The passage
      v3. Paul begins by warning his readers of sexual immorality. "No one should ever have a reason to talk about any of you ever doing such things"
      v4. As for conversation, foul language, "foolish talk" (possibly "dirty talk"), and sexual innuendoes (dirty jokes), should also be avoided. It would be better to talk about all we owe to God.
      v5. Paul states that those who live such evil lives have no place in the kingdom, cf. 1Cor.6:9-11. He is not saying that a believer who slips and falls into sin is barred from the kingdom, but rather that those who actively pursue sin cannot claim to stand with Christ and thus be part of the kingdom of God.
      v6. The danger facing Paul's readers is that it is easy to be led astray by the permissiveness of other members. They must not be deceived; God's wrath will inevitably fall on those whose lives expose their disregard for God's grace.
      v7. Believers must not participate in evil-living. There is nothing evil in associating with sinners; the problem is joining in with their sin.
      v8. Paul now develops his practical exhortations using the image of light and darkness. His readers were once in darkness, lost and alone, but in Christ they are light, therefore they should live as light.
      v9. The natural produce, or "fruit" as Paul calls it, of a child of the light, is Godly behavior.
      v10. Added to right doing there is right thinking. Paul encourages his readers to work out what is "acceptable" (better than "pleasing") to God.
      v11. Keep clear of evil and expose it. Let us set our face against the works of darkness.
      v12. It is even difficult to speak of such shameful things openly.
      v13-14a. Once such deeds, practiced in secret within the congregation, are exposed by the truth of Christ, they become "illumined", NEB (better than "visible"). There is a sense where evil within the life of God's people is healed, enlightened, its darkness swept away, through the power of God's Word. "Light is capable of 'showing up' everything for what it really is. It is even possible (after all, it happened with you!) for light to turn the thing it shines upon into light also", J.B. Phillips. The light of Christ's Word has the power to renew.
      v14b. Paul's rough quotation of Isaiah 60:1 serves to remind his readers that as believers they have risen to new life in Christ, they are "illumined". The ethical implication is: be what you are.

Live as children of light
      Although we are primarily responsible for our own actions before God, there is a sense where the community of believers is bound to take responsibility for the sexual behavior of fellowship members. So, when Paul writes to the Ephesian churches, he takes time to teach them about sexual immorality. We should take time to note his words.

      He warns us of three areas of sexual immorality:
        i] The deed itself. The word he uses is "immorality" (uncleanness) which covers all areas of sexual activity outside marriage. Much like secular society today, Paul's society explored the full range of sexual possibilities.
        ii] The intent. The word he uses is "covetousness". This is the constant imagining and preparing for sexual release outside marriage, to such an extent that it becomes our center of being. He is not speaking about the careless thought.
        iii] Discussion. Filthy talk.

      Paul gives three reasons for "having nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness":
        i] Such behavior is "improper for God's holy people." It does not reflect Christ, whose image the fellowship bears.
        ii] It denies "inheritance in the kingdom of Christ." A believer can slip and fall, but involvement in a life-style of sexual immorality places a person outside God's eternal family.
        iii] It inevitably prompts "God's wrath". Sexuality serves to enhance the intimate relationship of marriage, which in turn images the intimacy of the relationship that is possible with God. To debase sex stirs God's anger.

      Paul encourages his readers to do three things:
        i] "Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness." There shouldn't even be a "hint of sexual immorality" within the fellowship. Walk away from it.
        ii] "Live as children of light". Affirm "goodness, righteousness and truth." Be what we are.
        iii] "Expose" sexual immorality within the fellowship. Certainly not in a judgemental way, but in the firm declaration of Christ's Word. Remember, the Word of Christ has the power to reclaim the "sleeper".

v3
      mhde onomazesqw (onomazw) pres. pas. imp. "[among you] there must not be even a hint of" - let it not be named [among you]. Probably "should not even be so much as mentioned", Barclay, by way of underlining the evil rather than prohibiting discussion on such human failings. Possibly in the sense of encouraging behavior which even removes the opportunity of gossip, let alone the sin itself; "no one should ever have a reason to talk about any of you ever doing such things", TH.
      akaqarsia "impurity" - uncleanness. Possibly the phrase "sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity" may well read "fornication which is impurity."
      pleonexia "of greed" - greediness, covetousness. Probably alluding to sexual thought or intent.
      kaqwV prepei aJgioiV "because these are improper for God's holy people" - as is proper saints. Note how some commentators handle this clause as if referring to the discussion of sexual evils, rather than the doing of them. What is not "fitting", RSV? Surely the issue is sexual misconduct, whereas the issue of filthy talk is raised in v4. "This is the proper course for saints (believers) to take", Moffatt.

