Ephesians: All Things in Christ
Ephesians 1:10-12 - A plan that sums all things up and an inheritance after the counsel of His will.
“with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory.”
Ephesians 1:10-12 NASB1995
Another awkward verse break appears here in the next passage of Ephesians 1. Doing all of Ephesians 1:3-14 as a single devotional would be a very challenging task. So I will continue to try and make this coherent with a smaller subset of that long chain of ideas. The AI image at the top came from the three verses and was the suggestion. Interesting!
From the last devotional merging into this one, the mystery of His will has been made known to us through His kind intention, with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times…
Let’s do a couple of word studies from the Blue Letter Bible lexicon:
Administration comes from the Greek noun οἰκονομία or oikonomía (Strong’s G3611) , with the following Biblical usages:
the management of a household or of household affairs
specifically, the management, oversight, administration, of other’s property
the office of a manager or overseer, stewardship
administration, dispensation
A dispensation or administration can be called a plan or a commission to preach the Gospel. This administration is suitable to the fullness of the times.
Fullness comes from the Greek noun πλήρωμα or plḗrōma (Strong’s G4138), with the following Biblical usages:
that which is (has been) filled
a ship inasmuch as it is filled (i.e. manned) with sailors, rowers, and soldiers
in the NT, the body of believers, as that which is filled with the presence, power, agency, riches of God and of Christ
that which fills or with which a thing is filled
of those things which a ship is filled, freight and merchandise, sailors, oarsmen, soldiers
completeness or fulness of time
fulness, abundance
a fulfilling, keeping
Usage 1.b is probably the most appropriate usage: fullness in the NT is the body of believers that are filled with the presence, power, agency, and riches of God and of Christ.
All things in Christ will be summed together, both those things on Earth and those in the Heavens (creation is unified). Some misinterpret this text to mean that all will be saved. Let’s look at the answer to the question on universalism in Gotquestions.org
Universalism is the belief that everyone will be saved. There are many people today who hold to universal salvation and believe that all people eventually end up in heaven. Perhaps it is the thought of men and women living a life of eternal torment in hell that causes some to reject the teaching of Scripture on this issue. For some it is an over-emphasis on the love and compassion of God—and the neglect of the righteousness and justice of God—that leads them to believe God will have mercy on every living soul. But the Scriptures do teach that some people will spend eternity in hell.
First of all, the Bible is clear that unredeemed men will dwell forever in hell. Jesus’ own words confirm that the time spent in heaven for the redeemed will last as long as that of the unredeemed in hell. Matthew 25:46 says, “Then they [the unsaved] will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.” According to this verse, the punishment of the unsaved is just as eternal as the life of the righteous. Some believe that those in hell will eventually cease to exist, but the Lord Himself confirms that it will last forever. Matthew 25:41 and Mark 9:44 describe hell as “eternal fire” and “unquenchable fire.”
How does one avoid this unquenchable fire? Many people believe that all roads—all religions and beliefs—lead to heaven, or they consider that God is so full of love and mercy that He will allow all people into heaven. God is certainly full of love and mercy; it was these qualities that led Him to send His Son, Jesus Christ, to earth to die on the cross for us. Jesus Christ is the exclusive door that leads to an eternity in heaven. Acts 4:12 says, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” “There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5). In John 14:6, Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” If we choose to reject God’s Son, we do not meet the requirements for salvation (John 3:16, 18, 36).
With verses such as these, it becomes clear that universalism and universal salvation are unbiblical beliefs. Universalism directly contradicts what Scripture teaches. While many people accuse Christians of being intolerant and “exclusive,” it is important to remember that these are the words of Christ Himself. Christians did not develop these ideas on their own; Christians are simply stating what the Lord has already said. People choose to reject the message because they do not want to face up to their sin and admit that they need the Lord to save them. To say that those who reject God’s provision of salvation through His Son will be saved is to belittle the holiness and justice of God and negate the need of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf.
That’s a perfect explanation! I think I’ve used similar ones before, but it’s worth repeating. One of the reasons we left the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church of America) is that they started preaching that “hell is empty”. They gave false hope to people that God, because He is love, would gather all to Him and not let any suffer for eternity. Repentance and faith were not required in their theology, just a vague understanding that God’s love overrides His sovereignty and judgment. This completely negates the Cross and the sacrifice of Christ.
In Him we have also obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose, who works all things after the counsel of His will. Let’s do more word studies:
We have obtained an inheritance comes from the Greek verb κληρόω or klēróō (Strong’s G2820), with the following Biblical usages:
to cast lots, determine by lot
to choose by lot
to allot, assign by lot
on to another as a possession
in NT: to make a lot, i.e. a heritage, private possession
This is the only usage of this verb in this manner in the NT, so we can point to number 4 as the best usage: To make a lot, i.e. a heritage, a private possession.
Having been predestined comes from the Greek προορίζω or proorízō (Strong’s G4309), with the following Biblical usages:
to predetermine, decide beforehand
in the NT of God decreeing from eternity
to foreordain, appoint beforehand
God decrees from eternity (the past, present, and future are all known and all at once);; He appoints beforehand or foreordains.
