The Epistles · Chapter 1 of 4
Colossians 1
Paul thanks God for the Colossians' faith and love and prays they grow in the knowledge of God's will. He praises Christ as the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of creation, in whom all things were made and hold together, and as head of the church. In him is redemption and reconciliation through the blood of the cross. Paul labors to present everyone mature in Christ, the mystery of glory.
What happens in Colossians 1
Paul greets the Colossians and thanks God for their faith in Christ and love for the saints, grounded in the hope laid up in heaven. He prays they be filled with the knowledge of God's will, fruitful in good works and strengthened with power, giving thanks to the Father who has delivered them from darkness into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom they have redemption and forgiveness. Paul then exalts Christ in a soaring passage: he is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, the one by whom and for whom all things were created, who is before all things and in whom all things hold together.
He is head of the body, the church, the firstborn from the dead, in whom all fullness dwells and through whose blood on the cross God reconciles all things. Once alienated enemies, the Colossians are now reconciled and will be presented holy if they continue in the faith. Paul rejoices in his sufferings and labors to proclaim the mystery, Christ in you, the hope of glory, presenting everyone mature in him.
Colossians 1 in context
Paul writes to Colossae, a church he had not founded, to counter a false teaching that diminished Christ by adding philosophy, angelic mediators, and ritual. His answer is to lift Christ higher. The hymn of verses 15 through 20 presents the most exalted portrait of Christ's supremacy in creation and redemption, establishing that in him alone all fullness dwells and no supplement is needed.
Main themes of Colossians 1
Colossians 1 (KJV)
1Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother, 2To the saints and faithful brethren in Christ which are at Colosse: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you, 4Since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints, 5For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel; 6Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth: 7As ye also learned of Epaphras our dear fellowservant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ; 8Who also declared unto us your love in the Spirit. 9For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; 12Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: 13Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: 14In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: 15Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. 18And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 19For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; 20And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. 21And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 22In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight: 23If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister; 24Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church: 25Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; 26Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: 27To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: 28Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: 29Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.
Verses to carry from Colossians 1
“Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:”Colossians 1:15
“And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.”Colossians 1:17
“And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.”Colossians 1:20
Thematic connection
How Colossians 1 points to Jesus
Few chapters exalt Christ as this one does. Paul calls him the image of the invisible God and the firstborn of all creation, meaning not that he was created but that he is supreme over and prior to all things. By him all things were created, in heaven and earth, visible and invisible; he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is head of the church and the firstborn from the dead, so that in everything he might have preeminence, for in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.
And this supreme Lord reconciles all things by the blood of his cross. The same Christ who upholds the universe indwells his people as their hope of glory. The chapter refuses any Savior who is less than fully God and fully sufficient.
Questions about Colossians 1
What does it mean that Christ is the firstborn of all creation in Colossians 1:15?
Paul is not saying Christ was created first. Firstborn here signals rank and priority, the supreme heir over all things. The next verses confirm it: by him all things were created, and he is before all things. Rather than placing Christ within creation, Paul places him above it as its Maker, sustainer, and rightful Lord.
What is the mystery Paul speaks of in Colossians 1?
Paul says the mystery hidden for ages but now revealed is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is the good news that Christ dwells within his people, including Gentiles once excluded, uniting them to God. This indwelling is the ground of their hope for future glory, and proclaiming it is the aim of Paul's ministry.
Reflection
If your view of Jesus has grown small, let this chapter enlarge it. The one who holds the galaxies together also holds you, and by his cross has reconciled you to God. And astonishingly, this cosmic Christ lives in you as your hope of glory. Rest today in a Savior who is more than sufficient.
A prayer from Colossians 1
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