18:1 After this 11 Paul 12 departed from 13 Athens 14 and went to Corinth. 15 18:2 There he 16 found 17 a Jew named Aquila, 18 a native of Pontus, 19 who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius 20 had ordered all the Jews to depart from 21 Rome. 22 Paul approached 23 them,
1:1 From Paul, 24 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 1:2 to the saints, the faithful 25 brothers and sisters 26 in Christ, at Colossae. Grace and peace to you 27 from God our Father! 28
1:9 For this reason we also, from the day we heard about you, 29 have not ceased praying for you and asking God 30 to fill 31 you with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 1:10 so that you may live 32 worthily of the Lord and please him in all respects 33 – bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God,
1 tn Or “the word of the Lord.”
2 tn Grk “your faith in God has gone out.”
3 map For location see JP1-C1; JP2-C1; JP3-C1; JP4-C1.
4 tc ‡ Or perhaps, “a city in the first district” (there are a number of textual variants). L&N 1.85 follow the text of UBS4 and NA27 here: “In Ac 16:12…the Greek New Testament published by the United Bible Societies has adopted a conjectural emendation, since the more traditional text, πρώτη τῆς μερίδος, literally ‘first of the district,’ is not only misleading in meaning but does not reflect the historical fact that Philippi was a city in one of the four districts of Macedonia but was not a capital city.” The original text is probably πρώτη τῆς μερίδος (prwth th" merido", “first of that district”) as found in Ì74 א A C Ψ 33vid 36 81 323 945 1175 1891 pc. This has traditionally been translated to give the impression that Philippi was the capital city of the district, but it does not necessarily have to be translated this way. The translation of the article before μερίδος as “that” acknowledges that there were other districts in the province of Macedonia.
5 sn Macedonia was the Roman province of Macedonia in Greece.
6 sn A Roman colony was a city whose residents were regarded as Roman citizens, since such cities were originally colonized by citizens of Rome. From Troas to Philippi was 130 mi (208 km).
7 tn Grk “And when.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
8 tn The word “Jerusalem” is not in the Greek text but is implied (direct objects were often omitted when clear from the context).
9 sn In the various lists of the twelve, Peter (also called Simon) is always mentioned first (see also Matt 10:1-4; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:13-16) and the first four are always the same, though not in the same order after Peter.
10 tn The words “were there” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
11 tn Grk “After these things.”
12 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
13 tn Or “Paul left.”
14 map For location see JP1-C2; JP2-C2; JP3-C2; JP4-C2.
15 sn Corinth was the capital city of the senatorial province of Achaia and the seat of the Roman proconsul. It was located 55 mi (88 km) west of Athens. Corinth was a major rival to Athens and was the largest city in Greece at the time.
16 tn Grk “And he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here. The word “there” is not in the Greek text but is implied.
17 tn Grk “finding.” The participle εὑρών (Jeurwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
18 sn On Aquila and his wife Priscilla see also Acts 18:18, 26; Rom 16:3-4; 1 Cor 16:19; 2 Tim 4:19. In the NT “Priscilla” and “Prisca” are the same person. This author uses the full name Priscilla, while Paul uses the diminutive form Prisca.
19 sn Pontus was a region in the northeastern part of Asia Minor. It was a Roman province.
20 sn Claudius refers to the Roman emperor Tiberius Claudius Nero Germanicus, known as Claudius, who ruled from
21 tn Or “to leave.”
22 map For location see JP4-A1.
23 tn Or “went to.”
24 tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
25 tn Grk “and faithful.” The construction in Greek (as well as Paul’s style) suggests that the saints are identical to the faithful; hence, the καί (kai) is best left untranslated (cf. Eph 1:1). See ExSyn 281-82.
26 tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).
27 tn Or “Grace to you and peace.”
28 tc Most witnesses, including some important ones (א A C F G I [P] 075 Ï it bo), read “and the Lord Jesus Christ” at the end of this verse, no doubt to conform the wording to the typical Pauline salutation. However, excellent and early witnesses (B D K L Ψ 33 81 1175 1505 1739 1881 al sa) lack this phrase. Since the omission is inexplicable as arising from the longer reading (otherwise, these
29 tn Or “heard about it”; Grk “heard.” There is no direct object stated in the Greek (direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context). A direct object is expected by an English reader, however, so most translations supply one. Here, however, it is not entirely clear what the author “heard”: a number of translations supply “it” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV; NAB “this”), but this could refer back either to (1) “your love in the Spirit” at the end of v. 8, or (2) “your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints” (v. 4). In light of this uncertainty, other translations supply “about you” (TEV, NIV, CEV, NLT). This is preferred by the present translation since, while it does not resolve the ambiguity entirely, it does make it less easy for the English reader to limit the reference only to “your love in the Spirit” at the end of v. 8.
30 tn The term “God” does not appear in the Greek text, but the following reference to “the knowledge of his will” makes it clear that “God” is in view as the object of the “praying and asking,” and should therefore be included in the English translation for clarity.
31 tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause has been translated as substantival, indicating the content of the prayer and asking. The idea of purpose may also be present in this clause.
32 tn The infinitive περιπατῆσαι (peripathsai, “to walk, to live, to live one’s life”) is best taken as an infinitive of purpose related to “praying” (προσευχόμενοι, proseucomenoi) and “asking” (αἰτούμενοι, aitoumenoi) in v. 9 and is thus translated as “that you may live.”
33 tn BDAG 129 s.v. ἀρεσκεία states that ἀρεσκείαν (areskeian) refers to a “desire to please εἰς πᾶσαν ἀ. to please (the Lord) in all respects Col 1:10.”