Colossianschapter 4
18 verses · Paul, by tradition · AD 60 to 62 · Paul's letters
Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
Introduction
Paul, by tradition, Paul's letters, Colossians Overview.
This chapter closes Paul's letter to the church at Colossae, written from his imprisonment. It moves from the household to the whole church, and then to the people who carried the letter and those who would hear it. Its first hearers were a small congregation in the Lycus valley, with neighbours at Laodicea and Hierapolis who would read the same pages. Listen for the requests about prayer and about speech toward outsiders. Then listen to the list of names, each with a piece of history behind it. Read the last line as a prisoner's own signature.
Context
- Who
- Colossae and the neighbouring congregations who would pass the letter around.
- What
- The close of Paul's letter to the Colossians: the last household rule, charges on prayer and on conduct toward outsiders, the carriers of the letter, greetings from his companions, instructions for Laodicea and Archippus, and his signature.
- Where
- Written from Paul's imprisonment, traditionally at Rome, and carried by Tychicus and Onesimus to Colossae in the Lycus valley.
- When
- About AD 60 to 62, sent with the letter to Philemon by the same carriers.
- Why
- To bind the church at Colossae to Paul and to the neighbouring churches in prayer, news and fellowship as the letter is sent.
Historical context
Tychicus is the carrier, and Onesimus travels with him. Onesimus is described as one of your own, which lines up with the separate short letter Paul sent to Philemon at Colossae about a runaway slave returning home. The two letters went by the same hand on the same road.
Show the rest of the historical context, 4 more paragraphs
Paul's instruction to exchange letters with Laodicea, and to read the one coming from there, is one of the earliest signs of Christian writings circulating between churches. The Laodicean letter itself has not survived under that name, and identifications of it with other letters are guesses.
The greeting list carries small biographical facts found nowhere else: Mark is Barnabas's cousin, and the churches are told to welcome him, a quiet resolution of the split back in Acts. Luke is called the beloved physician, the only place his profession is named. Demas is greeted here without comment; a later letter says he deserted.
Nympha hosts a church in her house at Laodicea, another reminder that there were no church buildings and that women of means often provided the room.
Epaphras is described as always struggling in prayer for them, and as having worked hard for Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis, the three towns of the valley.
Significance
The practical advice at the top of the chapter is easy to skip and was not easy to do: walk in wisdom toward outsiders, make the best use of the time, and let your speech be gracious, seasoned with salt, so you know how to answer each person.
Show the rest of the significance, 1 more paragraph
The last words Paul writes in his own hand are four of them: remember my chains. A letter about the supremacy of Christ over every power ends with the reminder that the man who wrote it was under guard.
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
Pray for an Open Door; Season Your Speech With Salt
Masters, supply your slaves: The household code's last word belongs to the masters: supply your slaves with what is right and fair. The ground is the same as Ephesians 6:9, you also have a Master in heaven, the owner himself owned.
Colossians 4:1
“Masters, give unto your servants ... - See the notes at Eph 6:9. That which is just and equal - What they ought to have; what is fairly their due. The apostle here, probably, refers to bondmen or slaves, and the propriety of this rule is apparent. Such persons were subject to their masters’ control; their time and services were at their disposal, and they could not enforce their just and equal claims by an appeal to the laws. They were, therefore, dependent on the equity and kindness of their masters.”
1 more voice on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Colossians 4:1
“Thou shalt not enjoin aught in thy bitterness upon thy bondman or maidservant, who hope in the same God, lest ever they shall fear not God who is over both; for he cometh not to call according to the outward appearance, but unto them whom the Spirit hath prepared.”
Didache · written before 100 · The Didache, Chapter 4patristic
Colossians 4:2-4
Devote yourselves to prayer: Paul asks for himself a door for the word, an opening for the message, so that he may proclaim the mystery of Christ. He asks prayer for the manner as well as the opportunity, that I may declare it clearly, as I should.
