Colossians

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That Colossians was written by the Apostle Paul remained unquestioned until the 19th Century; and even then only a minority of scholars held an opposing view. The letter claims to have been written by Paul (1:1, 1:23 & 4:18), and the grounds for doubt are supposedly the letter's language, style, theology and its relation to the Letter to the Ephesians.

It seems that the arguments of opponents of Pauline authorship regarding language and style are weak, and hardly worth mention. It is pointed out that the number of words that occur in Colossians that do not appear elsewhere in the NT indicates reason for suspicion, however Colossians actually falls within the normal range for Pauline epistles. Opponents may also mention a few stylistic aspects which they consider "un-Pauline", such as the joining of synonyms ("teach and admonish one another", 3:16), but this is by no means a strong argument.

As regards theology, it is considered that Colossians lacks themes found in other Pauline letters and has other themes not found elsewhere. However, it is a bit much to assume that Paul would include every one of his themes in every letter; in fact there would be no reason for this. He wrote these letters to address issues arising in different Churches: of course there is going to be difference in themes. This argument could actually be used to show the authenticity of the letter!

Finally, the relationship of Colossians to Ephesians has sometimes led to the proposal that one or the other must not be authentic. The two letters contain many similar passages and themes, indeed some feel that Ephesians is a copy and expansion of Colossians (see Ephesians). However, neither Ephesians nor Colossians were questioned until the 19th Century, and this based upon relatively weak arguments. It seems just as easy to imagine the two letters coming from Paul, though directed to different Churches, for different reasons with different emphases.

In conclusion it seems that there is no strong reason to doubt that Colossians was written by the Apostle Paul.

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The date is a bit hard to settle on: if Paul was imprisoned at Rome at this time, then early 60's; if elsewhere, then late 50's.

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• 1:1-2 Paul and Timothy, to the Church at Colosse, grace and peace from God.
• 1:3-14 We thank God because we heard of your faith and love that flows from the gospel, and this gospel is being heard around the world! We have not stopped praying that God would guide you and strengthen you to serve Him who has truly saved us from the dominion of darkness.
• 1:15-23 Christ is supreme over all, having created all things and being before all things. He is the head of the Church and it was through Him that God reconciled all things, making you holy in God's sight.
• 1:24-2:5 I have become the servant of this gospel and so proclaim it in order to present everyone perfect in Christ. I wish to see you all and others I know encouraged and united in love in order to know and serve God better.
• 2:6-23 Continue to live following the true Christ - do not be misled, "for in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form", and you have been made alive with Christ. God forgave us all our sins, having cancelled the written code - He took it away, nailing it to the cross. Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you believe with regard to this code - the reality is Christ.
• 3:1-17 Set your minds on things above, not earthly things, and get rid of all that belongs to your earthly nature. Instead be godly, that is, be compassionate, kind, humble, gentle, patient, forgiving and loving. So in the unity of the word of Christ, teach and admonish one another, giving glory to God.
• 3:18-4:1 Live and relate to each other in such a way as to please God: wives, submit to your husbands, and husbands, love your wives; children, obey your parents, and fathers, treat your children well; slaves, serve your masters as if they were the Lord, and masters, treat your slaves justly.
• 4:2-6 Devote yourselves to prayer, and pray for us in our ministry as well. Be wise and graceful in order to be a good witness for God.
• 4:7-18 Tychicus and Onesimus will tell you everything that is happening here. Aristarchus, Mark, Jesus (called Justus), Epaphras, Luke and Demas send greetings, as do I. See to it also that you share letters with the Laodiceans and tell Archippus: "See to it that you complete the work you have received in the Lord". I, Paul, write this in my own hand. Remember my chains.