It is not uncommon for Paul to begin his letters, immediately after the initial greetings, with what scholars call a "prayer-report," in which he describes how he thanks God for the recipients. Thus:
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you . . . (Rom 1:8)
I always thank God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. (1 Cor 1:4)
I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy (Phil 1:3)
We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you . . . (Col 1:3)
We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers. (1 Thess 1:2)
I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers . . . (Philemon 1:4)
In Ephesians Paul delays such thanksgiving "for you" until 1:16. Instead he opens with a eulogy, a doxology, a blessing after the style of the great Jewish prayers, what is called a berakah (from the Hebrew word baruk, meaning "blessed")—"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." In this blessing, Paul praises God for what He has done for us in Christ. Opening his letter with such a blessing is not unique to Ephesians; 2 Cor opens in almost identical fashion:
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort . . . (2 Cor 1:3)
Peter does the same thing in his letter:
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead . . . (1 Pet 1:3)
It is impossible to miss Paul's intention as he begins his letter; he wants the focus of all that he says to be on God, who alone deserves the glory. So deep and fulsome is Paul's sense of thankfulness effusive clauses—fragranced by a theology ripened by years of learning, reflection, and teaching—race forth, as if trying to overtake one another, to give us what is one of the longest sentences ever composed: all the way from v3 to v14, and 202 words in the Greek text.1 This sentence would be impossible to translate into meaningful English (or most languages, for that matter) unless it is broken up into shorter sentences as it is done in all modern translations. The weight of his praise attempts to match the weight of goodness of what God has done for us in Christ, opening with the word, eulogetos, 'Praise be to,' or 'Blessed be,' a word that "stands as the 'topic' sentence and title of the whole paragraph."2 But it is easy to imagine how, in the words of John Stott, "[A]s Paul dictates, his speech pours out of his mouth in a continuous cascade. He neither pauses for breath, nor punctuates his words with full stops."3
While a handful of scholars find such a construction a monstrosity, most think otherwise. Here's are some of the more memorable comments.
C. Masson: "One is struck by the fullness of the language, its liturgical majesty, its perceptible rhythm from beginning to end."4
Armitage Robinson: "[This sentence is] like the preliminary flight of an eagle, rising and wheeling round, as though for a while uncertain what direction in his boundless freedom he shall take."5
John Mackay: "This rhapsodic adoration is comparable to the overture of an opera which contains the successive melodies that are to follow."6
William Hendricksen: "The sentence begun by 'Blessed (be)' rolls on like a snowball tumbling down a hill, picking up volume as it descends. Its 202 words, and the many modifiers which they form, arranged like shingles on a roof or like steps on a stairway, are like prancing steeds pouring forward with impetuous speed."7
A. Skevington Wood: ". . . its structure is poetical and ruled by parallelism, though scholars are not agreed as to how its stanzas are to be grouped."8
And closing our selection with John Stott:
"A gateway, a golden chain, a kaleidoscope, a snowball, a racehorse, an operatic overture and the flight of an eagle: all these metaphors in their different ways describe the impression of colour, movement and grandeur which the sentence makes on the reader' mind."9
What then is the substance of this doxology, and its purpose and effect on his audience? Again, here is a selection of citable quotes:
John Calvin: "The lofty terms in which he [Paul] extols the grace of God toward the Ephesians, are intended to rouse their hearts to gratitude, to set them all on flame, to fill them even to overflowing with this disposition."10
Clinton Arnold: ". . . there is no doubt that the first-century Christian could not read through this majestic piece without it touching his or her emotions . . . it has been carefully constructed . . . to evoke a cognitive and emotional response in the readers by reminding them in a fresh way of their redemption in Christ and their experience of salvation. These evoked feelings of joy and gratefulness to God for his abundant bestowal of grace prepare the readers to receive the paraenesis with the proper frame of mind."11
William Hendricksen: "Goodness, truth, and beauty are combined in this initial doxology, in which the apostle, in words that are beautiful both in the thoughts they convey and in their artistic arrangement, pours out his soul in true adoration for God's goodness in action. He ascribes to God the honor due him for spiritual blessings past (election), present (redemption), and future (certification as sons with a view to complete possession of the inheritance reserved for them). The apostle realizes that divine blessings bestowed upon God's people should be humbly, gratefully, and enthusiastically acknowledged in thought, word, and deed. That response is the only proper way in which these spiritual bounties can be 'returned' to the Giver. The circle must be completed: what comes from God must go back to him! That is the meaning of saying, 'Blessed (be) . . ."12
Francis Foulkes: "Three particular notes sound right through this great doxology. First, from eternity to eternity God works all things according to His perfect plan. All history, all men, all that exists in heaven and on earth are included in His purpose. Secondly, that purpose is fulfilled in Christ, and thus in Him every blessing that men have is found. Thirdly, as far as men are concerned, its goal is the very practical one, that they should be 'to the praise of (his) glory.'"13
John R. W. Stott: "The whole paragraph is a paean of praise, a doxology, or indeed a 'eulogy,' for that is the word Paul uses . . . [in which Paul] makes what seems to be a deliberate reference to the Trinity. For the origin of the blessing is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is also 'our Father' (verse 2); its sphere is God the Son, for it is in Christ, by virtue of our union with him, that God has blessed us; and its nature is spiritual, every spiritual blessing, a phrase which may well mean 'every blessing of the Holy Spirit', who as the divine executive applies the work of Christ to our hearts."14
As Skevington Wood observes above, it is not easy to divide the passage into logical parts. Hoehner lists 43 different schemas that have been proposed. A useful expositional outline is suggested by what John Stott has done (The Message of Ephesians: God's New Society):
1. The Past Blessing of Election (vv4-6)
2. The Present Blessing of Adoption
(vv5-8)
3. The Future Blessing of Unification
(vv9-10)
4. The Scope of These Blessings
(vv11-14).
But notice that even he, a master expositor and exegete, has no way to remove the overlap between v5 and v6. Peter O'Brien (The Letter to the Ephesians) provides another attractive alternative:
1. Praise to God for Every Spiritual
Blessing (v3)
2. Praise for Election and Adoption
(vv4-6)
3. Praise for Redemption and the
Forgiveness of Sins (vv7-8)
4. Praise for the Mystery 'God's Plan
to Sum Up All Things in Christ (vv9-10)
5. Praise for the Assurance of the
Believers' Heritage
(vv11-14).
Low Chai Hok
©Alberith, 2014