Colossians 4:2
“Be you not, O you intercessors with God for men—be you not as those whose goodness is as the morning cloud and as the early dew. Do not begin to pray, and then suddenly cease your supplications. That will prove an ignorance as to the value of the mercy which you seek, and a lack of earnestness as to your obtaining it. How many there are who, under a powerful sermon, or during a trying Providence, have bent their knees suddenly in hasty prayer! They have risen from their knees, and they have forgotten what manner of men they were.”
open to us a door for the word: Clarke traces the open door through Acts 14:27 and 1 Corinthians 16:9, a door for the word being time and freedom to proclaim it. Augustine cites the request to show that the servants of the church ask its prayers. Chrysostom calls the request lowly.
Colossians 4:3
“For that the knowledge does not appertain to all, he expressly adds: "Being knit together in love, and unto all the riches of the full assurance of knowledge, to the acknowledgment of the mystery of God in Christ, in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and of knowledge." "Continue in prayer, watching therein with thanksgiving." And thanksgiving has place not for the soul and spiritual blessings alone, but also for the body, and for the good things of the body.”
Clement of Alexandria · written before 215 · The Stromata Book 5patristic
2 more voices on this verse
Colossians 4:3
“Here it is an opportunity for preaching the word, which would be best afforded by his release from prison (1Co 16:9; Re 3:8). to speak--so that we may speak. the mystery of Christ-- (Col 1:27). for which . . . also--on account of which I am (not only "an ambassador," Eph 6:20, but) ALSO in bonds.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Colossians 4:3
“Withal, praying also for us,.... The persons to be prayed for are next directed to; and these are not only themselves, though their concern is very near and great, but others also, all the saints and people of God, yea, all men, and in particular the ministers of the Gospel.”
declare it clearly: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read Philippians 1:12 to 13, written later in the same imprisonment, as the answer to this prayer. The door opened with Paul still in chains. John Gill separates two ways of making the mystery plain, Paul's by preaching and God's by His Spirit in the hearer.
Colossians 4:4
“But while this is included in their subject of prayer, Php 1:12, 13, written somewhat later in his imprisonment, clearly shows that "a door for the word" could be opened, and was opened, for its manifestation, even while he remained imprisoned (compare 2Ti 2:9).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Colossians 4:5-6
Act wisely toward outsiders: Speech seasoned with salt was a Greek idiom for wit, and the letter turns it to wholesome speech that preserves. The aim is readiness, so that you may know how to answer everyone.
Colossians 4:5
“Walk in wisdom - That is, conduct uprightly and honestly. Deal with them on the strictest principles of integrity, so that they may not have occasion to reproach the religion which you profess. Toward them that are without - Without the pale of the church, or who are not professing Christians; see the notes at 1Co 5:12. They were surrounded by pagans, as Christians now are by men of the world.”
seasoned with salt: Henry allows that speech may be about common things and still be gracious. Chrysostom reads the last clause as a call to fit each answer to the one who hears, an outsider or a brother in the Lord. Everyone needs his own answer.
Colossians 4:6
“Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt - Let it be such as has a tendency to oppose and preserve from the corruption of sin. The rabbins say: “He who, in prayer, omits any word, should begin again at the beginning; for he who does not is like boiled pottage, in which there is no salt.” Berachoth, fol. 34, 1. Let all your conversation be such as may tend to exemplify and recommend Christianity; let it not only be holy, but wise, gracious, and intelligent.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Tychicus and Onesimus, One of Your Own
Colossians 4:7-9
Tychicus will tell you all the news about me: Tychicus carries the letter and the news kept off its pages, the same courier with nearly the same commendation at Ephesians 6:21. With him comes Onesimus, our faithful and beloved brother, the runaway slave of Philemon named only as a brother and a Colossian.
Colossians 4:7
“All my state shall Tychicus declare unto you,.... This Tychicus was an Asian by birth; see Act 20:4. His name signifies "fortunate", and is the same with "Fortunatus" in Latin, which name is mentioned in 1Co 16:17 whether he is the same person may be inquired. It is said that this Tychicus was one of the seventy disciples, and was afterwards bishop of Chalcedon.”
that you may know about us: The copies differ here. Adam Clarke lists several ancient manuscripts and versions that read that you may know about us, the form the Berean prints. Other copies send Tychicus to learn about the Colossians.
