![]() If such is truly the case, then Paul wrote Ephesians around 61-63 A.D. The general consensus is that these epistles were written during Paul's imprisonment at Rome (cf. TIME AND PLACE OF WRITING: Ephesians is one of Paul's four "prison epistles" ( Eph 3:1 4:1 6:20 cf. Reminding them of his work with them, he charged them to fulfill their own responsibilities as overseers of the flock of God, and then bid them a tearful farewell ( Ac 20:17-38). Toward the end of his third journey, Paul stopped at nearby Miletus, and met with the elders of the church at Ephesus. A disturbance created by some of the local idol makers finally forced Paul to leave Ephesus ( Act 19:23 -20:1). The end result is that the gospel spread from Ephesus throughout Asia Minor ( Ac 19:9-10). Resistance to his doctrine forced him to leave the synagogue, but he was able to continue teaching in the school of Tyrannus for a period of two years. After his initial success in converting twelve disciples of John ( Ac 19:1-7), Paul spent three months teaching in the local synagogue ( Ac 19:8). On his third missionary journey Paul made it back to Ephesus for an extended stay of three years (cf. Though Paul briefly studied with the Jews at the local synagogue and was invited to stay longer, he made plans to visit them again after a quick trip to Jerusalem ( Ac 18:20-21). A Roman capital, it was a wealthy commercial center and home for the worship of the goddess Diana (cf. Located on the SW coast of Asia Minor (modern day Turkey), Ephesus was one of the great cities in that part of the world. PAUL'S MINISTRY IN THE REGION: Paul first came to Ephesus for a short visit toward the end of his second missionary journey ( Ac 18:18-19). ![]() Without question it was intended for "the saints.and faithful in Christ Jesus." ( Eph 1:1) Ac 19:1, 8-10), it is understandable why later scribes might have assigned this epistle to the church at Ephesus. Because Ephesus was the leading city of the region, and the main center of Paul's missionary activity in the area (cf. Co 4:16), and designed to be shared with other churches, including Ephesus. It is thought by some (Conybeare and Howson) that this letter is the epistle that was first sent to Laodicea (cf. For example, there are no specific exhortations or personal greetings. The epistle itself is in the form of a general treatise rather than as a letter written to a specific church. The earliest manuscripts do not contain the phrase "in Ephesus" (cf. THE RECIPIENTS: There are reasons to believe that this epistle was not designed for just one congregation, but intended to be passed around to several churches in the area surrounding Ephesus. ![]() Polycarp (125 A.D.) attests to its canonicity in his own epistle to the Philippians (chapter 12). Early sources in church history that attribute this letter to Paul include: Irenaeus (200 A.D.), Clement of Alexandria (200 A.D.), and Origen (250 A.D.).
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