Christ, The Mystery Of God
1 For I would have you know how great a contest I am waging for you and the brethren in Laodicea, and for all who have never seen my face.
1 For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;
1 For I want you to know how great a (A)struggle I have on your behalf and for those who are at (B)Laodicea, and for all those who have not (a)personally seen my face,
1 For I want you to know how great a struggle(A) I have for you, for those in Laodicea,(B) and for all who have not seen me in person.
1 For I want you to know how much I struggle for you, for those in Laodicea, and for all who have never seen me face to face.
2 May their hearts be comforted! May they be knit together in love! May they gain in all its riches the full assurance of their understanding! May they come to a perfect knowledge of the secret truth of God, which is Christ himself.
2 That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ;
2 that their (C)hearts may be encouraged, having been (D)knit together in love, and attaining to all (E)the wealth (b)that comes from the full assurance of understanding, resulting in a (F)true knowledge of (G)God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself,
2 I want their hearts to be encouraged(C) and joined together in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God’s mystery(D)—Christ.(a)(E)
2 Because they are united in love, I pray that their hearts may be encouraged by all the riches that come from a complete understanding of the full knowledge of the Messiah, who is the mystery of God.
Christ Versus The Colossian Heresy
5 For though I am absent from you in body, I am with you in spirit, happy to note your discipline and the solid front of your faith in Christ.
5 For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ.
5 For even though I am (K)absent in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, rejoicing (c)to see (d)your (L)good discipline and the (M)stability of your faith in Christ.
5 For I may be absent in body, but I am with you in spirit,(H) rejoicing to see how well ordered you are and the strength of your faith in Christ.
5 For although I am physically absent, I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see how stable you are and how firm your faith in the Messiah is.
Made Alive In Christ
7 since you are rooted in him, and in him continually built up. Be firmly established in the faith as you were taught it, and continually abound in it with thanksgiving.
7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
7 having been firmly (P)rooted and now being (Q)built up in Him and (R)established (f)in your faith, just as you (S)were instructed, and overflowing (g)with gratitude.
7 rooted and built up in Him(K) and established in the faith, just as you were taught,(L) overflowing with gratitude.
7 For you have been rooted in him and are being built up and strengthened in the faith, just as you were taught, while you continue to be thankful.
Beware Of Requirements Invented By Humans
8 Take care lest any man drag you away captive by his philosophy which is a vain deceit, following the traditions of men and the world's crude notions, and not Christ.
8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
8 (T)See to it that no one takes you captive through (U)philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the (V)elementary principles of the world, (h)rather than according to Christ.
8 Be careful that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit based on human tradition,(M) based on the elemental forces of the world, and not based on Christ.(N)
8 See to it that no one enslaves you through philosophy and empty deceit according to human tradition, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to the Messiah,
10 and in him you have your fulness, and he is the Lord of all the principalities and powers.
10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
10 and in Him you have been (X)made (i)complete, and (Y)He is the head (j)over all (Z)rule and authority;
10 And you have been filled by him, who is the head of every ruler and authority.
11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision not made with hands; even in putting off your sensual nature in Christ's own circumcision,
11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
11 and in Him (AA)you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of (AB)the body of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ;
11 You were also circumcised in Him with a circumcision not done with hands, by putting off the body of flesh,(Q) in the circumcision of the Messiah.(d)(R)
11 In union with him you were also circumcised with a circumcision performed without human hands by stripping off the corrupt nature by the circumcision performed by the Messiah.
12 when you were buried with him in baptism. In baptism also you were raised with him, through your faith in the energy of that God who raised him from the dead.
12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
12 having been (AC)buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also (AD)raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who (AE)raised Him from the dead.
12 Having been buried with Him(S) in baptism, you were also raised with Him(T) through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.(U)
12 When you were buried with the Messiah in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.
13 And you also, at one time dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sensual nature, he has made alive together with himself. For he forgave us all our transgressions,
13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
13 When you were (AF)dead (k)in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He (AG)made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions,
13 And when you were dead in trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive with Him and forgave us all our trespasses.
13 Even when you were dead because of your offenses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with him when he forgave us all of our offenses,
14 blotted out the handwriting of ordinances that stood against us and was hostile to us, and took it out of our way, nailing it to his cross.
14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;
14 having canceled out (AH)the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and (AI)He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.
14 He erased the certificate of debt, with its obligations, that was against us and opposed to us, and has taken it out of the way by nailing it to the cross.(V)
14 having erased the charges that were brought against us, along with their obligations that were hostile to us. He took those charges away when he nailed them to the cross.
15 Principalities and powers he disarmed, and openly displayed them as his trophies, when he triumphed over them in the cross.
15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
15 When He had (l)(AJ)disarmed the (AK)rulers and authorities, He (AL)made a public display of them, having (AM)triumphed over them through (m)Him.
15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and disgraced them publicly; He triumphed over them by Him.(e)(W)
15 And when he had disarmed the rulers and the authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in the cross.
Do Not Be Judged By Human Religious Rules
16 Therefore do not permit any one to sit in judgment on you in regard to what you may eat or drink, or in regard to feast-days or new moons or sabbaths.
16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
16 Therefore no one is to (n)(AN)act as your judge in regard to (AO)food or (AP)drink or in respect to a (AQ)festival or a (AR)new moon or a (AS)Sabbath (o)day—
16 Therefore, don’t let anyone judge(X) you in regard to food and drink(Y) or in the matter of a festival or a new moon(Z) or a Sabbath day.(f)
16 Therefore, let no one judge you in matters of food and drink or with respect to a festival, a New Moon, or Sabbath days.
17 These were a shadow of things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.
17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
17 things which are (AT)a mere shadow of what is to come; but the (p)substance (q)belongs to Christ.
17 These are a shadow of the things to come, but the reality belongs to the Messiah.
18 Let no man at his will defraud you of your prize through his false humility and worship of the angels, taking his stand on the visions he has seen, and vainly puffed up by his material mind;
18 Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
18 Let no one keep (r)(AU)defrauding you of your prize by (AV)delighting in (s)self-abasement and the worship of the angels, (t)taking his stand on visions he has seen, (u)(AW)inflated without cause by his (AX)fleshly mind,
18 Let no one disqualify you,(h)(AD) insisting on ascetic practices(AE) and the worship of angels, claiming access to a visionary realm and inflated(AF) without cause by his unspiritual(i) mind.
18 Let no one who delights in humility and the worship of angels cheat you out of the prize by rejoicing about what he has seen. Such a person is puffed up for no reason by his carnal mind.
19 instead of keeping connection with the Head from the whole body draws nourishment for all its needs by the joints which bind it; and is knit together, and grows with a divine growth.
19 And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.
19 and not holding fast to (AY)the head, from whom (AZ)the entire body, being supplied and held together by the joints and (v)ligaments, grows with a growth (w)which is from God.
19 He doesn’t hold on to the head, from whom the whole body,(AG) nourished and held together by its ligaments and tendons, develops with growth from God.
19 He does not hold on to the head, from whom the whole body, which is nourished and held together by its joints and ligaments, grows as God enables it.
20 If you died with Christ to the world's rudimentary notions, why, as if you still lived in the world, do you submit yourselves to dogmatisms found on teachings and doctrines of men??21 such as "Do not handle this," "You must not taste that," "Do not touch this"??22 all things which are intended to perish in the using?
20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
20 (BA)If you have died with Christ (x)to the (BB)elementary principles of the world, (BC)why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to (BD)decrees, such as,
20 If you died with the Messiah(AH) to the elemental forces of this world, why do you live as if you still belonged to the world? Why do you submit to regulations:
20 If you have died with the Messiah to the basic principles of the world, why are you submitting to its decrees as though you still lived in the world?
21 For these precepts, although they have a show of wisdom with their self-imposed devotions and fastings and bodily austerities, are of no real value against the indulgence of the carnal appetites.
21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not;
21 “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”
21 “Don’t handle, don’t taste, don’t touch”?
21 "Don't handle this! Don't taste or touch that!"