The passage
      v1. Paul's opening point is separated by a side argument which runs up to v5. His point is that we who are dead in our sins are made alive with Christ. The death we are freed from is a spiritual death which is the direct result of our sinful state.
      v2. In this sinful state, we followed the lead of "this present evil age", Gal.1:4. We were in bondage to dark powers, but the victory of Christ has broken this subjection, Col.2:5. The "spirit", now manipulating those still in bondage, is not the Devil or his "spiritual host", rather it is the "ways of this world" - the spirit of this age.
      v3. Having identified the sorry origins of his Gentile readers, he points out that he, along with all Israel, were in a similar state. Religious people can follow "the ways of this world" just as easily as pagans, cf. Matt.23:23. Thus, the Jew also faces the wrath of God.
      v4. Yet, the wrath of God is only part of the picture. God is also a merciful and loving God, and it is because of this that believers are no longer under condemnation.
      v5. Paul now picks up on his main point which he began in v1. Once dead, but now, through our identification with ("in") Christ, we are "made.... alive". Notice it is " we" - both Jew and Gentile. "Made alive", in a moral as well as a spiritual sense. He adds, in parenthesis, his formula for justification. This he develops in v8.
      v6. The effect of justification is to move the believer in reality, although not necessarily in experience, out of the passing shadows of this age. As far as God is concerned, we are even now seated with Christ "at his right hand in the heavenly realms", 1:20. This state is ours already, cf. Col.2:12, 3:1-3. As far as our standing in the sight of God is concerned, both now and for eternity, we are already perfected in Christ.
      v7. When this age is no more and the new creation gathers us together in the heavenly realms perfected in the image of Christ, then shall we stand as the crowning glory of God's grace.
      v8. The doctrinal statement outlined in v5 is now repeated and developed. The "and this" does not refer to "faith", as if faith is "the gift of God", rather salvation is God's gift. Faith is but an imperfect acceptance, full of doubts and fears, of God's offer of salvation.
      v9. The perfection we possess, through our identification with Christ, enables us to stand before the throne of our God; once in bondage, now saved to eternal life. This salvation is not achieved, confirmed, or progressed by an effort of our will, it is totally a gift.
      v10. Although our salvation is wholly a gift of grace, we are saved for a particular purpose, namely "to do good works"; to this end God has shaped us. God's good work is partly played out here in the gathering of a people to be with him, but reaches far beyond this age in the reconciliation of all things. In John's gospel the good work is "love", compassion, mercy....

God's gracious plan
      In our passage for study the apostle sets before us the doctrine of justification, the driving force of the Reformation - sola gratia, sole fide, soli Deo gloria, "by grace alone, through faith alone, to God alone be glory." Our eternal standing in the sight of God, which demands of us an impossible perfection, is ours as a gracious gift from a merciful and loving God, and is appropriated through the instrument of faith. It is important to note that the context of this doctrinal statement shows clearly that the salvation offered in Christ is unconditional and eternal in dimension. By grace through faith we now stand before God eternally perfected. Nothing we can do adds to this gift.
      The extent of God's gift of salvation is quite wondrous. In speaking of our standing before God, we correctly say we are "declared right." Yet, it is also true to say that what God declares so is so. Although we are anything but right until "the old Adam is planted in the ground" (Luther), we are none-the-less eternally right such that we are actually "raised up with Christ" and seated "with him in the heavenly realms." Our eternal possession is a present reality. As the old country chorus put it, "this world ain't my home, I'm just a passin through."
      God's unlimited kindness toward us is triggered by the instrument of faith. When a person reaches out to Jesus and asks for God's gift of life, they receive life in abundance. This then is faith, a reliance on, a trust in, a dependence on Jesus for the gift of salvation. Ask, seek and knock, and all is ours.
      Although our faithfulness has nothing to do with the gift of salvation, faithfulness remains a natural consequence of salvation. In fact, the apostle says that the creation of God's blessed community has as its purpose the doing of "good works." God even "prepared in advance for us to do" them. Love is the sum of the good work. For the here and now, the gathering and nurturing of a people of God realizes love, and in eternity, well!!!!

