Wherefore he saith: Rise thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead: and Christ shall enlighten thee.

“And he enchants the eyes of the dead, as he says, and raises up again those that are slumbering, after having been roused from sleep, and after having been suitors. And concerning these, he says, the Scripture speaks: "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise, and Christ will give thee light." This is the Christ who, he says, in all that have been generated, is the portrayed Son of Man from the unportrayable Logos.”

“By the "sleeper" and the "dead," he means the man that is in sin; for he both exhales noisome odors like the dead, and is inactive like one that is asleep, and like him he sees nothing, but is dreaming, and forming fancies and illusions. Some indeed read, "And thou shalt touch Christ"; but others, "And Christ shall shine Upon thee"; and it is rather this latter. Depart from sin, and thou shalt be able to behold Christ. "For every one that doeth ill, hateth the light, and cometh not to the light." (John iii. 20.) He therefore that doeth it not, cometh to the light. Now he is not saying this with reference to the unbelievers only, for many of the faithful, no less than unbelievers, hold fast by wickedness; nay, some far more. Therefore to these also it is necessary to exclaim, "Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine upon thee." To these it is fitting to say this also, "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." (Matt. xxii. 32.) If then he is not the God of the dead, let us live.”

“Above, the Apostle set forth admonitions; here he assigns the reasons for them. Now he set forth two admonitions: the first, that they should not share in the works of darkness; the second, that they should reprove sinners. According to this, therefore, he does two things. First he sets forth the reason for the first admonition; second, the reason for the second, at the place "For all things that are reproved," etc. He says, therefore: I said well, "do not share"; nay rather, you ought also to rebuke and reprove such persons. Why? Because "the things that are done by them in secret, it is shameful to speak of." Now this concerns carnal vices, in which there is great shamefulness, because there is very little of the goods of reason in them, since acts of this kind are common to us and to brute animals. There follows "All things that are reproved," etc. Here the Apostle sets forth the reason for the second admonition, and he does two things. For first he sets forth the reason; second he assigns a confirmation, at the place "Wherefore he says," etc. As to the first, then, he wishes to prove that it is fitting for them to reprove those who transgress, and he proves this thus: whatever is shown to be evil is reproved, for every reproof is a certain manifestation; but every manifestation comes about through light, and you are light; therefore it is fitting for you to reprove and to manifest them. Now he sets forth the major premise of this argument at the place "But all things that are reproved," etc. And he sets forth the minor premise at the place "everything that," etc. As if to say: it is fitting for them to reprove for this reason, because, as is said in 1 Corinthians 2:15: "the spiritual man judges all things, and he himself is judged by no one." Hence the Gloss explains it thus: "all things" — namely, the sins that are reproved by the light, that is, by good and holy men, who are the children of light — "are made manifest," namely, through confession. Proverbs 28:13: "But he who shall have confessed and forsaken them shall obtain mercy." And "everything" — namely, the evil — "that is manifested" through confession "is light," that is, it is turned into light. Then he confirms this by an authority, saying "Wherefore he says: Rise," etc. The Gloss explains it thus: on account of the fact that it is light, he says — namely, the Holy Spirit — "O you who sleep, rise," etc. But this is not Paul's custom. And therefore it must be said that the Apostle introduces the figure set down in Isaiah 60:1: "Arise, be enlightened, Jerusalem," etc., saying "Wherefore" — namely, Scripture — "says: Rise" from the negligence of good work, "you," namely, "who sleep." Proverbs 6:9: "How long, sluggard, will you sleep?" Psalm 40:9: "Shall not he who sleeps go on to rise again?" And "rise from the dead," that is, from dead works, or works that put to death. Hebrews 9:14: "he will cleanse our conscience from dead works," etc. Isaiah 26:19: "Your dead shall live, my slain shall rise again." "Rise, therefore, and Christ will enlighten you." Psalm 26:1: "The Lord is my light," etc. The same, 12:4: "Enlighten my eyes, lest I ever sleep in death." But can we, by ourselves, rise from sin, since he says: "Rise, and Christ will enlighten you"? I respond: it must be said that for the justification of the ungodly two things are required, namely, free will cooperating toward rising, and grace itself. And indeed free will has this very cooperation from prevenient grace, and afterward has to work meritoriously from subsequent grace. Hence it is said in the last chapter of Lamentations: "Convert us, O God, and we shall be converted."”