Colossians 4:8
“That he might know your estate - Instead of ἱνα γνῳ τα περι ὑμων, that He may know Your affairs, ABD*FG, many others, with the Ethiopic, Itala, Theodoret, and Damascenus, read ἱνα γνωτε τα περι ἡμων, that Ye may know Our affairs; which is probably the true reading. Tychicus was sent to them, not to know their affairs, but with Onesimus, to carry this epistle and make the apostle’s state known to them, and comfort their hearts by the good news which he brought. The next verse confirms this meaning.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
who is one of you: Chrysostom reads one of you as an honour to the town, given so that the church would be proud of Onesimus. He marks how far the man had come. A runaway was now trusted with the apostle's news.
Colossians 4:9
“Onesimus--the slave mentioned in the Epistle to Philemon (Phm 10, 16), "a brother beloved." a faithful . . . brother--rather, "the faithful brother," he being known to the Colossians as the slave of Philemon, their fellow townsman and fellow Christian. one of you--belonging to your city.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
The Company Around Paul, and Epaphras Wrestling in Prayer
Colossians 4:10-11
My fellow prisoner Aristarchus: Mark is John Mark restored: his departure once split Paul from Barnabas (Acts 15:38 to 39), and he is now to be welcomed. At 2 Timothy 4:11 Paul calls him useful to me in the ministry.
Colossians 4:10
“Aristarchus my fellow prisoner - Concerning Aristarchus, see Act 19:29; Act 20:4; Act 27:2; and see the note on Act 27:2. Aristarchus and Epaphras are mentioned as saluters in this epistle, and in that to Philemon written at the same time; but here he is said to be a prisoner, and Epaphras not. In that to Philemon, Epaphras is called a prisoner, and Aristarchus not. One of them is wrong, though it is uncertain which; unless both were prisoners. See Wall’s Crit. Notes.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Colossians 4:10
Ye have received directions - Namely, by Tychicus, bringing this letter. The ancients adapted their language to the time of reading the letter; not, as we do, to the time when it was written. It is not improbable, they might have scrupled to receive him, without this fresh direction, after he had left St. Paul, and "departed from the work."
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Jesus, who is called Justus: Jesus, the Greek form of Joshua, was his name among the Jews, and Justus his name among Greeks and Romans. Barnes and Clarke explain the pair, and Paul himself carried two names, as Acts 13:9 shows. Nothing more is known of him.
Colossians 4:11
“And Jesus, who is called Justus - The name Jesus was probably that which he bore among the Jews. Justus is a Roman name, and was probably that by which he was known among the Romans. It was not uncommon thus to assume another name when one went among a foreign people; compare the notes at Act 13:9. Who are of the circumcision - Jews, or Jewish Christians. Nothing more is known of Justus.”
1 more voice on this verse
Colossians 4:11
“Epaphras, &c., were also fellow laborers, but Gentiles. unto--that is, in promoting the Gospel kingdom. which have been--Greek, "which have been made," or "have become," that is, inasmuch as they have become a comfort to me. The Greek implies comfort in forensic dangers; a different Greek word expresses comfort in domestic affliction [BENGEL].”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Colossians 4:12-13
Epaphras, who is one of you: Epaphras, the church's founder, is always wrestling in prayer for you, agonizomenos, the striving word Paul used of his own ministry at 1:29. The prayer's aim repeats the letter's, that you may stand mature and fully assured in the full will of God.
he goes to great pains for you: Clarke reports that the oldest copies read much labor where the King James has great zeal, and the Berean gives great pains. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown hold that Epaphras likely planted the church in Laodicea and in Hierapolis too. Hierapolis means holy city, Clarke adds.
Colossians 4:13
“For I bear him record - Paul had had abundant opportunity to know what were his feelings in regard to these churches. A great zeal for you - A great desire to promote your welfare. And them that are in Laodicea - Laodicea was the capital of Phrygia, and not far from Colossae, There was a church there. See the Introduction, and the notes at Col 4:16. And them in Hierapolis - This was also a city in Phrygia, and not far from Laodicea and Colossae.”
