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Colossians 2
New American Bible (Revised Edition)

Chapter 2

1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I am having for you and for those in Laodicea[a] and all who have not seen me face to face, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged as they are brought together in love, to have all the richness of fully assured understanding, for the knowledge of the mystery of God, Christ,(A) 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.(B)

III. Warnings Against False Teachers[b]

A General Admonition. 4 I say this so that no one may deceive you by specious arguments.(C) 5 For even if I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing as I observe your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ.(D) 6 So, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in him, 7 rooted in him and built upon him and established in the faith as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.(E) 8 See to it that no one captivate you with an empty, seductive philosophy according to human tradition, according to the elemental powers of the world[c] and not according to Christ.(F)

Sovereign Role of Christ. 9 (G)For in him dwells the whole fullness of the deity[d] bodily, 10 and you share in this fullness in him, who is the head of every principality and power. 11 (H)In him[e] you were also circumcised with a circumcision not administered by hand, by stripping off the carnal body, with the circumcision of Christ. 12 You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.(I) 13 (J)And even when you were dead [in] transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he brought you to life along with him, having forgiven us all our transgressions; 14 [f]obliterating the bond against us, with its legal claims, which was opposed to us, he also removed it from our midst, nailing it to the cross;(K) 15 despoiling the principalities and the powers, he made a public spectacle of them,(L) leading them away in triumph by it.[g]

Practices Contrary to Faith. 16 (M)Let no one, then, pass judgment on you in matters of food and drink or with regard to a festival or new moon or sabbath.[h] 17 These are shadows of things to come; the reality belongs to Christ.(N) 18 Let no one disqualify you, delighting in self-abasement and worship of angels, taking his stand on visions,[i] inflated without reason by his fleshly mind,(O) 19 and not holding closely to the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and bonds, achieves the growth that comes from God.(P)

20 If you died with Christ to the elemental powers of the world, why do you submit to regulations as if you were still living in the world? 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” 22 These are all things destined to perish with use; they accord with human precepts and teachings.(Q) 23 While they have a semblance of wisdom in rigor of devotion and self-abasement [and] severity to the body, they are of no value against gratification of the flesh.

Footnotes

  1. 2:1 Laodicea: chief city in Phrygia, northwest of Colossae; cf. Col 4:13, 16; Rev 3:14–22.
  2. 2:4–23 In face of the threat posed by false teachers (Col 2:4), the Colossians are admonished to adhere to the gospel as it was first preached to them (Col 2:6), steeping themselves in it with grateful hearts (Col 2:7). They must reject religious teachings originating in any source except the gospel (Col 2:8) because in Christ alone will they have access to God, the deity (Col 2:9). So fully has Christ enlightened them that they need no other source of religious knowledge or virtue (Col 2:10). They do not require circumcision (Col 2:11), for in baptism their whole being has been affected by Christ (Col 2:12) through forgiveness of sin and resurrection to a new life (Col 2:13; cf. Col 3:1 and Rom 6:1–11). On the cross Christ canceled the record of the debt that stood against us with all its claims (Col 2:14), i.e., he eliminated the law (cf. Eph 2:15) that human beings could not observe—and that could not save them. He forgave sins against the law (Col 2:14) and exposed as false and misleading (Col 2:15) all other powers (cf. Col 1:16) that purport to offer salvation. Therefore, the Colossians are not to accept judgments from such teachers on food and drink or to keep certain religious festivals or engage in certain cultic practices (Col 2:16), for the Colossians would thereby risk severing themselves from Christ (Col 2:19). If, when they accepted the gospel, they believed in Christ as their savior, they must be convinced that their salvation cannot be achieved by appeasing ruling spirits through dietary practices or through a wisdom gained simply by means of harsh asceticism (Col 2:20–23).
  3. 2:8 Elemental powers of the world: see note on Gal 4:3.
  4. 2:9 Fullness of the deity: the divine nature, not just attributes; see note on Col 1:19.
  5. 2:11 A description of baptism (Col 2:12) in symbolic terms of the Old Testament rite for entry into the community. The false teachers may have demanded physical circumcision of the Colossians.
  6. 2:14 The elaborate metaphor here about how God canceled the legal claims against us through Christ’s cross depicts not Christ being nailed to the cross by men but the bond…with its legal claims being nailed to the cross by God.
  7. 2:15 The picture derives from the public spectacle and triumph of a Roman emperor’s victory parade, where captives marched in subjection. The principalities and the powers are here conquered, not reconciled (cf. Col 1:16, 20). An alternate rendering for by it (the cross) is “by him” (Christ).
  8. 2:16 Festival or new moon or sabbath: yearly, monthly, and weekly observances determined by religious powers associated with a calendar set by the heavenly bodies, sun, moon, and stars (cf. Col 2:8).
  9. 2:18 Ascetic practices encouraged by the false teachers included subjection of self humbly to their rules, worship of angels, and cultivation of visions, though exact details are unclear.
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Colosas 2
Ang Salita ng Dios (Tagalog Contemporary Bible)

