Ephesians 6:24

Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.

The epistle to the Ephesians is notable for the fact that it contains no personal discussions. That fact is here explained: But that you also may know my affairs and how I fare, all will Tychicus make known to you, the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord. The first Roman imprisonment of Paul was not so severe but that he could freely communicate with his friends and receive their ministrations, Acts 28:30. And so Tychicus, one of Paul's younger helpers and valued very highly by him, had spent some time in Rome. This man, undoubtedly also the bearer of the letter, was to give the Ephesian Christians such information of a personal nature as they might be anxious to get. For, as Paul writes, he sent him for that very purpose that they might know all about the affairs of the apostle and his companions. The result of such information would naturally be that the hearts of the Christians in Ephesus might be comforted. They would see that the case of their beloved teacher was not so hopeless as might have seemed to them from reports received before, and thus they would be cheered and encouraged.

The closing benediction differs somewhat from that usually employed by the apostle, but its contents are the same. He wishes peace to the brethren, that peace of God which is in Christ Jesus and which passes all understanding; and love with faith, faith making the Christian, but love being the inevitable companion of faith. Both faith and love are also here represented as having their source in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. See 2 Timothy 1:2; Titus 1:4. Both of them together, equal in divine essence, bestow all spiritual blessings. And so the apostle concludes: Grace with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ, with incorruption. The highest gift is the grace of God in Christ Jesus, and that grace is found in the possession of all those that love the Lord Jesus, and will bring with it eternal, immutable, incorruptible love. Up in heaven, in eternal glory, the love which knows neither change, diminution, nor decay will find its full and glorious expression.

Summary

The apostle states the duties of children and parents, of servants and masters; he describes the Christian's spiritual enemies, his armor, and its use; he adds an admonition to prayer and intercession, and closes with a recommendation of Tychicus and with an apostolic blessing.