Ephesians 3:20 – Exceeding Abundantly Above All That We Ask or Think | KJV
“Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.”
— Ephesians 3:20 KJVEphesians 3:20 is the doxology that closes Paul's great prayer of Ephesians 3:14-19 — one of the most magnificent prayers in all of Scripture. And the doxology itself surpasses the prayer in its declaration of divine ability.
The Greek compound behind 'exceeding abundantly above' is hyperekperissou — three words fused into one superlative: huper (above, beyond) + ek (out of) + perissou (abundance, overflow). It is as if Paul exhausts every available superlative and then stacks them. God can do more than we ask — but also more than we ask abundantly — but also more than we ask exceeding abundantly — but also above and beyond all that. The piling of superlatives is intentional: no human request or imagination can define the ceiling of divine ability.
'All that we ask or think' — the two faculties of prayer and imagination are both included and both exceeded. Our prayers are limited by our knowledge, our faith, and our ability to articulate what we need. Our imagination is limited by our experience and the categories our minds can form. God's ability exceeds both simultaneously. He does not merely answer what we ask; He is able to do far beyond what we can ask, and beyond what we can imagine in our most expansive moments.
The closing phrase grounds this declaration in present reality: 'according to the power that worketh in us.' The power that raised Christ from the dead (Ephesians 1:19-20) — the same power — is actively working in the grace-age believer. This is not a future capability or a potential to be activated through sufficient faith; it is a present reality described in the present tense. The unlimited power of God is operative in the believer right now. Prayer in the grace age is not an attempt to convince God to act; it is an alignment with a God who is already powerfully at work.
Paul's prayer in verses 14-19 is itself an example of asking at the level of Ephesians 3:20: he asks for inner strengthening by the Spirit in the inner man, for Christ to dwell in the heart by faith, for rooting and grounding in love, for comprehending the four dimensions of Christ's love, for being filled with all the fullness of God. These are staggering requests — and the doxology of verse 20 assures us that God is able to do exceeding abundantly above even these.
Let Ephesians 3:20 recalibrate your prayer life. What have you stopped asking for because it seems too large, too impossible, or too far removed from your current reality? God's ability is not constrained by your circumstances, your history, or your imagination. Pray big. Believe bigger. Trust the God who is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that you ask or think.
The unlimited God works through His unlimited power in ordinary believers to accomplish extraordinary purposes. Your limitation is not a limitation on God. Ask. Imagine. And then trust the One who can do exceeding abundantly above and beyond even that. To Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages. Amen.
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