Gnostic teachers whose teaching originated with Satan and his kingdom. In fact, the affirmations in these verses serve to commend the recipients of this epistle for remaining faithful. 1 John 2:12 I am writing at this particular time to each one of you dear children that your sins are forgiven for the benefit of each one of you based upon the merits of His name. 13 I am writing at this particular time to each one of you fathers that each of you know experientially the One from eternity past. I am writing at this particular time to each one of you young men that each of you are victorious over the evil one. 14 I am presently writing to each one of 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 45 you children that each of you know the Father experientially. I am presently writing to each one of you fathers that each of you know experientially the One from eternity past. I am presently writing to each one of you young men that each of you are strong. Specifically, the Word originating from God is resident in each one of you. Consequently, each of you are victorious over the evil one. (Author’s translation) If the recipients of this epistle were remaining faithful, then what is the point of the prohibitions in 1 John 2:15? Preventative maintenance. The recipients of this epistle were believers who still possessed a sin nature and were still exposed to the false doctrine originating from the devil who actively opposes the church (cf. Eph. 6:10-18). Thus, the importance of issuing these prohibitions. Though they were faithful at the time John wrote this epistle, this could change at any moment, if they permitted themselves to be seduced by the temptations of Satan’s cosmic system. In 1 John 2:15, “the world” is the noun kosmos and is the primary word in the Greek New Testament for the world. Kosmos means “order, ornament, adornment, an orderly arrangement. Our word “cosmetics” comes from this word. In the New Testament, it has three main uses: (1) The orderly arrangement of the heavens or the earth and all things in their complex order and composition as created by God, created in perfect order and subject to the laws God established to govern its operation (Matt. 13:35; John 21:25; Acts 17:24). (2) The cosmos (Greek, kosmos) may also refer to the world in its arrangement of the inhabitants of the earth in tribes and nations or peoples (Acts 17:26; John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 4:9; 1 John 2:2; 2 Peter 2:5). (3) But most importantly, kosmos is used of a vast system and arrangement of human affairs, earthly goods, godless governments, conflicts, riches, pleasures, culture, education, world religions, the cults and the occult dominated and negatively affected by Satan who is god of this satanic cosmos. This system is promoted by Satan, conformed to his ideals, aims, methods, and character, and stands perpetually in opposition to God the cause of Christ. This world system is used to seduce people away from God and the person of Christ. It is antiGod, anti-Christ, and anti-Bible, and very anti-humanity though it often appears as humanitarian as part of Satan’s masquerade as an angel of light. Therefore, “the world” in 1 John 2:15 pertains to a vast system and arrangement of human affairs, earthly goods, godless governments, conflicts, riches, pleasures, culture, education, world religions, the cults and the occult dominated and negatively affected by Satan who is god of this satanic cosmos. This system is promoted by Satan, conformed to his ideals, aims, methods, and character, and stands perpetually in opposition to God the cause of Christ. This world system is used to seduce men away from God and the person of Christ. It is anti-God, anti-Christ, and anti-Bible, and very anti-humanity though it often appears as humanitarian as part of Satan’s masquerade as an angel of light. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 46 “The world” is not only a system but also an organization. An organization is that which is organized. Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary defines the verb “organize”: (1) To form as or into a whole consisting of interdependent or coordinated parts, especially for harmonious or united action (2) To systematize. If we paraphrase this definition, we could say that the noun kosmos refers to the “formation into a whole of interdependent and coordinated parts for harmonious and united action” against God. Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary defines a “system” as “an assemblage or combination of things or parts forming a complex or unitary whole; due method or orderly manner of arrangement or procedure.” If we paraphrase this definition, we could say that the noun kosmos refers to the “assemblage of fallen angels forming a complex whole” that is under the authority of Satan. The cosmic system is not a theocratic or Christocentric society, organization or system since it is designed by Satan to seduce men away from worshipping the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan uses temptations to incorporate even believers into his system and organization that is independent of God. In 1 John 2:15, “the things in the world” refers to both animate and inanimate objects. The former would include human beings and animals whereas the latter would include such things as money, homes, cars and any type of material possessions. The indwelling old Adamic sin nature lusts after these objects. The organ of eyesight is the vehicle through which the sin nature functions. In other words, the sin nature expresses itself through the function of the human eyes. Thus, John asserts that which the eyes lust after. The result of this lust is arrogance. Consequently, John refers to the arrogance produced by material possessions. These objects are not sinful in themselves but become temptations to sin and commit idolatry because of the old indwelling Adamic sin nature which seeks to live independently of God. Satan and his fallen angels employs these objects in order to seduce people away from worshipping God and living in total dependence upon Him. Therefore, “the things in the world” refers to the various animate (such as people or animals) and inanimate objects (such as homes, cars, and money) which are not evil in themselves but tempt the believer to place more value on them than their relationship with the Father. Thus, they refer to these objects which can be a cause of temptation for the believer to live their life independently of the Father. These objects are attractive to the sin nature and Satan and his angels seek to employ them to seduce the believer away from experiencing fellowship with God. Satan seeks to deceive the believer to value them more than their relationship with God and obedience to Him. Satan and his angels use these objects to appeal to the indwelling old Adamic sin nature of the believer. This sin nature is selfish and self-centered and opposed to 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 47 God. Like the devil and his angels, the sin nature always seeks to tempt the believer to live independently of God. Thus, these objects become temptations for the believer. A “temptation” is something that entices someone to usually do something that is evil. To tempt is to induce or persuade by enticement as to do something unwise, wrong, to attract by holding out the probability of gratification or advantage, often in the direction of that which is wrong or unwise. The concept of temptation is synonymous with the concept of seduction. To seduce is literally to lead astray, sometimes from that which absorbs one or demands attention. The first prohibition in 1 John 2:15 forbids the recipients of this epistle from loving the cosmic system of Satan in the sense honoring it by taking pleasure in it to the extent that they make it more important than their relationship with God. The second prohibition forbids the recipients of this epistle from loving the cosmic system but then he also mentions that they are not to love the things which are located in the cosmic system. 1 John 2:16 identifies these things as being that which the flesh lusts after so that the eyes lust after these things resulting in an arrogance produced by these material possessions. The first prohibition is addressing the believer’s relationship to the vast system and arrangement of human affairs, earthly goods, godless governments, conflicts, riches, pleasures, culture, education, world religions, the cults and the occult dominated and negatively affected by Satan. This first prohibition is addressing the believer’s relationship to the various ideals, aims, methods, and character, which are promoted by Satan and his kingdom and stand perpetually in opposition to God and the cause of Christ. The first prohibition deals with the cosmic system of Satan itself, which as we noted is both a system and an organization that is against God and under the authority of Satan. Thus, John is prohibiting the recipients of this epistle from loving the organization and system inspired by Satan but of course, you are to love the people who are deceived by Satan. This world system of Satan embraces every facet of human life on planet earth. Satan is the god of this world (cf. 2 Cor. 4:4) and deceives the entire world (cf. 1 John 5:19; Rev. 12:10). Consequently, all the affairs of mankind are adversely affected by Satan’s rule over the earth. Thus, this world system led by Satan adversely affects every form of human government on the face of the earth and thus politics. It also embraces all of human culture as well as religion, education, industry, science and the business world. The second prohibition in 1 John 2:15 forbids the recipients of this epistle from loving the various animate and inanimate objects that are found in the cosmic system of Satan in the sense of honoring them by taking pleasure in them to the extent that the cosmic system becomes more important than their relationship with God. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 48 Because of the sin nature and Satan and his angels, these various animate and inanimate objects temptations can induce or persuade believers by enticement to not love the Father in the sense of being dedicated and devoted to Him. They would attract them by holding out the probability of gratification or advantage that would be contrary to the plan of God for their lives. The cosmic system was built upon these temptations since these temptations were successful when used against Eve in the Garden of Eden in order to get her to disobey the Lord God. Thus, the second prohibition deals with the various inanimate and animate objects which are located in this Satanic organization and system, which are designed to seduce men away from God and to live independently of Him. The cosmic system is not a theocratic or Christocentric society, organization or system since it is designed by Satan to seduce men away from worshipping the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan uses temptations to incorporate even believers into his system and organization that is independent of God. To love the cosmic system of Satan and the things of this system would constitute living one’s life in the darkness which is mentioned in 1 John 1:6, 2:9, and 11 and refers to living one’s life according to the standards of Satan’s cosmic system. Therefore, the prohibitions in 1 John 2:15 to not love the world and the things of the world are intimately connected to what John has written previously in this epistle. Thus, here in 1 John 2:15, John is presenting more ways in which a believer can live in the darkness of Satan’s cosmic system. To love the cosmic system of Satan and all that composes it is to live in disobedience to the greatest command to love the Lord with all one’s heart, soul, mind and strength (cf. Mark 12:28-31). This disobedience constitutes idolatry. Loving the cosmic system of Satan and the various objects in this system is idolatry. By way of definition, idolatry pertains to the worship of something created as opposed to the worship of the Creator Himself. It is not only the giving to any creature or human creation the honor or devotion, which belongs to God alone, but also is putting anything ahead of your relationship with God and which would prevent you from doing His will (1 Cor 10:14; Gal 5:20; Col 3:5; 1 Peter 4:3). The practice of idolatry is a violation of the first and second commandments of the Ten Commandments which are recorded in written form for Israel in Exodus 20:3-4. They are also written on the hearts of every human being whether regenerate or unregenerate according to Paul’s teaching in Romans 2:14-15. So, the content of the Ten Commandments is not really new since the book of Genesis reveals the fact that these formalized laws were already followed or assumed as a moral standard. All Ten Commandments had been part of the Law of God previously written on hearts instead of stone, for all ten appear, in one way or another, in Genesis. They are as follows: (1) Genesis 35:2, “Get rid of the foreign gods.” (2) Genesis 31:39, “Laban to Jacob, ‘But why did you steal my gods?’” (3) Genesis 24:3, “I want 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 49 you to swear by the Lord.” (4) Genesis 2:3, “God blessed the seventh day and made it holy.” (5) Genesis 27:41, “The days of mourning my father are near.” (6) Genesis 4:9, “Where is your brother Abel?” (7) Genesis 39:9, “How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” (8) Genesis 44:4-7, “Why have you stolen my silver cup?” (9) Genesis 39:17, “[Joseph] came to me to make sport of me … but … he ran. …” (10) Genesis 12:18; 20:3, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman.” Exodus 20:3 “You shall have no other gods before Me.” (NASB95) This commandment addresses the Israelites relationship with Yahweh. In the Hebrew text, this first commandment means “You must never have other gods over or against Me.” This commandment appears in Deuteronomy 5:7 as well. The term ʾelōhı̂ m, “gods” which refers to either angels or men since it can refer to either human rulers (cf. Psalm 82; John 10:34-36) or angelic beings. This commandment is an implicit acknowledgement that there are men who are worshipped as gods as well as angels. Therefore, this first commandment prohibits the Israelites from practicing idolatry and worshipping angels or men rather than God who is their Creator and Redeemer. It denotes the uniqueness of God in that He is the only being in creation who is to be worshipped by the Israelites. It expresses God’s claim upon the Israelites and demands their absolute loyalty and allegiance to Him. Exodus 20:4 “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.” (NASB95) This commandment also addresses the Israelites’ relationship with