In him you also, having heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and having believed in it, were sealed with the Holy Spirit that had been promised,
1:13 — “you were sealed with the Holy Spirit.” The seal is used to indicate that something (such as a document) is genuine, authentic, confirmed, and therefore officially approved. Also the seal means possession; serves to identify the servants of God (Rev 3:12; Rev 7:3; Rev 22:4) and to protect them from the punishments that would come upon others. The most common interpretation of this phrase is that it refers to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the Christian. This teaching is in Romans 8:9-11; 1Co 3:16; 1Co 6:19, etc. Other texts say that God dwells in us (2Co 6:16), and remains in us (1Jn 3:24); Eph 3:17 It says, “so that Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith.” This great blessing signifies communion with the Holy Spirit. 2Co 13:14, “the fellowship of the Holy Ghost”; Hebrews 6:4, “made partakers of the Holy Spirit”. Now our communion is with God and not with the world.
2Co 6:14-16, “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers; for what fellowship has justice with injustice? And what communion has light with darkness? And what concord does Christ have with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For you are the temple of the living God, as God said: I will dwell and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not what is unclean; and I will receive you, and I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” Therefore, if God accepts us, and if we maintain holiness, He continues to dwell in us. If we continue to walk in the light, we continue to enjoy this fellowship with God; He continues to remain in us (1Jn 1:7; 1Jn 2:24; 1Jn 3:24, etc.). When the Bible speaks of the Holy Spirit “dwelling” in us, this means that we are led by Him (Romans 8:14), that our life is under his control; for example in Romans 7:20 Paul describes his life under the law of Moses (and the life of the unsaved Jews who still wanted to live under the law of Moses). Paul says that in such a life sin “dwells”; that is, that sin has control of that life. But now the Christian is not under the control of sin (Romans 6:6-14), because it is under the control and direction of the Holy Spirit. Christ told the church at Pergamum that “Antipas my faithful witness was slain among you, where Satan dwells (where Satan had control), “where Satan’s throne is”) (Rev 2:13). Some (even brothers) believe that in this verse Paul refers to the spiritual gifts that showed that God was with the apostles and other Christians in the first century, to reveal and confirm the word (John 16:14:26; 16:13; Tue 16:20; Hebrews 2:3-4etc.), but it cannot be proved that Eph 1:13-14 it is limited to miraculous gifts. Rev 7:2-3 indicates that all the redeemed are sealed.
Source: Commentary on the New Testament by Partain
you also in it. Eph 2:11, Eph 2:12; Col 1:21-23; 1Pe 2:10.
having heard Eph 4:21; Joh 1:17; Romans 6:17; Romans 10:14-17; Col 1:4-6, Col 1:23; 1Thess 2:13.
the word of truth. Ps 119:43; 2Co 6:7; 2Ti 2:15; Jas 1:18.
the gospel of your salvation. Tue 16:15, Tue 16:16; Ac 13:26; Romans 1:16; 2Ti 3:15; Tit 2:11; Hebrews 2:3.
you were sealed. Eph 4:30; Joh 6:27; Romans 4:11; 2Co 1:22; 2Ti 2:19; Rev 7:2.
with the Holy Spirit of promise. joe 2:28; Luke 11:13; Luke 24:49; Joh 14:16, Joh 14:17, Joh 14:26; Joh 15:26; Joh 16:7-15; Acts 1:4; Acts 2:16-22, Ac 2:33; Gal 3:14.
Source: The Treasury of Biblical Knowledge
In this passage Paul switches from those who like him were born into a Jewish home (“we”) to those with Gentile ethnic roots (“you”). The emphasis is placed on the work of the Holy Spirit. It is He who, through faith, seals each believer, thus transforming him into a special belonging of God. The Holy Spirit Himself is the seal and guarantee that we have been accepted by God through faith in Christ. The goal of the Holy Spirit is to produce an absolutely perfect “Christ,” that is, Jesus Christ the head and Christians the body! What a wonderful idea that those of us who were once separated from God now help complete what Paul calls “Christ.”
Source: New Illustrated Caribbean Bible Commentary
SEALED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT. As a seal, the Holy Spirit is given to believers as God’s mark of ownership. Through the bestowal of the Spirit, God marks the believer as his own (see 2Co 1:22). Therefore, the believer has the evidence that he is God’s adopted son and that his redemption is true when he enjoys the presence of the Holy Spirit in his life (Eph 1:5). The believer can know that he truly belongs to God when the Spirit regenerates and renews him (Joh 1:12-13; Joh 3:3-6), frees him from the power of sin (Romans 8:1-17; Gal 5:16-25), makes him aware that God is his Father (Eph 1:5; Romans 8:15; Gal 4:6) and fills you with power to testify of Him (Acts 1:8; Acts 2:4).
