COLOSSIANS
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¤1 °1 Paul, apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God and Timothy our brother, °2 to the saints in Colossae, our faithful brothers and sisters in Christ: Receive grace and peace from God our Father, and Christ Jesus our Lord. °3 Thanks be to God, the Father of Christ Jesus, our Lord! We constantly pray for you, °4 for we have known of your faith in Christ Jesus and of your love for all the saints. Indeed you await in hope the inheritance reserved for you in heaven, °5 of which you have heard through the word of truth. This Gospel, °6 already present among you, is bearing fruit and growing throughout the world, as it did among you from the day you accepted it and understood the gift of God in all its truth. °7 He who taught you, Epaphras, our dear companion in the service of Christ, faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, °8 has reminded me of the love you have for me in the spirit. °9 Because of this, from the day we received news of you, we have not ceased praying to God for you, that you may attain the full knowledge of his will through all the gifts of wisdom and spiritual understanding. °10 May your lifestyle be worthy of the Lord and completely pleasing to him. May you bear fruit in every good work and grow in the knowledge of God. °11 May you become strong in everything by a sharing of the Glory of God, so that you may have great endurance and persevere in joy. °12 Constantly give thanks to the Father who has empowered us to receive our share in the inheritance of the saints in his kingdom of light. °13 He rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son. °14 In him we are redeemed and forgiven. § Christ is the beginning of everything°15 He is the image of the unseen God, and for all creation he is the firstborn, °16 for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible: thrones, rulers, authorities, powers… All was made through him and for him. °17 He is before all and all things hold together in him. °18 And he is the head of the body, that is the Church, for he is the first, the first raised from the dead that he may be the first in everything, °19 for God was pleased to let fullness dwell in him. °20 Through him God willed to reconcile all things to himself, and through him, through his blood shed on the cross, God establishes peace, on earth as in heaven. °21 You yourselves were once estranged and opposed to God because of your evil deeds, °22 but now you have been reconciled. God reconciled you by giving up to death the body of Christ, so that you may be without fault, holy and blameless before him. °23 Only stand firm, upon the foundation of your faith, and be steadfast in hope. Keep in mind the Gospel you have heard, which has been preached to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister. °24 At present I rejoice when I suffer for you; I complete in my own flesh what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of his body, which is the Church. °25 For I am serving the Church since God entrusted to me the ministry of bringing into effect his design for you. °26 I mean that mysterious plan that for centuries and generations remained secret, and which God has now revealed to his holy ones. °27 God willed to make known to them the riches and even the Glory that his mysterious plan reserved for the pagan nations: Christ is in you and you may hope God’s Glory. °28 This Christ we preach. We warn and teach everyone true wisdom, aiming to make everyone perfect in Christ. °29 For this cause I labor and struggle with the energy of Christ working powerfully in me. § Let Christ Jesus, the Lord, be your doctrine¤2 °1 I want you to know how I strive for you, for those of Laodicea and for so many who have not met me personally. °2 I pray that all may be encouraged. May you be established in love, that you may obtain all the riches of a full understanding and know the mystery of God, Christ himself. °3 For in him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. °4 So let no one deceive you with persuasive arguments. °5 Although I am far from you, my spirit is with you and I rejoice in recalling how well-disciplined you are and how firm in the faith of Christ. °6 If you have accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, let him be your doctrine. °7 Be rooted and built up in him; let faith be your principle, as you were taught, and your thanksgiving overflowing. °8 See that no one deceives you with philosophy or any hollow discourse; these are merely human doctrines not inspired by Christ but by the wisdom of this world. °9 For in Him dwells the fullness of God in bodily form. °10 He is the head of all cosmic power and authority, and in him you have everything. § Baptized and risen°11 In Christ Jesus you were given a circumcision but not by human hands, which removed completely from you the carnal body: °12 I refer to baptism. On receiving it you were buried with Christ; and you also rose with him for having believed in the power of God who raised him from the dead. °13 You were dead. You were in sin and uncircumcised at the same time. But God gave you life with Christ. He forgave all our sins. °14 He canceled the record of our debts, those regulations which accused us. He did away with all that and nailed it to the cross. °15 Victorious through the cross, he stripped the rulers and authorities of their power, humbled them before the eyes of the whole world and dragged them behind him as prisoners. § Useless doctrines°16 So, then, let no one criticize you in matters of food or drink or for not observing festivals, new moons or the Sabbath. °17 These things were only shadows of what was to come, whereas the reality is the person of Christ. °18 Do not let yourselves