Ephesians 2:4
New International Version
But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,

New Living Translation
But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much,

English Standard Version
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,

Berean Standard Bible
But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,

Berean Literal Bible
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

King James Bible
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

New King James Version
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

New American Standard Bible
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

NASB 1995
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

NASB 1977
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Legacy Standard Bible
But God, being rich in mercy because of His great love with which He loved us,

Amplified Bible
But God, being [so very] rich in mercy, because of His great and wonderful love with which He loved us,

Christian Standard Bible
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us,

Holman Christian Standard Bible
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love that He had for us,

American Standard Version
but God, being rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

English Revised Version
but God, being rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

GOD'S WORD® Translation
But God is rich in mercy because of his great love for us.

Good News Translation
But God's mercy is so abundant, and his love for us is so great,

International Standard Version
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love for us

Majority Standard Bible
But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,

NET Bible
But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us,

New Heart English Bible
But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us,

Webster's Bible Translation
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us,

Weymouth New Testament
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the intense love which He bestowed on us,

World English Bible
But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us,
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
but God, being rich in kindness, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Berean Literal Bible
But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Young's Literal Translation
and God, being rich in kindness, because of His great love with which He loved us,

Smith's Literal Translation
But God, being rich in mercy, by his much love which he loved us,
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
But God, (who is rich in mercy,) for his exceeding charity wherewith he loved us,

Catholic Public Domain Version
Yet still, God, who is rich in mercy, for the sake of his exceedingly great charity with which he loved us,

New American Bible
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us,

New Revised Standard Version
But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us,

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
But God who is rich in his compassion, because of his great love with which he loved us,
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
but God, being rich in mercy, on account of his great love with which he loved us,

Godbey New Testament
but God, being rich in mercy, on account of his great love with which he loved us,

Haweis New Testament
But God, being rich in mercy, through the great love with which he hath loved us,

Mace New Testament
then it was that God, who is rich in mercy, thro' his great love, wherewith he loved us,

Weymouth New Testament
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the intense love which He bestowed on us,

Worrell New Testament
but God, being rich in mercy, on account of His great love wherewith He loved us,

Worsley New Testament
But God being rich in mercy, through his great love wherewith He loved us,

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Alive with Christ
3All of us also lived among them at one time, fulfilling the cravings of our flesh and indulging its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature children of wrath. 4But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved!…

Cross References
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:8
But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

1 John 4:9-10
This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. / And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Titus 3:4-5
But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, / He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

Romans 2:4
Or do you disregard the riches of His kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you to repentance?

1 Peter 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Colossians 2:13
When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses,

2 Corinthians 5:14-15
For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that One died for all, therefore all died. / And He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and was raised again.

Psalm 103:8
The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion.

Lamentations 3:22-23
Because of the loving devotion of the LORD we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail. / They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness!

Isaiah 63:7
I will make known the LORD’s loving devotion and His praiseworthy acts, because of all that the LORD has done for us—the many good things for the house of Israel according to His great compassion and loving devotion.

Micah 7:18
Who is a God like You, who pardons iniquity and passes over the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance—who does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in loving devotion?

Exodus 34:6
Then the LORD passed in front of Moses and called out: “The LORD, the LORD God, is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness,

Nehemiah 9:17
They refused to listen and failed to remember the wonders You performed among them. They stiffened their necks and appointed a leader to return them to their bondage in Egypt. But You are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in loving devotion, and You did not forsake them.

Psalm 86:15
But You, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion and faithfulness.


Treasury of Scripture

But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us,

who.

Ephesians 2:7
That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 1:7
In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Ephesians 3:8
Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;

his.

Deuteronomy 7:7,8
The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: …

Deuteronomy 9:5,6
Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob…

Jeremiah 31:3
The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

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Ephesians 2
1. By comparing what we were by nature, with what we are by grace,
10. he declares that we are made for good works: and being brought near by Christ,
19. should not live as Gentiles and foreigners, but as citizens with the saints, and the family of God.














