What does Ephesians 3:4 mean?

Paul noted that reading his letter would give wisdom into the mystery of Christ. Ephesians seems to have been written for more than one congregation. So, these words would have had a more important application as many readers would be included. The idea of "perceiving" Paul's insight was that of the readers understanding what Paul knew about the unity that was now available between Jews and Gentiles in Christ.

Again, mystery is emphasized (Ephesians 3:3). Colossians 4:3 is the only other passage where Paul uses the phrase "mystery of Christ." Paul refers to this as the reason he was in prison. Colossians and Ephesians were written around the same time, while Paul was under house arrest. The letters share several similarities which support the apostle Paul as the author of both. Ephesians is the only Prison Epistle, however, which does not include Timothy as a co-author. This may merely mean he is not mentioned, or perhaps that Paul scribed these words personally, or was assisted by someone other than Timothy.