Ephesians 3:17

Dwell. Gr. katoikeo, “to inhabit,” “to abide,” “to be at home,” “to settle down,” “to abide.” The idea of permanency is now added to that of strengthening (v. 16). Christ is not an occasional visitor, but abides in the heart, a constantly available power for enlightenment and purification (cf. John 14:23; Rev. 3:20).

By faith. It is faith that opens up the heart of Christ. Faith is a confident trust in God and His promises, and is a continuously sustaining principle of life (see on Rom. 4:3).

Rooted and grounded. These two distinct images are used frequently by Paul and other scriptural writers (Ps. 1:3; Jer. 17:8; Col. 1:23; 2:7). Paul often combines metaphors in order to reinforce his point (1 Cor. 3:9).

In love. In the Greek these words are in the emphatic beginning position. Thus they may be understood as connected with the first part of v. 17, reading literally, “that Christ may dwell through faith in your hearts in love.” Or they may be understood as connected with the words “rooted and grounded,” as the reading “rooted and grounded in love” implies. Love that is “rooted” goes down deep into the soil of the soul, engaging all the faculties of the mind, while love that is “grounded” is the firm foundation on which all our relationships exist. There is no argument against love of this kind, for there is nothing greater (1 Cor. 13). Love springs directly from the experience of possessing the indwelling Christ, and becomes the rooting and grounding of the unity between God and man, and between man and his fellow man.