Decades ago I learned the profound importance of the "One New Man" in the Bible. This term, "One New Man" is introduced to us in Paul's letter, known as "Ephesians." I say "known as" because the original destination of this letter has been a topic of debate since the early days of the church age. But I will get back to that later. I will put "Ephesians" in quote marks throughout this article as a reminder.
The 'one new man' is introduced to us in "Ephesians" 2. I will give the verse here, but if you read it carefully, you should become puzzled by something in it:
Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
("Ephesians" 2:15 King James Version)
Did you catch it? Or are you unfamiliar with the old English of the King James Bible?
Let's try a newer version:
having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, ("Ephesians" 2:15 New King James Version)
Okay, now, I am a teacher. I teach math, English, grammar, spelling and science, among other things. So let me give you some insight here in Arithmetic and English spelling. This one is English spelling. Have you ever wondered why we spell the word for "2" as "two", but we don't say it that way? Notice in the King James we have "of twain", but in the New King James we have "from the two". Why "tw"? Well think about all these other words said the way they are spelled, "twelve", "twenty", "twice" and finally "twain". Got it? Next time you teach someone arithmetic, start with "two plus two equals four" and pronounce it that way! (just for a laugh.)
Well now, seriously, what is Paul talking about with; "so as to create in Himself one new man from the two". What are "the two"?
We need to read the context, the verses just before it, to make sense of it. Paul is writing this letter to "Gentiles" (the nations), not to Israel. When he says "you," he is talking to non-Jews. So starting in verse 11:
11 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands—
12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
("Ephesians" 2:11-13 NKJV)
Then in 14-18, he explains:
14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, 16 and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. 17 And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. 18 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.
("Ephesians" 2:14-18 NKJV)
So notice in verse 14 he says "For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one". "Both" refers to these two groups of people, the "Jews" and the "Gentiles" (the non-Jew nations).
Now we can understand, "so as to create in Himself one new man from the two". The 'two' are, the Jews (God's chosen people), and the rest of the nations of the world. These two are brought together by Jesus on the cross into "One New Man."
We find Paul elaborating on this more in chapter 4. In verses 17-19 he talks about how the nations without Christ walk in darkness. Then he continues with:
20 But you have not so learned Christ,
21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus:
22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,
24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
("Ephesians" 4:20-24 NKJV)
Notice his words in verse 22, "that you put off ... the old man ..."
then in verse 24, "and that you put on the new man ..."
And he reminds us that the new man "was created according to God" as he had described in chapter 2.
And again in Colossians 3, Paul is talking about the very same old man and new man:
8 But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, 11 where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.
(Colossians 3:8-11)
So in Colossians Paul is referring to the same "old man" and "new man" as in "Ephesians".
This idea of putting off the old man and putting on the new man is spoken about in only these two letters, "Ephesians" and Colossians. And these two letters are the closest, in content, to each other, of any two books in the entire Bible!
This understanding is so important that God has given us two letters, a double portion, in His word!
I am not talking about a "translation of the Bible", but rather the translation of a particular Greek word in many versions of the Bible.
I have written and spoken about this before. In 1903 a new version of the New Testament was published one year after the death of its translator, Richard Francis Weymouth. In his paraphrase of "Ephesians" and Colossians, he translated the Greek word ανθρωπος (anthropos) as "self."
Not only is this a horrible translation of this Greek word, it breaks the connection with what Paul is talking about when he uses the same Greek word ανθρωπος in "Ephesians" chapter 2.
This word ανθρωπος (anthropos) occurs over 550 times in the Greek New Testament, and it has always been translated as "man" (or when plural as "men"). This Greek word is where we get "Anthropology", which is "the study of man."
But if that wasn't bad enough, many of the versions since then have copied Weymouth's "paraphrase" in these places in "Ephesians" 4, and Colossians 3. These include some of the most popular Bible versions as the New International Version (NIV), the English Standard Version (ESV), the New American Standard Bible (NASB), the Amplified Bible, and many more.
All versions still translate ανθρωπος as man in over 500 places, because that is what the word means; it is simply the Greek word for "man".
And there are yet other new versions that translate this word ανθρωπος in "Ephesians" 4 and Colossians 3 in other ways, taking their idea from "self". Some use the words "new nature", others say "new humanity", and even more ways. In all of these the connection to what Paul is talking about is still broken.
