Have been given full life translates the perfect passive participle of the verb plēroō, which is the cognate of the abstract noun plērōma “fullness” in verse 9. It would be wrong to take this passage to mean that Christians are likewise filled with the divine nature, as Christ is; in union with him they have reached “fulfillment,” that is, salvation, and all that it means. Again the concept of “fullness,” which is so familiar in the NT but often so difficult to render, must be rather radically altered in order to communicate essentially the same meaning, for example, “you have really been given true life” or “God has caused you to truly live.” Sometimes the concept of “fullness” may be introduced by a negation, for example, “there is nothing lacking in the way in which God has caused you to live.”

In union with him may indicate the condition which exists when one has this new type of life, therefore, rendered as “when you are in union with him”; or it may suggest a means by which this full life is realized, “by being joined closely to him.”

Christ is here described as supreme over every spiritual ruler and authority. The context clearly shows that these rulers and authorities are spiritual, not human (see 1.16). “Head” (Revised Standard Version) is used metaphorically of Christ also in 1 Cor 11.3, Eph 1.22, 4.15, 5.23, Col 1.18. Supreme over may be expressed as “to be more important than” or somewhat better as “to rule over.”

As in other instances, it may be important to translate spiritual as “spirit,” and the nouns ruler and authority as verbs, for example, “over every spirit that rules and has authority.”

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on Paul’s Letter to the Colossians. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1977. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .