Ephesians
Chapter 1
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the
will of God,
To the saints who are in Ephesus and are
faithful in Christ Jesus: 2 Grace to you and peace from God
our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every
spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 just as he
chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless
before him in love. 5 He destined us for adoption as his
children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will, 6 to
the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved. 7 In
him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according
to the riches of his grace 8 that he lavished on us. With
all wisdom and insight 9 he has made known to us the mystery
of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ, 10 as
a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in
heaven and things on earth. 11 In Christ we have also
obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him
who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, 12 so
that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the
praise of his glory. 13 In him you also, when you had heard
the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were
marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit; 14 this is
the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God's own people, to the
praise of his glory.
15 I have heard of
your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this
reason 16 I do not cease to give thanks for you as I
remember you in my prayers. 17 I pray that the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and
revelation as you come to know him, 18 so that, with the
eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has
called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, 19 and
what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe, according
to the working of his great power. 20 God put this power to
work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right
hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and
authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only
in this age but also in the age to come. 22 And he has put
all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the
church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills
all in all.
Chapter 2
1 You were dead
through the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once lived,
following the course of this world, following the ruler of the power of the
air, the spirit that is now at work among those who are disobedient. 3 All
of us once lived among them in the passions of our flesh, following the desires
of flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone
else.
4 But God, who is
rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us 5 even
when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by
grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated
us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so
that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in
kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have
been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of
God— 9 not the result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For
we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
prepared beforehand to be our way of life.
11 So then, remember
that at one time you Gentiles by birth, called "the uncircumcision"
by those who are called "the circumcision"—a physical circumcision
made in the flesh by human hands— 12 remember that you were
at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and
strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the
world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off
have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
14 For he is our
peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the
dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. 15 He has
abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in
himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, 16 and
might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting
to death that hostility through it. 17 So he came and
proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; 18 for
through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So
then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the
saints and also members of the household of God, 20 built
upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as
the cornerstone. 21 In him the whole structure is joined
together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; 22 in
whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
Chapter 3
1 This is the reason
that I Paul am a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— 2 for
surely you have already heard of the commission of God's grace that was given
me for you, 3 and how the mystery was made known to me by
revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, 4 a reading of
which will enable you to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. 5 In
former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now
been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: 6 that
is, the Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and
sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. 7 Of
this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God's grace that
was given me by the working of his power. 8 Although I am
the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring to the
Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, 9 and
to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who
created all things; 10 so that through the church the wisdom
of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and
authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was in
accordance with the eternal purpose that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our
Lord, 12 in whom we have access to God in boldness and
confidence through faith in him. 13 I pray therefore that
you may not lose heart over my sufferings for you; they are your glory.
14 For this reason I
bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in
heaven and on earth takes its name. 16 I pray that,
according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened
in your inner being with power through his Spirit, 17 and
that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and
grounded in love. 18 I pray that you may have the power to
comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and
depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses
knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now
to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far
more than all we can ask or imagine, 21 to him be glory in
the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Chapter 4
1 I therefore, the
prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which you
have been called,
2 with all humility
and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 making
every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There
is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your
calling, 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one
God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. 7 But
each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ's gift. 8 Therefore
it is said, "When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive;
he gave gifts to his people." 9 (When it says, "He
ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower
parts of the earth? 10 He who descended is the same one who
ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things.) 11 The
gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some
evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the
saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until
all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of
God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. 14 We
must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of
doctrine, by people's trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. 15 But
speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the
head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and
knit together by every ligament with which it is equipped, as each part is
working properly, promotes the body's growth in building itself up in love.
