EPHESIANS 2:14,15: “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the MIDDLE WALL OF SEPARATION, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of COMMANDMENTS CONTAINED IN ORDINANCES, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace.” (NKJV)
EPHESIANS 2:14,15: “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the MIDDLE WALL OF SEPARATION, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of COMMANDMENTS CONTAINED IN MAN MADE LAWS, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace.” (Erickson’s Literal Translation) A plainer, more literal translation not yet published.
With a little reasonable attention to context and to word definitions, and with above all an open mind and with the assumption, of course, that the Bible is NOT confusingly self contradictory on important issues (confirmed by 1 Corinthians 14:33: “For God is not the author of confusion ……”), Christians can see that Ephesians 2:14,15 VERY PROBABLY refers not to the annulment of Biblically recorded, divine laws, but MOST LIKELY to something else—the abolishment of evil or unnecessary religious laws made by man that can hinder the salvation process, ESPECIALLY since Matthew 5:17 states that Jesus did NOT come to destroy or abolish the law, but to fulfill it (the Greek for fulfill means primarily to fill full, or fill more fully, make more complete, magnify, to perfect, to add to, or expand something [in His Sermon on the Mount Jesus obviously magnified the law considerably. According to Matthew 5:28 merely focusing your eyes on a strange, devastatingly beautiful woman while entertaining the idea of engaging in sexual intercourse with her is now the exact, same sin as literally having forbidden sex with her. So Jesus REALLY DID magnify the law, including those against adultery and fornication, for example, just like Isaiah 42:21 predicted]). Also, dozens of other verses, of course, strongly indicate that Jesus did not come to do away with the law. In Ephesians 2:15 Paul apparently describes the very much MAN MADE (not God made), burdensome Oral Torah as “the law of commandments contained in ordinances.” Context is very important to understand this verse. Verse 14 sets the stage for understanding verse 15. Verse 14: “He ……. has broken down the MIDDLE WALL OF SEPARATION.” The phrase “middle wall” is helpful to understand verse 15 because it identifies and concentrates only on a real physical wall or barrier in the Temple in Jerusalem invented and made by man, NOT a divinely inspired wall made according to some Old Testament law. The Greek for “middle wall” is mesotoichon, Strong’s 3320, a special, rare word appearing only once in the Bible in Ephesians 2:15. The word mesotoichon was used by the famous Jewish historian Flavius Josephus to refer specifically to a balustrade in the Jewish temple in Jerusalem to keep gentiles from entering the holy section of the temple. That balustrade (the Jews built the barrier because they wanted to build it, not because of any Scripture) was definitely a man made barrier, not a divinely made barrier or wall created by any Scripture. The Greek for “of separation” is phragmos, Strong’s 5418, which means a “fence” or “railing.” In his book Wars of the Jews Josephus used the terms mesotoichon and phragmos for a particular balustrade or barrier in the Jewish temple (Book 5, chapter 5, section 2 and 6). This barrier was built by the Jews to isolate the outer court where the gentiles were, from the inner part of the temple where all gentiles were banned. Written notices in Greek and Latin were posted at the bottom of the steps leading to the inner area, warning gentiles that DEATH would be the penalty for going through the middle wall and entering the inner area of the temple.
THE DEATH PENALTY!!
CAN YOU NOW EVEN BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND THE TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF HATE AND HOSTILITY (ENMITY) BETWEEN THE JEWS AND THE GENTILES THAT THIS MAN INVENTED WALL OF SEPARATION IN THE TEMPLE PRODUCED?? HOW ANGRY WOULD YOU BECOME IF SOME AMERICAN JEWISH SECT VOWED TO BURY YOU UP TO YOUR NECK, THEN STONE YOU TO DEATH AND EVEN SOMEHOW LEGALLY GET AWAY WITH IT IF YOU, A GENTILE, EVEN ACCIDENTALLY ENTERED THEIR CENTRAL SYNAGOGUE?
No wonder there was great “enmity” between the Jews and the gentiles. Two of those notices were found, one in 1871 and the other in 1935. The actual, physical “middle wall” was demolished when the temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. by the Romans. Several years before the middle wall was destroyed, though, Paul pointed it out as an appropriate symbol of unfair racial and religious barriers separating people.
