Chunks: Paul's Letter to the Colossians

Paul’s final words to the Colossians are “Grace be with you” (Col 4:18), echoing the words with which he greeted them at the beginning, “Grace and peace to you” (1:2). Just as we should understand his opening greeting as meaning much more than “Hi” or “Dear Colossians,” so too should we take his final words as meaning much more than “goodbye.” Paul’s prayer is that the lives of the Colossians woul...

Paul probably used what’s called an amanuensis— essentially, a secretary who took dictation—to write to the Colossians. It may have been Timothy, but we can’t know for certain. Here at the end of Colossians and a few other letters, he takes up the pen himself to sign the letter and add a few final words. But as he does so, he becomes conscious of the shackles on his wrists, and bids the Colossians...

Just before he ends the letter, Paul shifts his greetings: instead of sending greetings from the people around him , he sends greetings or instructions to people in and around Colossae (Col 4:15-17). These greetings reflect the nature of so-called “circular” letters, that is, letters that were meant to be circulated beyond the original recipients. His encouragement and instruction to the Colossian...

Paul wrote to the Colossians from prison; we can’t be sure where. But wherever he was, he has others with him whom he considered his partners in the work of the gospel. He brings greetings to the Colossians from these co-workers (Col 4:10-14). Some, as we’ve seen, are Jews; presumably the rest are Gentiles. Epaphras, of course, was well known to the Colossians, and this is one of the few places th...

Among the people Paul names at the end of his letter, three are Jews: Aristarchus, Mark, and Justus, whom he calls his “co-workers” (Col 4:10-11). We know nothing about Justus, but Aristarchus is mentioned five times in the New Testament, and Mark is described at the “cousin of Barnabas,” making it possible to speculate a bit about the latter two. The larger point, however, is that while ministry...

As he often does in his letters, Paul ends his letter to the Colossians by passing along greetings from other people who are with him, as well as sending specific greetings to people in the church to which he writes. We have little to no information about some of the people mentioned at the end of Colossians. But we do know a few things about the first two names on the list, Tychicus and Onesimus...

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught his followers to see themselves as the salt of the earth. Similarly, in Colossians 4:6, Paul urges the Colossians to let their conversations be “seasoned with salt.” This may be a practical extension of what he’s taught about “redeeming the time” and how the Colossians to relate to those outside the church. Do our conversations embody the character of the g...

Have you ever heard the idea of “redeeming the time”? By that phrase, we usually mean making good use of time that would otherwise be wasted. The phrase is a biblical one, coming from the King James translation of Paul’s words in Colossians 4:5; the New International Version translates it as “making the most of every opportunity” instead. It’s not simply a matter of trying to use every moment prod...

In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus told his emotionally exhausted disciples to watch and pray. Similarly, as Paul begins to wrap up his letter to the Colossians (Col 4:2-4), he tells them to pray and be watchful. He asks them specifically to pray for his ministry, using language that echoes what he’s said earlier in the letter. But more generally, he also wants their prayers to be grateful ones; i...

Paul wants Christian household relationships to be transformed from the inside out, and has pastoral advice for wives and their husbands, children and parents, even slaves. His final words are to the masters (Col 4:1). These words must also be read in context, and in concert with the parallel text from Ephesians. The all-powerful paterfamilias , the head of the household, was husband, father, and...

In the previous episode, we considered what Paul said to slaves (Col 3:22-25) against the background of the situation between Philemon and Onesimus. In this episode, we read the passage from Colossians in tandem with the parallel passage from Ephesians 6. To do so will raise a question for all of us: what if we were to do our work as if Jesus were our boss?

The shortest of Paul’s letters was written to a prominent member of the Colossian church, a man named Philemon. One of Philemon’s slaves, Onesimus, had run away, and by law, Philemon had the right to see him punished or even executed. But Onesimus had met Paul and become a Christian. How should Paul handle the situation? In this episode, we explore how Paul’s words in Colossians 3:22-25 should be...

