Colossians 2
New International Reader's Version
2 I want you to know how hard I am working for you. I’m concerned for those who are in Laodicea. I’m also concerned for everyone who has not met me in person. 2 My goal is that their hearts may be encouraged and strengthened. I want them to be joined together in love. Then their understanding will be rich and complete. They will know the mystery of God. That mystery is Christ. 3 All the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in him. 4 But I don’t want anyone to fool you with words that only sound good. 5 So even though I am away from you in body, I am with you in spirit. And I am glad to see that you are controlling yourselves. I am happy that your faith in Christ is so strong.
Having All Things in Christ
6 You received Christ Jesus as Lord. So keep on living your lives in him. 7 Have your roots in him. Build yourselves up in him. Grow strong in what you believe, just as you were taught. Be more thankful than ever before.
8 Make sure no one controls you. They will try to control you by using false reasoning that has no meaning. Their ideas depend on human teachings. They also depend on the basic spiritual powers of this world. They don’t depend on Christ.
9 God’s whole nature is living in Christ in human form. 10 Because you belong to Christ, you have been made complete. He is the ruler over every power and authority. 11 When you received Christ, your circumcision was not done by human hands. Instead, your circumcision was done by Christ. He put away the person you used to be. At that time, sin’s power ruled over you. 12 When you were baptized, you were buried together with Christ. And you were raised to life together with him when you were baptized. You were raised to life by believing in God’s work. God himself raised Jesus from the dead.
13 At one time you were dead in your sins. Your desires controlled by sin were not circumcised. But God gave you new life together with Christ. He forgave us all our sins. 14 He wiped out what the law said that we owed. The law stood against us. It judged us. But he has taken it away and nailed it to the cross. 15 He took away the weapons of the powers and authorities. He made a public show of them. He won the battle over them by dying on the cross.
Freedom From Human Rules
16 So don’t let anyone judge you because of what you eat or drink. Don’t let anyone judge you about holy days. I’m talking about special feasts and New Moons and Sabbath days. 17 They are only a shadow of the things to come. But what is real is found in Christ. 18 Some people enjoy pretending they aren’t proud. They worship angels. But don’t let people like that judge you. These people tell you every little thing about what they have seen. They are proud of their useless ideas. That’s because their minds are not guided by the Holy Spirit. 19 They aren’t connected anymore to the head, who is Christ. But the whole body grows from the head. The muscles and tendons hold the body together. And God causes it to grow.
20 Some people still follow the basic spiritual powers of the world. But you died with Christ as far as these powers are concerned. So why do you act as if you still belong to the world? Here are the rules you follow. 21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” 22 Rules like these are about things that will pass away soon. They are based on merely human rules and teachings. 23 It is true that these rules seem wise. Because of them, people give themselves over to their own kind of worship. They pretend they are humble. They treat their bodies very badly. But rules like these don’t help. They don’t stop people from chasing after sinful pleasures.
Kehillah in Colossae 2
Orthodox Jewish Bible
2 For I want you to have da’as of how great a ma’avak (struggle) I have for you and the ones in Laodicea, and as many as have not seen me panim el panim (directly, in person),
2 That their levavot may be given chozek (strength), having been made an aguda of ahavah and all osher (wealth) of the full assurance of binah, resulting in the da’as of the raz of Hashem, namely Moshiach,
3 In whom is nistar (hidden) all the otzarot (treasures) of chochmah and da’as. [YESHAYAH 11:2; YIRMEYAH 23:5]
4 This I say so that no one may delude you with the sleight of hand of the ba’al melitzot (rhetorician).
5 For, though absent in basar, but present with you in the Ruach Hakodesh, with lev same’ach (glad heart) I am seeing your order and the firmness of your [Orthodox Jewish] emunah in Moshiach.
6 Therefore, as you became mekabel Moshiach and received Moshiach Adoneinu Yehoshua, so let your halichah be in Him,
7 Having been rooted and built up in Moshiach and being firmly founded in the emunah as you were given Messianic [orthodox] lernen [study], abounding in hodayah.
8 Beware lest there be anyone of you taken captive through philosophical tevunah (wisdom) and empty deceit according to the kabbalah (oral tradition) of mere Bnei Adam, according to the ikkarim (basic principles) of the Olam Hazeh and not according to Moshiach;
9 Because in Moshiach kol melo Elohim (all the plentitude of G-d) finds its bodily maon laShechinah (dwelling place for the Shechinah).