In verse 15 the Greek for “law” is nomos, Strong’s 3551, which can refer to man made laws depending on the context since there are more than seven definitions of nomos. “Commandments” in the Greek is entole, Strong’s 1785, which can also refer to rules and laws created by men. The Greek word for “ordinances,” though, is DOGMA, Strong’s 1378, a somewhat special, rare word in the Bible which has a VERY NARROW DEFINITION. This word appears ONLY THREE OTHER TIMES in the entire Bible besides Ephesians 2:15 and Colossians 2:14. The FIRST, PRIMARY definition of dogma refers overwhelmingly to MAN CONCOCTED, MAN DEVISED, MAN INVENTED, MAN MADE edicts, enactments, injunctions, laws, opinions, judgments, or decrees. Dogma NEVER refers to God given, divine, Biblically recorded laws. In Colossians 2:14, according to the context of Colossians 2:13, dogma logically refers to the written or somehow preserved record [apparently in heaven] of the SINS of Christians, not to Biblical laws. In two cases dogma refers to SECULAR regulations devised by a non-Christian Roman ruler, Caesar, not to God’s holy, Biblically recorded laws:
1) Luke 2:1: “…….there went out a DECREE from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.” The Greek for decree is DOGMA.
2) Acts 17:7: “……… these all do contrary to the DECREES of Caesar saying that there is another king …….” The Greek for decrees is DOGMA.
3) Acts 16:4: “And as they went through the cities, they delivered them the DECREES for to keep, that were ordained of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem.” Again the Greek for decrees is DOGMA. The man written decrees in this verse were formulated by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem to primarily inform church members that circumcision was no longer required.
Since “the law of commandments contained in ordinances” is plural, referring to more than one law and not to just one specific law, if this verse really did mean that the Mosaic laws have been abolished, then a large number of very good, common sense laws also would have been done away with by Jesus Christ Himself, which is absurd, demonstrating another glittering flaw in mainstreamers’ incorrect reasoning that Ephesians 2:15 proves that the written Mosaic laws were annulled. Very good, common sense Mosaic laws not specifically listed in the New Testament that even most pagan societies would not break include laws prohibiting removing property landmarks, prohibiting the mingling of lepers with the general population, forbidding incest, forbidding punishing a son for a crime his father committed, forbidding eating animals like armadillos which often carry leprosy (just handling them before cooking them can give you leprosy), prohibiting being a member of a vandalizing mob, prohibiting bribery, prohibiting bestiality, prohibiting putting stumbling blocks in front of blind people, and on and on. Do you really think that Jesus thought that the law forbidding putting stumbling blocks in front of the blind created “enmity” between Jews and gentiles?
The Jewish Oral Torah laws, most of which have been recorded in writing in the “Mishnah,” conform to the definition of dogma since they are invented by earthly human beings, not God. The Biblically recorded, God commanded laws like those concerning tithing, the festivals, and diet DO NOT conform to the typical definition of dogma.
Mainstreamers, when are you going to finally admit that the Bible does not support the abandonment of the tithing, food, festival, and Saturday Sabbath nomos laws (not dogma) laws, and other nomos OT laws, and then when are you going to do something about it? Stop fearing what your ill informed mate, relatives, friends, or associates might try to do to you if you started obeying your Creator. Instead, fear the present and future consequences of sin. Don’t risk being ultimately labeled as a coward, potentially a capital sin in itself, which is as bad as murdering someone, according to Revelation 21:8: “But to the COWARDLY and …… MURDERERS and …… to all the false witnesses, their part will be in the lake which is burning with fire and brimstone ……” (Modern Literal Version) Be strong, be a leader, striving even for royal kingship in the rapidly approaching Christian Millennium (Revelation 1:6). The Apostles singled out and identified the sacrifice, circumcision, and Levitical priesthood laws as well as the eternal death penalty for law keeping Christians, as all now abolished, but they left the other good, protective laws fully intact and therefore still quite valid.
