EPH 3:17 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=none Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT that Christ may live in your hearts through faith, being rooted and grounded in love,

UST I pray that the Messiah may stay as close to you as your own hearts because you trust in him, and that everything that you do and say will be a result of God’s love for you and your love for him and others

BLB for Christ to dwell in your hearts through faith, being rooted and being founded in love,

AICNT That Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, rooted and grounded in love,

OEB so that the Christ, through your faith, may make his home within your hearts in love; and I pray that you, now firmly rooted and established, may, with all Christ’s people,

WEBBE that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, to the end that you, being rooted and grounded in love,

WMBB that Messiah may dwell in your hearts through faith, to the end that you, being rooted and grounded in love,

NET that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love,

LSV that the Christ may dwell through the faith in your hearts, having been rooted and founded in love,

FBV May Christ live in you as you trust in him, so that as you are planted deep in love,

TCNT so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith,

T4T That is, I pray that because of your trusting in Christ, his Spirit may live in your ◄inner beings/hearts► (OR, he may live in your hearts). And I pray that because you love Christ firmly and faithfully/continually [MET], you,

LEB that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith (you having been firmly rooted and established in love),

BBE So that Christ may have his place in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and based in love,

Moff May Christ dwell in your hearts as you have faith!

Wymth I pray that Christ may make His home in your hearts through your faith; so that having your roots deep and your foundations strong, in love, you may become mighty to grasp the idea,

ASV that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,

DRA That Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts; that being rooted and founded in charity,

YLT that the Christ may dwell through the faith in your hearts, in love having been rooted and founded,

Drby that the Christ may dwell, through faith, in your hearts, being rooted and founded in love,

RV that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
(that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; to the end that ye/you_all, being rooted and grounded in love, )

SLT For Christ to dwell by faith in your hearts; in love being rendered firm, and the foundation laid,

Wbstr That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,

KJB-1769 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,
(That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye/you_all, being rooted and grounded in love, )

KJB-1611 That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith, that yee being rooted and grounded in loue,
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps That Christe may dwell in your heartes by fayth: that ye beyng rooted and grounded in loue,
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Gnva That Christ may dwell in your heartes by faith:
(That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith: )

Cvdl that Christ maye dwell in youre hertes by faith, that ye beynge roted and grounded in loue,
(that Christ may dwell in your(pl) hearts by faith, that ye/you_all being rooted and grounded in love,)

TNT that Christ maye dwell in youre hertes by fayth that ye beynge roted and grounded in loue
(that Christ may dwell in your(pl) hearts by faith that ye/you_all being rooted and grounded in love )

Wycl that Crist dwelle bi feith in youre hertis; that ye rootid and groundid in charite,
(that Christ dwell by faith in your(pl) hearts; that ye/you_all rootid and groundid in charity,)

Luth und Christum zu wohnen durch den Glauben in euren Herzen, und durch die Liebe eingewurzelt und gegründet zu werden,
(and Christum to/for live/reside through the faith in your(s)(pl) heart(s), and through the love(n) eingewurzelt and founded to/for become,)

ClVg Christum habitare per fidem in cordibus vestris: in caritate radicati, et fundati,[fn]
(Christ/Messiah to_live through faith in/into/on hearts yours: in/into/on caritate radicati, and fundati, )

3.17 In charitate. Oro etiam ut radicati, id est firmiter plantati, a similitudine arboris, quæ quanto plus terræ figitur, tanto plus crescit, et uberiorem fructum reddit.

3.17 In with_love. Oro also as radicati, that it_is firmiter plant(n)ti, from likeness arboris, which how_much plus of_the_earth/land figitur, so_much plus grows, and uberiorem fruit returns.

UGNT κατοικῆσαι τὸν Χριστὸν διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν ἐν ἀγάπῃ, ἐρριζωμένοι καὶ τεθεμελιωμένοι;
(katoikaʸsai ton Ⱪriston dia taʸs pisteōs en tais kardiais humōn en agapaʸ, errizōmenoi kai tethemeliōmenoi;)

SBL-GNT κατοικῆσαι τὸν Χριστὸν διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν ἐν ἀγάπῃ· ἐρριζωμένοι καὶ τεθεμελιωμένοι,
(katoikaʸsai ton Ⱪriston dia taʸs pisteōs en tais kardiais humōn en agapaʸ; errizōmenoi kai tethemeliōmenoi,)

RP-GNT κατοικῆσαι τὸν χριστὸν διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν·
(katoikaʸsai ton ⱪriston dia taʸs pisteōs en tais kardiais humōn;)

TC-GNT κατοικῆσαι τὸν Χριστὸν διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν·
(katoikaʸsai ton Ⱪriston dia taʸs pisteōs en tais kardiais humōn; )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs, red:words differ (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 3:14–21: Paul prayed again for the believers at Ephesus

In this section, Paul resumed his prayer for the Ephesian Christians. He asked God to strengthen them by the Holy Spirit so that Christ could live in them. He prayed that they would love each other, and that they would know how much Christ loved them, even though he loved them more than people could understand. Paul finished his prayer by praising God for his great power.