Yahweh. It is a prohibition against the practice of idolatry. In the Hebrew, it means “You must never make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water beneath the earth.” This prohibition denotes that nothing in creation must ever be copied and used as an object of worship by the Israelites. It prohibited the Israelites from making images or likenesses of Yahweh. In Romans 1:18-23, Paul describes the entire human race as involved in idolatry. Deuteronomy 32:17 and 1 Corinthians 10:20 teach that the worship of idols is connected to the worship of demons since the sacrificing to idols is in reality sacrificing to demons who promote the worship of idols. Idolatry is the worship of something created as opposed to the worship of the Creator Himself. Scores of references to idolatry appear in the Old Testament. Joshua 24:2 states that Abraham’s father served idols. The most noteworthy instance of idolatry in the history of Israel was Aaron’s making of the golden calf at the foot of Mount Sinai (Ex 32:1-4). Idolatry originally meant the worship of idols, or the worship of false gods by means of idols but came to mean among the Old 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 50 Testament Hebrews any worship of false gods, whether by images or otherwise or the worship of the Lord through visible symbols (Hos 8:5-6; 10:5). Exodus 20:5 “You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.” (NASB95) These verses serve to explain the second commandment. The Israelites were prohibited from worshipping other gods because Yahweh was a jealous God who tolerates no rivals, which is justified of course since He is the Creator and Redeemer and not a political ruler or angel. God’s jealousy is not the same as the jealousy of men, which is a sin. But rather it refers to God having the Israelites best interests in mind always. It denotes His intense desire to protect the Israelites as well as His honor. The statement “visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations” does not mean that God punishes an innocent generation for the sins of the previous generation since Deuteronomy 24:16 rejects this. Deuteronomy 24:16 “Fathers shall not be put to death for their sons, nor shall sons be put to death for their fathers; everyone shall be put to death for his own sin.” (NASB95) Rather this statement teaches God’s determination to punish successive generations for committing the same sins they learned from their parents. God will punish generation after generation if successive generations keep practicing the sins of previous generations. In other words, children will be punished by God if they grow up to practice the same sins of their parents who are punished for their sinful acts. Verse 6 stands in direct contrast to the promise in verse 5 to punish successive generations for practicing the sins of a predecessor generation. The former presents God’s desire to bless the Israelites. His desire is that the Israelites remain loyal to Him by obeying Him in order that He might bless them. To love God is to obey Him (John 14:15), thus, to hate God is to disobey Him. Verse 5 speaks of the latter and verse 6 speaks of the former. Love and hate in these two verses are not a reference to human emotions but rather to being loyal to God (love) and disloyal to Him (hate). Idolatry is not only the giving to any creature or human creation the honor or devotion, which belongs to God alone, but also is putting anything ahead of your relationship with God and which would prevent you from doing His will (1 Cor 10:14; Gal 5:20; Col 3:5; 1 Peter 4:3). 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 51 Ultimately in the New Testament idolatry came to mean, not only the giving to any creature or human creation the honor or devotion which belonged to God alone, but the giving to any human desire a precedence over God’s will (1 Cor 10:14; Gal 5:20; Col 3:5; James 4:4; 1 Peter 4:3). In fact, John’s last word in First John was a prohibition requiring believers to keep themselves from idols. 1 John 5:21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. (ESV) Not only is John attempting to protect the recipients of this epistle from idolatry in 1 John 2:15 but also from spiritual adultery. Church age believers have been entered into a marriage relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ at the moment of conversion (Ephesians 5:22-32). Many believers are committing spiritual adultery with the Lord today by forsaking their relationship with the Lord and have committed spiritual adultery by putting idols in their souls such as money, houses, wives, husbands, children, jobs and self (Jeremiah 3:8-10; 1 John 2:15-17). In other words, the various godless viewpoints and attitudes as well as the various objects of this system which serve as temptations for sinners have seduced them away from obeying the Father which constitutes loving Him and worshipping Him. James 4:4 You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. (NASB95) After issuing these two prohibitions in 1 John 2:15, the apostle John then employs a fifth class conditional statement which expresses an eternal spiritual truth as related to loving the cosmic system of Satan. In this fifth class conditional statement, John solemnly asserts that if any believer does at any time love the cosmic system of Satan, then the love for the Father is, as an eternal spiritual truth unequivocally not existing in the state of being in them. He is not speaking of any one individual in particular. But rather he is referring to a hypothetical individual in the Christian community since John is not speaking of a specific individual but rather he is communicating an eternal spiritual principle with regards to the believer loving the cosmic system of Satan. By loving this cosmic system, John is referring to taking pleasure in the cosmic system of Satan because one holds it in high esteem, and reveres, and worships it, liking and respecting it and making it more important than one’s relationship with God. Therefore, in this fifth class conditional statement, John teaches his readers that if any believer does love the cosmic system of Satan, then the love for the Father is unequivocally not resident and active in their soul. This applies to every believer who loves the cosmic system of Satan, without exception. This statement is not subject to challenge, or dispute, not subject to conditions or exceptions because it is an eternal spiritual truth. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 52 Romans 12:1-2 In Romans 12:1-2, the apostle Paul echoes John’s teaching in 1 John 2:15 regarding the rejection of cosmic system of Satan. In Romans 12:1-2, the apostle Paul spells out for the Roman Christians how they are to please the Lord. In this passage, he emphasizes the importance of a sound mind and the renovation of the Christian’s thinking. In Romans 12:1, the apostle Paul appealed to his Christian readers in Rome on the basis of the merciful acts of the Father on their behalf to offer their bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing to the Father, which their reasonable service to the Father. Then, in Romans 12:2, Paul prohibited his Christian readers in Rome from being conformed to the standards of the cosmic system of Satan. He then issued a command on the heels of this prohibition to be transformed in their character into the image of Christ by the renewing of their minds. He teaches that this transformation of the believer’s character into the image of Christ by renovating their mind accomplishes what the Father intended in that it provides the believer the capacity to discern what the will of God is with regards to any situation. In Romans 12:2, Paul is prohibiting his readers from conforming their behavior in accordance with the standards of this present age in which Satan is the ruler of the earth and his world system dominates and controls all of humanity. Romans 12:1 Therefore, I appeal to each and every one of you spiritual brothers and sisters on the basis of the merciful acts produced by God the Father to offer your bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing and beneficial to God the Father, which is your reasonable service. 2 Consequently, do not conform your behavior in accordance with the standards of this age. On the contrary, permit yourselves to be transformed by renovating your mind in order that each and every one of you may discern what is, as an eternal spiritual truth, God the Father’s will, that which is good as well as extremely pleasing and in addition perfect. (Author’s translation) In Romans 12:1, the apostle Paul appealed to his Christian readers in Rome on the basis of the merciful acts of the Father on their behalf to offer their bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing to the Father, which is their reasonable service to the Father. Then in Romans 12:2, he prohibits his Christian readers in Rome from being conformed to the standards of the cosmic system of Satan. Also, in this passage, he issues a command on the heels of this prohibition to be transformed by the renewing of their minds. This transformation of the believer’s character into the image of Christ by renovating their mind accomplishes what the Father intended in that it provides the believer the capacity to discern what the will of God is with regards to any situation. Romans 12:2 presents the result of responding to Paul’s readers responding to his appeal in Romans 12:1 to offer their bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 53 pleasing to the Father, which is their reasonable service on the basis of the merciful acts that the Father performed on their behalf through the Son and the Spirit. In other words, in order for the believers in Rome to offer their bodies as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing to the Father on the basis of the Father’s work on their behalf, they must obey both the prohibition and the command in Romans 12:2. This passage teaches that the believer can never offer his body as a sacrifice-alive, holy, extremely pleasing to the Father if he does not obey the prohibition and the command in verse 2. “Do not conform your behavior” is composed of the negative particle me, “not” and the second person plural present (deponent) passive imperative form of the verb suschematizo, “do conform your behavior.” The verb suschematizo is a compound word composed of the noun schema, which denotes outward appearance, form or shape and the prefix sun, “with,” which indicates a personal assimilation to or conformity with the pattern indicated. The meaning of the word is to form or mold one’s behavior in accordance with a particular pattern or set of standards. In Romans 12:2, the verb suschematizo means “to conform to” and speaks of conforming one’s behavior according to the standards of the present age, which is Satanically inspired and dominated by his cosmic system. The verb’s meaning is negated by the negative particle me, “not.” Together, they form a prohibition. The Roman believers are the subject of this prohibition. The context of the epistle indicates that the Roman believers were not conforming their behavior to the standards of Satan’s cosmic system. In Romans 15:14-15, Paul writes to the believers in Rome that he was convinced that they were full of goodness and filled with knowledge and able to admonish each other, thus, his teachings in this epistle would serve as a reminder to them. Therefore, Paul is simply performing preventive maintenance by employing this prohibition in Romans 12:2. He is in effect warning the believers in Rome to not conform their conduct to the standards of Satan’s cosmic system. Thus, he is simply stating a general precept for his readers to follow in the future that would protect their fellowship with God. This is a “customary present imperative,” which is a command for action to be continued, action that may or may not have already been going on and is often a character building command to the effect of “make this your habit.” The verb suschematizo is a deponent verb meaning that although it has a passive/middle form, it has an active meaning. This would indicate that Paul is appealing to the volition of his readers in that he does not want them to conform to the standards of this present age that is under the deception of the devil, which is similar to the apostle John’s warning in 1 John 2:15. “In accordance with the standards of this age” is composed of the articular dative masculine singular form of the noun aion, “this age” and the dative masculine 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 54 singular form of demonstrative pronoun houtos, “in accordance with the standards.” In Romans 12:2, the noun aion means “age” referring to the particular period of human history in which the devil is the temporary ruler over planet earth. It is used in relation to the present age in which the devil is the god of this world idiomatically expressing what one might refer to as “the spirit of the age,” the philosophies and ideologies which dominate this period that are Satanically inspired. The word then refers to the spirit of this age in which the devil rules over the earth, which seeks to be independent of God and the Bible. It is an age in which people characteristically seek self-gratification regardless of the consequences or cost to self or others. This Satanic age is characteristically self-centered, self-pleasing, self-indulgent, self-concerned and indifferent to the needs of others. It is also an age in which when men display concern for the needs of others, it is either because they seeking to gain merit with God through their good deeds, which God rejects since these deeds are not done in His power or they are deeds that they perform to gain power over people and again approbation from them. The prevailing, popular thinking and culture is in continual rebellion against God and His authority and seeks to conform all the world’s inhabitants into its godless “world view.” This Satanic world view permeates the thinking of mankind, molding, corrupting and degrading and in the process affecting all culture and every institution of man. The noun aion differs from the noun kosmos, “world” in that the former speaks of a particular period of human history in which the devil and fallen angels rule this world whereas kosmos refers to the devil’s world system. The noun aion can also refer to the age in which the devil’s viewpoint prevails over men in contrast to the Messianic age and the eternal state to come whereas kosmos is the system he has in place to propagate his viewpoint of this Satanic age. Trench writes that aion is “that floating mass of thoughts, opinions, maxims, speculations, hopes, impulses, aims, aspirations, at any time current in