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how does this idea of 'breaking down walls' resonate with or challenge other biblical passages about distinct groups?

Adds the setting and its conversation across both testaments.

Ephesians 2:14-15

“For he is our peace, who made both one, and broke down the middle wall of partition, having abolished in the flesh the hostility, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man of the two, making peace,”

The Apostle Paul, writing from prison to Christian communities in Ephesus (a major city in Asia Minor, modern-day Turkey) around the first century CE, is explaining how following Jesus unites people. He emphasizes that something fundamental has changed in how different groups relate to each other.

What barriers, visible or invisible, in our own communities or the wider world, do we believe are insurmountable?

Then — the setting

Paul wrote Ephesians to a mixed community of Jewish and Gentile believers in Ephesus, a significant port city and cultural hub in the Roman province of Asia (modern-day Turkey), likely between 60-62 CE while imprisoned in Rome. The 'middle wall of partition' (μεσότοιχο τοῦ φραγμοῦ) is often understood as a reference to the literal dividing wall in the Jerusalem Temple that separated the Court of the Gentiles from the inner courts accessible only to Jews, beyond which was a warning against Gentile entry under penalty of death. Symbolically, it represents the Law of Moses that distinguished Israel from other nations, creating a distinct identity and covenant relationship with God. Paul is arguing that through Jesus's sacrificial death, this barrier – both physical and spiritual – has been removed, making access to God and unity between peoples possible.

Across the Testaments

The Old Testament established a distinct identity for Israel, set apart by covenant, law, and lineage, often emphasizing separation from surrounding nations (e.g., Deuteronomy 7:1-6). While there were prophetic visions of Gentile inclusion (e.g., Isaiah 2:2-4, Zechariah 8:20-23), the primary emphasis was on Israel's unique role. The New Testament, particularly through Paul, reframes this. While not abolishing Israel's unique history, it asserts that in Christ, the mechanism for belonging to God's people is no longer primarily ethnic or through adherence to the Mosaic Law's ceremonial aspects, but through faith in Jesus. The 'breaking down of walls' signifies a new creation where ethnicity no longer dictates access to God or standing within the community of believers, transforming a diverse Israel into a broader, multi-ethnic 'one new man' in Christ.

Keep thinking

Read alongside it

Galatians 3:28
This verse states that in Christ 'there is neither Jew nor Greek,' reinforcing the idea of unity across traditional social and religious divisions.
Isaiah 56:7
This Old Testament prophecy speaks of God's house being 'a house of prayer for all peoples,' prefiguring the inclusion of Gentiles.
Acts 15:19-20
This passage from the Jerusalem Council shows early Christians grappling with how Jewish and Gentile believers should live together, balancing unity with practical concerns.

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