Colossians 1
Lexham English Bible
Greeting
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 2 to the saints and faithful brothers in Christ in Colossae. Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
Thanksgiving for the Colossian Believers
3 We give thanks always to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ when we[a] pray for you, 4 since we[b] heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints, 5 because of the hope reserved for you in heaven, which you have heard about beforehand in the word of truth, the gospel, 6 that has come to you, just as also in all the world it is bearing fruit and increasing, just as also among you from the day you heard about and understood the grace of God in truth, 7 just as you learned it[c] from Epaphras, our dear fellow slave who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf,[d] 8 who also made clear to us your love in the Spirit.
Prayer for Maturity Based on Christ’s Preeminence
9 Because of this also we, from the day we heard about it,[e] did not cease praying for you, and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual insight, 10 so that you may live in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please him in all respects[f], bearing fruit in every good deed and increasing in the knowledge of God, 11 enabled with all power, according to his glorious might, for all steadfastness and patience with joy, 12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you for a share of the inheritance of the saints in light, 13 who has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us[g] to the kingdom of the Son he loves[h], 14 in whom we have the redemption, the forgiveness of sins, 15 who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all[i] creation, 16 because all things in the heavens and on the earth were created by him, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers, all things were created through him and for him, 17 and he himself is before all things, and in him all things are held together, 18 and he himself is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he himself may become first in everything, 19 because he was well pleased for all the fullness to dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile all things to himself, by[j] making peace through the blood of his cross, through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven.
21 And although you were formerly alienated[k][l] and enemies in attitude, because of your evil deeds, 22 but now you have been reconciled[m] by his physical body[n] through death, to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, 23 if indeed you remain in the faith, established and steadfast and not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which was proclaimed in all creation under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.
Paul’s Suffering and Stewardship
24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings on behalf of you, and I fill up in my flesh what is lacking of the afflictions of Christ, on behalf of his body which is the church, 25 of which I became a minister, according to God’s stewardship which was given to me for you, to complete the word of God, 26 the mystery which has been hidden from the ages and from the generations, but has now been revealed to his saints, 27 to whom God wanted to make known what is the glorious wealth of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory, 28 whom we proclaim, by[o] admonishing every person[p] and teaching every person[q] with all wisdom, in order that we may present every person[r] mature in Christ, 29 for which purpose also I labor, striving according to his working which is at work powerfully in me.
Footnotes
- Colossians 1:3 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“pray”) which is understood as temporal
- Colossians 1:4 Here “since” is supplied as a component of the participle (“heard about”) which is understood as causal
- Colossians 1:7 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Colossians 1:7 Some manuscripts have “on your behalf”
- Colossians 1:9 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Colossians 1:10 Literally “to all pleasing”
- Colossians 1:13 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Colossians 1:13 Literally “of his love”
- Colossians 1:15 Translated as a genitive of subordination (Wallace, GGBB, 104)
- Colossians 1:20 Here “by” is supplied as a component of the participle (“making peace”) which is understood as means
- Colossians 1:21 Literally “and you formerly being alienated”
- Colossians 1:21 Here the participle (“being”) is understood as concessive
- Colossians 1:22 Some manuscripts have “he has reconciled you”
- Colossians 1:22 Literally “the body of his flesh”
- Colossians 1:28 Here “by” is supplied as a component of the participle (“admonishing”) which is understood as means
- Colossians 1:28 Literally “man,” used here in a generic sense to refer to persons of either gender
- Colossians 1:28 Literally “man,” used here in a generic sense to refer to persons of either gender
- Colossians 1:28 Literally “man,” used here in a generic sense to refer to persons of either gender
Colossians 1
Easy-to-Read Version
1 Greetings from Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus. I am an apostle because that is what God wanted. Greetings also from Timothy, our brother in Christ.
2 To the holy and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ who live in Colossae.
Grace and peace to you from God our Father.
3 In our prayers we always thank God for you. He is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 4 We thank him because we have heard about the faith you have in Christ Jesus and the love you have for all of God’s people. 5 Your faith and love continue because you know what is waiting for you in heaven—the hope you have had since you first heard the true message, the Good News 6 that was told to you. Throughout the world, this Good News is bringing blessings and is spreading. And that’s what has been happening among you since the first time you heard it and understood the truth about God’s grace. 7 You heard it from Epaphras, our dear friend and co-worker. He is a faithful servant of Christ for us.[a] 8 He also told us about the love you have from the Spirit.
9 Since the day we heard these things about you, we have continued praying for you. This is what we pray:
that God will make you completely sure of what he wants by giving you all the wisdom and spiritual understanding you need; 10 that this will help you live in a way that brings honor to the Lord and pleases him in every way; that your life will produce good works of every kind and that you will grow in your knowledge of God[b]; 11 that God will strengthen you with his own great power, so that you will be patient and not give up when troubles come.
Then you will be happy 12 and give thanks to the Father. He has made you able to have what he has promised to give all his holy people, who live in the light. 13 God made us free from the power of darkness. And he brought us into the kingdom of his dear Son. 14 The Son paid the price to make us free. In him we have forgiveness of our sins.
The Son of God Is the Same as God
15 No one can see God,
but the Son is exactly like God.
He rules over everything that has been made.[c]
16 Through his power all things were made:
things in heaven and on earth, seen and not seen—
all spiritual rulers, lords, powers, and authorities.
Everything was made through him and for him.
17 The Son was there before anything was made.
And all things continue because of him.
18 He is the head of the body, which is the church.
He is the beginning of everything else.
And he is the first among all who will be raised from death.[d]
So in everything he is most important.
19 God was pleased for all of himself to live in the Son.
20 And through him, God was happy to bring all things back to himself again—
things on earth and things in heaven.
God made peace by using the blood sacrifice of his Son on the cross.
21 At one time you were separated from God. You were his enemies in your minds, because the evil you did was against him. 22 But now he has made you his friends again. He did this by the death Christ suffered while he was in his body. He did it so that he could present you to himself as people who are holy, blameless, and without anything that would make you guilty before him. 23 And that is what will happen if you continue to believe in the Good News you heard. You must remain strong and sure in your faith. You must not let anything cause you to give up the hope that became yours when you heard the Good News. That same Good News has been told to everyone on earth, and that’s the work that I, Paul, was given to do.
Paul’s Work for the Church
24 I am happy in my sufferings for you. There is much that Christ must still suffer. And I gladly accept my part of those sufferings in my body for the good of his body, the church. 25 I became a servant of the church because God gave me a special work to do. This work helps you. My work is to tell the complete message of God. 26 This message is the secret truth that was hidden since the beginning of time. It was hidden from everyone for ages, but now it has been made known to God’s holy people. 27 God decided to let his people know just how rich and glorious that truth is. That secret truth, which is for all people, is that Christ lives in you, his people. He is our hope for glory. 28 So we continue to tell people about Christ. We use all wisdom to counsel every person and teach every person. We are trying to bring everyone before God as people who have grown to be spiritually mature in Christ. 29 To do this, I work and struggle using the great strength that Christ gives me. That strength is working in my life.
Footnotes
- Colossians 1:7 us Many ancient Greek copies have “you.”
- Colossians 1:10 that your life … God Or “that your knowledge of God will produce more and more good works of every kind in your life.”
- Colossians 1:15 He … made Literally, “He is the firstborn of all creation.” See “firstborn” in the Word List.
- Colossians 1:18 first … death Literally, “firstborn from the dead.”
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