the world, which it may be impossible to seize and accurately define, but which constitute a most real and effective power, being the moral, or immoral atmosphere which at every moment of our lives we inhale, again inevitably to exhale.”49 In Romans 12:2, the noun aion functions as a dative of rule specifying the rule or conduct a person follows or the standard of conduct to which he or she conforms. The word denotes that Paul is prohibiting his readers from conforming their behavior “to the standards” of this present age in which the devil is the ruler of the earth. Therefore, up to this point in our study of Romans 12:2, Paul is prohibiting his 49 Synonyms of the New Testament, page 204 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 55 readers from conforming their behavior in accordance with the standards of this present age in which Satan is the ruler of the earth and his world system dominates and controls all of humanity. “On the contrary” is the strong adversative conjunction alla, which introduces a statement that stands in direct contrast with the idea of the Christian conforming his behavior in accordance with the standards of this present age in which Satan is the ruler of the earth and his world system dominates and controls all of humanity. “Permit yourselves to be transformed” is the second person plural present passive imperative form of the verb metamorphoo, which is in the passive voice and means “to be transformed.” The word speaks of the process performed by the Holy Spirit in the believer who is obeying the Spirit’s voice, which is heard through the Word of God and deals with conforming the believer into the image of Christ in an experiential sense. This process is also accompanied by prayer. The verb speaks of the process of growing to spiritual maturity and becoming like Christ in an experiential sense. This process of being transformed into the image of Christ through the Spirit begins inwardly in the soul and manifests itself in the believer’s words and actions. So, this verb speaks of a change that begins from within the soul and expresses itself outwardly in one’s words and actions and one’s lifestyle. It refers to accomplishing in time the Father’s plan to conform the justified sinner into the image of Christ, which Paul speaks of Romans 8:29. In Romans 12:2, the verb metamorphoo involves the believer appropriating by faith the teaching of the Word of God that he has been crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ. This verb is directly related to agathos in Romans 8:28 and Philippians 1:6 since it refers to the process of the Spirit reproducing the character of Christ in the believer in an experiential sense, which is denoted by agathos. In Romans 12:2, the verb metamorphoo is directly related to the believer denying self and taking up his cross daily and is related to dying to self. In order to become like Christ, we must experience and endure with joy undeserved suffering, which is designed to test our obedience to the Father and manifest the life and power of the Lord Jesus Christ in our lives. This too is related to the verb metamorphoo in Romans 12:2 since the process of transforming the Christian experientially into the image of Christ involves experiencing underserved suffering (2 Corinthians 12:9-10; 3:174:18). The verb metamorphoo involves the believer considering himself crucified and have died with Christ but alive to God (Romans 6). It is directly related to fruit bearing since it refers to this process (John 15; Galatians 5:22-23). Therefore, in Romans 12:2, the verb metamorphoo means “to be transformed” and refers to the process performed by the Holy Spirit in the believer who is obeying the Spirit’s voice, which is heard through the Word of God and deals with 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 56 conforming the believer into the image of Christ in an experiential sense. It also involves prayer both in learning and applying the Word of God. This is a “customary present imperative,” which is a character building command to the effect of “make this your habit.” The permissive passive voice of the verb metamorphoo emphasizes that Paul’s Christian readers in Rome must make a conscious choice to permit the Holy Spirit to reproduce the character of Christ in their lives by obeying His voice, which is heard through the teaching of the Word of God. “By renovating your mind” is composed of the articular dative feminine singular form of the noun anakainosis, “by renovating” and the articular genitive masculine singular form of the noun nous, “your mind.” In Romans 12:2, the noun anakainosis means “renovation” rather than “renewal” since the former means to make new whereas as the latter to restore a former state. This renovation of the believers is accomplished by the Holy Spirit when the believer prayerfully obeys His voice, which is heard through the Word of God. It involves not only learning and obeying the Word of God but also prayer since prayer must accompany learning the Word and applying it. Specifically, it involves not only prayer but appropriating by faith one’s new position in Christ and considering oneself crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ. This renovation is related to the command in Ephesians 5:18 to be filled with the Spirit and the command in Colossians 3:16 to let the Word of Christ richly dwell in you. This renovation of the believer’s manner of thinking is referred to in Romans 8:5-6 and is called submission to the Spirit. The apostle Paul teaches in Romans 12:2 that this transformation of the believer’s character, or in other words the reproduction of Christ-like character in the believer begins with his or her thinking or thought process, their manner or way of thinking. In Romans 12:3, the verb sophroneo is articular and functions as the object of the preposition eis. This prepositional phrase denotes result. Now Paul is commanding his readers to think properly. However, he does not state explicitly in the command how this was to be accomplished since he already points this out in Romans 12:2 with the command to the Roman believers to be transformed by renovating their mind. Renovating the mind not only involves prayer but also appropriating by faith one’s new position in Christ and considering oneself crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ. Therefore, the prepositional phrase eis to sophronein denotes the result of the believer obeying the command to be transformed in their character by renovating their mind. This indicates that the believer who obeys the command in Romans 12:2 to be transformed by renovating their mind will “result” in their having the capacity to obey the command to think properly. This manner of thinking is consistent with the objective standard that the Father distributed to each believer 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 57 without exception by which they can accurately and objectively form an opinion of themselves, namely justifying faith. In Romans 12:1, the adjective euarestos means “extremely pleasing” and is used with reference to the believer pleasing the Father by offering his body to the Father as a sacrifice by appropriating by faith the teaching of the Spirit in the Word of God, namely that he is crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ. In Romans 12:2, the adjective euarestos refers to those decisions and actions made by the believer after his conversion that are “extremely pleasing” to God the Father since they are in accordance with His will. First John 2:16 1 John 2:15 Each one of you continue making it your habit of not loving the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone does at any time love this world, then the love for the Father is, as an eternal spiritual truth unequivocally not existing in him. 16 Secondly, each one of these things in the world (the flesh’s lust resulting in a person’s lust resulting in the arrogance produced by material possessions) are unequivocally not originating from the Father. On the contrary, they are originating from this world. (Author’s translation) The apostle John presents in this verse the second reason why the recipients of this epistle must continue to make it their habit of obeying the two prohibitions he issues them in 1 John 2:15 by asserting that each and every one of these things in the world are unequivocally not originating from the Father. He identifies for the recipients of this epistle what he means by “each one of these things.” This identification appears to be three-fold but actually is expressing a single concept. Namely a person lusts after the inanimate and animate objects in the cosmic system of Satan as a result of obeying the lusts of their indwelling old Adamic sin nature which results in the arrogance which is produced by material possessions. First, he speaks of “the flesh’s lust,” which refers to a person’s old indwelling Adamic sin nature lusting after the various inanimate and animate objects in the cosmic system of Satan. These objects are both animate and inanimate. The former would include human beings and animals whereas the latter would include such things as money, homes, cars and any type of material possessions. These objects are not sinful in themselves but become temptations to sin and commit idolatry because of the old indwelling Adamic sin nature which seeks to live independently of God. Satan and his fallen angels employs these objects in order to seduce people away from worshipping God and living in total dependence upon Him. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 58 “The flesh’s lust” refers to any type of lust which is related to either an animate or inanimate object in the world, which results in the arrogance produced by material possessions. The apostle John then presents the result of the indwelling Adamic sin nature lusting after the various animate and inanimate objects in the world, namely a person lusting after these very same objects. When John refers to the eyes, he is using the figure of personification since a person’s eyes don’t lust but rather they do so through the function of their soul. The eyes along with the other members of one’s body can be used by the sin nature to express its lusts. Therefore, this result clause is teaching that the indwelling Adamic sin nature expresses itself through a person. In other words, the indwelling Adamic sin nature expresses its lust for these various objects in the devil’s world through a person. This takes place when a person obeys the lusts of their sin nature rather than obeying God. Therefore, if a person is blind, they are susceptible to this sin as well. Lot fell for the temptation of the “lust of the eyes” as recorded in Genesis 13 where he separated from his uncle Abraham against the will of the Lord and chose for himself the Jordan valley area and in particular Sodom because it was “like the garden of the Lord” and “like the land of Egypt” as recorded in Genesis 13:10. The “lust of the eyes” is found in television and entertainment and materialism and leads to “covetousness” (Ex.20:17; Joshua.7:21; Acts.20:33; Rom.13:9) and “adultery,” which of course are sins. Job spoke of making a covenant with his eyes regarding the desire for illegitimate pleasure (Job.31:1). Jesus ratifies the importance of Job’s statement in Matthew 5:28, where He equates looking upon a woman with lust as the functional equivalent of adultery, saying that one “has committed adultery with her in his heart.” Job goes on further to describe God’s knowledge and judgment of him and speaks of the potential for failure, using the word, “if my heart followed my eyes” (Job.31:7). The psalmist echoes a similar sentiment in his statement of Psalm.119:37, in which he says, “Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity.” Solomon described his futile search for pleasure by saying, “All that my eyes desired I did not refuse them” (Eccl.2:10a). David’s sin of adultery and murder can be traced to his having seen a very beautiful woman, Bathsheba (2 Sam.11:2). His desire for her (the lust of the eyes) was totally wrong, inasmuch as she was the wife of Uriah (2 Sam.11:3). The result of David’s failure with regard to the “lust of the eyes” led him from the sin of “mental adultery” to the actual sin of adultery, deception, and murder (2 Sam.11:427). David’s past and future spiritual greatness notwithstanding, his life was never the same (2 Sam.12:10-13). Solomon tells us that the eyes of man are never satisfied, which truth reflects the sinfulness of man in his fallen state (under the dominion of the sin nature and the Satanic world system) apart from God (Prov.27:20; Eccl.1:8; 4:8). 