Ephesians 2:13
But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
Study Note
Study Note
The spatial metaphor 'ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ' draws on Isaiah 57:19 — 'Peace, peace to him that is far off and to him that is near' — which Paul quotes explicitly in verse 17 as fulfilled in the cross's peace-making work. The movement from 'far' to 'near' condenses the Gentile situation before and after Christ: previously excluded from the covenants of promise (v. 12), now granted access through the blood that constitutes the new covenant. The verse functions as the pivot of Ephesians 2:11–22's argument about Jew-Gentile reconciliation, framing what follows — the abolition of the dividing wall and creation of one new humanity — as consequences of the cross's spatial-covenantal transformation. The passage is foundational for Christian theology of reconciliation and for ecumenical reflection on the unity of the church.
Other Translations
But now in Christ Jesus ye that once were far off are made nigh in the blood of Christ.
and now, in Christ Jesus, ye being once afar off became nigh in the blood of the Christ,
But now in Christ Jesus you who at one time were far off are made near in the blood of Christ.
Cross References
All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying,
For, lo, they that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a whoring from …
And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; …
Wherefore glorify ye the Lord in the fires, even the name of the Lord God of Israel in the isles …
From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs, even glory to the righteous. But I said, My …
I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, …
Behold, these shall come from far: and, lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the …
I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is …
Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall …
Surely the isles shall wait for me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring thy sons from far, their …