Slavery was a prominent feature of Roman society and its households, even in Christian households. We could wish for Paul to speak out boldly against the institution of slavery, but he doesn’t. Indeed, he spends more time teaching slaves to obey their masters than he does teaching the members of the nuclear family (Col 3:22-25). Still, he attempts to transform the institution from the inside out,...

If Paul’s instruction to wives that they should submit to their husbands is controversial, so is his instruction to children, telling them to “obey [their] parents in everything” (Col 3:20). Some of us may have experienced how domineering or even abusive parents have used such a verse to lord it over their children. But once more, we need to read Paul’s words against the background of the culture...

Paul has taught the Colossians to be people of compassion, humility, and love, and naturally he would expect to see their relationships at home reflect the same godly character. In Colossians 3:18-21, he has important pastoral counsel for wives and husbands, children and parents, beginning with the instruction to wives that they should “submit” to their husbands. To read this rightly, we need to a...

You may already be familiar with the famous (or infamous) passage in Ephesians 5 that teaches wives to submit to their husbands. Colossians contains a similar passage, in which he seeks the transformation of households from the inside out. But before we begin our exploration of what Paul says in 3:18—4:1, we’ll use this episode to give the historical background we need to read the passage rightly.

Most of us have probably been taught to pray “in the name of Jesus,” which usually means ending our prayers with words to that effect. And there are good biblical reasons for doing so. But Paul teaches that we should do everything in the name of Jesus, and with gratitude (Col 3:17). He’s not suggesting that we say the words “In Jesus’ name” all day long. But what does he mean?

There’s a tendency in some churches to speak of “worship” as if it meant “worship music .” Worship is more than that. But there’s no denying the importance of music in our lives generally and in worship particularly. Paul thus tells the Colossians to sing “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” to one another (Col 3:16). We don’t need to distinguish these from each other; the more important point is...

Whatever problems were confronting the Colossians, Paul’s letter to them consistently conveys a sense of joy and gratitude. As we’ve seen, he’s urged them to let the “peace of Christ rule in [their] hearts,” echoing his opening greeting of “grace and peace.” Now he urges them also to live with “gratitude in [their] hearts” (Col 3:16), an echo of the grace of God that pervades the letter. 

We do not live in a peaceful world; it is therefore appropriate to pray for peace, for God’s shalom . As we saw back at the beginning of our study, Paul begins his letter by wishing “grace and peace” for the Colossians. Now, in chapter 3, Paul echoes his earlier language, teaching the Colossians to live in a way that embodies shalom in their relationships with one another.

Despite their old attitudes and habits, despite their ingrained prejudices, the Colossians are to be compassionate and kind with one another; they are to put up with and forgive one another. These are practical expressions of the love commanded of all Christians (Col 3:12-14). Given Paul’s language, we can think of love as the “overcoat” that goes over the other virtues they are to “put on,” or th...

Reading between the lines of Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we can imagine that the congregation had its conflicts and disagreements, that people carried grudges and grievances. Paul teaches that they must not only put up with each other, but forgive (Col 3:13). In so doing, he not only echoes the teaching of Jesus, but writes as one who knows without a doubt how much he himself has been forgive...

Anyone who’s ever been part of a family or church family knows that people offend each other—intentionally or otherwise—take offense, and carry grudges. This was surely true in Colossae as well, and some of those offenses may have been related to the prejudices that have been eliminated by the cross. Paul therefore tells the Colossians to put on character qualities like compassion and humility—and...

The do’s and don’ts of Paul’s letter are similar to the lists of virtues and vices that can be found in other writings of his day. The vices are like ratty clothing to be stripped off; Christian virtues, like a new wardrobe, are to be put on in their place (Col 3:12-14). It’s important, however, to not read these verses too individualistically. It’s not just about the spiritual transformation of i...

In putting aside their old nature and their former pagan lifestyles, the Colossians must forsake a whole, sorry list of sinful attitudes and behaviors: greed, anger, and the like. Conversely, putting on their new nature in Christ means adopting godly character qualities such as compassion, humility, and patience. In teaching this, Paul uses language that the Jews in the congregation would have und...