The Incomparable Christ

¹³ For He has rescued us and has drawn us to Himself from the dominion of darkness, and has transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption [because of His sacrifice, resulting in] the forgiveness of our sins [and the cancellation of sins’ penalty].

¹⁵ He is the exact living image [the essential manifestation] of the unseen God [the visible representation of the invisible], the firstborn [the preeminent one, the sovereign, and the originator] of all creation. ¹⁶ For ^[a]by Him all things were created in heaven and on earth, [things] visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him [that is, by His activity] and for Him. ¹⁷ And He Himself existed and is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. [His is the controlling, cohesive force of the universe.]^{(A) 18} He is also the head [the life-source and leader] of the body, the ^[b]church; and He is the beginning, ^[c]the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will occupy the first place [He will stand supreme and be preeminent] in everything.^{(B) 19} For it pleased the Father for all the fullness [of deity—the sum total of His essence, all His perfection, powers, and attributes] to dwell [permanently] in Him (the Son), ²⁰ and through [the intervention of] the Son to reconcile all things to Himself, making peace [with believers] through the blood of His cross; through Him, [I say,] whether things on earth or things in heaven.

²¹ And although you were at one time estranged and alienated and hostile-minded [toward Him], participating in evil things, ²² yet Christ has now reconciled you [to God] in His ^[d]physical body through death, in order to present you before the Father holy and blameless and beyond reproach— ²³ [and He will do this] if you continue in the faith, well-grounded and steadfast, and not shifting away from the [confident] hope [that is a result] of the gospel that you have heard, which was proclaimed ^[e]in all creation under heaven, and of which [gospel] I, Paul, was made a minister.

²⁴ Now I rejoice in my sufferings on your behalf. And with my own body I ^[f]supplement whatever is lacking [on our part] of Christ’s afflictions, on behalf of His body, which is the church. ²⁵ In this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship which God entrusted to me for your sake, so that I might make the word of God fully known [among you]— ²⁶ that is, ^[g]the mystery which was hidden [from angels and mankind] for ages and generations, but has now been revealed to His saints (God’s people). ²⁷ God [in His eternal plan] chose to make known to them how great for the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in and among you, the hope and guarantee of [realizing the] glory. ²⁸ We proclaim Him, warning and instructing everyone in all wisdom [that is, with comprehensive insight into the word and purposes of God], so that we may present every person complete in Christ [mature, fully trained, and perfect in Him—the Anointed]. ²⁹ For this I labor [often to the point of exhaustion], striving with His power and energy, which so greatly works within me.