Gal 4:5, Eph 5:16, Col 4:6 | Barnes | STEP | Verse 5. To redeem them . By his death as an atoning sacrifice. . Them that were under the law . Sinners, who had violated the law, and who were exposed to its dread penalty. That we might receive the adoption of sons . Be adopted as the sons or the children of God. .

Galatians 4:5

Verse 5. To redeem them. By his death as an atoning sacrifice. Gal 3:13.

Them that were under the law. Sinners, who had violated the law, and who were exposed to its dread penalty.

That we might receive the adoption of sons. Be adopted as the sons or the children of God. Jn 1:12, Rom 8:15.

Ephesians 5:16

Verse 16. Redeeming the time. The word here rendered redeeming, means, to purchase; to buy up from the possession or power of any one; and then to redeem, to set free--as from service or bondage. Gall 3:13. Here it means, to rescue or recover our time from waste; to improve it for great and important purposes. Because the days are evil. Because the times in which you live are evil. There are many allurements and temptations that would lead you away from the proper improvement of time, and that would draw you into sin. Such were those that would tempt them to go to places of sinful indulgence and revelry, where their time would be wasted, and worse than wasted. As these temptations abounded, they ought therefore to be more especially on their guard against a sinful and unprofitable waste of time. This exhortation may be addressed to all, and is applicable to all periods. The sentiment is, that we ought to be solicitous to improve our time to some useful purpose, because there are, in an evil world, so many temptations to waste it. Time is given us for most valuable purposes. There are things enough to be done to occupy it all, and no one need have it hang heavy on his hands. He that has a soul to be saved from eternal death need not have one idle moment. He that has a heaven to win has enough to do to occupy all his time. Man has just enough given him to accomplish all the purposes which God designs, and God has not given him more than enough. They redeem their time who employ it

(1.) in gaining useful knowledge;

(2.) in doing good to others;

(3.) in employing it for the purpose of an honest livelihood for themselves and families;

(4.) in prayer and self-examination, to make the heart better;

(5.) in seeking salvation, and in endeavouring to do the will of God. They are to redeem time from all that would waste and destroy it--like recovering marshes and fens to make them rich meadows and vineyards. There is time enough wasted by each sinner to secure the salvation of the soul; time enough wasted to do all that is needful to be done to spread religion around the world, and to save the race. We should still endeavour to redeem our time for the same reasons which are suggested by the apostle--because the days are evil. There are evil influences abroad; allurements and vices that would waste time, and from which we should endeavour to rescue it. There are evil influences tending to waste time

(1.) in the allurements to pleasure and amusement in every place, and especially in cities;

(2.) in the temptations to novel-reading, consuming the precious hours of probation to no valuable purpose;

(3.) in the temptations of ambition, most of the time spent for which is wholly thrown away, for few gain the prize, and when gained, it is all a bauble, not worth the effort;

(4.) in dissipation--for who can estimate the amount of valuable tune that is worse than thrown away in the places of revelry and dissipation?

(5.) in wild and visionary plans--temptations to which abound in all lands, and pre-eminently in our own;

(6.) and in luxurious indulgence--in dressing, and eating, and drinking.

(b) "days are evil" Ps 37:19

Colossians 4:6

Verse 6. Let your speech. Your conversation. In the previous verse the apostle had given a general direction that our conduct towards those who are not professing Christians should be wise and prudent; he here gives a particular direction in regard to our conversation.

Be alway with grace. Imbued with the spirit of religion. It should be such as religion is fitted to produce; such as to show that the grace of God is in our hearts. Bloomfield supposes that this means "courteous and agreeable, not morose and melancholy." But though this may be included, and though the rule here laid down would lead to that, it cannot be all that is intended. It rather means that our conversation should be such as to show that we are governed by the principles of religion, and that there is unfeigned piety in the heart. This will indeed make us mild, courteous, agreeable, and urbane in our conversation; but it will do more than this. It will imbue our discourse with the spirit of religion, so as to show hat the soul is under the influence of love to the Redeemer.

Seasoned with salt. Salt, among the Greeks, was the emblem of wit. Here the meaning seems to be, that our conversation should be seasoned with piety or grace in a way similar to that in which we employ salt in our food. It makes it wholesome and palatable. So with our conversation. If it be not imbued with the spirit of piety, it is flat, insipid, unprofitable, injurious. The spirit of piety will make it what it should be--useful, agreeable, beneficial to mankind. This does not mean that our conversation is to be always, strictly speaking, religious --wherever we may be--any more than our food should be mere salt; but it means that, whatever be the topic, the spirit of piety should be diffused through it--as the salt in our food should properly season it all, whatever the article of food may be.

That ye may know how ye ought to answer every man. He imbued with the spirit of piety, that you may not utter anything that would be rash and foolish, but be prepared to answer any one who may question you about your religion in a way that will show that you understand its nature, and that will tend to edification. This remark may be extended farther. It may be understood as meaning also, "be imbued with the spirit of religion, and you will be able to answer man appropriately on any subject. If he asks you about the evidence of the nature of religion, you will be able to reply to him; if he converses with you on the common topics of the day, you will be able to answer him in a mild, kind, affable spirit; if he asks you of things of which you are ignorant--if he introduces some topic of science with which you are not acquainted, you will not be ashamed to confess your ignorance, and to seek instruction; if he addresses you in a haughty, insolent, and overbearing manner, you will be able to repress the risings of your temper, and to answer him with gentleness and kindness." Comp. Lk 2:46.

(&) "speech" "words" (f) "seasoned with salt" Mk 9:50