Ephesians 1:9

New Life Version

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.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
He made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he purposed in Christ

King James Version (1611)
Hauing made knowen vnto vs the mysterie of his will, according to his good pleasure, which he had purposed in himselfe,

King James Version
Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:

English Standard Version
making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ

New American Standard Bible
He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He set forth in Him,

New Century Version
let us know his secret purpose. This was what God wanted, and he planned to do it through Christ.

Amplified Bible
He made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ,

New American Standard Bible (1995)
He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him

Legacy Standard Bible
making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Him

Berean Standard Bible
And He has made known to us the mystery of His will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ

Contemporary English Version
and by what Christ has done, God has shown us his own mysterious ways.

Complete Jewish Bible
he has made known to us his secret plan, which by his own will he designed beforehand in connection with the Messiah

Darby Translation
having made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in himself

Easy-to-Read Version
he let us know his secret plan. This was what God wanted, and he planned to do it through Christ.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And hath opened vnto vs the mysterie of his will according to his good pleasure, which he had purposed in him,

George Lamsa Translation
And because he has made known to us the mystery of his will, as he has ordained from the very beginning, to work through it;

Good News Translation
God did what he had purposed, and made known to us the secret plan he had already decided to complete by means of Christ.

Lexham English Bible
making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he purposed in him,

Literal Translation
making known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,

American Standard Version
making known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him

Bible in Basic English
Having made clear to us the secret of his purpose, in agreement with the design which he had in mind, to put into his hands

Hebrew Names Version
making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him

International Standard Version
when he made known to us the secret of his will. This was according to his plan that he set forth in Christhim">[fn]Romans 16:25; Ephesians 3:4,9, 11; Colossians 1:26; 2 Timothy 1:9;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
and hath made known to us the mystery of his will, which before he had determined in himself should be done:

Murdock Translation
And he hath made us know the mystery of his pleasure, which he had before determined in himself to accomplish,

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And hath opened vnto vs the misterie of his wyll, accordyng to his good pleasure which he had purposed in himselfe.

English Revised Version
having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him

World English Bible
making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
in all wisdom and prudence, Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in himself,

Weymouth's New Testament
when He made known to us the secret of His will. And this is in harmony with God's merciful purpose

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
to make knowun to vs the sacrament of his wille, bi the good plesaunce of hym; the which sacrament he purposide in

Update Bible Version
making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him

Webster's Bible Translation
Having made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:

New English Translation
He did this when he revealed to us the secret of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ,

New King James Version
having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself,

New Living Translation
God has now revealed to us his mysterious will regarding Christ—which is to fulfill his own good plan.

New Revised Standard
he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
making known to us the sacred secret of his will, according to his good pleasure which he purposed in him, -

Douay-Rheims Bible
That he might make known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure, which he hath purposed in him,

Revised Standard Version
For he has made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And hath openned vnto vs the mistery of his will accordinge to his pleasure and purposed the same in hym silfe

Young's Literal Translation
having made known to us the secret of His will, according to His good pleasure, that He purposed in Himself,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and hath opened vnto vs the mystery of his wil acordinge to his pleasure, which he had purposed in himselfe,

Mace New Testament (1729)
for he has discover'd to us the secret of his will, that out of his meer good pleasure, he had purposed in himself,

Simplified Cowboy Version
God did something we never saw coming. He'd planned it from the very beginning. It all hinged on the life, death, and resurrection of his only boy.

Contextual Overview

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.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

made: Ephesians 1:17, Ephesians 1:18, Ephesians 3:3-9, Matthew 13:11, Romans 16:25-27, 1 Corinthians 2:10-12, Galatians 1:12, Galatians 1:16, Colossians 1:26-28, 1 Timothy 3:16

according: Ephesians 1:5

purposed: Ephesians 1:11, Ephesians 3:11, Job 23:13, Job 23:14, Psalms 33:11, Isaiah 14:24-27, Isaiah 46:10, Isaiah 46:11, Jeremiah 2:29, Lamentations 3:37, Lamentations 3:38, Acts 2:23, Acts 4:28, Acts 13:48, Romans 8:28, 2 Timothy 1:9

Reciprocal: 2 Samuel 7:21 - according 1 Chronicles 17:19 - according Psalms 25:14 - secret Psalms 51:18 - thy Isaiah 53:10 - the pleasure Isaiah 55:11 - it shall accomplish Jeremiah 4:28 - because Jonah 1:14 - for Matthew 11:26 - for Mark 4:11 - Unto you Luke 4:25 - many John 11:52 - gather John 15:15 - all Romans 9:11 - that the Romans 16:26 - now 1 Corinthians 4:1 - mysteries 1 Corinthians 12:18 - as it 1 Corinthians 15:51 - I show Galatians 1:15 - it Ephesians 3:4 - the mystery Ephesians 3:9 - fellowship Ephesians 6:19 - the mystery Philippians 2:13 - good 2 Thessalonians 1:11 - the good 1 Timothy 2:6 - in 2 Timothy 1:10 - now Hebrews 2:4 - according

Cross-References

Genesis 1:1
In the beginning God made from nothing the heavens and the earth.

