Colosenses 1
La Palabra (Hispanoamérica)
Introducción (1,1-14)
Saludo
1 Pablo, apóstol de Jesucristo por designio de Dios, y el hermano Timoteo, 2 a los creyentes de Colosas, hermanos fieles en Cristo. Que Dios, nuestro Padre, les conceda gracia y paz.
Acción de gracias
3 Damos gracias a Dios Padre de nuestro Señor Jesucristo, mientras rogamos incesantemente por ustedes, 4 al tener noticia de la fe en Cristo Jesús y del amor que muestran a todos los creyentes. 5 Los anima a ello la esperanza del premio que tienen reservado en el cielo y que han conocido por medio del mensaje evangélico que es palabra verdadera. 6 Un mensaje que ha llegado hasta ustedes y que sigue extendiéndose y dando fruto, tanto en el mundo entero como entre ustedes desde el día mismo en que tuvieron noticia de la gracia de Dios y la experimentaron de verdad. 7 Así se lo enseñó nuestro querido compañero Epafras, que hace nuestras veces actuando como fiel servidor de Cristo. 8 Él fue también quien nos contó cómo se aman en el Espíritu.
Oración por la iglesia de Colosas
9 Por eso, desde el día en que nos enteramos de todo esto, no cesamos de rogar por ustedes. Pedimos a Dios que los llene del conocimiento de su voluntad, que los haga profundamente sabios y les conceda la prudencia del Espíritu. 10 Su estilo de vida será así totalmente digno y agradable al Señor, darán fruto en toda suerte de obras buenas y crecerán en el conocimiento de Dios. 11 Su glorioso poder los dotará de una fortaleza a toda prueba para que sean ejemplo de constancia y paciencia, y para que, llenos de alegría, 12 den gracias al Padre que los ha juzgado dignos de compartir la herencia de su pueblo en el reino de la luz. 13 Él es quien nos ha rescatado del poder de las tinieblas y nos ha trasladado al reino de su Hijo querido, 14 del que nos viene la liberación y el perdón de los pecados.
I.— EL MISTERIO SALVADOR DE CRISTO (1,15—2,5)
Presencia de Cristo en la creación y en la redención
15 Cristo es la imagen del Dios invisible,
el primogénito de todo lo creado.
16 Dios ha creado en él todas las cosas:
todo lo que existe en el cielo y en la tierra,
lo visible y lo invisible,
sean tronos, dominaciones,
principados o potestades,
todo lo ha creado Dios
por Cristo y para Cristo.
17 Cristo existía antes que hubiera cosa alguna,
y todo tiene en él su consistencia.
18 Él es también la cabeza
del cuerpo que es la Iglesia;
en él comienza todo;
él es el primogénito
de los que han de resucitar,
teniendo así la primacía de todas las cosas.
19 Dios, en efecto, tuvo a bien
hacer habitar en Cristo la plenitud
20 y por medio de él reconciliar
consigo todos los seres:
los que están en la tierra
y los que están en el cielo,
realizando así la paz
mediante la muerte de Cristo en la cruz.
Reconciliados con Dios
21 También ustedes estuvieron en otro tiempo lejos de Dios y fueron sus enemigos por el modo de pensar y por las malas acciones. 22 Ahora, en cambio, por la muerte que Cristo ha sufrido en su cuerpo mortal, Dios ha hecho la paz con ustedes para admitirlos en su presencia como a pueblo consagrado, sin mancha y sin tacha. 23 Es necesario, sin embargo, que permanezcan sólidamente firmes e inconmovibles en la fe y que no traicionen la esperanza contenida en el mensaje evangélico que escucharon y que ha sido proclamado a todas las criaturas que se encuentran bajo el cielo, y del que yo, Pablo, me he convertido en servidor.
