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Colossians 3
Contemporary English Version
Colossians 3
Contemporary English Version
3 (A) You have been raised to life with Christ. Now set your heart on what is in heaven, where Christ rules at God's right side.[a] 2 Think about what is up there, not about what is here on earth. 3 You died, which means that your life is hidden with Christ, who sits beside God. 4 Christ gives meaning to your[b] life, and when he appears, you will also appear with him in glory.
5 Don't be controlled by your body. Kill every desire for the wrong kind of sex. Don't be immoral or indecent or have evil thoughts. Don't be greedy, which is the same as worshiping idols. 6 God is angry with people who disobey him by doing[c] these things. 7 And this is exactly what you did, when you lived among people who behaved in this way. 8 But now you must stop doing such things. You must quit being angry, hateful, and evil. You must no longer say insulting or cruel things about others. 9 (B) And stop lying to each other. You have given up your old way of life with its habits.
10 (C) Each of you is now a new person. You are becoming more and more like your Creator, and you will understand him better. 11 It doesn't matter if you are a Greek or a Jew, or if you are circumcised or not. You may even be a barbarian or a Scythian,[d] and you may be a slave or a free person. Yet Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.
12 (D) God loves you and has chosen you as his own special people. So be gentle, kind, humble, meek, and patient. 13 (E) Put up with each other, and forgive anyone who does you wrong, just as Christ has forgiven you. 14 Love is more important than anything else. It is what ties everything completely together.
15 Each one of you is part of the body of Christ, and you were chosen to live together in peace. So let the peace that comes from Christ control your thoughts. And be grateful. 16 (F) Let the message about Christ completely fill your lives, while you use all your wisdom to teach and instruct each other. With thankful hearts, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. 17 Whatever you say or do should be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, as you give thanks to God the Father because of him.
Some Rules for Christian Living
18 (G) A wife must put her husband first. This is her duty as a follower of the Lord.
19 (H) A husband must love his wife and not abuse her.
20 (I) Children must always obey their parents. This pleases the Lord.
21 (J) Parents, don't be hard on your children. If you are, they might give up.
22 (K) Slaves, you must always obey your earthly masters. Try to please them at all times, and not just when you think they are watching. Honor the Lord and serve your masters with your whole heart. 23 Do your work willingly, as though you were serving the Lord himself, and not just your earthly master. 24 In fact, the Lord Christ is the one you are really serving, and you know he will reward you. 25 (L) But Christ has no favorites! He will punish evil people, just as they deserve.
Footnotes
- 3.1 right side: The place of power and honor.
- 3.4 your: Some manuscripts have “our.”
- 3.6 people who disobey him by doing: Some manuscripts do not have these words.
- 3.11 a barbarian or a Scythian: Barbarians were people who could not speak Greek and would be in the lower class of society. Scythians were people who were known for their cruelty.
Colossians 3
EasyEnglish Bible
Colossians 3
EasyEnglish Bible
The old life and the new life
3 God has raised you with Christ to a new life. So you should want more and more the things that belong to heaven. That is where Christ is now. He sits there at God's right side. 2 So think about the good things that are there in heaven above. Do not think only about things that are on the earth. 3 Remember that your old nature has died. God is keeping your new life safe with Christ. 4 You have that new life because you belong to Christ. One day, Christ will show himself clearly to everyone. Then everyone will see that you are with him. They will see that you also are great, like he is.
5 Your old nature likes to do bad things that belong to this earth. But your old nature is dead, so do not do these bad things any more. Do not have sex with someone that you are not married to. Do not think bad, disgusting thoughts. Do not want to have sex in a wrong way. Do not want to do any kinds of bad things. Do not want to have many things for yourselves. That shows that you worship those things as your idol. 6 God will certainly punish people who do those kinds of bad things.
7 At one time, you lived like that. You did those kinds of bad things. 8 But now you must refuse to do all kinds of things like that. Do not become angry with people or shout at them. Do not do anything or say anything that will hurt other people. Do not speak any bad or disgusting words. 9 Do not deceive each other with lies. Remember that you have taken off your old nature, like an old coat. As a result, you can stop doing all the bad things that you liked to do before.
