Certain verses just seem to languish in the shadow of the verse that follows them. I mean, how about poor old John 3:15? Or Rom. 8:27? Or 1 John 1:8? Or Eph. 2:7?
Let's look briefly at this latter example. Here's the Greek of verse 8, the one we've all memorized:
Please note the word highlighted in yellow. It's the Greek word for "the." Greek scholars call this the article of previous reference. This means that Paul is not referring to grace in general but to the grace he's mentioned in verse 7, namely, the grace of God. A few English translations actually try to bring this out. Kudos to them! These include:
- GNT: "For it is by God's grace that you have been saved."
- ISV: "For by such grace you have been saved."
- NGU: "Noch einmal: Durch Gottes Gnade seid ihr gerettet."
Clearly, "by grace" in verse 8 means the grace already mentioned in verse 7, namely, God's grace.
This is basic hermeneutics, folks. Contextless exegesis is poor exegesis. Always has been, always will be. Context refers to that which goes before and that which follows after. So whenever you study a verse, a paragraph, or a section, always consult the neighbors of that verse, that paragraph, or that section. Whenever you get lost, climb the "contextual tree" and get a bird's eye view of the context!