Ephesians 5:5Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

It was with these in mind that blessed Paul wrote then to the Ephesians, saying: “For know this, that no fornicator, or unclean person, or covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and God.”

That the extortioner is an idolater, understand from this: “You cannot serve God and mammon” (Mt 6:24). Indeed, the extortioner has fallen away from God and serves gold. How, then, is he not an idolater?

And if he says that he has not set up idols, what of it? The more educated Greeks also said that they did not worship idols, but Aphrodite and Ares. These are passions.

The extortioner does not slaughter sheep, but he slaughters men and rational souls. The Greek worshiped God’s creatures, but the extortioner worships his own phantom. God did not create covetousness; our insatiability did.

I think that Paul said this by borrowing from David, but in another form. David said, “The idols of the nations are silver and gold” (Ps 113:12). Paul, in his great wisdom, changed this and called silver and gold idols.

Therefore the man who serves silver and gold is, beyond doubt, an idolater.

“For because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.” Either because of fornication, impurity, and idolatry, or because of such speeches from deceivers. He calls them sons of disobedience because they are very disobedient, do not believe God, and spread such opinions.

In saying this, we do not make room for foolish talk and jesting. Nevertheless, although there are many mansions with the Father, one may be free from fornication, impurity, and luxury.

Yet if such a person also speaks foolishly and shows an inclination to jesting, he will not keep the place he would have possessed had he not had these vices.

But someone will answer: let that be so. Foolish talk and jesting are not bound to the same liability as fornication, impurity, and greed.

Still, should not shameful deeds have been mentioned together with these three?

To this it must be said that by shameful deeds here a hidden thought is indicated. This happens when our mind is stirred toward lust.

It happens when, by the irritations of the flesh, the passionate soul is inflamed and is restrained neither by the fear of God nor by remembrance of judgment.

Finally, above also the Apostle named the same three vices without mention of shameful deeds: "But fornication and every impurity and greed, let them not even be named among you."

Then dishonor is mentioned together with foolish talk and jesting. As foolish talk and jesting exclude from the Kingdom forever and destroy a man, so also do these shameful deeds.

Above, in the words, "that he should not transgress and greedily defraud his brother in the matter" (1 Thess 4:6), we said that greed is put in place of fornication.

Therefore let us ask about what is now said: "or a greedy man, who serves idols." Does this agree with the interpretation above, or with the usual understanding?

In very many places of the prophets we find idolatry called fornication: "They will fornicate," he says, "after their idols," and "they are deceived by the spirit of fornication" (Hos 4:12).

Thus fornication can also be understood above in the sense of idolatry.

But if by a greedy man we understand one who gathers money in any way whatever, who desires to possess coins lawfully and unlawfully, and who delights in a full purse, then such a man is an idolater.

He is so in the sense that he worships the very image on the coin and honors the hidden idols in them.

As the belly is the god of gluttonous people, so money may rightly be called the god of the greedy. This is especially so when the Apostle elsewhere calls greed idolatry.

At the same time we must consider what he had in mind when he said: "in the Kingdom of Christ and God" (1 Cor 10).

Is the Kingdom of Christ one thing, and the Kingdom of God another? Or is the Kingdom of the Father and of the Son one and the same?

Even if he had said, "in the Kingdom of the Son and the Father," we come to the Father through the Son.

Although there is a distinction of the divine Persons, the majesty of those who reign is one and the same.

But when he said, "in the Kingdom of Christ and God," we must understand God Himself and Christ. For even when He delivers the Kingdom to God and the Father, the Father will not be all in all.

Rather, God will be all in all. But where God is, there both the Father and the Son must be understood.

Finally, what we say about the Father and the Son, we must also keep in mind concerning the Holy Spirit.

He did this to raise us up to heaven, though we still remain on earth, through an angelic manner of life. Therefore divine Paul again says: “Our citizenship is in heaven, where Jesus entered for us as forerunner” (Eph 3:20; Eph 6:20).

Thus those must conduct themselves who pledge themselves to be zealous for every purity. They have been placed in a state of purity and have received the powers to preserve it and live in it.

“Holiness is the heart’s fulfillment with all the virtues. Yet it is witnessed chiefly by purity from fleshly impulses and sympathies.” “In all the holy ascetics we find the indication that idle speech and buffoonery stand in direct connection with desire.

