Ephesians 4:18

Ephesians 4:18 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart:
• New International Version (NIV)They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.
• English Standard Version (ESV)They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.
• New King James Version (NKJV)having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart;

Context of Ephesians 4:18

16From Him the whole body [the church, in all its various parts], joined and knitted firmly together by what every joint supplies, when each part is working properly, causes the body to grow and mature, building itself up in [unselfish] love. 17So this I say, and solemnly affirm together with the Lord [as in His presence], that you must no longer live as the [unbelieving] Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds [and in the foolishness and emptiness of their souls], for their [moral] understanding is darkened and their reasoning is clouded; [they are] alienated and self-banished from the life of God [with no share in it; this is] because of the [willful] ignorance and spiritual blindness that is [deep-seated] within them, because of the hardness and insensitivity of their heart. 19And they, [the ungodly in their spiritual apathy], having become callous and unfeeling, have given themselves over [as prey] to unbridled sensuality, eagerly craving the practice of every kind of impurity [that their desires may demand]. 20But you did not learn Christ in this way!

Ephesians 4:18 word by word

ἐσκοτωμένοι τῇ διανοίᾳ ὄντες, ἀπηλλοτριωμένοι τῆς ζωῆς τοῦ θεοῦ διὰ τὴν ἄγνοιαν τὴν οὖσαν ἐν αὐτοῖς, διὰ τὴν πώρωσιν τῆς καρδίας αὐτῶν·Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Havingσκοτίζωskotizō · to darkenG4654
• the understandingδιάνοιαdianoia · mindG1271
• beingεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• alienated fromἀπαλλοτριόωapallotrioō · to alienateG526
• the lifeζωήzōē · lifeG2222
• of Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• throughδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
• the ignoranceἄγνοιαagnoia · ignoranceG52
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• of the blindnessπώρωσιςpōrōsis · hardeningG4457
• heartκαρδίαkardia · heartG2588

Cross-references for Ephesians 4:18

• Psalms 74:20Consider the covenant [You made with Abraham], For the dark places of the land are full of the habitations of violence.
• Psalms 115:4The idols [of the nations] are silver and gold, The work of man’s hands.
• Isaiah 44:18They do not know, nor do they understand, for God has muddied their eyes so that they cannot see, and their hearts (minds) as well so that they cannot understand.
• Isaiah 46:5“To whom would you liken Me And make Me equal and compare Me, That we may be alike?
• Acts 17:30Therefore God overlooked and disregarded the former ages of ignorance; but now He commands all people everywhere to repent [that is, to change their old way of thinking, to regret their past sins, and to seek God’s purpose for their lives],
• Acts 26:17[choosing you for Myself and] rescuing you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you,
• Romans 1:21For even though they knew God [as the Creator], they did not honor Him as God or give thanks [for His wondrous creation]. On the contrary, they became worthless in their thinking [godless, with pointless reasonings, and silly speculations], and their foolish heart was darkened.
• 1 Corinthians 1:21For since the world through all its [earthly] wisdom failed to recognize God, God in His wisdom was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached [regarding salvation] to save those who believe [in Christ and welcome Him as Savior].
• 2 Corinthians 4:4among them the god of this world [Satan] has blinded the minds of the unbelieving to prevent them from seeing the illuminating light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
• Galatians 4:8But at that time, when you did not know [the true] God and were unacquainted with Him, you [Gentiles] were slaves to those [pagan] things which by [their very] nature were not and could not be gods at all.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:5not [to be used] in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God and are ignorant of His will;
• Ephesians 2:12remember that at that time you were separated from Christ [excluded from any relationship with Him], alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise [with no share in the sacred Messianic promise and without knowledge of God’s agreements], having no hope [in His promise] and [living] in the world without God.
• Romans 8:7the mind of the flesh [with its sinful pursuits] is actively hostile to God. It does not submit itself to God’s law, since it cannot,
• Colossians 1:21And although you were at one time estranged and alienated and hostile-minded [toward Him], participating in evil things,
• James 4:4You adulteresses [disloyal sinners—flirting with the world and breaking your vow to God]! Do you not know that being the world’s friend [that is, loving the things of the world] is being God’s enemy? So whoever chooses to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
• Romans 2:19and [if you] are confident that you are a [qualified] guide to the blind [those untaught in theology], a light to those who are in darkness,

Commentaries on Ephesians 4:18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 182. Having the understanding darkened - This is the second instance alleged by the apostle of the degradation of the Gentiles. Having no means of knowledge, the heart, naturally dark, became more and more so by means of habitual transgression; every thing in the Gentile system having an immediate tendency to blind the eyes and darken the whole soul. 3. Being alienated from the life of God - The original design of God was to live in man; and the life of God…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18Having the understanding darkened - That is, because they were alienated from the true God, and particularly because of “the blindness of their hearts.” The apostle does not say that this was a “judicial” darkening of the understanding; or that they might not have perceived the truth; or that they had no ability to understand it. He speaks of a simple and well-known fact - a fact that is seen now as well as then that the understanding becomes darkened by…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 17-24Verses 17-24 The apostle charged the Ephesians in the name and by the authority of the Lord Jesus, that having professed the gospel, they should not be as the unconverted Gentiles, who walked in vain fancies and carnal affections. Do not men, on every side, walk in the vanity of their minds? Must not we then urge the distinction between real and nominal Christians? They were void of all saving knowledge; they sat in darkness, and loved it rather than…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18Their minds are full of darkness because their minds are closed and hearts are hard (see 2 Corinthians 4:4). This means they cannot understand spiritual truths clearly. Their minds are "closed," which means they are unwilling or unable to accept God's truth. Their hearts are "hard," which means they have become insensitive to God's guidance.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1818. More literally, "Being darkened in their understanding," that is, their intelligence, or perceptions (compare Ep 5:8; Ac 26:18; 1Th 5:4, 5). alienated--This and "darkened," imply that before the fall they (in the person of their first father) had been partakers of life and light: and that they had revolted from the primitive revelation (compare Ep 2:12). life of God--that life whereby God lives in His own people: as He was the life and light in Adam…Read the comment

Topics related to Ephesians 4:18

• Adultery
• Blindness
• Character
• Conscience
• Death
• Depravity of Man
• Gentiles
• Godlessness
• Heart
• Ignorance
• Lasciviousness
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Bitterness
• Blind
• Compact
• Dark
• Forbear
• Grieve
• Lasciviousness
• Lowliness

Commentaries on Ephesians 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings