Ephesians 4:17-24

Practical Results: a spiritual revolution of principle and practice. The Old Man and the New

17. testify A word of solemn appeal occurring elsewhere in N. T. only Acts 22:26 (St Paul speaking) and Galatians 5:3.

in the Lord As myself being "in Him," and as to those who are in the same union. Cp. Galatians 5:10 ("I have confidence towards you in the Lord," Gr.); below, Ephesians 6:1 ("obey in the Lord"); &c. The phrase "in the Lord" occurs 45 times in St Paul; "in Christ," or closely kindred phrases, nearly 80 times.

henceforth, &c. More lit., no longer walk. At their conversion "old things were passed away" (2 Corinthians 5:17) as to principle. Let this be now realized, continuously and ever more completely, in practice. On the metaphor "walk," see above on Ephesians 2:2; Ephesians 2:10.

other Gentiles Read, probably, the Gentiles. (On the word see above, on Ephesians 2:11.) In a spiritual sense the Ephesians were no longer"Gentiles," for they were spiritual "Israelites" (Galatians 6:16); hence the true form of the phrase here.

vanity of their mind "Vanity" here is not self-conceit, which would require another Gr. word. It is the "emptiness" of illusion, specially of the state of illusion which sees pleasure in sin. In Romans 8:20 the word is used of evil, whether physical or moral, regarded as (what all evil ultimately proves to be) delusion and failure.

" Of their mind" :the "mind" sometimes denotes specially the reason, as distinguished e.g.from spiritual intuition (1 Corinthians 14:14-15). Sometimes (Colossians 2:18) it apparently denotes the rational powers in general, as in the unregenerate state; and again those powers as regenerate (Romans 12:2). Here the unrenewed "Gentile" is viewed as living on principles which reason can approve only when the eternal facts are hidden from it.