be robbed of him by those people who offer you a religion of fear and the worship of the angels. In fact, they only appreciate their own visions and are puffed up with their idle notions, °19 instead of holding firmly to the head, Christ. It is he who nourishes and gives unity to the whole body by a complex system of nerves and ligaments, making it grow according to the plan of God. °20 If you have really died with Christ, and are rid of the principles of the world, why do you now let yourselves be taught as if you belonged to the world? °21 “Do not eat this, do not taste that, do not touch that…” °22 These are human rules and teachings, referring to things that are perishable, that wear out and disappear. °23 These doctrines may seem to be profound because they speak of religious observance and humility and of disregarding the body. In fact, they are useless as soon as the flesh rebels. § Seek the things that are above¤3 °1 So then, if you are risen with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. °2 Set your mind on the things that are above, not on earthly things. °3 For you have died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. °4 When Christ, who is your life, reveals himself, you also will be revealed with him in Glory. °5 Therefore, put to death what is earthly in your life, that is immorality, impurity, inordinate passions, wicked desires and greed which is a way of worshiping idols. °6 These are the things that arouse the wrath of God. °7 For a time you followed this way and lived in such disorders. °8 Well then,
reject all that: anger, evil intentions, malice; and let no abusive words be
heard from your lips. § Put on the new self°9 Do not lie to one another. You have been stripped of the old self and its way of thinking °10 to put on the new, which is being renewed and is to reach perfect knowledge and the likeness of its creator. °11 There, there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, between circumcised and uncircumcised. There are no strangers, barbarians, slave and free, but Christ is all and is in all. °12 Clothe yourselves, then, as is fitting for God’s chosen people, holy and beloved of him. Put on compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience °13 to bear with one another and forgive whenever there is any occasion to do so. As the Lord has forgiven you, forgive one another. °14 When you have put on all these, take love as your belt so that the dress be perfect. °15 May the peace of Christ overflow in your hearts; for this end you were called to be one body. And be thankful. °16 Let the word of God dwell in you in all its richness. Teach and admonish one another with words of wisdom. With thankful hearts sing to God psalms, hymns and spontaneous praise. °17 And whatever you do or say, do it in the Name of Jesus, the Lord, giving thanks to God the Father through him. § On obedience°18 Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, as you should do in the Lord. °19 Husbands, love your wives and do not get angry with them. °20 Children, obey your parents in everything, because that pleases the Lord. °21 Parents, do not be too demanding of your children, lest they become discouraged. °22 Servants, obey your masters in everything; not only while they are present, to gain favor with them, but sincerely, because you fear the Lord. °23 Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly, working for the Lord, and not for humans. °24 You well know that the Lord will reward you with the inheritance. You are servants, but your Lord is Christ. °25 Every evildoer will be paid back for whatever wrong has been done, for God does not make exceptions in favor of anyone. ¤4 °1 As for you, masters, give your servants what is fair and reasonable, knowing that you yourselves have a Master in heaven. § Further instructions°2 Be steadfast in prayer and even spend the night praying and giving thanks. °3 Pray especially for us and our preaching: may the Lord give us words to announce the mystery of Christ. Because of this I am in chains; °4 pray then that I may be able to reveal this mystery as I should. °5 Deal wisely with those who do not belong to the Church; take advantage of every opportunity. °6 Let your conversation be pleasing with a touch of wit. Know how to speak to everyone in the best way. °7 Tychicus will give news of me. He is our dear brother and for me a faithful assistant and fellow worker for the Lord. °8 I am purposely sending him to give you news of me and to encourage you. °9 With him I am sending Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of yours. They will tell you about everything that is happening here. °10 My companion in prison, Aristarchus, greets you, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, about whom you have already received instructions. If he calls on you, receive him warmly. °11 Jesus, called Justus, also greets you. They are the only Jewish people working with me for the kingdom of God, and because of that they have been a comfort to me. °12 Greetings from your countryman Epaphras, a good servant of Christ Jesus. He constantly battles for you through his prayer that you be perfect and firm in whatever God asks of you. °13 I assure you that he is deeply concerned about you, as he is for the Laodiceans and those of Hierapolis. °14 Greetings from Luke, our dear doctor and from Demas. °15 Greet the brothers and sisters of Laodicea, and don’t forget Nympha and the church that gathers in her house. °16 After reading this letter, see that it is read in the Church of the Laodiceans, and have the letter they received read in yours. °17 And say to Archipus, “Do not forget the ministry given to you in the Lord.” °18 Greetings in my own hand, Paul. Remember that I am in chains. Grace be with you. The End. |