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  • From: "Kym Smith" <khs AT picknowl.com.au>
  • To: corpus-paul AT franklin.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: Re: The Destination Of Ephesians
  • Date: Mon, 13 May 2002 19:51:33 -0400


Dear Stephen,

I am about to go away for several days but I wanted to send this first.

Following my first response to you, I recalled a footnote in my book which
refered to Francis Foulkes' commentary on Ephesians (Tyndale NT
Commentaries, 1956, p. 28f). Quoting Moffat he says that 'the writer of
Ephesians was breathing the atmosphere in which the Johannine literature
took shape'. Noting that the similarities between Ephesians and the
Revelation are not peculiar to those two books, Foulkes - no doubt because
of an acceptance of a later date for the Revelation - writes that these
similarities should not 'be taken to support any argument on the dating of
Ephesians'. Of course, if the Revelation was as early as I am suggesting,
then the link between the two books is significant for the dating of both.

After listing some of the similar themes shared by Ephesians and Johannine
literature in general, including the Revelation (e.g. 'light' and
'darkness', 'life' and 'death', 'love', 'knowledge', etc), Foulkes writes,

"There are also particular parallels noted between Ephesians and
Revelation, as well as those of the kind just mentioned. There is
reference to the apostles and prophets as foundations of the Church (2:20,
3:5; Rev 10:7; 18:20; 21:14), to refusing to have fellowship with evil
(5:11; Rev 18:4), to the Church as the bride of Christ (5:25ff; Rev 19:7;
21:2,9; 22:17), to sitting in heavenly places with Christ (2:6; Rev 3:21),
to the symbol of the seal (1:13; 4:30; Rev 7:2f)."

Interestingly, besides the Johannine literature - which includes 1 John -
Foulkes also sees 'important parallels betwen 1 Peter and Ephesians'.
Foulkes may not be the only scholar to make these comparisons, but he is
one that I have to hand. And, as I suggested in my earlier posts to this
thread, I believe that Ephesians, 1 John and 1 Peter were written by Paul,
John and Peter respectively as responses from those apostles to the
Revelation, and that they were probably circulated together.

Sincerely,

Kym Smith
Adelaide
South Australia
khs AT picknowl.com.au







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