10 Now you have received a new nature. It is God who made it for you so that you can become more and more like him. You will learn to know him better and better. 11 People have this new nature only because they belong to Christ. That is the important thing. Jews are not different from Gentiles. It does not matter whether someone has circumcised you or not. It does not matter which country you come from or how clever you are. It does not matter whether you are a slave or a free person. Christ is all that matters. He lives in every believer.
12 God has chosen you to be his own special people. You belong to him and he loves you very much. So this is how you should live: Be kind to other people and help them. Do not think that you are better than other people. Instead, respect them and be patient with them. 13 Do not become angry with each other. If you think that someone has done something wrong against you, forgive them. Remember that the Lord has forgiven you. So you should also forgive other people. 14 And you must also love each other. That is the most important thing that you should do. Love holds all these good things completely together.
15 Christ has given you peace in your minds. So let that peace rule your thoughts. God has chosen you to be like one body, as his people. So he wants you to live together in peace. Thank God for everything that he gives to you. 16 Let Christ's message always be in your thoughts, with all the good things that it brings. Use that message to teach and to warn each other. Be very wise as you do that. And also sing all kinds of spiritual songs to praise God. Sing psalms and Christian songs. As you sing, thank God from inside yourselves. 17 Show that you belong to the Lord Jesus with everything that you do and with everything that you say. Always thank God the Father in the way that you serve Jesus.
Do what is right, at home and at work
18 Wives, obey your husbands. That is the right thing to do, because you belong to the Lord.
19 Husbands, love your wives. Do not bring trouble to them.
20 Children, always obey your parents. That pleases the Lord.
21 Fathers, do not cause your children to be upset. If you do, they might think that they never do anything that is good.
22 Slaves, always obey your human masters. Do not do good work only when they can see you. Some people only work to make other people like them. Instead, serve your masters well because you want to. That will show that you respect the Lord as your master. 23 Whatever things you are doing, do them well. Remember that you are serving the Lord. You are not only serving people. 24 You know that you will receive the good things that the Lord has promised to his people. He will give you what is right for you. The Lord Jesus Christ is the master that you serve. 25 Remember that God will punish anyone who does wrong things. He always judges people correctly, whoever they are.
Colossians 3
New International Version
Colossians 3
New International Version
Living as Those Made Alive in Christ
3 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ,(A) set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.(B) 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.(C) 3 For you died,(D) and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your[a] life,(E) appears,(F) then you also will appear with him in glory.(G)
5 Put to death,(H) therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:(I) sexual immorality,(J) impurity, lust, evil desires and greed,(K) which is idolatry.(L) 6 Because of these, the wrath of God(M) is coming.[b] 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.(N) 8 But now you must also rid yourselves(O) of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,(P) and filthy language from your lips.(Q) 9 Do not lie to each other,(R) since you have taken off your old self(S) with its practices 10 and have put on the new self,(T) which is being renewed(U) in knowledge in the image of its Creator.(V) 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew,(W) circumcised or uncircumcised,(X) barbarian, Scythian, slave or free,(Y) but Christ is all,(Z) and is in all.
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves(AA) with compassion, kindness, humility,(AB) gentleness and patience.(AC) 13 Bear with each other(AD) and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.(AE) 14 And over all these virtues put on love,(AF) which binds them all together in perfect unity.(AG)
15 Let the peace of Christ(AH) rule in your hearts, since as members of one body(AI) you were called to peace.(AJ) And be thankful. 16 Let the message of Christ(AK) dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom(AL) through psalms,(AM) hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.(AN) 17 And whatever you do,(AO) whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks(AP) to God the Father through him.
Instructions for Christian Households(AQ)
18 Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands,(AR) as is fitting in the Lord.
19 Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them.
20 Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.
21 Fathers,[c] do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.
22 Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. 23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, 24 since you know that you will receive an inheritance(AS) from the Lord as a reward.(AT) It is the Lord Christ you are serving. 25 Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for their wrongs, and there is no favoritism.(AU)
Footnotes
- Colossians 3:4 Some manuscripts our
- Colossians 3:6 Some early manuscripts coming on those who are disobedient
- Colossians 3:21 Or Parents
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