17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,
17 that
“That” indicates the purpose of Paul’s prayer in verse 16.
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
The Lord Jesus Christ is subordinate to the Father. Jesus in His humanity has a unique relationship to the Father. Paul directed his petition in prayer to the Father, the one to whom the Lord Jesus prayed. He did not pray directly to the humanity of Christ.
the Father of [the] glory,
All glory belongs to the Father (Ac 7:2). “Glory” demonstrates the splendor of the Father’s attributes and work.
may give to you the spirit of wisdom
Paul prayed that the Father would give the Ephesian church “the spirit of wisdom and revelation.” Only God can give us a receptive attitude to His truth.
“Spirit” here is not the Holy Spirit but the attitude or disposition of wisdom and revelation. “Wisdom” gives insight about God.
and revelation
“Revelation” unveils truth about God.
in the knowledge of Him,
If the believer carries the spirit of wisdom and revelation, he will know God better. “Knowledge” here is not abstract knowledge about objective facts but the knowing of God personally. The idea carries intimate knowledge of God’s person and work. The Greek word is full knowledge, insight knowledge, experiential knowledge.
PRINCIPLE:
Wisdom in knowledge about God is designed to produce our fellowship with Him on a solid basis.
APPLICATION:
A purpose of God is to know God and make Him known (Jn 17:3). Knowing God is progressive. It requires continual growth in knowledge about Him from the Word of God.
Many Christians settle for something far less. Some know facts of the Bible without having any sense of applying that knowledge to their experience. Knowing God and knowing about Him are different things. Knowing Him involves body, soul, and spirit; lock, stock, and barrel.
Raw enthusiasm is not adequate for spiritual growth. Unless we gain maturity in what God has revealed to us and have the wisdom to apply it to our experience, we will remain in spiritual childhood. It is not enough to have a spiritual bank account; we must examine our wealth to know what we have in Christ.
It is possible to be a biblical scholar and not allow biblical principles to reach the heart. Truth is one thing; truth applied is another.
We will never live long enough to know everything about God. Learning about Him is a life-long experience (Jn 17:3; Phil 3:10; 2 Pe 3:18). However, the more we study the Bible, the better we will know God. The longer we are married, the better we understand our mate.
excellent commentary source. keep up the God work
Thanks Stanley
Sorry. I got it. Must be too early in the morning. Just turned 75 last week
Old age is creep up on me
Herb, you are a young man as far as I am concerned! 🙂
Thank you so much for the Scripture reference and commentary. So very helpful in my search and understanding.
Hi Pastor Grant, my name is Lin from AIM. We formed a small study Bible group and we are studying Ephesians verse by verse. And thank you so much for this website. This is very helpful. We are still in Chapter 1. Because of our study, a friend of mine has understood that salvation could not be lost and that the Holy Spirit will indwell in us the moment we believed. Praise the Lord! Studying the Word of God verse by verse is a great treasure that we need to discover and thank you for your hard work on the commentaries. Praise the Lord for your life. May God continue to bless you and your family.
Hello Lin. I am blessed that you are studying Ephesians and that the nature of salvation has become clearer to your friend.
As the Son of Man, Jesus is subordinate to Father God in order to show us how to live in surrender to Father God. But, as a Son of God, Jesus is equal to Father God as well as equal with the Holy Spriit.
Rodeo, theologians explain it this way: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one is essence, but three in person.