you were dead
The Greek word for "dead" (νεκροὺς) is used metaphorically here to describe a spiritual state. This death is not physical but spiritual, indicating a separation from the life of God. In the Jewish understanding, death was often seen as a consequence of sin, rooted in the Genesis account of the Fall. This phrase underscores the severity of the human condition without Christ, emphasizing the need for divine intervention. Theologically, it sets the stage for the transformative power of salvation, which Paul will elaborate on in the following verses.

in your trespasses and sins
The terms "trespasses" (παραπτώμασιν) and "sins" (ἁμαρτίαις) are often used interchangeably, but they carry distinct nuances. "Trespasses" refers to specific acts of wrongdoing, a deviation from the right path, while "sins" encompass a broader concept of missing the mark or falling short of God's standards. This duality reflects the comprehensive nature of human rebellion against God. In the historical context of Ephesus, a city rife with idolatry and moral corruption, these terms would resonate deeply with the believers, reminding them of their past life and the radical change brought about by their faith in Christ. This phrase serves as a sobering reminder of the gravity of sin and the miraculous nature of God's grace.

Trespasses and sins.--These two words, more often used separately, are here brought together, to form a climax. The word rendered "trespass" signifies a "swerving aside and falling"; the word rendered "sins" is generally used by St. Paul in the singular to denote "sin" in the abstract, and signifies an entire "missing of the mark" of life. Hence, even in the plural, it denotes universal and positive principles of evil doing, while "trespass" rather points to failure in visible and special acts of those not necessarily out of the right way.

1. Chaos (vers. 1-3).

2. The dawn - the Spirit of God moving on the face of the waters (ver. 4).

3. The work of creation - in successive stages (vers. 4-10). Verse 1. - You also, who were dead in your trespasses and your sins. The apostle returns from his digression, in which he had shown the marvelous working of the Divine power on Christ, to show the working of the same power on the Ephesian converts themselves. The ὑμἀς is not governed by any verb going before; it manifestly depends on the συνεζωοποίησεν of ver. 5, but it is separated from it by a new digression (vers. 2, 3), on which the apostle immediately starts. While the same quickening power of God was exerted on Christ and on the Ephesians, it was exerted to very different effects: in the case of Christ, raising him literally from the dead and exalting him to heavenly glory; in the case of the Ephesians, raising them from spiritual death and exalting them to high spiritual privileges. We may observe the change from the second to the first person, and vice versa, in this chapter as in Ephesians 1. Second person (vers. 1, 8, 11); first (vers. 3, 10, 14); and the two streams brought together (ver. 18). The chapter closes beautifully with an emblem of the Church as the one temple of which all believers are parts. The death ascribed to the Ephesians in their natural state is evidently spiritual death, and "trespasses and sins," being in the dative (νεκροὺς τοῖς παραπτώμασι καὶ ταῖς ἁμαρτίαις), seems to indicate the cause of death - "dead through your trespasses and your sins" (R.V.); "dead of your trespasses," etc., is suggested by Alford. It is not easy to assign a different meaning to the two nouns here; some suggest acts of transgression for the one, and sinful tendencies or principles for the other, but this distinction cannot be carried out in all other passages. The killing effect of sin is indicated. As sins of sensuality kill truthfulness, industry, integrity, and all virtue, so sin generally, affecting as it does our whole nature, kills, or does not suffer to live, the affections and movements of the spiritual life. A state of "death" implies previous life - the race lived before; it implies also a state of insensibility, of utter powerlessness and helplessness.

Parallel Commentaries ...