Ephesians Series: Ephesians 1:23b-Jesus Christ is Bringing the Church and Creation to Completion For the Benefit of the Church

Ephesians 1:15 For this reason, after I myself heard about the faith among each and every one of you in the one and only Lord Jesus as well as you are practicing divine-love, which is on behalf of each and every one of the saints, 16 I never permit myself to cease regularly expressing thanks to the one and only God because of each and every one of you. I do this while disciplining myself to make it my practice of remembering each and every one of you during my prayers. 17 I make it a habit of occupying myself with praying that the God, that is, the glorious Father of the one and only Lord ruling over each and every one of us as a corporate unit, who is Jesus Christ, would cause each and every one of you to receive divine wisdom, specifically, divine revelatory wisdom provided by the one and only Spirit with respect to an experiential knowledge of Himself. 18 Namely, that the eyes of your heart are enlightened in order that each and every one of you would possess the conviction of what constitutes being the confident expectation of blessing produced by His effectual call, what constitutes His inheritance, which is characterized by glorious wealth, residing in the person of the saints. 19 Also, what constitutes being His incomparable, great power on behalf of each one of us who believe which is equivalent to the exertion of His sovereign, omnipotent power to overcome. 20 This He caused to enter into the state of being exerted on behalf of the incomparable Christ. Specifically, by causing Him to be raised out from the dead ones. Then, by causing Him to be seated at His right hand in the heavenlies 21 above each and every sovereign ruler, authority, power exercised, dominion as well as each and every designated rank, by no means only during this age but in fact also during the one certain to come. 22 In other words, He caused each and every animate and inanimate object to be placed in subjection under His feet. Correspondingly, He gave Him as a gift as head over each and every animate and inanimate object for the benefit of the church, 23 which uniquely are members of His body, specifically, which is being brought to completion by the one who is bringing each and every animate and inanimate object to completion for the benefit of each and every member. (Lecturer’s translation)

Ephesians 1:23 is composed of a qualitative relative pronoun clause hētis estin to sōma autou (ἥτις ἐστὶν τὸ σῶμα αὐτοῦ), “which uniquely are members of His body.”

It is modified by an appositional clause to plērōma tou ta panta en pasin plēroumenou (τὸ πλήρωμα τοῦ τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσιν πληρουμένου, “specifically, which is being brought to completion by the one who is bringing each and every animate and inanimate object to completion for the benefit of each and every member.”

This appositional clause goes on to further describe the members of the body of Christ.

It asserts that they are being brought to completion by Jesus Christ who Paul describes as bringing each and every animate and inanimate object in creation to completion for the benefit of the church!

This appositional clause contains the noun plērōma (πλήρωμα), “that which is bring brought to completion” pertains to the totality of something with emphasis upon completeness and is related to Jesus Christ since Paul asserts here that the church is related to Him.

The word is used here in a passive sense and means “that which is filled” or “that which is brought to completion or being brought to completion” indicating that the church is filled or indwelt by Jesus Christ.

This use of the word appears in Colossians 2:10 where it refers to Jesus Christ possessing the sum total of the divine attributes which compose the divine nature.

In fact, this word is used in Colossians 1:19 of the Father’s nature indwelling the person of Jesus Christ and in Colossians 2:9, the word is used in relation to Jesus Christ possessing all the divine attributes in their totality.

The passive sense of this noun plērōma here in Ephesians 1:23 is indicated by the fact that nowhere is the word used of the church filling or completing Jesus Christ or His body.

In other words, nowhere in the New Testament does it state that Christ finds fullness from the church.

Secondly, in context, namely in Ephesians 1:3-22, the members of the Trinity are completing the actions of the verb’s in thispericope for the benefit of the church.

Lastly, Ephesians 4:10-16 asserts that Jesus Christ provided creation as well as gifts for the members of His body, the church as well as spiritual growth through the communication gifts He gave to certain men at their justification.

As was the case in Ephesians 1:22, the accusative neuter plural form of the adjective pas (πᾶς), “each and every animate and inanimate object” refers to the totality of animate and inanimate objects that are contained in the first, second and third heavens and the earth: (1) Stars, satellites, and planets that compose the stellar universe. (2) Earth’s sun and moon. (3) Vegetation on the earth (4) Marine life (5) Bird life (6) Terrestrial life. (7) Human beings (8) Angels.

This adjective would include the orderly arrangement of the heavens and the earth and all things in their complex order and composition as created by God, created in perfect order and subject to the laws God established to govern its operation (Matt. 13:35; John 21:25; Acts 17:24).

That the accusative neuter plural form of the adjective pas (πᾶς) retains the same meaning and referent here in Ephesians 1:23 as it did in Ephesians 1:22 is indicated by the word’s articular construction, which is anaphoric.

This means that the article is pointing back to the previous use of the word indicating both have the same referent and meaning.

As was the case in Ephesians 1:22, the adjective pas (πᾶς) here in Ephesians 1:23 is used in a distributive sense meaning “each and every thing” emphasizing no exceptions.

Thus, the distributive use of this adjective emphasizes that there is absolutely no inanimate and animate objects that are contained in creation which will not be brought to completion in the sense of being redeemed from the curse of sin and Satan.

This appositional clause also contains the verb plēroō (πληρόω), pertains to causing something to be brought to completion, or to complete an activity.

The referent of the masculine singular form of this verb is Jesus Christ.

The articular accusative neuter plural form of the adjective pas (πᾶς) functions as the accusative direct object of this verb indicating that it receives the action indicated by this verb.

Therefore, this would indicate that each and every animate and inanimate object in the time, matter, space continuum receives the action of being brought to completion by the Lord Jesus Christ.

This act as we will note speaks of redeeming all of creation, which has been under a curse since the fall of Adam.

The participle conjugation of this verb plēroō (πληρόω) functions as a genitive of agency which is expressing the idea that all of creation is being brought to completion or redeemed “by” Jesus Christ in the sense of the curse being lifted from creation.

The present tense of the verb plēroō is a gnomic present, which is making an absolute statement expressing the idea that the Lord Jesus Christ “as an eternal spiritual truth” is bringing to completion all of creation in the sense of redeeming it from the curse of sin and Satan.

The middle voice of this verb is an indirect middle, which is expressing the idea here of the Lord Jesus Christ “for His own benefit” or specifically, “for His own glory” bringing to completion all of creation in the sense of redeeming it from the curse of sin and Satan.

The adjective pas (πᾶς) appears a second time in this appositional clause, however, this time we have the dative neuter plural form of this word and it is functioning as the object of the preposition en (ἐν).

Also, unlike the first time the word appeared here in Ephesians 1:23, the word’s referent is the members of the body of Christ, the church.

It is used in a distributive sense emphasizing no exceptions.

Therefore, this word not only refers to the members of the body of Christ, the church as a corporate unit but is also emphasizing no exceptions in relation to them as a corporate unit.

The preposition en means “for the benefit of” because it functions as a marker of advantage or benefaction.

Therefore, this prepositional phrase en pasin (ἐν πᾶσιν) is expressing the idea that Jesus Christ for His own glory as an eternal spiritual truth is bringing to completion all of creation to completion in the sense of redeeming it from the curse of sin and Satan “for the benefit of each and everymember” of the church!

This use of the preposition appears in Ephesians 1:20 where it expresses the idea that the Father exerted His omnipotence “on behalf of” or “for the benefit of” His Son, Jesus Christ.

This interpretation of the preposition enhere in Ephesians 1:23 is indicated by the fact that this prepositional phrase appears 1 Corinthians 12:6, 15:28, Ephesians 4:6, and Colossians 3:11 for members of the body of Christ.

Also, it would indicate a parallel with the articular dative feminine singular form of the noun ekklēsia (ἐκκλησία), “for the benefit of the church,” which appears at the end of Ephesians 1:22.

It expresses the idea of the Father causing each and every animate and inanimate object in the first, second and third heavens to be under His Son’s feet or authority was “for the benefit of the church.”

In fact, both the noun ekklēsia (ἐκκλησία), “for the benefit of the church” and the second use of the adjective pas (πᾶς) here in Ephesians 1:23 are in the dative case.