To be condemned translates the Greek katabrabeuō (compare brabeuō in 3.15, see brabeion, “prize,” in 1 Cor 9.24, Phil 3.14), which appears only here in the NT. It means “to give an adverse decision” or “to deprive of the rightful prize,” and is formed from brabeus, the judge or umpire at athletic contests. This expression has been handled in several ways: “disqualify you for the prize” (New International Version), “rob you of your reward” (Translator’s New Testament), “cheat you out of your joy” (Phillips), “do not allow yourselves to be deprived of victory” (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible).

In view of the figurative meaning of the Greek katabrabeuō, one can readily see why and how a number of different English translations have employed quite different figures of speech, in contrast with the Good News Translation which reads Do not allow yourselves to be condemned. One might also employ “do not permit anyone else to take away from you what is rightfully yours,” or “… what really belongs to you,” or “… what should be your reward.”

The description that follows of these “umpires” is not easy to understand, and several interpretations are possible. It is expressed by three participial clauses, “insisting … taking his stand … being puffed up.” The first clause is translated by Revised Standard Version “insisting on self-abasement and worship of angels.” The verb used here (thelō) ordinarily means “to wish,” but here, with the preposition en “in,” it is taken to be the Greek equivalent of a Hebrew expression meaning “to take pleasure in” (so Lohse, A&G 4b, Lightfoot, Moule; compare Translator’s New Testament New International Version Barclay Bible en français courant Traduction œcuménique de la Bible); others translate “of his own will” (Abbott, so Beare “as he wills,” not as God wills); Goodspeed has “persisting,” and Revised Standard Version Good News Translation New American Bible have “insist on.”

There may be complications involved in a translation of who insists on, since this could mean “insists on for his own use” or “insists on other persons being involved in something.” Since Paul is here condemning false teachers, it is important to indicate that these are individuals who “insist on others displaying false humility and worshiping angels.”

The word “humility” is here used in a bad sense, that is, humility which is only superficial, not genuine; so Good News Translation Phillips New International Version have false humility; some take the word as a technical term for “fasting” (Moule, Moffatt); Translator’s New Testament Barclay have “asceticism” and New English Bible “self mortification.”

The worship of angels: in this phrase angels are the object of worship. The worship of angels may be expressed as “bowing down before angels,” or “praying to angels as though they were gods,” or “treating angels as though they are gods.”

Claims to be superior because of special visions translates a relative clause for which there are the most varied explanations possible. (Later manuscripts add the negative adverb; so King James Version “intruding into those things which he hath not seen.”) Commentaries should be consulted for possible meanings and suggested emendations of the text. Many base their interpretation on the use of the verb embateuō (see A&G for four meanings) in the mystery rites, which refers to entering the sanctuary after initiation, and so in this passage it describes those false teachers at Colossae as people who pride themselves on their superior status by virtue of the visions they had had. Lohse understands it to mean “as he has had visions of them (that is, the angels) during the mystery rites,” Moffatt “presuming on his vision,” Translator’s New Testament “insists on the importance of his visions,” Jerusalem Bible “are always going on about some visions they have had.” Following this line of interpretation, it would seem that these false teachers were claiming superior status as the result of mystical visions in which they had apprehended reality, something which is denied to those who have not been similarly initiated into the cult.

Claims to be superior may be rendered as “says that he is better than other people,” or “says that he is more important than others,” or perhaps “says that he knows more then others.”

In some languages, no distinction is made between dreams and visions, but in general there is a distinction between those particular visual forms which appear at night and those which come in the daytime or as the result of some particular ecstatic experience. Sometimes visions are spoken of as “dreams in the daytime.” In other instances, they may be called “dreams which reveal” or “dreams which have truth.” At any rate, one must avoid a term which simply suggests a nightmare.

Puffed up (see also 1 Cor 4.6, 18, 19; 5.2; 8.1; 13.4) is used metaphorically, “to puff up with pride,” that is, “to be vain, conceited, proud.” For no reason at all, such a person is all puffed up may be rendered as “such a person is all puffed up, but he has no reason for being so” or “… he cannot justify his being puffed up.” In general, however, one cannot reproduce the figurative expression “puffed up,” since this may very well be taken literally. However, one can often employ an equivalent type of idiom, for example, “they beat their breasts” (an expression often used in Africa to express pride and conceit), or “they pat themselves on the back,” or even “they say they are great.”

