9
Nowδὲthisτὸ“He ascended,”Ἀνέβηwhatτίis itἐστινbutεἰ μὴthatὅτιhe alsoκαὶdescendedκατέβηintoεἰςthe lowerτὰ κατώτεραpartsμέρηof the earth?τῆς γῆς
Ephesians 4:9
Study it in the app“Now this “He ascended,” what is it but that he also descended into the lower parts of the earth?”
With the Greek beneath
Ephesians 4:9, word by word
- “He ascendedἈνέβηAnebē
go up
To go upward: up a mountain, to Jerusalem or to heaven.
Where else “Anebē” appears- is itἐστινestin
be
To be: says who or what something is.
Where else “estin” appears- descendedκατέβηkatebē
go down, come down
Go down, come down, descend.
Where else “katebē” appears- the lowerκατώτεραkatōtera
lower
Lower, what is further down.
Where else “katōtera” appears- partsμέρηmerē
part
A piece of a whole, or what falls to each one.
Where else “merē” appears- of the earthγῆςgēs
earth
The whole earth under heaven, where human beings live.
Where else “gēs” appears
Translation note· on the manuscripts
Many manuscripts add “first.” “The lower parts of the earth” may be the earth itself or the place of the dead.
The context
8Therefore it says: Having ascended on high, he led captive captivity; he gave gifts to men.
9 · This verse (above)
10The one who descended is himself also the one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.
To study Ephesians 4 in a group
1. What it says
What does Paul urge them to do about unity, and how many times does he say "one" (v. 1-6)?
2. What it means
Why do you think Paul contrasts the old way of life with the new, and what specific changes does he name (v. 22-32)?
3. How I live it
Paul writes, "do not let the sun go down on your anger" (v. 26). With whom could you talk calmly today to make something right?