Ephesians 3:16-21 is Paul’s prayer that Christians would be strengthened by God’s Spirit, grounded in love, and filled with the fullness of God. He asks God for an inner strength that lets believers grasp how wide and deep Christ’s love really is, and then closes with a doxology praising God who can do far more than we can imagine.
The passage sits in the middle of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, right after a long explanation of how Jew and Gentile have been joined together in one body through Christ. Paul is in prison when he writes these words, and he turns from theology to prayer, asking God to do in his readers what doctrine alone cannot accomplish.
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that you may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inward man; 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be strengthened to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and depth, 19 and to know Christ’s love which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, 21 to him be the glory in the assembly and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.
Ephesians 3:16-21 (WEB)
Ephesians 3:16-21 Summary
Paul begins with a request. He asks the Father to strengthen his readers with power through the Spirit, so that Christ may make his home in their hearts through faith. The goal is that they would be rooted and established in love, able to grasp together with other believers the breadth of Christ’s love, a love that goes beyond what can be fully known.
The passage then rises into praise. Paul ends by describing God as one who is able to do far more than anything we could request or imagine, and he gives glory to God in the church and in Christ across every generation. The prayer moves from the believer’s inner life outward to the community and finally to the God who answers.
Context of Ephesians 3:16-21
Ephesians is traditionally attributed to Paul and is usually dated to his imprisonment, probably in the early 60s AD. Its readers were mainly Gentile believers in and around Ephesus, and the letter stresses their new standing as fellow citizens and members of God’s household alongside Jewish believers.
Verses 13 and 14 show Paul’s motive. He asks his readers not to lose heart over his sufferings, and then he kneels in prayer. Verses 16-21 are the heart of that prayer, and they lead into chapter 4, where Paul begins to urge believers to live out the unity and love they have been given.
Ephesians 3:16-21 Verse by Verse
Romans 8:38-39
38 For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from God’s love, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
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Paul lists the things that cannot separate believers from God’s love, and the list reinforces the breadth and security of that love described in Ephesians 3.
1 John 4:16
We know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and he who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him.
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John also speaks of love that is known and trusted, showing that knowing God’s love and abiding in it belong together.
A Prayer Based on Ephesians 3:16-21
Father, I come before you as Paul came before you for his friends. Strengthen me with your power through your Spirit, in the place within me where no one else can see. Let Christ make his home in my heart through faith, and root me deeply in your love so that I am not easily shaken.
Help me to grasp, together with your people, how wide and long and high and deep your love for me is. Teach me to know a love that is larger than I can explain, and fill me with your fullness. You are able to do far more than I can ask or imagine, so I give you the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus, now and forever. Amen.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the main point of Ephesians 3:16-21?
The main point is Paul’s prayer that believers would be strengthened by the Spirit, rooted in Christ’s love, and filled with God’s fullness. The passage ends by praising God, who is able to do far more than we can ask or imagine.
What does it mean that Christ’s love surpasses knowledge?
Paul means that Christ’s love is too large to be fully explained or measured by the mind. Believers are invited to know that love by experience, especially as they grow in it together with other Christians.
Who wrote Ephesians 3:16-21 and to whom?
The letter is traditionally attributed to Paul and was written to believers in and around Ephesus, many of them Gentiles. Paul wrote during a period of imprisonment, and this prayer is part of his encouragement to them.
