New American Standard Bible 1995

Colossians 2:4-23

4 1I say this so that no one will delude you with 2persuasive argument. 5For even though I am 3absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing 4to see 5your 6good discipline and the 7stability of your faith in Christ.

6Therefore as you have received 8Christ Jesus the Lord, so 9 10walk in Him, 7having been firmly 11rooted and now being 12built up in Him and 13established 14in your faith, just as you 15were instructed, and overflowing 16with gratitude.

8 17See to it that no one takes you captive through 18philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the 19elementary principles of the world, 20rather than according to Christ. 9For in Him all the 21fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form, 10and in Him you have been 22made 23complete, and 24He is the head 25over all 26rule and authority; 11and in Him 27you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of 28the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ; 12having been 29buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also 30raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who 31raised Him from the dead. 13When you were 32dead 33in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He 34made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, 14having canceled out 35the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and 36He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. 15When He had 37 38disarmed the 39rulers and authorities, He 40made a public display of them, having 41triumphed over them through 42Him.

16Therefore no one is to 43 44act as your judge in regard to 45food or 46drink or in respect to a 47festival or a 48new moon or a 49Sabbath 50day-- 17things which are 51a mere shadow of what is to come; but the 52substance 53belongs to Christ. 18Let no one keep 54 55defrauding you of your prize by 56delighting in 57self-abasement and the worship of the angels, 58taking his stand on visions he has seen, 59 60inflated without cause by his 61fleshly mind, 19and not holding fast to 62the head, from whom 63the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and 64ligaments, grows with a growth 65which is from God.

20 66If you have died with Christ 67to the 68elementary principles of the world, 69why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to 70decrees, such as, 21“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!” 22(which all refer 71to things destined to perish 72with use)--in accordance with the 73commandments and teachings of men? 23These are matters which have, to be sure, the 74appearance of wisdom in 75 76self-made religion and self-abasement and 77severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against 78fleshly indulgence.

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Notes

1. Colossians 2:4 Eph 4:17 ↩
2. Colossians 2:4 Rom 16:18 ↩
3. Colossians 2:5 1 Cor 5:3 ↩
4. Colossians 2:5 Lit and seeing ↩
5. Colossians 2:5 Or your good order ↩
6. Colossians 2:5 1 Cor 14:40 ↩
7. Colossians 2:5 1 Pet 5:9 ↩
8. Colossians 2:6 Gal 3:26 ↩
9. Colossians 2:6 Or lead your life ↩
10. Colossians 2:6 Col 1:10 ↩
11. Colossians 2:7 Eph 3:17 ↩
12. Colossians 2:7 1 Cor 3:9; Eph 2:20 ↩
13. Colossians 2:7 1 Cor 1:8 ↩
14. Colossians 2:7 Or by ↩
15. Colossians 2:7 Eph 4:21 ↩
16. Colossians 2:7 One early ms reads in it with ↩
17. Colossians 2:8 1 Cor 8:9; 10:12; Gal 5:15; Heb 3:12 ↩
18. Colossians 2:8 Eph 5:6; Col 2:23; 1 Tim 6:20 ↩
19. Colossians 2:8 Gal 4:3; Col 2:20 ↩
20. Colossians 2:8 Lit and not ↩
21. Colossians 2:9 2 Cor 5:19; Col 1:19 ↩
22. Colossians 2:10 Eph 3:19 ↩
23. Colossians 2:10 Lit full ↩
24. Colossians 2:10 Eph 1:21f ↩
25. Colossians 2:10 Lit of ↩
26. Colossians 2:10 1 Cor 15:24; Eph 3:10; Col 2:15 ↩
27. Colossians 2:11 Rom 2:29; Eph 2:11 ↩
28. Colossians 2:11 Rom 6:6; 7:24; Gal 5:24; Col 3:5 ↩
29. Colossians 2:12 Rom 6:4f ↩
30. Colossians 2:12 Rom 6:5; Eph 2:6; Col 2:13; 3:1 ↩
31. Colossians 2:12 Acts 2:24 ↩
32. Colossians 2:13 Eph 2:1 ↩
33. Colossians 2:13 Or by reason of ↩
34. Colossians 2:13 Eph 2:5; Col 2:12 ↩
35. Colossians 2:14 Eph 2:15; Col 2:20 ↩
36. Colossians 2:14 1 Pet 2:24 ↩
37. Colossians 2:15 Or divested Himself of ↩
38. Colossians 2:15 Eph 4:8 ↩
39. Colossians 2:15 John 12:31; 1 Cor 15:24; Eph 3:10; Col 2:10 ↩
40. Colossians 2:15 Eph 4:8 ↩
41. Colossians 2:15 2 Cor 2:14 ↩
42. Colossians 2:15 Or it; i.e. the cross ↩
43. Colossians 2:16 Lit judge you ↩
44. Colossians 2:16 Rom 14:3 ↩
45. Colossians 2:16 Mark 7:19; Rom 14:17; Heb 9:10 ↩
46. Colossians 2:16 Mark 7:19; Rom 14:17; Heb 9:10 ↩
47. Colossians 2:16 Lev 23:2; Rom 14:5 ↩
48. Colossians 2:16 1 Chr 23:31; 2 Chr 31:3; Neh 10:33 ↩
49. Colossians 2:16 Mark 2:27f; Gal 4:10 ↩
50. Colossians 2:16 Or days ↩
51. Colossians 2:17 Heb 8:5; 10:1 ↩
52. Colossians 2:17 Lit body ↩
53. Colossians 2:17 Lit of Christ ↩
54. Colossians 2:18 Or deciding against you ↩
55. Colossians 2:18 1 Cor 9:24; Phil 3:14 ↩
56. Colossians 2:18 Col 2:23 ↩
57. Colossians 2:18 Or humility ↩
58. Colossians 2:18 Or going into detail about ↩
59. Colossians 2:18 Or conceited ↩
60. Colossians 2:18 1 Cor 4:6 ↩
61. Colossians 2:18 Rom 8:7 ↩
62. Colossians 2:19 Eph 1:22 ↩
63. Colossians 2:19 Eph 1:23; 4:16 ↩
64. Colossians 2:19 Lit bonds ↩
65. Colossians 2:19 Lit of God ↩
66. Colossians 2:20 Rom 6:2 ↩
67. Colossians 2:20 Lit from ↩
68. Colossians 2:20 Col 2:8 ↩
69. Colossians 2:20 Gal 4:9 ↩
70. Colossians 2:20 Col 2:14, 16 ↩
71. Colossians 2:22 1 Cor 6:13 ↩
72. Colossians 2:22 Or by being consumed ↩
73. Colossians 2:22 Is 29:13; Matt 15:9; Titus 1:14 ↩
74. Colossians 2:23 Lit report; Gr logos ↩
75. Colossians 2:23 Or would-be religion ↩
76. Colossians 2:23 Col 2:18 ↩
77. Colossians 2:23 1 Tim 4:3 ↩
78. Colossians 2:23 Rom 13:14; 1 Tim 4:8 ↩

Notes

Commentaries on Colossians 2