Colossians 1:24-29
Nestle-Aland 27
24 ??? ????? ?? ???? ????????? a ???? ???? ??? ??????????? b ?? ?????????? c ??? ??????? ??? ??????? ?? ?? ????? ??? ???? ??? ??????? ????? , ? ????? ? ???????? , 25 ?? ???????? ??? ???????? ‹ ???? ??? ?????????? ??? ???? › d ??? ???????? e ??? ??? ???? ???????? f ??? ????? ??? ???? , 26 ?? ????????? ?? ?????????????? g ??? ??? ?????? ??? ??? ??? ?????? - ??? ?? ????????? ???? ?????? ????? , 27 ??? ? ??????? ? ???? ???????? ?? ?? ??????? ??? ????? ??? ????????? ?????? ?? ???? ??????? , ? ????? ??????? ?? ???? , ? ????? ??? ????? · 28 ?? ????? ????????????? ???????????? h ????? ???????? ??? ??????????? ????? ???????? ?? ???? ????? , ??? ???????????? i ????? ???????? ??????? ?? ?????? · 29 ??? ? ??? ????? ???????????? ???? ??? ????????? ????? ??? ???????????? ?? ???? ?? ??????? .
Commentary
A faithful minister was out riding his bike last week with his to young sons. He fell off it and has been in a coma for a week and is not likely to recover, according to the doctor’s prognosis. I don’t know how to make sense out of that. But what Paul is telling us here is that the suffering that this man endures (and his wife and children with him!) is suffering in which Christ himself participates.Now, don’t be confused about what Paul seems to be saying here. Paul definitely says that his sufferings as a Christian “fill up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ” (v 24). What is clearly not in the picture here regarding Christ’s sufferings are the ideas of expiation or propitiation. [1] The paradigm that we have in Colossians is that of union with the risen and exalted Christ who is still very much incarnate, one of us. He is intrinsically bound to his people, in an inseparable fashion. This union (“Christ in you” v 27) is the mystery that was hidden, which has now been revealed to his people, the church.This bond of love is everything for the Christian. It is the purpose of justification. It is the process of sanctification. It is the radiance of glorification. Paul strives, toils for this mysterious bond of love, this union with Christ. It is something he has monergistically by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone and consequently is something that is worked out in union, in cooperation with God as the Lord leads us forward with him in his regal procession through time, having triumphed over sin and death.
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[1] Lightfoot, Joseph Barber. Colossians and Philemon. 1st British ed. The Crossway classic commentaries. Wheaton, Ill.: Crossway Books, 1997, Colossians 1:24.
Translation
24 Now I rejoice in sufferings for your sake; even in my flesh I fill up what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ for the sake of his body, which is the church, 25 of which I became a minister according to the divine office, given to me in order to make full the word of God to you, 26 the mystery hidden from eternity and from generations – but now, revealed to his holy ones, 27 to whom God willed to make known among the nations how great the wealth of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory, 28 which we proclaimed to you, warning every person and teaching every person in all wisdom so that we might present every person completed in Christ. 29 For this mystery j I am also toiling, striving according to his work, working k in me with power.
Grammar & Vocabulary
a ????????? dat/pl/neu ( ?????? ) suffering, misfortune b ??????????? pres/act/ind/1p/sg ( ???????????? ) to fill up, complete c ?????????? acc/pl/neu ( ???????? ) need, want, deficiency d ???? ??? ?????????? ??? ???? (according to the divine office); ????????? refers to a plan or administration and I take ??? ???? as an attributive genitive resulting in “divine office” (c.f., BAGD p 559). e ???????? aor/psv/ptc/sg/acc/fem ( ?????? ) to give f ???????? taken as an infinitive of purpose g ?????????????? pfc/psv/ptc/sg/acc/neu ( ????????? ) kept secret, hidden h ???????????? pres/act/ptc/pl/nom/mas ( ???????? ) to admonish, instruct, warn i ???????????? BAGD informs us that in cases such as this, Eph 5:27 and 2 Tim 2:15 can function conceptually as “to make” or “to render” (p 627). j the relative pronoun here is neuter and seems to point back to ????????? in v 27. k The English words “work” and “working” are rendered from the Greek ???????? and ??????? respectively. It is the language that historically has indicated the union with Christ that transforms all believers.