Human way of thinking is literally “the mind of his flesh.” New English Bible has “worldly minds,” New International Version “unspiritual mind,” Moule “his materialistic or sensuous outlook,” Beare “a mind which lacks spiritual enlightenment.” By his human way of thinking may be rendered as “because of the way he thinks just like all other people” or “because he is just like everyone else in the way in which he thinks.” The unspiritual aspect of such thinking may be expressed in some languages as “because in his thinking he never thinks about God.” In some instances, it may be important to indicate quite clearly the fact that the phrase by his human way of thinking is essentially an aspect of means, and this may be introduced sometimes as the subject of a verb of cause, for example, “his thinking just like all other people think causes him to be very proud, but there is no real reason at all for him being proud.” This type of restructuring of relationships within the sentence may seem rather radical, and yet it expresses clearly the meaning of the underlying text.

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 .

The verb act is the same one used in 1.10, 2.6, 3.7, indicating way of life, behavior, conduct. Be wise in the way you act may be rendered as “behave wisely,” or “use wisdom in the way in which you conduct yourself,” or “be wise in the way in which you live.”

The “outsiders” (Revised Standard Version) are non-Christians (see the same designation in 1 Thes 4.12, 1 Cor 5.12-13, Mark 4.11). Since in some languages one must specify what is believed in, it may be necessary to render those who are not believers as “those who do not believe in Christ.”

The participle that follows is literally “buying out, redeeming”; only here and in the parallel Eph 5.16 is it used in the sense of making good use of. Most commentators and translators give the same meaning as it appears in Good News Translation and Revised Standard Version. Some, however, have understood the text to mean “redeeming the time from the power of Evil,” but this seems most unlikely. The Colossians are enjoined to seize and use every opportunity of witnessing to their faith to the non-Christian society in which they live.

In a number of languages, one must specify what is involved in every opportunity. Therefore, one may employ some such rendering as “make good use of every chance you have to speak to nonbelievers” or “use every opportunity well to show that you are believers.”

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 .

Paul calls himself a servant of the church, using the same word for “servant” as in verse 23, Eph 3.2; for the cognate noun oikinomos see 1 Cor 4.1.) God appointed Paul to this position of trust for the benefit of the Colossians, for your good, that is, for their spiritual well being, their spiritual progress.

It is rare that one can translate literally who gave me this task to perform for tasks are not normally “given” but “assigned” or even “commanded.” One may, however, often translate “he appointed me for this work” or “he pointed me out to do this work.” The phrase for your good may be rendered as “in order to help you.”

It is likely that Paul sees the Colossians as representatives of the Gentiles as a whole, since Paul had not been involved with them. The particular task God gave him was that of fully proclaiming his message. The construction is unusual, since fully proclaiming (Revised Standard Version “make … fully known”) represents the Greek verb plēroō, which means “fill” or “fulfill.” The nearest parallel is Rom 15.19, where the verb has “the gospel of Christ” as object; see also Col 4.17, “finish the task.” It means to discharge fully, completely, the particular task, here defined as “(proclaiming) the word of God.” This implies not simply the geographical extension of the task, but the thoroughness with which it is done. Moffatt “a full presentation of God’s message,” New English Bible “to deliver his message in full.”

As already noted, the adverb fully may relate to the process of proclaiming and thus “complete my task of proclaiming,” or it may be related to the nature of the message so that one may translate “to proclaim the complete message,” or “to announce all the words of his message,” or “to proclaim all that he has said.”

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 .

Now: Translator’s New Testament takes it not as simply temporal, but as a consequence of the preceding argument, and translates “now as Christians” (see Note). But it would appear that now is best interpreted as suggesting a contrast with the temporal expression at one time in the previous verse.

You must get rid of all these things must undergo rather considerable change in some languages if the correct meaning is to be preserved. In the first place, these things refer to actions and emotions, not to objects, and you must get rid of must often be expressed as “you must no longer do” or “you must stop doing.” Such phrases can then be best linked directly with the wrong attitudes or actions by saying “you must no longer be angry.”

