Originally published in the October 1973 issue of The Testimony magazine
The Letter to the Colossians
THERE ARE TWO sections to this book, the first being a series of short studies on the call of the Apostle Paul, a consideration of the ecclesial circumstances at Colossae, and the letters to both Colossae and Ephesus. The second section is in the form of a verse-by-verse commentary on the Epistle.
In the first chapter Brother Barling’s remarks on Colossians 1:16,17, might give the impression that he favoured the idea of the pre-existence of Christ. In quoting these verses he says, “In Colossians itself, we find not merely the thought that mankind has achieved its proper objective in Christ, but also the staggering notion that ‘in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities – all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together’.” Surely if we understand that the purpose of God was known from the beginning, it is hardly a staggering notion that the whole of creation owes its being and purpose to Christ. Later in his commentary he says that Christ’s pre-existence was ideal and not real. “When we love the Lord”, he writes, “we are reluctant to deny him any honour which is his due. If we maintain that his pre-existence is ideal and not real, it is because of the considerations already mentioned and because other parts of Scripture help us to understand the meaning of Paul’s language”. The use of the word ideal could be somewhat confusing here. It is true of course that the word can mean “visionary”, but to most readers an ideal pre-existence implies something real. Brother Barling qualifies this by saying “We find no suggestion in the records of Jesus Christ’s birth that here was one already in being, while the Old Testament upholds an absolute and uncompromising monotheism”. As brother Roberts puts the matter in Christendom Astray when speaking of the glory which Jesus had before the world was, “It was a glory he had in the Father’s purpose, but in no other sense”.
In the section which forms a commentary, each verse or group of verses is prefaced by a summary paragraph and followed by a discussion on the development of the particular thought in the verse with references to the RSV, RV, NEB, and other renderings of the word or passage. These, of course, add to our appreciation of the exactness of the expressions used by Paul. A satisfying bonus to this study is the realisation that while these variations may add to our appreciation of the subtleties of the wording, the basic meaning is usually the same or very similar, so that we can appreciate that the AV, which was mainly used by our brethren and sisters of a century ago, was and still is quite adequate.
A good deal of emphasis is placed on the use of the word “we” in this Epistle (as in the Acts of the Apostles) and we may wonder if too much is being made of this. Conybeare in his notes on the Epistle to the Thessalonians says, “It is important to observe in this place, once for all, that Paul uses ‘we’ according to the idiom of many ancient writers where a modern writer would use ‘I’” and quotes from 1 Thessalonians 3:1,2 – “We thought it good to be left in Athens alone and sent Timotheus, our brother” – commenting that the decision would be his and his alone. “We”, is certainly more gracious and less egotistical than “I”.
Later, Brother Barling brings out a very important point in dealing with Colossians 1:11 when he writes, “The whole of creation is in some way a testimony to God’s glorious might. Man has come increasingly to understand how vast is the universe and to marvel (at the other end of the scale) at the structure of the atom. But God’s glory resides also in His Moral attributes.” The importance of character as distinct from intelligence or knowledge is something which is of vital importance both in the Truth and in the world. In speaking of Christ as the Head of the Body he writes, “Christ is the Head or Lord of the church, the term ekklesia here being used not of a local community, but of believers at large. The idea of Christ as the Head is commonly represented by commentators as a new concept, although the lordship of Christ over the church is so frequent a teaching as scarcely to call for illustration.” This is important when we realise that no other head is mentioned or recognised in the Scriptures, or any one group of believers given precedence over another. This is particularly important in the case of the pope who is regarded as the visible head of the Church with special pre-eminence given to the Church of Rome. We rather like the alternative wording that replaces the expression, “That in everything he might be pre-eminent” by “That his place might be first”.
Later, in dealing with Colossians 2:2,3 he speaks of the transmission of wisdom and knowledge laid up in the Lord Jesus and not in the mystery. This is also obvious from the AV “in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”. Incidentally The Emphatic Diaglot replaces the word mystery by secret which seems preferable. A secret can be revealed while a mystery can be that which is beyond reason.
In dealing with Colossians 3:5-11 Brother Barling brings out the dual nature of life, in the flesh and spiritually, “one with his Lord in heaven”. I think it needs to be emphasised that life is nevertheless a unity, and the fleshly works that have to be put to death are the excesses which Paul particularises. Life is a unit, and as the writer points out elsewhere asceticism is not the answer as it merely glorifies the fleshly mind. Incidentally, the obscure expression “covetousness which is idolatry”, is translated in The Emphatic Diaglot as, “inordinate lust which is idol worship”, which connects very well with what Brother Barling has to say about the cult of Aphrodite.
In considering some of the alternatives given by Brother Barling one wonders if we should consider that, guided by the Holy Spirit, the apostle’s words would have a primary meaning for those he wrote to, with application to their immediate circumstances, and a secondary application to the disciples of later centuries when circumstances would be different. Did the apostle know that he was writing not only for the Colossians but also for others centuries later? For example, in speaking of Colossians 2:8 the author gives several renderings for the expression “the rudiments of the world”. To the Gentiles it could refer to imagined elemental spirits of the universe as suggested by Barclay, to the Jew it could refer to the Law with its ordinances prohibiting certain actions, while we in our day see it, as Brother Barling says, as “A materialistic teaching bound up with this world alone, and contrary to the freedom of the Spirit”.
This little work should prove particularly useful when working out a theme for a Fraternal Gathering or a Bible Class where it is appropriate to examine the possible meanings of a particular word or phrase, always bearing in mind that more than one meaning may be intended by Paul, a good example indeed of what is now called lateral thinking.
This review originally appeared in the October 1973 edition of The Testimony Magazine (pages 369-370), and is reproduced by kind permission.
