Poslanica Kološanima 1

1 Ovo je pismo od Pavla, kojega je Bog odabrao da bude apostol Isusa Krista, i od našega brata Timoteja.2 Kološanima, svetoj i vjernoj braći i sestrama u Isusu Kristu.
Neka vam naš Bog Otac udijeli milost i mir.

Pavlova zahvala i molitva

3 Uvijek se molimo za vas i zahvaljujemo za vas Bogu Ocu našega Gospodina Isusa Krista4 jer smo čuli za vašu vjeru u Isusa Krista i za vašu ljubav prema svoj svetoj braći.5 Razlog vaše vjere je nada što vas čeka u nebesima. O toj ste nadi prvi put čuli kad ste čuli istinu Radosne vijesti.

6 Ista ta Radosna vijest koja je došla k vama proširila se cijelim svijetom. Posvuda mijenja ljudske živote, baš kao što je promijenila i vaš prvoga dana kad ste ju čuli i kad ste shvatili istinu o Božjoj milosti prema grešnicima.
7 Vi ste za nju čuli od Epafre, našega voljenog suradnika. On nas zastupa vjerno služeći Kristu.

8 On nam je i rekao za vašu ljubav prema drugima, koju vam daje Sveti Duh.
9 Zato se mi od dana kad smo to čuli neprestano molimo za vas, tražeći da vas Bog ispuni mudrošću i duhovnom spoznajom kako biste mogli razabrati njegovu volju,

10 živjeti dostojno Gospodina i ugoditi mu, roditi svakom vrstom dobrih djela te rasti u spoznaji Boga.
11 Molimo se da vas Bog ojača svojom slavnom silom da možete biti postojani i strpljivi.12 Da radosno možete uvijek zahvaljivati Ocu koji nas je osposobio da budemo subaštinicima svetoga Božjeg naroda koji živi u svjetlu.13 Izbavio nas je od vlasti tame i prenio u Kraljevstvo svojega ljubljenog Sina.

14 Njegovom krvlju Bog je otkupio našu slobodu i oprostio nam grijehe.

Kristovo prvenstvo

15 Krist je vidljiva slika nevidljivoga Boga, prvorođenac iznad svih stvorenja.16 U Kristu je stvoreno sve na nebesima i na zemlji: vidljivo i nevidljivo, kraljevi i kraljevstva, vladari i vlasti. Sve je stvoreno po njemu i za njega.

17 Postojao je prije svega drugoga i održava sve što postoji.
18 On je glava Crkve, koja je njegovo Tijelo. On je prvi od svih ustao od mrtvih, da u svemu bude prvi.19 Jer se Bogu svidjelo u njemu prebivati svom puninom20 i kroz njega - njegovom krvlju prolivenom na križu - pomiriti sa sobom sve na zemlji i na nebesima.21 To se odnosi i na vas koji ste nekada bili daleko od njega i bili mu neprijatelji mišlju i djelima.22 Ali on vas je ponovno izmirio sa sobom kroz smrt Kristova ljudskog tijela na križu. Priveo vas je u svoju nazočnost svete, neporočne i besprijekorne.

23 Ali morate čvrsto i postojano ustrajati u vjeri. Ne dajte se pokolebati u nadi Radosne vijesti koju ste čuli. Ona se propovijeda diljem svijeta, a mene, Pavla, Bog je postavio da joj služim.

Pavlovo služenje Crkvi

24 Sada se radujem što dovršavam patnje za koje mi je Krist rekao da ću ih proći za dobro Crkve, njegova tijela.25 Bog me je zadužio da služim njegovoj Crkvi naviještajući njegovu poruku vama poganima u svoj punini.26 Ta je tajna bila skrivena vjekovima i naraštajima, ali sada ju je Bog očitovao njegovim svetima.

27 Jer Bogu se svidjelo da svojemu narodu objavi kako su bogatstvo i slava Kristova namijenjeni i vama poganima. Jer u ovome je tajna: Krist živi u vama i vaša je nada da ćete biti dionicima njegove slave.
28 Svima naviještamo Krista. Opominjemo i poučavamo ljude, s mudrošću koju nam je Bog dao, da svakoga učinimo zrelim u Kristu.

29 Da to postignem, trudim se i borim u njegovoj snazi, koja tako silno djeluje u meni.

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.