“Redeeming the time,.... Or "buying time"; a like expression is used in Dan 2:8, which we render, gain time: but in the Chaldee text it is, "buy time": and so Jacchiades, a Jewish commentator on the place, renders it, , "ye buy this opportunity"; and the Septuagint version uses the same phrase the apostle does here; but there it seems to signify a study to prolong time, to put off the business to another season; but here taking time for a space of time, it denotes a careful and diligent use of it, an improvement of it to the best advantage; and shows that it is valuable and precious, and is not to be trifled with, and squandered away, and be lost, as it may be; for it can neither be recalled nor prolonged: and taking it for an opportunity of doing good to ourselves or others, it signifies that no opportunity of discharging our duty to God and man, of attending on the word and ordinances of the Gospel, and to the private and public exercises of religion, of gaining advantage to our own souls, or of gaining the souls of others, and of doing good either to the bodies or souls of men, should be neglected; but even all risks should be run, and means used to enjoy it: in the Syriac and Chaldee languages, "time", comes from "to redeem": the reason the apostle gives for the redemption of time is, because the days are evil; as such are, in which iniquity abounds, and many wicked men live, and errors and heresies prevail, and are days of affliction or persecution; see Gen 47:9.”

“Wherefore he saith - It is a matter of doubt and controversy whence this saying is derived. Some think it taken from Isa 26:19 : Thy dead men shall live; with my dead body shall they arise; Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust, etc. Others think that it is taken from Isa 60:1-3 : Arise, shine; for thy light is come, etc. But these passages neither give the words nor the meaning of the apostle. Epiphanius supposed them to be taken from an ancient prophecy of Elijah, long since lost: Syncellus and Euthalius think they were taken from an apocryphal work attributed to Jeremiah the prophet: others, that they made part of a hymn then used in the Christian Church; for that there were, in the apostle's time, hymns and spiritual songs, as well as psalms, we learn from himself, in Eph 5:19, and from Col 3:16. The hymn is supposed to have begun thus: - Εγειραι ὁ καθευδων, Και αναστα εκ των νεκρων, Επιφαυσει σοι ὁ Χριστος. Awake, O thou who sleepest, And from the dead arise thou, And Christ shall shine upon thee. See Rosenmuller, Wolf, and others. But it seems more natural to understand the words he saith as referring to the light, i.e. the Gospel, mentioned Eph 5:13. And the διο λεγει should be translated, Wherefore It saith, Awake thou, etc. that is: This is the general, the strong, commanding voice of the Gospel in every part - Receive instruction; leave thy sins, which are leading thee to perdition; believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and he will enlighten and save thee. As a man asleep neither knows nor does any thing that can be called good or useful, so the Gentiles and all others, while without the knowledge of Christianity, had not only no proper knowledge of vice and virtue, but they had no correct notion of the true God. As the dead can perform no function of life, so the Gentiles and the unconverted were incapable of performing any thing worthy either of life or being. But though they were asleep - in a state of complete spiritual torpor, yet they might be awoke by the voice of the Gospel; and though dead to all goodness, and to every function of the spiritual life, yet, as their animal life was whole in them, and perception and reason were still left, they were capable of hearing the Gospel, and under that influence which always accompanies it when faithfully preached, they could discern its excellency, and find it to be the power of God to their salvation. And they are addressed by the apostle as possessing this capacity; and, on their using it properly, have the promise that Christ shall enlighten them.”

“Wherefore--referring to the whole foregoing argument (Eph 5:8, Eph 5:11, Eph 5:13). Seeing that light (spiritual) dispels the pre-existing darkness, He (God) saith . . . (compare the same phrase, Eph 4:8). Awake--The reading of all the oldest manuscripts is "Up!" or, "Rouse thee!" a phrase used in stirring men to activity. The words are a paraphrase of Isa 60:1-2, not an exact quotation. The word "Christ," shows that in quoting the prophecy, he views it in the light thrown on it by its Gospel fulfilment. As Israel is called on to "awake" from its previous state of "darkness" and "death" (Isa 59:10; Isa 60:2), for that her Light is come; so the Church, and each individual is similarly called to awake. Believers are called on to "awake" out of sleep; unbelievers, to "arise" from the dead (compare Mat 25:5; Rom 13:11; Th1 5:6, with Eph 2:1). Christ--"the true light," "the Sun of righteousness." give thee light--rather, as Greek, "shall shine upon thee" (so enabling thee by being "made manifest" to become, and be, by the very fact, "light," Eph 5:13; then being so "enlightened," Eph 1:18, thou shalt be able, by "reproving," to enlighten others).”