v4
      aiscrothV (hV htoV) "obscenity" - filthy talk. As with the two nouns following, this word refers to sexually inappropriate talk - dirty jokes and the like. "You must having nothing to do with obscene language and stupid and frivolous talk", Barclay.
      ouk anhken (anhkw) imperf. "are out of place" - not belonging to, fitting. The imperfect expressing "very much unfitting and still going on." "All this is wrong for you", NJB.
      eucaristia (a) "thanksgiving" - thankfulness. One would expect the opposite of grubby talk to be gracious talk. Instead of allowing our minds to work on the dirt-track we would do better to talk about "all that we owe to God", Phillips.

v5
      iste ginwskonteV "of this you can be sure" - you know knowing. An unusual periphrastic construction used to express a common Aramaic form; "be very sure of this", REB.
      oJ rel. pro. neut. "such a man" - which. Here with the particular sense, "with reference to the whole idea", Moule.
      eidwlolatrhV (hV ou) "idolater" - [that/which is] an idolater. The link between covetousness and idolatry is an interesting one, cf. Col.3:5. Covetousness involves worshiping the creation as if it were the creator. In this context it is sexual covetousness - sex as the centre of life. It is necessary to remind ourselves that all believers regularly sin, and all too regularly sin in the sexual department. For many, a broken marriage or relationship is the consequence, a situation compounded by the establishment of a new union. Yet, such failure does not bar us from the kingdom of heaven, rather, it is the habitual and determined flouting of God's moral guidelines which evidences that a person does not stand under God's grace and therefore has no part in the kingdom of God. The clause works well as a parenthesis, "no one who is immoral, indecent, or greedy (for greed is a form of idolatry) ..." TEV.
      th/ basileia/ tou cristou kai qeou - Paul's reference to the "kingdom of Christ and of God" is unusual, to say the least. Paul sees the kingdom in terms of rule. Christ rules for the present and when all is subject to his rule, he will hand over his rule (the kingdom) to the Father, although it is ultimately a mutual reign in the end; "the mutual reign of Christ and the Father." None-the-less, there are quite a few variants at this point and we may be safer with "can inherit the kingdom of God", RJB.

v6
      apatatw (apataw) pres. imp. "[let no one] deceive [you]" - let deceive, mislead. The negation of the present imperative expresses a command to cease to do an ongoing action. "Stop letting people trick you."
      kenoiV dat. adj. "empty [words]" - foolish, empty, worthless. Instrumental dative. Arguments that promote sexual permissiveness are "empty", they are "devoid of the truth", O'Brien.
      dia tauta "because of these things" - Referring to the sexual vices covered in v3-5.
      ercetai (ercomai) pres. "comes [on]" - comes [upon]. The present tense may indicate that those who ignore God face his anger, and thus his judgment, in the present. Possibly a futuristic present, "will come on", but more likely expressing judgment as part of an ongoing process of action, reaction; "it is these very things which bring down the wrath of God upon the disobedient", Phillips.
      touV uiJouV thV apeiqeiaV "those who are disobedient" - the sons of disobedience. A Semitic phrase used to refer to those who are disobedient to God's will. Paul may be referring to unbelievers and certainly most commentators see Paul's words in this passage as drawing a distinction between believers (the children of light) and unbelievers (those in the darkness). Yet, it is more likely that Paul's focus is upon unexposed sin within the Christian fellowship.

v7
      summetocoi (oV) "partners" - joint partakers. Referring to someone who shares together with another. "Don't have anything to do with anyone like that", CEV.
      autwn gen. "with them" - Probably, "with those type of things", but possibly, "with people like that", Barclay.

v8
      skotoV ... fwV "darkness .... light" - Here the imagery of darkness and light represents the life of a person lived in ignorance producing the fruit of immorality, while light represents the life of a person radiated by the divine Word (revelation, the knowledge of God) producing the fruit of holiness, which quality is a gift of God's grace.
      en kuriw/ "in the Lord" - in/with lord. Prepositional phrase expressing "union with / in association with Jesus". A believer is a new person in Christ. As far as God is concerned, our old sinful self is no more, for we now possess the righteousness of Christ. More than that, Christ's compelling love indwells us, shaping the image of Christ's righteousness within. Thus, we are "light in the Lord", and as a natural response, will tend to "live as children of light". So, Paul's exhortation is "be what we are." A child of the light will always fall short of God's perfect standards, but thankfully we stand in Jesus' perfection. "Your connection with the Lord has made you light", Barclay.
      peripateite (peripatew) pres. imp. "live" - walk. "Walk" in the sense of "conduct oneself."

