See on Matthew 6:25. Rev., better, be anxious.

Prayer and supplication

General and special. See on Luke 5:33; see on Luke 8:38.

Προσευχή prayer, only of prayer to God. The two words often occur together, as Ephesians 6:18; 1 Timothy 2:1; 1 Timothy 5:5.

Requests (αἰτήματα)

Specific details of supplication.

Unto God (πρὸς τὸν Θεόν)

The force of πρός is rather in your intercourse with God. See on with God, John 1:1.

As the antidote to anxiety, Philippians 4:6.

Which passeth all understanding (ἡ ὑπερέχουσα πάντα νοῦν).

Either, which passes all power of comprehension, compare Ephesians 3:20; or, better, which surpasses every (human) reason, in its power to relieve anxiety. Compare Matthew 6:31, Matthew 6:32. For understanding, see on Romans 7:23.

Shall keep (φρουρήσει)

Lit., guard, as Rev., or mount guard over. God's peace, like a sentinel, patrols before the heart. Compare Tennyson:

"Love is and was my King and Lord,

And will be, though as yet Ikeep

Within his court on earth, and sleep

Encompassed by his faithful guard,

And hear at times a sentinel

Who moves about from place to place,

And whispers to the worlds of space,

continued...

Rev., honorable, reverend in margin. In classical Greek an epithet of the gods, venerable, reverend. The word occurs only here and in the pastoral epistles, 1 Timothy 3:8, 1 Timothy 3:11; Titus 2:2, where it is rendered grave, both in A.V. and Rev. There lies in it the idea of a dignity or majesty which is yet inviting and attractive, and which inspires reverence. Grave, as Trench observes, does not exhaust the meaning. Gravity may be ridiculous. "The word we want is one in which the sense of gravity and dignity, and of these as inviting reverence, is combined." Ellicott's venerable is perhaps as near as any word, if venerable be divested of its modern conventional sense as implying age, and confined to its original sense, worthy of reverence.

Pure (ἁγνά)

See on 1 John 3:3.

Lovely (προσφιλῆ)

Only here in the New Testament. Adapted to excite love, and to endear him who does such things.

Of good report (εὔφημα)

Only here in the New Testament. Lit., sounding well. The kindred verb is commonly used in an active sense. Hence not well spoken of, but fairspeaking, and so winning, gracious (Rev., in margin).

Virtue (ἀρετὴ)

With this exception the word occurs only in Peter's epistles; 1 Peter 2:9 (note); 2 Peter 1:3, 2 Peter 1:5 (note).

Praise (ἔπαινος)

Commendation corresponding to the moral value of the virtue. In the Septuagint, ἀρετὴ virtue is four times used to translate the Hebrew praise. The two ideas seem to be coordinated. Lightfoot remarks that Paul seems studiously to avoid this common heathen term for moral excellence, and his explanation is very suggestive: "Whatever value may reside in your old heathen conception of virtue, whatever consideration is due to the praise of men."

Lit., ye caused your thinking on my behalf to bloom anew. Rev., ye revived your thought for me. The verb occurs only here in the New Testament. In the Septuagint it appears as both transitive and intransitive, to flourish, or to cause to flourish. Thus Psalm 27:7, where Septuagint reads for my heart greatly rejoiceth, my flesh flourished (ἀνέθαλεν); Ezekiel 17:24, have made the dry tree to flourish.

Wherein

The matter of my wants and sufferings. Implied in your care of me.

Ye were careful (ἐφρονεῖτε)

Rev., ye did take thought. Note the imperfect tense: ye were all along thoughtful.

Lit., self-sufficient. Only here in the New Testament. A stoic word, expressing the favorite doctrine of the sect, that man should be sufficient to himself for all things; able, by the power of his own will, to resist the shock of circumstance. Paul is self-sufficient through the power of the new self: not he, but Christ in him. The kindred noun αὐταρκεία sufficiency, occurs 2 Corinthians 9:8; 1 Timothy 6:6.

Rev., have I learned the secret. The metaphor is from the initiatory rites of the pagan mysteries. I have been initiated. See on Colossians 1:26.

To be full (χορτάζεσθαι)

See on Matthew 5:6.

See on Luke 14:30.

Strengtheneth (ἐνδυναμοῦντι)

More literally, infuses strength into me, as the old verb inforce.

Lest, in declaring his independence of human aid, he should seem to disparage the Philippians' gift.

On his first European circuit, going by way of Athens to Corinth, where he was joined by Silvanus and Timothy, bringing a contribution from Macedonia. Acts 18:5; 2 Corinthians 11:9.

Better also: in addition to the contribution received at Corinth.

I have received in full. See on Matthew 6:2; see on Luke 6:24.

Odor of a sweet smell

See on 2 Corinthians 2:15, 2 Corinthians 2:16. Frequent in Septuagint, of the odor of sacrifices.

This is differently connected by expositors. Some with riches, as A.V. and Rev. Others with shall supply, but with different explanations, as, shall supply your need with glory: in a glorious way: by placing you in glory. It is better to construe with shall supply, and to explain in glory as the element and instrument of the supply. The need shall be supplied in glory and by glory; by placing you in glory where you shall be partakers of glory.

