13
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In Colossians 1:15, what does “firstborn of every creature” mean?
The phrase in question is prōtotokos pasēs ktiseōs. But does this mean "firstborn of every creature" (distributive, as in the KJV), or "firstborn of all creation" (collective, as in ASV, RSV, NASB, ...
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8
votes
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What does John 1:3 mean by "through" logos everything is made?
Thayer explains that when δι ("through") is used in the genitive it can describe "the Means or Instrument by which anything is effected," and is used specifically of "one who is the author of the ...
- 390
7
votes
What does "image" mean in "He is the image of the invisible God", Colossians 1:15?
Note the deliberate irony in the phrase: "image of the invisible ...". This is literally impossible. So what does it mean?
The simplest answer is given by the simple but profound statement ...
- 95.6k
6
votes
Accepted
In Colossians 3:23, what is the meaning of «ἐκ ψυχῆς» and the distinction between «ποιῆτε» and «ἐργάζεσθε»?
(1) What does «ἐκ ψυχῆς» mean?
It means something like "with all your might". It is attested in classical authors with this sense: see Liddell-Scott-Jones, ψυχή, sub IV.4 "Phrases". A nice example (...
- 24.7k
6
votes
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What was nailed to the cross in Colossians 2:14?
It's clear that what has been "nailed to the cross", is also that which has been "taken out of the way", which is the cheirographos which has been obliterated (or been "cancelled out" in the NASB), i....
- 24.7k
6
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What was nailed to the cross in Colossians 2:14?
There are two very different approaches to studying the Bible, eisegesis and exegesis.
Most other answers will use the former approach, but that isn't necessarily the right one. You need to ...
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6
votes
Accepted
Greek question Colossians 1:23
The relevant text of Col 1:23 is:
τοῦ κηρυχθέντος ἐν πάσῃ κτίσει
The verb κηρυχθέντος (keruchthentos) is part of the verb κηρύσσω (kérussó). In Col 1:23 it occurs as a Verb - Aorist Participle ...
- 95.6k
5
votes
What does John 1:3 mean by "through" logos everything is made?
The Greek reads:
παντα δι αυτου εγενετο και χωρις αυτου εγενετο ουδε εν ο γεγονεν
which has the literal reading:
All [things] through him him came into being and without him came into being not ...
- 12.1k
5
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What does the word "prototokos" mean in Colossians 1:15?
We have difficulty, in our typically "Western" way of thinking, understanding the biblical concept of "firstborn," particularly in how the word functioned in the history of the Jewish people. To ...
- 7,377
5
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Are there exegetical differences between "God and the Father" and "God the Father"?
Let me begin by listing all four verses you quote with my very (overly?) literal translation:
Col 1:3, Εὐχαριστοῦμεν τῷ Θεῷ Πατρὶ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ πάντοτε περὶ ὑμῶν προσευχόμενοι, = We ...
- 95.6k
5
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Why did Jesus create Judas only for the predestined purpose of being doomed to destruction - based on [Colossians 1:15-20] + [John 13:27, 17:12]?
The question is a classical example of a logical trap called "complex question" (I do not say that you intentionally and malignantly make this trap, of course, far from it!), that is to say ...
- 10.2k
5
votes
Accepted
What does it mean that Jesus is before all things (Colossians 1:17)?
The phrase, "He is before all things" (αὐτός ἐστιν πρὸ πάντων) has been interpreted in two broad ways:
Christ exceeds all things in moral and authoritarian dignity
Christ temporally ...
- 95.6k
5
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Buried with Him by/in baptism - Romans 6:4 and Colossians 2:12
First, both nouns have the same meaning because they both the same noun but in different grammatical cases:
Rom 6:4 - βαπτίσματος = genitive neuter singular = "of baptism"
Col 2:12 - ...
- 95.6k
5
votes
Accepted
Colossians 1:18; "the firstborn from the dead" literal or symbolic?
To answer your question, it is both literal and symbolic. The phrase, "firstborn" can mean literally the "first one to be alive from the process of birthing." Of course, "...
- 1,836
5
votes
Colossians 1:20 reconciling "things in heaven"
The simplest answer to this question is found in
Eph 6:12 - For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but
against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of
this world’s ...
- 95.6k
5
votes
Does Colossians 1:15, refer to the Genesis creation, or merely present Jesus as the beginning of those raised from the dead?
The text itself answers the question, although there is a question (or two) about which text is used. Fortunately, the translation that adds the word "other" to the passage five times (...
- 21.3k
5
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What does “in bodily form” mean in Colossians 2:9?
The one of the key words here is the “fullness” or “entirety” (πλήρωμα) for if the Lord Jesus Christ is not God per se, but participates in divine features and has, thus, a participatory deity as a ...
- 10.2k
5
votes
What is the meaning of "received" in Colossians 2:6?
λαμβάνω, lambano Strong 2983 conveys a 'taking hold of' as Matthew 7:8 when Jesus expresses :
... everyone that asketh, receiveth [Matthew 7:8 KJV]
With the addition of the sun- prefix this becomes ...
- 29.6k
4
votes
What does the term "principalities and powers" mean?
Arche and dunamis : Arche, I take it, is the Office and Archon the personage. Arche is that which is not only foundational, archetypal, it also has absolute precedence. Thus, that which comes after ...
- 29.6k
4
votes
Accepted
What is known about the letter to the Laodiceans mentioned in Colossians 4:16?
The Epistle to the Laodiceans is a possible lost letter of Paul the Apostle, the original existence of which is inferred from the Epistle to the Colossians to send their letter to the church in ...
- 12.4k
4
votes
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Is it necessary to assert that Paul has never been to Colossae when this letter is written?
What sets the Epistle to the Colossians apart is a sense of personal distance, with not so much as a suggestion anywhere in the epistle that Paul was writing to people he knew personally, at least not ...
- 12.4k
4
votes
Accepted
How can we reconcile Colossians 4:11 & Titus 1:10?
No, there is no contradiction here. Some Jews became part of the early Church and supported Paul's mission; many Jews didn't, and opposed Paul's mission. This is abundantly clear even from the most ...
- 24.7k
4
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What does John 1:3 mean by "through" logos everything is made?
In Septuagint we see a certain kind of difference between God and His Word, for example Psalm 36:5 τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ κυρίου οἱ οὐρανοὶ ἐστερεώθησαν ("by the word of the Lord the heavens were established") ...
- 10.2k
4
votes
What was nailed to the cross in Colossians 2:14?
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; - KJV
The reference to “handwriting of ordinances”...
- 3,052
4
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What is Jesus being credited with here? Col 1:16
The message is clarified in the last part of the scripture: "all things have been created through him and for him"
"On earth" is in contrast to "in heaven", and represents the same idea as "visible ...
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