1 I , Paul, am in prison because I am a missionary for Jesus Christ to you who are not Jews.

For this reason I Paul, prisoner of the Christ Jesus for you nations,

2 I am sure you have heard that God trusted me with His loving-favor.

(if indeed ye have heard of the administration of the grace of God which has been given to me towards you,

3 I wrote a little about this to you before. In a special way, God showed me His secret plan.

that by revelation the mystery has been made known to me, (according as I have written before briefly,

4 W hen you read this, you will understand how I know about the things that are not easy to understand about Christ.

by which, in reading it, ye can understand my intelligence in the mystery of the Christ,)

5 L ong ago men did not know these things. But now they have been shown to His missionaries and to the early preachers by the Holy Spirit.

which in other generations has not been made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets in Spirit,

6 L et me tell you that the Good News is for the people who are not Jews also. They are able to have life that lasts forever. They are to be a part of His church and family, together with the Jews. And together they are to receive all that God has promised through Christ.

that the nations should be joint heirs, and a joint body, and joint partakers of promise in Christ Jesus by the glad tidings;

7 G od asked me to preach this Good News. He gave me the gift of His loving-favor. He gave me His power to preach it.

of which I am become minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me, according to the working of his power.

8 O f all those who belong to Christ, I am the least important. But this loving-favor was given to me to preach to the people who are not Jews. I was to tell them of the great riches in Christ which do not come to an end.

To me, less than the least of all saints, has this grace been given, to announce among the nations the glad tidings of the unsearchable riches of the Christ,

9 I was to make all men understand the meaning of this secret. God kept this secret to Himself from the beginning of the world. And He is the One Who made all things.

and to enlighten all what is the administration of the mystery hidden throughout the ages in God, who has created all things,

10 T his was done so the great wisdom of God might be shown now to the leaders and powers in the heavenly places. It is being done through the church.

in order that now to the principalities and authorities in the heavenlies might be made known through the assembly the all-various wisdom of God,

11 T his was the plan God had for all time. He did this through Christ Jesus our Lord.

according to purpose of the ages, which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord,

12 W e can come to God without fear because we have put our trust in Christ.

in whom we have boldness and access in confidence by the faith of him.

13 S o I ask you not to lose heart because of my suffering for you. It is to help you. Paul’s Prayer for the Church

Wherefore I beseech not to faint through my tribulations for you, which is your glory.

14 F or this reason, I bow my knees and pray to the Father.

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father,

15 I t is from Him that every family in heaven and on earth has its name.

of whom every family in heavens and on earth is named,

16 I pray that because of the riches of His shining-greatness, He will make you strong with power in your hearts through the Holy Spirit.

in order that he may give you according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with power by his Spirit in the inner man;

17 I pray that Christ may live in your hearts by faith. I pray that you will be filled with love.

that the Christ may dwell, through faith, in your hearts, being rooted and founded in love,

18 I pray that you will be able to understand how wide and how long and how high and how deep His love is.

in order that ye may be fully able to apprehend with all the saints what the breadth and length and depth and height;

19 I pray that you will know the love of Christ. His love goes beyond anything we can understand. I pray that you will be filled with God Himself.

and to know the love of the Christ which surpasses knowledge; that ye may be filled to all the fulness of God.

20 G od is able to do much more than we ask or think through His power working in us.

But to him that is able to do far exceedingly above all which we ask or think, according to the power which works in us,

21 M ay we see His shining-greatness in the church. May all people in all time honor Christ Jesus. Let it be so.

to him be glory in the assembly in Christ Jesus unto all generations of the age of ages. Amen).