Here are some other titles for this section:

Paul prayed that God would strengthen the Ephesians

Paul’s prayer for spiritual strength and love for the Ephesians

Paragraph 3:14–19

In this paragraph Paul prayed the prayer he almost began in 3:1. (See the note at 3:1.) He began this paragraph with the words “for this reason” which are the same words he used at the beginning of 3:1. The BSB indicates this connection by using ellipses here (as it did in 3:1).

3:17a

so that Christ may dwell in your hearts

and that Christ may live/dwell permanently in your hearts
And I pray that Christ will live in your hearts

so that Christ may dwell in your hearts: There are different views about how this clause is related to 3:16.

It is a second request that Paul prays for. So dwell is parallel with “strengthen,” that is, “I pray that God will strengthen you…and I pray that Christ may dwell….” For example,
I pray that Christ will live in your hearts (NCV) (GNT, NCV, NLT, CEV)
It is the purpose or result of what Paul prays in 3:16: “I pray that God will strengthen you…so that Christ will dwell….” For example,
so that Christ may live in your hearts (BSB, NIV, NJB, NET, NASB, REB)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), though both interpretations have strong support.

dwell in your hearts: The verb dwell has the meaning of “live permanently,” “settle down.”

in your hearts: In the New Testament, the word “heart” refers figuratively to the whole inner life of a person. It includes the mind, will, and emotions. You should use the expression in your language that refers to the inner part of man. In some languages people say ‘mind,’ ‘throat,’ ‘liver,’ or ‘stomach.’

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

Christ will make his home in your hearts (NLT)

and I pray that Christ will make his home in your hearts (GNT)

I also pray that Christ may control your whole/inner being

3:17b

through faith.

through your^(plur) faith in him.
as you^(plur) trust in him. (NLT)
because you^(plur) believe in him.

through faith: The phrase through faith means “because you believe in Christ.” See faith, Meaning 1 in the Glossary for more information.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

as you trust in him (NLT)

because you believe in him

because of your faith (CEV)

General Comment on 3:17a–b

In some languages, it may be natural to change the order of 17a–b. For example:

I pray that ^17bthrough your believing, ^17aChrist would come and live in your inside stomachs.

3:17c

Then you, being rooted and grounded in love,

The way you love God and each other will make you firm and keep you from falling. So I pray that you
When you love God and each other you are strong like a tree whose roots go into the earth, and like a house built on a strong foundation. So I pray that you

Some English versions add the words “And I pray that” here, and in 3:16a, to make the translation clearer. See how you translated this clause in 3:16a and then decide if it would be natural in your language to translate it here.

being rooted and grounded in love: The words rooted and grounded are both metaphors referring to “strength.” The word rooted refers to the roots of a tree holding the tree steady. The word grounded refers to the foundation of a house making the house firm. The roots of a tree hold the tree steady, and the foundation of a house makes the house established/firm. In the same way, love makes Christians strong.

When you translate these words you may need to:

translate the meaning directly. For example:
love will make you strong and keep you from falling
translate the metaphors as similes. For example:
love is like the roots which make a tree stand firm or like the foundation on which a house stands

Both possibilities are shown in the Display. You should choose the option that is most natural in your language.

in love: There is an interpretation issue here. Scholars do not agree about what Paul meant here. There are two possibilities:

Paul wrote about both our love for God and our love for other people.
Paul wrote about God’s love for us (as in 3:18–19b). (CEV, NLT)

Both interpretations make sense. As we come to love God and others, and as we learn how much God loves us, that love makes our hearts strong. You may want to follow your national translation in deciding which interpretation to choose.

The Display follows interpretation (a). If you want to follow interpretation (b), you could say:

I pray that you will come to really know how much God loves you, so this will make you firm and keep you from falling.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Paul continues the prayer he began in [Ephesians 3:14](../03/14.md).

Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-words-phrases

κατοικῆσαι τὸν Χριστὸν διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν ἐν ἀγάπῃ, ἐρριζωμένοι καὶ τεθεμελιωμένοι

˓to˒_dwell_in (Some words not found in SR-GNT: κατοικῆσαι τόν Χριστόν διά τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν ἐν ἀγάπῃ ἐρριζωμένοι καί τεθεμελιωμένοι)

With the phrase, that Christ may live Paul continues the prayer he began in [Ephesians 3:14](../03/14.md). This is the second item for which Paul prays that God will grant the Ephesians “according to the riches of his glory.” The first is that they would be strengthened ([Ephesians 3:16](../03/16.md)).

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

κατοικῆσαι τὸν Χριστὸν διὰ τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν

Here, hearts represent a person’s inner being, and through expresses the means by which Christ lives within the believer. Christ lives in the hearts of believers because God graciously allows them to have faith. Alternate translation: [that Christ may live within you because you trust in him]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

ἐν ἀγάπῃ, ἐρριζωμένοι καὶ τεθεμελιωμένοι

in in love ˓having_been˒_rooted (Some words not found in SR-GNT: κατοικῆσαι τόν Χριστόν διά τῆς πίστεως ἐν ταῖς καρδίαις ὑμῶν ἐν ἀγάπῃ ἐρριζωμένοι καί τεθεμελιωμένοι)