This verse lists five sins which the Colossians are to get rid of (see the same verb in Rom 13.12; Eph 4.22, 25; 1 Peter 2.1; James 1.21). The first two are practically synonymous: anger and passion. Some commentators see the first (orgē) as the settled condition and the second one (thumos) as occasional outbursts of passion. Anger and passion are frequently expressed in metaphorical language. For example, anger may be referred to as “being hot in the face” or “burning in your heart,” and passion is sometimes referred to as “exploding with anger” or “his heart is fighting.”

Hateful feelings translates a Greek word which means “evil” or “wickedness” in its most general aspect. The more specific “malice” (Revised Standard Version) is a possible interpretation (also Phillips New English Bible New American Bible New International Version). An ancient Greek lexicographer, Suidas, defined kakia thus: “the eagerness to harm one’s neighbor”f 9 fr 3.8 ft Quoted by Abbott, op. cit., p. 144. (so Lightfoot, Peake). Kakia may thus be translated as “desire to do bad to others,” or “desire to harm others,” or “… cause them to suffer.”

Insults (Good News Translation) or “slander” (Revised Standard Version and others) is abusive speech against someone by telling lies or otherwise insulting him. (The word may mean “blasphemy,” that is, irreverent speech about God, but this meaning is hardly possible here.) Since insulting is an element of universal behavior, there is generally no difficulty involved in finding an adequate term to express such actions. In some cases, however, a more descriptive expression may be used, for example, “saying bad things about people.”

“Foul talk” (Revised Standard Version) represents a Greek word which occurs only here in the NT (see a close parallel in Eph 5.4). New English Bible has “filthy talk,” New American Bible New International Version “filthy language.”

Obscene talk may simply be expressed as “using words that should never be spoken” or as in some instances, “speaking taboo words.”

Why “from your mouth” (Revised Standard Version) is added is hard to tell, since the last sin mentioned is by definition a matter of speaking. It is not necessary to represent this phrase formally in translation as Good News Translation and Revised Standard Version have done; see Jerusalem Bible Phillips New English Bible New American Bible. Rather than from your lips many languages use “from you mouth,” or “from your tongue,” or “from your throat.” It is, however, usually more natural to say “you must not insult people or use bad words,” rather than to speak of insults and obscene talk “coming from one’s lips.”

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 .

Paul now instructs the Colossians to exchange letters with the church at Laodicea, so that the two letters, one to each church, are read in both churches. The context makes it almost certain that the letter that the brothers in Laodicea will send you is a letter that Paul is writing, or has written, to them; some, however, believe that it was a letter from the Laodiceans to Paul. Read means, in this context, reading aloud to the whole assembled group of Christians.

A literal rendering of it is read also in the church at Laodicea might imply merely the building. It may, therefore, be better to say “it is read also to the believers at Laodicea” or “… to the group of believers at Laodicea.”

There has been much speculation about this letter of Paul to the Laodiceans. Some have thought it is what is now called Ephesians, or Philemon, or even Hebrews. Already by the end of the fourth century there was a fabricated “Letter to the Laodiceans,” of which only Latin copies survive, but which was originally written in Greek. It was included in many copies of the Latin Bible from the sixth century to the fifteenth century. It is a mindless collection of Pauline phrases, which Lightfoot calls “quite harmless, so far as falsity and stupidity combined can ever be regarded as harmless.”f 12 fr 4.16 ft Lightfoot, op. cit., p. 280. The most likely explanation is that the letter Paul refers to here was lost or destroyed.

A literal translation of at the same time might suggest simultaneous reading of two letters. A more accurate and satisfactory rendering may be “similarly, you are to read the letter…” or “in the same way you are to read the letter….”

In rendering the letter that the brothers in Laodicea will send you, it is important to avoid the implication that this is a letter written by the fellow believers in Laodicea. The letter was written by Paul and sent to the believers in Laodicea who are to send it on the believers in Colossae.

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 .

The form of the Greek text seems to require treating “saints” [Revised Standard Version (Revised Standard Version)] as an adjective, modifying brothers, just as faithful does, since there is the one article with the whole phrase: “to our holy and faithful brothers.” This is done by Barclay (Barclay) “dedicated and loyal,” New International Version (New International Version) “holy and faithful,” Moffatt (Moffatt) “consecrated and faithful,” and Goodspeed (Goodspeed) “devoted and steadfast.” But commentators (such as Lightfoot, Abbott, and Moule) take the word as a substantive, standing alone, as do the vast majority of translations.