1 more voice on this verse
Colossians 4:13
"Zeal" and "great" – both words are placed together for emphasis. He praises Epaphras also to the Laodiceans and Hierapolitans, for they, having no doubt read the epistle, could hear about him.
Theophylact of Ohrid · written before 1107 · Commentary on Colossianspatristic
Colossians 4:14-15
Luke, the beloved physician: Here Luke, the beloved physician is the companion whose we-passages carried Acts to Rome, and this verse names his profession. Demas greets without a title, and at 2 Timothy 4:10 he deserts Paul in his love of this world.
Colossians 4:14
That he was not merely a follower, but also a fellow-labourer of the apostles, but especially of Paul, Paul has himself declared also in the Epistles, saying: "Demas hath forsaken me, ... and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me." From this he shows that he was always attached to and inseparable from him. And again he says, in the Epistle to the Colossians: "Luke, the beloved physician, greets you."
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies Book IIIpatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Colossians 4:14
“Luke, the beloved physician - This is generally supposed to be the same with Luke the evangelist. See the preface to the notes on this gospel. Some, however, suppose them to be different persons; because, where it is evident that Luke the evangelist is meant, he never has more than his simple name Luke; and because the apostle is supposed to intend a different person here, he adds, ὁ ιατρος ὁ αγαπητος, the beloved physician.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Colossians 4:14
“It is conjectured that Luke "the beloved physician" (the same as the Evangelist), may have first become connected with Paul in professionally attending on him in the sickness under which he labored in Phrygia and Galatia (in which latter place he was detained by sickness), in the early part of that journey wherein Luke first is found in his company (Ac 16:10; compare Note, see on Ga 4:13).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
the church that meets at her house: The Berean names a woman, Nympha, and her house. The King James reads Nymphas and his house, as Gill held, and Chrysostom's text reads their house. Clarke notes that the brothers then met as a church in a house.
Colossians 4:15
“Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea,.... Where there was a church mentioned in the following verse, of which see on Gill Rev 2:10. And Nymphas; which some, unskilful in the Greek language, have took for a woman; whereas it is the name of a man, as the following words show; and is a contraction of Nymphios, or Nymphidios, or Nymphodoros: and the church which is in his house.”
1 more voice on this verse
Colossians 4:15
“Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea - Notes, Col 2:1. And Nymphas - This person is nowhere else mentioned, and nothing more is known of him. And the church which is in his house - Notes, Rom 16:5.”
Colossians 4:16-17
After this letter has been read among you: The letters were to circulate: this one read in the church of the Laodiceans, and the letter from Laodicea read at Colossae. That letter is held to be one now lost or Ephesians sent round the churches.
Colossians 4:16
“Cause that it be read also in the Church of the Laodiceans - That is: Let a copy be taken, and sent to them, that it may be read there also.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Colossians 4:16
“There are many other things which Jesus did, which if they should be written every one, I suppose the world itself could not contain the books which would be written, John xxi. But some think it was the epistle to the Ephesians, which is still extant.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
complete the ministry you have received: Clarke reads the charge to Archippus as a friendly reminder to the fellow soldier of Philemon 2. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown read it as a call to fulfil his ministry with full care, as at 2 Timothy 4:5. Barnes notes that the office he received is unknown.
Colossians 4:17
“And say to Archippus - Archippus is mentioned also in Phm 1:2. He is not elsewhere referred to in the New Testament, and nothing further is known of him. Take heed to the ministry ... - The Greek here is, τὴν διακονίαν tēn diakonian - meaning the office of ministering in divine things; but it is not certain precisely what office he held there.”
Paul takes the pen for the closing line in his own hand, as at 1 Corinthians 16:21 and 2 Thessalonians 3:17. The plea Remember my chains asks for prayer and seals the letter's authority, the chain heard as he signs.