2 Nais kong malaman nʼyo kung gaano kalaki ang paghihirap ko para sa inyo, ganoon din sa mga nasa Laodicea at sa lahat ng hindi pa nakakakilala sa akin nang personal. 2 Ginagawa ko ito para palakasin ang loob ninyong lahat at pag-isahin kayo sa pag-ibig. Sa ganoon, malalaman at mauunawaan nʼyo nang lubos ang lihim na plano ng Dios tungkol kay Cristo. 3 Si Cristo ang pinagmumulan ng lahat ng karunungan at kaalaman.

4 Sinasabi ko sa inyo ang mga bagay na ito para hindi kayo malinlang ninuman sa pamamagitan ng magagaling nilang pangangatwiran. 5 Kahit wala ako riyan sa inyo, lagi kayong nasa isipan ko. At masaya ako dahil maayos ang pamumuhay nʼyo at matatag ang inyong pananampalataya kay Cristo.

Si Cristo ang Dapat Nating Sundin

6 Dahil tinanggap nʼyo na si Cristo Jesus bilang Panginoon, mamuhay kayo nang karapat-dapat sa kanya. 7 Patuloy kayong lumago at tumibay sa kanya. Magpakatatag kayo sa pananampalatayang itinuro sa inyo, at maging mapagpasalamat din kayo.

8 Mag-ingat kayo nang hindi kayo madala ng walang kabuluhan at mapandayang pilosopiya. Mga tradisyon lang ito at mga pamamaraan ng mundo, at hindi mula kay Cristo. 9 Kaya huwag kayong padadala, dahil ang kapuspusan ng Dios ay nananahan sa katawan ni Cristo. 10 At naging ganap kayo sa pakikipag-isa nʼyo sa kanya, na siyang pangulo ng lahat ng espiritung namumuno at may kapangyarihan.

11 Dahil sa pakikipag-isa nʼyo kay Cristo, tinuli na kayo. Ang pagtutuli na ito ay hindi pisikal kundi espiritwal – ang pag-aalis ng masasamang hilig ng laman. Ito ang pagtutuling mula kay Cristo. 12 Inilibing kayong kasama ni Cristo nang bautismuhan kayo. At dahil nakay Cristo na kayo, muli kayong binuhay na kasama niya, dahil nananalig kayo sa kapangyarihan ng Dios na bumuhay sa kanya. 13 Noong una, itinuring kayong mga patay ng Dios dahil sa mga kasalanan ninyo. Pero ngayon, binuhay kayo ng Dios kasama ni Cristo. Pinatawad niya ang lahat ng kasalanan natin. 14 May pananagutan dapat tayo sa Dios dahil hindi natin matupad ang Kautusan. Pero inalis ito ng Dios sa pamamagitan ng pagkapako ni Cristo sa krus. Kaya hindi na tayo parurusahan. 15 Doon din sa krus nilupig ng Dios ang mga espiritung namumuno at may kapangyarihan, at ipinakita sa lahat na ang mga ito ay bihag na niya.

