¹ tn Here αὐτοῦ (autou) has been translated as a subjective genitive (“he loves”).

¹ tn BDAG 579 s.v. κυριότης 3 suggests “bearers of the ruling powers, dominions” here.

¹ tn BDAG 973 s.v. συνίστημι B.3 suggests “continue, endure, exist, hold together” here.

² tn BDAG 639 s.v. μετακινέω suggests “without shifting from the hope” here.

¹ tn BDAG 697 s.v. οἰκονομία 1.b renders the term here as “divine office.”

¹ tn On this word here and in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A51&tab=notes" ver="">4:1, see the note on “fellow slave” in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A51&tab=notes" ver="">1:7.

³ tn Grk “men”; here ἀνθρώποις (anqrwpoi") is used in a generic sense and refers to people in general.

² tn Although διανοία (dianoia) is singular in Greek, the previous plural noun ἐχθρούς (ecqrous) indicates that all those from Colossae are in view here.

³ tn Here ἄνθρωπον (anqrwpon) is twice translated as a generic (“people” and “person”) since both men and women are clearly intended in this context.

¹ tn The Greek construction here is somewhat difficult and can be literally rendered “Be careful, lest someone shall be the one who takes you captive.”

¹ tn The Greek article with τὰ πάντα (ta panta) is anaphoric, referring to the previous list of vices, and has been translated here as “all such things.”

¹ tn The conditional particle εἰ (ei) together with καί (kai) here indicates a first class condition in Greek and carries a concessive force, especially when seen in contrast to the following phrase which begins with ἀλλά (alla).

³ tn The Greek text has the article τῇ (th), not the possessive pronoun ὑμῶν (Jumwn), but the article often functions as a possessive pronoun and was translated as such here (ExSyn 215).

² tn Grk “but the body of Christ.” The term body here, when used in contrast to shadow (σκιά, skia) indicates the opposite meaning, i.e., the reality or substance itself.

² tn Though the apostle uses the term ταπεινοφροσύνῃ (tapeinofrosunh) elsewhere in a positive sense (cf. Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A51&tab=notes" ver="">3:12), here the sense is negative and reflects the misguided thinking of Paul’s opponents.

¹ tn Though προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi) is an adverbial participle related to the previous imperative, προσκαρτερεῖτε (proskartereite), it is here translated as an independent clause due to requirements of contemporary English style.

² tc If the name Nympha is accented with a circumflex on the ultima (Νυμφᾶν, Numfan), then it refers to a man; if it receives an acute accent on the penult (Νύμφαν), the reference is to a woman. Scribes that considered Nympha to be a man’s name had the corresponding masculine pronoun αὐτοῦ here (autou, “his”; so D [F G] Ψ Ï), while those who saw Nympha as a woman read the feminine αὐτῆς here (auth", “her”; B 0278 6 1739^[*^] 1881 sa). Several mss (א A C P 075 33 81 104 326 1175 2464 bo) have αὐτῶν (autwn, “their”), perhaps because of indecisiveness on the gender of Nympha, perhaps because they included ἀδελφούς (adelfou", here translated “brothers and sisters”) as part of the referent. (Perhaps because accents were not part of the original text, scribes were particularly confused here.) The harder reading is certainly αὐτῆς, and thus Nympha should be considered a woman.

² 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).

¹ tn See the note on the term “firstborn” in Kir+Heres+AND+book%3A51&tab=notes" ver="">1:15. Here the reference to Jesus as the “firstborn from among the dead” seems to be arguing for a chronological priority, i.e., Jesus was the first to rise from the dead.

² tn See BDAG 828 s.v. πληρόω 3. The idea here seems to be that the apostle wants to “complete the word of God” in that he wants to preach it to every person in the known world (cf. Rom 15:19). See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 82.