In Greek (see Hdb|fig:Table_EPH1-3.jpg) the last clause of verse 8 is the prepositional phrase “in all wisdom and insight.” There are two questions: Does this phrase go (1) with what precedes or (2) with what follows? And does it refer (a) to God or (b) to believers?

The following schematic arrangement shows how the various translations and commentaries have understood the Greek:

1a “in all his wisdom and insight, God lavished on us”: New International Version, Jerusalem Bible It may be observed that both translations perhaps intend the two nouns to apply to believers. According to normal rules of English usage, however, both in Jerusalem Bible (“the grace that he has showered on us in all wisdom and insight”) and in New International Version (“God’s grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding”) the two nouns refer to God. (The same would seem to be true of Bible de Jérusalem.) This also applies to Barth’s translation: “his grace which in all wisdom and prudence he has lavished upon us.”
1b “God lavished on us all wisdom and insight”: New English Bible, Twentieth Century New Testament, Phillips, Bible en français courant, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible; Caragounis, Robinson, Abbott, Beare, Westcott, Salmond
2a “in all his wisdom and insight, God made known to us”: Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, Translator’s New Testament, Barclay, Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje
2b “God gave us complete wisdom and insight into his secret plan”: Goodspeed, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, New American Bible

As the chart shows, the commentators and most of the translators take the phrase to go with what precedes and refer it to the believers’ “wisdom and insight.” One of the arguments used in support of this position is that the Greek noun translated “insight” could not be used of God. This argument is advanced by most commentators, who base their definition of the word on Aristotle and others who see the Greek noun mainly as practical common sense, sagacity, prudence, of much less depth and breadth than “wisdom.” Abbott says quite dogmatically: “It is clear from this that phronēsis cannot be predicated of God.” Some commentators (especially Salmond) also make the point that “in all wisdom” does not mean “the totality of wisdom” but “the highest degree of wisdom” or “all kinds of wisdom” and is unsuited to be applied to God. But this latter argument has less weight. It is true that only very rarely is the Greek word for “insight” (elsewhere in New Testament only Luke 1.17) used of God, but it is used in the Septuagint translation of Proverbs 3.19 and Jeremiah 10.12. In both instances, which speak of God’s creating the world, the word is used parallel with and as a synonym of “wisdom.” Since it is obvious that the word can be used of God, and since here in Ephesians, as in the two Septuagint passages cited, the word is used together with “wisdom,” and since the author of Ephesians is given to using synonyms (sometimes three and more in a row, as in 1.19, 21), it is clearly impossible for anyone dogmatically to state that the author could not have used “insight” of God. The most that can be said is that it more naturally applies to man.

So the translator may choose to follow Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, or else the majority of translations and commentaries cited.

If one renders “in all wisdom and insight” as a qualification of what precedes, it is possible to translate the phrase as “he caused us to have all wisdom and insight” or “… to be wise in all things and to understand.” If, however, this phrase is to be related to God, it may be expressed as a type of causal relationship, for example, “because God was wise in all things and understood.” In a number of languages, however, it is impossible to make a clear distinction between “wisdom” and “insight.” And the closest equivalent of this introductory phrase may simply be “because God knew all things.”

Verse 9 in Greek begins “having made known to us the mystery of his will” (see Hdb|fig:Table_EPH1-3.jpg; Good News Translation and made known to us the secret plan); this clause, governed by the aorist active participle of “to make known,” is syntactically related to the main verb “he lavished” (verse 8a; in the same way the aorist participle “predestining” in verse 5a is related to the main verb “he chose” in verse 4a). But the sense of the whole verse may be represented by beginning a new sentence here (as do Revised Standard Version, New English Bible, and others). Good News Translation connects God … and known to us in verse 9 to the end of verse 8.

The secret plan: “the mystery of his will” means “the secret (thing/plan) God decided/resolved to do.” The Greek word translated “mystery” or “secret” is succinctly defined by Robinson as “something that could not be known by men except by divine revelation, but that, though once hidden, has now been revealed in Christ and is to be proclaimed so that all who have ears may hear it.” (See especially Rom 16.25; 1 Cor 2.1; 4.1; Col 1.26.)

In some languages there may be difficulties involved in rendering “mystery” or “secret,” especially since the mystery or secret in question is something which is actually made known. Therefore, one can frequently translate “mystery” as “that which was not known before” or “that which people didn’t know before.” Accordingly, the phrase “the mystery of his will” may be rendered as “that which people did not know before, but which God decided to do.”

The following clause in Hdb|fig:Table_EPH1-3.jpg, “according to his pleasure” (Good News Translation did what he had purposed), gives the standard of God’s action in “making known to us.” The meaning may be expressed by “this is what he wanted to do.”

