Mystery

Mystery (Greek mysterion) in the New Testament does not denote something inherently unknowable or esoteric but rather a divine truth formerly hidden that has now been disclosed through revelation. The term appears to draw on Old Testament concepts of divine counsel and secret wisdom (cf. Dan. 2:18–19, 27–30; Amos 3:7) rather than on the Greek mystery cults, in which mysteria were secret rites disclosed only to initiates. Paul is the primary New Testament expositor of this concept: he describes the inclusion of the Gentiles as equal heirs of the promise in Christ as a mystery hidden for ages but now made manifest through the gospel (Eph. 3:3–11; Col. 1:26–27). The content of Christ in believers — "Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Col. 1:27) — is itself the central mystery. Other New Testament mysteries include the partial hardening of Israel (Rom. 11:25), the resurrection and transformation of the dead at Christ's coming (1 Cor. 15:51), the union of Christ and the church as a profound mystery analogous to marriage (Eph. 5:32), and the mystery of lawlessness already at work in the world (2 Thess. 2:7). The common thread is divine initiative: God reveals what was hidden, and this disclosure is the essence of the gospel.