Ephesians: Things to Put Away (Far Away)
Ephesians 4:31 - Remove these evil things from your life and replace them with the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.”
Ephesians 4:31 NASB1995
After Paul admonishes the saints at Ephesus to not grieve the Holy Spirit because of what they say, he follows up with a laundry list of more bad/sinful behaviors that interfere with the unity and fellowship of believers (and these things also do a big number on personal relationships regardless of belief). The AI image at the top captures an early church group with two men who are in the throes of bitterness and wrath (there also may be some slander and malice involved) and an elder is trying to mediate the situation.
Time for some word studies using the Blue Letter Bible lexicon!
Bitterness comes from the Greek feminine noun πικρία or pikría (Strong’s G4088), with the following Biblical usages:
bitter gall
extreme wickedness
a bitter root, and so producing a bitter fruit
metaph. bitterness, bitter hatred
It’s important to note that this noun can indicate extreme wickedness and bitter hate. Precept Austin describes bitterness this way:
Bitterness is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.
Wrath comes from the Greek masculine noun θυμός or thymós (Strong’s G2372), with the following Biblical usages:
passion, angry, heat, anger forthwith boiling up and soon subsiding again
glow, ardour, the wine of passion, inflaming wine (which either drives the drinker mad or kills him with its strength)
The usage is obviously the first one in this context. Let’s also look at anger, a closely-related word:
Anger comes from the Greek feminine noun ὀργή or ŏrgē (Strong’s G3709), with the following Biblical usages (we’ve studied this word before):
anger, the natural disposition, temper, character
movement or agitation of the soul, impulse, desire, any violent emotion, but esp. anger
anger, wrath, indignation
anger exhibited in punishment, hence used for punishment itself
of punishments inflicted by magistrates
Anger can be a violent emotion. Benjamin Franklin had these things to say about anger (as found in Precept Austin):
Anger is never without a reason, but seldom with a good one.
Whatever is begun in anger ends in shame.
Clamor comes from the Greek feminine noun κραυγή or kraugḗ (Strong’s G2906), with the following Biblical usages:
a crying, outcry, clamour [also tumult from the Strong’s definition].
Steven Cole has this to say about clamor, as quoted in Precept Austin:
Clamor refers to loud, angry words, where people are screaming at each other. It includes cursing and calling someone abusive names. The only time you should yell at your mate or your children is to warn them of immediate danger. Sometimes you have to yell to be heard over the noise. But once things quiet down, you should talk, not yell.
Slander comes from the Greek feminine noun βλασφημία or blasphēmía (Strong’s G988), with the following Biblical usages:
slander, detraction, speech injurious, to another’s good name
impious and reproachful speech injurious to divine majesty
This noun is the obvious source of the word blasphemy. The late John MacArthur is quoted in Precept Austin saying this about slander:
To slander people, however, is to blaspheme God, inasmuch as He created men and women (cf. James 3:9)...People are to be treated with dignity because they are made in the image of God. The believer’s speech must not be marred by insults or disparaging remarks directed at others. James laments that “from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way” (James 3:10). (MacArthur, J. Colossians. Chicago: Moody Press).
To put away comes from the Greek verb αἴρω or aírō (Strong’s G142) with the following Biblical usages:
to raise up, elevate, lift up
to raise from the ground, take up: stones
to raise upwards, elevate, lift up: the hand
to draw up: a fish
to take upon one’s self and carry what has been raised up, to bear
to bear away what has been raised, carry off
to move from its place
to take off or away what is attached to anything
to remove
to carry off, carry away with one
to appropriate what is taken
to take away from another what is his or what is committed to him, to take by force
to take and apply to any use
to take from among the living, either by a natural death, or by violence
cause to cease
In this context, this means to remove or cause to CEASE doing these things.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones has an interesting way to look at this action that believers take, as quoted in Precept Austin:
The way to get rid of the defects is to cultivate the virtues. To use a well-known phrase of Thomas Chalmers, what we need is to apply the “The Expulsive Power of a New Affection”. I use a simple illustration. The way the dead leaves of winter are removed from some trees is not that people go around plucking them off; no, it is the new life, the shoot that comes and pushes off the dead in order to make room for itself. In the same way the Christian gets rid of all such things as bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and evil speaking and all malice. The new qualities develop and the others simply have no room; they are pushed out and they are pushed off. (From his sermon Forgiven and Forgiving).