Pablo y su papel en la Iglesia
24 Ahora me alegro de sufrir por ustedes. Así voy completando en mi existencia corporal, y en favor del cuerpo de Cristo que es la Iglesia, lo que aún falta al total de las tribulaciones cristianas. 25 Dios me ha hecho servidor de esa Iglesia y me ha confiado la tarea de llevar a plenitud en ustedes su palabra: 26 el plan secreto que Dios tuvo escondido durante siglos y generaciones enteras, y que ahora Dios ha revelado a los creyentes, 27 dándoles a conocer la gloria y la riqueza que este plan encierra para los paganos. Me refiero a Cristo, que vive en ustedes y es la esperanza de la gloria.
28 A este Cristo anunciamos, corrigiendo y enseñando a todos con el mayor empeño para que todos alcancen la plena madurez en su vida cristiana. 29 Esta es la tarea por la que me afano y lucho con denuedo, apoyado en la fuerza de Cristo que actúa poderosamente en mí.
歌羅西書 1
Chinese Contemporary Bible (Traditional)
1 我是奉上帝旨意作基督耶穌使徒的保羅， 2 和提摩太弟兄寫信給歌羅西的聖徒，就是忠於基督的弟兄姊妹。
願我們的父上帝賜給你們恩典和平安！
感恩與禱告
3-4 我們聽說了你們對基督耶穌的信心和對眾聖徒的愛心，為你們禱告的時候，常常感謝我們主耶穌基督的父上帝。 5 你們能有這樣的信心和愛心是因為那給你們存在天上的盼望，就是你們從前從福音真道中聽到的盼望。 6 這福音不但傳到了你們那裡，也傳到了世界各地，並且開花結果，信主的人數不斷增長，正如你們當初聽了福音，因為明白真理而認識上帝的恩典後的情形。 7 這福音是你們從我們親愛的同工以巴弗那裡得知的。他代表我們[a]作基督的忠僕， 8 並把聖靈賜給你們的愛心告訴了我們。
9 因此，從聽到你們的消息那天起，我們便不斷地為你們禱告，求上帝使你們在一切屬靈的智慧和悟性上完全明白祂的旨意， 10 以便你們行事為人對得起主，凡事蒙祂喜悅，在一切良善的事上結出果實，對上帝的認識不斷增加。 11 願上帝以祂榮耀的權能使你們剛強，無論遇到什麼事都能長久忍耐， 12 歡喜地感謝天父，因祂使你們有資格跟眾聖徒在光明中同享基業。 13 祂把我們從黑暗的權勢下拯救出來，帶進祂愛子的國度裡。 14 我們藉著祂的愛子蒙救贖，罪過得到赦免。
基督超越一切
15 基督是那不能看見之上帝的真像，超越[b]一切受造之物。 16 因為萬物都是藉著祂創造的，天上的、地上的、有形的、無形的、作王的、統治的、執政的、掌權的，一切都是藉著祂也是為了祂而創造的。 17 祂存在於萬物之前，萬物都靠祂而維繫。 18 祂是教會的頭，教會是祂的身體；祂是源頭，是首先從死裡復活的，這樣祂可以在一切事上居首位。 19 因為上帝樂意讓一切的豐盛住在祂裡面， 20 又藉著祂在十字架上所流的血成就了和平，使天地萬物藉著祂與上帝和好。
21 你們從前與上帝隔絕，行事邪惡，心思意念與祂為敵； 22 但現在上帝藉著基督肉身的死使你們與祂和好了，讓你們在祂面前成為聖潔無瑕、無可指責的人。 23 只是你們必須恆心持守所信的道，根基穩固，堅定不移，不要失去你們聽到福音後所得到的盼望。這福音傳給了天下萬民。我保羅也作了這福音的使者。
保羅為教會受苦
24 現在我因能夠為你們受苦而歡喜，並且我是為基督的身體——教會的緣故，在自己身上補滿基督未受的苦難。 25 我受上帝的委派成為教會的僕人，要把上帝的道完整地傳給你們。 26 這道是歷世歷代一直隱藏的奧祕，現在已經向祂的眾聖徒顯明了。 27 上帝要他們知道這奧祕在外族人中有何等豐富的榮耀，這奧祕就是基督在你們裡面，使你們有榮耀的盼望。 28 我們傳揚基督，用各樣的智慧勸誡、教導眾人，使他們在基督裡長大成熟，好把他們帶到上帝面前。 29 為此，我按著祂在我身上運行的大能盡心竭力，不辭勞苦。
Colossians 1
New Catholic Bible
Introduction
Chapter 1
Address. 1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 to the saints[a] and faithful brethren in Christ in Colossae. May God our Father grant you grace and peace.