God’s people represents the Greek word which is used throughout the NT as a designation of Christians, in terms of the concept of the chosen people (Israel, in the OT) as those who belong exclusively to God, by his sovereign choice and determination; in these contexts the word does not have the idea of “holy” or “saintly,” referring to moral and spiritual qualities.

Because of the need of modifying the way in which the writer is introduced in verse 1, it may be important to redistribute the contents of these first two verses, for example, “I Paul am writing to you who are God’s people in Colossae,” followed by an identification of Paul’s role as an apostle, the relationship of Timothy to the letter, and finally some statement with regard to God’s people in Colossae, for example, “It is God who has made me an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Timothy joins me in this letter to you, who are our faithful fellow Christians in union with Christ.” This introductory statement can then be followed by the actual salutation.

In some languages, it may be necessary to use a rather special form of possession in translating God’s people. A literal rendering might suggest “God’s slaves.” It is important, therefore, to employ an expression which will indicate that these are “people dedicated to God” or “people who are God’s followers.”

The phrase in Colossae may require some expansion, for example, “people who live in Colossae” or “people whose homes are in the town of Colossae.”

As in verse 1, it may also be necessary to translate brothers as “fellow Christians” or “fellow believers.”

Some languages may require a goal for the adjective faithful, that is to say, it may be necessary to indicate to whom one is faithful. In this context, it would seem quite clear that God should be the one to whom these brothers are faithful, though one might argue that the term could imply loyalty to the Gospel or even loyalty to other believers.

In union with Christ represents the formula frequently used by Paul to describe the intimate relationship which exists between Christians and their Lord; this is a corporate reality, a relationship that exists between people who have a common loyalty and devotion to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. New English Bible translates this as “incorporate in Christ,” while Barclay renders it as “Christian fellowship.” The German common language translation (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch) joins “in Christ” to “faithful,” as follows: “who have faith in Christ,” but this is not probable (see Moule).

The phrase in union with Christ is probably one of the most difficult expressions in the entire NT to render satisfactorily. In some instances, one can only use a clause “who are linked with Christ” or “who become, as it were, one with Christ.” Only very rarely can one use a literal translation such as “in Christ.”

The actual salutation is standard in all of Paul’s letters; only in Romans (which adds “and from our Lord Jesus Christ”) and 2 Thessalonians (which has simply “grace and peace to you”) are the salutations different. Some important manuscripts add here “and from the Lord Jesus Christ”.

Grace is the one word which most vividly expresses God’s unconditional, unmerited, uncaused love and favor which he displays toward mankind in Christ. In the stereotyped formula of a salutation, however, it most probably refers to the result of God’s attitude in terms of blessing, so that its verbal equivalent would be, “May God bless you” or “be kind to you.” Peace is a word with its roots in the OT concept of salvation as wholeness, completeness, the full and abundant life enjoyed by God’s people because of their relationship to one another and to God. It is the new quality of life enjoyed by those who are in the fellowship of the people of God. As part of the salutation, its main emphasis is probably the lack of conflict and dissension in the Christian fellowship.

Sometimes the only way in which one may introduce the strong desire expressed in the salutation May God our Father give you grace and peace is to introduce this by some expression for prayer or supplication, for example, “I pray that God our Father may give you grace and peace” or “I ask God our Father to give you grace and peace.”

In some instances, one cannot use the appositional expression God our Father but must employ a clause as an attributive to “God,” for example, “God who is our father.”

Give you grace may be expressed as “show you his love” or “cause good to come to you.”

Peace may often be best expressed metaphorically, for example, “may God cause you to have a quiet heart” or “… to sit down in your hearts.” This emphasis of peace in this type of context is not, however mere tranquility or so-called “peace of mind.” It is far more all-embracing and therefore should suggest what is often spoken of in English as “the good life.”

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 .

A literal rendering of see to it may suggest a positive value. It may, therefore, be necessary to alert the reader as to something which should not happen by introducing verse 8 by “beware of” or “be sure not to let happen that.”

Enslaves translates a verb found only here in the NT (sulagōgeō) which means to lead away into slavery, an unusually vivid expression (Moule). The Colossians had been rescued from the realm of darkness and had been transferred to the kingdom of Christ (1.13), and now they were in danger of being made slaves again. Jerusalem Bible “traps you and deprives you of your freedom” is good. Enslaves involved essentially a causative relationship, and therefore, one may translate “that no one causes you to become slaves” or “… makes you slaves.”