It is the gentiles that need to become slightly “more Jewish” than the Jews slightly “more gentile,” one might say, so that the two become one according to Ephesians 2:11-14, 3:6, John 4:22, Galatians 3:28, and Romans 1:16, 10:12, 11:11,2
According to the New King James Version and other more literal, reputable translations, the following 13 are more literal, more specific translations of Ephesians 2:14,15:
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of COMMANDMENTS CONTAINED IN ORDINANCES, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace.” — New King James Version
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For he is our peace, who made both one, and brake down the middle wall of partition 15 having abolished in the flesh the enmity, even the law of COMMANDMENTS CONTAINED IN ORDINANCES; that he might create in himself of the two one new man, so making peace;” — American Standard Version
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For He Himself is our peace, the One having made both one and having broken-down the dividing-wall of partition, the hostility— in His flesh 15 having abolished the Law of COMMANDMENTS IN DECREES in order that He might create the two in Himself into one new man, making peace,” — Disciples’ Literal New Testament
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For he is our peace, who made us both one and tore-down the middle wall of the fence, 15 having done-away-with the hostility in his flesh, which is the Law of COMMANDMENTS IN DECREES; in order that he might create in himself the two into one new man, thus making peace;” — Modern Literal Version
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For He is our peace, He making us both one, and breaking down the middle wall of partition, 15 in His flesh causing to cease the enmity, the Law of the COMMANDMENTS IN DECREES, that He might in Himself create the two into one new man, making peace,” — Green’s Literal Translation
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For he is our peace, having made both one, and having loosed the middle partition wall of the enclosure; 15 The enmity in his flesh, the law of COMMANDS IN ENACTMENTS, having left unemployed; that he might create in himself one new man, making peace;” — Julia Smith Translation
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For He is our peace–He who has made Jews and Gentiles one, and in His own human nature has broken down the hostile dividing wall, 15 by setting aside the Law with its COMMANDMENTS, EXPRESSED, AS THEY WERE, IN DEFINITE DECREES. His design was to unite the two sections of humanity in Himself so as to form one new man,” — Weymouth New Testament
Ephesians 2:14,15: “for he is our peace. He it is, who hath made both one, and who hath demolished the partition wall, 15 having; by his flesh put a stop to the enmity; the law of the COMMANDMENTS [CONTAINED] IN POSITIVE INJUNCTIONS; that he might frame the two anew, in himself, into one new man, making peace;” — Charles Thomson Translation
Ephesians 2:14,15: “He, in fact, is our peace—who made both one, and, the enclosing middle-wall, took down, 15 The enmity, in his flesh—the law of COMMANDMENTS IN DECREES—bringing to nought,—that, the two, he might create in himself, into one man of new mould, making peace.” — Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For He is our peace, Who made both one, and broke down the middle wall of the partition, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, even the law of COMMANDMENTS EXPRESSED IN DECREES, that He might make the two one new man in Himself, making peace,” — Worrell New Testament
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For He is our Peace, Who makes both one, and razes the central wall of the barrier 15 (the enmity in His flesh), nullifying the law of PRECEPTS IN DECREES, that He should be creating the two, in Himself, into one new humanity, making peace;” — Concordant Literal Version
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For he is our peace, who made both one, and brake down the middle wall of partition, 15 having abolished in his flesh the enmity, [even] the law of COMMANDMENTS [CONTAINED] IN ORDINANCES; that he might create in himself of the twain one new man, [so] making peace.” — English Revised Version
Ephesians 2:14,15: “For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and breaking down the middle wall of partition, the enmities in his flesh: 15 Making void the law of COMMANDMENTS CONTAINED IN DECREES: that he might make the two in himself into one new man, making peace.” — Douay-Rheims Bible
Despite the personal conclusion that the authors of the New Living Translation, New International Version, and other anti-Mosaic law leaning translations jumped to in their translations, these Ephesians verses do not conclusively, beyond reasonable doubt, say that the entire written Mosaic law or even some of it, which contains a substantial number of very humane, good laws, have been annulled. What was abolished here were the man made, non-Biblical Oral Torah laws added by the Jews that were barriers to salvation.
The Greek word nomos, NOT DOGMA, is used in the Bible more than 200 times to refer to all or the bulk of written, Biblically recorded Old Testament laws. Dogma, used only 5 times, NEVER clearly refers to even ANY of the written, Biblically recorded, God inspired laws. Therefore there really is not only reasonable, but overwhelming doubt that Ephesians 2:15 refers to all or even any of the Old Testament laws. ALSO, THE 1 JOHN 3:4 DEFINITION OF SIN SPECIFIES THAT SIN IS BREAKING NOMOS LAW, NOT BREAKING DOGMA LAW.
