Colossians 3:23

Colossians 3:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
• New International Version (NIV)Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters,
• English Standard Version (ESV)Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,
• New King James Version (NKJV)And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men,

Context of Colossians 3:23

21Fathers, do not cause your children to be upset. If you do, they might think that they never do anything that is good. 22Slaves, always obey your human masters. Do not do good work only when they can see you. Some people only work to make other people like them. Instead, serve your masters well because you want to. That will show that you respect the Lord as your master. Whatever things you are doing, do them well. Remember that you are serving the Lord. You are not only serving people. 24You know that you will receive the good things that the Lord has promised to his people. He will give you what is right for you. The Lord Jesus Christ is the master that you serve. 25Remember that God will punish anyone who does wrong things. He always judges people correctly, whoever they are.

Colossians 3:23 word by word

ὃ ἐὰν ποιῆτε, ἐκ ψυχῆς ἐργάζεσθε ὡς τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ οὐκ ἀνθρώποις·Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Andκαίkai · andG2532
• whatsoeverπᾶςpas · allG3956
• whatsoeverὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
• whatsoeverτιςtis · oneG5100
• whatsoeverἐάνean · ifG1437
• ye doποιέωpoieō · to do/make: doG4160
• doἐργάζομαιergazomai · to workG2038
• ·ἐκek ex · out fromG1537
• heartilyψυχήpsuchē · soulG5590
• asὡςhōs · as/whenG5613
• to the Lordὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• to the Lordκύριοςkurios · lord: GodG2962
• notοὐou · noG3756
• unto menἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444

Cross-references for Colossians 3:23

• Colossians 3:17Show that you belong to the Lord Jesus with everything that you do and with everything that you say. Always thank God the Father in the way that you serve Jesus.
• 2 Chronicles 31:21He served God faithfully with all his strength. He helped the work in the temple and he obeyed God's law and his commands. So he was successful in the things that he did.
• Psalms 47:6Sing to praise God! Yes, sing! Sing to praise our king! Sing!
• Psalms 103:1I say to myself, ‘Praise the Lord!’ Everything that is in me, praise his holy name!
• Psalms 119:10I bring all my thoughts to you. Do not let me forget to obey your commands.
• Ecclesiastes 9:10Use all your strength to do the work that you are doing. One day you will die and you will go into your grave. Then you will not have any work, or ideas, or knowledge or wisdom. So do your work well while you are alive.
• Jeremiah 3:10Still Judah has not turned back to me. She wants me to think that she has, but she has not. Like her sister, Israel, she has not been faithful.’ That is what the Lord says.
• 1 Peter 1:22You have obeyed God's true message. As a result, you have become clean inside, and now you can really love other believers. So continue to love each other very well, with honest thoughts.
• Zechariah 7:5He said, ‘Say this to all the people in this country and to the priests: “You lived in Babylon for many years. You ate no food and you were sad in the fifth month and in the seventh month. But you did not do this for me.
• Matthew 6:16Jesus then said, ‘You may decide to fast for some time. But do not look sad so that people know you are doing a special thing. Hypocrites want people to see how good they are. They make their faces dirty. Then other people can see that they are fasting. I tell you this: people have praised them and that is the only gift that they will get.
• Romans 14:6A person who makes a certain day special does that so that he can respect the Lord. A person who eats all kinds of food does that so that he can respect the Lord. He thanks God for the food that he eats. A person who refuses to eat certain foods also does that so that he can respect the Lord. And he also thanks God.
• Ephesians 5:22Wives, obey your own husbands, as you obey the Lord.
• Ephesians 6:6Do not do good work only when they can see you. Some people only work to make other people like them. Instead, work well all the time, as slaves who serve Christ. Work in the way that God wants you to work.
• 1 Peter 2:13Obey all people who have authority in this world. Obey them, because you are servants of the Lord Jesus. First of all, obey the king, who rules everyone.

Commentaries on Colossians 3:23

• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 22-25Verses 22-25 Servants, obey in all things … - ; see the notes at Ephesians 6:5-8.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-25Verses 18-25 The epistles most taken up in displaying the glory of the Divine grace, and magnifying the Lord Jesus, are the most particular in pressing the duties of the Christian life. We must never separate the privileges and duties of the gospel. Submission is the duty of wives. But it is submission, not to a severe lord or stern tyrant, but to her own husband, who is engaged to affectionate duty. And husbands must love their wives with tender and…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 22-24Slaves have masters on earth they must obey. Slavery was central to life and the economy in the ancient world. The New Testament does not directly oppose slavery. Yet, Christian faith creates relationships that change the nature of the social structure (see Philemon 1:15–16). It is the Lord Christ you are serving: All Christians, whether slave or free, serve a higher Master. His will is most important.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. And--omitted in the oldest manuscripts (compare Ep 6:7, 8). Compare the same principle in the case of all men, Hezekiah (2Ch 31:21; Ro 12:11). do, do it--two distinct Greek verbs, "Whatsoever ye do, work at it" (or "labor at" it). heartily--not from servile constraint, but with hearty good will.Read the comment

Topics related to Colossians 3:23

• Commandments
• Integrity
• Servant

In the dictionaries

• Admonish
• Bond
• Charity
• Covetousness
• Discourage
• Ephesians, Epistle to
• Fit
• Lord
• Member
• Mortify

Commentaries on Colossians 3

• 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