Paul’s Work in Telling the Good News

3 ·So [For this reason] I, Paul, a prisoner [^CPaul is probably writing from house arrest in Rome, about ad 60; see Acts 28:30–31] of Christ Jesus ·for [for the sake of] you Gentiles—[^CPaul is about to pray for the Ephesians, but instead digresses into a description of his ministry until v. 14]. ² Surely you have heard that God gave me this ·work [task; stewardship; commission] ·to tell you about his grace [^Lof God’s grace for you]. ³ He let me know his ·secret [mystery; 1:9] by ·showing it to me [revelation]. I have already written ·a little [briefly] about this [^Ceither earlier in this letter or previously]. ⁴ ·If you read what I wrote then [or By reading this], you can see that I truly understand the ·secret [mystery] ·about [or revealed by; or that consists of; ^Lof] ·Christ [or the Messiah]. ⁵ ·People [^LThe sons of men; ^Ca Hebrew way of referring to people] who lived in other ·times [generations] were not told that secret. But now, through the Spirit, God has ·shown [revealed] that secret to his holy apostles and prophets. ⁶ This is that ·secret [mystery]: that through the ·Good News [Gospel] the Gentiles ·will share with the Jews in God’s blessing [^Lare co-heirs]. They belong to the same body, and they share together in the promise that God made in Christ Jesus.

⁷ By God’s special gift of grace given to me through ·his power [^Lthe working out/exercise of his power], I became a servant ·to tell that Good News [of this Gospel].