Ephesians 3:4

Paul calls what God showed him “the mystery” and “the mystery of Christ”. The Greek word, mystḗrion, means a secret that was once hidden and has now been made known by God. Among the Greeks and Romans, “mysteries” were the secrets of religious cults, handed on to people who went through rites of initiation. Paul takes up the word for something far greater: a secret kept in God’s own counsel, which God himself has opened and which is now proclaimed openly through the church. In Paul’s letters a mystery is a truth we could only know because God has told it, and once he has told it, it can be understood.

Verse 6 says what the mystery is: “That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel” (Ephesians 3:6). Paul has already written in Ephesians 2 of how Christ “is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us” (Ephesians 2:14), making “in himself of twain one new man” (Ephesians 2:15) and reconciling both to God in one body by the cross (Ephesians 2:16). Through him both have access by one Spirit to the Father (Ephesians 2:18). The Gentiles who were once far off have been brought near (Ephesians 2:11–22). That reconciliation is the mystery, and God made Paul its servant.

“For this cause” ties verse 1 to all of chapters 1 and 2: God’s purpose to unite all things in Christ, the Gentiles made alive together with Christ (Ephesians 2:5), and the middle wall broken down to make one new man of the two (Ephesians 2:14–15). Paul begins to pray, breaks off after “you Gentiles” to explain his own calling, and takes up the prayer again in Ephesians 3:14. The long aside shows how much his commission to the Gentiles meant to him.

Paul was in prison as he wrote, most likely in Rome around AD 60 to 62, though some have suggested Caesarea. His imprisonment came from his work among the Gentiles, which stirred up fierce opposition, and it began with his arrest at the temple in Jerusalem (Acts 21:27–36). The word “prisoner”, désmios, means a captive, one who is bound. Rome held the key to his cell, yet Paul calls himself “the prisoner of Jesus Christ”. His chains came from obeying Christ’s commission and were under Christ’s rule, so a prisoner’s shame became a badge of honour worn for his Lord. He uses the same title again when he begins to urge them to walk worthy of their calling (Ephesians 4:1).

“For you Gentiles” says who gains from it. The preposition hypér means “for the sake of”, “on behalf of”. Éthnos means a nation or people, and in its extended sense the Gentiles, the nations outside Israel. Paul is in chains because he brought them the gospel and insisted that they belong. He writes in the same way to the Philippians, that what happened to him had “fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel” (Philippians 1:12–14), to the Colossians, “Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you” (Colossians 1:24), and to Timothy, that though he suffers trouble as an evildoer “the word of God is not bound”, and he endures all things “for the elect’s sakes” (2 Timothy 2:9–10). The servant’s suffering serves his Master’s work, for Christ broke down the wall between Jew and Gentile by his cross and was raised to be head over all things to the church.

“If ye have heard” takes for granted that the Ephesians already know of Paul’s calling, whether from his teaching or from what was said of his work among the churches, and it gently reminds them before he tells them more. The Ephesian church was largely Gentile, which made “to you-ward” especially fitting.

“Dispensation” is oikonomía, the managing of a household or an estate, and so a stewardship or administration. A steward is entrusted with his master’s goods and must handle them faithfully. Paul has been given charge of “the grace of God”, cháris, God’s favour freely given and his working in the heart, and he holds it for the Gentiles’ sake. He calls himself one of the “stewards of the mysteries of God” (1 Corinthians 4:1), says that “a dispensation of the gospel is committed unto me” (1 Corinthians 9:17), and tells the Colossians he was made a minister “according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God” (Colossians 1:25). He is “the minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles” (Romans 15:16).

People ask what “dispensation” means here. Paul is speaking of God’s wise and orderly management of his plan, and of the particular way his grace is being administered and made known in this age, above all in bringing the Gentiles in openly. Salvation is by grace through faith for everyone, as Paul sets out in Romans 3:21–26, and grace and truth came by Jesus Christ (John 1:16–17). What is new is the stage God’s plan has reached and the openness with which it is now proclaimed to the nations.

“Given me” uses dídōmi, the ordinary verb “to give”. The trust came to Paul from God, who set him apart from his mother’s womb and called him by his grace to preach his Son among the heathen (Galatians 1:15–16). A Pharisee trained in the law and turned around by the risen Christ was well prepared to set out a gospel for the whole world and to bridge the gap between Jewish and Gentile believers.

“Whereof I was made a minister” refers to the gospel of verse 6. “Minister” is diákonos, a servant or attendant. Strong’s derives it, probably, from an old verb meaning to run errands, and Abbott-Smith calls its origin unknown. Among the Greeks and Romans it was a servant’s word, often used of lowly work, and Paul gladly takes it for himself. “Was made” is gínomai, to become or come into being, so Paul became a minister. The rest of the verse tells us who made him one.

He became a minister “according to”, katá, in keeping with, “the gift of the grace of God”. The “gift”, dōreá, comes from dōron and means something freely given, a gratuity, and it springs from God’s cháris, his grace. Paul had been Saul of Tarsus, who persecuted the church until the Lord met him on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1–19) and named him “a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles” (Acts 9:15). The calling rested wholly on grace. God gives gifts to every believer in the same way, “according to the grace that is given to us” (Romans 12:6).

The gift was given “by the effectual working of his power”, where “by” is again katá. “Effectual working” is enérgeia, active, working power that produces results, and “power” is dýnamis, strength, might and ability. Grace and power belong together here. Grace is the source, God’s favour giving Paul the calling, and power is the means, God’s own energy making his service effective. Paul says that he “laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10), and that he strives “according to his working, which worketh in me mightily” (Colossians 1:29). Earlier in this letter he prays that the Ephesians may know “the exceeding greatness of his power”, the power that raised Christ from the dead and set him at God’s right hand (Ephesians 1:19–20). The grace given to Paul is the grace of God that “bringeth salvation” and “hath appeared to all men” (Titus 2:11), seen in Jesus, “full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). Through Paul’s service the work Christ did in breaking down the wall (Ephesians 2:14–16) reached the Gentiles.

Paul calls himself “less than the least of all saints”, and the Greek word, elachistóteros, occurs only here in the New Testament. It is a comparative built on the word for “least”, so it means just what the KJV says, less than the least. “Saints” here means all God’s people. The exaggeration is deliberate and it is honest, a true sense of his own unworthiness set against the honour of his calling. Paul remembered all his life that he had persecuted the church and had a part in the stoning of Stephen (Acts 7:58). He writes elsewhere, “For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God” (1 Corinthians 15:9), and goes straight on, “But by the grace of God I am what I am” (1 Corinthians 15:9–10). He calls himself the chief of sinners (1 Timothy 1:15).

The lower Paul’s view of himself, the more astonishing the grace that chose him. “This grace” is his calling to preach among the Gentiles, and it is grace through and through, just as salvation itself is “by grace ... through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8–9). God delights to work through the lowly and unlikely, as he told Paul: “my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

“Preach” is euangelízō, from the words for “well” and “messenger”, to announce good news. Paul’s work among the Gentiles was to bring them glad tidings of what God has done in Christ, the good news that God would unite all humanity in one body (Ephesians 2:16).

What he announced was “the unsearchable riches of Christ”. Anexichníastos means untraceable, past finding out, something whose tracks run further than anyone can follow. These riches are spiritual: every spiritual blessing in heavenly places (Ephesians 1:3), adoption as children (Ephesians 1:5), redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7), the sealing of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:7–14), the spirit of wisdom and revelation (Ephesians 1:17), peace (Ephesians 2:14), and access to the Father (Ephesians 2:18), along with eternal life and righteousness. Christ himself is the treasure, for in him “are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3), and the riches of the mystery among the Gentiles are “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). Paul’s praise in Romans fits them well: “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!” (Romans 11:33). At their heart is the love God commended toward us, “in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

Paul’s task was also “to make all men see”. The verb is phōtízō, to enlighten, to bring to light, and “all men” means everyone, Jew and Gentile alike.

What they are to see is “the fellowship of the mystery”. Koinōnía means partnership, sharing and communion. Here it is the sharing in the mystery: Jews and Gentiles now share alike in God’s blessings in Christ, and believers share the privilege of knowing the mystery and making it known. Other ancient manuscripts read oikonomia, the word for “dispensation” in verse 2, which would make it the stewardship or working out of the mystery. The KJV follows the reading koinōnía.

The mystery “from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God”. The Greek is literally “from the ages”, and “hid” is apokrýptō, to conceal away, to keep secret. God himself kept it in his eternal counsel until the time he had appointed to make it known. So the calling of the Gentiles was in God’s plan from before creation, as Paul has already said. God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4–11), and he purposed that in the dispensation of the fulness of times he would “gather together in one all things in Christ” (Ephesians 1:9–10, 1:10). Romans speaks of the same mystery, now made known to all nations for the obedience of faith (Romans 16:25–27).

“Who created all things by Jesus Christ” names the God who kept the secret as the Creator of everything, who made all things through his Son. John says, “All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:3), and Paul says that by him “were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible” (Colossians 1:16). The One through whom the world was made is the One through whom God is making one new man of Jew and Gentile (Ephesians 2:15) and reconciling all things to himself (Colossians 1:20). Creation and redemption have the same Author and the same Mediator, and Christ has authority over both.

Verse 10 gives the purpose of it all. “To the intent that” renders hína, “in order that”. God revealed the mystery and sent Paul to preach it so that “now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God”. The church’s calling reaches beyond the earth, and its life together is a display before heaven.

All this is “according to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord”. “Purpose” is próthesis, “a setting forth”, a fixed design laid out beforehand. The word behind “eternal” is aiṓn, an age or perpetuity, so this purpose runs through all the ages and was settled before time began. “He purposed” translates poiéō, the common verb “to make or do”, so the purpose is one God made and is carrying out, and its intent is carried by the noun. The “he” is God the Father, and the whole design is centred on his Son, with “our Lord” adding Christ’s authority and his bond with those who believe.