Besides abolishing in Ephesians 2:15 the man made Jewish decrees requiring the execution of gentiles passing through the middle wall to enter the inner temple, additional Oral Torah laws were rendered by Jesus as inconsequential or unnecessary for salvation such as the following:
According to jewishvirtuallibrary.org, before the evening meal during the Saturday Sabbath which begins after Friday sunset, each person in the household should wash their hands by filling a cup with water and then pour the water over the top and bottom of the right hand and then the left hand. Then the hands are wiped dry on a towel.
Apparently it would be wrong, perhaps even sinful, breaking one of the man concocted Oral Torah Laws, if the water was first poured on the left hand.
The Sabbath table should be set with a minimum of two candles
(representing the two laws to remember and observe the
Sabbath), at least two loaves of challah, and a glass of wine. The
challah loaves should be whole, and should be covered with a bread cover, napkin, or towel. Candles must be lit by the woman of the household no later than 18 minutes before the sun sets Friday evening. After lighting the candles, she waves her hands over the candles, welcoming in the new Sabbath day. Then she covers her eyes with her hands, so as to not see the candles before reciting a certain blessing which mentions God’s command to “light the Sabbath candles.” The woman then removes her hands from her eyes, and she looks at the candles, which completes the mitzvah of lighting the candles.
This specific Oral Law ritual of course is not found in the Bible. Lit candles emit smoke which can be hazardous to human lungs, so just breathing in such potentially carcinogenic air could be considered sinful in itself and should therefore be avoided according to James 4:17: “Therefore to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” Also, the certain blessing above that the woman is supposed to recite may actually “bear false witness” since there is no official written record or other proof, to my knowledge, in which God commands people to light candles on the Sabbath, even though the Jews claim God did orally command lighting candles. So at least one or two sins could be immediately committed by trying to obey this Jewish, man made, Oral Torah Law on how to properly observe the Saturday Sabbath. You can understand why the Gentiles thought the Oral Laws were sometimes unnecessary and burdensome. These are the man invented laws, the dogma, that sometimes produced friction, resentment, and hostility between the Jews and the Gentiles, described as “enmity” in Ephesians 2:15. The very man made, NOT divinely created “middle wall of separation” in Ephesians 2:14 was especially enmity producing since Gentiles were threatened with death if they crossed this barrier built within the Temple. The sacrificial death and teachings of Jesus removed this enmity since Gentiles as well as Jews can now be allowed to repent and receive salvation. Christian Gentiles are now basically equal to the Jews.
By accepting the sacrificial death of Jesus to blot out personal sins, Jews and gentiles were put on equal footing before God. By making the forgiveness of sin available to all peoples, including the Jews and gentiles, Christ abolished all excuses to maintain hostility toward others. This is what the real message is in Ephesians 2:15. For further study of Ephesians 2:15, a good site is ucg.org/booklet/new-covenant-does-it-abolish-gods-law/peace-and-unity-christ/. Please also read the middle part of tomorrowsworld.org/magazines/2001/may-june/principles-bible-study. Another excellent site to visit is rcg.org/questions/p154.a.html.
Remember, only 7 verses in the entire Bible say literally that Christians are no longer under the law, but every single one of those 7 verses focuses only on a very narrow range of laws, which are the sacrifice, circumcision, Levitical priesthood, or eternal death penalty laws. The topic is never the general law, so that means the safe meat, mostly prophetic festivals, and tithing laws are still in full force despite what the popular, verse skipping, added verse supporting (the last sentence, which is highly deceptive and therefore sinful, in Mark 7:19 in most translations is NOT in the original Greek), mainstream churches fanatically preach. Please read the page ROMANS 6:14: “…… YOU ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW BUT UNDER GRACE.” ACTS 2:38 AND ROMANS 6:15 SHOW THAT VERSE 14 DOES NOT EVEN COME CLOSE TO PROVING THAT MOST OT LAWS CAN BE ABANDONED.
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