Probably the slaves and freedmen attached to the palace.

The form of the name appears to have been both Kolossai and Kolassai, the former being probably the earlier.

The city was in Phrygia, in the valley of the Lycus, about ten or twelve miles beyond Laodicaea and Hierapolis. The region is volcanic, and the earthquakes common to large portions of Asia Minor are here peculiarly severe. The tributaries of the Lycus carried calcareous matter which formed everywhere deposits of travertine, said to be among the most remarkable formations of this character in the world. "Ancient monuments are buried, fertile lands overlaid, river-beds choked up, and streams diverted, fantastic grottos and cascades and arches of stone formed by this strange, capricious power, at once destructive and creative, working silently and relentlessly through long ages. Fatal to vegetation, these incrustations spread like a stony shroud over the ground. Gleaming like glaciers on the hillside, they attract the eye of the traveler at a distance of twenty miles, and form a singularly striking feature in scenery of more than common beauty and impressiveness" (Lightfoot).

The fertility of the region was nevertheless great. The fine sheep, and the chemical qualities of the streams which made the waters valuable for dyeing purposes, fostered a lively trade in dyed woolen goods. All the three cities were renowned for the brilliancy of their dyes.

Colossae stood at the junction of the Lycus with two other streams, on a highway between eastern and western Asia, and commanding the approaches to a pass in the Cadmus mountains. Both Herodotus and Xenophon speak of it as a prosperous and great city; but in Paul's time its glory had waned. Its site was at last completely lost, and was not identified until the present century. Its ruins are insignificant. Paul never visited either of the three cities. The church at Colossae was the least important of any to which Paul's epistles were addressed.

To the saints

A mode of address which characterizes Paul's later epistles. The word is to be taken as a noun, and not construed as an adjective with faithful brethren: to the holy and faithful brethren.

And faithful brethren in Christ

Or believing brethren. Compare Ephesians 1:1. There is no singling out of the faithful brethren from among others who are less faithful.

Our Father

The only instance in which the name of the Father stands in the opening benediction of an epistle without the addition and Jesus Christ.

Some of the best texts omit and. So Rev. The form with and is the more common. Compare Colossians 3:17.

Praying always for you

Rather connect always with we give thanks, and render we give thanks for you always, praying, or in our prayers. According to the Greek order, praying for you (as Rev. and A.V.), would make for you unduly emphatic.

The A.V. connects with we give thanks (Colossians 1:3). But the two are too far apart, and Paul's introductory thanksgiving is habitually grounded on the spiritual condition of his readers, not on something objective. See Romans 1:8; 1 Corinthians 1:4; Ephesians 1:15. Better connect with what immediately precedes, love which ye have, and render as Rev., because of the hope, etc. Faith works by love, and the ground of their love is found in the hope set before them. Compare Romans 8:24. The motive is subordinate, but legitimate. "The hope laid up in heaven is not the deepest reason or motive for faith and love, but both are made more vivid when it is strong. It is not the light at which their lamps are lit, but it is the odorous oil which feeds their flame" (Maclaren). Hope. See on 1 Peter 1:3. In the New Testament the word signifies both the sentiment of hope and the thing hoped for. Here the latter. Compare Titus 2:13; Galatians 5:5; Hebrews 6:18; also Romans 8:24, where both meanings appear. Lightfoot observes that the sense oscillates between the subjective feeling and the objective realization. The combination of faith, hope, and love is a favorite one with Paul. See 1 Thessalonians 1:3; 1 Corinthians 13:13; Romans 5:1-5; Romans 12:6-12.

Laid up (ἀποκειμένην)

Lit., laid away, as the pound in the napkin, Luke 19:20. With the derivative sense of reserved or awaiting, as the crown, 2 Timothy 4:8. In Hebrews 9:27, it is rendered appointed (unto men to die), where, however, the sense is the same: death awaits men as something laid up. Rev., in margin, laid up for. Compare treasure in heaven, Matthew 6:20; Matthew 19:21; Luke 12:34. "Deposited, reserved, put by in store out of the reach of all enemies and sorrows" (Bishop Wilson).

Ye heard before (προηκούσατε)

Only here in the New Testament, not in Septuagint, and not frequent in classical Greek. It is variously explained as denoting either an undefined period in the past, or as contrasting the earlier Christian teaching with the later heresies, or as related to Paul's letter (before I wrote), or as related to the fulfillment of the hope (ye have had the hope pre-announced). It occurs several times in Herodotus in this last sense, as ii. 5, of one who has heard of Egypt without seeing it: v., 86, of the Aeginetans who had learned beforehand what the Athenians intended. Compare viii. 79; vi. 16. Xenophon uses it of a horse, which signifies by pricking up its ears what it hears beforehand. In the sense of mere priority of time without the idea of anticipation, Plato: "Hear me once more, though you have heard me say the same before" ("Laws," vii., 797). I incline to the more general reference, ye heard in the past. The sense of hearing before the fulfillment of the hope would seem rather to require the perfect tense, since the hope still remained unfulfilled.

