Ephesians 4:17
Translations
King James Version (KJV)
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you from now on walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,
American King James Version (AKJV)
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you from now on walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,
American Standard Version (ASV)
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye no longer walk as the Gentiles also walk, in the vanity of their mind,
Basic English Translation (BBE)
This I say, then, and give witness in the Lord, that you are to go no longer in the way of the Gentiles whose minds are turned to that which has no profit,
Webster's Revision
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind,
World English Bible
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind,
English Revised Version (ERV)
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye no longer walk as the Gentiles also walk, in the vanity of their mind,
Definitions for Ephesians 4:17
Clarke's Ephesians 4:17 Bible Commentary
Walk not as other Gentiles walk - Ye are called to holiness by the Gospel, the other Gentiles have no such calling; walk not as they walk. In this and the two following verses the apostle gives a most awful account of the conduct of the heathens who were without the knowledge of the true God. I shall note the particulars.
1. They walked in the vanity of their mind, εν ματαιοτητι του νοος αὑτων· In the foolishness of their mind; want of genuine wisdom is that to which the apostle refers, and it was through this that the Gentiles became addicted to every species of idolatry; and they fondly imagined that they could obtain help from gods which were the work of their own hands! Here their foolishness was manifested.
Barnes's Ephesians 4:17 Bible Commentary
This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord - I bear witness in the name of the Lord Jesus, or ministering by his authority. The object of this is, to exhort them to walk worthy of their high calling, and to adorn the doctrine of the Saviour. With this view, he reminds them of what they were before they were converted, and of the manner in which the pagan around them lived.
That ye henceforth walk not - That you do not henceforth live - the Christian life being often in the Scriptures compared to a journey.
As other Gentiles walk - This shows that probably the mass of converts in the church at Ephesus were from among the pagan, and Paul regarded them as Gentile converts. Or it may be that he here addressed himself more particularly to that portion of the church, as especially needing his admonition and care.
In the vanity of their mind - In the way of folly, or in mental folly. What he means by this he specifies in the following verses. The word "vanity" in the Scriptures means more than mere "emptiness." It denotes moral wrong, being applied usually to those who worshipped vain idols, and then those who were alienated from the "true" God.
Wesley's Ephesians 4:17 Bible Commentary
4:17 This therefore I say - He returns thither where he begun, Ephesians 4:1 .And testify in the Lord - In the name and by the authority of the Lord Jesus. In the vanity of their mind - Having lost the knowledge of the true God, Romans 1:21 . This is the root of all evil walking.
