Efesus 1:11

1:11 In Christ ¹  we too have been claimed as God’s own possession, ²  since we were predestined according to the one purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of his will

Efesus 1:22-23

1:22 And God ³  put ⁴  all things under Christ’s ⁵  feet, ⁶  and he gave him to the church as head over all things. ⁷  1:23 Now the church is ⁸  his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. ⁹ 

[1:11]  ¹ tn Grk “in whom,” as a continuation of the previous verse.

[1:11]  ² tn Grk “we were appointed by lot.” The notion of the verb κληρόω (klhrow) in the OT was to “appoint a portion by lot” (the more frequent cognate verb κληρονομέω [klhronomew] meant “obtain a portion by lot”). In the passive, as here, the idea is that “we were appointed [as a portion] by lot” (BDAG 548 s.v. κληρόω 1). The words “God’s own” have been supplied in the translation to clarify this sense of the verb. An alternative interpretation is that believers receive a portion as an inheritance: “In Christ we too have been appointed a portion of the inheritance.” See H. W. Hoehner, Ephesians, 226-27, for discussion on this interpretive issue.

[1:11]  sn God’s own possession. Although God is not mentioned explicitly in the Greek text, it is clear from the context that he has chosen believers for himself. Just as with the nation Israel, the church is God’s chosen portion or possession (cf. Deut 32:8-9).

[1:22]  ³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:22]  ⁴ tn Grk “subjected.”

[1:22]  ⁵ tn Grk “his”; the referent (Christ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:22]  ⁶ sn An allusion to Ps 8:6.

[1:22]  ⁷ tn Grk “and he gave him as head over all things to the church.”

[1:23]  ⁸ tn Grk “which is.” The antecedent of “which” is easily lost in English, though in Greek it is quite clear. In the translation “church” is repeated to clarify the referent.

[1:23]  ⁹ tn Or perhaps, “who is filled entirely.”

[1:23]  sn The idea of all in all is either related to the universe (hence, he fills the whole universe entirely) or the church universal (hence, Christ fills the church entirely with his presence and power).