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 1,8 Kol 1,8
having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have toward all the saints,
and hope putteth not to shame; because the love of God hath been {Greek: poured out.}shed abroad in our hearts through the Holy Spirit which was given unto us.
Now I beseech you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ, and by the love of the Spirit, that ye strive together with me in your prayers to God for me;
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
For God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but of power and love and {Greek: sobering.}discipline.
Seeing ye have purified your souls in your obedience to the truth unto unfeigned love of the brethren, love one another {Many ancient authorities read from a clean heart. Compare 1 Timothy 1:5.}from the heart fervently: