Ephesians 1:18

My Notes

What Does Ephesians 1:18 Mean?

Paul prays for the Ephesians' spiritual perception: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.

The eyes of your understanding being enlightened — the understanding (kardia — heart, in the best manuscripts) has eyes. The heart sees — or fails to see — spiritual realities. Paul prays for enlightenment (photizo — to illuminate, to flood with light) of these inner eyes. The Ephesians need not more information but more illumination — the ability to see what is already true but not yet perceived.

That ye may know — the enlightenment produces knowledge (oida — to know with certainty, to perceive). The knowing Paul prays for is not academic. It is experiential — the deep, settled, personal comprehension of realities that are already true.

The hope of his calling — the first object of knowledge. The calling (klesis) — God's summons to salvation — carries a hope (elpis). The hope is not wishful thinking. It is confident expectation — the certain future that the calling guarantees. Paul wants them to know what they are heading toward — the destination their calling ensures.

The riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints — the second object. The language piles up: riches of glory of inheritance. Each word amplifies the previous: the inheritance is glorious, and the glory is rich. The inheritance is in the saints — God's inheritance is the saints themselves. The saints are God's treasured possession — his inheritance, his prize, his portion. The riches and glory belong to what God receives in his people.

Alternatively, the inheritance may be what the saints receive from God — the glorious, rich inheritance awaiting believers. Either reading is staggering: either you are God's treasure or God's treasure is yours. Both are true.

The prayer reveals that spiritual knowledge requires divine illumination. The truths are there. The eyes need opening.

Reflection Questions

• 1.What does it mean that the heart has 'eyes' — and how is spiritual perception different from intellectual knowledge?
• 2.What is 'the hope of his calling' — and how does knowing your destination change the way you walk the road?
• 3.What does 'the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints' mean — and how does it change your sense of value?
• 4.Where do you need the eyes of your understanding enlightened — what truth is already yours but not yet perceived?

Devotional

The eyes of your understanding being enlightened. Your heart has eyes. Inner eyes — the faculty that perceives spiritual reality. And Paul's prayer is that those eyes would be flooded with light. Not more information. Illumination — the ability to see what is already true but currently invisible to you.

That ye may know what is the hope of his calling. God called you. And that calling carries a hope — not a vague wish but a certain destination. Paul wants you to know — to see with enlightened eyes — what you are heading toward. The future that your calling guarantees. The destination that is as certain as the God who called you.

And what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints. The words pile up because the reality is too large for one word. Riches. Of glory. Of his inheritance. In the saints. Either God's inheritance is in you — you are his treasure, his prize, his glorious possession — or his inheritance is for you — the incomprehensible wealth he has stored up for his people. Both readings are true. Both are staggering.

Paul does not pray for the Ephesians to receive new truths. He prays for them to see truths that are already theirs. The hope is already real. The inheritance is already rich. The glory is already there. What is missing is not the reality. It is the perception. The eyes of the heart need light.

What if you could see — really see — what God has called you to? What if the eyes of your heart were flooded with light and you perceived the hope, the riches, the glory that already belong to you? That is Paul's prayer. Not for new blessings. For opened eyes. The blessings are already there. You just cannot see them yet.

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture