For that reason, I, Paul, am the prisoner of the Messiah Jesus for you
Gentiles.
Surely you have heard of the commission of the grace of
God
given to me for you —
3 that by revelation the divine secret[1199]
was made
known to me, as I have briefly written already.
4 When you read this, you will be able to
perceive my understanding of the revealed secret of the Messiah.
5 This was not made known to people in previous generations, as it has now been revealed to His
holy Apostles[1200]
and prophets in the spirit:
6 it is that the Gentiles are fellow
heirs and fellow members of the same body, and share equally in the
promise[1201]
in Messiah Jesus through the Gospel.
7 Of this Gospel I became
a servant according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to me
by the energy of His power.
8 To me, the very least of all the saints, this
grace was given, in order to proclaim to the Gentiles the boundless
riches of the Messiah,
9 and to enlighten everyone about God’s plan — the
now-revealed secret which from ages past has been hidden in
God, the One who created all things.
[1202] 10 This enlightening is so that the multifaceted wisdom of
God should now be made known through the church to the rulers and
authorities in the heavenly places, 11 according to the plan for the ages which
He has realized in Messiah Jesus our lord.
12 In him we have access to God with boldness and confidence through his faith.
[1203] 13 So I ask you not to be discouraged
by my trials for you, which are your glory.
14 This is the reason that I bow my knees before the Father,
15 from whom every
family in heaven and on earth is named,
16 and ask that He would grant you,
according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through
His spirit in your inner person,
17 and that the Messiah may live in your hearts
through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.
18 I pray that you will be able to
comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and
depth,
19 and to know the love of the Messiah which surpasses knowledge, so
that you will be filled with all the fullness of God.
[1204] 20 Now to the One who is able to do far more abundantly above all we ask or think, according to the power that energizes us, 21 to Him be the glory in the
church and in Messiah Jesus through all generations for all the ages. Amen.
Commentary
Ephesians
[1198]
It is important always to recall Acts 20:24-25 which equates the Gospel of the Kingdom with
the Gospel of grace. There is only one saving Gospel for all.
[1199]
Not a mystification that no one understands, but the secret now revealed about God’s plan for
salvation for all races equally.
[1200]
Paul does not claim some special Gospel revealed to him only, but he states that God’s Gospel
was revealed to all the Apostles.
[1201]
The promise is the promise made to Abraham that he would inherit the world/Kingdom of God
(Rom. 4:13). It is not just a promise to be “in the Kingdom,” but to be the Kingdom and supervise the
Kingdom with Jesus when he comes to establish it on earth (Rev. 5:10; 1 Cor. 6:2; Dan. 7:18, 22, 27;
Mt. 19:28).
[1202]
One of some 50 statements that the Father was the Creator in Genesis. Isa. 44:24 states that
God created all things alone, and no one was with Him. The KJV is based on a corrupted text in this
verse adding “by Jesus Christ,” leading readers to think that Jesus was GOD and creator!
[1203]
The same faith as Jesus had, not just faith in him, but copying his faith and teaching. Anyone
who denies the teaching of Jesus is anti-Christian (1 Tim. 6:3; 2 John 7-9). See “the faith of Jesus” in Rom. 3:22, 26; Gal. 2:16, 20; 3:22; Phil. 3:9.
[1204]
Col. 2:9, “all the fullness of Deity dwells” in Jesus, is parallel to the idea expressed by Paul
here that Christians are also to be filled with the fullness of God.
Ephesians