1:1 From Paul,¹ an apostle of Christ Jesus through the will of God, and Timothy my brother. 1:2 To the holy and faithful brothers and sisters² in Christ at Colosse: Grace and peace to you³ from God our Father!

1:3 We always⁴ give thanks to God, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 1:4 since⁵ we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints. 1:5 Your faith and love have arisen⁶ from the hope laid up⁷ for you in heaven, which you have heard about in the message of truth, the gospel⁸ 1:6 that has come to you. Just as in the entire world this gospel⁹ is bearing fruit and growing, so it has also been bearing fruit and growing¹⁰ among you from the first day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth. 1:7 You learned the gospel¹¹ from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant—a¹² faithful minister of Christ on our¹³ behalf— 1:8 who also told us of your love in the Spirit.

1:9 For this reason we also, from the day we heard, have not ceased praying for you and asking God¹⁴ to fill¹⁵ you with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 1:10 so that you may live¹⁶ worthily of the Lord and please him in all respects:¹⁷ 1:11 bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might for the display of¹⁸ all patience and steadfastness, with joy 1:12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share¹⁹ in the saints’²⁰ inheritance in the light. 1:13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves,²¹ 1:14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn²² over all creation,²³ 1:16 for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him—all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions,²⁴ whether principalities or powers—all things were created through him and for him. 1:17 He himself is before all things and all things are held together²⁵ in him. 1:18 He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstborn²⁶ from among the dead so that he himself may become first in all things.²⁷ 1:19 For God²⁸ was pleased to have all his²⁹ fullness dwell³⁰ in him 1:20 and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross—whether things on the earth or things in heaven.

1:21 And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your³¹ minds³² as expressed through³³ your evil deeds, 1:22 but now he has reconciled you³⁴ by his physical body through death to present you holy, without blemish, and blameless before him—1:23 if indeed you remain firm³⁵ in the faith, without shifting³⁶ from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant.

1:24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for you and I fill up—for the sake of his body, the church—what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ. 1:25 I became a servant of the church according to the stewardship³⁷ of the grace of God—given to me for you—in order to complete³⁸ the word of God, 1:26 that is, the mystery that has been kept hidden from ages and generations, but has now been revealed to his saints. 1:27 God wanted to make known to them the glorious³⁹ riches of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 1:28 We proclaim him by instructing⁴⁰ and teaching⁴¹ all men with all wisdom so that we may present every man mature⁴² in Christ. 1:29 Toward this goal⁴³ I also labor, struggling according to his power that powerfully⁴⁴ works in me.