In Part 2 of Paul’s “interruption” in Ephesians 3 (read Part 1 here), we focus on Ephesians 3:8-13, where Paul continues to discuss his understanding of the “ministry” he received by God’s grace (3:2, 7). This ministry was that he “should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery” (3:8, 9).
The Greek word translated “preach” is a verb form of the noun “gospel, good news.” Paul consistently emphasized that what Jesus the Messiah has accomplished is “good news” for Gentiles and Jews. His preaching was about Christ and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 1:17-25; 2:1-5), a theme reflected in Ephesians 2:11-18. The content of this preaching about the “riches of Christ” shows there are no limits to what God continues to accomplish through the triumph of the Messiah (Ephesians 3:8). Think of this: all that God accomplished in the death, resurrection, and enthronement of the Messiah, is of such magnitude that humans can never fathom its cosmic dimensions. All this is a prelude to Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:18-20.
As we proceed into Ephesians 3:8-13, keep in mind that 1) we are still in the “divine interruption” section, and 2) Paul continues his autobiographical remarks.
First, the divine interruption is not a careless “rabbit trail” leading nowhere. Rather, the Holy Spirit diverted Paul’s original thoughts so that important themes could be addressed. Remember, since the Ephesians were reading this letter within the context of Paul’s teaching over a two-year period, the Ephesians were not “lost” trying to follow his line of thinking. One can imagine that they heard his voice as they read this letter.
Second, Paul’s personal comments express his deeply held view that a) nothing of his own merit made him worthy of how Jesus was using him, and b) Paul’s growing awareness of the magnitude of divine grace rooted in the character of the triune God.
In 3:8 Paul begins by saying he is the lowest of the lowest among the saints. This is not false humility awaiting someone to compliment him with something like, “Oh Paul, you’re wrong. God is lifting you up among His servants.” Nor is he saying it because he felt that his unworthiness made him something that God despised. He was not on an ego trip or dealing with an inferiority complex; rather, the fact that “grace was given” places all the glory and worthiness upon God (3:8).
This grace enabled Paul to discern the magnitude of what had occurred in the person of Jesus the Messiah. Ephesians 3:9 explains it in terms of something that God willed for all humanity from Creation. This expression continues to expand upon the “one new man” mentioned in 2:15. Adam and Eve were neither Jew nor Gentile. They were God’s creation. It was the Fall that led to the division of humanity from God and from one another. It was through Abraham and the line of faith that God formed the Jews as the avenue through which divine revelation was made, with the ultimate revelation in the Jew Jesus the Messiah.
This revelation in the Messiah became the focus of Paul’s ministry. This focus was not anti-Jewish but rather pointed to the fulfillment of God’s purposes through the Jews, fulfillment found in Jesus, that brought both Gentile and Jews together into one new humanity without destroying the divine purposes of each.
Paul expresses the goal of all this—God’s work in the world, and through Paul—in Ephesians 3:10, “to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places.” I believe this is one of the most significant verses in the entire Bible. It reveals the ultimate purpose of the church, the Body of Christ on earth.[1]
Three aspects in verse 10 deserve our attention. First, the word “manifold” (Gr. polupoikilos) and means “many-colored, many-sided, many variegated.” God’s wisdom is manifested in ways throughout the physical cosmos and the spiritual dimensions that are often beyond our comprehension. It denotes nothing exists outside the influence of divine holiness, justice, truth, mercy, and grace. Even Satan does not have dimensions so evil that God cannot change them. This is a great mystery, but divine wisdom is at work even when evil manifests in what we perceive as its worse forms. God is not the author of evil, but He does not allow evil to have the last word in human affairs. In ways we cannot fathom, divine righteousness is still at work.
The Bible describes this divine wisdom throughout its text. Much of Proverbs is about the wisdom of God. Proverbs 8 connects God’s creative activity in Genesis 1 to His divine wisdom. In ways like the closing sentences in the previous paragraph, Paul connects and contrasts worldly wisdom in 1 Corinthians 1, 2 with preaching the cross of Jesus.[2] What the world perceives as foolishness, God offers as the way of salvation. Jesus Himself became the revelation of divine wisdom in the created order as He became for us “righteousness and sanctification and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:30). There is a wisdom of the world and there is a wisdom from God.[3] In Ephesians 1:17, the first prayer in this letter, Paul prays that “the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of God” would be given to the disciples in Ephesus. Wisdom is more than growth in experience, though that is important. The wisdom that Paul refers to is a spiritual reality that comes from and through a spiritual dimension.[4]
Second, it is the assignment of the church, the Body of Christ through the ages, to make known this wisdom to “the principalities and powers in the heavenly places.” The church, from the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, and the power of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, is more than another social institution where we gather for fellowship. The church has many functions where the redeeming grace of God through Jesus the Messiah is manifested. But the primary function of the church is to make known God’s incomparable wisdom in such a way that social and spiritual realities are impacted and transformed by grace.
