NT Text: Ephesians 3:3-9
OT Source(s):
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Echo
Connection Method(s): Longitudinal Theme + Redemptive-Historical Progression
Significance: Paul's repeated use of mystērion in Ephesians 3:3-9 — the "mystery made known by revelation" (kata apokalypsin egnōristhē moi to mystērion) that was "hidden for ages" and "now revealed" — draws on the conceptual framework established in Daniel 2, where mystērion (LXX rendering of Aramaic raz) refers to the divine secret about God's eschatological kingdom that only God can reveal. In Daniel 2, Nebuchadnezzar's dream contains a "mystery" about the succession of kingdoms and the coming of God's indestructible kingdom; Daniel receives the revelation because "there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries" (Dan 2:28). Paul adopts this apocalyptic vocabulary to describe the previously hidden plan that Gentiles would be "fellow heirs" and "members of the same body" in Christ. The parallel structure is striking: in both cases, the mystery concerns God's kingdom purposes, was hidden from human wisdom, and required divine revelation to be made known. Paul's contribution is to identify the specific content of the mystery — Gentile inclusion — and to locate its revelation in the Christ event, thus advancing Daniel's eschatological framework from political kingdoms to the spiritual reality of the church as the body of Christ.