Be Angry, and Sin Not Ephesians 4:26

Paul the apostle continued to exhort the Ephesians church members to “put off the old man” which was their old manner of living and “put on the new man” which was after the ways of Jesus Christ. They were to stop “lying” and “speak the truth” to one another. In chapter four and verse twenty-six of his letter, Paul told the church members to “be angry” and “sin not” where we read:

Be you angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:

The verse begins, “Be you angry, and sin not:” Paul began with the phrase, “Be you angry” or “Be Angry” which means “be provoked and aroused to anger and wrath”, “and sin not” or “be without a share in, to miss the mark, to err, be mistaken, to wander from the path of uprightness and honor, to do wrong, or stray from the law of God and violate God's law”. Though the tendency to get “angry” with another church member was both probable and possible, the Ephesians were not to allow their “anger” to maturate so long that they entered into “sinful” behavior.

The verse goes on to say, “let not the sun go down upon your wrath:” Paul added, “let not the sun go down” which in Greek is the phrase, “epidyō mē hēlios epidyō” and means “do not allow the rays of the sun or the light of day to set” “upon your wrath” which refers to “the Ephesian church members' indignation, exasperation and rage”. As an additional exhortation, Paul gave a timeframe for the length of their “anger”. The sun was not to set before they had issues resolved that caused “anger” to appear.

When we think through these words of Paul, we see the wisdom of them. “Anger” divides people, and the Ephesian church members were to be “unified”. “Anger” that leads to sinful behavior is indicative of our “old man” or our “old nature”. Although Jesus could be “angry”, He never allowed it to become “sinful”. We are to emulate Him, and when we measure our time for resolving “anger” according to the setting of the sun, we are obedient to His standard of righteousness and are living as the “new man” is to live.

Next time Paul tells the Ephesians not to “give place to the devil”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

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