Colossians 4:18
“The salutation by the hand of me Paul - The preceding part of the epistle was written by a scribe, from the mouth of the apostle: this, and what follows, was written by the hand of St. Paul himself. A similar distinction we find, 1Co 16:21, and in 2Th 3:17; and this, it seems, was the means by which the apostle authenticated every epistle which he sent to the different Churches. The salutation of Paul with mine own hand, which is the token in every epistle, so I write.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Colossians 4:18
“He does not say, "Remember I am a prisoner, and send me supply;" but, "Remember I am in bonds as the apostle of the Gentiles, and let this confirm your faith in the gospel of Christ:" it adds weight to this exhortation: I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy, Eph. iv.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
How this psalm is built
The form: The last rule of the household code, then general charges on prayer and conduct toward outsiders, then the close of the letter with its carriers, greetings, instructions and signature, the chapter properly beginning at verse 2, as Clarke classes it.
The patterns in this chapter
| Device | What it does | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| The greetings | The word greetings comes four times, at verses 10, 11, 12 and 14, and six companions send them: Aristarchus, Mark, Jesus called Justus, Epaphras, Luke and Demas. Chrysostom marks that Paul speaks of each one in particular and then bestows a common praise on all.John Chrysostom, Homily on Colossians 11, on Colossians 4:11. | Colossians 4:10, Colossians 4:11, Colossians 4:12, Colossians 4:14 |
| One of you, twice | The phrase one of you is said of Onesimus at verse 9 and of Epaphras at verse 12. Chrysostom reads the first as praise of the readers' own city, given so that they would take pride in the man. The slave and the church's founder are both named as Colossians.John Chrysostom, Homily on Colossians 11, on Colossians 4:9. | Colossians 4:9, Colossians 4:12 |
| The chains | The word chains comes at verse 3, where Paul asks prayer for the message he is chained for, and again in the last line he writes with his own hand at verse 18. Matthew Henry reads the second as a call to let the apostle's bonds confirm the readers' faith in the gospel.Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible, on Colossians 4:18. | Colossians 4:3, Colossians 4:18 |
How this chapter is built
6 more paragraphs on the patterns
Verse 1 finishes the household rules of chapter 3, and Adam Clarke and John Gill both hold that it belongs to that chapter. Verses 2 to 6 give the last general charges, on prayer and on conduct and speech toward outsiders. Verses 7 to 9 commend the two men who carry the letter, and verses 10 to 14 pass on greetings from six of Paul's companions, with the word greetings coming four times. Verses 15 to 17 give instructions for Laodicea and for Archippus. Verse 18 is Paul's signature in his own hand, which Clarke and Albert Barnes read as the one part of the letter he wrote himself.
Where it stands in the letter
Chapter 3 set out how those raised with Christ live at home, and chapter 4 carries that into prayer, speech and the fellowship of the churches. The mystery of Christ at verse 3 recalls the mystery of 1:26 and 1:27, and Jamieson, Fausset and Brown tie the two together. Epaphras, named in chapter 1 as the church's teacher, returns at verse 12, and the same commentators hear in his wrestling prayer the Greek word of Paul's striving at 1:29. The close also joins the letter to Philemon, sent by the same carriers.
Where to go deeper
The circulation of the letters at verse 16 is set in the story of the canon at /featured/how-we-got-the-bible. The open door of verse 3 appears at /featured/the-door-and-the-gate, and salt as a picture of speech at verse 6 at /featured/salt-and-light. The return of Onesimus is weighed at /featured/the-bible-and-slavery, and Luke has his own page at /featured/luke-the-historian.
Sources: Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible, on Colossians 4:1 and 4:18. John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748), on Colossians 4:1. Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869), on Colossians 4:18. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, 1871, on Colossians 1:29 and 4:3. The historical context draws on the store's context rows for Colossians and Colossians 4, which cite F. F. Bruce, Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free.
Keep studying
Studies14
Places2
Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The form and classifications
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible, on Colossians 4:1; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869), on Colossians 4:18 and John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748), on Colossians 4:1.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes; Augustine of Hippo, Ten Homilies on the First Epistle of John, Homily 1; J. B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul's Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Chrysostom; John Gill; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.