But God
This phrase marks a pivotal transition in the narrative of Ephesians 2. The Apostle Paul has just described the dire state of humanity, dead in transgressions and sins. The introduction of "But God" signifies a divine intervention that changes everything. The Greek word for "God" here is "Theos," which denotes the supreme deity, the Creator of the universe. This phrase emphasizes the sovereignty and initiative of God in the salvation process. It is not humanity that reaches out to God, but God who reaches out to humanity, underscoring His grace and mercy.

being rich in mercy
The word "rich" in Greek is "plousios," which conveys an abundance or wealth. God's mercy is not limited or scarce; it is overflowing and plentiful. "Mercy" in Greek is "eleos," which refers to compassion or pity. In the biblical context, mercy is often associated with God's covenant love and His willingness to forgive and restore. This phrase highlights the character of God as one who is not only willing but also abundantly able to extend mercy to those who are undeserving.

because of His great love
The Greek word for "love" here is "agape," which is a selfless, sacrificial love that seeks the best for others. This is the highest form of love, often associated with divine love. The phrase "great love" emphasizes the magnitude and intensity of God's affection for humanity. It is this profound love that motivates God's actions towards us. Historically, this love is demonstrated through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is the ultimate expression of God's love for mankind.

with which He loved us
This phrase personalizes the previous statement, indicating that God's great love is directed specifically towards "us," meaning believers. The Greek verb "loved" is "ēgapēsen," which is in the aorist tense, suggesting a definitive action. This points to the historical reality of Christ's sacrificial death on the cross as the ultimate demonstration of God's love. It is not a general or abstract love, but a personal and intentional love that has real implications for the lives of believers.

(4) Rich in mercy.--Not only merciful, but rich "in the multitude of mercy," as attaching even to those dead in sin (see Chrysostom on this passage). The idea of richness in grace, glory, mercy, is especially frequent in this Epistle. (See Ephesians 1:7; Ephesians 1:18; Ephesians 2:7; Ephesians 3:8; Ephesians 3:16.)

For his great love.--Again, as in Ephesians 1:4, stress is laid on the love of God, before all else, as the one moving cause of salvation. (Comp. Romans 5:8, "God commendeth His love towards us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.") . . .

Verse 4. - But God, being rich in mercy. The preceding verses convey the idea of a rushing towards inevitable ruin - towards some frightful cataract, when all help from man is hopeless. Man's extremity becomes God's opportunity. The "but" is very emphatic, and wonderfully reverses the picture. The sovereignty of God is very apparent, on its gracious side. It interposes to rescue those who would otherwise plunge into irretrievable ruin. We have here the filling up of that Divine saying, "O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself, but in me is thine help." The genesis of salvation is declared to be in two of God's attributes, of which the first is mercy, or compassion. God has a tender, yearning feeling towards men brought to misery by their own sins. And this feeling is not shallow or spare - he is rich in mercy. It is an exuberant, full-flowing feeling in God ("Thy mercy ... is in the heavens," Psalm 36:5), and may therefore be appealed to trustfully. For his great love wherewith he loved us. The other attribute from which the plan of salvation sprang is God's love. Love is more than compassion. Compassion may be confined to the breast, but love goes forth in active beneficence. It makes common cause with its object. It cannot rest till its object is lint right. Two expressions are used intensifying this Divine love:

(1) his great love;

(2) love with which he loved us;

the verb of love governing the noun of love makes the idea rich and strong. This view of the exuberance of the Divine attributes from which salvation has its rise is in harmony with the whole character of the Epistle.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
But
δὲ (de)
Conjunction
Strong's 1161: A primary particle; but, and, etc.

because of
διὰ (dia)
Preposition
Strong's 1223: A primary preposition denoting the channel of an act; through.

His
αὐτοῦ (autou)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

great
πολλὴν (pollēn)
Adjective - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 4183: Much, many; often.

love
ἀγάπην (agapēn)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 26: From agapao; love, i.e. Affection or benevolence; specially a love-feast.

for us,
ἣν (hēn)
Personal / Relative Pronoun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3739: Who, which, what, that.

God,
Θεὸς (Theos)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2316: A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.

who is
ὢν (ōn)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

rich
πλούσιος (plousios)
Adjective - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 4145: Rich, abounding in, wealthy; subst: a rich man. From ploutos; wealthy; figuratively, abounding with.

in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

mercy,
ἐλέει (eleei)
Noun - Dative Neuter Singular
Strong's 1656: Pity, mercy, compassion. Of uncertain affinity; compassion.


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NT Letters: Ephesians 2:4 But God being rich in mercy (Ephes. Eph. Ep)
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