CORNERSTONE BIBLICAL COMMENTARY General Editor Philip W. Comfort D. Litt. et Phil., University of South Africa; Tyndale House Publishers; Coastal Carolina University. Consulting Editor, Old Testament Tremper Longman III PhD, Yale University; Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies, Westmont College. Consulting Editor, New Testament Grant Osborne PhD, University of Aberdeen; Professor of New Testament, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. Associate Editors Jason Driesbach MA, Biblical Exegesis and Linguistics, Dallas Theological Seminary; Tyndale House Publishers. Mark R. Norton MA, Theological Studies, Wheaton Graduate School; Tyndale House Publishers. James A. Swanson MSM, Multnomah Biblical Seminary; MTh, University of South Africa; Tyndale House Publishers. CORNERSTONE BIBLICAL COMMENTARY Ephesians Harold W. Hoehner Philippians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians Philip W. Comfort Colossians, Philemon Peter H. Davids GENERAL EDITOR Philip W. Comfort featuring the text of the NEW LIVING TRANSLATION TYNDALE HOUSE PUBLISHERS, INC. CAROL STREAM, ILLINOIS Cornerstone Biblical Commentary, Volume 16 Visit Tyndale’s exciting Web site at www.tyndale.com Ephesians copyright © 2008 by Harold W. Hoehner. All rights reserved. Philippians and 1 & 2 Thessalonians copyright © 2008 by Philip W. Comfort. All rights reserved. Colossians and Philemon copyright © 2008 by Peter H. Davids. All rights reserved. Designed by Luke Daab and Timothy R. Botts. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers. Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. TYNDALE, New Living Translation, NLT, Tyndale’s quill logo, and the New Living Translation logo are registered trademarks of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Cornerstone biblical commentary. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8423-8344-8 (hc : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-8423-8344-1 (hc : alk. paper) 1. Bible—Commentaries. I. Comfort, Philip W. II. Davids, Peter. III. Hoehner, Harold W. BS491.3.C67 2006 220.7¢7—dc22 2005026928 Printed in the United States of America 14 13 12 11 10 09 08 7654321 CONTENTS Contributors to Volume 16 vi General Editor’s Preface vii Abbreviations ix Transliteration and Numbering System xiii EPHESIANS 1 PHILIPPIANS 139 COLOSSIANS 227 1 & 2 THESSALONIANS 313 PHILEMON 415 CONTRIBUTORS TO V O L U M E 1 6 Ephesians: Harold W. Hoehner BA, Barrington College; ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary; ThD, Dallas Theological Seminary; PhD, Cambridge University; Postdoctoral study at Tubingen University and Cambridge University; Distinguished Professor of New Testament Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary. Philippians, 1 & 2 Thessalonians: Philip W. Comfort BA, Cleveland State University; MA, The Ohio State University; D. Litt. et Phil., University of South Africa; Tyndale House Publishers; Coastal Carolina University Colossians, Philemon: Peter H. Davids BA, Wheaton College; MDiv, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School; PhD, Manchester University; Professor of Biblical Theology, St. Stephen’s University GENERAL EDITOR’S PREFACE The Cornerstone Biblical Commentary is based on the second edition of the New Living Translation (2004). Nearly 100 scholars from various church back- grounds and from several countries (United States, Canada, England, and Australia) participated in the creation of the NLT. Many of these same scholars are contributors to this commentary series. All the commentators, whether participants in the NLT or not, believe that the Bible is God’s inspired word and have a desire to make God’s word clear and accessible to his people. This Bible commentary is the natural extension of our vision for the New Living Translation, which we believe is both exegetically accurate and idiomati- cally powerful. The NLT attempts to communicate God’s inspired word in a lucid English translation of the original languages so that English readers can understand and appreciate the thought of the original writers. In the same way, the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary aims at helping teachers, pastors, students, and laypeople understand every thought contained in the Bible. As such, the commentary focuses first on the words of Scripture, then on the theological truths of Scripture—inasmuch as the words express the truths. The commentary itself has been structured in such a way as to help readers get at the meaning of Scripture, passage by passage, through the entire Bible. Each Bible book is prefaced by a substantial book introduction that gives general historical background important for understanding. Then the reader is taken through the Bible text, passage by passage, starting