Ephesians 2:19-22

Greek Key Terms:

• συμπολῖται (sympolitai) - "fellow citizens" - shared citizenship (2:19)
• οἰκεῖοι (oikeioi) - "members of household" - family belonging (2:19)
• ἐποικοδομηθέντες (epoikodomēthentes) - "built on" - constructed upon foundation (2:20)
• ἀκρογωνιαῖος (akrogōniaios) - "cornerstone" - foundational stone determining alignment (2:20)
• ναὸν (naon) - "temple" - sanctuary, holy dwelling (2:21)
• κατοικητήριον (katoikētērion) - "dwelling place" - permanent residence (2:22)

Context: Gentile inclusion section (Ephesians 2:11-22). Previously "strangers and aliens" (2:12, 19), now brought near through Christ's blood (2:13). Christ is "our peace" breaking down dividing wall (2:14-18). Follows broader argument about salvation by grace (2:1-10). Part of prison epistle (3:1; 4:1; 6:20).

Connections:

• TO:
• Exodus 19:5-6 - kingdom of priests, holy nation
• 1 Kings 8:27 - will God indeed dwell on earth?
• Psalm 118:22 - stone that builders rejected has become cornerstone
• FROM OT:
• Isaiah 28:16 - behold, I am laying in Zion for foundation a stone, tested stone, precious cornerstone
• Zechariah 4:7 - bring forward top stone - headstone
• FROM NT:
• Matthew 16:18 - on this rock I will build my church
• 1 Corinthians 3:9-11 - you are God's building; no one can lay foundation other than Jesus Christ
• 1 Peter 2:4-8 - living stone, living stones built into spiritual house
• Revelation 21:14 - twelve foundations with names of twelve apostles of Lamb

Christological Connection: Church as living temple fulfills OT temple trajectory through union with Christ. Escalation: Solomon's temple = physical building, localized in Jerusalem; church = global community, present wherever believers gather. OT temple required pilgrimage to Jerusalem; NT temple is portable - Spirit indwells believers everywhere (1 Corinthians 6:19). OT temple excluded Gentiles beyond outer court; NT temple incorporates Gentiles as "fellow heirs, members of same body" (Ephesians 3:6). Christ as cornerstone (2:20): Isaiah 28:16 promised God would lay cornerstone in Zion; Peter applies to Christ (1 Peter 2:6-7). Rejected stone (Psalm 118:22, crucifixion) becomes chief cornerstone (resurrection/exaltation). Trajectory: Tabernacle (Exodus 40) → Solomon's temple (1 Kings 8) → destroyed (586 BC) → Second Temple (Ezra 6) → Christ as living temple (John 2:19-21) → church as spiritual temple (Ephesians 2:21-22) → New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:22). Already/not yet: Church is presently "being built" (2:22, ongoing) but not yet complete. Consummation: Revelation 21:14 - New Jerusalem's wall has "twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb" - apostolic foundation eternalized in eschatological city. From foundation to fulfillment: Ephesians 2:20 - apostles/prophets are foundation in present age; Revelation 21:22 - "I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb" - building imagery transcended because entire reality sanctified. Dwelling place (Ephesians 2:22): presently Spirit dwells in church; ultimately "the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them" (Revelation 21:3) - corporate temple consummated in cosmic dwelling. From living stones being assembled → to glorified temple-city where "the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb" (Revelation 21:23). Christ is cornerstone now (determining church's alignment); Christ is temple then (filling New Jerusalem with presence). Church's temple-identity anticipates New Jerusalem's temple-reality.

Connection Method(s): Typology (Providential, Forward-Looking), Longitudinal Theme — The church as living temple with Christ as cornerstone fulfills the temple trajectory from tabernacle through Solomon's temple to Christ's body, tracing the longitudinal theme of God's dwelling with His people toward New Jerusalem consummation.

Trajectory Table: 109 - New Jerusalem (Ultimate Temple-City)