An exegesis of Ephesians 4:1-16 with emphasis on Paul's use of Psalm 68 : 18 implications for preaching and teaching today

Abstract

This study is primarily concerned with Paul's use of Psalm 68:18 in Ephesians 4:1-16. To this end, a literary-grammatical analysis of the relevant passage was done. With egard to the quotation found in Ephesians 4:8, we found that the change from the verb 'receive' as found in Psalm 68: 18 to the verb 'give' in Ephesians 4:8 could be accounted for by context, and affirmed by semantics. A semantic analysis of the verb np" 'receive' indicates that it co-occurs more frequently with the verb lnJ 'give' than with any other verb. Working with the assumption that this finding in terms of collocations may, perhaps, arise from a socio-cultural context, we investigated the socio-cultural context of the concept of warfare, for this is a concept that underlies Psalm 68: 18. In addition, we looked closely at Ephesians 4:9-10, for they serve as commentary on the quotation in Ephesians 4:8. We found, in terms of the method of exegesis at play, that the commentary is a Pesher, and that it employs an argument from silence to identify the referent of the quotation. The conclusion of this study is that we cannot replicate Paul's method of exegesis in terms of arguing from silence, for this will necessarily lead us away from the text, and easily degenerate into doing an eisegesis rather than an exegesis. The corollary of this is that the task of modern interpreters is basically different from the task in which Paul was engaged. Paul's task was not primarily to interpret Scriptures, but to interpret the Christ-event and related subsequent events in the light of Scriptures. However, there is one basic principle employed by Paul which we can emulate today. This is the principle of knowing the context of Scriptures, for this is one principle that enabled Paul to use the verb 'give' instead of the verb 'receive'. If this principle was important for Paul, it is all the more relevant in our time, because of our distance from the actual period in which the events took place as well as the time they were written. Among other things, it is one principle that helps us know the different senses which a word may signify to the original hearers or readers. Having a thorough understanding of the context of Scriptures is highly recommended to modern interpreters (preachers and teachers) today by Paul's use of Psalm 68: 18 in Ephesians 4:8.