Christian Standard Bible
Colossians 1:21
21Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds as expressed in your evil actions.
Colossians 1:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
- New International Version (NIV)Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds,
- New King James Version (NKJV)And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled
Context of Colossians 1:21
19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20and through him to reconcile everything to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated and hostile in your minds as expressed in your evil actions. 22But now he has reconciled you by his physical body through his death, to present you holy, faultless, and blameless before him — 23if indeed you remain grounded and steadfast in the faith and are not shifted away from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become a servant of it.
Read all of Colossians 1Colossians 1:21 word by word
καὶ ὑμᾶς ποτε ὄντας ἀπηλλοτριωμένους καὶ ἐχθροὺς τῇ διανοίᾳ ἐν τοῖς ἔργοις τοῖς πονηροῖς,Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Andκαίkai · andG2532
- youσύsu · youG4771
- that wereεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- sometimeποτέpote · once/whenG4218
- alienatedἀπαλλοτριόωapallotrioō · to alienateG526
- enemiesἐχθρόςechthros · enemyG2190
- inδιάνοιαdianoia · mindG1271
- byἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
- wickedπονηρόςponēros · evil/badG4190
- worksἔργονergon · workG2041
- yetδέde · thenG1161
- nowνυνίnuni · nowG3570
- hath he reconciledἀποκαταλλάσσωapokatallassō · to reconcileG604
Cross-references for Colossians 1:21
- Romans 1:30slanderers, God-haters, arrogant, proud, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents,
- Romans 5:9How much more then, since we have now been justified by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath.
- Romans 8:7The mindset of the flesh is hostile to God because it does not submit to God’s law. Indeed, it is unable to do so.
- 1 Corinthians 6:9Don’t you know that the unrighteous will not inherit God’s kingdom? Do not be deceived: No sexually immoral people, idolaters, adulterers, or males who have sex with males,
- Ephesians 2:1And you were dead in your trespasses and sins
- Ephesians 4:18They are darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them and because of the hardness of their hearts.
- James 4:4You adulterous people! Don’t you know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? So whoever wants to be the friend of the world becomes the enemy of God.
Commentaries on Colossians 1:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21And you, that were sometime alienated - All men are alienated from God, and all are enemies in their minds to him, and show it by their wicked works; but this is spoken particularly of the Gentiles. The word , which we render to alienate, to give to another, to estrange, expresses the state of the Gentiles: while the Jews were, at least by profession, dedicated to God, the Gentiles were alienated, that is, given up to others; they worshipped not the true…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21And you, that were sometime alienated - In this work of reconciling heaven and earth, you at Colossae, who were once enemies of God, have been reached. The benefit of that great plan has been extended to you, and it has accomplished in you what it is designed to effect everywhere - to reconcile enemies to God. The word “sometime” here - pote- means “formerly.” In common with all other men they were, by nature, in a state of enmity against God; compare the…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-23Verses 15-23 Christ in his human nature, is the visible discovery of the invisible God, and he that hath seen Him hath seen the Father. Let us adore these mysteries in humble faith, and behold the glory of the Lord in Christ Jesus. He was born or begotten before all the creation, before any creature was made; which is the Scripture way of representing eternity, and by which the eternity of God is represented to us. All things being created by Him, were…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21The phrase alienated from God probably refers to their former status as Gentiles, who were not part of God's covenant people (see Ephesians 2:12).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2121. The Colossians are included in this general reconciliation (compare Ep 2:1, 12). sometime--"once." alienated--from God and salvation: objectively banished from God, through the barrier which God's justice interposed against your sin: subjectively estranged through the alienation of your own wills from God. The former is the prominent thought (compare Ro 5:10), as the second follows, "enemies in your mind." "Actual alienation makes habitual 'enemies'"…Read the comment
Topics related to Colossians 1:21
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Colossians 1
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
Christian Standard Bible — © 2017 Holman Bible Publishers
Commentaries