“According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:”
My Notes
What Does Ephesians 3:11 Mean?
Paul describes God's plan as "the eternal purpose" (prothesis tōn aiōnōn — the purpose of the ages, the plan that spans all of time). This purpose was purposed (epoiēsen — made, executed, accomplished) in Christ Jesus our Lord. The plan is as old as eternity. The execution is in Christ. And the plan and the execution meet in one person.
The phrase "eternal purpose" means the plan predates creation. Before the world existed, the purpose existed. Before time began, the plan was formed. The gospel isn't God's reaction to human sin. It's God's eternal intention. The cross wasn't plan B. It was plan A — formed in eternity, executed in time, accomplished in Christ.
"Which he purposed in Christ Jesus" means Christ is both the location and the instrument of the eternal plan. The plan was formed IN Christ (He's the context). The plan was executed THROUGH Christ (He's the means). The person of Jesus is where the eternal purpose becomes historical reality.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Does knowing the gospel is 'eternal purpose' (not reaction to sin) change your sense of its solidity?
- 2.How does the plan being 'in Christ Jesus' (located in a person, not just in a concept) personalize the eternal purpose?
- 3.Does your life feel like part of an eternal plan — or like a random series of events?
- 4.If the cross was plan A (not plan B), what does that say about the centrality of Christ in all of God's thinking?
Devotional
The eternal purpose. Purposed in Christ Jesus. A plan as old as forever, executed in one person.
Paul peels back time itself and reveals what was behind it: a purpose. Not a reaction. Not an adjustment. Not a contingency triggered by human sin. An eternal purpose — formed before the ages, spanning all of time, executed in Christ Jesus our Lord.
"Eternal" — prothesis tōn aiōnōn — literally, the purpose of the ages. Every age that has existed — from creation to flood to exodus to exile to incarnation to church to consummation — is contained within this purpose. The plan is bigger than any era. It encompasses them all.
"Which he purposed in Christ Jesus" — the plan and the person are inseparable. Christ isn't the instrument of a plan that exists independently of Him. He IS the plan's location. The eternal purpose was formed IN Christ — which means Christ existed (as the context of the plan) before the plan was formed. The plan didn't find Christ. Christ contained the plan.
The implications for you: your life isn't random. The gospel you received isn't a reaction to your sin. The salvation you experience was eternally purposed — in Christ — before you existed. Before the world existed. Before time began. The plan that reached your life on a specific day was formed in a specific person before all days.
Nothing in the gospel is improvised. The cross wasn't reactive. The resurrection wasn't corrective. The church wasn't an afterthought. Every element of your salvation was eternally purposed — conceived in the mind of God, located in the person of Christ, spanning every age that has ever existed.
The purpose is eternal. The execution is in Christ. And you are part of a plan that's older than the universe.
You were planned. Before the ages. In Christ.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
According to the eternal purpose,.... The whole of salvation, in which is displayed the great wisdom of God, is…
According to the eternal purpose - see the note, Eph 1:4. Literally, “the purpose of ages,” or of eternity. Locke,…
According to the eternal purpose - Κατα προθεσιν των αιωνων· According to the purpose concerning the periods. This seems…
Here we have the account which Paul gives the Ephesians concerning himself, as he was appointed by God the apostle of…
according to the eternal purpose Lit., and better, according to the purpose of the ages. I.e. the Church, as watched by…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture