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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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that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and understanding,
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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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to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfillment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth under 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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in order that we, who were the first to put our hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory.
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And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit,
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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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he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms,
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Made Alive in Christ
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins,
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made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.
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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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in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
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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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Jew and Gentile Reconciled Through Christ
Therefore, remember that formerly 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)—
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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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But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
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by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace,
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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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built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.
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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—