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 59 The contrasts to Solomon’s observations of man’s fallen nature are the promises of Scripture that speak of contentment and acceptance of the believers who accept God’s provision for their needs. We see this in that: (1) God satisfies the thirsty soul (Psa.107:9). (2) God satisfies the desire of every living thing and “keeps those who love Him” (Psa.145:15-21). (3) God provides satisfaction of one’s physical needs, including sexual intimacy (Prov.5:19). (4) Giving of yourself to others in need enables God to become the believer’s source of genuine provision and satisfaction (Isa.58:10-11). Paul experienced the fulfilling beauty of contentment in his life (2 Cor.12:10; Phil.4:11; 1 Tim.6:6,8) and the writer of Hebrews urges his recipients to have a life of contentment (Heb.13:5). Satan and his angels use these various animate and inanimate objects in his world system to appeal to the indwelling old Adamic sin nature of the believer. This sin nature is selfish and self-centered and opposed to God. Like the devil and his angels, the sin nature always seeks to tempt the believer to live independently of God. Thus, these objects become temptations for the believer. A “temptation” is something that entices someone to usually do something that is evil. To tempt is to induce or persuade by enticement as to do something unwise, wrong, to attract by holding out the probability of gratification or advantage, often in the direction of that which is wrong or unwise. The concept of temptation is synonymous with the concept of seduction. To seduce is literally to lead astray, sometimes from that which absorbs one or demands attention. Adam and the Woman both received a sin nature the moment they disobeyed the Lord. This sin nature can never obey God and is imputed to everyone that comes into the world according to Romans 5:12-19. Therefore, the cosmic system is a society composed of individuals who have sin natures that can never obey God and are under the deception of the devil. The temptations of Satan’s cosmic system appeal to the fallen nature of man. The cosmic system is an organization and system composed of human beings who are enslaved to the sin nature and these temptations appeal to the sin nature. The steps leading to Adam and his wife disobeying the Lord by eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil are described in Genesis 3:6, which correspond to the description given by the apostle John in 1 John 2:15-16. In the Garden of Eden, Satan appealed to Eve’s body through her appetite, which is indicated by the text of Genesis 3:6 which says that she “saw that the tree was good for food.” He also appealed to her sight in order to deceive her into disobeying God and eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen. 3). Though she at that time did not yet have a sin nature, Satan nonetheless appeal to the beauty of this tree to deceive her into disobeying God. This is made clear by the text of Genesis 3:6 which says that Eve “saw that the tree was good for food, and that it 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 60 was a delight to the eyes.” Furthermore, Satan appealed to her pride which is also indicated by the text of Genesis 3:6 which says that she saw “that the tree was to be desired to make one wise.” In 1 John 2:16, John then presents the result of a person lusting after the various inanimate and animate objects in the cosmic system of Satan, namely it results in the arrogance produced by material possessions. Arrogance is a mental attitude sin which expresses itself in living independently of God. An arrogant person defines themselves in terms of whatever status symbol is important to them or which seems to define their identity, whether it be their family, wife, children, an expensive home, car, his reputation, how many degrees they have, lifestyle or their salary. A person possessing this quality is arrogant possessing pretentious pride. An arrogant person makes unwarrantable claims to superior importance or has an exaggerated sense of self-importance. Someone who is pretentious claims or demands distinction or merit especially when unjustified. They are extravagantly ostentatious meaning they make a pretentious display of themselves or things they possess in order to impress others. A person who boasts about what they possess in order to impress others has a distorted view of reality since everything that they possess ultimately originates from God who created the time, matter and space continuum. They are the type of person who will boast about how much money they give to the poor. This type of person boasts about their lifestyle and social status. They think they have enough wealth and property to protect themselves and ensure their security and thus has no need for God. Therefore, in 1 John 2:16, the apostle John presents the second reason why the recipients of this epistle must continue making it their habit of obeying the two prohibitions which he issued them in 1 John 2:15. They must obey these prohibitions because each and every one of the things in this world, namely the sin nature lusting through the function of a person’s eyesight resulting in the arrogance produced by material possessions is unequivocally not originating from the Father. On the contrary, each of these things originate from the devil’s world. A comparison of verses 15 and 16 reveals that the recipients of this epistle must continue making it their habit of obeying these two prohibitions because first it does not constitute love for the Father. Secondly, lust for these objects does not originate from the Father but from the cosmic system of Satan. Notice that John equates loving the things in the world with lusting after them. Also, notice that verse 16 advances upon verse 15. The latter emphasizes the continued rejection of the world system of Satan which is opposed to God. It also emphasizes the continued rejection of the various animate and inanimate objects which Satan’s world system employs to seduce people away from worshipping God 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 61 and commit idolatry. However, the former emphasizes the continued rejection of the godless attitude of this world system which places more value on material possessions than obeying God and worshipping Him. Thus, the advancement is that John goes from warning about loving the world system and the various objects in it to warning them to not adopt the attitude of this world system which places more value on the objects of this world than worshipping God. In other words, those deceived by sin and Satan are in love with the blessings from God rather than God Himself. John is teaching in verse 16 that Satan appeals to the lusts of their sin nature by attempting to seduce them with the attractiveness and beauty of the various animate and inanimate objects of the devil’s world. When the believer is deceived by this Satanic seduction and have obeyed the lusts of their sin nature, they adopt an arrogant attitude which is the product of material possessions. Thus, John is warning against godless materialism and the arrogance which this produces in a person. He is also warning against sexual lust and lust for money and all types of covetousness which are the result of obeying the lusts of the sin nature. All of these types of lust produce arrogance in a person which is related to what they possess in life. Therefore, what John is teaching in 1 John 2:15-16 is that loving the cosmic system of Satan and its objects by lusting after material possessions which results in arrogance is antithetical to loving God. They are mutually exclusive. Loving the cosmic system and its objects by lusting after material possessions not only produces arrogance in them but simultaneously will draw them away from obeying and worshipping God. Thus, love for the cosmic system of Satan and love for God can never as an eternal spiritual truth or spiritual axiom co-exist. Consequently, the believer who loves the cosmic system is not experiencing fellowship with God. In fact, they are involved in evil which in its root essence is living one’s life independently from God (cf. Is. 14:12-14). They are also living in the darkness meaning that they are living according to the standards of Satan’s cosmic system. First John 2:17 1 John 2:17 Furthermore, this world is passing away along with its lust. However, the one who at any time does God’s will is living with reference to that which is eternal. (Author’s translation) 1 John 2:17 presents the third and final reason why the recipients of this epistle must continue to make it their habit of obeying the two prohibitions which the apostle John issued them in 1 John 2:15. The first required that they not love the world, which is a reference to the cosmic system of Satan. The second required that they not love the things of this system. This is a reference to the various animate and inanimate objects which the devil and his angels employ to appeal to the indwelling 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 62 Adamic sin nature of people so as to get them to commit idolatry rather than worship God. The first reason why the recipients of this epistle must continue making it their habit of obeying the two prohibitions which the apostle John issues them in 1 John 2:15 is presented at the end of this verse in the form of a fifth class conditional statement. It teaches that if anyone does at any time love this world system of Satan, then the love for the Father is, as an eternal spiritual truth unequivocally not existing in them. The second reason is presented by John in 1 John 2:16 which asserts that each and every one of these things in Satan’s cosmic world system are, as an eternal spiritual truth not originating from the Father but rather from this world system of Satan. He identifies each of these things as being the flesh’s lust, a person’s lust and arrogance produced by material possessions. The second results from the first and the third results from the first and the second. The flesh’s lust is a reference to a person’s indwelling Adamic sin nature. Therefore, this indicates that the old sin nature’s lust after these various animate and inanimate objects in this world system of Satan results in a person’s lust after these objects which results in a person becoming arrogant as a result of these material possessions. Thus, John is speaking of a believer obeying these lusts of their sin nature which results in arrogance. Now, here in 1 John 2:17, the apostle John presents to the recipients of this epistle the third and final reason why they were to continue making it their habit of obeying the two prohibitions which he issues them in 1 John 2:15. They were to obey these prohibitions because this world system of Satan is, as an eternal spiritual truth passing away along with its lust for material possessions. What John is saying is that the people enslaved to Satan and their sin nature are passing away along with their lusts for material possessions. He then teaches that in contrast to those enslaved to Satan and the sin nature, the believer who at any time does the Father’s will is, an eternal spiritual truth living with reference to that which is eternal. The reference to the eternal is a reference to experiencing fellowship with God which is in essence experiencing eternal life. In 1 John 2:8, the apostle John presents the reason why Satan’s cosmic system and reign over the earth is coming to an end. 1 John 2:8 But from a different perspective, I am providing information in writing at this particular time for the benefit of each one of you regarding a new command, which is true in Him as well as in each one of you, because the darkness is being made to pass away while the true light is already shining. (Author’s translation) This verse reveals that the reason why the cosmic system of Satan is passing out of existence from the earth is that the command to love one another is an historical 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 63 fact in the life of Jesus Christ and the lives of the member of His church who are obeying His command to love one another. Therefore, the will of the Father here in 1 John 2:17 is a reference to obeying the Lord Jesus Christ’s Spirit inspired command recorded in John 13:34 to love one another as He loves the believer. This is indicated by John’s assertion in 1 John 2:8. This verse teaches that the cosmic system of Satan is passing out of existence from the earth because the command to love one another is an historical fact in the life of Jesus Christ and the lives of the member of His church who are obeying His command to love one another. Therefore, the will of God in 1 John 2:17 refers to obeying the command to love one another since 1 John 2:8 teaches that obedience to this command is the reason why this world system of Satan is passing away. John is not teaching that one’s obedience results in receiving eternal life and living with God forever. In other words, he is not referring to justification but rather the believer experiencing their sanctification after justification. The Lord Jesus Christ, and His apostles including John taught that justification is through faith alone in Jesus Christ (John 3:16-18, 36; Rom. 3:21-30; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9) and not by obedience. A sinner can never obey God until they receive the capacity to do so and they receive this capacity at the moment of justification when they receive the indwelling of the Spirit. When a person possesses the Spirit, they now have the capacity to obey God. Therefore, in 1 John 2:17, the fact that John is speaking of obedience to the will of God rather than faith in the Lord Jesus Christ indicates that he must be referring to the believer experiencing their sanctification and fellowship with God after justification as a result of obeying the will of the Father. Specifically, they experience fellowship with God and sanctification as a result of obeying the command to love one another. This justification results in receiving the gift of eternal life, which is first experienced by the sinner the moment they receive this gift. However, when they sin, they lose this experience. However, they gain it back again through confessing their sins (1 John 1:9) to be restored to fellowship. They maintain that fellowship by obeying the will of the Father, which is revealed by the Spirit through the various commands and prohibitions in the Word of God. The command to love one another summarizes all the commands and prohibitions in Scripture related to the believer’s relationship to their fellow believer. Therefore, in 1 John 2:17, the apostle John is presenting a contrast between those who love the cosmic system of Satan and material possessions and those who love their fellow believer and thus love God who is the author of the command to love one another since, as to His nature, God is love. Those who love the cosmic system by lusting after material possessions are not experiencing fellowship with God and 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 64 thus eternal life while on the other hand, the one who is obeying the command to love one another is. Thus, the warning contained in 1 John 2:15-17 for the recipients of this epistle who were Christians located in the Roman province of Asia is that if you love the cosmic system of Satan and material possessions, you will not experience fellowship with God and thus eternal life. The encouragement in these verses is that they will experience eternal life and fellowship with God by obeying His will which is accomplished by obeying the command to love one another. The Church’s Relationship to Satan’s Kingdom The church age believer has three great enemies according to the Scriptures: (1) Satan, our chief adversary, the devil: (1 Peter 5:8-9; Ephesians 6:12; John 16:11; Colossians 2:15; but note 1 John 2:13-14). (2) The world, a system and arrangement of the affairs of the human and government under the control of the evil one and opposed to God and His purposes for the human race (John 16:33; 1 John 5:4; Ephesians 2:2). (3) Indwelling Adamic sin nature or the flesh and all its corrupting power and life-dominating patterns: (Rom. 7:15; 8:4-8, 13; Gal. 5:16-26). The intelligence apparatus of a nation plays a vital part in modern warfare. Unless the church knows who its enemy is, where he is, and what he can do, they will have a difficult time defeating him. The leader of the church’s great invisible enemy is of course Satan whose name means, “adversary” because he is the enemy of God. He is compared to “lion” in 1 Peter 5:8 and described as a serpent (Genesis 3:1; Revelation 12:9), an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:13-15), and the “god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4). The Christian is not to be ignorant of his schemes