Colossians 1:3-29

I. DOCTRINAL PART: CHRIST THE HEAD OF ALL THINGS.

This division of the Epistle resembles the doctrinal part of Ephesians (chaps, 1-3.); but here the Person of Christ is more prominent; there Christ as the Head of the Body. The liturgical tone is less obvious here, and the style less involved. But in both thanksgiving and supplication occur: He teaches doctrine best who prays as he teaches. The following subdivisions will be found convenient: (1.) The Apostle's thanksgiving for the faith and love of his readers (Colossians 1:3-8). (2.) The Apostle's supplication for their progress in the knowledge of Christ as Head of all things (Colossians 1:9-23). (3.) The Apostle's joy in his sufferings and labors for Christ (Colossians 1:24-29). The entire division, in both the personal and doctrinal statements, well prepares for the second (polemical) part of the Epistle, to which chap. Colossians 2:1-3 furnishes an appropriate transition. Many commentators therefore include these verses in the doctrinal part of the Epistle.