Ephesians 2:15 says that Jesus ended the divide between Jewish and non-Jewish believers by setting aside the law of commandments that separated them, so that he could form one new people out of both groups and make peace between them. The verse is part of a letter traditionally attributed to the apostle Paul, written to a mostly Gentile church in Ephesus and to other believers in the region.
Having abolished in his flesh the hostility, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man of the two, making peace…
Ephesians 2:15 (WEB)
What Ephesians 2:15 Means
The verse begins with the phrase “having abolished in his flesh.” Paul is saying that Christ’s death, which he experienced as a real human body, brought an end to something that had kept people apart. The word “abolished” means something was made inoperative or brought to an end, not merely adjusted or softened.
The “hostility” is the enmity between Jewish and Gentile people that Paul describes in the surrounding passage. The “law of commandments contained in ordinances” refers to the Jewish law and its ritual requirements, such as food rules, circumcision, and feast days, which marked Israel off from the nations. Paul does not say the law was bad. He says its role as a dividing wall between peoples has been brought to completion in Christ.
The purpose clause follows: God did this “that he might create in himself one new man of the two, making peace.” The verse does not promise that every conflict between people will disappear or that all disagreement ends. It describes a theological reality, that in Christ, two formerly separated groups are joined into one body with God at the center.
The Context of Ephesians 2:15
Ephesians is a letter that moves from doctrine to daily practice. Its first half describes what God has done for believers, and this chapter contrasts their former condition, “separate from Christ” and “without God in the world,” with their present standing. Verse 12 sets up the problem, verse 13 announces the change, and verses 14 to 16 explain how the change was accomplished. Verse 17 shows Christ preaching peace to both groups, and verse 18 shows both having access to the Father by one Spirit.
Reading the verse inside this passage matters. Paul is not writing a general essay on peace. He is speaking to Gentile Christians who might have felt like outsiders to the covenant promises given to Israel. Verse 15 tells them that Christ has not left them on the margins but has brought them into the same household of God, so the question of who belongs is answered by the cross.
Key Phrases in Ephesians 2:15
Galatians 3:28
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
(WEB)
Paul writes here that in Christ there is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female, all are one. It applies the same principle of unity in Christ that Ephesians 2:15 develops, showing that the new creation erases the old social divisions that once defined people’s standing before God.
Colossians 1:20
And through him to reconcile all things to himself, by him, whether things on the earth, or things in the heavens, having made peace through the blood of his cross.
(WEB)
This verse speaks of God reconciling all things to himself through the blood of the cross and making peace. It parallels Ephesians 2:15 by describing the peace Christ makes as reaching beyond human relationships to the whole of creation and God’s relationship with it.
A Short Prayer From Ephesians 2:15
Lord Jesus, thank you that you did not leave us divided by the walls we build between ourselves. You gave your body on the cross to end the hostility that kept people far from God and from one another. Help me to see the people around me as those for whom you died. Where I have held on to pride, fear, or habit that separates me from others, loosen my grip and make me willing to live in the peace you have made. Shape your church into one new people who reflect your love. Amen.
