ἀληθεύοντες δὲ ἐν ἀγάπῃ (SBL GNT)
(alētheuontes de en agapē)
This phrase has often been used by one Christian as a hammer against another. It is the Christian equivalent of, “With all due respect…” Whenever someone is at the receiving end of this phrase, they know that what follows is usually going to be anything but loving or respectful. It is a phrase frequently used to justify condemnation and abuse.
How do some English translations render this phrase?
| AMP | Rather, let our lives lovingly express truth |
| CEB | Instead, by speaking the truth with love |
| CEV | Love should always make us tell the truth |
| ESV | Rather, speaking the truth in love |
| GNT | Instead, by speaking the truth in a spirit of love |
| HCSB | But speaking the truth in love |
| KJV | But speaking the truth in love |
| NIV | Instead, speaking the truth in love |
| NCV | No! Speaking the truth with love |
| NET | But practicing the truth in love |
| NLT | Instead, we will speak the truth in love |
| RSV | Rather, speaking the truth in love |
| YLT | And, being true in love |
Looking at this sampling of thirteen commonly used English translation of the Bible and how they render the opening of the Ephesians 4:15 text, we observe that the overwhelming majority render the word alētheuontes as “speaking the truth.” The strong connotation given is that toward the act of speaking, that of verbalizing words to another person. A small minority (in boldface) take an alternate view, that alētheuontes is about the act of living, about practices, and not necessarily requiring verbal proclamation.
Another potential issue with most translation involve the “the” in “the truth.” The Greek text does not contain a definite article. The AMP and YTL above provide the better translation by omitting the definite article. The problem with “the truth” is that it can lead to a view that there is a singular manifestation of truth and that it can be codified and proclaimed. It leads to division: all who believe my way are following “the truth” but I need to “speak the truth” to those who don’t see it my way.
How did the preference for translating the phrase into “speaking the truth” arise?
The immediate context (Ephesians 4:1-16) seems to provide at least one possibility. This set of verses discusses gifts of grace, spiritual gifts, and their use in “building up the body of Christ” (v.12) into unity (vv.3-6, 13). The list of specific gifts includes “the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers” (v.11). Notice that all the gifts mentioned here are proclamation and teaching gifts. So it makes logical sense to translate alētheuontes into “speaking [the] truth.”
Verse 25 which explicitly uses the term “to speak” may have also influenced the translation of verse 15 in order to maintain consistency. But is strict consistency necessary? At least a few translations disagree.
Alētheuontes can also be translated as “teach truth,” “profess truth,” or “act truly or sincerely.” Teaching, professing, and acting does not have to involve speaking (though speaking should not be excluded completely).
The preposition en immediately before agapē is most frequently translated as “in” but can also be understood to mean “with,” “through,” and “by” – with love, through love, and by love.
There is a conjunction de following alētheuontes. This is seen as adversarial, meaning “truth-love” is in opposition to something that came before or will follow. Translators generally place this word before “truth” to contrast “truth-love” to what came before, and translate it into words such as “but,” “instead,” and “rather.” This further helps the reader place context around “speaking truth in love.”
Verse 14 reads, “So we are no longer to be children, tossed back and forth by waves and carried about by every wind of teaching by the trickery of people who craftily carry out their deceitful schemes” (NET). This verse does not limit falsehood and deceit to merely speech, but includes activities. In contrast then, Christians are to speak, teach, and practice truth by/through/with their love (my translation of the first phrase of verse 15). When love is the rule and practice, unity in Christ will naturally follow (my paraphrase of the second half of verse 15).
I am reminded of St. Francis of Assisi who said, “Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
Ironically the way the phrase “speaking the truth in love” is often used within Christian circles today is the exact opposite of what was intended by the author of Ephesians. Instead of mutual respect and honor, with and in love, the phrase is used in a “my way or the highway” kind of self-aggrandizing attitude against others. Instead of bringing together, the phrase too often divides.
May we today begin to recover the original intents of the phrase.
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