ColossiensChapitre 1

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Show the Christ HymnThe Image of the Invisible God

Colossians 1:15-20 is one of the most compact and powerful descriptions of who Jesus is. The hymn celebrates his supremacy in creation and reconciliation.

The Image of the Invisible God

[Col 1:15]

v.15

All Things Were Created by Him

[Col 1:16]

v.16

All Things Were Created for Him

[Col 1:16]

v.16

He Is Before All Things

[Col 1:17]

v.17

Head of the Body

[Col 1:18]

v.18

The Fullness of God

[Col 1:19]

v.19

Reconcile All Things Through Him

[Col 1:20]

v.20

Peace Through the Blood of the Cross

[Col 1:20]

v.20

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

to the saints in Colossae, the faithful brothers and sisters in Christ: grace to you and peace from God our Father.

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,

for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints—

a faith and love that spring from the hope stored up for you in heaven, the hope you heard of in the word of truth, the gospel

that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in all the world, so it has been among you from the day you heard it and truly understood the grace of God.

You learned it from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf,

and who has told us of your love in the Spirit.

For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

so that you may live in a way worthy of the Lord and fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God,

being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might, so that you may have all endurance and patience, with joy,

giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of his beloved Son,

in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

For in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that in everything he might be preeminent.

For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him,

and through him to reconcile all things to himself, making peace by the blood of his cross—whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Once you were estranged and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds;

but now you have been reconciled in his body of flesh through his death, so that he might present you holy and blameless and beyond reproach before him—

provided you continue in the faith, established and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, the church,

of which I became a minister according to the commission God gave me for you: to make the word of God fully known,

the mystery hidden for ages and generations, but now revealed to his saints.

To them God chose to make known the glorious riches of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

He is the one we proclaim, admonishing everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

To this end I labor and struggle, according to his working that powerfully works in me.

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Résumé3

Chapitre 1

Main Theme: Christ is the center of creation and salvation, and through him God has reconciled all things to himself.

Content: Paul and Timothy greet the church in Colossae and thank God for their faith, love, and hope, which they learned from Epaphras. The chapter contains a powerful hymn that proclaims Christ as the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation, and the head of the church—all things were created through him and hold together in him. Through Christ's blood on the cross, all things have been reconciled to God, including the Colossians who were once enemies. Paul describes his ministry: to proclaim the mystery now revealed—Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Key Words/Images:

Firstborn (πρωτότοκος): Christ is the firstborn over all creation and the firstborn from the dead—he holds the preeminent place in everything.
Image of God (εἰκών): Christ is the visible representation of the invisible God, the perfect revelation of God's nature.
Reconciliation (ἀποκαταλλάσσω): Through the blood of the cross, God has reconciled all things to himself, both on earth and in heaven.
Mystery (μυστήριον): The secret that was hidden for ages but is now revealed: Christ in you, the hope of glory.

À propos de Colossiens

Colossians

About the book: The letter to the Colossians is written by the apostle Paul and Timothy to the church in Colossae, a city in western Asia Minor. It was likely written while Paul was imprisoned, and the church had been founded by Epaphras, one of Paul’s coworkers.

Main theme: Christ is perfect and sufficient—in him dwells all the fullness of deity, and believers are complete in him.

Outline:

Greeting, thanksgiving, and prayer (Chapter 1:1–14)
The hymn to Christ: Christ as head of creation and church (Chapter 1:15–23)
Paul’s ministry and the mystery revealed (Chapter 1:24–2:5)
Warning against false teaching and human regulations (Chapter 2:6–23)
The new life in Christ (Chapter 3:1–17)
Household rules: Family and work relationships (Chapter 3:18–4:1)
Exhortation to prayer, wisdom, and final greetings (Chapter 4:2–18)

Key themes:

Christ’s supreme position: Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation, and in him dwells all the fullness of deity bodily (1:15–19; 2:9).
Completeness in Christ: Believers are made complete in Christ and do not need human additions such as philosophy, legalistic works, or ascetic rules (2:10; 2:16–23).
The new life: Since believers have been raised with Christ, they should seek the things above and let the word of Christ dwell richly in them (3:1–4; 3:16).
Practical holiness: The Christian life is shown by putting off sinful behavior, putting on virtues such as love, and living rightly in family and work (3:5–4:1).

Contexte historique

Historical and Cultural Context for Colossians Chapter 1

People

Epaphras (vv. 7–8) is a key figure in this chapter. The name is a shortened form of the Greek Epaphroditus ("charming" or "devoted to Aphrodite"). He was likely the founder of the church in Colossae and had brought Paul news about the condition of that congregation. Paul describes him as "our dear fellow servant" (syndoulou) and "a faithful minister of Christ" (diakonos tou Christou). By using the title "fellow servant," Paul places Epaphras on equal footing with himself in the service of the gospel. According to Colossians 4:12–13, Epaphras was also involved with the churches in Laodicea and Hierapolis, suggesting he held a regional evangelistic role in the Lycus Valley.

Timothy (v. 1) is mentioned as a co-sender of the letter alongside Paul. He is referred to as "our brother" (ho adelphos), a designation that underscores his status as an acknowledged coworker within the apostolic circle.

Key Terms

Eikōn (eikōn, v. 15) – "image" – is a central concept in the Christ hymn. In Greco-Roman culture, the word could refer to images of emperors and statues of gods. In a Jewish context, it alludes to Genesis 1:26–27, where humanity is created in God's image. Paul uses the term to explain that Christ is the perfect revelation of the invisible God—not merely a representation, but the very essence of God made visible.

Prōtotokos (prōtotokos, vv. 15, 18) – "firstborn" – appears twice in this chapter: first concerning Christ as "the firstborn over all creation" (v. 15), and then as "the firstborn from the dead" (v. 18). In Jewish culture, the firstborn held special rights and a position of honor (see Deuteronomy 21:17). The term does not imply that Christ was created; rather, it expresses his sovereign position and supremacy over creation.

Plērōma (plērōma, v. 19) – "fullness" or "fulness" – was a term later central to Gnostic systems, where it denoted the divine fullness consisting of various spiritual beings (aeons). Paul's use of the term may be a deliberate response to early syncretistic thinking in Colossae: the entire fullness of deity dwells in Christ alone, not distributed among various intermediate beings.

Mystērion (mystērion, vv. 26–27) – "mystery" or "secret" – had strong associations in Greco-Roman culture with mystery religions (such as the Eleusinian mysteries), where secret knowledge was revealed only to initiates. Paul radically redefines the term: God's mystery is now revealed to all the saints, and its content is "Christ in you, the hope of glory"—accessible to both Jews and Gentiles.

Apokatallassō (apokatalaxai/apokatēllagēte, vv. 20, 22) – "to reconcile fully" – is an intensified form of the common Greek word for reconciliation. The prefix apo- intensifies the meaning and emphasizes the complete and final character of this reconciliation. This word appears only in Colossians and Ephesians in the New Testament.

Events and Customs

Angel Hierarchies (v. 16) – Paul mentions "thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities" (thronoi, kyriotētes, archai, exousiai). In Jewish apocalyptic literature (such as 1 Enoch and other intertestamental writings), it was common to categorize angels into hierarchies and assign them various names and functions. By stressing that all these powers were created through, by, and for Christ, Paul rejects any tendency to worship or fear such spiritual beings—a issue that becomes more explicit in chapter 2.

Personnages5

God1 Paul2 Jesus3 Epaphras1 Timothy1

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Mots-clés

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Chronologie1