Greeting
COLOSSIANS 1 Paul, a an apostle of Christ Jesus b by the will of God, and Timothy c our brother,
2To the d saints and faithful brothers [1] in Christ at Colossae:
e Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
3 f We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 4since we heard of g your faith in Christ Jesus and of g the love that you have for all the saints, 5because of h the hope i laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in j the word of the truth, the gospel, 6which has come to you, as indeed k in the whole world it is l bearing fruit and increasing—as it also does among you, since the day you m heard it and understood n the grace of God in truth, 7just as you learned it from o Epaphras our beloved p fellow servant. [2] He is p a faithful minister of Christ on your [3] behalf 8and has made known to us your q love in the Spirit.
9And so, r from the day we heard, s we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that t you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all u spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10so as v to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, w fully pleasing to him, x bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. 11 y May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for z all endurance and patience a with joy, 12 b giving thanks [4] to the Father, who has qualified you [5] to share in c the inheritance of the saints in light. 13He d has delivered us from e the domain of darkness and transferred us to f the kingdom of g his beloved Son, 14 h in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
The Preeminence of Christ
15 i He is the image of j the invisible God, k the firstborn of all creation. 16For by [6] him all things were created, l in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether m thrones or n dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created o through him and for him. 17And p he is before all things, and in him all things q hold together. 18And r he is the head of the body, the church. He is s the beginning, t the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19For u in him all the v fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20and w through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, x making peace y by the blood of his cross.
21 z And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, a doing evil deeds, 22he has now reconciled b in his body of flesh by his death, c in order to present you holy and blameless and d above reproach before him, 23 e if indeed you continue in the faith, f stable and steadfast, not shifting from g the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed h in all creation [7] under heaven, i and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Paul’s Ministry to the Church
24Now j I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh k I am filling up l what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions m for the sake of his body, that is, the church, 25 n of which I became a minister according to o the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, 26 p the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. 27 q To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are r the riches of the glory of p this mystery, which is Christ in you, s the hope of glory. 28Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that t we may present everyone u mature in Christ. 29For this v I toil, w struggling x with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.
COLOSSIANS 2 For I want you to know y how great a w struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea and for all who have not seen me face to face, 2that z their hearts may be encouraged, being a knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of b God’s mystery, which is Christ, 3 c in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. 4I say this in order d that no one may delude you with plausible arguments. 5For e though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your f good order and g the firmness of your faith in Christ.
Alive in Christ
6 h Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 i rooted and j built up in him and k established in the faith, just l as you were taught, abounding m in thanksgiving.
8See to it that no one takes you captive by n philosophy and o empty deceit, according to p human tradition, according to the q elemental spirits [1] of the world, and not according to Christ. 9For r in him the whole fullness of deity dwells s bodily, 10and t you have been filled in him, who is u the head of all rule and authority. 11In him also v you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by w putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 x having been buried with him in baptism, in which y you were also raised with him through faith in z the powerful working of God, z who raised him from the dead. 13 a And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God b made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14by c canceling d the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 w He disarmed the rulers and authorities [2] and e put them to open shame, by f triumphing over them in him. [3]
Let No One Disqualify You
16Therefore let no one g pass judgment on you h in questions of food and drink, or with regard to i a festival or j a new moon or a Sabbath. 17 k These are a shadow of the things to come, but l the substance belongs to Christ. 18Let no one m disqualify you, n insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, o going on in detail about visions, [4] p puffed up without reason by q his sensuous mind, 19and r not s holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.
20If with Christ t you died to the u elemental spirits of the world, v why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— 21 w “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” 22( x referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to y human precepts and teachings? 23These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in z promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are a of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.
Put On the New Self
COLOSSIANS 3 b If then you have been raised with Christ, seek c the things that are above, where Christ is, d seated at the right hand of God. 2 e Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3For f you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ g who is your [1] life h appears, then you also will appear with him i in glory.
5 j Put to death therefore k what is earthly in you: [2] l sexual immorality, impurity, m passion, evil desire, and covetousness, n which is idolatry. 6 o On account of these the wrath of God is coming. [3] 7 p In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8But now q you must put them all away: r anger, wrath, malice, s slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 t Do not lie to one another, seeing that u you have put off v the old self [4] with its practices 10and w have put on x the new self, y which is being renewed in knowledge z after the image of a its creator. 11 b Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, [5] free; but Christ is c all, and in all.
12 d Put on then, as e God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, f compassionate hearts, g kindness, h humility, meekness, and patience, 13 h bearing with one another and, i if one has a complaint against another, g forgiving each other; g as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14And above all these put on j love, which k binds everything together in l perfect harmony. 15And let m the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called n in one body. And o be thankful. 16Let p the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, q singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, r with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17And s whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, t giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Rules for Christian Households
18 u Wives, submit to your husbands, as v is fitting in the Lord. 19Husbands, love your wives, and w do not be harsh with them. 20Children, obey your parents x in everything, for this pleases the Lord. 21Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged. 22Bondservants, [6] obey x in everything those who are your earthly masters, [7] not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. 23 y Whatever you do, work heartily, z as for the Lord and not for men, 24knowing that from the Lord a you will receive the inheritance as your reward. b You are serving the Lord Christ. 25For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality.
COLOSSIANS 4 Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.
Further Instructions
2 c Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it d with thanksgiving. 3At the same time, pray also for us, that God may e open to us a door for the word, f to declare the mystery of Christ, g on account of which I am in prison— 4that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak.
5 h Walk in wisdom toward i outsiders, making the best use of the time. 6Let your speech always j be gracious, k seasoned with salt, l so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
Final Greetings
7Tychicus will tell you m all about my activities. He is a beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant [1] in the Lord. 8I have sent him to you for this very purpose, that you may know how we are and that he may encourage your hearts, 9and with him n Onesimus, our faithful and o beloved brother, who is one of you. They will tell you of everything that has taken place here.
10 p Aristarchus my fellow prisoner greets you, and Mark q the cousin of Barnabas (concerning whom you have received instructions— r if he comes to you, welcome him), 11and Jesus who is called s Justus. t These are the only men of the circumcision among my fellow workers for the kingdom of God, and u they have been a comfort to me. 12 v Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus, greets you, always w struggling on your behalf in his prayers, that you may stand x mature and fully assured in all the will of God. 13For I bear him witness that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and in Hierapolis. 14 y Luke the beloved physician greets you, as does z Demas. 15Give my greetings to the brothers [2] at Laodicea, and to Nympha and a the church in her house. 16And when b this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans; and see that you also read the letter from Laodicea. 17And say to c Archippus, “See that you fulfill d the ministry that you have received in the Lord.”
18I, Paul, e write this greeting with my own hand. f Remember g my chains. h Grace be with you.