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Ephesians 1-3
New Life Version
Ephesians 1-3
New Life Version
1 This letter is from Paul. I am a missionary for Jesus Christ. God wanted me to work for Him. This letter is to those who belong to Christ in the city of Ephesus and to you who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus. 2 May you have loving-favor and peace from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Let us honor and thank the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He has already given us a taste of what heaven is like. 4 Even before the world was made, God chose us for Himself because of His love. He planned that we should be holy and without blame as He sees us. 5 God already planned to have us as His own children. This was done by Jesus Christ. In His plan God wanted this done.
6 We thank God for His loving-favor to us. He gave this loving-favor to us through His much-loved Son. 7 Because of the blood of Christ, we are bought and made free from the punishment of sin. And because of His blood, our sins are forgiven. His loving-favor to us is so rich. 8 He was so willing to give all of this to us. He did this with wisdom and understanding. 9 God told us the secret of what He wanted to do. It is this: In loving thought He planned long ago to send Christ into the world. 10 The plan was for Christ to gather us all together at the right time. If we are in heaven or still on earth, He will bring us together and will be head over all.
11 We were already chosen to be God’s own children by Christ. This was done just like the plan He had. 12 We who were the first to put our trust in Christ should thank Him for His greatness. 13 The truth is the Good News. When you heard the truth, you put your trust in Christ. Then God marked you by giving you His Holy Spirit as a promise. 14 The Holy Spirit was given to us as a promise that we will receive everything God has for us. God’s Spirit will be with us until God finishes His work of making us complete. God does this to show His shining-greatness.
Paul’s Prayer for the Christians in Ephesus
15 I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all Christians. 16 Since then, I always give thanks for you and pray for you. 17 I pray that the great God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ may give you the wisdom of His Spirit. Then you will be able to understand the secrets about Him as you know Him better. 18 I pray that your hearts will be able to understand. I pray that you will know about the hope given by God’s call. I pray that you will see how great the things are that He has promised to those who belong to Him. 19 I pray that you will know how great His power is for those who have put their trust in Him. 20 It is the same power that raised Christ from the dead. This same power put Christ at God’s right side in heaven. 21 This place was given to Christ. It is much greater than any king or leader can have. No one else can have this place of honor and power. No one in this world or in the world to come can have such honor and power. 22 God has put all things under Christ’s power and has made Him to be the head leader over all things of the church. 23 The church is the body of Christ. It is filled by Him Who fills all things everywhere with Himself.
God Saved Us from Sin
2 At one time you were dead because of your sins. 2 You followed the sinful ways of the world and obeyed the leader of the power of darkness. He is the devil who is now working in the people who do not obey God. 3 At one time all of us lived to please our old selves. We gave in to what our bodies and minds wanted. We were sinful from birth like all other people and would suffer from the anger of God.
4 But God had so much loving-kindness. He loved us with such a great love. 5 Even when we were dead because of our sins, He made us alive by what Christ did for us. You have been saved from the punishment of sin by His loving-favor. 6 God raised us up from death when He raised up Christ Jesus. He has given us a place with Christ in the heavens. 7 He did this to show us through all the time to come the great riches of His loving-favor. He has shown us His kindness through Christ Jesus.
8 For by His loving-favor you have been saved from the punishment of sin through faith. It is not by anything you have done. It is a gift of God. 9 It is not given to you because you worked for it. If you could work for it, you would be proud. 10 We are His work. He has made us to belong to Christ Jesus so we can work for Him. He planned that we should do this.
Followers Now Become the Body of Christ
11 Do not forget that at one time you did not know God. The Jews, who had gone through the religious act of becoming a Jew by man’s hands, said you were people who do not know God. 12 You were living without Christ then. The Jewish people who belonged to God had nothing to do with you. The promises He gave to them were not for you. You had nothing in this world to hope for. You were without God.