A Community Pervaded by the Gospel.[b] 3 In all our prayers for you we always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 4 because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints 5 because of the hope that is stored up for you in heaven. You had learned of this hope through the word of truth, the gospel,[c] 6 that has come down to you.
Just as it is bearing fruit and growing throughout the entire world, so it has been bearing fruit among you, ever since the day when you heard it and came to understand the grace of God in truth. 7 You learned this from Epaphras,[d] our beloved fellow servant and a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf. 8 He was also the one who made known to us your love in the Spirit.
9 That is why, ever since the day we first heard about it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10 And we ask this so that you may live in a manner worthy of the Lord and become fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and continuing to grow in the knowledge of God.
11 May you be fortified with the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be granted patience and endurance, while joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.[e] 13 He has rescued us from the power of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
The Supremacy of Christ
In Christ, through Him, and for Him[f]
15 He is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
16 For in him were created all things
in heaven and on earth,
whether visible or invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—
all things were created through him and for him.
17 He exists before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
18 He is the head of the body,
that is, the Church.
He is the beginning,
the firstborn from the dead,
so that in every way
he should be supreme.
19 For in him
it pleased God
to make all fullness dwell,[g]
20 and through him
to reconcile all things for him,
whether on earth or in heaven,
by making peace through his blood of the cross.
21 Christ among the Gentiles.[h]You yourselves were once alienated and hostile in your intent because of your evil deeds. 22 But now, through Christ’s death in his body of flesh, God has reconciled you to himself so that you may stand holy, blameless, and irreproachable in his presence.
23 However, you must persevere in the faith, firmly grounded and steadfast in your belief, and never allowing yourselves to drift away from the hope of the gospel that you accepted and that has now been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, the gospel of which I, Paul, have become a servant.
24 Christ’s Suffering in His People. I find great joy at present in suffering for you, and in my own body I am completing the sufferings that still must be undergone by Christ for the sake of his body, the Church.[i] 25 I was made a minister of that Church, with the commission given to me by God to make fully known to you the word of God, 26 the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and from past generations but that now has been revealed to his saints.
27 To these God chose to make known how rich is the priceless glory that this mystery brings to the Gentiles—Christ in you, your hope of glory.[j] 28 It is he whom we proclaim, admonishing and instructing everyone in all wisdom so that we may present everyone to Christ in a state of perfection. 29 For this I labor and struggle with all his energy working within me mightily.
Footnotes
- Colossians 1:2 Saints: Christians are called saints because through Baptism they have been consecrated to God and are called to live accordingly.
- Colossians 1:3 The power of the Gospel to live and spread is extraordinary; it is God’s grace and action among human beings. In the vitality of a young Church, Paul recognizes this work of the Lord, and he prays that it will develop in all its richness. Thanksgiving and prayer succeed each other in this introduction and indicate the principal features of an authentic Christian life: to accept the truth of the Gospel; to grow in faith, love, and hope; and to know God more in order to be more faithful in the concrete.
Nonetheless, the initiative comes from the Lord. It is he who changes our life; it is he who frees us from the bondage of sin and leads us into a new world, the kingdom of Christ. Now he is extending to all the Gentiles the salvation formerly reserved for Israel—“the inheritance of the saints.” Such a text gives us the echo of what might have been the mystique of Baptism and the joy of the Christian in the early Church. - Colossians 1:5 This verse refers to the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, which also appear in Rom 5:2-5; 1 Cor 13:13; Gal 5:5f; 1 Thes 1:3; 5:8; Heb 10:22-24. For the special nuance mentioned here, that hope gives rise to faith and love, see Tit 1:2.
