The apostle
called Paul wrote many letters that have since become part of New Testament
canon. A man blessed with wisdom and faith, he delivered profound message
though his epistles. The second chapter of his letter to the church in
From the earlier parts of the chapter, we see Paul’s
concern:
Colossians 2:1 For I want you to know how greatly I strive
for you, and for those at La-odice’a, and for all who have not seen my face,
Colossians 2:2 that their hearts may be encouraged as they are knit together in
love, to have all the riches of assured understanding and the knowledge of
God's mystery, of Christ,
Colossians 2:3 in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
Colossians 2:4 I say this in order that no one may delude you with beguiling
speech.
Paul’s intent was to ensure the Colossians were not
deceived by “beguiling speech”. Later, we are told what this entails:
Colossians 2:8 See to it that no one makes a prey of you by
philosophy and empty deceit, according to human
tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according
to Christ.
Colossians 2:9 For in him the whole fulness of deity
dwells bodily,1
So what Paul wants to guard these people against
is the human tradition that faced them. This is defined to some extent later
on. Paul affirms next the basis of salvation: the “circumcision made without
hands” (Colossians 2:11, Romans 2:29) and being “buried with him [Christ Jesus]
in baptism” (Colossians 2:12, Romans 6:3); essentially, he is saying, “Repent,
and be baptized” (Acts 2:38).
Now, Paul reaches the heart of
the chapter, the beginning of the controversy and different interpretations
among Christians:
Nailed To the Cross
Colossians 2:13 And you, who were dead in trespasses and
the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having
forgiven us all our trespasses,
Colossians 2:14 having canceled the bond which stood against us with its legal
demands; this he set aside, nailing it to the cross.
Here, Paul explains the result of our repentance and
baptism. We are made alive with our Lord Yeshua and our sins are forgiven! The
King James Version renders verse 14 as follows:
Colossians 2:14 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;
Many if not most who read this verse say that the
“handwriting of ordinances” are the Law of Moses, with its ceremonial
ordinances including the Holy Days and Sabbaths as stated in verse 16. But what
exactly is this handwriting of ordinances?
The Greek term used is cheirographon tois dogmasin. The word cheirographon means anything written by hand, but may more specifically refer to a legal bond, or note of debt. Dogmasin refers to laws, decrees or ordinances and here refers to the laws governing a person’s life or the “legal demands” on the person as the RSV renders it. When someone was crucified, he was not the only thing nailed to the cross or stake. There was also an inscription declaring the crime the person was charged with. When our Lord was crucified, the inscription did not state any crime, or sins.
Mark
As a sinless and innocent man, Jesus had committed no crime.
And yet, He died for us, taking our sins upon himself (Hebrews
1 Peter
The New Testament in Modern English, by J.B. Phillips,
expresses Colossians 2 in this way:
Colossians 2:14 Christ has utterly wiped out the damning evidence of broken laws and
commandments which always hung over our heads, and has completely annulled
it by nailing it over his own head on the cross.
Paul was saying that, symbolically, our sins, our crimes against God, were nailed to Jesus’ cross. He
repaid our debt, fulfilling the “righteous requirements” of the Law for us
(Romans 8:4). The consequence of sin is death (Romans
Let No One Judge
Paul continues:
Colossians
Colossians
A misunderstanding of verse 14 leads people to this
interpret it thusly: Since the law is done away with, let no one tell you that
you have to abstain from unclean meats or observe New Moon festivals, Holy Days
and Sabbaths. But let’s see.
Before, Paul refers to “human tradition”. And with good
reason. The Colossians had been influenced by philosophies that were in
contradiction to the ways of Christ. These philosophies preached self-denial
(self-abasement or voluntary humility), worship of angels (verse 18), and the
shunning of pleasure and enjoyment. They had restrictions, “Do not handle, Do
not taste, Do not touch” (verse 21) that had no basis in Scripture and were
thus “according to human precepts and doctrines” (verse 22). These philosophies
were an amalgamation of Jewish and Gentile notions; the precursor of what is
now known as Gnosticism. The basis of this is that knowledge (Greek gnosis, hence the name) enhanced one’s
religion. They were “puffed up” (verse 18) by the wisdom that they sought. They
renounced physical things, considering these beneath them. These pre-Gnostic
doctrines permeated the Colossian church.
Paul was combating this ascetic lifestyle. These are the “ordinances” or “regulations” referred to in verse 20, the human traditions of these philosophical people. Paul was telling them not to let these false precepts get in the way of enjoying food, drinking tasty drinks (wine even; Deuteronomy 14:26) enjoying the celebrations instituted by God: His Sabbaths and Holy Days. He was explaining to them that they have a right to enjoy the things which are of God. And we all have so much to celebrate. We have a Lord who loves us so much that He died for us so we may live! But such physical enjoyment, though prescribed by God (Deuteronomy 16:14), was condemned by those philosophers.
