Commentary on the Epistle to the Ephesians

The Crossway Classic Commentaries

by Charles Hodge

Dr. Charles Hodge was known more as a systematic theologian than as an expositor of Scripture. Nevertheless, his whole life was devoted primarily to the critical and systematic study of the Bible. "Commentary on the Epistle to the Ephesians" has become a standard resource for teachers, pastors, and educated laypersons. Hodge's introductory material, chapter analyses, and verse-by-verse exposition provide - even after more than one hundred years - solid, relevant instruction for today's student of the Bible.

Genres: Theology, Biblical Studies, Reference, New Testament, Nonfiction, Christian, Christianity

340 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 1980

About the author

Charles Hodge (1797–1878) was an important Presbyterian theologian and principal of Princeton Theological Seminary between 1851 and 1878. He was a leading exponent of the Princeton theology, an orthodox Calvinist theological tradition in America during the 19th century. He argued strongly for the authority of the Bible as the Word of God. Many of his ideas were adopted in the 20th century by Fundamentalists and Evangelicals.

Reviews

[Caleb Plattner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exegesis of Ephesians 5 and 6 is right on!

[Matt Maples · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good baseline commentary

This is a good commentary to use to help develop a sense of what Paul is saying in Ephesians. I like Hodge's approach, but sometimes the commentary can get so technical that it's difficult to follow. So use another commentary or two as accompanying texts, but this is a good tool to go deeper into the epistle.

[Ming Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A helpful albeit technical commentary on the entire epistle of Ephesians, with minor background information provided. I found it somewhat dense and hard to follow at parts, as the author occasionally quotes theologians in Greek, Latin, German, etc. (all three of which I do not understand), and examines the grammatical construction of sentences to determine proper meaning. This is probably more suited to pastors or seminarians, though I found it of benefit. The commentary on Ephesians 6:10 and onwards was magnificent.

Two quotes, both from Ephesians 5:

"Christ presents the church to himself... he and no other, to himself. He does it. He gave himself for it. He sanctifies it. He, before the assembled universe, places by his side the bride purchased with his blood. He presents it to himself a glorious church. That is glorious which excites admiration. The church is to be an object of admiration to all intelligent beings, because of its freedom from all defect, and because of its absolute perfection. It is to be conformed to the glorified humanity of the Son of God, in the presence of which the disciples on the mount became as dead men, and from the clear manifestation of which, when Christ comes the second time, the heavens and the earth are to flee away."

"It is of vital importance to the best interests of society that the true doctrine of marriage, as taught in this passage and in other portions of God's word, should be known and regarded. The highest social duty of a husband is to love his wife; and a duty which he cannot neglect without entailing great injury on his own soul as well as misery on his household. The greatest social crime, next to murder, which any one can commit, is to seduce the affections of a wife from her husband, or of a husband from his wife. And one of the greatest evils which civil authorities can inflict on society, is the dissolution of the marriage contract (so far as it is a civil contract, for further the civil authority cannot go), on other than scriptural grounds.

[Matt Allhands · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hodge pays close attention to the text, and draws meaning forward in logically consistent ways. This commentary is a must-have for teaching or preaching Ephesians.

His commentary on Ephesians 5, however, requires close reading. Hodge does well in upholding the language of Scripture, but in the case of husbands he couches the issue of male headship in marriage on the a priori basis of men's natural superiority for leadership; the position demands proof, but instead is treated as a given. The outcome of his interpretation is not greatly impacted as Hodge rightly interprets and applies the covenantal dynamics of Christ and the Church - but the foundation of natural superiority is flawed.

[Todd Bryant · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love reading the classic commentaries when I'm preaching through a book. Hodge is one of those classic writers. Though I must say, this one didn't do a ton to separate himself from other writers. It was good. It was not great.

[Christian Everhart · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty exhaustive commentary on the book of Ephesians. One would need a knowledge of Greek to fully glean all that Hodge is writing on here, but overall great and helpful.

[Travis Daggett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great treatment of baptism.

[Peter Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Hodge's commentary on Ephesians. His attention to detail, especially the way to translate various Greek constructions, was great. Unlike many modern commentaries however, he does not leave out application. He exhorts us to grow in Christ throughout the book. Of course, there were some disagreements I had with him at points. But he is a good corrective to a lot of modern sterile commentaries.

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hodge is clear, concise, and yet also digs into the Greek words for those interested. I appreciate that he explains some differing interpretations but at times it would have been nice to have had more of that. All in all, very excellent as a reference and very excellent for reading.

[Douglas Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good. Classic Hodge with the exegesis one would expect from him.