one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
Parallel translations
- WEB one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
- KJV One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
- NKJV one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
- NASB one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
- NLT There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Christian unity rests on shared essentials: one Lord, one faith, and one baptism. These common grounds bind all believers together.
Overview
Continuing his list of unifying realities (4:4-6), Paul names the central confession of the church: Jesus is the one Lord, received by one shared faith and marked by one baptism into him. There is no rival Lord or competing gospel. This singular focus on Christ is the foundation of the church's God-given oneness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 28
- 1 Cor 8:6yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we exist. And there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we exist.
- 1 Cor 12:13For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free, and we were all given one Spirit to drink.
- 1 Pet 3:21And this water symbolizes the baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
- Rom 3:30since there is only one God, who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith.
- Gal 3:26–28You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
- Matt 28:19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,
- 1 Cor 1:13Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
- Jude 1:3Beloved, although I made every effort to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt it necessary to write and urge you to contend earnestly for the faith entrusted once for all to the saints.
- Zech 14:9On that day the LORD will become King over all the earth—the LORD alone, and His name alone.
- 1 Cor 1:2To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:
- 2 Cor 11:4For if someone comes and proclaims a Jesus other than the One we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the One you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it way too easily.
- Phil 2:11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
- Rom 14:8–9If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
- 1 Cor 12:5There are different ministries, but the same Lord.
- Gal 5:6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. All that matters is faith, expressed through love.
- Eph 4:13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, as we mature to the full measure of the stature of Christ.
- Rom 6:3–4Or aren’t you aware that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?
- Acts 2:36Therefore let all Israel know with certainty that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ!”
- Phil 3:8More than that, I count all things as loss compared to the surpassing excellence of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ
- Gal 1:6–7I am amazed how quickly you are deserting the One who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—
- Acts 10:36He has sent this message to the people of Israel, proclaiming the gospel of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.
- Jude 1:20But you, beloved, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit,
- Heb 6:6and then have fallen away—to be restored to repentance, because they themselves are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting Him to open shame.
- Titus 1:1Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ for the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness,
- Titus 1:4To Titus, my true child in our common faith: Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior.
- Heb 13:7Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
- 2 Pet 1:1Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:
- Jas 2:18But someone will say, “You have faith and I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Every spiritual blessing is 'in Christ,' the head over all things for the church, in whom Jew and Gentile are made one new man by his blood.
How Ephesians 4:5 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.