Question
I would appreciate your comments on the meaning of Ephesians :-. I’m particularly interested in Paul’s quote from Psalm :: “When He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gis unto men.”
Response
RE: Eph. :-, especially Paul’s quoting from Psalm : — my understanding is that Paul cites what David declared in Psalm regarding Christ dispensing the spoils of His victory as part of His triumph, to substantiate to us what he just said in verse about us too in this dispensation of grace being “given grace according to the measure of the gi of Christ.”
In Psalm David isn’t talking about this dispensation of grace, nor even the issue of Christ ascending up on high to the Father’s right hand far above all principality and power, like Paul is doing. But, as is apparent from the context of Psalm , David is describing Christ’s victorious ascension up onto the height of Mt. Zion following the conclusion of the great and terrible day of the LORD, when the Lord shall have fought for Israel and vanquished all their enemies and gained the final victory over Adversary. At that time, (still yet to come in God’s program with Israel), the Lord will lead a triumphant victory parade up Mt. Zion and He will dispense the spoils of His victory unto men. e Lord’s victory over the Adversary in that day involves the joyful act of Him dispensing the spoils of His victory and rejoicing in those spoils is something Israel looks forward to doing, as David makes clear in the Psalm.
Paul, understanding and appreciating both what David declared and the fact that Christ enjoys dispensing the spoils of His victory over the Adversary, cites what David declares about Christ to substantiate what he has just said about us in verse . As set forth in verse , we too in this dispensation of grace have grace given unto us “according to the measure of the gi of Christ.” ere has been a dispensing by Christ to us in this dispensation of spoils of the victory He has wrought for us, that we need to understand and appreciate as such. at Christ did fight a battle for us against the Adversary and was indeed victorious, is something Paul described back in Ephesians . And now in chapter he is teaching us that in connection with that, we too have some spoils of Christ’s victory for us that he has dispensed to us for enjoyment and profit. Just as David described spoils of victory being dispensed by Christ in His victory over the Adversary when He delivers Israel from his grip, so Paul cites what David says to make us realize that so also do we in this dispensation have spoils of Christ’s victory to enjoy in view of His triumph over the Adversary and His deliverance of us from the his grip. Our spoils are different than those Israel will enjoy, but they are spoils nevertheless, and are described in verses ff.
In view of this, Paul goes on in verses - and by means of a parenthetical explanation makes it clear that the ascension of Christ he is talking about, along with the battle and victory he is dealing with, is the one he just doctrinally described back in chapter .
Keith Blades
Enjoy The Bible Ministries
19970908 H41