THE HOLY SPIRIT. The Holy Spirit and his part in the redemption of the believer constitute the central emphasis of the book of Ephesians. the holy spirit
(1) is the proprietary mark or seal of God (Eph 1:13);
(2) is the down payment on the believer’s inheritance (Eph 1:14);
(3) is the Spirit of wisdom and revelation (Eph 1:17);
(4) helps the believer when he draws near to God (Eph 2:18);
(5) edifies believers as a holy temple (Eph 2:21-22);
(6) reveals the mystery of Christ (Eph 3:4-5);
(7) strengthens the believer with power in the inner being (Eph 3:16);
(8) encourages unity in the Christian faith in full Christlikeness (Eph 4:3; Eph 4:13-14);
(9) is saddened when there is sin in the believer’s life (Eph 4:30);
(10) desires to continually fill and strengthen the believer (Eph 5:18); Y
(11) help in prayer and spiritual battle (Eph 6:18).
Source: Full Life Study Bible
THE HOLY SPIRIT… THE EARNEST. The Holy Spirit is “the earnest”, that is, the down payment or advance payment that guarantees the inheritance of believers. At this time the Holy Spirit is given to you as a foretaste of what you will have in greater quantity in the future. His presence and work in their lives is a promise of their future inheritance (cf. Romans 8:23; 2Co 1:22; 2Co 5:5).
Source: Full Life Study Bible
having heard the word of truth…and having believed. The gospel of Jesus Christ revealed by God must be heard (Romans 10:17) and believed (Joh 1:12) to bring salvation.
Source: MacArthur Study Bible
sealed with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God Himself comes to indwell the believer, largely to secure and preserve his eternal salvation. The seal Paul speaks of refers to an official identifying mark that was placed on letters, contracts, and other important documents. Thus, the document remained under the authentic and official authority of the person whose mark was printed on the seal. There are four primary truths that are established by a seal: 1) security (cp. Dan 6:17; Matt 27:62-66), 2) authenticity (cp. 1Ki 21:6-16),
3) property (cp. Jer 32:10) and 4) authority (cp. Esther 8:8-12). The Holy Spirit is given by God as His oath of the believer’s future inheritance in glory (cf. 2Co 1:21).
Source: MacArthur Study Bible
1:13 — “you were sealed with the Holy Spirit.” The seal is used to indicate that something (such as a document) is genuine, authentic, confirmed, and therefore officially approved. Also the seal means possession; it serves to identify the servants of God (Rev 3:12; Rev 7:3; Rev 22:4) and to protect them from the punishments that would come upon others.
The most common interpretation of this phrase is that it refers to the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the Christian. This teaching is found in Rom 8:9-11; 1Co 3:16; 1Co 6:19, etc Other texts say that God dwells in us (2Co 6:16), and remains in us (1Jn 3:24); Eph 3:17 says, “so that Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith.”
This great blessing signifies communion with the Holy Spirit. 2Co 13:14, “the fellowship of the Holy Ghost”; Heb 6:4, “made partakers of the Holy Ghost.” Now our communion is with God and not with the world.
2Co 6:14-16, “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers; for what fellowship has justice with injustice? And what communion has light with darkness? And what concord does Christ have with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For you are the temple of the living God, as God said: I will dwell and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore Come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not what is unclean; and I will receive you, and I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”
Therefore, if God accepts us, and if we maintain holiness, He continues to dwell in us. If we continue to walk in the light, we continue to enjoy this fellowship with God; He continues to abide in us (1Jn 1:7; 1Jn 2:24; 1Jn 3:24, etc.).
When the Bible speaks of the Holy Spirit “dwelling” in us, this means that we are guided by Him (Rom 8:14), that our life is under His control; for example, in Rom 7:20 Paul describes his life under the law of Moses (and the life of the unsaved Jews who still wanted to live under the law of Moses). Paul says that in such a life sin “dwells”; that is, that sin has control of that life. But now the Christian is not under the control of sin (Rom 6:6-14), because he is under the control and direction of the Holy Spirit. Christ told the church at Pergamum that “Antipas my faithful witness was slain among you, where Satan dwells (where Satan had control), “where Satan’s throne is”) (Rev 2:13).
Some (even brothers) believe that in this verse Paul refers to the spiritual gifts that showed that God was with the apostles and other Christians in the first century, to reveal and confirm the word (John 16:14:26; 16:13 ; Mar 16:20; Heb 2:3-4, etc.), but Eph 1:13-14 cannot be proven to be limited to miraculous gifts. Rev 7:2-3 indicates that all the redeemed are sealed.
Source: Reeves-Partain Notes
third stanza, Eph 1:13-14
Source: Commentary for Exegesis and Translation
This short stanza begins, as can be seen in the structural analysis of the passage (see the section “Discourse Analysis”), with a relative pronoun, in the,which connects with the reference to Christ at the end of v. Eph 1:12 : we hoped in Christ. Thus, at the beginning of this stanza we find for the third time the same expression that indicates the enormous privileges that we have by virtue of being united to Christ: In him we have redemption (Eph 1:7), in him we had inheritance (Eph 1:11), in it you were sealed (Eph 1:13).
In it you too. These words are…