13 But now you belong to Christ Jesus. At one time you were far away from God. Now you have been brought close to Him. Christ did this for you when He gave His blood on the cross. 14 We have peace because of Christ. He has made the Jews and those who are not Jews one people. He broke down the wall that divided them. 15 He stopped the fighting between them by His death on the cross. He put an end to the Law. Then He made of the two people one new kind of people like Himself. In this way, He made peace. 16 He brought both groups together to God. Christ finished the fighting between them by His death on the cross. 17 Then Christ came and preached the Good News of peace to you who were far away from God. And He preached it to us who were near God. 18 Now all of us can go to the Father through Christ by way of the one Holy Spirit. 19 From now on you are not strangers and people who are not citizens. You are citizens together with those who belong to God. You belong in God’s family. 20 This family is built on the teachings of the missionaries and the early preachers. Jesus Christ Himself is the cornerstone, which is the most important part of the building. 21 Christ keeps this building together and it is growing into a holy building for the Lord. 22 You are also being put together as a part of this building because God lives in you by His Spirit.
3 I, Paul, am in prison because I am a missionary for Jesus Christ to you who are not Jews. 2 I am sure you have heard that God trusted me with His loving-favor. 3 I wrote a little about this to you before. In a special way, God showed me His secret plan. 4 When you read this, you will understand how I know about the things that are not easy to understand about Christ. 5 Long ago men did not know these things. But now they have been shown to His missionaries and to the early preachers by the Holy Spirit. 6 Let me tell you that the Good News is for the people who are not Jews also. They are able to have life that lasts forever. They are to be a part of His church and family, together with the Jews. And together they are to receive all that God has promised through Christ.
7 God asked me to preach this Good News. He gave me the gift of His loving-favor. He gave me His power to preach it. 8 Of all those who belong to Christ, I am the least important. But this loving-favor was given to me to preach to the people who are not Jews. I was to tell them of the great riches in Christ which do not come to an end. 9 I was to make all men understand the meaning of this secret. God kept this secret to Himself from the beginning of the world. And He is the One Who made all things. 10 This was done so the great wisdom of God might be shown now to the leaders and powers in the heavenly places. It is being done through the church. 11 This was the plan God had for all time. He did this through Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 We can come to God without fear because we have put our trust in Christ. 13 So I ask you not to lose heart because of my suffering for you. It is to help you.
Paul’s Prayer for the Church
14 For this reason, I bow my knees and pray to the Father. 15 It is from Him that every family in heaven and on earth has its name. 16 I pray that because of the riches of His shining-greatness, He will make you strong with power in your hearts through the Holy Spirit. 17 I pray that Christ may live in your hearts by faith. I pray that you will be filled with love. 18 I pray that you will be able to understand how wide and how long and how high and how deep His love is. 19 I pray that you will know the love of Christ. His love goes beyond anything we can understand. I pray that you will be filled with God Himself.
20 God is able to do much more than we ask or think through His power working in us. 21 May we see His shining-greatness in the church. May all people in all time honor Christ Jesus. Let it be so.
Ephesians 1-3
New International Version
Ephesians 1-3
New International Version
1 Paul, an apostle(A) of Christ Jesus by the will of God,(B)
To God’s holy people(C) in Ephesus,[a](D) the faithful(E) in Christ Jesus:
2 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.(F)
Praise for Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,(G) who has blessed us in the heavenly realms(H) with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us(I) in him before the creation of the world(J) to be holy and blameless(K) in his sight. In love(L) 5 he[b] predestined(M) us for adoption to sonship[c](N) through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure(O) and will— 6 to the praise of his glorious grace,(P) which he has freely given us in the One he loves.(Q) 7 In him we have redemption(R) through his blood,(S) the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches(T) of God’s grace 8 that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding, 9 he[d] made known to us the mystery(U) of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed(V) in Christ, 10 to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment(W)—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ.(X)
11 In him we were also chosen,[e] having been predestined(Y) according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose(Z) of his will, 12 in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.(AA) 13 And you also were included in Christ(AB) when you heard the message of truth,(AC) the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal,(AD) the promised Holy Spirit,(AE) 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance(AF) until the redemption(AG) of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.(AH)
Thanksgiving and Prayer