and devices (2 Corinthians 2:11). The cosmos, composed of the stellar universe (second heaven), the earth and its atmosphere (first heaven) serve as the theater of military operations for the angelic conflict pitting the kingdom of God against the kingdom of Satan which are described in Scripture as light and darkness, respectively. The voluntary substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths of Jesus Christ at the cross 2000 years was a great strategic victory over Satan in the angelic conflict (John 12:31; 16:8-11; Colossians 2:15; Hebrews 2:14). Our Lord’s strategic victory has paved the way for other tactical victories by church age believers. Church age believers are involved in spiritual warfare with the kingdom of darkness (Ephesians 6:12-16; Philippians 1:27-30). They are described as a “soldier” in Scripture (1 Corinthians 9:7; Philippians 2:25; 2 Timothy 3-4). The church age is the intensive stage of the angelic conflict. God has provided the believer the means to fight in this intensive stage of the angelic conflict. Satan and the kingdom of darkness would easily destroy the believer if the believer were 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 65 left to their own devices using their own human power. God has provided the believer the power to overcome their spiritual adversary, Satan and the kingdom of darkness through obedience to the Father’s will, which is revealed by the Holy Spirit through the communication of the Word of God (1 John 4:4). The kingdom of darkness will employ fear and intimidation tactics to get the believer to go AWOL (Absent without Official Leave) from the plan of God (Philippians 1:28; Hebrews 2:15; 1 Peter 5:1-9). Fear is a contradiction to the believer’s spiritual life, which is a lifestyle of power, love and discipline (2 Timothy 1:7). Occupation with Christ is the greatest weapon that a church age believer can employ when entering into offensive action (Colossians 3:1-4; Hebrews 12:2-3). The believer who is occupied with Christ is appropriating by faith their union with Christ, which is revealed by the Holy Spirit in the pages of Scripture. The intimidation tactics launched by the kingdom of darkness through unregenerate humanity and unfaithful believers are rendered inoperative when the believer goes on the offensive by utilizing the Word of God and appropriating by faith their union with Christ for defensive purposes. In the same way that light overcomes darkness in the natural realm, the divine omnipotence of the Spirit and the Word overcomes Satan and his invisible army. All precedence for glorifying God the Father during the church age is derived from the dispensation of the hypostatic union since the church age is the extension of the dispensation of the hypostatic union. The believer who is obedient to the Father’s will as the humanity of Christ in hypostatic union was will achieve tactical victory over Satan and the kingdom of darkness in the angelic conflict. The believer who appropriates by faith their union with Christ will experience victory in spiritual combat. The believer is to fight “from” victory and not “for” victory since Christ has already gained the victory. The soldier of Christ Jesus who achieves the objective of executing the plan of God appears as a luminary or a light in the cosmic system of Satan exposing his deceitful schemes and defeating him in his own territory (Philippians 2:15). Location of the Enemy The base of operations and activities of the kingdom of darkness is located in the earth’s atmosphere. The fact that they reside in the earth’s atmosphere is implied by the Hebrew text of Genesis 1:6-8 where the second day of restoration is not identified by the Lord as tov, “perfect, good.” A comparison of Scripture with this passage indicates that the reason why the Lord did not call it tov was because the kingdom of darkness, the fallen angels reside in the earth’s atmosphere. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 66 Genesis 1:1 In eternity past, God created out of nothing the heavens and the earth. However, the earth became an empty desolation, and darkness was upon the surface of the raging ocean depths. 2 Now, the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. 3 And then, God commanded, “let there be light,’ and so, there was light.” 4 And then, God observed that in essence the light was perfect, God then caused a division between the light and the darkness. 5 And then, concerning the light, God designated the name day but concerning the darkness, He designated the name night and so it was evening and so it was morning, the first day. 6 Next, God commanded, “let there be an atmosphere in the middle of the waters, and let it be a cause of division between waters from waters.” 7 Consequently, God having restored the atmosphere and thus having caused a division between the waters, which were below the atmosphere and the waters, which were above the atmosphere, thus it came to pass as previously described. 8 And then, concerning the atmosphere, God designated the name “heavens,” and so it was evening and so it was morning, the second day. (Author’s translation) In Genesis 1:3-5, Moses under the inspiration of God the Holy Spirit records for us the first day of restoration where the Spirit under the direction of the pre-incarnate Christ restored light to planet earth. Upon the restoration of light, the Lord pronounced it tov, “good.” But He does not say this after the second day of restoration, which is recorded in Genesis 1:6-8. The reason for this omission is that Satan and the fallen angels inhabit the earth’s atmosphere. Ephesians 2:1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. (NASB95) The base of operations of the fallen angels and their activities take place in the earth’s atmosphere. In the 21st century there is a lot of misinformation regarding the nature of angels and their activities. This is to be expected since we do live in the devil’s world. He has been from the beginning and continues to deceive the entire world regarding his existence, and the nature of himself and his objectives for becoming like the Most High. Fallen Angels The only place where we can find the truth about the angels and concerning Satan himself is the infallible Word of God. The Bible teaches that angels are temporarily superior to mankind (Hebrews 2). In terms of power and ability, the present angelic superiority to mankind is obvious in every passage of scripture in which they are described. This current angelic superiority significantly also extends to the area of 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 67 longevity. While mankind is enjoying a sequential residence on earth (generation following generation), angelic kind has been experiencing a continuum of existence in heaven, even before the creation of Man. This longevity, combined with the fact that angels (though creatures like Man) are not subject to the same degree to the restraints and necessities of time and space that encumber mankind, undoubtedly contributes to their superior knowledge and wisdom as well. By its very essence, therefore, the angelic nature is superior to our present earthly human nature in terms of appearance, intellect, power, mobility and authority (2 Peter 2:11). Angels will ultimately be inferior to mankind. Angels will not always be superior to mankind. Just as our Lord’s humanity in a resurrection body is superior to angels in every way (Heb.1:4-2:18), so also, we are destined to share that superiority with Him in our resurrection body (1 Corinthians 6:3; Heb.2:5). Angels are acutely aware of and involved in human affairs. The involvement of angelic beings in human affairs is part and parcel of their role in promoting (or, in the case of the fallen angels, opposing) God's plan for human history. On a more personal level, however, angels are also apparently extremely interested in observing human behavior in general and in the playing out of God’s plan (1Timothy 3:16; 5:21; 1 Peter 1:10-12). The observation of human behavior is particularly true in the case of the Son of Man, our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Timothy 3:16 By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness: He who was revealed in the flesh, was vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (NASB95) They were present at His birth (Lk. 2:13-14), temptation (Matt.4:11), resurrection (Lk. 24:4), ascension (Acts 1:10-11), and will be at His return (2 Thes.1:7), evidence which underscores angelic interest in the most crucial phase of God's plan, namely the life and work of the Messiah. By observation, angels are learning (to their joy in the case of the elect angels, to their sorrow in the case of the fallen angels) about the wisdom, the power, the grace and the mercy of God (cf. Lk.15:10; 1Corinthians 4:9; 11:10). Angels should neither be worshiped nor disrespected. In any discussion of angels, it is important to keep in mind both their present superiority and their eventual subordination to us. Angels are not to be disrespected (Lk.10:20; 1 Peter 2:10-12; Jude 8-10; cf. Rom.13:7), but neither angels are to be worshiped (Revelation19:10; 22:9; cf. 2 Kng.17:16; Jer.19:13; Colossians 2:18). This is especially important in regard to fallen angels. God counterbalances their evil efforts with the work and ministrations of His holy, elect angels. Therefore, although we are to have a healthy respect for the 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 68 Adversary and his potential to oppose us (2 Corinthians 2:11; Ephesians 6:11; 1 Peter 5:8), we are not to be unduly terrified by him and his minions. While we are to have an awareness and appreciation for the positive function of the elect angels on our behalf, we are not to be inordinately fixated upon them (especially since both their persons and their work are invisible to us). In neither case should we “go beyond what is written” in the Bible about angels, whether through excessive fear of Satanic influence or an exorbitant fascination with the ministrations of the holy angels. The service performed by the elect-angels can be summarized as follows: (1) Worship of God (Isa. 6:3; Revelation 4:8). (2) Messengers of God (Dan. 9:22; Lk. 1:11, 26; 2:9; Revelation 1:1). (3) Soldiers in spiritual combat (Dan. 10:13f; Revelation 12:7). Angels: (1) Protect (2) Provide (3) Proclaim the Word of God (4) Execute God’s Judgments. As God’s servants who are dispatched from the throne room of heaven to execute God’s purposes, we may observe that the ministry of the elect-angels falls into several categories. In Relation to God the elect-angels perform the following services: (1) Attendants around the throne of God and are waiting to serve Him and do His bidding (Ps. 103:20; Isa. 6:1f; Job 1:6; 2:1; Revelation 5:11; 8:1f). (2) Worshippers in praise of Him (Isa. 6:3; Ps. 148:1-2; Hebrews 1:6; Revelation 5:12). (3) Observers who rejoice over what the Lord does (Job 38:6-7; Luke 2:12-13; 15:10), Soldiers in battle with Satan (Revelation 12:7). (4) Instruments used by the God to execute judgments (Revelation 7:1; 8:2). In Relation to the Nations, the elect-angels and non-elect angels perform the following services: (1) Michael, the archangel, is the guardian of the nation of Israel (Dan. 10:13, 21; 12:1; Jude 9). (2) The non-elect angels rule over the Gentile nations (Dan. 4:17; Ephesians 6:11-16) and seek to influence their human leaders (Dan. 10:21; 11:1). (3) In the Tribulation, the elect-angels will be the agents God uses to pour out His judgments (see Revelation 8-9 and 16). In Relation to Christ, the elect-angels perform the following services: (1) They prophesied of the birth of Christ (Matt. 1:20; Luke 1:26-28). (2) They announced his birth (Luke 2:8-15). (3) An angel warned Joseph to take Mary and the baby Jesus and flee into Egypt (Matt. 2:13-15), and an angel directed the family to return to Israel after Herod died (vv. 19-21). In relation to His suffering, the elect-angels performed the following services: (1) They ministered to the Lord after His temptation (Matt. 4:11). (2) They administered to the Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:43), and Jesus said He could have called a legion of angels who stood ready to come to His defense if He so desired (Matt. 26:53). 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 69 In relation to His resurrection, the elect-angels performed the following services: (1) An angel rolled away the stone from the tomb (28:1-2). (2) Angels announced His resurrection to the women on the Resurrection morning (vv. 5-6; Luke 24:5-7). (3) Angels were present at His ascension and gave instruction to the disciples (Acts 1:10-11). In relation to His coming again, the elect-angels perform the following services: (1) The voice of the archangel will be heard at the rapture of the church (1 Thess. 4:16). (2) They will accompany Him in His glorious return to earth (Matt. 25:31; 2 Thess. 