Colossians 1

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy our brother,2 To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ that are at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.3 We give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,4 having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have toward all the saints,5 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 gospel,6 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;7 even as ye learned of Epaphras our beloved fellow-servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf,8 who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.9 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,10 to walk worthily of the Lord unto all pleasing, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;11 strengthened with all power, according to the might of his glory, unto all patience and longsuffering with joy;12 giving thanks unto the Father, who made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light;13 who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love;14 in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins:15 who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;16 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;17 and he is before all things, and in him all things consist.18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.19 For it was the good pleasure of the Father that in him should all the fulness dwell;20 and through him to reconcile all things unto himself, having made peace through the blood of his cross; through him, I say, whether things upon the earth, or things in the heavens.21 And you, being in time past alienated and enemies in your mind in your evil works,22 yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and without blemish and unreproveable before him:23 if so be that ye continue in the faith, grounded and stedfast, and not moved away from the hope of the gospel which ye heard, which was preached in all creation under heaven; whereof I Paul was made a minister.24 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;25 whereof I was made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which was given me to you-ward, to fulfil the word of God,26 even the mystery which hath been hid for ages and generations: but now hath it been manifested to his saints,27 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:28 whom we proclaim, admonishing every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ;29 whereunto I labor also, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.

Colossians 1

Salutation

1 From Paul,t an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

2 to the saints, the faithfult brothers and sisterst in Christ, at Colossae. Grace and peace to yout from God our Father!s

Paul’s Thanksgiving and Prayer for the Church

3 We alwayst give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,4 sincet we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints.5 Your faith and love have arisent from the hope laid upt for you in heaven, which you have heard about in the message of truth, the gospelt6 that has come to you. Just as in the entire world this gospelt is bearing fruit and growing, so it has also been bearing fruit and growingt among you from the first day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth.7 You learned the gospelt from Epaphras, our dear fellow slavet – at faithful minister of Christ on ours behalf –

8 who also told us of your love in the Spirit.

Paul’s Prayer for the Growth of the Church

9 For this reason we also, from the day we heard about you,t have not ceased praying for you and asking Godt to fillt you with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,10 so that you may livet worthily of the Lord and please him in all respectst – bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God,11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might for the display oft all patience and steadfastness, joyfully12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to sharet in the saints’t inheritance in the light.13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves,t

14 in whom we have redemption,s the forgiveness of sins.

The Supremacy of Christ

15 s He is the image of the invisible God, the firstbornt over all creation,t

16 for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions,t whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him.

17 He himself is before all things and all things are held togethert in him.

18 He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstbornt from among the dead, so that he himself may become first in all things.t

19 For Godt was pleased to have all hist fullness dwellt in the Sont

20 and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross – through him,s whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Paul’s Goal in Ministry

21 And you were at one time strangers and enemies in yourt mindst as expressed throught your evil deeds,22 but now he has reconciled youst by his physical body through death to present you holy, without blemish, and blameless before him –

23 if indeed you remain in the faith, established and firm,t without shiftingt from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant.
24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I fill up in my physical body – for the sake of his body, the church – what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ.25 I became a servant of the church according to the stewardshipt from God – given to me for you – in order to completet the word of God,26 that is, the mystery that has been kept hidden from ages and generations, but has now been revealed to his saints.27 God wanted to make known to them the glorioust riches of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.28 We proclaim him by instructingt and teachingt all peoplet with all wisdom so that we may present every person maturet in Christ.

29 Toward this goalt I also labor, struggling according to his power that powerfullyt works in me.