Be ye therefore followers of God, as most dear children;

“I have become acquainted with your name, much-beloved in God, which ye have acquired by the habit of righteousness, according to the faith and love in Jesus Christ our Saviour. Being the followers of God, and stirring up yourselves by the blood of God, ye have perfectly accomplished the work which was beseeming to you. For, on hearing that I came bound from Syria for the common name and hope, trusting through your prayers to be permitted to fight with beasts at Rome, that so by martyrdom I may indeed become the disciple of Him "who gave Himself for us, an offering and sacrifice to God," [ye hastened to see me].”

“"But you have not so learned Christ, if you have heard him and have been taught by him as the truth is in Christ Jesus; put off with the ways of your former life your old man which is corrupted by the deceitful lusts. Be renewed in the spirit of your mind and put on the new man which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness," so as to be made like unto God. "Be therefore imitators of God, as dear children, and walk in love as Christ also loved us and gave himself for us as an offering and sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savor. But fornication and all impurity and covetousness and shamefulness and foolish talk, let them not be mentioned among you as is fitting for saints." Moreover, the apostle teaches us to be chaste in speech...”

“And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Holy Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of Christ."”

“That thou mayest not then think it an act of necessity, hear how He saith, that "He gave Himself up." As thy Master loved thee, love thou thy friend. Nay, but neither wilt thou be able so to love; yet still do so as far as thou art able. Oh, what can be more blessed than a sound like this! Tell me of royalty or whatever else thou wilt, there is no comparison. Forgive another, and thou art "imitating God," thou art made like unto God. It is more our duty to forgive trespasses than debts of money; for if thou forgive debts, thou hast not "imitated God"; whereas if thou shalt forgive trespasses, thou art "imitating God." And yet how shalt thou be able to say, "I am poor, and am not able to forgive it," that is, a debt, when thou forgivest not that which thou art able to forgive, that is, a trespass? And surely thou dost not deem that in this case there is any loss. Yea, is it not rather wealth, is it not abundance, is it not a plentiful store? And behold yet another and a nobler incitement: "as beloved children," saith he. Ye have yet another cogent reason to imitate Him, not only in that ye have received such good at His hands, but also in that ye are called His children. And since not all children imitate their fathers, but those which are beloved, therefore he saith, "as beloved children."”

“Having set forth the exhortation to kindness and mercy, which are effects of charity, here he shows them an example. Concerning this he does two things. First he leads them to the imitation of the exemplar, namely God; second he shows in what they ought to imitate him, at the place "and walk," etc. He says therefore: I have said that you ought to forgive one another, just as God also in Christ has forgiven you; therefore be imitators of God, because this is necessary, although it is difficult. Ecclesiastes 2:12: "What is man, I ask, that he should be able to follow the king his maker?" Yet human nature will never be perfected, except in union with God. Hence Job 23:11: "My foot has followed his steps." Therefore he is to be imitated, in such a way as we have the possibility, because it belongs to a son to imitate his father. And therefore he adds "as children," namely of the father through creation. Deuteronomy 32:6: "Is not he your father, who has possessed, and made, and created you?" And he adds "most dear," namely whom he has chosen for participation in himself. There follows "and walk," etc. Where first he sets down the manner of imitating, namely in charity; second he shows the sign of his immense charity, at the place "and delivered," etc. That we are therefore most dear children, this the charity of God brings about. Romans 8:15: "For you have not received the spirit of bondage again in fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption of children, whereby we cry: Abba, Father. For the Spirit himself gives testimony to our spirit, that we are the children of God." We ought therefore to imitate him in love. And he says "walk," that is, always make progress. Genesis 15: "walk before me, and be perfect." And this "in love," because love is such a good in which man ought to make progress, and such a debt which man ought always to pay. Romans 13:8: "Owe no man anything, but to love one another." Or "in love," which is the way of following God more closely. 1 Corinthians 12:31: "I show unto you yet a more excellent way." 1 Corinthians 13:1: "If I speak with the tongues of men and of Angels," etc. Colossians 3:4: "above all these things having charity," etc. And this by the example of Christ. Hence he adds "as Christ also has loved us." John 13:1: "having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them unto the end." And because, according to Gregory, the proof of love is the showing forth of the deed, therefore he adds "and delivered himself for us." Apocalypse 1:5: "He has loved us, and washed us from our sins." Galatians 2:20: "I live in the faith of the Son of God, who has loved me, and delivered himself unto death for me." Isaiah 53:12: "he has delivered his soul unto death," etc. Now this death was useful and necessary for us, therefore he adds "an oblation and a sacrifice," etc. Now here the Apostle speaks according to the manner of the old law, in which, as is said in Leviticus 4:25ff., when someone had sinned, there had to be offered for him a sacrifice and an oblation, which is called "for sin." Likewise, when someone gave thanks to God, or wished to obtain something, a peace-offering had to be offered, as is said in Leviticus 3:9, which indeed was an oblation of most sweet odor to the Lord, as is said in the same place. But these things were accomplished through Christ, because, that we might be cleansed from sins and obtain glory, he delivered himself for us as an oblation through the things which he did in his life. Isaiah 53:7: "he was offered because it was his own will," etc. And "a sacrifice to God for sin." And this "for an odor of sweetness." Now he alludes here to what is said in Leviticus 3:5f. But surely that odor was not then acceptable to God in itself, but according to its signification, inasmuch as it signified the fragrant oblation of the body of Christ the Son of God. Genesis 2: "behold the odor of my son, as the odor of a full field." Canticle 1:3: "draw me after you, we will run to the odor of your ointments." In this way, then, we ought to sacrifice ourselves to God spiritually. Psalm 50:19: "a sacrifice to God is a spirit," etc.”