God’s saving work is the carrying out of a plan, each part in its place from the start. God declares “the end from the beginning”, saying, “My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure” (Isaiah 46:10). He chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4–5). Christ “was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you” (1 Peter 1:20), and he is “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). All things were created by him and for him, and by him all things consist (Colossians 1:16–17). He is the brightness of God’s glory (Hebrews 1:3), the world was made through him (John 1:3), and he died for us while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:8). God has highly exalted him, so that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:9–11). The calling of the Gentiles, won when Christ broke down the wall (Ephesians 2:14–16), is part of that one purpose. Since the purpose is God’s, his people can rest in it: “all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).

“In whom” means Christ Jesus our Lord, from the verse before, and every privilege here comes through union with him. “Boldness” is parrhēsía, outspokenness and frankness, and so assurance: the freedom to speak openly to God. “Access” is prosagōgḗ, admission, literally a leading or bringing in, a word used for the right to be introduced into the presence of a king. “Confidence” is pepoíthēsis, confidence or trust. “Boldness and access” may well be one idea in two words, a bold access, and “with confidence” makes it an assured one.

In Paul’s day ordinary people seldom came before a ruler. They needed someone to bring them in and had to follow strict forms, and the freedom to speak frankly belonged to trusted advisers. In Israel the way to God ran through the temple, its sacrifices and its priests, and only the high priest entered the most holy place, once a year and with blood (Hebrews 9:7). Gentiles stood further off still. When Christ died, the veil of the temple was torn in two from the top to the bottom (Matthew 27:51), and now Jew and Gentile alike come to God through him. We have “access by faith into this grace wherein we stand” (Romans 5:2). We are told, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16), and we have “boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus” (Hebrews 10:19–22).

The confidence rests on Christ. He is the one mediator between God and men (1 Timothy 2:5), he made peace through the blood of his cross (Colossians 1:20), he was made sin for us so that we might be made the righteousness of God in him (2 Corinthians 5:21), and he ever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25). So our boldness is the Spirit-given assurance of God’s adopted children, who come to their Father knowing they are welcome, and it is humble and grateful. In prayer, in worship and in seeking his guidance we may speak to him freely and honestly, because Christ’s sacrifice has opened the way.

Verse 13 draws the conclusion: “Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.” “Desire” is aitéō, to ask, beg or call for, an earnest request born of pastoral love. “Faint” is ekkakéō, to be weak, to fail in heart, to grow weary and give up. “Tribulations” is thlîpsis, pressure, and in the New Testament tribulation, affliction and distress, here his imprisonment and the hardships of his work. “Glory” is dóxa, glory, honour, dignity and praise.

In the Roman world prison was linked with crime or with the disfavour of the gods, and it could easily discredit a teacher and his message. Gentile believers who may have faced scorn or persecution themselves could be shaken to hear that their apostle was in chains, and they might wonder about the power of the gospel or their own place in God’s family. Paul meets that fear before he turns to pray for them (Ephesians 3:14–19).

His sufferings are their glory in three ways. He suffers because he preached that the Gentiles are fellowheirs, so his willingness to suffer shows how much their inclusion is worth. His endurance under pressure confirms that the message they believed is true and from God. And it honours them, because their place in Christ is precious enough for an apostle to bear chains for it. His imprisonment had “fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel” (Philippians 1:12), and he suffered “for his body’s sake, which is the church” (Colossians 1:24). He teaches that “tribulation worketh patience; And patience, experience; and experience, hope” (Romans 5:3–5), and he writes, “For which cause we faint not”, because “our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:16–17).

The pattern is Christ’s own. The Lamb of God, “which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29), suffered for us. He spoke of his death as a corn of wheat that falls into the ground and dies and so brings forth much fruit (John 12:23–24), and he asked, “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” (Luke 24:26). Those who suffer with him are joint-heirs with Christ, “that we may be also glorified together” (Romans 8:17). Paul longed to know “the fellowship of his sufferings” (Philippians 3:10), and we look to Jesus, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross” (Hebrews 12:2).

If you are in Christ, you are an heir with every other believer, a member of the same body and a sharer in the same promise, whatever your people or background. The wall God broke down stays down, and divisions of race, class, wealth or culture have lost their right to divide those who are in Christ. We are to keep “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3) and to make our churches places where every believer is welcomed as a fellow citizen with the saints. When we live together that way, our common life is part of how God shows his manifold wisdom, before the world and before heaven.

The mystery was God’s to reveal, so we come to Scripture humbly and pray for the Spirit’s light as we read, confident that God means us to understand what he has written. Whatever gift or opportunity to serve you have is, like Paul’s, a gift of grace, and the power that makes it fruitful is God’s. The riches of Christ are past tracing out, so there is always more of him to know and to delight in.

Because of Christ you may come to God with boldness and confidence, as a child to a Father who welcomes you. And when God’s servants suffer for the gospel, Paul’s words still hold: their sufferings are a sign of how much the gospel is worth, and a reason to take heart.