To quench the desire of the flesh and the eyes, he, the Apostle, sets before them the danger of losing the Kingdom of Heaven because of these things. He offers, as it were, a choice between the momentary sweetness of desire and eternal blessedness in the Kingdom of Christ.

The extortioner is characterized by a special and weighty trait: he is an idolater. In the Epistle to the Colossians he also calls covetousness idolatry (3:5).

Every passion is indeed such that, when it overcomes someone, it wholly swallows him up. For this reason the Apostle also called the belly a god (Phil 3:19).

Yet attachment to riches has a special trait that places the one possessed by it in the same line as idolaters. This trait is trust in wealth. But one must expect everything from God and rest all one’s hopes in Him.”

“Ephesus was full of diverse schools and communities. Among them, the Epicureans did not judge fornication strictly, just as among the Jews the Sadducees did not. The Apostle, of course, knew this. He knew what these vain talkers could say.

Without entering into a detailed examination of their vain speech, he cuts off the temptation with one word: see to it that, whatever anyone may say against this apostolic teaching, you are not deceived.”

“Be afraid, he says, lest through opposition to the truth and indulgence toward impurity you become like them, the disobedient. If you allow this, you will share their lot. And their lot is the fire of judgment and torment” (Right Reverend Theophan).

"Know this" is a decisive sentence, without any exceptions or qualifications. Those who have the misfortune to serve the passions mentioned have no inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ.

They are already excluded from it. Those who merely fall into them, as soon as they fall, are excluded by the very act of falling.

So incompatible is the Kingdom with lusting. The Apostle brings under this sentence only fornication, impurity, and covetousness. He passes over shameful speech, foolish talk, and jesting.

But this does not mean that, according to the Apostle, one may enter the Kingdom with them.

It means that they do not have independent significance for him. They are instrumental actions in relation to those chief passions.

Thus they do not exist when those passions do not exist. Conversely, where those passions are, these also are present. Therefore they will share the same lot with them.

Idle talk and making others laugh appear outwardly not so important. Yet the passion of fornication hides beneath them and sets the tongue in motion.

Judging by this kinship, their importance is very great. A glance also seems insignificant. Yet he who looks at a woman to desire her is condemned as a fornicator.

"Fornicator" and "unclean" are spoken by the Apostle in the same sense as before, fornication and impurity. But the covetous man is characterized by a special and very weighty feature: he is an idolater.

In the Epistle to the Colossians he also calls covetousness idolatry (Col 3:5). And the Lord said that one cannot serve God and mammon (Mt 6:24).

Therefore whoever serves mammon, that is, whoever is enslaved to the passion of acquisitiveness, does not serve God. Mammon has become god for him.

He is devoted to it with all his soul, with all his heart, with all his thought, and with all his strength.

As he ought to have been disposed toward God, so he has disposed himself toward wealth.

Every passion is like this, however. When it overcomes someone, it swallows him whole. For this reason the Apostle also called the belly a god (Phil 3:19).

Yet attachment to wealth has a special feature that places the person possessed by it on one line with idolaters. This is trust in wealth.

One must expect everything from God and rest all one's hopes on Him. But the person possessed by covetousness expects everything from money and wealth.

He rests on them and reposes his hopes in them. Where God ought to stand, mammon stands for him. Thus he is a direct idolater.

"He has no inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and God." Inheritance, κληρονομια, means what has been appointed to someone as an inheritance.

The unsearchable riches of Christ are all distributed according to the virtues. Each virtue has its own place and its own portion of the riches of Christ.

When the Kingdom of Christ comes, each person will enter where the portion assigned to the virtue in which he especially excelled is found.

All who have labored in the virtues according to faith will be in the Kingdom. For all, abiding there will be ineffably blessed. Yet each will be in his own place and rank.

In the midst of these radiant mansions there is no place for any passion. "Outside are fornicators and idolaters" (Rev 22:15).

This is plainly evident in itself. Yet the Apostle reminds them of it with special force, saying: "Know this." Evidently it was necessary to emphasize this.

Perhaps certain thoughts were circulating that undermined confidence in this truth. Therefore, further on, warning the faithful against crooked interpretations, he writes: