He did this by predestining us to adoption as his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the pleasure of his will --

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

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,

This power he exercised in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms

far above every rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

in which you formerly lived according to this world's present path, according to the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience,

For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God;

when he nullified in his flesh the law of commandments in decrees. He did this to create in himself one new man out of two, thus making peace,

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles --

When reading this, you will be able to understand my insight into this secret of Christ.

Now this secret was not disclosed to people in former generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit,

I became a servant of this gospel according to the gift of God's grace that was given to me by the exercise of his power.

To me -- less than the least of all the saints -- this grace was given, to proclaim to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ

The purpose of this enlightenment is that through the church the multifaceted wisdom of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms.

This was according to the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord,

For this reason I ask you not to lose heart because of what I am suffering for you, which is your glory.

For this reason I kneel before the Father,

So I say this, and insist in the Lord, that you no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.

But you did not learn about Christ like this,

For you can be confident of this one thing: that no person who is immoral, impure, or greedy (such a person is an idolater) has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

For everything made evident is light, and for this reason it says: "Awake, O sleeper! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you!"

For this reason do not be foolish, but be wise by understanding what the Lord's will is.

For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and will be joined to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.

This mystery is great -- but I am actually speaking with reference to Christ and the church.

Children, obey your parents in the Lord for this is right.

because you know that each person, whether slave or free, if he does something good, this will be rewarded by the Lord.

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.

For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand.

and in all of this, by taking up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

With every prayer and petition, pray at all times in the Spirit, and to this end be alert, with all perseverance and requests for all the saints.

I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts.