So then ye are no longer strangers and foreigners, but ye are fellow-citizens of the saints, and of the household of God,
Paul has just told Gentile believers what they once were: outsiders to Israel's commonwealth, with no share in its blessing. Now he draws the conclusion with a "so then." Two old words no longer fit them. Two new ones take their place — one from public life, one from family life.
The verse opens with two labels that no longer fit. One writer explains what each word meant, and which privilege they shut Gentiles out of. (The ESV has "strangers and aliens"; an older wording is "strangers and foreigners.")
We are no longer "strangers and foreigners". The meaning of the word "strangers" is, "we were not born there"; the meaning of "foreigners" is, "we do not live there". This has to do with the commonwealth of Israel mentioned in verse 12, for as Gentiles we were not born into it, and never belonged to it. Now, however, we do belong to this greater sphere of blessing.
Paul does not name Jerusalem, and he does not name Abraham's family. One writer traces how the two phrases climb, step by step.
Though once as Gentiles we were, "alienated from the commonwealth of Israel," we are now "no longer strangers and aliens." We are "fellow citizens" — not with the people of Jerusalem, but "with the saints." We are "members of the household" — not of Abraham, or even of Moses and Aaron, but "of God." The thought of the Spirit of God moves on in a rising scale. It goes from the negative to the positive. Then, on the positive side, it goes from being joined with the saints to being not only in the kingdom but in the very household of God.
The two halves of the verse are not a repetition. One looks to a city we cannot yet see. The other is ours to enjoy today.
Believing Gentiles were once strangers (unknown) and aliens (unrelated). Now they are "fellow citizens with the saints, and members of the household of God" (v.19). Being fellow citizens, we are of the same city, that is, the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:9-10), so we have the same future prospect in view. Our citizenship is there now, though it will only be shown openly in the future. Being members of the household of God is something we enjoy in the present. God welcomes us inside the house as those whose proper home it is.
Citizenship is a public tie. A household is a family one. That difference decides how near we stand and how we must live.
A household is a place of greater intimacy than a city. The Lord Mayor of London, for instance, appears in greater splendour when he acts as head of the City. But people know him far more closely when he lays aside the proud trappings of his high office and acts as head of his own household. Now we are not merely citizens but are also of God's household. So we are brought near and have this liberty of access. But we are also responsible to wear the character of the One whose household we belong to.
So is the Gentile only catching up with what Israel already had? One writer names who these fellow citizens are, and how far the tie goes beyond Israel's best national blessing.
"Fellow citizens with the saints" means with believers generally, whether Jewish or Gentile. They are "fellow citizens," but not of an earthly country; "our citizenship is in heaven." They are "members of the household of God." That is a closer relationship than the Jew will enjoy when his national blessings reach their highest point.
Jew and Gentile now stand in one place. The old ranking is gone, and no believer has ground to look down on another.
In the body of Christ all national distinctions and privileges are gone. They are gone too in the relationships people commonly hold towards God on the earth. All are upon the same footing, so that no one can boast over the other. The Gentiles are no longer strangers. They are brought in, together with Jews, to be fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. Both are built on the same foundation, Christ, the chief cornerstone.
- Distance named. "Strangers" meant not born there. "Aliens" meant not living there. Gentiles were outsiders twice over.
- Distance cancelled. Paul's "so then" rests on all that came before. Those two words no longer describe the believing Gentile.
- Citizenship given. Not in an earthly country, but in the same city as all the saints — ours now, seen later.
- Household given. The house is nearer than the city. We are welcomed inside today, closer than Israel's national blessing will ever reach.
- Conduct follows. Nearness brings responsibility: wear the character of the One whose household this is, and never boast, since all stand on the same footing.
being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the corner-stone,
Paul tells believers that they now stand on a foundation already laid, with Christ Himself set at the corner. Two questions come up here. Which prophets does Paul mean? And how can Christ be the corner stone when Scripture also calls Him the only foundation?
The order of the words matters, and Ephesians 3:5 settles the question:
This does not mean Old Testament "prophets" and New Testament "apostles." It means "apostles and prophets" of the New Testament. Ephesians 3:5 puts that beyond all doubt: "as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit." It is a new work built on a new foundation. Jew and Gentile are now built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit, which was not the case in Old Testament times.
If the apostles themselves were the base, the church would rest on men:
"Built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets" does not mean that the apostles are the foundation. The apostles are the foundation through their inspired teachings. As Paul wrote, "I laid a foundation." But he also adds, "For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:9-11). The Lord Jesus Christ and the doctrine of Christ is the foundation. This the apostles taught.
You lay a foundation once, so this work does not repeat in every generation:
They laid the foundation. Once the foundation of a house is laid, you do not need to keep working at it. You then go on with the building. So you would not expect to have them, in their living ministry, in this day. They remain with us, but only in their writings, and in the unfolding of the truth that God has preserved for us in the holy Scriptures. That is where our faith rests.
Other gifts remain. The same letter names them, and they are of a different order:
We must always keep in mind the distinction this same letter makes here. The apostles and prophets are the foundation on which we are built. The evangelists, pastors, and teachers are the gifts that carry on the work.
The Greek word behind "corner stone" has two senses:
The Greek word translated chief corner stone is akrogōniaios. It means a corner FOUNDATION stone, and also a stone at the extreme angle. The first meaning gives us the thought of the church as God's masterpiece, taking its character from Christ as the chief corner stone. It also tells us that this glorious foundation stone was laid in the atoning sufferings of our Lord at Calvary's cross, sufferings beyond words.
The second sense — the stone at the sharp angle — fits a church made of Jews and Gentiles. The stone men threw away is where the two walls meet:
God has raised the One who was rejected and crucified from among the dead by His power, and has glorified Him at His right hand. Now the rejected Stone has become the Corner for those called out from the Jews and those called out from the Gentiles. There both meet and grow into one building in Him. Although rejected, He is the chosen of God. Israel stumbled at the Stumbling Stone. Man refused Him, but God glorified Him.
A corner stone does two things. It ties the building together, and it sets the lines the rest must follow.
Christ is also the corner stone of the house. He gives character to all the building and binds it together. He is not only the underlying foundation on which others build. In Him "the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord" (v.21). As it grows, every stage of the building stays joined to Him and depends on Him at all times.
Israel's temple had a stone that marked it complete. The church's picture has no such stone:
Israel's temple had a capstone (Zechariah 4:7), which seems to mark the completion of the building. As to the Church this does not appear to be mentioned, and there is surely a divine reason. Perhaps this is because the Church will not be displayed on earth as a completed building. As the temple it is not yet complete; it will keep growing until the Rapture, when the Church will be complete for ever.
- Foundation. The apostles and prophets here are New Testament ones; Ephesians 3:5 puts it past doubt. So this is a new work on a new foundation, not a carry-over from Old Testament times.
- Teaching. They are the foundation through their inspired teaching, not through their persons. What they taught is Christ, and no one can lay any other foundation.
- Finished. A foundation is laid once. Their living ministry has passed, but they remain with us in their writings, and that is where faith rests. Evangelists, pastors and teachers carry the work on.
- Corner. The corner stone was laid in the atoning sufferings of Calvary. The stone men rejected is now the angle where believing Jews and believing Gentiles meet in one building.
- Character. As the corner stone, Christ binds the building together and gives it its character. It is still growing, and every stage depends on Him.