Section 4:7–18

Paul wrote final messages and greetings

Paragraph 4:7–9

Theme: Paul told the Colossians that he was sending Tychicus to them, and he would tell them all that had been happening to Paul and his friends.

4:7a

Tychicus: Paul mentioned in these verses that Tychicus was traveling to Colossae. This probably implied that he would carry this letter from Paul with him.

Paul did not mention until 4:8 that Tychicus was coming to Colossae because he, Paul, had sent him. It may be necessary in some languages to supply this information at the beginning of 4:7. For example:

⌊I have sent Tychicus to visit you, and⌋ he will tell you…

4:7b

a beloved brother: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates beloved literally means “one who is loved.” In your language, you may need to use a verb to translate this phrase. If you use a verb, it may be necessary for you to say who loved Tychicus. There are two possibilities:

(1) Paul should be the subject. He was saying, “He is my Christian brother whom I love.”

(2) Paul and his friends should be the subject, so Paul was saying, “He is our(excl.) Christian brother whom we(excl.) love.”

Both are possible and you should use whichever is most natural in your language.

brother: See the note on 1:1c.

4:7c

a faithful minister, and a fellow servant in the Lord: This is similar to the words Paul used to describe Epaphras in 1:7b, and 1:7c. See the notes on those verses.

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