Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy {Greek: the brother.}our brother,
{Or, to those that are at Colossae, holy and faithful brethren in Christ}to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ that are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.
We give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,
having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have toward all the saints,
because of the hope which is laid up for you in the heavens, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the {Greek: good tidings: and so elsewhere; see marginal note on Matthew 4:23.}gospel,
which is come unto you; even as it is also in all the world bearing fruit and increasing, as it doth in you also, since the day ye heard and knew the grace of God in truth;
even as ye learned of Epaphras our beloved fellow-servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on {Many ancient authorities read your.}our behalf,
who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.
For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray and make request for you, that ye may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,
to walk worthily of the Lord {Or, unto all pleasing, in every good work, bearing fruit and increasing &c.}unto all pleasing, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing {Or, by}in the knowledge of God;
{Greek: made powerful.}strengthened {Or, in}with all power, according to the might of his glory, unto all {Or, stedfastness}patience and longsuffering with joy;
giving thanks unto the Father, who made {Some ancient authorities read you.}us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light;
who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love;
in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins:
who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;
for in him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him, and unto him;
and he is before all things, and in him all things {That is, hold together.}consist.
And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; {Or, that among all he might have &c.}that in all things he might have the preeminence.
{Or, For the whole fullness of God was pleased to dwell in him}For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in him should all the fulness dwell;
and through him to reconcile all things {Or, into him}unto {Or, him}himself, having made peace through the blood of his cross; through him, I say, whether things upon the earth, or things in the heavens.
And you, being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works,
yet now {Some ancient authorities read ye have been reconciled.}hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him:
if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the {Greek: good tidings: and so elsewhere; see marginal note on Matthew 4:23.}gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister.
Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and fill up on my part that which is lacking of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church;
whereof I was made a minister, according to the {Or, stewardship See 1 Corinthians 9:17}dispensation of God which was given me to you-ward, to fulfil the word of God,
even the mystery which hath been hid for {Or, from all the ages &c. Greek: from the ages and from the generations.}ages and generations: but now hath it been manifested to his saints,
to whom God was pleased to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
whom we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ;
whereunto I labor also, striving according to his working, which worketh in me {Or, in power}mightily.
Querverweise zu Kolosser 1,5 Kol 1,5
if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the {Greek: good tidings: and so elsewhere; see marginal note on Matthew 4:23.}gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister.
Oh how great is thy goodness,Which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee,Which thou hast wrought for them that take refuge in thee,Before the sons of men!
Let the word of {Some ancient authorities read the Lord: others, God.}Christ dwell in you {Or, richly in all wisdom; teaching &c.}richly; in all wisdom teaching and admonishing {Or, yourselves}one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts unto God.
to whom God was pleased to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves {Greek: dig through.}break through and steal:
{Many ancient authorities read He sent the word unto.}The word which he sent unto the children of Israel, preaching {Or, the gospel}good tidings of peace by Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all.) —
But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Brethren, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees: touching the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question.
but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth consume, and where thieves do not {Greek: dig through.}break through nor steal:
Brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and those among you that fear God, to us is the word of this salvation sent forth.
having hope toward God, which these also themselves {Or, accept}look for, that there shall be a resurrection both of the just and unjust.
Sell that which ye have, and give alms; make for yourselves purses which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief draweth near, neither moth destroyeth.
But what saith it? {Deuteronomy 30:14}The word is nigh thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach:
And now I stand here to be judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers;
henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved his appearing.
to wit, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself, not reckoning unto them their trespasses, and having {Or, placed in us}committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
unto which promise our twelve tribes, earnestly serving God night and day, hope to attain. And concerning this hope I am accused by the Jews, O king!
Blessed be {Or, God and the Father See Romans 15:6 margin.}the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy begat us again unto a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
in the word of truth, in the power of God; {Greek: though.}by the armor of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the {Greek: greater. Compare Matthew 18:1, 4; 23:11}greatest of these is love.
unto an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,
in whom ye also, having heard the word of the truth, the {Or, good tidings. See marginal note on Matthew 4:23.}gospel of your salvation,— in whom, having also believed, ye were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise,
{Or, If in this life only we have hoped in Christ &c.}If we have only hoped in Christ in this life, we are of all men most pitiable.
And for this cause we also thank God without ceasing, that, when ye received from us {Greek: the word of hearing. Galatians 3:2, 5}the word of the message, even the word of God, ye accepted it not as the word of men, but, as it is in truth, the word of God, which also worketh in you that believe.
For we through the Spirit by faith wait for the hope of righteousness.
Faithful is the saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief:
having the eyes of your heart enlightened, that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
as newborn babes, long for the {Greek: belonging to the reason. Compare Romans 12:1.}spiritual milk which is without guile, that ye may grow thereby unto salvation;
and what the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to that working of the strength of his might
Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace,
(for the law made nothing perfect), and a bringing in thereupon of a better hope, through which we draw nigh unto God.
but sanctify in your hearts Christ as Lord: being ready always to give answer to every man that asketh you a reason concerning the hope that is in you, yet with meekness and fear:
And every one that hath this hope set on him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.