Ephesians 1:3-2:18

Contemporary English Version

Christ Brings Spiritual Blessings

³Praise the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for the spiritual blessings that Christ has brought us from heaven! ⁴Before the world was created, God had Christ choose us to live with him and to be his holy and innocent and loving people. ⁵God was kind^[a] and decided that Christ would choose us to be God's own adopted children. ⁶God treated us with undeserved grace because of the Son he dearly loves, and so we should praise God.

^7-8^(A) Christ sacrificed his life's blood to set us free, which means our sins are now forgiven. Christ did this because of God's gift of undeserved grace to us. God has great wisdom and understanding, ⁹and by what Christ has done, God has shown us his own mysterious ways. ¹⁰Then when the time is right, God will do all he has planned, and Christ will bring together everything in heaven and on earth.

¹¹God always does what he plans, and this is why he appointed Christ to choose us. ¹²He did this so we Jews would bring honor to him and be the first ones to have hope because of him. ¹³Christ also brought you the truth, which is the good news about how you can be saved. You put your faith in Christ and were given the promised Holy Spirit to show you belong to God. ¹⁴The Spirit also makes us sure we will be given what God has stored up for his people. Then we will be set free, and God will be honored and praised.

Paul's Prayer

¹⁵I have heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God's people. ¹⁶So I never stop being grateful for you, as I mention you in my prayers. ¹⁷I ask the glorious Father and God of our Lord Jesus Christ to give you his Spirit. The Spirit will make you wise and let you understand what it means to know God. ¹⁸My prayer is that light will flood your hearts and you will understand the hope given to you when God chose you. Then you will discover the glorious blessings that will be yours together with all God's people.

¹⁹I want you to know about the great and mighty power that God has for us followers. It is the same wonderful power he used ²⁰^(B) when he raised Christ from death and let him sit at his right side^[b] in heaven. ²¹There Christ rules over all forces, authorities, powers, and rulers. He rules over all beings in this world and will rule in the future world as well. ²²^(C)^(D) God has put all things under the power of Christ, and for the good of the church he has made him the head of everything. ²³The church is the body of Christ and is filled with Christ who completely fills everything.^[c]

From Death to Life

2 ^(E) In the past you were dead because you sinned and fought against God. ²You followed the ways of this world and obeyed the devil. He rules the world, and his spirit has power over everyone who doesn't obey God. ³Once we were also ruled by the selfish desires of our bodies and minds. We had made God angry, and we were going to be punished like everyone else.

^4-5But God was merciful! We were dead because of our sins, but God loved us so much he made us alive with Christ, and God's gift of undeserved grace is what saves you. ⁶God raised us from death to life with Christ Jesus, and he has given us a place beside Christ in heaven. ⁷God did this so in the future world he could show how truly good and kind he is to us because of what Christ Jesus has done. ⁸You were saved by faith in God, who treats us much better than we deserve.^[d] This is God's gift to you, and not anything you have done on your own. ⁹It isn't something you have earned, so there is nothing you can brag about. ¹⁰God planned for us to do good things and to live as he has always wanted us to live. This is why he sent Christ to make us what we are.

United by Christ

¹¹Don't forget that you are Gentiles. In fact, you used to be called “uncircumcised” by those who take pride in being circumcised. ¹²At that time you did not know about Christ. You were foreigners to the people of Israel, and you had no part in the promises God had made to them. You were living in this world without hope and without God, ¹³and you were far from God. But Christ offered his life's blood as a sacrifice and brought you near God.

¹⁴Christ has made peace between Jews and Gentiles, and he has united us by breaking down the wall of hatred that separated us. Christ gave his own body ¹⁵^(F) to destroy the Law of Moses with all its rules and commands. He even brought Jews and Gentiles together as though we were only one person, when he united us in peace. ¹⁶^(G) On the cross Christ did away with our hatred for each other. He also made peace^[e] between us and God by uniting Jews and Gentiles in one body. ¹⁷^(H) Christ came and preached peace to you Gentiles, who were far from God, and peace to us Jews, who were near God. ¹⁸And because of Christ, all of us can come to the Father by the same Spirit.

Footnotes

1.4,5 holy and innocent and loving people. ⁵God was kind: Or “holy and innocent people. God was loving ⁵and kind.”
1.20 right side: The place of power and honor.
1.23 and is filled with Christ who completely fills everything: Or “which completely fills Christ and fully completes his work.”
2.8 treats us much better than we deserve: The Greek word charis, traditionally rendered “grace,” is translated here and other places in the CEV to express the overwhelming kindness of God.
2.16 He also made peace: Or “The cross also made peace.”