“Here we have the exhortation to mutual love, or to Christian charity. The apostle had been insisting on this in the former chapter, and particularly in the last verses of it, to which the particle therefore refers, and connects what he had said there with what is contained in these verses, thus: "Because God, for Christ's sake, has forgiven you, therefore be you followers of God, or imitators of him;" for so the word signifies. Pious persons should imitate the God whom they worship, as far as he has revealed himself as imitable by them. They must conform themselves to his example, and have his image renewed upon them. This puts a great honour upon practical religion, that it is the imitating of God. We must be holy as God is holy, merciful as he is merciful, perfect as he is perfect. But there is no one attribute of God more recommended to our imitation than that of his goodness. Be you imitators of God, or resemble him, in every grace, and especially in his love, and in his pardoning goodness. God is love; and those that dwell in love dwell in God and God in them. Thus he has proclaimed his name, Gracious and merciful, and abundant in goodness. As dear children, as children (who are wont to be greatly beloved by their parents) usually resemble them in the lineaments and features of their faces, and in the dispositions and qualities of their minds; or as becomes the children of God, who are beloved and cherished by their heavenly Father. Children are obliged to imitate their parents in what is good, especially when dearly beloved by them. The character that we bear of God's children obliges us to resemble him, especially in his love and goodness, in his mercy and readiness to forgive. And those only are God's dear children who imitate him in these. It follows, And walk in love, Eph 5:2. This godlike grace should conduct and influence our whole conversation, which is meant by walking in it. It should be the principle from which we act; it should direct the ends at which we aim. We should be more careful to give proof of the sincerity of our love one to another. As Christ also hath loved us. Here the apostle directs us to the example of Christ, whom Christians are obliged to imitate, and in whom we have an instance of the most free and generous love that ever was, that great love wherewith he hath loved us. We are all joint sharers in that love, and partakers of the comfort of it, and therefore should love one another, Christ having loved us all and given such proof of his love to us; for he hath given himself for us. The apostle designedly enlarges on the subject; for what can yield us more delightful matter for contemplation than this? Christ gave himself to die for us; and the death of Christ was the great sacrifice of atonement: An offering and a sacrifice to God; or an offering, even a sacrifice - a propitiatory sacrifice, to expiate our guilt, which had been prefigured in the legal oblations and sacrifices; and this for a sweet-smelling savour. Some observe that the sin-offerings were never said to be of a sweet-smelling savour; but this is said of the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. As he offered himself with a design to be accepted of God, so God did accept, was pleased with, and appeased by, that sacrifice. Note, As the sacrifice of Christ was efficacious with God, so his example should be prevailing with us, and we should carefully copy after it.”

“Be ye therefore followers of God,.... Not in his works of infinite wisdom and almighty power, which is impossible; but in acts of righteousness and holiness, and particularly in acts of mercy, goodness, and beneficence; as in forgiving injuries and offences, and in freely distributing to the necessities of the saints; as the connection of the words with the preceding chapter, and the instance and example in the following verse show: and this should be done by the saints, as dear children; and because they are such by adopting grace; being predestinated unto the adoption of children, in the eternal purpose of God, and taken into that relation in the covenant of grace; and which is declared and made manifest in regeneration, and by faith in Christ Jesus: and they are dear, or beloved children, being loved with an everlasting and unchangeable love, and which is the spring and source of their adoption; and their being dear to him is seen by what he is unto them, their covenant God and Father; and by what he has done for them, in giving his Son to them, and for them; as well as in choosing, calling, and quickening them by his grace, and by the account he makes of them, as his jewels, his peculiar treasure, and the apple of his eye; and by the pity and compassion he has for them, and the care he takes of them; and therefore it becomes them to imitate him; for who should they imitate and follow after, but their Father, and especially when they are so dear unto him?”

“Be ye therefore followers of God - The beginning of this chapter is properly a continuation of the preceding, which should have ended with the second verse of this. The word μιμηται, which we translate followers, signifies such as personate others, assuming their gait, mode of speech, accent, carriage, etc.; and it is from this Greek word that we have the word mimic. Though this term is often used in a ludicrous sense, yet here it is to be understood in a very solemn and proper sense. Let your whole conduct be like that of your Lord; imitate him in all your actions, words, spirit, and inclinations; imitate him as children do their beloved parents, and remember that you stand in the relation of beloved children to him. It is natural for children to imitate their parents; it is their constant aim to learn of them, and to copy them in all things; whatever they see the parent do, whatever they hear him speak, that they endeavor to copy and imitate; yea, they go farther, they insensibly copy the very tempers of their parents. If ye therefore be children of God, show this love to your heavenly Father, and imitate all his moral perfections, and acquire the mind that was in Jesus.”