ἑτέραις γενεαῖς. ‘In former generations.’ Cf. Ephesians 2:12; Romans 16:25.

τοῖς υἱοῖς τῶν�. Contrast Ephesians 3:10 (ταῖς�).

ὡς νῦν�. For the ignorance even of the O.T. Prophets, cf. 1 Peter 1:10. For νῦν with aor. cf. Hort on 1 Peter 1:12.

τοῖς ἁγίοις�. Cf. Colossians 1:26. It is not easy to say when this revelation was granted. St Paul felt that it was included in the revelation that he received at his conversion. But it does not seem to have been fully accepted at Jerusalem before the conference in Acts 15. The terms of the letter to Antioch written in the name of the Apostles and Elders (including at least Judas and Silas who were prophets, Acts 15:32), ἔδοξεν γὰρ τῷ πνεύματι τῷ ἁλίῳ καὶ ἡμῖν, would satisfy St Paul’s language here exactly. Everything in fact falls naturally into its place if we may suppose that St Paul had the decision of such a representative gathering in mind from which he was himself excluded (cf. Hort Chris. Eccl., p. 166). If the Western reading τοῖς ἁγίοις αὐτοῦ�. καὶ προφ. be adopted, it would be possible to take ἁγίοις as a substantive, as in Colossians 1:26. The punctuation of Lachm. and Treg., retaining the common text with a comma after ἁγίοις, is surely impossible. ἁγίοις, epithet constantly applied to prophets (Luke 1:70; Acts 3:21; 2 Peter 3:2; Wis 11:1). Here only with ἀπόστολοι (cf. Revelation 18:20).

ἐν πνεύματι. To be connected with ἀπεκαλύφθη. The truth was one which it needed special illumination to apprehend.

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Old Testament