17 Now this I affirm
and insist on in the Lord: you must no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the
futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their
understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their ignorance and
hardness of heart. 19 They have lost all sensitivity and
have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to practice every kind of
impurity. 20 That is not the way you learned Christ! 21 For
surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus. 22 You
were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and
deluded by its lusts, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of
your minds, 24 and to clothe yourselves with the new self,
created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. 25 So
then, putting away falsehood, let all of us speak the truth to our neighbors,
for we are members of one another. 26 Be angry but do not
sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and do not
make room for the devil. 28 Thieves must give up stealing;
rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have
something to share with the needy. 29 Let no evil talk come
out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need,
so that your words may give grace to those who hear. 30 And
do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with which you were marked with a seal
for the day of redemption. 31 Put away from you all
bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all
malice, 32 and be kind to one another, tenderhearted,
forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.
Chapter 5
1 Therefore be
imitators of God, as beloved children, 2 and live in love,
as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and
sacrifice to God.
3 But fornication
and impurity of any kind, or greed, must not even be mentioned among you, as is
proper among saints. 4 Entirely out of place is obscene,
silly, and vulgar talk; but instead, let there be thanksgiving. 5 Be
sure of this, that no fornicator or impure person, or one who is greedy (that
is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. 6 Let
no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of
God comes on those who are disobedient. 7 Therefore do not
be associated with them. 8 For once you were darkness, but
now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light— 9 for
the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true. 10 Try
to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in
the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For
it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly; 13 but
everything exposed by the light becomes visible, 14 for
everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, "Sleeper,
awake! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you." 15 Be
careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making
the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17 So do
not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 Do
not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit,
19 as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among
yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, 20 giving
thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ.
21 Be subject to one
another out of reverence for Christ. 22 Wives, be subject to
your husbands as you are to the Lord. 23 For the husband is
the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church, the body of
which he is the Savior. 24 Just as the church is subject to
Christ, so also wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands. 25 Husbands,
love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 in
order to make her holy by cleansing her with the washing of water by the word, 27 so
as to present the church to himself in splendor, without a spot or wrinkle or
anything of the kind—yes, so that she may be holy and without blemish. 28 In
the same way, husbands should love their wives as they do their own bodies. He
who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hates
his own body, but he nourishes and tenderly cares for it, just as Christ does
for the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 "For
this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,
and the two will become one flesh." 32 This is a great
mystery, and I am applying it to Christ and the church. 33 Each
of you, however, should love his wife as himself, and a wife should respect her
husband.
Chapter 6
1 Children, obey
your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 "Honor
your father and mother"—this is the first commandment with a promise: 3 "so
that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth." 4 And,
fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the
discipline and instruction of the Lord. 5 Slaves, obey your
earthly masters with fear and trembling, in singleness of heart, as you obey
Christ; 6 not only while being watched, and in order to
please them, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart. 7 Render
service with enthusiasm, as to the Lord and not to men and women, 8 knowing
that whatever good we do, we will receive the same again from the Lord, whether
we are slaves or free. 9 And, masters, do the same to them.
Stop threatening them, for you know that both of you have the same Master in
heaven, and with him there is no partiality.
10 Finally, be strong
in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 11 Put on the
whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the
devil. 12 For our struggle is not against enemies of blood
and flesh, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic
powers of this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the
heavenly places. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of
God, so that you may be able to withstand on that evil day, and having done
everything, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, and fasten
the belt of truth around your waist, and put on the breastplate of
righteousness. 15 As shoes for your feet put on whatever
will make you ready to proclaim the gospel of peace. 16 With
all of these, take the shield of faith, with which you will be able to quench
all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet
of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 18 Pray
in the Spirit at all times in every prayer and supplication. To that end keep
alert and always persevere in supplication for all the saints.
19 Pray also for me,
so that when I speak, a message may be given to me to make known with boldness
the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador
in chains. Pray that I may declare it boldly, as I must speak. 21 So
that you also may know how I am and what I am doing, Tychicus will tell you
everything. He is a dear brother and a faithful minister in the Lord. 22 I
am sending him to you for this very purpose, to let you know how we are, and to
encourage your hearts. 23 Peace be to the whole community, and
love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Grace
be with all who have an undying love for our Lord Jesus Christ.
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This page maintained by Robert
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Last revised: February 8, 2003