Ephesians 3
1 FOR this cause am I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Jesus, the Christ, for the sake of you Gentiles –
2 if so be, that ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you:
For you have heard, I suppose, of the responsible charge with which God entrusted me for your benefit,
3 that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery, as I wrote unto you before briefly;
and also that it was by direct revelation that the hidden purpose of God was made known to me, as I have already briefly told you.
4 wherein when ye read, ye may be able to perceive my knowledge in the mystery of Christ,
And, by reading what I have written, you will be able to judge how far I understand this hidden purpose of God in Christ.
5 which in other generations was not made known to the children of men, as it hath been now revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;
In former generations it was not made known to humanity, as fully as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to the apostles and prophets among Christ’s people –
6 that the Gentiles should be co-heirs, and of the same body, and sharers with them of his promise in Christ by the Gospel:
That, by union with Christ Jesus and through the good news, the Gentiles are coheirs with us and members of one body, and that they share with us in God’s Promise.
7 of which I am made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God, which was given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
Of this good news I become an assistant, in virtue of the charge with which God entrusted me in the exercise of his power –
8 To me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
Yes, to me, who am less than the least of all Christ’s people, was this charge entrusted! – to tell the Gentiles the good news of the boundless wealth to be found in the Christ,
9 and to make all men see what the communication of that mystery means, which was hid from the beginning in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: (aiōn g165)
and to make clear what is God’s way of working out that hidden purpose which from the first has been concealed in the mind of the Creator of all things; (aiōn g165)
10 that now to the principalities and powers in the heavenly regions, the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church,
so that now to the archangels and to all the powers on high should be made known, through the church, the all-embracing wisdom of God,
in accordance with that purpose which runs through all the ages and which he has now accomplished in Jesus, the Christ, our Master. (aiōn g165)
12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence to God by the faith of him.
And in union with him, and through our trust in him, we find courage to approach God with confidence.
13 Wherefore 1 beseech you, that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.
Therefore I beg you not to be disheartened at the sufferings that I am undergoing for your sakes; for they redound to your honour.
14 For this end I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
For this reason, then, I kneel before the Father –
15 of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named;
from whom all “fatherhood” in heaven and on earth derives its name –
16 that he would give you according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his spirit in the inner man;
and pray that, in proportion to the wealth of his glory, he will strengthen you with his power by breathing his Spirit into your inmost soul,
17 that Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts; that rooted and grounded in love,
so that the Christ, through your faith, may make his home within your hearts in love; and I pray that you, now firmly rooted and established, may, with all Christ’s people,
18 ye may be strengthened to comprehend with all saints, what is the breadth and length, and height and depth;
have the power to comprehend in all its width and length and height and depth,
19 and to know the love of Christ, transcendently surpassing knowledge, that ye may be filled with all the fulness of God.
and to understand – though it surpasses all understanding – the love of the Christ; and so be filled with all the fullness of God.
20 Now to him that is able to do above all things, exceeding abundantly, beyond what we ask or think, according to the power which effectually worketh in us;
To him who, through his power which is at work within us, is able to do far more than anything that we can ask or conceive –
