Ephesians 2:1-10

2:1 The preposition "in" as in "you were dead in your trespasses" is not in the Greek. The words are in the dative. It could also be "to your trespasses and to your sins."

2:1/2 A technical note on the Greek. The verb tense "you were dead" is technically a present participle, yet it is translated in the past in English. Why? Because the tense of a participle is always relative to the main verb in the sentence, in this case, an aorist (and thus past tense) verb in verse 2.

2:3 The word wrath here has no article; technically, then, it should be "by a nature of a wrath." It does not indicate the wrath of God here.

2:5 In the past couple of weeks I've spoken about that great verb: Make alive (zoopoie-oo); here we have make alive together: syzoopoie-oo. We are not made alive alone, but with others!

2:5 This whole section has not had a lot of articles or prepositions; it is a stacking of nouns (see 2.1 note). For example, in 2:3, the word nature is in the dative; here the word grace has neither an article or preposition. Generally, the translators (and this seems fair) are translating all of these datives in an instrumental means (ie, by means of nature...by means of grace)...but it could also be "For grace" or "To grace" or "In Grace" we have been saved.

2:5 Saved is a perfective, passive participle (sesoozomenoi); none of the verbs relating to sin are in the perfect -- there is something temporary about the reality of sin; but salvation stands as something that still has a present impact.

2:6 We have to more "syn" verbs here: (raised with and seated with). The Greek, in otherwords, attaches the prefix syn to those verbs, just as Paul did with "make alive with."

2:7 The word "coming" does not necessarily have a future connotation; it can simply mean "the ages which are coming as in right now and continuing to come."

2:10 When it says that we are a work of God, the literal word here is "poiehma" or poem. We are the poetic act of God, created for good works!