16 Kaya nga, huwag na kayong padadala sa mga tao na nagsasabi sa inyo kung ano ang hindi dapat kainin o inumin, o kung ano ang dapat gawin tuwing kapistahan, Pista ng Pagsisimula ng Buwan, o Araw ng Pamamahinga. 17 Anino lang ang mga ito ng inaasahan noon na darating, at si Cristo ang katuparan nito. 18 Huwag kayong padadaya sa mga taong humihikayat na kailangan ninyong pagkaitan ang sarili nʼyo at sambahin ang mga anghel. Pinaninindigan nila ang mga ito dahil sa mga pangitain nila na pagyayabang lang, walang kabuluhan, at gawa-gawa lang ng makamundo nilang pag-iisip. 19 Wala silang kaugnayan kay Cristo na siyang ulo natin. Siya ang nag-uugnay-ugnay at nag-aalaga sa atin na kanyang katawan sa pamamagitan ng mga magkakaugnay na bahagi nito. Sa ganoon, lumalago tayo nang naaayon sa Dios.

Ang Bagong Buhay Kay Cristo

20 Namatay kayong kasama ni Cristo, at pinalaya sa mga walang kabuluhang pamamaraan ng mundo, kaya bakit namumuhay pa rin kayo na parang mga makamundo? Bakit sumusunod pa rin kayo sa mga tuntuning tulad ng, 21 “Huwag hahawak nito,” “Huwag titikim niyon,” “Huwag hihipo niyan”? 22 Ang mga itoʼy batay lang sa utos at turo ng tao tungkol sa mga bagay na nawawala pagkatapos kainin o inumin. 23 Sa unang tingin, parang may karunungan ang mga ganitong katuruan tungkol sa gusto nilang pagsamba, pagpapakumbaba, at pagpapahirap sa sariling katawan. Pero ang totoo, wala namang naitutulong ang mga ito sa pagpipigil sa masasamang hilig ng laman.

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Colossians 2
New International Version

2 I want you to know how hard I am contending(A) for you and for those at Laodicea,(B) and for all who have not met me personally. 2 My goal is that they may be encouraged in heart(C) and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery(D) of God, namely, Christ, 3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.(E) 4 I tell you this so that no one may deceive you by fine-sounding arguments.(F) 5 For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit(G) and delight to see how disciplined(H) you are and how firm(I) your faith in Christ(J) is.

Spiritual Fullness in Christ

6 So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord,(K) continue to live your lives in him, 7 rooted(L) and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught,(M) and overflowing with thankfulness.

8 See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy,(N) which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces[a] of this world(O) rather than on Christ.

9 For in Christ all the fullness(P) of the Deity lives in bodily form, 10 and in Christ you have been brought to fullness. He is the head(Q) over every power and authority.(R) 11 In him you were also circumcised(S) with a circumcision not performed by human hands. Your whole self ruled by the flesh[b](T) was put off when you were circumcised by[c] Christ, 12 having been buried with him in baptism,(U) in which you were also raised with him(V) through your faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.(W)

13 When you were dead in your sins(X) and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you[d] alive(Y) with Christ. He forgave us all our sins,(Z) 14 having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness,(AA) which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.(AB) 15 And having disarmed the powers and authorities,(AC) he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them(AD) by the cross.[e]

Freedom From Human Rules

16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you(AE) by what you eat or drink,(AF) or with regard to a religious festival,(AG) a New Moon celebration(AH) or a Sabbath day.(AI) 17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come;(AJ) the reality, however, is found in Christ. 18 Do not let anyone who delights in false humility(AK) and the worship of angels disqualify you.(AL) Such a person also goes into great detail about what they have seen; they are puffed up with idle notions by their unspiritual mind. 19 They have lost connection with the head,(AM) from whom the whole body,(AN) supported and held together by its ligaments and sinews, grows as God causes it to grow.(AO)

20 Since you died with Christ(AP) to the elemental spiritual forces of this world,(AQ) why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules:(AR) 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”? 22 These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish(AS) with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings.(AT) 23 Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility(AU) and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.

Footnotes

  1. Colossians 2:8 Or the basic principles; also in verse 20
  2. Colossians 2:11 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit; also in verse 13.
  3. Colossians 2:11 Or put off in the circumcision of
  4. Colossians 2:13 Some manuscripts us
  5. Colossians 2:15 Or them in him
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New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)

Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Ang Salita ng Dios (Tagalog Contemporary Bible) (ASND)

Ang Salita ng Dios (Tagalog Contemporary Bible) Copyright © 2009, 2011, 2014, 2015 by Biblica, Inc. ®

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

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