v9
      This verse is a parenthesis with v10 following on from v 8. Paul lists three fruits. First, "goodness", which may mean generosity, but is probably much wider in meaning. He could even mean purity. Second, "righteousness" - right doing in the fashion of God's behavior, Eph.4:2. Third, "truth" - truth of speech, Eph.4:25.
      en "[consists] in" - in. There is no verb in the sentence and so one must be supplied, so NIV "consists in"; "is characterized by", O'Brien. The "in" is probably local, "expresses itself in the sphere of", Hoehner.

v10
      dokimazonteV (dokimazw) pres. part. "find out" - testing, proving / being accepted as proved, approved. Of the two meanings of this verb the sense "having evaluated the worth of" seems best here, as NIV.
      euareston (oV) "pleases" - acceptable, pleasing. The ethical idea of acting in a way that is pleasing to God is often used as a motivation for right living. Certainly, Paul in 2Cor.5:9 says "we make it our goal to please him", but doesn't quite define what actually pleases God. It is reasonable to assume that "goodness, righteousness and truth" is pleasing to God, for these qualities are of his nature. The problem is that when exhibited in our lives they are always compromised and could therefore never be pleasing to God - our "righteousness is but filthy rags." The only righteousness pleasing to God is Christ's righteousness and so the only way we can please God is to possess that righteousness "in Christ" - a righteousness which is possessed as a gift of grace appropriated through faith. Since the word is used here in the context of ethics we are best to move to the sense "acceptable"; "the test of the approval of the Lord", Barclay; "try to discover what the Lord wants you to do", NJB.

v11
      mh sugkoinwneite (sugkoinwnew) pres. imp. "have nothing to do with" - do not participate, have no share in, part in. It is not "don't associate with corrupted people", but rather, "don't associate with the corruption." "Don't take part in", CEV.
      elegcete (elegcw) imp. "expose" - expose, reprove, convict. Most translators opt for the sense "expose" in the sense of "show up the deeds of darkness for what they are." Commentators tend to agree, arguing that a believer exposes evil by the glare of their own righteous life, cf. v13-14a. It is, of course, more likely that deeds of darkness are "exposed" by the truth of God's Word. Surely the Word is the "light" which "enlightens", cf. v13. On the other hand, we should not ignore the possible meanings of "convict / reprove"; "condemn", NAB.
      "them" - The object of the exposing is unstated in the Greek. Possibly referring to those who commit sin, such that a believer is to confront the perpetrator, but given the context, confronting the sin, with respect to our own lives, is more likely. We are to "expose / condemn" these "deeds of darkness." They are "fruitless" in that they have no worthwhile product. Not only must they not be done, but they must be exposed. If the exposure is beyond ourselves, then it is likely the exposure of evil within the church, Matt.18:15, rather than of evil within society. The prophets of Israel confronted the evils of Israel rather than those of secular society. "Set you faces against them (the unprofitable deeds of darkness)", Weymouth.

v12
      gar "for" - for. The verse states a reason for not participating, but rather exposing; "because ...."
      ta ... krufh/ ginomena part. "disobedient do in secret" - the things being done in secret. These things done by "the disobedient in secret" are probably of a sexual nature and are so debased that it is really not possible to talk about them.

v13-14a.
      uJpo tou fwtoV "by the light" - Often, particularly in Ephesians, a prepositional phrase precedes the verb or participle it qualifies, so "by the light" qualifies "becomes visible" rather than "exposed"; "everything exposed becomes visible by the light."
      faneroutai (fanerow) pres. pas. "becomes visible" - becomes exposed, made known, revealed, illumined [by the light]. The sense of this sentence is unclear. It is often argued that a believer's practice of personal righteousness serves to expose "shameful things / shameful persons", but the psychological ramifications (pharisaism) of such an ethical imperative seems to rule it out. It is possible that the practice of dissfellowshipping serves this "enlightening / illumining" end. The believer, who is living contrary to the Word of God, is confronted by the Word such that their evil is "exposed / shown up for what it is." If they are unwilling to deal with their evil they are treated as if outside God's community so that they might recognize their sin, repent and be fully welcomed again into Christ's family, ie. "illumined", NEB; "anything that is lit up itself becomes all light", Barclay. "Light is capable of 'showing up' everything for what it really is. It is even possible (after all, it happened with you!) for light to turn the thing it shines upon into light also", Phillips.
      to faneroumenon (fanerow) pres. pas. part. "visible" - [for all] the things being illumined [are light]. The light of Christ's Word has the power to renew; it moves us from darkness to light. When our sin is exposed to the radiance of God's Word of grace, its power diminishes, its darkness fades, and we enter again the realm of light. "Everything thus illumined is light", NEB.