And Among other his free gifts; he gave some, apostles His chief ministers and special witnesses, as having seen him after his resurrection, and received their commission immediately from him. The office of an apostle was to declare, in an infallible manner, the whole gospel doctrine: to qualify them for which they were endowed with the plenary and most abundant inspiration of the Holy Spirit, imparting to them a perfect knowledge of all those truths and mysteries which they were to publish to the world. And some he gave to be prophets Whose office it was to explain infallibly the true meaning of the ancient prophecies, and also themselves to predict future events, by virtue of the extraordinary revelations made to them. And some, evangelists Who were to preach the gospel in different Gentile nations, either before or after the apostles, under whose direction they seem generally to have acted. To fit them for this office Christ gave them the gift of tongues, and such other miraculous endowments as were necessary for the exercise of their ministry, and the confirmation of their doctrine. All these were extraordinary officers: the ordinary were some, pastors, (called επισκοπους, bishops, Acts 20:28,) watching over and feeding their several flocks. To fit them for which work, it appears from 1 Corinthians 12:28-31; 1 Corinthians 14:1-5; 1 Corinthians 14:23-26, that Christ bestowed, at least on some of them, the gifts of miracles and tongues, also the gift of prudence, to enable them to govern their particular churches in a proper manner. And teachers Whether of the same or a lower order, to assist them as occasion might require. It is probable the peculiar office of those here termed teachers, as distinguished from those called pastors, was to instruct the young and ignorant in the first principles of the Christian religion. And they likewise were doubtless fitted for their work, by such gifts as were necessary to the right discharging thereof; and some infer from 1 Corinthians 12:28, that supernatural gifts, such as those of miracles and tongues, were also conferred on some of them.
Related Commentaries of Ephesians 4:11
Ephesians 4:11
11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;