The last clause in verse 9 “which he purposed” (Hdb|fig:Table_EPH1-3.jpg) translates a Greek verb which means “to place forward/ahead,” and so “to plan, propose, intend”; see Romans 1.13, “I intended/purposed to visit you.”

And the final prepositional phrase “in him” means that Christ is the instrument, the means, by which God’s purpose was effected; Good News Translation by means of Christ. This expression of means may often be rendered as “Christ made this possible” or even “Christ caused this to happen.”

The first clause in verse 10, “for the administration of the fullness of time” (Hdb|fig:Table_EPH1-3.jpg; Good News Translation which God will complete when the time is right), involves several concepts. The word “administration” translates a Greek abstract noun signifying the work, office, responsibility of a steward, manager, administrator. In 1 Corinthians 9.17 Paul writes, “I have been entrusted with a stewardship” (Good News Translation God has entrusted me with this task) and in Colossians 1.25 “according to the stewardship of God which was given me” (Good News Translation God … gave me this task to perform). Here in Ephesians 1.10 the “steward,” so to speak, is God himself, and the “stewardship” is the task of putting into effect or completing the secret plan referred to in verse 9. Arndt and Gingrich comment on the meaning of the word in this verse: “certainly refers to the plan of salvation which God is bringing to reality through Christ, in the fulness of the times.” And Robinson comments: “the manner in which the purpose of God is being worked out in human history.” Barth takes Christ to be the “steward” and translates: “that he (meaning Christ) should administer the days of fulfillment.” It is as though God is carrying out the management or administration of a task that he has imposed upon himself. So Good News Translation represents the event expressed in the abstract noun “stewardship” by a verb, “(which God) will complete” (compare Bible de Jérusalem “to put it into effect”); or else verbs such as “bring about,” “achieve,” or “accomplish” may be used.

Depending upon the way in which the phrase “in him” (a phrase referring to Christ) has been translated, one can often render the Greek word for “stewardship” as “to cause to happen.” In this context God is the primary agent for causing everything to happen while Jesus Christ may be regarded as the secondary agent (or the intermediate agent) in that what is done is done through him.

The genitive phrase “of the fullness of the times” (Hdb|fig:Table_EPH1-3.jpg) is a temporal phrase defined by Robinson as “a genitive of further definition.” Good News Translation translates when the time is right. In the phrase “the fullness of the times,” the Greek abstract noun translated “fullness” (see Revised Standard Version) has been understood by some to mean “at the end” or “in the last days.” While this is possible, in this context it appears more likely that the word means “complete” in the sense of “ripe,” “appropriate,” “fitting.”

It may be difficult to translate more or less literally the phrase when the time is right, since in many languages there is no abstract term for “time,” even in a sense of “an appropriate occasion.” In some languages, however, an appropriate equivalent may be “when it will be the day to do it.”

The word translated “time” is usually defined as “crucial time, significant time, crisis.” So Westcott comments: “a space of time defined with regard to its extent and character.” Here the whole genitive phrase means simply when the time is right. It should be emphasized, however, that the “rightness” of the time is not a chance or fortuitous event but is under God’s control (see Paul’s use of a synonymous phrase in Gal 4.4 which Good News Translation translates when the right time finally came).

The next clause, “to head up all things in Christ” (Hdb|fig:Table_EPH1-3.jpg), is the climax, the final definition of the goal of the whole process of salvation, “the mystery of his will” (verse 9a), which the author has been describing in verses 3-10a. The Greek verb translated “to head up” occurs only here and in Romans 13.9 in the New Testament (in Rom 13.9 it means “to sum up, summarize”). In this passage the mere idea of “summarizing, summing up” does not do justice to the verb; it includes the idea of Christ as “head,” as supreme over all things (see verses 20-23). Barth translates: “All things are to be comprehended under one head.” So Good News Translation to bring all creation together … with Christ as head (so also Bible de Jérusalem, Bible en français courant, and other translations).

In a number of languages there are problems involved in translating to bring all creation together … with Christ as head, since all creation must often be expressed as “everything that has been created,” and head may not be an adequate figurative expression for being supreme over or controlling. Accordingly, it may be necessary to render this expression as “to cause everything that has been created to unite and to look to Christ as chief” or “… to be related to Christ as one who rules everything.”

The “all things” is further defined as “those in heaven and those on earth” (Good News Translation everything in heaven and on earth), in other words, the whole universe, all of creation. Translations should take care to convey this total meaning.

Verse 10 in Greek ends with the prepositional phrase “in him,” and verse 11 begins with the relative phrase “in whom,” both referring to Christ. This is parallel to the beginning of verse 7 “in whom,” and so a major break is indicated here also, inasmuch as there is a main verb in verse 11, “we were selected.”

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 .