      See also what the apostle says in v10 about our present state as we strive to progress our Christian life within the "spirit". We are "God's workmanship" not our own. We are a new creation in Christ, shaped and prepared "to do good works." We have been "made alive with Christ", morally renewed, regenerated, born again; all this is of his doing, all his shaping. The very person of Christ has taken residence in our being, enlivening us. Christ's very character of love is flowing through us.
      Again, by what means is this so? Do we work on it? No, it's again "by grace.... through faith". We must believe for the renewing work of the Spirit of Christ, and it is in believing that we are daily changed into His image.
      Of course, legalism can again easily undermine this truth. If we start thinking that our present state can be somehow improved by an effort of the will, we will find the opposite occurring. We then have to adopt pharisaical methods of denying the constant and increasing desire to gratify the "cravings of our sinful nature." We do this by removing the specks in the eyes of others to hide the log in our own.

      Whether we are considering our eternal standing in the sight of God, or our progress in the Christian life, the law enslaves us to sin and makes us "objects of wrath". "Tis by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast." There is only one way to get the gift of salvation, to stand perfected in the presence of the living God and begin to "do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do" and that is by grace through faith.

Greek notes

v1
      nekrouV adj. "dead" - "Spiritually dead", TEV.
      toiV paraptwmasin (a) dat. "transgressions" - falling away, slip, trespass. The dative here is probably not instrumental, ie. dead "by means of your transgressions", and certainly not causal, "because of your transgressions." Rather, it is descriptive of the state of death. Their death is not like Christ's, but is a death in/of sin - dead while alive because of sin. "Dead because you sinned and fought against God", CEV.

v2
      periepathsate (peripatew) aor. "you used to live" - you walked about..... A term Paul uses for life-style, particularly with moral connotations. It reflects the word "way", a term that encapsulates the Christian life. The word has the same meaning as "lived" in v3, to conduct oneself.
      kata ton aiwna tou kosmou toutou "when you followed the ways of this world" - according to the age/eon of this world. The phrase is not easily rendered in English. It's "this age" and "this world", both describing a single entity, an entity that is passing away and will soon be replaced by the age to come; an entity the believer is to live in, but not be conformed to. "This present evil age", Gal.1:4.
      ton arconta (wn ontoV) "ruler" - prince, ruler, governor... Here a term for Satan, Beelzebub, the prince/power of darkness.
      thV exousiaV (a) "of the kingdom" - of the power, authority.... Possibly "kingdom", in the sense of domain where authority is exercised.
      tou aeroV (ahr) "of the air" - of the air, atmosphere. It was believed that Satan and his minions operate in the air (and in the water), so he is everywhere. "The ruler of the spiritual powers in space", TEV.
      tou pneumatoV (a atoV) gen. "the spirit" - "spirit" should be in apposition (one noun against another in a sentence to expand the meaning) to "ruler", but they don't agree in case. "Kingdom" and "air" are genitive, so is "spirit" in apposition to "of the power/kingdom/authority of the air"? This doesn't work. It does agree with "the eon of this world" and therefore may mean "the spirit of this age" which has taken root in the lives of the rebellious ones.
      toiV uiJoiV thV apeiqeiaV (a) "those who are disobedient" - the sons of disobedience. A Hebraism = the disobedient ones. There are numerous "sons of ......" in the scriptures. "Everyone who doesn't obey God", CEV.

v3
      en oiJV kai hJmeiV "all of us also" - among whom also we. "Wherein we also" rather than "in whom we also." Probably "we" Jews, although "we all" is possibly wider. The Jews were in a similar situation, following their own sinful desires and facing God's judgment because of it.
      anestrafhmen (anastrefw) aor. pas. "lived" - conducted ourselves, followed (in the sense of imitated). "We Jews, like all humanity, did what we wanted to do."
      en taiV epiqumiaiV (a) "the cravings" - lust, desire. The preposition is explanatory, "following the dictates of our sinful nature."
      hJmwn "our" - "We Jews also followed the lusts of our flesh, acting out the cravings of our flesh and of our minds." The second and third "our", although not in the text, should probably be read as a repeat of the first use of "our"
      twn dianoiwn (a) "thoughts" - the understanding, thought, mind, intention. Often the word "heart" is used in the scriptures to represent the seat of understanding. Like the Gentiles, the Jews are sinful through and through, acting out the natural urges of the body and the deceitful reasonings of the mind.
      fusei (iV ewV) dat. "by nature" - inherent to nature, natural. Describing a condition without moral overtones, "tis the way I am". Here "by nature" or "in ourselves."
      tekna ... orghV (h) "objects of wrath" - children of wrath. A Hebraism similar to "sons of disobedience." Destined to suffer God's anger", TEV.

