Has authority (both times) translates “is the head” (both times); for the figure of Christ as the head and the church as his body see 1.22-23; 4.15. In Romans 11.13 Paul uses the same figure of “head” to define the relationship between husband and wife.

In a number of languages there is no easy way to translate more or less literally has authority over, but the closest natural equivalent may be “for a husband has the right to tell his wife what to do just as Christ has the right to tell the church what to do” or “for a husband has the right to command his wife just as Christ has the right to command the church” or “… the believer.”

The last part of the verse in Greek is added without any formal connection with what precedes: “he himself savior of the body.” It seems to explain why and in what sense Christ is head of the church: his authority over the church is the result of his having saved the church, his body. This is, of course, a shorthand way of saying “he saved those who compose the church,” since the church, as an entity, does not exist as a group of unsaved people. Christ’s authority derives from his love for the church and his self-sacrifice on its behalf (see verse 25). This aspect of the relationship of Christ to the church has no counterpart in the relationship of the husband to the wife; the analogy between the two relationships is not exact.

A literal translation of Christ is himself the Savior of the church could be misleading, for it might suggest either rescuing a particular congregation from trouble or saving the institution of the church from some type of threat of destruction. For this reason it may be essential to translate the second part of verse 23 as “Christ is the one who has saved the people of the church.” The final appositional phrase his body may be made into a clause, for example, “which is his body.” If, however, a simile is required in order to make sense, it may be possible to say “which is, as it were, his body” or “which is like his body.”

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 .