Ephesians 1:17-18 17in order that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him,
Paul gives two significant prayers for the Ephesians in this letter, here and in 3:14-21. The one who can answer this prayer is given a long description in this verse that reminds the Ephesians that God is in control and can do more than they can even ask or imagine (see 3:20-21). God is connected here to the Jesus who is acknowledged in the full description as Lord and Messiah. He is worthy for the Ephesians to put their faith, trust, and lives into his sovereign care. God is also described as the Father of glory. From the divine side, glory signifies the awesomeness, holiness, and otherness of God that is beyond the created order. This glory demands worship. We experience this glory in part now but will one day experience it face-to-face. We have been created to experience God’s glory and be in his presence. As Father, God is the originator and source of this glory.
The purpose of Paul’s prayer is given in v. 17: that God may give them the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation. The first gift is the Spirit. The word “spirit” has no article in the Greek. It could be translated as the human spirit or as God’s Holy Spirit. Many translations treat this generically, like we might use the word “attitude” or “disposition.” This use is seen in Ephesians 4:23. A change of our spirit (attitude, outlook on life) comes through the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. The way God will give us this wisdom is through his Holy Spirit. This becomes even more apparent through the next gift from God.
The second gift is the Spirit of revelation. The word “spirit” governs both wisdom and revelation. The word revelation is often used with the word “mystery.” Paul uses the word “mystery” many times in this letter: 1:9; 3:3, 4, 6, 9; 5:32; 6:19. God reveals to us knowledge about himself through his Holy Spirit. We come to know more and more about God’s eternal plan in Jesus Christ through the Spirit. The Spirit is the only way for us to come to know and experience God. Even God’s revelation in the Bible is mediated through the Spirit. Paul is praying that the Ephesians will become more and more participants in this eternal plan of God. The object of this knowledge is him. The closest antecedent to this pronoun is the Lord Jesus Christ, although it is possible to interpret this also simply as God the Father. To know the Son is to know the Father. Paul combines both of these in the other prayer in 3:14-21. This revelation is not abstract knowledge but personal and real knowledge that comes “in Christ.” What we need in this life is the presence of the Holy Spirit.
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