Ephesians 2:4

Ephesians 2:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
• New International Version (NIV)But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
• English Standard Version (ESV)But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,
• New King James Version (NKJV)But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Context of Ephesians 2:4

2You lived in a bad way, like the people who belong to this world. You were obeying Satan, who rules the powerful spirits in the air. Those spirits are working now in everyone who refuses to obey God. 3At one time, all of us lived like those people. We did whatever bad things our bodies wanted to do. If our thoughts made us want to do something, we did it. Because we were like that, God was angry with us. He should have punished us, just like everyone else. But God is very good and kind! He loved us very much. 5Because of our sins, we were dead in our spirits. But God gave us a new life, because we are united with Christ. Yes, God has saved you because he is so kind. 6Also, God raised us up with Christ, so that we now sit with Christ in heaven. God has done this for us because we are united with Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2:4 word by word

Ὁ δὲ θεὸς πλούσιος ὢν ἐν ἐλέει διὰ τὴν πολλὴν ἀγάπην αὐτοῦ ἣν ἠγάπησεν ἡμᾶς,Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Butδέde · thenG1161
• Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• who isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
• richπλούσιοςplousios · richG4145
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• mercyἔλεοςeleos · mercyG1656
• forδιάdia · through/because ofG1223
• hisαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• greatπολύςpolus polos · muchG4183
• loveἀγάπηagapē · loveG26
• wherewithὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• he lovedἀγαπάωagapaō · to loveG25
• usἐγώegō · I/weG1473

Cross-references for Ephesians 2:4

• Ephesians 2:7He wanted to show, for all future time, how very kind he is. He has helped us so much because of what Christ Jesus has done.
• Ephesians 1:7When Christ died as a sacrifice on the cross, he paid the price to make us free. Because of Christ's death on our behalf, God has forgiven our sins. God is so very kind that he has done all this for us!
• Ephesians 3:8I am the least important of all God's people. But God has given this special work to me because he is so kind. He has sent me to tell his good news to the Gentiles. Then they know about the many valuable things that Christ has prepared for us.
• Exodus 33:19The Lord said, ‘I will let you see how great and good I am. I will tell you my name, that I am the Lord. If I choose to be kind to someone, I will be kind to them. If I choose to forgive someone, I will forgive them.
• Exodus 34:6The Lord passed in front of Moses. He said in a loud voice, ‘I am the Lord! The Lord! I am kind to people and I forgive them. I do not quickly become angry. My faithful love for my people continues for ever, and I am always faithful.
• Nehemiah 9:17They refused to obey you. They forgot about all the miracles that you had done to help them. Instead, they turned against you. They chose a leader to take them back to Egypt, where they had been slaves. But you are a God who forgives people. You are kind to people. You are slow to get angry and your love for your people always continues. So you did not leave your people alone.
• Psalms 51:1Please forgive me, God, because of your faithful love. Because you are so kind, please clean away my sins.
• Psalms 86:5Yes, my Lord, you are very kind, and you are ready to forgive people. When anyone calls to you for help, you love them with your faithful love.
• Psalms 103:8The Lord is kind to people and he forgives them. He is slow to get angry and his love always continues.
• Psalms 145:8How very kind the Lord is! He is very patient and his faithful love continues.
• Isaiah 55:6Come to serve the Lord now, while he lets you find him. Call out to him for help, while he is near you.
• Daniel 9:9Our Lord God, we have turned against you. But you are kind and you forgive people.
• Jonah 4:2He prayed to the Lord. He said, ‘Lord, this is what I thought would happen when I was still at home. So I decided to run away to Tarshish, so that you could not be kind to the people of Nineveh. I know that you are a God who is very kind and you forgive people. You do not become angry quickly. You always show your faithful love for people. Even when you have said that you will punish people, you decide that you will not do it.
• Micah 7:18No other god is like you. You chose us to be your people. And you decide not to remember what we have done wrong. Not many of your people remain and we have done bad things. But you choose to forget those bad things. You will not always be angry, because you want very much to be kind.
• Luke 1:78Our God will forgive us because he is very kind. He will send someone from the highest place. When this person comes, it will be like the sunrise for us.
• Romans 2:4Remember that God is very kind and patient with us. He waits a long time before he punishes us. Do you not think that that is important? You should understand that God is giving you a chance to change. He waits patiently, so that you may turn away from wrong things.

Commentaries on Ephesians 2:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4But God, who is rich in mercy - As they were corrupt in their nature, and sinful in their practice, they could possess no merit, nor have any claim upon God; and it required much mercy to remove so much misery, and to pardon such transgressions. His great love - God's infinite love is the groundwork of our salvation; in reference to us that love assumes the form of mercy, and that mercy provides the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. And therefore the apostle…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4But God, who is rich in mercy - On the use of the word “rich” by Paul, see the notes at Ephesians 1:7. It is a beautiful expression. “God is rich‘ in mercy;” overflowing, abundant. Mercy is the riches or the wealth of God. People are often rich in gold, and silver, and diamonds, and they pride themselves in these possessions; but God is “rich in mercy.” In that he abounds and he is so rich in it that he is wilting to impart it to others; so rich that he…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-10By God's mercy, kindness, and love, those united with Jesus Christ are saved from the terrible consequences of their sin and enjoy the benefits of Christ's resurrection.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. God, who is rich--Greek "(as) being rich in mercy." for--that is, "because of His great love." This was the special ground of God's saving us; as "rich in mercy" (compare Ep 2:7; Ep 1:7; Ro 2:4; 10:12) was the general ground. "Mercy takes away misery; love confers salvation" [Bengel].Read the comment

Topics related to Ephesians 2:4

• Atonement
• God Continued...
• Righteous
• Salvation

In the dictionaries

• God
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Afar
• Alien
• Create
• Cross
• Desire
• Ephesians, Epistle to
• Nigh
• Prince

Commentaries on Ephesians 2

• 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
• 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