Ephesians 3:16

3:16 I pray that ¹  according to the wealth of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person,

Ephesians 3:19

3:19 and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to ²  all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 1:7-8

1:7 In him ³  we have redemption through his blood, ⁴  the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace 1:8 that he lavished on us in all wisdom and insight.

Ephesians 2:7

2:7 to demonstrate in the coming ages ⁵  the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward ⁶  us in Christ Jesus.

Psalms 31:19

31:19 How great is your favor, ⁷ 

which you store up for your loyal followers! ⁸ 

In plain sight of everyone you bestow it on those who take shelter ⁹  in you. ¹⁰ 

John 1:16

1:16 For we have all received from his fullness one gracious gift after another. ¹¹ 

Romans 11:33

11:33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how fathomless his ways!

Romans 11:1

Israel’s Rejection not Complete nor Final

11:1 So I ask, God has not rejected his people, has he? Absolutely not! For I too am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, from the tribe of Benjamin.

Colossians 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul, ¹²  an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

Colossians 2:9

2:9 For in him all the fullness of deity lives ¹³  in bodily form,

Philippians 4:19

4:19 And my God will supply your every need according to his glorious riches ¹⁴  in Christ Jesus.

Colossians 1:27

1:27 God wanted to make known to them the glorious ¹⁵  riches of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Colossians 2:1-3

2:1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you, ¹⁶  and for those in Laodicea, and for those who have not met me face to face. ¹⁷  2:2 My goal is that ¹⁸  their hearts, having been knit together ¹⁹  in love, may be encouraged, and that ²⁰  they may have all the riches that assurance brings in their understanding of the knowledge of the mystery of God, namely, Christ, ²¹  2:3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Revelation 3:18

3:18 take my advice ²²  and buy gold from me refined by fire so you can become rich! Buy from me ²³  white clothing so you can be clothed and your shameful nakedness ²⁴  will not be exposed, and buy eye salve ²⁵  to put on your eyes so you can see!

[3:16]  ¹ tn Grk “that.” In Greek v. 16 is a subordinate clause to vv. 14-15.

[3:19]  ² tn Or “with.”

[1:7]  ³ tn Grk “in whom” (the relative clause of v. 7 is subordinate to v. 6). The “him” refers to Christ.

[1:7]  ⁴ sn In this context his blood, the blood of Jesus Christ, refers to the price paid for believers’ redemption, which is the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross.

[2:7]  ⁵ tn Or possibly “to the Aeons who are about to come.”

[2:7]  ⁶ tn Or “upon.”

[31:19]  ⁷ tn Or “How abundant are your blessings!”

[31:19]  ⁸ tn Heb “for those who fear you.”

[31:19]  ⁹ tn “Taking shelter” in the Lord is an idiom for seeking his protection. Seeking his protection presupposes and even demonstrates the subject’s loyalty to the Lord. In the psalms those who “take shelter” in the Lord are contrasted with the wicked and equated with those who love, fear, and serve the Lord (Pss 2:12; 5:11-12; 34:21-22).

[31:19]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “you work [your favor] for the ones seeking shelter in you before the sons of men.”

[1:16]  ¹¹ tn Grk “for from his fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace.” The meaning of the phrase χάριν ἀντὶ χάριτος (carin anti carito") could be: (1) love (grace) under the New Covenant in place of love (grace) under the Sinai Covenant, thus replacement; (2) grace “on top of” grace, thus accumulation; (3) grace corresponding to grace, thus correspondence. The most commonly held view is (2) in one sense or another, and this is probably the best explanation. This sense is supported by a fairly well-known use in Philo, Posterity 43 (145). Morna D. Hooker suggested that Exod 33:13 provides the background for this expression: “Now therefore, I pray you, if I have found χάρις (LXX) in your sight, let me know your ways, that I may know you, so that I may find χάρις (LXX) in your sight.” Hooker proposed that it is this idea of favor given to one who has already received favor which lies behind 1:16, and this seems very probable as a good explanation of the meaning of the phrase (“The Johannine Prologue and the Messianic Secret,” NTS 21 [1974/75]: 53).

[1:1]  ¹² tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[2:9]  ¹³ sn In him all the fullness of deity lives. The present tense in this verse (“lives”) is significant. Again, as was stated in the note on 1:19, this is not a temporary dwelling, but a permanent one. Paul’s point is polemical against the idea that the fullness of God dwells anywhere else, as the Gnostics believed, except in Christ alone. At the incarnation, the second person of the Trinity assumed humanity, and is forever the God-man.

[4:19]  ¹⁴ tn Or “according to the riches of his glory.” The phrase “of his glory” is treated as an attributive genitive in the translation.

[1:27]  ¹⁵ tn The genitive noun τῆς δόξης (ths doxhs) is an attributive genitive and has therefore been translated as “glorious riches.”

[2:1]  ¹⁶ tn Or “I want you to know how hard I am working for you…”

[2:1]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “as many as have not seen my face in the flesh.”

[2:2]  ¹⁸ tn Verse two begins a subordinate ἵνα (Jina) clause which was divided up into two sentences for the sake of clarity in English. Thus the phrase “My goal is that” is an attempt to reflect in the translation the purpose expressed through the ἵνα clauses.

[2:2]  ¹⁹ tn BDAG 956 s.v. συμβιβάζω 1.b reads “unite, knit together.” Some commentators take the verb as a reference to instruction, “instructed in love.” See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 93.

[2:2]  ²⁰ tn The phrase “and that” translates the first εἰς (eis) clause of v. 2 and reflects the second goal of Paul’s striving and struggle for the Colossians – the first is “encouragement” and the second is “full assurance.”

[2:2]  ²¹ tc There are at least a dozen variants here, almost surely generated by the unusual wording τοῦ θεοῦ, Χριστοῦ (tou qeou, Cristou, “of God, Christ”; so Ì⁴⁶ B Hil). Scribes would be prone to conform this to more common Pauline expressions such as “of God, who is in Christ” (33), “of God, the Father of Christ” (א* A C 048^vid 1175 bo), and “of the God and Father of Christ” (א² Ψ 075 0278 365 1505 pc). Even though the external support for the wording τοῦ θεοῦ, Χριστοῦ is hardly overwhelming, it clearly best explains the rise of the other readings and should thus be regarded as authentic.

[3:18]  ²² tn Grk “I counsel you to buy.”

[3:18]  ²³ tn Grk “rich, and.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation, repeating the words “Buy from me” to make the connection clear for the English reader.

[3:18]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the shame of the nakedness of you,” which has been translated as an attributed genitive like καινότητι ζωῆς (kainothti zwh") in Rom 6:4 (ExSyn 89-90).

[3:18]  ²⁵ sn The city of Laodicea had a famous medical school and exported a powder (called a “Phrygian powder”) that was widely used as an eye salve. It was applied to the eyes in the form of a paste the consistency of dough (the Greek term for the salve here, κολλούριον, kollourion [Latin collyrium], is a diminutive form of the word for a long roll of bread).