Colossians 2
1 For I desire to have you know how greatly I struggle for you, and for those at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh;
I want you to know how hard I'm working for you, and for those at Laodicea—in fact for all those who haven't met me personally—
2 that their hearts may be comforted, they being knit together in love, and gaining all riches of the full assurance of understanding, that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Messiah,
so that you may be encouraged. May you be bound together in love, experiencing the great benefit of being completely sure in your understanding, for this is what the true knowledge of God brings. May you know the revealed mystery of God, which is Christ!
3 in whom are all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge hidden.
In him you can discover all the rich wisdom and knowledge of God.
4 Now I say this so that no one will deceive you with persuasive words.
I'm telling you this so that no one will fool you by spinning you a tale.
5 For though I am absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, rejoicing and seeing your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Messiah.
Even though I'm not physically there with you, I'm with you in spirit. I'm so happy to see the way you stick together and how firm you are in your trust in Christ.
6 As therefore you received Messiah Jesus, the Lord, walk in him,
Just as you accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, go on following him,
7 rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, even as you were taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.
grounded in him and built up by him. May your trust in him continue to grow strong, following what you were taught, full of gratitude to God.
8 Be careful not to allow anyone to captivate you through an empty and deceptive philosophy, according to human tradition, according to the elementary principles of the world, and not according to Messiah.
Watch out that nobody enslaves you through their philosophy and worthless delusions, following human traditions and concepts of this world, and not following Christ.
9 For in him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,
For the fullness of God's divine nature lives in Christ in bodily form,
10 and in him you are made full, who is the head of all principality and power;
and you have been made full in him. He is supreme over every ruler and authority.
11 in whom you were also circumcised with a circumcision not made with hands, in the putting off of the body of the flesh, in the circumcision of Messiah;
You were “circumcised” in him but not by human hands. You have been set free from sinful human nature by the “circumcision” Christ performed.
12 having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead.
You were buried with him in baptism, and you were raised with him through your trust in what God did by raising him from the dead.
13 You were dead through your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh. He made you alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,
And even though you were dead because of your sins and being physically “uncircumcised,” he brought you to life together with him. He has forgiven us all our sins.
14 wiping out the handwriting in ordinances which was against us; and he has taken it out of the way, nailing it to the cross;
He wiped out the record of our debts according to the Law that was written down against us; he took away this barrier by nailing it to the cross.
15 having disarmed the rulers and authorities, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.
He stripped away the power of spiritual rulers and authorities, and having publicly revealed what they were truly like, he led them captive behind him in victory.
16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you about food and drink, or with respect to a feast day or a new moon or a Sabbath day,
So don't let anyone criticize you for what you eat or what you drink, or regarding which religious festival, new moon ritual, or ceremonial sabbaths you choose to observe.
17 which are a shadow of the things to come; but the body is Messiah's.
These are just a shadow of what was to come, for the physical reality is Christ.
18 Let no one rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshipping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he has seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
Don't let anyone cheat you out of your prize by insisting you have to beat yourself, or worship angels. They think they are better than anyone else because of visions they say they've had, and become ridiculously conceited in their sinful minds.
19 and not holding firmly to the Head, from whom all the body, being supplied and knit together through the joints and ligaments, grows with God's growth.
Such people are not connected to the head that directs the body, nourished and joined together through the body's sinews and muscles. As the body is united together it grows the way God wants it to grow.
20 If you died with Messiah from the elementary principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to ordinances,
If you died with Christ to the religious demands that this world insists upon, why would you make yourself subject to such demands as if you were still part of this world?
21 "Do not handle, nor taste, nor touch"
Things like: don't handle that, don't taste that, don't touch that!
22 (all of which perish with use), according to human commandments and teachings?
These commands refer to things that don't last since they're used up, and they're based on man-made requirements and teachings.
23 Which things indeed appear like wisdom in self-imposed worship, and humility, and severity to the body; but are not of any value against the indulgence of the flesh.
Such rules may make some kind of sense to those who practice self-centered piety, who are so proud of being humble, and who “mortify the body;” but in reality they don't help at all in dealing with sinful desires.
