Matthew Henry

And He is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and firstborn from among the dead, so that in all things He may have preeminence.

“All our hopes and joys take their rise from him who is the author of our salvation. Not that he was the first who ever rose from the dead, but the first and only one who rose by his own power, and was declared to…”

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions for the sake of His body, which…

“But the sufferings of Paul and other good ministers made them conformable to Christ; and they followed him in his suffering state: so they are said to fill up what was behind of the sufferings of Christ, as the wax fills up the vacuities of…”

To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

“This mystery, thus made known, is Christ in you (or among you) the hope of glory. Observe, Christ is the hope of glory. The ground of our hope is Christ in the word, or the gospel revelation, declaring the nature and methods of obtaining it.”

We proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.

“That which he aimed at was to present every man perfect in Christ Jesus, teleios, either perfect in the knowledge of the Christian doctrine ( Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, be thus minded, Phil. iii.”

in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

“Observe, The treasures of wisdom are hidden not from us, but for us, in Christ. Those who would be wise and knowing must make application to Christ.”

Therefore, just as you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him, established in the faith as you were taught, and…

“The more closely we walk with Christ the more we are rooted and established in the faith. A good conversation is the best establishment of a good faith.”

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on…

“Those who pin their faith on other men's sleeves, and walk in the way of the world, have turned away from following after Christ.”

In Him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of your sinful nature, with the circumcision performed by Christ and not by human hands.

“It consists in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, in renouncing sin and reforming our lives, not in mere external rites.”

And having been buried with Him in baptism, you were raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead.

“But the thing signified by our baptism is that we are buried with Christ, as baptism is the seal of the covenant and an obligation to our dying to sin; and that we are raised with Christ, as it is a seal and obligation to…”

When you were dead in your trespasses and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our trespasses,

“Now through Christ we, who were dead in sins, are quickened; that is, effectual provision is made for taking away the guilt of sin, and breaking the power and dominion of it.”

having canceled the debt ascribed to us in the decrees that stood against us. He took it away, nailing it to the cross!

“"Upon me be the curse, my father." He vacated and disannulled the judgment which was against us. When he was nailed to the cross, the curse was as it were nailed to the cross.”

And having disarmed the powers and authorities, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

“The devil and all the powers of hell were conquered and disarmed by the dying Redeemer. The first promise pointed at this; the bruising of the heel of Christ in his sufferings was the breaking of the serpent's head, Gen. iii.”

Therefore let no one judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a feast, a New Moon, or a Sabbath.

“Much of the ceremonies of the law of Moses consisted in the distinction of meats and days. It appears by Rom. xiv.”

Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you with speculation about what he has seen.

“It looked like a piece of modesty to make use of the mediation of angels, as conscious to ourselves of our unworthiness to speak immediately to God; but, though it has a show of humility, it is a voluntary, not a commanded humility; and therefore…”

He has lost connection to the head, from whom the whole body, supported and knit together by its joints and ligaments, grows as God causes it to grow.

“They do in effect disclaim Christ, who is the only Mediator between God and man. It is the highest disparagement to Christ, who is the head of the church, for any of the members of it to make use of any intercessors with God but…”

“Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch!”? These will all perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings.

“Christians are freed by Christ from the ritual observances of Moses's law, and delivered from that yoke of bondage which God himself had laid upon them.”

Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.

“This is to be spiritually minded ( Rom. viii. 6 ), and to seek and desire a better country, that is, a heavenly, Heb. xi. Things on earth are here set in opposition to things above.”

For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

“That we are dead; that is, to present things, and as our portion. We are so in profession and obligation; for we are buried with Christ, and planted into the likeness of his death.”

For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.

“The life of a Christian is hid with Christ. Because I live you shall live also, John xiv.”

When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

“To me to live is Christ, Phil. i. (2.) Christ will appear again. He is now hid; and the heavens must contain him; but he will appear in all the pomp of the upper world, with his holy angels, and in his own glory and…”

Because of these, the wrath of God is coming on the sons of disobedience.

“The wrath of God comes upon all the children of disobedience. Those who do not obey the precepts of the law incur the penalties of it.”

But now you must put aside all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.

“The gospel religion introduces a change of the higher as well as the lower powers of the soul, and supports the dominion of right reason and conscience over appetite and passion.”

Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices,

“Lying makes us like the devil (who is the father of lies ), and is a prime part of the devil's image upon our souls; and therefore we are cautioned against this sin by this general reason: Seeing you have put off the old man…”

and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.

“It was the honour of man in innocence that he was made after the image of God; but that image was defaced and lost by sin, and is renewed by sanctifying grace: so that a renewed soul is something like what Adam was in the…”

Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

“And the reason is: Even as Christ forgave you, so also do you. The consideration that we are forgiven by Christ so many offences is a good reason why we should forgive others.”