Malice comes from the Greek feminine noun κακία or kakía (Strong’s G2549), with the following Biblical usages:
malignity, malice, ill-will, desire to injure
wickedness, depravity
wickedness that is not ashamed to break laws
evil, trouble
Malice is very bad, a true wickedness and evil that is not ashamed to break laws to prevail along with a deep-seated desire to injure others. Again, from Martyn Lloyd-Jones, quoted in Precept Austin:
As the good doctor Martyn Lloyd-Jones said "And then, as if all this were not enough, the Apostle adds the word malice. Malice means wicked desires with respect to others, a determination to harm others, again a kind of settled spirit which so hates others that it thinks of ways of harming them, plots such ways, gloats over them, and then proceeds to put them into practice; it is a kind of malignity. Evil, malicious gossip and slander also form a part of this malice that he tells us all to put far from us." (From his sermon Forgiven and Forgiving).
Christians are to be the light of the world. Christians are to love God with all of their being and love their neighbors as themselves. Let’s look at the ways we should be that are the opposite of these things we must put away; the Merriam-Webster Dictionary provides useful lists of antonyms to these words and bad behaviors:
Bitterness is a deep-seated ill will and hostility or is a biting sharpness of feeling or expression. It is overcome and replaced by:
Amity, friendliness, understanding, civility, empathy, good will, kindness, friendship, compassion, tenderness, hope…
Wrath (as in anger) is an intense emotional state of displeasure with someone or something. It is overcome and replaced by:
Patience, calmness, forbearance…
Clamor is a violent shouting or a confused, loud and inharmonious sound. It is overcome and replaced by:
Silence, stillness, calm, serenity, quietude, tranquility…
Slander (as in Libel) is the making of false statements that damage another's reputation. It is overcome and replaced by:
Praise, commendation, respect, esteem, honor…
Malice (as in venom) is the desire to cause pain for the satisfaction of doing harm. It is overcome and replaced by:
Love, kindness, empathy, goodwill, amity, devotion, civility, tenderness…
These sins thrive in the malicious cesspool that is known as social media. The devil offers the bait in a post or comment you don’t like, so take a deep breath, say a quick prayer and don’t take the bait! Don’t be bitter, wrathful, slanderous, noisy or malicious (Lord forbid). We don’t have to admire politicians and other famous people but we should never, ever, ever wish them harm or casually slander them in a rage.
One of the current administration’s top advisors resigned today to care for her husband who has been diagnosed with a rare cancer. Within SECONDS of this announcement I saw people in comments on news sources wishing the same on her or worse or slandering her by calling her a liar; there were also many “laughing emoji” reactions. In my old days I might have taken the bait, but instead I prayed for the souls of those who say or do such evil things on a public forum.
To be equitable (looking at both sides of the aisle), the same kinds of slander and disrespect and malice are rampant in comments to stories about the current diseases that are a concern to world health care agencies (contagious Andes Hantavirus and Ebola). Yes, there are many bad aspects to the way COVID-19 was handled, but these two diseases, if they became pandemic in nature, would make COVID-19 look like a walk in the park. Being smug and self-righteous will not save your life.
Let’s be civil, kind, patient, still, respectful, full of good will, and loving! That is the Christian way of life through the fruit of the Holy Spirit
My next devotional examines Ephesians 4:32 - Be forgiving, just like Christ has forgiven you.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I thank You for how You have delivered me from some of the worst aspects of these sinful behaviors. Please help me to continue on a path that reflects the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Citations and Credits:
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.Lockman.org.
“G4088 - pikria - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 21 May, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g4088/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G2372 - thymos - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 21 May, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2372/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G3709 - orgē - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 21 May, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g3709/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G2906 - kraugē - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 22 May, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2906/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G988 - blasphēmia - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 22 May, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g988/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G142 - airō - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 22 May, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g142/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G2549 - kakia - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 22 May, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2549/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
Precept Austin was accessed on 05/21/2026 and 5/22/2026 to review commentary for Ephesians 4:31. Links to the source documents are provided where appropriate.
Commentary from Enduring Word is used with written permission and without any alteration. ©1996-present The Enduring Word Bible Commentary by David Guzik – enduringword.com. Enduring Word commentary was not used for this devotional.