Colossians 1:11-20

The Voice

¹¹Strengthen them with Your infinite power, according to Your glorious might, so that they will have everything they need to hold on and endure hardship patiently and joyfully. ¹²Thank You, Father, as You have made us^[a] eligible to receive our portion of the inheritance given to all those set apart by the light. ¹³You have rescued us from dark powers and brought us safely into the kingdom of Your Son, whom You love ¹⁴and in whom we are redeemed and forgiven of our sins [through His blood].^[b]

¹⁵He is the exact image of the invisible God, the firstborn of creation, the eternal. ¹⁶It was by Him that everything was created: the heavens, the earth, all things within and upon them, all things seen and unseen, thrones and dominions, spiritual powers and authorities. Every detail was crafted through His design, by His own hands, and for His purposes. ¹⁷He has always been! It is His hand that holds everything together. ¹⁸He is the head of this body, the church. He is the beginning, the first of those to be reborn from the dead, so that in every aspect, at every view, in everything—He is first. ¹⁹God was pleased that all His fullness should forever dwell in the Son ²⁰who, as predetermined by God, bled peace into the world by His death on the cross as God’s means of reconciling to Himself the whole creation—all things in heaven and all things on earth.