v5
      sunezwopoihsen (suzwpoiew) aor. "made us alive" - quickened, make alive together with. The word is used only here and in Colossians 2:13. Barth suggests the meaning may be "to keep alive" in the sense of preserve life. The move from "made", v5, to "raised", v6, is not progressive, then "raised" could be used in v5. "Raised us to life with Christ", Barclay.
      tw/ Cristw/ "in Christ" - in/with Christ. Either way, the meaning is one of identification with Christ, here an identification with his resurrection in the sense of made alive with.
      cariti (iV ewV) dat. "by grace" - by grace, favour, gratitude, kindness. In the New Testament it means "grace" in the sense of a gift or blessing given to humanity by God through Christ. In a more general sense, particularly when reflecting an Old Testament use, it means "favour", divine favour toward humanity. With Paul it is often used with a defining genitive, eg. "the grace/favour/kindness of God."
      seswsmenoi (swzw) perf. part. "you have been saved" - you are having been saved. It is not a present tense as if salvation is a process, nor is it aorist as if salvation is a single divine act, nor is it imperfect as if only a past act, but rather it is perfect in that it is a past act with present permanent consequences.

v6
      sunhgeiren (sunegeirw) aor. "raised us up with Christ" - he raised up together with. The "us" and "Christ" is understood. Christ rose from the dead and ascended to heaven, we too were dead and through our identification with Christ we are raised from the dead (dead to sin and therefore raised from spiritual death) and have ascended with Christ.
      sunekaqisen (sunkaqizw) aor. "seated us with him" - seated us together with, sit down together with someone. "Has given us a place beside Christ in heaven", CEV.
      en toiV epouranioiV (oV) "in the heavenly realms" - heavenly, heaven, spiritual sphere. It is the sphere of spiritual activities where Christ reigns.

v7
      iJna + subj. "in order that" - that. Introducing a purpose clause. Christ was glorified for the purpose of ....
      endeixhtai (endeiknumi) aor. subj. pas/mid. "he might show" - he might display, demonstrate, manifest, give evidence to, show forth. "He might display", Bruce.
      to uJperballon (uperballw) pres. part. "the incomparable" - the exceeding, surpassing. From the idea of throw beyond. "Extraordinary greatness", TEV.
      crhstotthti (hV htoV) "kindness" - goodness, kindness. Of showing kindness toward another, that which is useful, what is benevolent, benevolence*. "That he might show the surpassing riches of his grace in (expressed in) his kindness toward us in Christ Jesus."

v8
      th/ gar cariti (is ewV) dat. "for [it is] by grace" - The dative is instrumental. Unlike v5 there is an article, but this simply indicates that the phrase is being repeated. "By the means of grace" we are having been saved.
      dia pistewV (iV ewV) "through faith" - through the instrumentality of faith, reliance, trust.... (in Jesus). The human response to the sovereign grace of God.
      kai touto "and this" - Referring to salvation and not faith. Paul is stressing that salvation is achieved apart from works of faithfulness, rather than arguing that faith is not a good work. The "this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God", most likely refers to the grace of salvation rather than faith. In support of "faith", the Westminster Shorted Catechism states that saving faith is a gift of God's grace by which the Holy Spirit acts to "persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel".
      qeou to dwron "the gift of God" - God's the gift. Since God is the predicate, "it is a gift and the gift is God's."

v9
      iJna mh "so that no one" - lest. Introducing a negated purpose. "Any achievement of ours is ruled out to make it impossible for anyone to boast", Barclay.
      kauchshtai (kaucaomai) aor. subj, mid. "can boast" - boast, exalt proudly.