10 And you have been granted melo (plentitude) in Moshiach, who is the Rosh of all rule and authority.
11 In Moshiach also you were circumcised with a Bris Milah not made with human hands, a Bris Milah of the surgically removing of the body of the basar (old fallen and unregenerate nature) in the Bris Milah of Moshiach,
12 Having been buried in the Ohel of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach’s tevilah with him, with whom also you were made to stand up spiritually in the Techiyah together through your emunah and bitachon in the ma’aseh of Hashem who made Moshiach stand up from the Mesim.
13 And you being dead in your peysha’im (YESHAYAH 53:8) and your orlat basar (uncircumcision of flesh) he made alive together, you together with Moshiach, having granted you selicha for all your peysha’im;
14 Having erased the handsigned sefer of guilt choiv (debt), the heavenly indictment against us in the maleh chukat haTorah (full statute requirement of the Torah), which was against us. Moshiach has done away with this opposing record, having nailed it to Moshiach’s Etz.
15 Having disarmed the rulers and the authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, having triumphed over them by Moshiach’s Etz.
16 Therefore, let no one judge you [Goyim] in eating and in drinking or in respect to a yom tov (yontev) or a rosh chodesh or Shabbos;
17 Which are a shadow of the things to come in the Olam HaBah; but the reality, the substance, is Moshiach.
18 Let no one deprive you of the prize by delighting in his mystical asceticism and his veneration of malachim and delving into his chazonot (visions) and being vainly puffed up by the machshavot (thoughts) of his basar (old nature unrenewed and unregenerated by the Ruach Hakodesh),
19 And not holding on to the Rosh, out of whom all the Moshiach’s Guf, being fully supplied and being be’ichud (united) together through the joints and ligaments, grows with the growth of Hashem.
20 Als (Since) you died with Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach to the ikkarim (basic principles) of the Olam Hazeh, why, as though you still belonged to the keyam (existence) of the Olam Hazeh, do you (Goyim) chain yourself to chumra legalisms?
21 "Do not touch; do not taste; do not handle."
22 The things referred to are all destined to deterioration with use, according to the humanly contrived mitzvot and the humanly contrived chukim (laws) of mere Bnei Adam [i.e., non-Biblical teachings and humanly contrived religious tradition]YESHAYAH 29:13],
23 Which things have a superficial appearance of chochmah in self-imposed religion and mystical asceticism and severe physical mortification, but are of no value against the indulgence of the basar (the old nature unrenewed and unregenerated by the Ruach Hakodesh).
Colossians 2
New King James Version
Not Philosophy but Christ
2 For I want you to know what a great (A)conflict[a] I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh, 2 that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, [b]both of the Father and of Christ, 3 (B)in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
4 Now this I say (C)lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words. 5 For (D)though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing [c]to see (E)your good order and the (F)steadfastness of your faith in Christ.
6 (G)As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 (H)rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding [d]in it with thanksgiving.
8 Beware lest anyone [e]cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to (I)the tradition of men, according to the (J)basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. 9 For (K)in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead [f]bodily; 10 and you are complete in Him, who is the (L)head of all [g]principality and power.
Not Legalism but Christ
11 In Him you were also (M)circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by (N)putting off the body [h]of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 (O)buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through (P)faith in the working of God, (Q)who raised Him from the dead. 13 And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, 14 (R)having wiped out the [i]handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15 (S)Having disarmed (T)principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
16 So let no one (U)judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a [j]festival or a new moon or sabbaths, 17 (V)which are a shadow of things to come, but the [k]substance is of Christ. 18 Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which he has [l]not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, 19 and not holding fast to (W)the Head, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, (X)grows with the increase that is from God.
20 [m]Therefore, if you (Y)died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, (Z)why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— 21 (AA)“Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” 22 which all concern things which perish with the using—(AB)according to the commandments and doctrines of men? 23 (AC)These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and [n]neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.
Footnotes
- Colossians 2:1 struggle
- Colossians 2:2 NU omits both of the Father and
- Colossians 2:5 Lit. and seeing
- Colossians 2:7 NU omits in it
- Colossians 2:8 Lit. plunder you or take you captive
- Colossians 2:9 in bodily form
- Colossians 2:10 rule and authority
- Colossians 2:11 NU omits of the sins
- Colossians 2:14 certificate of debt with its
- Colossians 2:16 feast day
- Colossians 2:17 Lit. body
- Colossians 2:18 NU omits not
- Colossians 2:20 NU, M omit Therefore
- Colossians 2:23 severe treatment, asceticism
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
