Ephesians 1:3-14
English Standard Version
Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 (A)Blessed be (B)the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing (C)in the heavenly places, 4 (D)even as he (E)chose us in him (F)before the foundation of the world, that we should be (G)holy and blameless before him. In love 5 (H)he predestined us[a] for (I)adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, (J)according to the purpose of his will, 6 (K)to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in (L)the Beloved. 7 (M)In him we have (N)redemption (O)through his blood, (P)the forgiveness of our trespasses, (Q)according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight 9 (R)making known[b] to us the mystery of his will, (S)according to his purpose, which he (T)set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for (U)the fullness of time, (V)to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.
11 In him we have obtained (W)an inheritance, (X)having been predestined (Y)according to the purpose of him who works all things according to (Z)the counsel of his will, 12 so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be (AA)to the praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you heard (AB)the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, (AC)were sealed with the (AD)promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is (AE)the guarantee[c] of our (AF)inheritance until (AG)we acquire (AH)possession of it,[d] (AI)to the praise of his glory.
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- Ephesians 1:5 Or before him in love, 5having predestined us
- Ephesians 1:9 Or he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight, making known…
- Ephesians 1:14 Or down payment
- Ephesians 1:14 Or until God redeems his possession
Ephesians 1:3-14
New Living Translation
Spiritual Blessings
3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ. 4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. 5 God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. 6 So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son.[a] 7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins. 8 He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.
9 God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfill his own good plan. 10 And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth. 11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God,[b] for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.
12 God’s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God. 13 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own[c] by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. 14 The Spirit is God’s guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him.
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Ephesians 1:3-14
The Message
The God of Glory
3-6 How blessed is God! And what a blessing he is! He’s the Father of our Master, Jesus Christ, and takes us to the high places of blessing in him. Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love. Long, long ago he decided to adopt us into his family through Jesus Christ. (What pleasure he took in planning this!) He wanted us to enter into the celebration of his lavish gift-giving by the hand of his beloved Son.
7-10 Because of the sacrifice of the Messiah, his blood poured out on the altar of the Cross, we’re a free people—free of penalties and punishments chalked up by all our misdeeds. And not just barely free, either. Abundantly free! He thought of everything, provided for everything we could possibly need, letting us in on the plans he took such delight in making. He set it all out before us in Christ, a long-range plan in which everything would be brought together and summed up in him, everything in deepest heaven, everything on planet earth.
11-12 It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone.
13-14 It’s in Christ that you, once you heard the truth and believed it (this Message of your salvation), found yourselves home free—signed, sealed, and delivered by the Holy Spirit. This down payment from God is the first installment on what’s coming, a reminder that we’ll get everything God has planned for us, a praising and glorious life.
Read full chapterThe Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson