Colossenses 4

Verse-by-verse explanation

1. Colossenses 4:1After asking for obedience from slaves in the previous chapter, Paul now holds masters accountable: fair and balanced treatment, reminding them that they too answer to a Master in heaven. This is not a call to abolish slavery as an institution, but a demand that a master’s power over a slave not be used without limit.
2. Colossenses 4:2Paul calls for perseverance in prayer, describing it as something that requires attention and active watchfulness, always accompanied by gratitude.
3. Colossenses 4:3Paul asks that they also pray for him and his companions, specifically for an opportunity (a “door”) to proclaim the mystery of Christ, the very reason he is in prison.
4. Colossenses 4:4Paul specifies his prayer request: that he may be able to present this message with the clarity it truly needs.
5. Colossenses 4:5Paul asks for wisdom in dealing with people outside the faith, using the same expression as in Ephesians about making the most of every opportunity of time.
6. Colossenses 4:6Salt was used both to add flavor and to preserve food, so the image suggests speech that is neither bland nor spoiled, but well-seasoned and carefully kept. Paul is asking for care in how they speak to people outside the faith, without losing either clarity or courtesy.
7. Colossenses 4:7Paul introduces Tychicus, called a beloved brother and faithful co-worker, as the one who will bring the Colossians his personal news.
8. Colossenses 4:8Paul explains the double purpose of sending Tychicus: to inform them of his situation and, at the same time, to comfort the hearts of the Colossians with this news.
9. Colossenses 4:9Onesimus is the same runaway slave who appears as the central figure of the letter to Philemon, written by Paul around the same time and sent along with this one. Here he is already publicly introduced to the church as a “faithful brother,” which helps explain the delicate request Paul makes in his personal letter to his former master.
10. Colossenses 4:10Paul sends greetings from two companions in prison or in work: Aristarchus, imprisoned together with him, and Mark, Barnabas’s cousin, asking that they welcome him well if he comes their way.
11. Colossenses 4:11Paul mentions one more Jewish co-worker, Jesus called Justus, and comments that these few Jewish Christians working with him have been a great personal comfort.
12. Colossenses 4:12Paul highlights Epaphras, the probable founder of the church at Colosse, describing his constant effort in prayer that the Colossians remain firm and mature in the will of God.
13. Colossenses 4:13Paul confirms Epaphras’s genuine zeal, which concerns him not only for Colosse but also for the neighboring churches of Laodicea and Hierapolis.
14. Colossenses 4:14Paul sends greetings from Luke, described as “the beloved physician,” probably the same author of the Gospel of Luke and Acts, and from another co-worker named Demas.
15. Colossenses 4:15Paul asks that greetings be passed on to the Christians in neighboring Laodicea, including a woman named Nymphas and the church that met in her house.
16. Colossenses 4:16Paul’s letters circulated among the churches: after being read at Colosse, he asks that this letter be passed on to the neighboring church at Laodicea, and that the Colossians also read a letter that had been sent there. That letter to the Laodiceans has not survived to us — it may have been lost, or perhaps it is another of Paul’s letters that we still have under a different name; no one knows for sure.
17. Colossenses 4:17Paul gives a direct, public message to Archippus, asking him to pay attention and fulfill the specific ministry he received from the Lord.
18. Colossenses 4:18It was common at the time to dictate a letter for a secretary to write, and to sign personally only at the end as a guarantee of authenticity, preventing forgeries. Paul makes a point of signing this farewell himself, and also asks them to remember that he is in prison while writing.