Ephesians
From Paul, an Apostle of Messiah Jesus by the will of God, to the saints,
the faithful in Messiah Jesus who are in Ephesus:
Grace and peace to you
from God who is our Father and from the lord Jesus Messiah.
Blessed be the God and Father of our lord Jesus Messiah. He is the One
who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in
Messiah.
For He chose us
in him before the foundation of the world, to be
holy and unblemished before Him. In love,
He marked us out beforehand to be His sons and daughters through Jesus Messiah, according to the good purpose of His will,
to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely gave us in
the Beloved.
In him we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of our sins, according to the riches of His grace,
which He kindly lavished on us. In all wisdom and understanding
He made known to us the
revealed secret of His will,
according to His purpose which He designed in him,
as His plan for the time of fulfillment — to make the Messiah head of everything in heaven and on earth.
In him we
were also made heirs, having been marked out beforehand according to the plan of the One who accomplishes all things according to the purpose of His will,
so that we
who were the first to hope in Messiah would live for the praise of His glory.
In
him, when you heard the word of the truth — the Gospel of your salvation — you
believed it and were sealed in him with the holy spirit of the promise,
which is a down-payment on our inheritance, until we acquire possession of that inheritance, to the praise of His glory.
That is why, since I heard of your faith in the lord Jesus and your love
for all the saints,
I always give thanks for you and remember you when I
pray.
This is my prayer: that the God of our lord Jesus Messiah, the Father of glory, will give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in your
knowledge of Him.
With the understanding of your hearts enlightened, you will know the hope
to which He has called you, the riches of the glory of
His inheritance in the saints,
and the overwhelming greatness of His power to us who believe, according to the energy of His mighty strength.
He energized this same power in the Messiah when He raised him from the dead and seated him at His right hand
in the heavenly places,
far above every ruler, authority, power, dominion,
and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to
come.
He put all things under his feet,
and gave him as
head over all things to the church,
which is his body, the fullness of him
who fills all in all.
Ephesians