Let’s look at Enduring Word commentary for parts of this passage:
b. That… He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth; in Him: God’s ultimate plan is to bring together – to ultimately resolve – all things in Christ, either through Jesus as a Savior or Jesus as a Judge; this will happen in the fullness of the times.
i. The word for gather together has the idea of “to unite” or “to sum up.” It was used for the process of adding up a column of figures and putting the sum up at the top. Paul’s idea is that God will make all things “add up” at the end, and right now He is in the process of coming to that final sum.
ii. This shows that God wants to unify all things in our lives under Him. “It is a heresy of our times to divide life into sacred and secular.” (Foulkes)
iii. This is the great resolution and deliverance that even the creation groans for (Romans 8:18-22), the day when every wrong will be righted and every matter resolved according to God’s holy love and justice.
iv. Bruce on the fullness of the times: “When the time is ripe for the consummation of his purpose, in his providential overruling of the course of the world, that consummation will be realized.”
c. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance: For believers, Jesus is not a judge, but the One in whom we have an inheritance. Believers are predestined for this according to the counsel of His will– again, the reasons for His choosing reside in Him, not in us.
d. Being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will: We see three aspects of God’s plan working together. It begins with His purpose, then the counsel of His will, and finally results in His work. God made His plan carefully according to an eternal purpose, taking counsel within the Godhead, and then He works with all wisdom.
i. “Our God is a God who not only wills; He works; and He works according to His will… The word counsel stands for deliberate planning and arranging, in which the ways and means of carrying out the will are considered and provided for.” (Morgan)
ii. By the counsel of His will: “God doth all by counsel, and ever hath a reason of his will, which though we see not for present, we shall at last day. Meanwhile submit.” (Trapp)
e. That we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory: God’s purpose in all this is so that those who have trusted Christ will exist to the praise of His glory. The goal of God’s ultimate plan is to glorify Him.
f. We who first trusted in Christ: This speaks of Jewish believers. The words you also in Ephesians 1:13 speak of Gentile believers. God’s great plan has a place for both Jew and Gentile, and it brings them both together in Jesus.
Some key takeaways:
God intends to unify all things under Him. This belies the separation of the sacred and the secular that we tolerate in our lives. Ask yourself if your sacred time is limited to one hour on Sunday mornings or if it permeates your life.
The resolution and deliverance is what creation groans for every day and all things will be resolved according to His love and justice.
For believers, Jesus has given us an inheritance. The reasons for Him choosing those that receive that inheritance is in His choosing and not in us.
God has planned all things carefully and perfectly. Counsel means deliberate planning.
The ones who were first to hope in Christ were Jewish. In the next passage, we see how this is addressed to the Gentile. Both groups are brought together in Jesus.
There was an example of how these mysterious unifications and plans work that was included in Precept Austin. It was from a Daily Bread devotional; those devotionals are quite difficult to get permission to reproduce and Precept Austin requests that readers not copy their devotionals. The story that they shared is one that is remarkable, however, and was the subject of one of the best books I have read in a very long time: Wounded Tiger: The Transformational True Story of the Japanese Pilot Who Led the Pearl Harbor Attack (A World War 2 Nonfiction Novel). This 2023 publication by T. Martin Bennett tells the story of three people: Mitsuo Fuchida, Jacob DeShazer and Ann Covell. Fuchida led the Imperial Japanese forces that attacked Pearl Harbor, DeShazer was a bombardier who participated in the daring Doolittle Raid of Japan in April 1942 and became a Japanese POW, and Ann Covell was the daughter of missionaries who lived in Japan and then the Philippines (she was in college in the US during the events in the book). I’ve mentioned this book before, but if you want compelling evidence of the way God mysteriously plans and brings such disparate people together for His purposes get a copy and read it!
My next devotional examines Ephesians 1: 13-14: The Holy Spirit of Promise.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - Please help me to gain a deeper understanding of this first difficult passage in Ephesians by tying together word studies and commentary. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. www.Lockman.org.
“G3622 - oikonomia - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 23 Mar, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g3622/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G4138 - plērōma - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 23 Mar, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g4138/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G2820 - klēroō - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 23 Mar, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2820/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
“G4309 - proorizō - Strong’s Greek Lexicon (NASB95).” Blue Letter Bible. Web. 23 Mar, 2026. <https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g4309/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/>.
Precept Austin was accessed on 03/23/2025 to review commentary for Ephesians 1:10-12. Within the Precept Austin commentary was a link to Gotquestions.org: Gotquestions.org was accessed to answer this question: What is universalism? Gotquestions.org Copyright © 2026 all rights reserved.
Commentary from Enduring Word is used with written permission and without any alteration. ©1996-present The Enduring Word Bible Commentary by David Guzik – enduringword.com. Within the Enduring Word commentary:
Foulkes, Francis The Epistle of Paul to the Ephesians (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1988)Gaebelein, Arno C. God’s Masterpiece (Glasgow: Pickering and Inglis, 1913)
Morgan, G. Campbell An Exposition of the Whole Bible (Old Tappan, New Jersey: Revell, 1959)
Morgan, G. Campbell Searchlights from the Word (New York: Revell, 1926)
Trapp, John A Commentary on the Old and New Testaments, Volume Five (Eureka, California: Tanski Publications, 1997)