1 P aul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, and Timotheus our brother,

Paul, an apostle (special messenger) of Christ Jesus (the Messiah), by the will of God, and Timothy brother,

2 t o 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.

To the saints (the consecrated people of God) and believing and faithful brethren in Christ who are at Colossae: Grace (spiritual favor and blessing) to you and peace from God our Father.

3 W e give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, praying always for you,

We continually give thanks to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah), as we are praying for you,

4 s ince we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which ye have to all the saints,

For we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus '> the leaning of your entire human personality on Him in absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness] and of the love which you for all the saints (God’s consecrated ones),

5 f or the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel;

Because of the hope laid up ( reserved and waiting) for you in heaven. Of this you heard in the past in the message of the truth of the Gospel,

6 w hich 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:

Which has come to you. Indeed, in the whole world is bearing fruit and still is growing, even as it has done among yourselves ever since the day you first heard and came to know and understand the grace of God in truth.

7 a s ye also learned of Epaphras our dear fellowservant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ;

You so learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ in our stead and as our representative and yours.

8 w ho also declared unto us your love in the Spirit.

Also he has informed us of your love in the Spirit.

9 F or 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;

For this reason we also, from the day we heard of it, have not ceased to pray and make '> special] request for you, that you may be filled with the full (deep and clear) knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom '> in comprehensive insight into the ways and purposes of God] and in understanding and discernment of spiritual things—

10 t hat ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

That you may walk (live and conduct yourselves) in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him and desiring to please Him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work and steadily growing and increasing in and by the knowledge of God '> acquaintance, and recognition].

11 s trengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness;

that you may be invigorated and strengthened with all power according to the might of His glory, every kind of endurance and patience (perseverance and forbearance) with joy,

12 g iving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:

Giving thanks to the Father, Who has qualified and made us fit to share the portion which is the inheritance of the saints (God’s holy people) in the Light.

13 w ho hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:

has delivered and drawn us to Himself out of the control and the dominion of darkness and has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,

14 i n whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

In Whom we have our redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our sins.

15 w ho is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

He is the exact likeness of the unseen God; He is the Firstborn of all creation.

16 f or 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:

For it was in Him that all things were created, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, whether thrones, dominions, rulers, or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him and in and for Him.

17 a nd he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

And He Himself existed before all things, and in Him all things consist (cohere, are held together).

18 A nd 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.

He also is the Head of body, the church; seeing He is the Beginning, the Firstborn from among the dead, so that He alone in everything and in every respect might occupy the chief place.

19 F or it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

For it has pleased that all the divine fullness (the sum total of the divine perfection, powers, and attributes) should dwell in Him permanently.

20 a nd, 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.

And God purposed that through ( by the service, the intervention of) Him all things should be completely reconciled back to Himself, whether on earth or in heaven, as through Him, made peace by means of the blood of His cross.

21 A nd you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled

And although you at one time were estranged and alienated from Him and were of hostile attitude of mind in your wicked activities,

22 i n the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

Yet now has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, in order to present you holy and faultless and irreproachable in His presence.

23 i f 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;

provided that you continue to stay with and in the faith, well-grounded and settled and steadfast, not shifting or moving away from the hope the glad tidings (the Gospel), which you heard and which has been preached to every person under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

24 w ho 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:

now I rejoice in the midst of my sufferings on your behalf. And in my own person I am making up whatever is still lacking and remains to be completed '> on our part] of Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of His body, which is the church.

25 w hereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;

In it I became a minister in accordance with the divine stewardship which was entrusted to me for you, to make the Word of God fully known —

26 e ven the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:

The mystery of which was hidden for ages and generations '> from angels and men], but is now revealed to His holy people (the saints),

27 t o 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:

To whom God was pleased to make known how great for the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ within and among you, the Hope of glory.

28 w hom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:

Him we preach and proclaim, warning and admonishing everyone and instructing everyone in all wisdom ( comprehensive insight into the ways and purposes of God), that we may present every person mature (full-grown, fully initiated, complete, and perfect) in Christ (the Anointed One).

29 w hereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.

For this I labor '> unto weariness], striving with all the superhuman energy which He so mightily enkindles and works within me.