Colossians 3:1-7 Exegetical

Colossians Exegetical: Colossians 3:1-7

Colossians: EN 426

Daniel Haugen

Set your mind on things above,

not on earthly things.

Colossians 3:2 (NIV)

3:1

Ei oun suvnhgerqhte (Aorist Passive 2P plural) tw Cristw (Dative of Association) ta anw zhteite 2P plural Imperative), ou o Cristos estin en dexia tou Qew kaqhmenos (present participle)

If therefore you were raised with the Christ the above desire, where the Christ is in right the God seated

If therefore you (all) were raised with Christ, (you) desire (or seek) those things above, where Christ is seated (sitting) on the right of God.

The "therefore") is signaling a transition in the argument of the letter to the Colossians to more of an exhortation, connecting the current train of thought to what has already developed (2:20) in the letter, "You have been raised with Christ to new life!" (Lohse 1971). It rounds off what has been said previously serving as a polemic against the "philosophy" of the false teachers and the introduction of the true alternative of that teaching. (Obrien 2000) Three times, in verses one through four, this theme of a life with Christ echoes. In verse three it says that our life has been hidden with Christ and in verse four it assures the readers that they will be made known to Him (Christ) in glory. (Reumann 1985) In this section of Colossians, Paul is turning his thoughts to a more positive aspect of Christian living, the positive nature of the Christians higher calling. (Richard R Melick 1991) Paul asks his readers to,  seek that which is above, referring to the heavenly world from where the upward call) referenced in Philippians 3:14 comes.

3:2

Ta anw froneite 2P Plural imperative) mh ta epi ths ghs.

The above set (your) mind on not the on the earth

Set (your) mind on the (things) above not on (things) on the earth (those things belonging to earth) Articles used as substantive (Wallace 1996)

This command to look above for the answers in life is repeated a second time here Paul is using spatial terms here and often used this method to draw a contrast between the present and future ages. (Garland 1998) This word  is also a present imperative indicating to the reader that this direction for setting their mind is ongoing, indicating not only intellectual but spiritual activity. (Deterding 2000)

3:3

Apeqanete (Aorist) gar kai h zwh umwn kekruptai (perfect passive) sun tw Cristw ev tw qew

You died for and the life of you has been hidden with the Christ in the God

For you died (once and for all) and your life has been hidden (and is still hidden) with Christ in God.

is the perfect passive of  and means it has been stored up or hidden (and still is hidden) with Christ. The verb, (hidden) is a perfect tense in contrast to the preceding aorist  (you died) drawing attention to the specific occasion of Christ's death and stresses the ongoing and permanent effects of a life hidden with Christ. (Obrien 2000) It means that the readers life has already been secured. The hiddenness of life in Christ is a continual condition for those united with Christ (until verse 4) (Deterding 2000). What was once, no longer applies. The old life has died and the new one in Christ has replaced it. Yet this life, , is a reality where it is received and directed by faith (Colossians 2:12). The resurrection of the dead has already been accomplished. (Lohse 1971) The word provides the basis for the earlier exhortations, in this case toward the past.

3:4

Otan o Cristos fanerwqh (aorist passive subjunctive), h zwh umwn, (adjectival use of attributive position) tote kai umeis sun autw fanerwqhsesqe (future passive) en doxh.

when the Christ is made known in your life, (the made known in the life of you one) then also you (all) will be made known (revealed) (with Him) in glory

When Christ, the life of you, is made known, then you also will be made known with Him in glory. The believer's life, which is hidden in Christ, will be revealed at His return. The second coming of Christ will be a time of glory ( (Richard R Melick 1991) The verb in this context, does not refer to the appearance that has already happened as referenced in Colossians 1:26, rather it refers to the "lifting of the veil" as it were, the Parousia (Jesus as judge for the last judgment). (Lohse 1971) The  is significant in that Paul regularly ends his letters with the prayer that grace be with, (and never his addresses, whereas he depicts the Christian life as one of identification with Christ and the Christian's destiny as "being with Christ",  not This would suggest that, of the two prepositions,  was the more suited to express intimate personal union and  the more suited to denote close association or attendant circumstance. (Wallace 1996) The variant reading for your life)is (our life) and doesn't radically change the meaning except that Paul is including himself in  (Aland 1979)Where verse 3 was oriented toward the past, verse 4,  is manifested in the future (even though there is no future in the Subjunctive). you all will be made known. (Obrien 2000)

3:5

Nekrwsate (aorist imperative) oun ta melh ta epi ths ghs, porneian akaqarsian