1:7). (3) They will separate the wheat from the tares at Christ’s second coming (Matt. 13:39-40). In Relation to the unbeliever, the elect-angels will perform the following: (1) Angels not only announce but will inflict judgment (Genesis 19:13; Revelation 14:67; Acts 12:23; Revelation 16:1). (2) They will separate the righteous from the unrighteous at the 2nd Advent (Matt. 13:39-40). In Relation to the Church: Hebrews 1:14 describes ministry of the elect-angels “servant-spirits who are divinely commissioned and repeatedly dispatched for service on behalf of those who are destined to inherit salvation.” In this, however, Scripture points to a number of specific ministries: (1) The elect-angels bring answers to prayer (Acts 12:5-10). (2) They help in bringing people to the Savior (Acts 8:26; 10:3). (3) They may encourage in times of danger (Acts 27:23-24). (4) They care for God’s people at the time of death (Luke 16:22). In Relation to the introduction of a new dispensation, angels are actively involved when God institutes a new epoch in history: (1) They Joined in Praise When the Earth Was Created (Job 38:6-7) (2) They Were Involved in the Giving of the Mosaic Law (Gal. 3:19; Hebrews2:2) (3) They Were Active at the First Advent of Christ (Matt. 1:20; 4:11) (4) They Were Active During the Early Years of the Church (Acts 8:26; 10:3, 7; 12:11) (5) They Will Be Involved in Events Surrounding the Second Advent of Christ (Matt. 25:31; 1 Thes. 4:1). Enemy Territory The believer is living in enemy territory, which is the cosmic system of Satan. Satan runs this world and deceives it. 1 John 5:19 We know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. (NASB95) Revelation 12:9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. (NASB95) In his temptation of Christ, Satan declared, “I will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish” (Luke 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 70 4:5). Of course, God is sovereign and omnipotent, but in accord with God’s eternal purposes, the Bible does teach us that this present world is Satan’s domain and under his authority. Thus, the Lord frequently spoke of Satan as the ruler of this world (kosmos) (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11), and Paul likewise asserts the same truth (2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesians 2:2; 6:12; 1 John 5:19). The nature of Satan’s aims in the world are quickly evident in his first appearance in the Garden of Eden when he tempted the Woman to act independently of God that she might become like God knowing good and evil. He appeals to what is pleasant to the senses and desirable to gain wisdom, but always, the goal is a life that seeks to get by “without” God. Satan’s aim is to create a world system that rivals God’s kingdom, but which leaves Him out. His aim is to promote a counterfeit world order. Basically, the cosmos is evil because it is independent of God. It may contain good aspects as well as overtly evil aspects, but its inherent evil lies in its being independent of God and a rival to Him. This sharp rivalry surfaces in such verses as James 1:27 where the believer is told to keep himself unstained from the world; in 4:4 where friendship with the world is said to be hostility toward God; and in 1 John 2:16 where John declares that all that is in the world is not from the Father. The devil’s world will never be healed; the devil’s system will never be successful in bringing in perfect environment apart from God. Indeed, Satan’s kosmos appears to have the betterment of humanity as a prime objective, in order to further the devil's plans of enslaving and misleading as many people as possible. While masquerading as a kingdom of light, Satan's world is entirely a kingdom of darkness, and so the scriptures describe it, making abundantly clear the distinction between God's world to come and the present cosmos of evil. Satan has incorporated into his system of world rulership as many material distractions as possible. Affluence, the increase and spread of wealth, communication and technology are factors, which, from one point of view, are very beneficial to the devil's control of mankind. Fear is a major element in Satan's manipulation of humanity, and to the extent that men enjoy and rely on such things for their happiness and security, to that degree the fear of losing them produces a sort of bondage which the devil is quick to exploit (cf. Hebrews 2:14–15 for the principle). In order to prevent our enslavement to the delights of this world (as well as to its necessities), an area Satan knows only too well how to manipulate against us, we need to have a full and sober appreciation of what the world really is. The church age believer needs to be very aware of the world’s essential vanity and of the pointlessness of its distractions and diversions. We need to be able to keep the pressures and exigencies of life (as well as its pleasures and delights) in proper 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 71 perspective. God is important. Knowing Him and serving Him is why we are here. Everything else is mere context. The believer is neither asked nor commanded to get through life without taking any joy or pleasure in worldly things and we certainly will not pass through the human experience without worldly pressure and problems (especially as Christians). But it is all these largely extraneous matters, which we must compartmentalize, and not God. The believer dare not put God “in a box,” giving priority to everything the world sees as important (but which from the Christian point of view is ultimately inconsequential), and neglecting the One who made them, who bought them, and whom they claim is their Master. Whenever they allow the “things” of life to grow high, and fail to tend their faith, they endanger their spiritual growth. Ironically, believers have a tendency to do better spiritually in times of severe testing than in times of prosperity (cf. Deut.8:10-20). Prosperity can be very dangerous and destructive to a believer’s spiritual growth. In these last days, it is especially important for Christians to avoid a pair of assumptions, which are equally dangerous: (1) Affluence is a sign that God is blessing us, and therefore, if we are wealthy, that we must be doing just fine in our spiritual lives. (2) Result of spiritual growth and a prosperous relationship with God is material wealth (i.e., the “prosperity gospel”). In fact, the opposite effect is certainly not without precedent, that is, the spiritually mature encountering greater testing on this score (e.g., consider Job's trials, or Elijah's privation). Morbid over-emphasis on material prosperity has always been an occupational hazard of the human race in general, and the closer we come to the end of history, the more we can expect this issue to grow as a threat to Christian spiritual growth. During this last era of the Church, the Laodicean era, there is destined to be an ever increasing tendency toward equating wealth and affluence with spiritual success (Revelation3:14-22). Untroubled lives of ease in the midst of abundance are neither the norm nor the objective of the Christian life. The closer the believer walks with God, the more they can expect that walk to be opposed by Satan and his angels. Another word that sometimes refers to this world system is the Greek aion, “age, period of time.” This word seems to serve as a synonym in certain contexts. It is used in some contexts of the age in which we live as marked by certain spiritual and moral characteristics as affected by Satan whom Paul identifies as “the god of this age.” A very interesting use occurs in Ephesians 2:2 where Paul combines both aion and kosmos, “the course (age) of the world (cosmos). This age is often contrasted in Scripture with the age to come because of the very different characteristics and conditions of the two ages (Ephesians 1:21; Matt. 12:32; 13:22; 1 Timothy 6:17; Tit. 2:12-13; Hebrews6:5). 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 72 Trench defines aion: “All that floating mass of thoughts, opinions, maxims, speculations, hopes, impulses, aims, aspirations, at any time current in the world, which it may be impossible to seize and accurately define, But which constitutes a most real and effective power, being the moral, or immoral atmosphere which at every moment of our lives we inhale, again inevitably to exhale, all this is included in the aion, which is, as Bengel has expressed it, ‘the subtle informing spirit of the kosmos, or world of men who are living alienated and apart from God.’” The world, then, instead of remaining a beautiful expression of God’s will and creative power as seen under the conditions of its creation, has becomes the seat of an angelic conflict and the very rival and antithesis of the plan of God. Proper Christian Conduct So therefore, the believer is in enemy territory and is under siege from the kingdom of darkness. This world system of Satan is against the Lord Jesus Christ and His church, which is His body and future. The church is not to love the world because their citizenship is heaven. The citizens of the cosmic system of Satan hate the citizens of heaven. Satan and his cosmic system persecuted the Lord Jesus and have and will continue to persecute the church as well (John 15:18-25). There are many passages in the New Testament, which address the believer’s attitude and conduct to this present cosmic system of Satan (Ephesians 4:17-5:2; Philippians 1:27-30; 2:14-17; James 1:27). Galatians 6:14 But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. (NASB95) Romans 12:1 Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. 2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (NASB95) The fact that the church is not to love this world does not mean they are to withdraw from society and live in a monastery but rather God has separated the church from the world in order that she might manifest His Son to a lost and dying world through their words and actions. God’s purpose of conforming the church age believer to the image of Christ is not accomplished by withdrawing to a monastery. They are not to conform their thinking to the world’s thinking but rather their thinking is to be conformed to Christ’s thinking (2 Corinthians 10:3-6). As He conforms them into the image of His 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 73 Son, God permits the church to use that which the world has devised, but they are to use it in service for the Lord Jesus Christ. Believers can and should use the world’s means of communication, such as radio, television, movies and the Internet in order to propagate the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are in the world as servants of Christ. They are here to manifest His glory and to reveal the knowledge of God. They don’t do this by conforming to the world, and not by loving the things that are in the world, but by being conformed to Jesus Christ and by loving Him with singleness of purpose, by being dedicated and devoted to Him. She is not to “sell out” to the world and play by its rules but rather she is to walk in conformity with Christ. Sooner or later, every Christian discovers that the Christian life is a battleground and not a playground that they are up against an enemy that is much more powerful and smarter than he is. So, the church age believer is involved in spiritual warfare with the kingdom of darkness (Ephesians 6:12-16). He is described as a “soldier” in Scripture (1 Corinthians 9:7; Philippians 2:25; 2 Timothy 3-4). The church age is the intensive stage of the angelic conflict. The believer can glorify God in this angelic conflict by becoming an invisible hero with an invisible impact on human and angelic history. The believer is being conformed to the image of Christ by conforming his thoughts, words and actions to Christ by means of the Spirit will have an invisible impact in five categories: (1) Personal: Your own periphery. (2) National: The Pivot. (3) International: Blessing by association through a mature missionary. (4) Angelic: Witness for the Prosecution in the Rebuttal Phase of Satan’s Appeal Trial. (5) Heritage: Children of a mature believer are blessed after the believer dies. Invisible Heroes are described as the “salt of the earth” (Matt. 5:13). They are the “lights of the world” (Matt. 5:14). Invisible Heroes are like a “city on a hill” (Matt. 5:14). In relation to the church, the non-elect angels are warring against the church (Ephesians 6:10-19). As we noted, Satan runs this world and deceives it. God has provided the believer the means to fight in this intensive stage of the angelic conflict. Satan and the kingdom of darkness would easily destroy the believer if he were left to his own devices using his own human power. The Lord has given the believer spiritual armor (Ephesians 6:11, 14-17), and spiritual weapons to fight this spiritual warfare (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). The same power that the humanity of Christ used to achieve the strategic victory in the angelic conflict has now been made available to the believer in the Church Age: (1) Word (2) Spirit. The battleground for this spiritual warfare is in the believer’s soul (Rom. 7:23; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Gal. 5:17). God has provided the believer the power to overcome his spiritual adversary, Satan and the kingdom of darkness (1 John 4:4). Never before 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 74 in history has so much power been made available to believers. This is because we live in the intensified stage of the angelic conflict and the church age believer is the enemy of the kingdom of darkness (John 15:18-19). There is no excuse for any believer to become a permanent casualty in this war. The believer who goes AWOL (Absent without official leave) and succumbs to fear, worry and does not take advantage of knowing that God will support him through logistical grace in times of adversity will become a spiritual casualty in this spiritual warfare. This is why we receive the following prohibitions and commands in the Scripture: Philippians 4:6 At this very moment, all of you stop continuing to be anxious about absolutely anything, but rather, concerning anything at all by means of reverential prayer in the presence of the Father and by means of petition accompanied by the giving of thanks, let your specific detailed requests be repeatedly made known in the presence of the Father. 