The first "connection" which must be understood, is to the definition he gives in "Ephesians" 2:15. Let us look at it again:
having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,
("Ephesians" 2:15 NKJV)
And understanding the context given earlier, "the two" are the Jews, (God's "chosen people"), and the nations, (the rest of mankind on Earth). These two groups were joined together in Christ when Jesus abolished the enmity between them, on the cross.
So the idea of a "new self", has nothing whatsoever to do with what Paul is describing, in his words, "so as to create in Himself one new man from the two". This "one new man" is not about your "self."
(And, by the way, you don't "have" a "self" that you can "put off". The word "self" simply refers to you yourself. "Yourself" is just "you"; it's not a "part" of you, like a coat you can "put off." If you could "put off" your "self" you wouldn't exist anymore, because "self" is just "you".)
Now there is even a bigger picture here that is obliterated by translating ανθρωπος (anthropos) as "self". This New Man is what Paul is talking about in many other places as; the "one body" of Christ. Paul used these terms in many places.
But let us start right here in "Ephesians" 4, but the context before he talks about putting off the old man and putting on the new man. He is talking about the very same things in verses 11 to 16.
This section is so packed with such an amazing combination of thoughts,
I will first bring out some key phrases from this section.
In verse 13a he says,
"till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man ...".
Here "a perfect man" is talking about this same "man."
The word "perfect" would be better translated as "complete".
So this "complete man" that "we all come to" is not millions of "individual selves".
No it is "one complete man."
And Paul continues to describe how this "man" is formed, as he continues to explain in this whole section.
Here it is:
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
("Ephesians" 4:11-16 NKJV)
So you see, this "man" has a head, and a body. And this body is made of many parts. So if you have "believed into" Jesus Christ, you are a "member" of this one body. The Greek word translated "member" here is a body-part, like a hand, or leg, or an eye, or an ear. Paul uses these kind of words in many other places to describe us, as members of this body, the body of Christ.
Notice I said, "if you have 'believed into' Jesus Christ". "Into" is the literal translation of the word in the Greek in virtually every place where our English translations say anything like "believe in Jesus". English is quite loose and I would say sloppy. Greek is very precise and detailed. To "believe in" something, in English, just means believing some information about it. But when properly translated "believing into Jesus" means becoming part of His body, becoming a body-part.
So now we see the connection to all the places where Paul talks about this "one body":
Romans 12:4-5
For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
1 Corinthians 10:17
For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.
1 Corinthians 12:12-13, 20
For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. ... 20 But now indeed there are many members, yet one body.
"Ephesians" 2:16
and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.
"Ephesians" 4:4
There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling;
Colossians 3:15
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful.
This one body with its head, Jesus is the One New Man!
First Adam, last Adam. (1 Corinthians 15:45)
First man, second man. (1 Corinthians 15:47)
These are the two men.
42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption.
43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.
44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
45 And so it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.
46 However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterward the spiritual.
47 The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven.
48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly.
49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.
(1 Corinthians 15:42-47 NKJV)
As I mentioned at the top, there has been a question from the earliest days, and writings of the early church fathers, as to who this letter was originally written to. Some of the earliest Greek manuscripts that we still have do not have "in Ephesus" in the first verse. Some of these have these words written in the margin, as a correction, by a later scribe.
In the writings of the early church fathers, there is also reference to yet other manuscripts that did not have these words in verse one. Some have also written that they believed this letter was first written to the church in Laodecia.
Now as I have described earlier, this mention of the "one new man" only exists in "Ephesians" 2:15. Without this description of what the "new man" is, no one would know what Paul is talking about in "Ephesians" 4, much less in Colossians 3.
This has become very obvious in our time with the translations of the twentieth century where many new versions were published with "self" instead of "man".
This was also a concern for the apostle Paul in writing to the Colossians, and he therefore told them to also read another letter, and even trade letters, so each church could read them both. He adds this at the end of his letter to the Colossians:
16 Now when this epistle is read among you, see that it is read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and that you likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.
(Colossians 4:16)
Now as I have shown, the importance of reading "Ephesians" in order to properly understand Colossians, how could it be that this letter that Paul told the Colossian church to read along with his letter to them... How could it have been left out of the Bible for us?
We do not have this most important letter Paul wrote to the Laodeceans, unless it is the one that somehow got labeled as "Ephesians".
And there is much strong internal and external evidence that this is exactly what happened!