Greek Key Terms:
Context: Ephesians 2:19-22 declares believers are "no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit." The church corporately becomes God's dwelling place—what the tabernacle and temple were to Israel, the church is to all nations. The Spirit's indwelling replaces the cloud's glory. Christ is the cornerstone, apostolic teaching the foundation, believers the living stones. The trajectory from building to people is complete.
Connections:
Christological Connection: Ephesians 2:19-22's declaration that believers are "being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit" fulfills Exodus 25:8: "Let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst." Where the tabernacle and temple housed God's presence geographically, the church houses God's presence globally through the Spirit. The cornerstone imagery—"Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone"—fulfills Psalm 118:22 and Isaiah 28:16. Christ is foundational; the structure's integrity depends on Him. Peter applies Psalm 118:22 to Christ in 1 Peter 2:6-7: "Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious... The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone." Jewish authorities rejected Christ, but God made Him foundational for the new temple. First Peter 2:5 describes believers as "living stones... being built up as a spiritual house"—dynamic construction, not static building. Where the Jerusalem temple was constructed with dead stones, the church is constructed with living people, Spirit-indwelt and organically growing. The phrase "being joined together" (synarmologoumenē) suggests precise fitting—each believer positioned purposefully, contributing to the whole. The growth language—"grows into a holy temple"—shows ongoing development. Romans 12:5 states: "we, though many, are one body in Christ"—unity in diversity. Ephesians 2:14 describes Christ destroying "the dividing wall of hostility" between Jew and Gentile—the temple's barrier removed, universal access granted. Where the Court of the Gentiles physically separated Jews from Gentiles, the church unites them as "fellow citizens" and "household members." Revelation 21:3 announces consummation: "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people." The trajectory shows: tabernacle as temporary dwelling (Exodus 25:8) → temple as permanent building (1 Kings 8:10-11) → Christ's body as true temple (John 2:21) → church as living temple (Ephesians 2:21-22) → new creation where God dwells with all the redeemed (Revelation 21:3). The building gives way to people, and those people—Jews and Gentiles united in Christ—become God's dwelling place "by the Spirit."
Connection Method(s): Typology (Providential, Backward-Looking), Longitudinal Theme — The church as "a holy temple in the Lord" with Christ as cornerstone fulfills the temple trajectory by uniting Jews and Gentiles (demolishing the dividing wall) into a living dwelling place for God by the Spirit.
Trajectory Table: 074 - Holy Places (Access to God's Presence)