The RSV says that the days mentioned in verse 16 are only a shadow of things to come. In the KJV (the more “accurate” in terms of word-for-word translation), the word “only” is missing. It is very true that what God instituted at Sinai is a type of what was and is to come; but read on: “the substance belongs to Christ.” See that? This wording says that the Holy Days and Sabbaths are of Christ and point to Him. Some misread this text and claim that all the shadows were fulfilled at Christ’s coming. However, Paul says these things are a shadow of what is to come. He used the Greek word esti, which is the present-active form of the verb “to be”.2
Does their being a shadow mean that they aren’t relevant to us
today? If so, then we shouldn’t marry. At some time in the future, when the
saints are resurrected, they will not marry (Matthew
The seventh-day Sabbath points ultimately to the rest we will receive after Christ’s return (Hebrews 4:1-11). And the annual Feast Days point to different aspects of the plan of salvation. For example, the Feast of Unleavened Bread (outlined in Lev 23:6-9) has tied up in it the part we play as Christians in our walk with Christ: turning away from sin (1 Corinthians 5). Indeed, look closely at Paul’s words:
1 Corinthians
5:8 Let us,
therefore, celebrate the festival, not
with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened
bread of sincerity and truth.
If Paul was saying in Colossians 2:16 that we no longer
have to keep any of God’s Feasts, he would not have seen any need to instruct
the Gentile area of Corinth on what spirit they should have during the
Festival of Unleavened Bread; that of “sincerity and truth”. The Colossian
church was also a Gentile church (Colossians
Paul’s message in Colossians 2 is more profound and amazing
that the typical Christian thinks. Instead of saying that the Feasts of God and
that they are “against us” and taken “out of the way”, he was saying that the
Colossians should celebrate and we should not allow anyone to prevent
them from enjoying the Festivals God has given to them (and us); not let
themselves be judged (with their commandments of men, “don’t touch, don’t
taste”) for keeping Festivals because they are of Christ! When looked at carefully, it is saying that the
Christians of Colossae were keeping these holydays more than three decades
after the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Why would God’s
celebration periods be “against” His church? Don’t you think His people have a
right to hold on to them and praise Him for the blessing they are?
Paul’s message ties together the chapter in a way many
interpretations of the message simply cannot. It is a powerful one, and one I
believe to be the truth of God. A wonderful message indeed! ש
1.
Here, Paul tells the Colossian church why
they should not follow the traditions of men: Jesus is the fullness of divinity
“bodily”. It’s generally accepted that this verse is talking about Jesus being
fully divine. But, is it possible it is saying something else? Let’s look at
verse 10 and see if we can have a clue:
Colossians 2:9 For in him the
whole fulness of deity dwells bodily,
Colossians 2:10 and you have come to fulness of life in him, who is the head of
all rule and authority.
Else where in the New Testament, the believers in the Messiah are called the
body of Christ (Romans 12: 5). I believe what Paul may be saying here is that
Christ, in His full deity, dwells in His church “bodily”. And through this
indwelling, we have “fullness of life”; something that others were trying to
attain through their human tradition. We don’t need to do anything to have
fullness; that is a gift we receive though our Lord. Go back.
2.
The wording of Colossians 2:17 in the King
James Version opens the door to another possible understanding of this verse,
one that we would not see in many modern interpretations:
KJV Colossians 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or
in drink, or in respect of a holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
KJV Colossians 2:17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is
of Christ.
Notice something about two words in the above passages? The words “days”
and “is” are in italics on the King James Version. This means that they
were added by the translators in order to make it clear what the ancient texts
said; or what they perceived them to say. Omitting the words in italics and a
small shift in punctuation (remember, there was no punctuation in the Greek
text in which the epistle to Colossae was originally written), we get the
following:
“Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a holy
day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath, which are a shadow of things to
come, but the body of Christ.”
It seems to say something different now, doesn’t it? Could it be that what Paul
was saying is that the Colossians should ignore what the ascetics were saying
with their foolish human traditions – shunning enjoyment and promoting
self-denial in order to attain fullness – and concentrate on their brethren in
the body of Christ? Go back.
Note: To learn more about the Gnostics,
encyclopaedias such as World Book and Britannica can be consulted. Also, Bible
helps such as C.K. Barrett’s The New Testament Background can be
helpful. Bible quotations are from
the Revised Standard Version (RSV) unless otherwise indicated.
© Copyright 2006,
2007 Keneil Thomas
· See an excerpt from another study in this topic.
· Sabbath Days – A look at the “sabbath days” of Colossians 2:16.
· Feasts of God: The Hidden Design – An overview of the meaning behind the annual Festivals instituted by God.
Readers are permitted and encouraged to reproduce this paper in its entirety. To copy subsections, you will require the permission of the author, who may be contact at the e-mail address below. All reproductions and distributions must have the name and e-mail address of the author.