- Colossians 1:7 Epaphras: a Colossian and founder of the Church of Colossae, who is now with Paul.
- Colossians 1:12 Light: this term is used to symbolize glory (Isa 60:1-3; 1 Tim 6:16), life (Jn 1:4), holiness (Mt 5:14; 6:23; Acts 26:18; 1 Jn 1:5), love (Jas 1:17; 1 Jn 2:9f), and truth (Pss 36:9; 119:105, 130; 2 Cor 4:6). Thus, the character of light is found in God (1 Jn 1:5), Christ (Jn 8:12), and Christians (Eph 5:8).
- Colossians 1:15 This great hymn to Christ and his universal primacy was probably a baptismal hymn. It draws upon the most beautiful motifs of the Old Testament on Divine wisdom (see Prov 8:1-9, 12; Wis 7:21—8:12; Sir 24). In the perspective Paul adopts here, he contemplates Christ as the image of the invisible God and clearly asserts his Divine preexistence (see 2 Cor 4:4; Phil 2:6; Heb 1:3).
Christ is before all and above all; whether we consider the universe or the History of Salvation, he is both the reason for being and the explanation of everything in them. If we seek the origin of, the rationale for, or the end of creation, he is the one we must name. All the heavenly forces and hierarchies so prized in certain Jewish or Christian circles in Colossae—in a word, everything that claims to rule the universe—are subject to him as the Creator.
He alone is Lord of the world. He alone is the power giving life to the Church, that is, his Body. He alone is the Mediator who reconciles all beings with one another and with God. We experience a universe disordered by sin; it is re-created and transformed in him. Hence, for the Christian, history has a movement and a meaning: it is oriented toward Christ, directed by him, and consummated in him.
Paul wants to enunciate a hope that is infinitely more than merely human, a hope founded in faith (see Rom 8:19-22; 1 Cor 15:22-28; Phil 3:21): the risen Christ is the center in whom two worlds are united, the Divine and the created. - Colossians 1:19 All fullness (plêrôma): the fullness of deity (see Col 2:9) or, better, the universe full of the creative and redemptive presence of God. According to Paul, the risen Christ rules the whole of creation, what has been raised from sinfulness to salvation.
- Colossians 1:21 By dying on the cross, Christ has accomplished the reconciliation of all human beings. The Gospel changes their condition before God, provided that they accept it with faith. Paul rejoices in suffering to announce such a message, for he knows that the ordeal of a missionary is united with the Passion of Christ and contributes to the life and growth of the Church. He is captivated by the “mystery” of God. This term frequently means, depending on the context, Christ as prophesied, Christ who has come into this world, Christ continuing his work in the Church, Christ in his triumphal return.
Here, in this grand perspective of unity, Paul focuses his attention on the present aspect of the mystery. Today, Jews and Gentiles are admitted into the same inheritance, they are members of the same body, and they benefit from the same promise; today, even the multitudes of the Gentiles whom Israel regarded as excluded from the Covenant are called to the embrace of the Church. This is the wonderful mystery that the Apostle is charged to reveal. - Colossians 1:24 For the sake of his body, the Church: nothing is lacking in the sufferings of Christ, but believers who form a single reality with him (his body) prolong and complete his Paschal Mystery of Death and Resurrection by their trials and sufferings.
- Colossians 1:27 Christ dwells in us when we are regenerated (see Eph 3:17). We partake of the divine nature by feeding on him (Jn 6:56) and by having his word abide in us, and we grow in grace and bear fruit as we abide in him (Jn 15:5f).
La Palabra, (versión hispanoamericana) © 2010 Texto y Edición, Sociedad Bíblica de España