with the New Living Transla- tion text printed in full. This is followed by a section called “Notes,” wherein the commentator helps the reader understand the Hebrew or Greek behind the English of the NLT, interacts with other scholars on important interpretive issues, and points the reader to significant textual and contextual matters. The “Notes” are followed by the “Commentary,” wherein each scholar presents a lucid interpretation of the passage, giving special attention to context and major theological themes. The commentators represent a wide spectrum of theological positions within the evangelical community. We believe this is good because it reflects the rich variety in Christ’s church. All the commentators uphold the authority of God’s word and believe it is essential to heed the old adage: “Wholly apply yourself to the Scriptures and apply them wholly to you.” May this commentary help you know the truths of Scripture, and may this knowledge help you “grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord” (2 Pet 1:2, NLT). PHILIP W. COMFORT GENERAL EDITOR ABBREVIATIONS GENERAL ABBREVIATIONS b. Babylonian Heb. Hebrew NT New Testament Gemara ibid. ibidem, in the same OL Old Latin bar. baraita place OS Old Syriac c. circa, around, i.e. id est, the same OT Old Testament approximately in loc. in loco, in the place p., pp. page, pages cf. confer, compare cited pl. plural ch, chs chapter, chapters lit. literally Q Quelle (“Sayings” contra in contrast to LXX Septuagint as Gospel source) DSS Dead Sea Scrolls M Majority Text rev. revision ed. edition, editor m. Mishnah sg. singular e.g. exempli gratia, for masc. masculine t. Tosefta example mg margin TR Textus Receptus et al. et alli, and others ms manuscript v., vv. verse, verses fem. feminine mss manuscripts vid. videur, it seems ff following (verses, MT Masoretic Text viz. videlicet, namely pages) n.d. no date vol. volume fl. flourished neut. neuter y. Jerusalem Gemara Gr. Greek no. number ABBREVIATIONS FOR BIBLE TRANSLATIONS ASV American Standard NCV New Century NKJV New King James Version Version Version CEV Contemporary NEB New English Bible NRSV New Revised English Version NET The NET Bible Standard Version ESV English Standard NIV New International NLT New Living Version Version Translation GW God’s Word NIrV New International REB Revised English HCSB Holman Christian Reader’s Version Bible Standard Bible NJB New Jerusalem RSV Revised Standard JB Jerusalem Bible Bible Version KJV King James Version NJPS The New Jewish TEV Today’s English NAB New American Bible Publication Society Version NASB New American Translation TLB The Living Bible Standard Bible (Tanakh) ABBREVIATIONS FOR DICTIONARIES, LEXICONS, COLLECTIONS OF TEXTS, ORIGINAL LANGUAGE EDITIONS ABD Anchor Bible Dictionary BAGD Greek-English Lexicon of BDB A Hebrew and English (6 vols., Freedman) [1992] the New Testament and Other Lexicon of the Old Testament ANEP The Ancient Near Early Christian Literature, (Brown, Driver, Briggs) East in Pictures (Pritchard) 2nd ed. (Bauer, Arndt, [1907] [1965] Gingrich, Danker) [1979] BDF A Greek Grammar of the ANET Ancient Near Eastern BDAG Greek-English Lexicon of New Testament and Other Texts Relating to the Old the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature Testament (Pritchard) Early Christian Literature, 3rd (Blass, Debrunner, Funk) [1969] ed. (Bauer, Danker, Arndt, [1961] Gingrich) [2000] ABBREVIATIONS x BHS Biblia Hebraica IDB The Interpreter’s Dictionary NIDOTTE New International Stuttgartensia (Elliger and of the Bible (4 vols., Buttrick) Dictionary of Old Testament Rudolph) [1983] [1962] Theology and Exegesis (5 CAD Assyrian Dictionary of ISBE International Standard vols., W. A. VanGemeren) the Oriental Institute of the Bible Encyclopedia (4 vols., [1997] University of Chicago [1956] Bromiley) [1979–1988] PGM Papyri graecae magicae: COS The Context of Scripture KBL Lexicon in Veteris Die griechischen (3 vols., Hallo and Younger) Testamenti libros (Koehler, Zauberpapyri. (Preisendanz) [1997–2002] Baumgartner) [1958] [1928] DBI Dictionary of Biblical LCL Loeb Classical Library PG Patrologia Graecae (J. P. Imagery (Ryken, Wilhoit, L&N Greek-English Lexicon of Migne) [1857–1886] Longman) [1998] the New Testament: Based on TBD Tyndale Bible Dictionary DBT Dictionary of Biblical Semantic Domains (Louw (Elwell, Comfort) [2001] Theology (2nd ed., and Nida) [1989] TDNT Theological Dictionary Leon-Dufour) [1972] LSJ A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament DCH Dictionary of Classical (9th ed., Liddell, Scott, (10 vols., Kittel, Friedrich; Hebrew (5 vols., D. Clines) Jones) [1996] trans. Bromiley) [1964– [2000] MM The Vocabulary of the 1976] DJD Discoveries in the Judean Greek New Testament TDOT Theological Dictionary Desert