The life-setting and the heavenly dimension

Ephesians is the letter in the Pauline corpus in which the concept of the heavenly dimension is most pervasive. What kind of a letter Ephesians is and in what sense it is Pauline are matters which are still by no means settled in scholarly discussion. Among recent writers some take the traditional view of Paul as the actual author, while others hold that one of Paul's associates was commissioned to do the writing by the apostle and given a free hand, and still others think it more likely that the author was a member of a later Pauline school writing to meet a situation arising in the churches towards the end of the first century. The difficult decision about authorship is closely linked with the perhaps more decisive question of the letter's genre and purpose. Here again hypotheses are produced which can make a good case either for relating the style and intent of Ephesians to a situation in the life of Paul or to a setting after his death. Yet some decision must be made and here a tentative preference is expressed for a setting in the life of Paul which thus allows for either of the first two options regarding authorship.