This leads to the third key point of this verse. The church makes known God’s “manifold wisdom” to “principalities and powers in the heavenly places.” This is the fourth reference in Ephesians to “heavenly places.”[5] We saw “principalities and powers” in Ephesians 1:21 and the same words will appear again in Ephesians 6:12. It should not surprise us that Paul used the same phrases in Colossians 1:16 and 2:15, as Colossae was about 120 miles east of Ephesus. As noted in a previous essay, people from Colossae were with Paul in Ephesus.
The language of “principalities and powers” is expressive in all the citations. “Principalities” (Gr. arche) denotes rulers. “Powers” (Gr. exousia) denotes authority. In Matthew 28:18, the Great Commission, Jesus said, “All authority (exousia) has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” This is the basis for Paul’s understanding of the power present in the church to make known the manifold wisdom of God in the heavenly places.
It is imperative we discern what Paul is saying to us. There are spiritual powers of good and evil that constantly compete over humans and human institutions. When we gather as the Body of Christ, we have a divine commission to make known God’s manifold wisdom of redeeming grace to those spiritual powers that seek to rule and exercise authority on the earth. Paul’s extensive argument about “spiritual warfare” in Ephesians 6:10-20 is predicated on what he describes in this “interruption”!
How does the church “make known” God’s “manifold wisdom” to the rulers and authorities in the spiritual and physical realms? First, we have the Word of God, the Bible, as the authoritative source of divine revelation. God is righteous because He acts in accordance with what He has revealed. This is Paul’s argument in the letter to the Romans. Even when God judges, He judges according to what He has revealed. Thus, even divine wrath is righteous (Romans 1:18 through 2:16).
Second, prayer is the assignment of the church in the way she speaks to principalities and powers. The connection of prayer with the Bible, and with praying Scripture, is important. In our understanding, we pray Scripture and ask that God’s “will be done on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). But we also pray with expressions we do not understand. Paul expressed this in Romans 8:18-27 when he wrote, “we ourselves groan within ourselves” (8:23). Some commentators view this as an expression of glossolalia, praying in unknown tongues.
All this is related to the worship of God when we gather as followers of Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 14 Paul gave instructions about the importance of speaking in tongues and gifts of interpretation when the church gathered. This was more than about order in the church, though that is clearly significant; it was also about how these gifts functioned, and continue to function, in addressing the manifold wisdom of God to the principalities and authorities. In the context of 1 Corinthians 14, Paul expresses there are times when he and believers like us are given the spiritual grace to pray and sing in the Spirit, in unknown languages (14:15). Paul referred to these expressions, in unknown languages to us, as “tongues of angels” (1 Corinthians 13:1).
So, Ephesians 3:10 gives us an understanding of corporate worship that is needed in our times. Our forms of music, our hearing of Scripture, our prayers, our offerings to the Lord, the Eucharist, the homilies and sermons, the altar calls, are all expressions of the manifold wisdom of God being manifested through the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places.
Third, as we will see in Ephesians 6:10-20, we have additional significant spiritual weapons in Christ Jesus.
The point of all this is for us to recognize there are spiritual realities operating in our lives, our families, our extended relationships, and in the governing powers around us. That is why human beings are not our enemies, though they may act in ways that are manifestly evil. This is why Jesus called us to love our enemies. This love is not a superficial form of naïve humanism. This love is rooted in the knowledge that every person is engaged in a life-long battle of good and evil in and through our lives. This is why we pray the Word of God and pray through groanings and tongues of angels. We do this because, as Daniel 10 illustrates, there are spiritual powers operating over people groups and nations. Through prayer, wisdom, and knowledge, we discern how to pray and then how to speak to one another as humans for whom Christ died.
Paul concludes this interruption by returning to his opening comment in Ephesians 3:1 regarding his imprisonment in Rome. In Ephesians 3:13 he reminds the disciples in Ephesus that they “do not lose heart”—that is, become discouraged—over what he was experiencing as “tribulations.” He viewed those tribulations as something being experienced for them and meant that God’s glory was also for them.
[1] This is the second use of “church” in Ephesians. The other uses are 1:22; 3:10, 21; 5:23, 24, 25, 27, 29, 32.
[2] 1 Corinthians 1:17 through 2:16.
[3] James 1:5; particularly James 3:13-17.
[4] This is reflected in 1 Corinthians 2:1-16 as well as here in Ephesians.
[5] See Ephesians 1:3, 20; 2:6.
