Ephesians 1:5 - Conditional predestination?
Does Ephesians 1:5 have conditions?
Ephesians 1:5: "HAVING-PREDESTINED us for adoption-as-sons through Jesus Christ to Himself ACCORDING-TO the good-pleasure (of) HIS WILL,"
Adoptions as sons:
Paul wrote about "the God and Father (of) our Lord Jesus Christ" (Ephesians 1:3) "HAVING-PREDESTINED us for ADOPTION-AS-SONS [huiothesia 5206 in Greek]" (Ephesians 1:5).
In the earliest Greek manuscripts of Ephesians 1:5, a SINGLE Greek word is used that can be translated as "ADOPTION-AS-SONS [huiothesia 5206 in Greek]".
What is "ADOPTION-AS-SONS"? It is a (future) redemption of our body, as Paul wrote elsewhere that we are "eagerly-awaiting ADOPTION-AS-SONS [huiothesia 5206 in Greek], the redemption (of) our body" (Romans 8:23).
So in Ephesians 1:5 Paul is not writing that people who are NOT in Christ are predestined to become sons of God by faith in Christ (that is, that non-Christians would be predestined to become Christians), but Paul is writing that people who are IN Christ are predestined for "ADOPTION-AS-SONS", which is a future redemption of our body (that is, Christians are predestined for a future redemption of their body).
Those who are IN Christ have already "received (the) Spirit (of) ADOPTION-AS-SONS [huiothesia 5206 in Greek]" (Romans 8:15), but they are not described as having already received the "ADOPTION-AS-SONS" to which they are predestined, as they are "EAGERLY-AWAITING ADOPTION-AS-SONS [huiothesia 5206 in Greek], the redemption (of) our body" (Romans 8:23).
According to His will:
Paul wrote about "God" (Ephesians 1:3) "HAVING-PREDESTINED us for adoption-as-sons through Jesus Christ to Himself ACCORDING-TO the good-pleasure (of) HIS WILL" (Ephesians 1:5).
Here it is described that God is predestining ACCORDING-TO "HIS WILL [theléma 2307 in Greek]" (Ephesians 1:5).
It is possible to reject God's will, as Paul wrote elsewhere: "this is (the) WILL [theléma 2307 in Greek] (of) God: your holiness" (1 Thessalonians 4:3) and then a few verses later: "God did not call us for impurity, but in holiness. So-therefore the (one) REJECTING is not rejecting (a) human, but God" (1 Thessalonians 4:7-8).
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