Genesis 1:2
The earth was an empty waste and darkness was over the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was moving over the top of the waters.

Genesis 1:5
Then God called the light day, and He called the darkness night. There was evening and there was morning, one day.

Genesis 1:6
Then God said, "Let there be an open space between the waters. Let it divide waters from waters."

Genesis 1:8
Then God called the open space Heaven. There was evening and there was morning, the second day.

Genesis 1:9
Then God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered into one place. Let the dry land be seen." And it was so.

Genesis 1:11
Then God said, "Let plants grow from the earth, plants that have seeds. Let fruit trees grow on the earth that bring their kind of fruit with their own seeds." And it was so.

Genesis 1:28
And God wanted good to come to them, saying, "Give birth to many. Grow in number. Fill the earth and rule over it. Rule over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth."

Genesis 1:29
Then God said, "See, I have given you every plant that gives seeds that is on the earth, and every tree that has fruit that gives seeds. They will be food for you.

Job 26:7
He spreads out the north over empty waste, and hangs the earth on nothing.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Having made known unto us the mystery of his will,.... The Gospel, which is a mystery, a hidden mystery, the mystery of God and of Christ, and the mystery of the Gospel; the several doctrines of it are called the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven; such as are concerning the trinity of persons in the Godhead, the union of the two natures in Christ, his sonship and incarnation, the saints' union and communion with him, the work of the Spirit of God upon the soul, the calling of the Gentiles, and the conversion of the Jews, the resurrection of the dead, and the change of living saints: and the Gospel is the mystery of the will of God; of his will in saving sinners by Christ; and it declares that he does all things in salvation, according to his sovereign will and pleasure; chooses, redeems, justifies, pardons, and calls whom he pleases; and this is made known by the ministry of the word, and by the Spirit, as a spirit of wisdom and revelation, in the knowledge of Christ and his Gospel: the discovery of which is,

according to his good pleasure, which he hath purposed in himself; both with respect to the persons to whom it is made known, and with respect to the time when he makes it known; both these are as he pleases, and as he has purposed in his own breast; the Gospel is sent when and where he has determined within himself it shall go; and persons are called by it according to his purpose and grace.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Having made known to us the mystery of his will - The word “mystery” (μυστήριον mustērion) means literally something into which one must be “initiated” before it is fully known (from μυέω mueō, to initiate, to instruct); and then anything which is concealed or hidden. We commonly use the word to denote that which is above our comprehension or unintelligible. But this is never the meaning of the word in the New Testament. It means there some doctrine or fact which has been concealed, or which has not before been fully revealed, or which has been set forth only by figures and symbols. When the doctrine is made known, it may be as clear and plain as any other. Such was the doctrine that God meant to call the Gentiles, which was long concealed, at least in part, and which was not fully made known until the Saviour came, and which had been until that time “a mystery - a concealed truth” - though when it was revealed, there was nothing incomprehensible in it. Thus, in Colossians 1:26, “The mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints.” So it was in regard to the doctrine of election. It was a mystery until it was made known by the actual conversion of those whom God had chosen. So in regard to the incarnation of the Redeemer; the atonement; the whole plan of salvation. Over all these great points there was a veil thrown, and people did not understand them until God revealed them. When they were revealed, the mystery was removed, and men were able to see clearly the manifestation of the will of God.

Which he hath purposed in himself - Without foreign aid or counsel. His purposes originated in his own mind, and were concealed until he chose to make them known; see 2 Timothy 1:9.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 9. Having made known unto us the mystery — That the Gentiles should ever be received into the Church of God, and have all the privileges of the Jews, without being obliged to submit to circumcision, and perform the rites and ceremonies of the Jewish law was a mystery-a hidden thing which had never been published before; and now revealed only to the apostles. It was God's will that it should be so, but that will he kept hidden to the present time. A mystery signifies something hidden, but it ceases to be a mystery as soon as it is revealed. Matthew 13:11; and particularly that on, Romans 11:25.

Good pleasure — την ευδοκιαν. That benevolent design which he had purposed in himself, not being induced by any consideration from without.