Colossians 1

1 Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, by the purpose of God, and Timothy our brother,

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Timotheus the brother,

2 To the saints and true brothers in Christ at Colossae: Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

to the holy ones in Colossae, and to the faithful brothers in Christ: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

3 We give praise to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, making prayer for you at all times,

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

4 After hearing of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love which you have for all the saints,

having heard of your faith in Christ Jesus, and of the love that [is] to all the holy ones,

5 Through the hope which is in store for you in heaven; knowledge of which was given to you before in the true word of the good news,

because of the hope that is laid up for you in the heavens, which you heard of beforehand by the word of the truth of the good news,

6 Which has come to you; and which in all the world is giving fruit and increase, as it has done in you from the day when it came to your ears and you had true knowledge of the grace of God;

which has come to you, as also in all the world, and is bearing fruit, as also in you, from the day in which you heard, and knew the grace of God in truth,

7 As it was given to you by Epaphras, our well-loved helper, who is a true servant of Christ for us,

as you also learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow-servant, who is a faithful servant of the Christ for you,

8 And who, himself, made clear to us your love in the Spirit.

who also declared to us your love in the Spirit.

9 For this reason, we, from the day when we had word of it, keep on in prayer for you, that you may be full of the knowledge of his purpose, with all wisdom and experience of the Spirit,

Because of this, we also, from the day in which we heard, do not cease praying for you, and asking that you may be filled with the full knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding,

10 Living uprightly in the approval of the Lord, giving fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;

to walk worthily of the LORD, pleasing in all, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God,

11 Full of strength in the measure of the great power of his glory, so that you may undergo all troubles with joy;

in all might being made mighty according to the power of His glory, to all endurance and long-suffering with joy.

12 Giving praise to the Father who has given us a part in the heritage of the saints in light;

Giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us for the participation of the inheritance of the holy ones in the light,

13 Who has made us free from the power of evil and given us a place in the kingdom of the Son of his love;

who rescued us out of the authority of the darkness, and translated [us] into the kingdom of the Son of His love,

14 In whom we have our salvation, the forgiveness of sins:

in whom we have the redemption [[through His blood]], the forgiveness of sins,

15 Who is the image of the unseen God coming into existence before all living things;

who is the image of the invisible God, firstborn of all creation,

16 For by him all things were made, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, authorities, lords, rulers, and powers; all things were made by him and for him;

because all things were created in Him, those in the heavens, and those on the earth, those visible, and those invisible, whether thrones, whether lordships, whether principalities, whether authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him,

17 He is before all things, and in him all things have being.

and He is before all, and all things have consisted in Him.

18 And he is the head of the body, the church: the starting point of all things, the first to come again from the dead; so that in all things he might have the chief place.

And He is the head of the body—the Assembly—who is a beginning, a firstborn out of the dead, that He might become first in all [things] Himself,

19 For God in full measure was pleased to be in him;

because all the fullness was pleased to dwell in Him,

20 Through him uniting all things with himself, having made peace through the blood of his cross; through him, I say, uniting all things which are on earth or in heaven.

and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself—having made peace through the blood of His Cross—through Him, whether the things on the earth, whether the things in the heavens.

21 And you, who in the past were cut off and at war with God in your minds through evil works, he has now made one

And you—once being alienated, and enemies in the mind, in the evil works, yet now He reconciled,

22 In the body of his flesh through death, so that you might be holy and without sin and free from all evil before him:

in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and unblemished, and unblameable before Himself,

23 If you keep yourselves safely based in the faith, not moved from the hope of the good news which came to you, and which was given to every living being under heaven; of which I, Paul, was made a servant.

if you also remain in the faith, being founded and settled, and not moved away from the hope of the good news, which you heard, which was preached in all the creation that [is] under Heaven, of which I, Paul, became a servant.

24 Now I have joy in my pain because of you, and in my flesh I undergo whatever is still needed to make the sorrows of Christ complete, for the salvation of his body, the church;

I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up the things lacking of the tribulations of the Christ in my flesh for His body, which is the Assembly,

25 Of which I became a servant by the purpose of God which was given to me for you, to give effect to the word of God,

of which I became a servant according to the dispensation of God, that was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God,

26 The secret which has been kept from all times and generations, but has now been made clear to his saints, (aiōn g165)

the secret that has been hid from the ages and from the generations, but now was revealed to His holy ones, (aiōn g165)

27 To whom God was pleased to give knowledge of the wealth of the glory of this secret among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

to whom God willed to make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this secret among the nations—which is Christ in you, the hope of the glory,

28 Whom we are preaching; guiding and teaching every man in all wisdom, so that every man may be complete in Christ;

whom we proclaim, warning every man, and teaching every man, in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus,

29 And for this purpose I am working, using all my strength by the help of his power which is working in me strongly.

for which I also labor, striving according to His working that is working in me in power.