Introduction
Chapter 1
Address and Greeting. 1 Paul, by the will of God an apostle of Christ Jesus, to the saints who are in Ephesus and are faithful in Christ Jesus. 2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Risen Christ, Lord and Savior of the Whole Human Race
God’s Glorious Plan of Salvation
Conceived by the Father
3 Blessed be the God,
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who has blessed us in Christ
with every spiritual blessing in the heavens.
4 Before the foundation of the world
he chose us in Christ
to be holy and blameless in his sight
and to be filled with love.
5 He predestined us
for adoption as his children
through Jesus Christ,
in accordance with his purpose and pleasure,
6 to the praise of the glory
of his grace
that he so freely bestowed on us
in the Beloved.
Realized by the Son
7 In Christ
and through his blood
we have redemption
and the forgiveness of our sins.
In accord with the riches of his grace,
8 God lavished on us
all wisdom and insight.
9 He has made known to us
the mystery of his will
in accordance with his good pleasure
that he had predetermined in Christ
10 to be realized when
the fullness of time had been achieved:
namely, the plan to bring all things,
both in heaven and on earth,
together in Christ
as the head.
Fulfilled by the Holy Spirit
11 In Christ we were also chosen,
having been predestined
by the one who accomplishes all things
in accordance with the design of his will,
12 so that we,
who were the first ones
to place our hopes in Christ,
would devote ourselves
to the praise of his glory.
13 In Christ
you also heard the message of truth
and the gospel of your salvation,
and you came to believe in him.
In him,
you were marked with the seal
of the Holy Spirit
who had been promised.
14 That Spirit is the down payment of our inheritance,
which we shall share
when God has redeemed us
as his own possession,
to the praise of his glory.
The Church’s Unity with Christ
Christ, Head of the Church. Having heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and of your love toward all the saints,
16 I therefore never cease to give thanks to God for you as I remember you in my prayers. 17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation to know him. 18 I further pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know the hope to which he has called you, how rich and glorious is his inheritance in the saints, 19 and how immeasurably great is the power that he has exercised toward those who have faith.
Such was his mighty power 20 that he exhibited in Christ
when he raised him from the dead
and enthroned him
at his right hand in heaven,
21 far above
every principality and authority,
power and dominion,
and every other title
that can be named,
not only in this age
but also in the age to come.
22 He has put all things
under Christ’s feet
and has made him
the head of the Church,
23 which is his body,
the fullness of him
who fills the universe
in all its parts.
Footnotes
- Ephesians 1:1
- Ephesians 1:1
- Ephesians 1:3
- Ephesians 1:3
- Ephesians 1:7
- Ephesians 1:10
- Ephesians 1:14
- Ephesians 1:15
15
Paul clearly distinguishes the glorified Christ reigning in heaven and his mystical body developing on earth. We cannot confuse the Church and the Lord. But they are intimately connected. The community of those called is realized and grows under the impulsion of the life that Christ gives it. This community is the “fullness” of God, for in it everything must be reunited to be filled with God’s presence and love. The Church is the mystery of grace and charisms, of unity and growth (see Rom 12:4f; 1 Cor 12:12; Col 1:18).
The Apostle then goes on to describe the sinful state of humankind, in the grip of the power of evil (Eph 2:1-10), and the new state of humankind in which Gentiles and Jews now form a single new person, created in Christ and reconciled to one another and to God (Eph 2:11-22).
- Ephesians 1:18
