Efesios 3

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Ephesians 3 is Paul's explanation of his own calling and his prayer for the church. He interrupts his own prayer to explain the "mystery" entrusted to him: that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of one body, and sharers in the promise in Christ. The church exists, he says, so that the manifold wisdom of God may be displayed to the rulers in the heavenly realms. Then he kneels and prays that his readers be strengthened in their inner being, that Christ dwell in their hearts, and that, rooted in love, they grasp the breadth and length and height and depth of Christ's love. A doxology closes it: to him who is able to do far more than we ask or imagine.

Apri commento del capitolo

Ephesians 3 starts a sentence it does not finish for thirteen verses. "For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles," Paul writes, and then the word Gentiles stops him, because it is the word his whole life has been about. So he explains. God gave him a secret to steward, one hidden for ages and now announced: that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members of the same body, sharers in the same promise. Not guests, not second class, not converts on probation. He knows how strange this sounds from a former Pharisee, which is why he calls himself less than the least of all the saints, and he knows how large it is, which is why he says the church exists to show God's many-colored wisdom to the powers in the heavens themselves. Then, having explained the reason, he picks the sentence up again. For this reason I bow my knees before the Father. What follows is one of the great prayers of the Bible, and it asks for nothing visible. Strength in the inner being. Christ at home in the heart. Roots and foundations in love. The power to take in, together with all the saints, how wide and long and high and deep the love of Christ is, a love that is bigger than knowing, and to be filled up to the fullness of God. Paul ends by admitting that even that prayer is too small: God is able to do far beyond anything we ask or imagine, and the glory is his, in the church and in Christ, forever.

Passi chiave

Ephesians 3:1-6 Ephesians 3:8-12 Ephesians 3:14-19 Ephesians 3:20-21 Ephesians 2:11-22 Colossians 1:25-27

Historical and literary context

Ephesians was written from prison, traditionally Rome around AD 60 to 62, and was probably a circular letter to churches in the province of Asia; the words "in Ephesus" are missing from the earliest manuscripts. Its central concern, Jew and Gentile united in one body, was the great controversy of Paul's career, settled in principle at the Jerusalem council of Acts 15 and still raw in practice. The word "mystery" was used by Greek religious cults for secrets revealed to initiates; Paul uses it for a secret God has now announced to everyone. Kneeling to pray in verse 14 was unusual, since Jews normally stood; it signals intensity. Some scholars think a disciple of Paul wrote the letter in his name, a debate that does not change how the chapter reads.

How the chapter unfolds

Verse 1 begins a prayer that breaks off after "for the sake of you Gentiles." Verses 2 to 13 are the digression: the stewardship of grace given to Paul, the mystery revealed by the Spirit and defined in verse 6, Paul's unworthiness and commission in verses 7 to 9, the church as God's display to the heavenly powers in verses 10 to 12, and the plea not to be discouraged by his sufferings in verse 13. Verse 14 resumes the prayer with "for this reason." Verses 16 to 19 ask for inner strength, Christ's indwelling, rootedness in love, comprehension of the four dimensions of Christ's love, and fullness. Verses 20 and 21 are the doxology.

Why this chapter matters

The prayer of verses 14 to 21 is among the most prayed passages in the New Testament and has shaped Christian language for the interior life: "strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being," "that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith," "rooted and grounded in love." The four dimensions of Christ's love have been preached for two millennia. The doxology, "to Him who is able to do so much more than all we ask or imagine," closes services around the world. Verse 10 gives the church a cosmic purpose, to show God's wisdom to unseen powers, and verse 6 is the New Testament's most compact statement that Gentiles belong on equal terms.

Interpretive tension to watch

Paul says the mystery "was not made known to men in other generations," yet the Old Testament repeatedly promised blessing to the nations; his qualification, "as it has now been revealed," suggests the novelty lies in the equality and the one body rather than in the inclusion itself. "Every family" in verse 15 translates a word that can also mean "all fatherhood," and translators divide. The prayer asks that believers be filled with "all the fullness of God," a request so large that readers have wondered whether it can be meant literally. And the digression itself, an unfinished sentence resumed thirteen verses later, has led some to ask whether verses 2 to 13 were an insertion.

Domande per questo capitolo

Paul calls the equal inclusion of Gentiles a "mystery" now revealed. Who are the people your community would find hardest to call fellow heirs?
The prayer asks for strength in the inner being before anything visible. Why does Paul start there?
Paul prays that we grasp a love that "surpasses knowledge." How can something be known and beyond knowing at once?

Study with context

Use this as a chapter guide, then press deeper into the text itself. The goal is to slow down observation, notice structure, and ask better questions before jumping to conclusions.

Aggiungi alle note

1 Es por esto que yo, Pablo, prisionero de Jesucristo por causa de ustedes los extranjeros, 2 (pues, asumo que ustedes han oído que Dios me dio la responsabilidad específica de compartir la gracia de Dios con ustedes), 3 por lo que Dios me mostró, aclaró el misterio que estaba oculto anteriormente. Yo les escribí brevemente sobre esto, 4 y cuando lean esto podrán entender mi opinión sobre el misterio de Cristo. 5 En las generaciones pasadas esto no se le había explicado a nadie, pero ahora ha sido revelado a los santos apóstoles de Dios y a los profetas por medio del Espíritu, 6 que los extranjeros son herederos también, parte del mismo cuerpo, y en Cristo Jesús comparten en la promesa por medio de la buena noticia. 7 Me convertí en ministro de esta buena noticia por medio del regalo de la gracia de Dios que se me dio por su poder que obraba en mí. 8 Esta gracia me fue dada a mí, al menos importante de todos los cristianos, con el fin de compartir con los extranjeros el increíble valor de Cristo, 9 y para ayudar a todos a ver el propósito del misterio que desde el mismo principio estaba oculto en Dios, quien hizo todas las cosas. 10 El plan de Dios fue que los distintos aspectos de su sabiduría fueran revelados por medio de la iglesia a los gobernantes y autoridades en el cielo. 11 Esto fue conforme al propósito eterno de Dios que llevó a cabo en Cristo Jesús nuestro Señor. 12 Por él y nuestra fe en él podemos acercarnos a Dios con total confianza y libertad. 13 Por eso les pido que no se desanimen por mi sufrimiento, ¡es por ustedes y deberían apreciarlo! 14 Por eso me arrodillo ante el Padre 15 de quien todas las familias del cielo y de la tierra reciben su naturaleza y carácter, 16 le ruego que, de sus riquezas de gloria, los fortalezca con poder en lo más íntimo de su ser por medio de su Espíritu. 17 Que Cristo viva en sus corazones a medida que confían en él, a fin de que sembrados profundamente en amor 18 adquieran el poder para comprender, junto a todo el pueblo de Dios, la amplitud, la longitud, la altura y la profundidad del amor de Cristo. 19 Que conozcan el amor de Cristo que sobrepasa todo conocimiento, para que puedan ser llenos y alcancen la plenitud que proviene de Dios. 20 Que por su poder que obra dentro de nosotros, Aquél que es poderoso para hacer más de lo que le pedimos o siquiera alcanzamos a pensar, 21 sea él glorificado en la iglesia y en Cristo Jesús por todas las generaciones, por siempre y para siempre. Amén.

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