7 And as a result the peace produced by God the Holy Spirit, which is always superior to any and every human conception, will as a dogmatic statement of fact cause your hearts to be protected and as a result your thoughts by means of the doctrine of Christ Jesus. (Author’s translation) 1 Peter 5:6 Make it your top priority and permit yourselves to be humbled under the mighty hand of God the Father in order that He may promote you at the proper time by casting all your anxiety upon Him because as for Him He cares about you. (Author’s translation) Ephesians 6:10-19 The apostle Paul employs a military analogy in Ephesians 6 in order to describe the believer’s defense and offense when engaging this invisible enemy. That Paul would use such an illustration is reasonable since Paul was chained to a Roman soldier when he wrote Ephesians 6. Ephesians 6:19 and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak. (NASB95) In Ephesians 6:10-17, the apostle Paul teaches the Ephesian believers how to deal with their invisible enemy by commanding them to put on the full armor of God and he describes it for them. Ephesians 6:14-17 lists 5 items that compose “the full armor of God”: (1) Ephesians 6:14a: “Belt of truth.” (2) Ephesians 6:14b: “Breastplate, which is (Christ’s) righteousness.” (3) Ephesians 6:15: “Combat boots, namely, the 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 75 Gospel.” (4) Ephesians 6:16: “Shield, which is your faith.” (5) Ephesians 6:17a: “Your helmet, which is your salvation.” Ephesians 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. (NASB95) “Be strong” is the verb endunamoo, which means, “to be empowered” and refers to the dynamic spiritual power that is available to every believer who is obedient to the Word of God, which is alive and powerful. “In the Lord” contains a figure of speech called the metonymy of the cause where the cause is put for the effect meaning that we have the person of the Lord put here for His doctrine or word. The prepositional phrase “in the Lord” should be translated “by means of the (Word of) Lord” since the context is not emphasizing the “sphere” in which the believer is to be empowered but rather the “means by which” the Ephesian believers were to empower themselves against the enemy. The application of the Word of the Lord is “the means” by which the believer is to empower themselves in order to achieve victory in spiritual combat with their invisible enemy. Hebrews 4:12 The Word of God is alive and powerful, sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of the soul and the spirit, and of the joints and the marrow, and is a critic of thoughts and intents of the heart. (NASB95) God’s power to overcome Satan and his angels is available to all of us as believers in the form of the Word of God. The specific doctrine in the Word of God that we as Christian soldiers need to take possession of by faith is our union and identification with Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session. “Strength” is the noun kratos, which means, “manifested power” and refers to the inherent omnipotence of God that has been “manifested” through the resurrection and session of the unique theanthropic person of the cosmos, the Lord Jesus Christ who achieved at the cross of Calvary the decisive victory in the angelic conflict. “Might” is the noun ischus which refers to “the possession of power to overcome” and is used in the context of a military analogy and denotes “the possession of Christ’s power to overcome” in spiritual combat with Satan and the kingdom of darkness. In Ephesians 6:10 the noun ischus refers to the 100% availability of divine omnipotence that has been made available to every church age believer because of their union with the Lord Jesus Christ that provides them “the power to overcome” their invisible enemy, namely Satan and the kingdom of darkness. Ephesians 6:11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. (NASB95) 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 76 Putting on the full armor of God refers to appropriating by faith your union with Christ, which is equivalent to putting on the nature of Christ. This is accomplished when we appropriate (meaning take possession of) by faith this union meaning we agree with what the Word of God says about us, namely, that we have been crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ at the Father’s right hand, far above all angelic power and authority. We are to appropriate for ourselves by faith in the Word of God, the victory that is ours through our identification and union with Christ in His death, burial, resurrection and session. We fight “from” victory and not “for” victory! “Schemes” is the noun methodeia which refers Satan’s “strategies, schemes and tactics” that he employs to make war against believers and destroy them. The principle stratagem of the devil is lies and deception (Genesis 3). Satan deceives and is the father of lies (Jn. 8:44). Ephesians 6:12, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (NASB95) “Rulers” is the noun arche and refers to the highest rank of angels in the Satanic order of battle and hold positions of authority (“thrones”) in the Satanic kingdom and are subordinate to only Satan himself. The Lord Jesus Christ created these “rulers” (Colossians 1:16) and He has defeated them through His death (Colossians 2:15). “Powers” is the Greek noun exousia, which refers to the rank of fallen angels who have been given by Satan “dominions” and are subordinate only to the arche, “rulers” and Satan himself. “World-forces” is the noun kosmokrator, which means “world-ruler” and expresses the power or authority, which the fallen angels exercise over the cosmic system. These angels are subordinate directly to the exousia, “authorities” and carry out their orders and are more than likely behind the miracles and other satanic demonstrations of power (cf. Revelation 13:13). “Spiritual forces” refers to the rank and file angels in Satan’s military. These rank and file angels are also known in Scripture by a variety of names such as: (1) “Demons” (Leviticus 17:7; Matthew 9:34). (2) “Evil spirits” (Lk. 7:21; Acts 19:13). (3) “Unclean spirits” (Matthew 10:1; Mk. 1:27). (4) “Devils” (Jn. 6:70). “In the heavenly places” designates the “location” of the base of operations and activities of these rank and file angels. Ephesians 6:13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. (NASB95) The evil day is not a particular point in history or judgment in history, nor is it referring to the Tribulation period. But rather from the divine perspective it is an 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 77 extended period of time in human history, which began with the Fall of Adam in the Garden of Eden and extends to the 2nd Advent of Christ when Satan will be imprisoned for a thousand years. Ephesians 5:15 Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. (NASB95) Ephesians 6:14 Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. (NASB95) “Having girded” is the verb perizonnumi, which means, “to fasten a belt around yourself and buckle it.” “Truth” is the noun aletheia, which is used in the objective sense for the Scriptures. Obeying the Word of truth is analogous to the Roman soldier fastening his belt around himself and which belt held the Roman’s soldiers armor together. “Having put on the breastplate of righteousness” refers to appropriating by faith the imputed, positional righteousness you received at the moment of justification. The Lord Jesus Christ is the believer’s righteousness (1 Corinthians 1:30). Ephesians 6:15 and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE. (NASB95) “Having shod” is the verb hupodesamenoi, which is used in the middle voice and in a figurative sense meaning, “to strap on your combat boots.” “Preparation” is the noun hetoimasia, which refers to the fact that the Gospel of peace provides a “firm foundation” for the soul of the Christian soldier. The noun eirene, “peace” is a genitive of product meaning peace for the believer is “produced” by the acceptance of the Gospel message to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for eternal salvation. In Ephesians 6:15, the foundation in the soul that the Gospel of peace provides the Christian soldier is analogous to the combat boots worn by the Roman military in combat. Ephesians 6:16 in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. (NASB95) “The shield of faith” refers to a heavy shield approximately 30 inches wide and 48 inches high, large enough for a soldier to crouch behind it. It is this large, protective door-shield that the apostle Paul had in mind when he told the Ephesian believers to take up for themselves the shield of faith, which would enable them to extinguish the fiery missiles of the kingdom of darkness. When the apostle Paul used this door-shield as a figure of the shield provided by God for the soldier of Christ Jesus, he was emphasizing the fact that the believer has full and complete protection from the enemy. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 78 “Faith” is the noun pistis, which is used in the active sense meaning “to trust, to have total and absolute confidence in God.” The shield of faith therefore, is “not” the objective body of truth, the content of the Christian faith meaning Christian doctrine, although that is the object of the believer’s faith after salvation, but rather it refers to the Christian soldier’s faith or total and absolute confidence in God’s faithfulness to His promises. Ephesians 6:17 And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (NASB95) When Paul speaks of salvation here in Ephesians 6:17, he is speaking of salvation in the sense of a three-fold deliverance from the believer’s three great enemies, namely, sin nature, cosmic system of Satan and Satan himself (cf. Ephesians 2:1-3). Salvation, like sanctification is accomplished in three stages: (1) Positional: The moment you believed in Christ you were delivered “positionally” (meaning God’s work and viewpoint of you as a believer) from spiritual death and eternal condemnation, the devil, his cosmic system and the sin nature through the death, resurrection and session of the Lord Jesus Christ. (2) Experiential: After salvation, you are delivered from the devil, his cosmic system and the sin nature “experientially” by appropriating by faith your union and identification with Christ in His death, burial, resurrection and session. (3) Ultimate: At the resurrection, you will be delivered “ultimately” and permanently from the devil, his cosmic system and the sin nature when you receive your resurrection body at the rapture of the church, which is imminent. If you notice, the armor is for the protection of the front of the individual and not the back and the reason for that is that God makes no provision for the believer in case of retreat! As J. Vernon McGee used to say, “A retreating Christian is certainly open season for the enemy; the enemy can get through to him.” In Ephesians 6:17, the apostle Paul issues the command to take up the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. The apostle Paul issued this command because of the eternal spiritual principle that applies even in the temporal realm: Victory or defeat is gained by the application of power and the withdrawal of the inferior force. When we apply the Word of God, which is alive and powerful, then Satan and his armies will withdraw because though powerful, their power is inferior to God’s Word. “Take” is the second person plural aorist (deponent) middle imperative form of the verb dechomai, which is dexasthe. In Ephesians 6:17, the verb dechomai means, “to take hold of” something that is intangible and in context, that is “the helmet of salvation” and “the sword of the Spirit.” The aorist imperative form of the verb dechomai in Ephesians 6:17 is a constative aorist imperative meaning that this is a solemn or categorical command, thus Paul is 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 79 saying to the Ephesian believers, “I solemnly charge all of you” to take hold of the helmet of the salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. “The sword” is the noun machaira, which refers to a “small sword” such as a dagger and is used in a figurative sense for the Word of God. The machaira was a short double-edged sword, which was developed by the Romans and enabled the Romans to dominate the world for over a thousand years. Before the machaira, swords in the ancient world were large and cumbersome. The machaira gave the Romans a distinct and decisive advantage in battle. They could make several short quick thrusts in hand-to-hand combat before the enemy could ever wield a stroke. The analogy that Paul is making here is this: Just as the enemies of Rome could not stand up to the Roman soldier’s short double-edged sword, so the kingdom of darkness cannot stand up to the Christian soldier’s double-edged sword, the Word of God. The machaira of the Roman soldier was the common sword carried by infantrymen and was the principal weapon in hand-to-hand combat and was carried in a sheath or scabbard attached to their belts and was always at hand and ready for use. The apostle Paul employs the noun machaira (Latin gladius) or short two-edged cut-and-thrust sword wielded by the heavily armed legionnaire rather than the rhomphaia or large Thracian broadsword since he is speaking in the context of spiritual combat, which is comparable to hand-to-hand combat in the temporal realm that the machaira was used for. The machaira revolutionized warfare in the ancient world just as the automatic rifle has. The largest and most impressive of the swords used in antiquity was the rhomphaia, the Thracian broadsword. Invented by the Thracians, the romphaia was a broadsword of considerable length-- never shorter than four feet and often up to six feet in length. This broadsword had one sharp cutting edge and was held by a double handle. It took a giant to use this thing, hence, it became the preferred weapon of the Thracians, the Gauls and the Germanic barbarians; all of whom were staunch enemies of Rome. One man would haul this out onto the battlefield and hand it over to the barbarian soldier, who would then just stand there with this huge sword and attempt to mow men down as they came at him. Because the romphaia’s rather unwieldy length and weight caught the barbarian temporarily off-balance after a stroke, precious moments were lost before he could regain his balance and combat effectiveness. It was in these moments that the soldier was vulnerable to the danger of the swift Roman machaira. As these two enemies faced off, the Romans would advance, the barbarians would begin to surge forward with these enormous weapons, and the Roman soldiers 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 80 would just back up and let the broadsword go by. Then they stepped in with their machaira’s, and they carved these barbarians to pieces. With the advance of the Roman Empire and its awesome military might, the ancients began to wonder, “How will the world ever survive the machaira?” Since Roman men averaged 5’8” and weighed usually less than 170 pounds, a six-foot sword simply would not do. So, they invented the machaira, which turned out to be the most ingenious implement of warfare in its day. The blade of this perfectly balanced weapon was usually only eighteen to twenty inches long; however, each one was matched to the man who wielded it. Its length was the distance from the soldier’s fingertips to his elbow, for this was considered to be the most natural extension. The machaira had two cutting edges instead of one, both tapered off to a sharp point. It was very flexible, and its outstanding advantage was that the Roman soldier was never off-balance while engaging the enemy. It is significant that the Holy Spirit has chosen the Roman machaira as the metaphorical counterpart to the soldier of Christ Jesus’ most dangerous and effective weapon, namely, “the machaira of the Spirit.” The Roman soldier’s machaira could pierce the human body of his enemy but the Christian soldier’s machaira pierces the human soul. The Lord Jesus Christ employed His machaira when facing Satan in hand-tohand combat. Three times the Lord employed Scripture to defeat Satan. The human nature of Jesus Christ in hypostatic union in His confrontation with the devil in Luke 4:1-13 illustrates the principle that victory, or defeat is gained by the application of power and the withdrawal of the inferior force. Ephesians 6:17 And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (NASB95) “The Spirit” is the noun pneuma refers of course to God the Holy Spirit who is the divine author of Scripture. The noun pneuma in Ephesians 6:17 is a genitive of “source” meaning that the machaira, “sword” of the soldier of Christ Jesus, which is the Word of God “originates from” the Holy Spirit since He is the divine author of Scripture. The doctrine of inspiration contends that, God the Holy Spirit so supernaturally directed the human authors of Scripture, that without destroying their individuality, their literary style, their personal interests, their vocabulary, and God’s complete and connected thought towards man was recorded with perfect accuracy in the original languages of Scripture. The original languages of Scripture contain the very words of God, and therefore, bear the “authority” of divine authorship. 