It is through Christ may be expressed as “because of what Christ has done.”

The emphasis in the verse is that oneness which the writer has been stressing: all of us, Jews and Gentiles translates the Greek “the two of us” (as in verses 14, 16); this oneness is the demonstration of the fact that Christ came and preached the Good News of peace, that is, the news of the complete reconciliation between the two groups, Gentiles and Jews (verse 17).

Are able to come … into the presence translates the Greek “have access, entrance”; the Greek noun “entrance” occurs also in 3.12 (and see its use in Rom 5.2). The language portrays God as a king into whose presence can come only those who are properly qualified (see Beare). The meaning here is our right to enter God’s presence in prayer and worship, confident that he will receive us and answer us (see 3.12); it does not mean to enter his presence in heaven after death.

Since a literal translation of are able to come … into the presence of the Father may be taken only in a literal sense, it may be important to specify what is involved in “coming into the Father’s presence,” for example, “are able to come to the Father by means of prayer.”

The one Spirit corresponds here to one body in verse 16 and further stresses the oneness of Jews and Gentiles in the church. Christ provides the means for the access of humanity to God, and the Holy Spirit is the manner, or the circumstances, in which the right of access is exercised.

The phrase in the one Spirit may be best translated in some languages as “by the one Spirit” or “by the one Holy Spirit” or even “by the Spirit of God.” In some instances the function of the Spirit in relationship to the presence of the Father must be expressed as one of helping, for example, “we are able by the one Spirit’s help to come into the presence of the Father.”

As already noted in connection with the phrase the glorious Father (1.17), there may be certain problems involved in rendering Father, since in a number of languages a term for “father” must be possessed. In this context it may be best to speak of “our Father” or even “our Father in heaven.”

Commentators call attention to the reference in this verse to be three persons of the Trinity: “through him … in one Spirit to the Father” (Revised Standard Version).

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert C. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1982. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .