Middle Wall of Partition

Biblical Text

The expression appears in chapter 2 of Ephesians. The New Korean Revised Version renders Ephesians 2:14–17 in words that the King James Version gives as "For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances" (2:14–15). The preceding verses state that Gentiles, who had not received circumcision, were formerly "aliens from the commonwealth of Israel." The passage that follows explains that Christ, through the cross, made Jews and Gentiles into "one new man" and reconciled both together to God.

Terminology and Background

"Middle wall of partition" translates a Greek phrase that combines mesotoichon, meaning "dividing wall," with phragmos, meaning "fence." The word mesotoichon occurs nowhere else in the New Testament.

The Temple in Jerusalem as rebuilt by Herod had a low balustrade separating the outer court, which Gentiles could enter, from the inner courts, which only Jews could enter. The first-century historian Josephus recorded that warning notices forbidding Gentiles to enter were posted on this balustrade. In 1871 a Greek inscription identified as one of these warnings was discovered; it states, in effect, that any Gentile caught going inside would be put to death. Acts 21 describes Paul being seized on suspicion of having brought a man from Ephesus into the Temple.

Significance in the Whole of Scripture

In the Old Testament, Israel was set apart from the Gentile nations by circumcision and the Law. Ephesians teaches that in Christ this distinction is overcome, so that Gentiles also become members "of the household of God" (2:19). The reconciliation the passage describes includes both reconciliation among people and reconciliation with God (2:16). Many interpreters see in the description of Christ as "our peace" a continuation of the Old Testament concept of shalom.

Interpretations and Issues

• What the wall refers to: A widely known interpretation understands the wall as a metaphor alluding to the Temple balustrade. Another interpretation, based on the mention of "the law" in the very next verse, takes the wall to be the legal regulations themselves that divided Jews from Gentiles. Many scholars accept both readings together. Scholars disagree about the authorship and date of Ephesians, and their judgments about whether the text refers directly to the Temple balustrade vary accordingly.
• The scope of the abolished law: The Reformed tradition has distinguished between the ceremonial law and the moral law, explaining that it was the ceremonial law that was abolished. Some scholars read the passage as referring to the abolition of boundary markers, such as circumcision and dietary regulations, that marked Jewish identity. This question is connected to discussions of law and gospel.
• Israel and the church: Covenant theology reads this passage as evidence for the continuity of the one people of God across the Old and New Testaments. Dispensationalism acknowledges that Jews and Gentiles have become one body in the church, while maintaining a framework that distinguishes Israel from the church.
• Associations added in popular use: The wall is sometimes equated with the veil of the sanctuary that was torn when Jesus died (Matthew 27:51). The text of Ephesians, however, does not mention the veil. Moreover, the passage speaks primarily of the barrier between Jews and Gentiles; applying it to class, racial, or regional conflicts is an extended interpretation.

In Korean Churches

The phrase "tearing down the dividing wall" is frequently used in sermons and prayers in Korean churches to express reconciliation and unity. It is also commonly cited in sermons and prayer meetings addressing the division of Korea and reunification (see reunification and the church). The expression is likewise used in discussions of interdenominational cooperation and of generational and regional conflict.