What does "chosen us in him before the foundation of the world" mean (Ephesians 1:4)?

Whosoever Will, The Address of Election: Read the election verse to the end of its sentence. “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love.” (Ephesians 1:4) Three things are on the page. Chosen. In him. That we should be holy. A location and a purpose, and no stated basis in us. Nobody is chosen for being good. Both sides say that, and both sides say election is in Christ. So the question is what “in Christ” means when God chooses, and this is the position I hold, in plain words, so you can hold it too. Election in this letter is corporate. God chose a people in His Son before the world, and the people is the Church, the Body of which Christ is the Head. A person enters the Church as an individual, by faith, in time. Once he is in it, everything said of the chosen is said of him, because he is in the One it was said of. Chosen in him means chosen as a member of the Church that is in him. Scripture, King James Version: Ephesians 1:4, "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:".

Verified. Every scripture quotation on this page has been checked word-for-word against the King James text. Last reviewed 2026-10-18.

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What does "chosen us in him before the foundation of the world" mean (Ephesians 1:4)? → wsb.bible/answers/what-does-chosen-us-in-him-before-the-foundation-of-the-world-mean

This answer is the short form. The argument is made at length in The Address of Election: Exhibit two: chosen where, and chosen as what.

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