Ephesians 3:6

Ephesians 3:6. That the Gentiles are; not ‘should be,' for ‘a mystery is not a secret design, but a secret fact' (Alford). The whole verse explains ‘mystery' (Ephesians 3:4).

Fellow-heirs, i.e., with the Jews, as saints, as belonging to the family of God. This is the most extended idea in the verse, since it implies the same relation to God who has provided the inheritance.

Fellow members and fellow partakers of the promise. This rendering preserves the correspondence of the Greek compound words, which seem to have been coined by the Apostle. The two terms bring out more fully the relation of the ‘fellow heirs' to each other. They were members of the same body, incorporated in it as believers, they shared the same privileges, summed up in the phrase ‘the promise; comp. chaps. Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 2:12.

In Christ Jesus. This position of the Gentiles, defined by the three preceding terms, is ‘in Christ Jesus;' He is the objective ground of their heirship, all their privileges are bestowed in Him.

Through the gospel. This is the subjective means by which these privileges are appropriated. This is an essential part. This gospel is the means by which the mystery of Christ is revealed to us. We need illumination, not inspiration; to understand the gospel is our aim, not to be the organ of a new revelation.