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Colossians


Kuh-losh´uhnz

The Letter of Paul to the, one of thirteen letters in the NT attributed to the apostle Paul. It bears remarkable similarities to the Letter to the Ephesians and offers a response to a “philosophy” proclaimed by certain Christian teachers at Colossae (Col 2:8), a teaching that the author views as antithetical to the true gospel.

Outline of Contents

Colossians

I. Epistolary salutation (Col 1:1-2)

II. Thanksgiving for the Colossians’ past and present fidelity (Col 1:3-8)

III. The need for continued fidelity to the gospel (Col 1:9-4:6)

A. The true way of salvation (Col 1:9-3:4)

1. The author’s basic thesis (Col 1:9-12)

2. Supporting reason: God in Christ has accomplished a complete deliverance (Col 1:13-20)

3. Reiteration of the thesis (Col 1:21-23)

4. Supporting reason: Paul’s fidelity in proclaiming the gospel (Col 1:24-2:3)

5. Counterexample: the infidelity of the new teachers (Col 2:4-13)

6. Reiteration of the thesis (Col 3:1-4)

B. The ethical practices that follow from this (Col 3:5-4:6)

IV. Concluding greetings and instructions (Col 4:7-18)

  • Powell, Mark Allan, ed. HarperCollins Bible Dictionary. Abridged Edition. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2009.