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Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To God’s holy people in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
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Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
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Praise for Spiritual Blessings in Christ
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
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he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—
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In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace
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he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,
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In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,
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who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
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Thanksgiving and Prayer
For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people,
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I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
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And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church,
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But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,
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And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,
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For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—
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For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
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remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world.
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and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.
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Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household,
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And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
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God’s Marvelous Plan for the Gentiles
For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—
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Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you,
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In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ,
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which was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets.
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I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power.
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and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.