15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus(AI) and your love for all God’s people,(AJ) 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you,(AK) remembering you in my prayers.(AL) 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father,(AM) may give you the Spirit[f] of wisdom(AN) and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened(AO) in order that you may know the hope to which he has called(AP) you, the riches(AQ) of his glorious inheritance(AR) in his holy people,(AS) 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power(AT) is the same as the mighty strength(AU) 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead(AV) and seated him at his right hand(AW) in the heavenly realms,(AX) 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion,(AY) and every name(AZ) that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.(BA) 22 And God placed all things under his feet(BB) and appointed him to be head(BC) over everything for the church, 23 which is his body,(BD) the fullness of him(BE) who fills everything in every way.(BF)
Made Alive in Christ
2 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,(BG) 2 in which you used to live(BH) when you followed the ways of this world(BI) and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air,(BJ) the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.(BK) 3 All of us also lived among them at one time,(BL) gratifying the cravings of our flesh[g](BM) and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us,(BN) God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions(BO)—it is by grace you have been saved.(BP) 6 And God raised us up with Christ(BQ) and seated us with him(BR) in the heavenly realms(BS) in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace,(BT) expressed in his kindness(BU) to us in Christ Jesus. 8 For it is by grace(BV) you have been saved,(BW) through faith(BX)—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works,(BY) so that no one can boast.(BZ) 10 For we are God’s handiwork,(CA) created(CB) in Christ Jesus to do good works,(CC) which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Jew and Gentile Reconciled Through Christ
11 Therefore, remember that formerly(CD) you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (which is done in the body by human hands)(CE)— 12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners(CF) to the covenants of the promise,(CG) without hope(CH) and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once(CI) were far away have been brought near(CJ) by the blood of Christ.(CK)
14 For he himself is our peace,(CL) who has made the two groups one(CM) and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, 15 by setting aside in his flesh(CN) the law with its commands and regulations.(CO) His purpose was to create in himself one(CP) new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, 16 and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross,(CQ) by which he put to death their hostility. 17 He came and preached peace(CR) to you who were far away and peace to those who were near.(CS) 18 For through him we both have access(CT) to the Father(CU) by one Spirit.(CV)
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers,(CW) but fellow citizens(CX) with God’s people and also members of his household,(CY) 20 built(CZ) on the foundation(DA) of the apostles and prophets,(DB) with Christ Jesus himself(DC) as the chief cornerstone.(DD) 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple(DE) in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.(DF)
God’s Marvelous Plan for the Gentiles
3 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner(DG) of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—
2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me(DH) for you, 3 that is, the mystery(DI) made known to me by revelation,(DJ) as I have already written briefly. 4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight(DK) into the mystery of Christ, 5 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.(DL) 6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs(DM) together with Israel, members together of one body,(DN) and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.(DO)
7 I became a servant of this gospel(DP) by the gift of God’s grace given me(DQ) through the working of his power.(DR) 8 Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people,(DS) this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles(DT) the boundless riches of Christ,(DU) 9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery,(DV) which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. 10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God(DW) should be made known(DX) to the rulers and authorities(DY) in the heavenly realms,(DZ) 11 according to his eternal purpose(EA) that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God(EB) with freedom and confidence.(EC) 13 I ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory.
A Prayer for the Ephesians
14 For this reason I kneel(ED) before the Father, 15 from whom every family[h] in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches(EE) he may strengthen you with power(EF) through his Spirit in your inner being,(EG) 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts(EH) through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted(EI) and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people,(EJ) to grasp how wide and long and high and deep(EK) is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge(EL)—that you may be filled(EM) to the measure of all the fullness of God.(EN)
20 Now to him who is able(EO) to do immeasurably more than all we ask(EP) or imagine, according to his power(EQ) that is at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.(ER)
Footnotes
- Ephesians 1:1 Some early manuscripts do not have in Ephesus.
- Ephesians 1:5 Or sight in love. 5 He
- Ephesians 1:5 The Greek word for adoption to sonship is a legal term referring to the full legal standing of an adopted male heir in Roman culture.
- Ephesians 1:9 Or us with all wisdom and understanding. 9 And he
- Ephesians 1:11 Or were made heirs
- Ephesians 1:17 Or a spirit
- Ephesians 2:3 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.
- Ephesians 3:15 The Greek for family (patria) is derived from the Greek for father (pater).
New Life Version (NLV)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.