The worthless deceit of human wisdom represents “the philosophy and empty deceit” (compare Revised Standard Version). It is improbable that Paul is here referring to two different things; it is likely that “empty deceit” characterizes “the philosophy” he is talking about (one definite article governs the whole phrase). The Greek word philosophia appears only here in the NT (see “philosophers” in Acts 17.18). Here it means what is merely human wisdom, as contrasted with the divine wisdom in the Christian message. The word for “deceit” appears also in Matt 13.22, Mark 4.19, Eph 4.22, 2 Thes 2.10, Heb 3.13, 2 Peter 2.13.

Various translations try, in different ways, to bring out the connotation of the phrase: Moffatt “theosophy which is specious make-believe,” Phillips “intellectualism or high-sounding nonsense,” New International Version “hollow and deceptive philosophy,” Barclay “arid and misleading intellectualism,” New English Bible “hollow and delusive speculations,” Beare “humbug masquerading as philosophy.” For languages which do not have technical terms for philosophy and intellectualism, it may be appropriate to speak of “the kind of thinking that people do which is worthless and deceives.” In this way all of the components of the worthless deceit of human wisdom are introduced but grammatically redistributed.

This kind of “philosophy” is characterized as coming from the teachings handed down by men (Good News Translation) or “human tradition” (Revised Standard Version). In other passages in the NT, wrong teachings are similarly characterized (compare Matt 15.2, 3, 6; Mark 7.3, 5, 8, 9, 13; Gal 1.14; 1 Peter 1.18), in contrast to the Christian tradition, which is of divine origin.

It is rare that one can translate literally teachings handed down by men. An equivalent may be “the way in which generation after generation of people teach each other” or “the traditions which different generations teach to those who follow.” Sometimes the reference to succeeding generations is made quite specific by saying “what fathers teach their sons” or “what grandfathers teach young men.”

This “philosophy” is further characterized as coming from the ruling spirits of the universe. There is much controversy over the meaning of this phrase (which appears also in verse 20, and Gal 4.3, 9), ta stoicheia tou kosmou. The noun stoicheion means, primarily, the basic unit of which a series is composed, such as a letter of the alphabet, a basic element of matter, a fundamental principle of doctrine. In Heb 5.12, for example, it means (plural) “elementary teachings,” in 2 Peter 3.10, 12 it refers to the elements of matter (air, water, earth, and fire, in Greek speculation). In general two possible meanings are seen here: (1) “elementary teachings” either of a Jewish or pagan origin, with various beliefs and rituals (Lightfoot, Moule), which were in sharp contrast to the Christian way of life; this is variously expressed in translations (see Biblia Dios Habla Hoy New International Version Barclay; Phillips “man’s ideas of the nature of the world,” Goodspeed “material way of looking at things”). (2) Spiritual powers, “elemental beings,” of the same species as demons and evil spirits, which were thought to rule the universe in general or the stars and planets in particular (Lohse, Beare; Translator’s New Testament Moffatt New American Bible New English Bible Jerusalem Bible Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). The majority of modern commentaries and translations favor the “elemental forces” interpretation, but it must be conceded (as Moule points out) that as yet no example of the phrase with this meaning has been found in literature contemporary with or earlier than the writings of the NT.

The interpretation of “elementary teachings about the universe” may be expressed as “those ideas which people have about the universe” or even “widespread concepts about the world.” If, however, the second interpretation is employed, then one may speak of “those spirits that rule the universe” or “those powerful spirits in the universe.”

And not from Christ is added for emphasis; whatever comes from human tradition and from the cosmic powers cannot be from Christ. (Whether or not Paul believed that the “ruling spirits” were real is of no concern to the translator; in this passage he speaks of them as if they were, and the translator must faithfully represent this.) The final phrase and not from Christ is so far separated from human wisdom and is so relatively elliptical that it may be necessary to employ a complete clause, for example, “and this kind of wisdom does not come from Christ” or “these deceitful ideas do not come from Christ.” In a number of languages, it is appropriate to employ a negative before the positive. Therefore, it may be important to introduce not from Christ immediately after the worthless deceit of human wisdom, for example, “this kind of wisdom does not come from Christ but from the tradition which one generation after another tells each other….”

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 .