Ephesians 2 · Verse 5

Ephesians 2:5

Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Ephesians 2:5, King James Version

Ephesians 2:5 in other translations

BSBmade us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved!
WEBeven when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—
ASVeven when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace have ye been saved),
YLTeven being dead in the trespasses, did make us to live together with the Christ, (by grace ye are having been saved,)
DARBY(we too being dead in offences,) has quickened us with the Christ, (ye are saved by grace,)
BBEEven when we were dead through our sins, gave us life together with Christ (by grace you have salvation),
WebsterEven when we were dead in sins, hath made us alive together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

What does Ephesians 2:5 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
5. dead in sins--The best reading is in the Greek, "dead in our (literally, 'the') trespasses." quickened--"vivified" spiritually, and consequences hereafter, corporally. There must be a spiritual resurrection of the soul before there can be a comfortable resurrection of the body [Pearson] (Joh 11:25, 26; Ro 8:11). together with Christ--The Head being seated at God's right hand, the body also sits there with Him [Chrysostom]. We are already seated there IN Him ("in Christ Jesus," Ep 2:6), and hereafter shall be seated by Him; IN Him already as in our Head, which is the ground of our hope; by Him hereafter, as by the conferring cause, when hope shall be swallowed up in fruition [Pearson]. What God wrought in Christ, He wrought (by the very fact) in all united to Christ, and one with Him. by grace ye are saved--Greek, "Ye are in a saved state." Not merely "ye are being saved," but ye "are passed from death unto life" (Joh 5:24). Salvation is to the Christian not a thing to be waited for hereafter, but already realized (1Jo 3:14). The parenthetic introduction of this clause here (compare Ep 2:8) is a burst of Paul's feeling, and in order to make the Ephesians feel that grace from first to last is the sole source of salvation; hence, too, he says "ye," not "we."

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 5. Even when we were dead in sins. Eph 2:1. Comp. Rom 5:8. The construction here is-- "God, who is rich in mercy, on account of the great love which he bare unto us, even being dead in sin, hath quickened us," etc. It does not mean that he quickened us when we were dead in sin, but that he loved us then, and made provision for our salvation. It was love to the children of wrath; love to those who had no love to return to him; love to the alienated and the lost. That is true love--the sincerest and the purest benevolence--love, not like that of men, but such only as God bestows. Man loves his friend, his benefactor, his kindred --God loves his foes, and seeks to do them good.

Hath quickened us. Hath made us alive. Eph 2:1.

Together with Christ. In connexion with him; or in virtue of his being raised up from the grave. The meaning is, that there was such a connexion between Christ and those whom the Father had given to him, thai his resurrection from the grave involved their resurrection to spiritual life. It was like raising up the head and the members--the whole body together. Rom 6:5. Everywhere in the New Testament, the close connexion of the believer with Christ is affirmed. We are crucified with him. We die with him. We rise with him. We live with him. We reign with him. We are joint heirs with him. We share his sufferings on earth, (1Pet 4:13;) and we share his glory with him on his throne, Rev 3:21.

By grace ye are saved. Marg., by whose. Rom 3:24. Paul's mind was full of the subject of salvation by grace, and he throws it in here, even in an argument, as a point which he would never have them lose sight of. The subject before him was one eminently adapted to bring this truth to mind; and though, in the train of his arguments, he had no time now to dwell on it, yet he would not suffer any opportunity to pass without referring to it.

(a) "when we were dead" Rom 5:6,8,10 (*) "quickened us" "made us alive" (1) "by grace" "by whose" (b) "ye are saved" Rom 3:24

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 5 Even when we were dead in sins - Dead in our souls; dead towards God; dead in law; and exposed to death eternal, Hath quickened us together with Christ - God has given us as complete a resurrection from the death of sin to a life of righteousness, as the body of Christ has had from the grave. And as this quickening, or making alive, was most gratuitous on God's part, the apostle, with great propriety, says; By grace ye are saved.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Ephesians 2:1-10

Sin is the death of the soul. A man dead in trespasses and sins has no desire for spiritual pleasures. When we look upon a corpse, it gives an awful feeling. A never-dying spirit is now fled, and has left nothing but the ruins of a man. But if we viewed things aright, we should be far more affected by the thought of a dead soul, a lost, fallen spirit. A state of sin is a state of conformity to this world. Wicked men…

Read the full comment on Ephesians 2:1-10 →

Ephesians 2:5 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

καὶkaievenG2532
ὄνταςontasbeingG1510
ἡμᾶςhēmasweG3165
νεκροὺςnekrousdeadG3498
τοῖςtois<the>G3588
παραπτώμασινparaptōmasinin trespassesG3900
συνεζωοποίησενsunezōopoiēsenmade [us] alive withG4806
τῷtō<the>G3588
Χριστῷ,ChristōChrist —G5547
χάριτίcharitiby graceG5485
ἐστεesteyou areG1510
σεσῳσμένοι.sesōsmenoisaved —.G4982

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Ephesians 2:5

  • Romans 3:24

    Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

  • Ephesians 2:8

    For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

  • Romans 5:10

    For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

  • Romans 5:8

    But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

  • Acts 15:11

    But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.

  • Ephesians 2:1

    And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;

  • Titus 2:11

    For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,

  • Romans 8:2

    For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

  • Ephesians 5:14

    Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

  • Romans 4:16

    Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,

  • Titus 3:5

    Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

  • 2 Corinthians 13:14

    The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen. The second epistle to the Corinthians was written from Philippi, a city of Macedonia, by Titus and Lucas.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
dead.
1; Ro 5:6,8,10
quickened.
1; 5:14; Joh 5:21; 6:63; Ro 8:2
grace ye. Gr. whose grace ye.
8; Ac 15:11; Ro 3:24; 4:16; 11:5,6; 16:20; 2Co 13:14; Tit 2:11; 3:5
Re 22:21

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Ephesians 2:4

    But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

  • Ephesians 2:5

    Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

  • Ephesians 2:6

    And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:

Read all of Ephesians 2

Ephesians 2:5 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Aun estando nosotros muertos en pecados, nos dió vida juntamente con Cristo; por gracia sois salvos;
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		alors même que nous étions morts dans nos fautes, nous a vivifiés ensemble avec le Christ (vous êtes sauvés par la grâce),
German
Elberfelder 1871		als auch wir in den Vergehungen tot waren, hat uns mit dem Christus lebendig gemacht, -durch Gnade seid ihr errettet-
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		et cum essemus mortui peccatis, convivificavit nos in Christo (cujus gratia estis salvati),