Ephesians 2:21

In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

BSB

Parallel translations

4 additional translations

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KJV

In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:

ASV

in whom each several building, fitly framed together, groweth into a holy temple in the Lord;

YLT

in whom all the building fitly framed together doth increase to an holy sanctuary in the Lord,

DBT

in whom all [the] building fitted together increases to a holy temple in the Lord;

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Commentary voices

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Voices6

On this verse

It is maintained by some that the whole edifice built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets comprises not only human souls but also angelic powers, so that all equally will become the abode of God. They argue that it would be absurd if angels and all the blessed forces who serve God in heaven would have no part in this blessedness. For in this is a building, put together harmoniously, that is growing into a holy temple of God to be an abode of God in the Spirit.

Jerome· Commentary on Ephesians 2:1-5, 420patristic

Related commentary

In whom all the building fitly framed together,....

John Gill· Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748)reformed

In whom - That is, by whom, or upon whom. It was in connection with him, or by being reared on him as a foundation. All the building - The whole church of Christ. Fitly framed together - The word used here means to joint together, as a carpenter does the frame-work of a building. The materials are accurately and carefully united by mortises and tenons. so that the building shall be firm.

Albert Barnes· Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)evangelical

So "in the Lord" (Christ) answers to "through the Spirit" (Eph 2:22; compare Eph 3:16, 17). "Christ is the inclusive Head of all the building, the element in which it has its being and now its growth" [ALFORD].

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown· Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, 1871reformed

The miserable condition of the Ephesians by nature is here in part described. Unregenerate souls are dead in trespasses and sins. All those who are in their sins, are dead in sins; yea, in trespasses and sins, which may signify all sorts of sins, habitual and actual, sins of heart and of life.

Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible, 1710puritan

The universal church being built upon Christ as the foundation-stone, and united in Christ as the corner-stone, comes at length to be glorified in him as the top-stone: In whom you also are built together, &c.,

Matthew Henry· Commentary on the Whole Bible, 1710puritan

Voices on this verse

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Cross-references

23 linked verses

The verses this one reaches12

1 Corinthians 6:19
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;
1 Corinthians 3:16
Do you not know that you yourselves are God’s temple, and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?
Ephesians 3:17
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. Then you, being rooted and grounded in love,
Ephesians 4:15
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into Christ Himself, who is the head.
1 Timothy 3:15
in case I am delayed, so that you will know how each one must conduct himself in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.
1 Corinthians 3:9
For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.
1 Peter 2:2
Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
2 Corinthians 6:16
What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.”
Habakkuk 2:20
But the LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.
Ephesians 4:13–16
until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, as we mature to the full measure of the stature of Christ.
1 Kings 6:7
The temple was constructed using finished stones cut at the quarry, so that no hammer or chisel or any other iron tool was heard in the temple while it was being built.
Hebrews 3:3–4
For Jesus has been counted worthy of greater glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself.

11 more linked verses are grouped by book below ↓

Cross-references

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The quotation web

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Around this verse

Word doors

Rare words are the text's own signal of a deliberate thread — the fewer the occurrences, the more the places it appears belong together.

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About this book

The Ascension — Gustave Doré (engraving, public domain)

Ephesians — The cosmic letter. Chapters 1–3 set out what believers are in Christ — positional truth stretching from before the foundation to the fullness of times. Chapters 4–6 call the believer to walk worthy of it.

Canon: New Testament
Author: Paul (1:1)
Date: c. AD 60–62, from Roman imprisonment

Where the connections lead

Follow this verse’s cross-references two steps out. Each card is a verse this one points to, and beneath it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several different paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first — the text keeps returning to it. Every stop shows its own words, and every stop is a page.

Through
2 Corinthians 6:16
What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and…
leads to
- Revelation 21:3
  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying: “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will…
- Exodus 29:45
  Then I will dwell among the Israelites and be their God.
- Hebrews 8:10
  For this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. I will put My laws in their minds and inscribe them on their hearts. And…
- Leviticus 26:12
  I will walk among you and be your God, and you will be My people.
- Jeremiah 32:38
  They will be My people, and I will be their God.
Through
1 Corinthians 3:9
For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.
leads to
- 1 Peter 2:5
  you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
- Ephesians 2:20–22
  built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.
- 2 Corinthians 6:1
  As God’s fellow workers, then, we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain.

The whole web at once: see the Arc.

Where the connections lead

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