3:13a
Bear with one another: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Bear with means almost the same as the Greek word translated as “patience” in 3:12b. The difference is that the word used in this verse means tolerating the things other people do regularly that are annoying, rather than being patient when someone does something wrong.
Among the Colossian believers, there was a mixture of nationalities. These different groups would have had trouble tolerating the different views of others—in particular the Jews would have found it difficult to Bear with the Gentiles, and the Greeks would have had difficulty “bearing with” the barbarians.
3:13b
complaint: A “complaint” is an accusation or criticism that one person has against another person because of something this other person has done.
3:13c
Forgive as the Lord forgave you: The word as means Paul was comparing two things. There are two possible interpretations:
(1) Paul was comparing the manner the Lord had forgiven the Colossians with the manner they should forgive others. He had forgiven them freely and completely. So they should forgive others freely and completely.
(2) Paul was comparing the fact that the Lord had forgiven the Colossians with the fact that they should forgive others.
Both these interpretations are possible. Most English versions are ambiguous, but the majority of commentators favor the first option (1), so the Display follows that.
Lord: It is not clear whether the word Lord here refers to the Lord God, or the Lord Jesus. If your translation cannot be ambiguous, you should probably translate it “Lord Jesus.”
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