2 Peter 1:20 But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. (NASB95) 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 81 2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (Author’s translation) “The Word” is the noun rhema, which refers to a specific passage of Scripture, which applies to a particular situation. The believer is to let the Word of Christ richly dwell in his soul, which permits the Holy Spirit to bring to remembrance a specific passage or concept of Scripture, which will apply to the believer’s problem or specific set of circumstances. Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (NASB95) This is further substantiated by the fact that as the Lord Jesus employed Scripture to repulse the temptations presented to Him by Satan in Luke 4 so the soldier of Christ Jesus, the Christian must utilize the Words that are inspired by the Spirit to repulse the temptations presented to Him by Satan. Also, it is significant that in Matthew’s account of our Lord’s encounter with Satan in Matthew 4, the Lord Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 8:3 and refers to “every word (rhema) that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:40). In Ephesians 6:18, the apostle Paul emphasizes the importance of intercessory prayer. Ephesians 6:18 With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints. (NASB95) Prayer is an invisible weapon that God the Father has provided for the soldier of Christ Jesus, which when utilized in accordance with the will of God as revealed by the Spirit in the Word of God, enables the believer to experience spiritual victory over the kingdom of darkness in spiritual combat (Ephesians 6:18). “With all prayer and petition” answers the question, “How the Ephesian believers are to pray?” “Prayer” refers to reverential prayer in the presence of the Father meaning we are to worship the Father in prayer, which is adoring contemplation of God as He has been revealed by the Holy Spirit in the Person of Christ and in the Scriptures. “Petition” refers to making a petition or prayer for a specific need, whether spiritual or material and which is in accordance with the will of the Father. “At all times” means that the Ephesian believers were to make it their habit to pray “at each and every opportunity.” “In the Spirit” denotes that the Ephesian believers were to pray while in fellowship with the Holy Spirit, which is accomplished by being obedient to the voice of the Spirit, which is heard through the communication of the Word of God. 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 82 “With this in view” indicates the “goal” or “purpose” or “why” the Ephesian believers were to pray. “Be on the alert” is the verb agrupneo, which means “to keep alert” and thus denotes the concept of watchfulness in prayer for oneself and your fellow Christian soldier. “With all perseverance and petition” indicates that the manner in which the Ephesian believers were to stay alert in prayer. They were to do so by persevering in making their specific detailed requests to the Father. “For all the saints” indicates the Ephesian believers were to make it a habit to stay alert in prayer with regards to all believers since all believers are fellow soldiers and who fight for the same Sovereign, the Lord Jesus, and have the same common enemy, namely, Satan. Judgment of Satan The Scriptures teach that God will judge Satan at the end of human history. They teach of God’s status as judge of every human being and angel (Psalm 75:7; cf. Psalm 50:6; 76:8-9; Ecclesiastes 11:9; Isaiah 33:22; 66:16; 2 Timothy 4:8; Hebrews 12:23; James 4:12). He also decides disputes (Judges 11:27; cf. Genesis 16:5; 31:53; 1 Samuel 24:15; Isaiah 2:4; Micah 4:3; James 5:9). He presides in the heavenly court in the third heaven (Isaiah 3:13; cf. Psalm 50:4; 82:1; Daniel 7:9-10; Joel 3:12; Revelation 20:11-15). The Lord Jesus is judge over the whole of creation. He judges the inhabitants of the earth (Genesis 18:25; cf. Psalm 9:8; 58:11; 82:8; 94:2; 96:13; 98:9). He judges every individual (Ezekiel 33:20; cf. Ecclesiastes 3:17; Hebrews 9:27; 1 Peter 4:5; Jude 15; Revelation 20:12). He judges the nations (Joel 3:12; cf. Psalm 9:19-20; 110:6; Obadiah 15; Zephaniah 3:8). The Lord judges rulers of nations (Isaiah 40:23; Jeremiah 25:17-27; Revelation 6:15-17). He also judges His own people in the sense that He disciplines them as His children (Hebrews 10:30; cf. Deuteronomy 32:36; Psalm 78:62; Jeremiah 1:16; 1 Peter 4:17). The Lord Jesus Christ will judge the fallen angels (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6). He judges Satan (Genesis 3:14-15; Matthew 25:41; 1 Timothy 3:6; Revelation 20:10). The Lord’s judgment is inescapable in that no one can hide from Him (Obadiah 4; cf. Genesis 3:8-9; Job 11:20; Jeremiah 11:11; Amos 9:1-4). He searches human hearts (Jeremiah 17:10; cf. 1 Chronicles 28:9; Psalm 7:9; Proverbs 5:21; Jeremiah 11:20). He reveals secrets (Romans 2:16; cf. Ecclesiastes 12:14; Jeremiah 16:17; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Hebrews 4:13). The Lord judged the inhabitants of the antediluvian period by sending a worldwise flood (Genesis 6:7, 13, 17; 7:21-23). He has judged individuals both believers and unbelievers (Genesis 4:9-12 Cain; Acts 5:3-10 Ananias and Sapphira; Acts 13:811 Elymas the sorcerer). He judged families (Joshua 7:24-25 of Achan; 1 Samuel 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 83 3:12-13 of Eli). He has judged cities (Genesis 19:24-25 Sodom and Gomorrah; Joshua 6:24 Jericho). He has judged nations (Deuteronomy 7:1-5 the Canaanite nations). He has judged rulers of nations (2 Chronicles 26:16-21 Uzziah; Daniel 4:31-33 Nebuchadnezzar; Daniel 5:22-30 Belshazzar; Acts 12:22-23 Herod). He judges His own people (Judges 2:11-15; 2 Chronicles 36:15-20; Isaiah 33:22). The Lord reveals His holy character through His righteous judgments. By judging men and angels He reveals his sovereignty (Psalm 9:7; 96:10; 99:4; Ezekiel 6:14), His power (Exodus 6:6; 14:31; Ezekiel 20:33-36; Revelation 18:8), His holiness (Leviticus 10:1-3; 1 Samuel 6:19-20; Ezekiel 28:22; Revelation 16:5), His righteous indignation (Nahum 1:2-3; Romans 2:5), His truth (Psalm 96:13; Romans 2:2; Revelation 16:7), His impartiality (2 Chronicles 19:7; Romans 2:9-11; Colossians 3:25; 1 Peter 1:17), His compassion (Lamentations 3:31-33; Hosea 11:8-9; John 3:10; 4:2), His patience (Numbers 14:18; Nehemiah 9:30; 2 Peter 3:9), and His mercy (Nehemiah 9:31; Job 9:15; Psalm 78:38; Micah 7:18). God the Father has awarded power and authority over all creation and every creature to the incarnate Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, because of His substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross. Philippians 2:5 Everyone continue thinking this (according to humility) within yourselves, which was also in (the mind of) Christ Jesus, 6 Who although existing from eternity past in the essence of God, He never regarded existing equally in essence with God an exploitable asset. 7 On the contrary, He denied Himself of the independent function of His deity by having assumed the essence of a slave when He was born in the likeness of men. 8 In fact, although He was discovered in outward appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by having entered into obedience to the point of spiritual death even death on a Cross. 9 For this very reason in fact God the Father has promoted Him to the highestranking position and has awarded to Him the rank, which is superior to every rank. 10 In order that in the sphere of this rank possessed by Jesus every person must bow, celestials and terrestrials and sub-terrestrials. 11 Also, every person must publicly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord for the glory of God the Father. (Author’s translation) Because the Lord Jesus Christ controls history as sovereign ruler of history, He has the authority to conduct the following judgments and evaluations in the future. The humanity of Christ in hypostatic union has been awarded the sovereign rulership over the entire cosmos for His voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the cross and as a result has been awarded by God the Father the power and authority to preside over and conduct the following judgments: (1) Bema Seat Evaluation: Takes place at the Rapture of the Church and is the evaluation of the Church Age believer’s life after salvation (Rom. 14:10; 1 Cor. 3:11-15; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 John 2:24). (2) Israel: Takes place at the Second Advent and is the removing unregenerate Israel from the 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 84 earth leaving only regenerate Israel to enter into the Millennial reign of Christ (Ezek. 20:37-38; Zech. 13:8-9; Mal. 3:2-3, 5; Matt. 25:1-30). (3) Gentiles: Takes place at the Second Advent and is for the purpose of removing unregenerate, anti-Semitic Gentiles from the earth (Matt. 25:31-46). (4) Fallen Angels: Takes place at the end of the appeal trial of Satan which runs co-terminus with human history and is execution of Satan and the fallen angels sentence for the pre-historic rebellion against God (1 Cor. 6:3; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6; Rev. 20:10). (5) Great White Throne: Takes place at the end of human history and is the judgment of all unregenerate humanity in human history for the rejection of Christ as Savior (Rev. 20:11-15). The following groups of regenerate human beings throughout human history will be subjected to an eschatological compulsory evaluation that the victorious, resurrected incarnate Son of God as Sovereign Ruler of the entire cosmos will conduct: (1) OT saints in heaven who lived during the dispensation of the Gentiles (Adam to the Exodus). (2) OT saints in heaven that lived during the dispensation of Israel (Exodus to 1st Advent). (3) All Church Age believers (Day of Pentecost to the Rapture). (4) Regenerate Jews who will live during the Tribulation (Post-Rapture to the Second Advent). (5) Regenerate Gentiles who will live during the Tribulation (Post-Rapture to the Second Advent). (6) Regenerate Jews and Gentiles who will live during the Millennial reign of Christ (Second Advent to Gog and Magog Rebellion). The following groups of unregenerate human beings throughout human history will be subjected to an eschatological compulsory judgment that the resurrected incarnate Son of God as Sovereign Ruler of the entire cosmos will conduct: (1) Unbelievers who lived during the dispensation of the Gentiles (Adam to the Exodus). (2) Unbelievers who lived during the dispensation of the Jews (Exodus to the 1st Advent). (3) Unbelievers who lived during the Church Age (Day of Pentecost to Rapture). (4) Unbelievers who lived during the Tribulation (Post-Rapture to Second Advent). (5) Unbelievers who lived during the Millennium (Second Advent to Gog Rebellion). All fallen angels including Satan himself have already been subjected to a judgment before human history, but the execution of that sentence has been delayed because the Supreme Court of Heaven granted Satan and the fallen angels an appeal trial, which runs co-terminus with human history. The elect angels do not come under judgment for the very same reason that regenerate human beings don’t come under judgment because they have exercised personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. Every regenerate human being in every dispensation of human history must at some point in the future submit to an evaluation of their lives after salvation which will be conducted by the resurrected and sovereign humanity of Christ in hypostatic union. Regenerate Israel who lived during the Age of Israel and Tribulation period 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 85 will evaluated at the Second Advent (Ezek. 20:37-38; Zech. 13:8-9; Mal. 3:2-3, 5; Matt. 25:1-30). Regenerate Gentiles who lived during the Age of the Gentiles and Tribulation period will be evaluated at the Second Advent (Matt. 25:31-46). Church Age believers will be evaluated at the Bema Seat Evaluation of Christ (Rom. 14:10; 1 Cor. 3:11-15; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 John 2:24). Regenerate Jews and Gentiles who lived during the Millennium will be subjected to a judgment at the conclusion of human history (Rev. 20:15). Every unregenerate human being in every dispensation of human history must submit to a judgment, which will also be conducted by the resurrected and sovereign incarnate Son of God at the Great White Throne Judgment (Rev. 20:11-15). Every fallen angel has already been judged and sentenced to the Lake of Fire by the Supreme Court of Heaven before human history. The execution of that sentence will not be carried out until the conclusion of the appeal trial of Satan and the fallen angels (Rev. 20:10). The Scriptures teach that the execution of Satan’s sentence to the Lake of Fire will not be executed until the end of human history. He will though be imprisoned for a thousand years. Satan must be thrown into prison at the Second Advent of Christ according to Revelation 20:1-3 before the millennial reign begins (Rev. 20:13). All unbelievers will be removed from planet earth at the Second Advent of Christ and will be throne into the Lake of Fire with the beast and the false prophet (Jews: Ezek. 20-33-38; Gentiles: Matt. 25:31-46). These judgments are designed to produce perfect government and environment on planet earth. During the millennial reign of Christ religion will be abolished from the earth because Satan, who is the author of religion will be imprisoned. The demons have all been removed from the earth and a new civilization will begin with believers only. Satan will be released from prison after the millennium and will immediately start a rebellion against the Lord Jesus Christ. Theologians call this rebellion, the “Gog, Magog rebellion.” God puts down this rebellion decisively. The appeal trial of Satan terminates after the Gog and Magog revolution (Rev. 20:7-9). The eternal state will take place after the execution of the sentence against Satan and the fallen angels when they are cast into the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:10). It will take place after the Great White Throne Judgment (Rev. 20:11-14). 2023 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 86