Ephesians 3:3

By revelation he made known unto me - Instead of εγνωρισε, he made known, εγνωρισθη, was made known, is the reading of ABCD*FG, several others, both the Syriac, Coptic, Slavonic, Vulgate, and Itala, with Clemens, Cyril, Chrysostom, Theodoret, Damascenus, and others: it is doubtless the true reading.

The apostle wishes the Ephesians to understand that it was not an opinion of his own, or a doctrine which he was taught by others, or which he had gathered from the ancient prophets; but one that came to him by immediate revelation from God, as he had informed them before in a few words, referring to what he had said Ephesians 1:9-12.

How that by revelation - see the notes at Galatians 1:12. He refers to the revelation which was made to him when he was called to the apostolic office, that the gospel was to be preached to the Gentiles, and that he was converted for the special purpose of carrying it to them; see Acts 9:15; Acts 22:21.

Unto me the mystery - The hitherto concealed truth that the gospel was to be preached to the Gentiles; see the notes, Ephesians 1:9, on the meaning of the word "mystery."

As I wrote afore in few words - Margin, "a little before." To what this refers commentators are not agreed. Bloomfield, Doddridge, Rosenmuller, Erasmus, Grotius, Locke, and others, suppose that he refers to what he had written in the two previous chapters respecting the plan of God to call the Gentiles to his kingdom. Calvin supposes that he refers to some former epistle which he had written to them, but which is now lost. Hc remarks in regard to this, "If the solicitude of Paul be rightly considered; if his vigilance and assiduity; if his zeal and studious habits; if his kindness and promptitude in assisting his brethren, it is easy to suppose that he wrote many epistles publicly and privately to this place and to that place. But those only which the Lord saw necessary to the welfare of his church has he taken care to have preserved." In this opinion there is nothing in itself improbable (compare introduction to Isaiah, section 5 (1)), but it may be doubted whether Paul here refers to any such epistle. The addition which he makes, "whereby, when ye read," etc., seems rather to imply that he refers to what he had just written.

3:3 The mystery - Of salvation by Christ alone, and that both to Jews and gentiles. As I wrote before - Namely, Ephesians 1:9 ,10; the very words of which passage he here repeats.