The word of the truth of the Gospel

The truth is the contents of the word, and the Gospel defines the character of the truth.

Lit., which is present unto you. Has come and is present. Compare Luke 11:7, "are with me into bed."

In all the world

Hyperbolical. Compare Romans 1:8; 1 Thessalonians 1:8; Acts 17:6. Possibly with a suggestion of the universal character of the Gospel as contrasted with the local and special character of false Gospels. Compare Colossians 1:23.

And bringeth forth fruit (καὶ ἔστι καρποφορούμενον)

Lit., and is bearing fruit. The text varies. The best texts omit and. Some join ἔστι is with the previous clause, as it is in all the world, and take bearing fruit as a parallel participle. So Rev. Others, better, join is with the participle, "even as it is bearing fruit." This would emphasize the continuous fruitfulness of the Gospel. The middle voice of the verb, of which this is the sole instance, marks the fruitfulness of the Gospel by its own inherent power. Compare the active voice in Colossians 1:10, and see Mark 4:28, "the earth bringeth forth fruit αὐτομάτη of herself, self-acting. For a similar use of the middle, see show, Ephesians 2:7; worketh, Galatians 5:6.

Increasing (αὐξανόμενην)

Not found in Tex. Rec., nor in A.V., but added in later and better texts, and in Rev. "Not like those plants which exhaust themselves in bearing fruit. The external growth keeps pace with the reproductive energy" (Lightfoot). "It makes wood as well" (Maclaren).

Used by Paul only here and Colossians 4:7.

Minister (διάκονος)

See on Matthew 20:26; see on Mark 9:35.

For you (ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν)

Read ἡμῶν, us as Rev., on our behalf: as Paul's representative.

Or made manifest. See on 1 Corinthians 1:11.

In the Spirit

Connect with your love. Compare Galatians 5:22.

Marking the reciprocal feeling of Paul and Timothy with that of the Colossians.

Pray - desire (προσευχόμενοι - αἰτούμενοι)

The words occur together in Mark 11:24. The former is general, the latter special. Rev. make request is better than desire. The A.V. renders indiscriminately ask and desire. Rev. alters desire to ask. Desire in the sense of ask occurs in Shakespeare and Spenser.

Knowledge (ἐπίγνωσιν)

See on Romans 3:20; see on Plm 1:6. Full knowledge. See Romans 1:21, Romans 1:28; 1 Corinthians 13:12, where Paul contrasts γινώσκειν to know γνῶσις knowledge, with ἐπιγινώσκειν to know fully, ἐπίγνωσις full knowledge. Here appropriate to the knowledge of God in Christ as the perfection of knowledge.

Wisdom and spiritual understanding (σοφίᾳ καὶ συνέσει πνευματικῇ)

Rev., better, applies spiritual to both - spiritual wisdom and understanding. The kindred adjectives σοφός wise and συνετός prudent, occur together, Matthew 11:25; Luke 10:21. For σοφία wisdom, see on Romans 11:33, and on wise, James 3:13. For σύνεσις understanding, see on Mark 12:33, and see on prudent, Matthew 11:25. The distinction is between general and special. Understanding is the critical apprehension of particulars growing out of wisdom, which apprehension is practically applied by φρόνησις prudence, see on Luke 1:17; see on Ephesians 1:8. Spiritual is emphatic, as contrasted with the vain philosophy of false teachers.

The phrase occurs Ephesians 4:1; 1 Thessalonians 2:12. Rev. gives the correct adverbial rendering worthily.

Unto all pleasing (εἰς πᾶσαν ἀρέσκειαν)

So as to please God in all ways. Compare 1 Thessalonians 4:1, Ἁρέσκεια pleasing, only here in the New Testament. In classical Greek it has a bad sense, obsequiousness, cringing. Compare men-pleasers, Colossians 3:22.

In the knowledge (εἰς τὴν ἐπίγνωσιν)

Lit. unto the knowledge. The best texts read τῇ ἐπιγνώσει "by the knowledge:" by means of.

Only here in the New Testament, but found in Septuagint. The compound (ἐνδυναμόω to make strong) is frequent in Paul, Romans 4:20; Ephesians 6:10; Philippians 4:13; 1 Timothy 1:12.

Power - might (δυνάμει - κράτος)

See on 2 Peter 2:11; see on John 1:12.

Glory

See on Romans 3:23.

Patience - long-suffering (ὑπομονὴν - μακροθυμίαν)

See on 2 Peter 1:6; see on James 5:7.

With joyfulness

Compare Colossians 1:24; James 1:2, James 1:3; 1 Peter 4:13. Some connect with giving thanks, Colossians 1:12, and this is favored by the construction of the previous clauses: in every good work bearing fruit: with all power strengthened: with joy giving thanks. But Paul is not always careful to maintain the symmetry of his periods. The idea of joy is contained in thanksgiving, which would make the emphatic position of with joy inexplicable; besides which we lose thus the idea of joyful endurance (Colossians 1:24) and of joyful suffering expressing itself in thanksgiving. Compare Romans 5:3.