Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Ephesians 4:10

"He that descended is the same also that ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.)" — Ephesians 4:10 (ASV)

The apostle affirms the identity of the incarnate Savior with the ascended Savior. His exaltation is “higher than all the heavens.” The Jews calculated seven heavens, but for Paul, higher than all of them is the rightful throne of Christ, to whom all things are one day to be subjugated (1:10; cf. 1 Corinthians 15:28). No one else is qualified thus to “fill the whole universe.” This is more than the fulfillment of prophetic predictions concerning Christ’s cosmic role or the accomplishment of every task entrusted to him by the Father. It is his filling all things with his presence.