Colossians 2:11-14

SUMMARY: ย The Colossian deception, which was similar to the pagan mystery religions, claimed that Christians are incomplete and that they need something outside of Christ to be made complete.ย  To oppose this error Paul emphasized two main principles in the letter to the Colossians. The first point is made by Col 2:9, namely that nothing exists outside Christ. The second point is made in Col 2:10, namely that, in a trust-relationship with Christ, Christians are already complete.

Col 2:11-14 elaborate on the second principle, explaining that Christians are already complete because their guilt has been removed. ย Col 2:11 uses circumcision as a symbol to say that their guiltโ€”their โ€œbody of the fleshโ€โ€”has been cut off.ย  Col 2:12 uses baptism as a symbol to say that their guilt has been washed away.ย  Col 2:13 describes their previous condition of guilt as โ€œdead in your transgressionsโ€ and the removal of their guilt as โ€œmade โ€ฆ alive โ€ฆ having forgiven us all our transgressionsโ€.ย  Col 2:14 describes the guilt of their previous existence as a โ€œcertificate of debtโ€ which has been cancelled by God the Father by nailing it to the cross.ย  Col 2:10-14, therefore, forms a unit with a single message and must be read together.

Christians are free from guilt, but not free from sin.ย  However, since they are free from guilt, they strive to become worthy citizens of the โ€œkingdom of His beloved Sonโ€ (Col 1:13), which is also free from sin.

Col 2:11 and in Him
you were also circumcised
with a circumcision made without hands,
in the removal of the body of the flesh
by the circumcision of Christ;

Col 2:12 having been buried with Him in baptism,
in which you were also raised up with Him
through faith in the working of God,
who raised Him from the dead.

Col 2:13 When you were dead in your transgressions
and the uncircumcision of your flesh,
He (the Father) made you alive together with Him,
having forgiven us all our transgressions,

2:14 having canceled out the certificate of debt
consisting of decrees against us,
which was hostile to us;
and He has taken it out of the way,
having nailed it to the cross.

Col 2:11-13 should be read as a unit.

All three verses describe what happened to the Colossians when they became Christians:

Their conversion is described by verse 11 using circumcision as a symbol. The Colossians, being Gentiles (Col 1:27), have never been physically circumcised. This verse, therefore, says that they have been circumcised โ€œwithout handsโ€, which is โ€œcircumcision โ€ฆ which is of the heartโ€, resulting in a new heart and a new relationship with God through Christ (Rom 2:28-29; Phil 3:3). (See Circumcision without hands for more detail.)

Verse 12 describes their conversion by saying that they were symbolically buried with Christ through baptism, and symbolically raised up (made alive) with Christ.

Verse 13 then describes their conversion by combining the terminology of the previous two verses. It combines the circumcision symbolism from verse 11 and the โ€œmade โ€ฆ aliveโ€ symbolism from verse 12, but then also gives a literal explanation, namely โ€œhaving forgiven us all our transgressionsโ€.

Verses 11 to 13 are therefore a unit, describing what happened to the Colossians at their conversion.

Realm transfer in chapter 1

Col 2:11-14 are discussed as together because they convey a single message, namely that Christians have been transferred from the realm of guilt to freedom from guilt.ย  Chapter 1 already referred to this realm transfer:

ย โ€œthe Father โ€ฆ rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sinsโ€ (Col 1:12-14).

This verse contrasts their previous and current conditions.ย  Since Christians โ€œhave โ€ฆ the forgiveness of sinsโ€, the โ€œdomain of darknessโ€ is the Realm of Guilt.

This following verse also contrasts their previous and current conditions, and again the point is that they have been freed from guilt:

โ€œAlthough you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproachโ€ (Col 1:21-22)

Their former condition, of being โ€œalienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deedsโ€, is the realm of guilt.ย  They were โ€œtransferredโ€ (Col 1:13) out of โ€œthe domain of darknessโ€ (1:13) by being โ€œreconciledโ€ (Col 1:22) to become โ€œholy and blameless and beyond reproachโ€. This is what 1:13 calls the โ€œkingdom of His beloved Sonโ€.ย  They have โ€œthe forgiveness of sinsโ€ (Col 1:14); their guilt has been removed.

Verse 22 mentions something which is absent in 1:13-14, namely the Means of transfer, which is โ€œin His fleshly body through deathโ€.

Realm transfer in Col 2:11-13

Using different symbols and terminology, 2:11-13 also describe the transfer:

      • From the โ€œdomain of darknessโ€ and guilt (Col 1:13)
      • To the โ€œkingdom of His beloved Sonโ€ (Col 1:13), where they have โ€œforgiveness of sinsโ€ (Col 1:14).

The realm of guilt is described by verse 11 as the โ€œbody of the fleshโ€.ย  Verse 13, using the circumcision terminology from verse 11, describes it as โ€œthe uncircumcision of your fleshโ€ and explains it as to be โ€œdead in your transgressionsโ€.

They have been transferred out of the realm of guilt by โ€œin Himโ€ (Col 2:11). This is explained by verse 12, switching the symbolism from circumcision to baptism, as being โ€œraised up with Himโ€.ย  This verse, therefore, indicates a strong link between Christโ€™s death and the transfer to the guilt-free realm.ย  Verse 13, which continues the circumcision metaphor from verse 11, describes their transfer out of the realm of guilt as being โ€œmade โ€ฆ alive together with Himโ€ (2:13).ย  This means that the Means of transfer was Christโ€™s death and resurrection.

The โ€œkingdom of His beloved Sonโ€ (1:13), where they have โ€œforgiveness of sinsโ€ (1:14), is described as โ€œforgiven us all our transgressionsโ€ (2:13).

Theologians sometimes make things more complex than they are.ย  Sometimes they focus so much on detail that they lose focus of the overall message.ย  Verses 11 to 13 use circumcision and baptism simply as symbols of the transfer to the realm where Christians are free of guilt.ย  These verses do not define circumcision or baptism and should never be analyzed in isolation.ย  Circumcision was the initiation into the Old Covenant and baptism the initiation into the New Covenant.ย  For that reason, Paul here uses these as symbols for the initiation into the realm where Christians are free of guilt.

Realm transfer in Col 2:14

Verse 14 uses different symbolism, but the message is the same as in 2:11-13. This verse describes the realm of guilt as a โ€œcertificate of debt consisting of decreesโ€.ย  Many interpret this as a reference to the Law of Moses, but onย Certificate of debt consisting of decrees it is shown that the โ€œcertificate of debt consisting of decreesโ€, which has been โ€œnailed it to the crossโ€, refers to the record of our sins and the penalty due to us, according to Godโ€™s Law.

Chapter and verse divisions sometimes distort the meaning of the text.ย  In the original text, there are no chapter and verse divisions.ย  If we add the last part of verse 13 to the first part of verse 14 we have:

โ€œhaving forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decreesโ€ (Col 2:13-14)

The immediate context therefore also implies that the โ€œcertificate of debt consisting of decreesโ€ refers to โ€œall our transgressionsโ€ (2:13).ย  Verse 14 therefore also describes the transfer from the realm of guilt to freedom from guilt.

The Means of transfer in verse 14 is clear, for it says that the โ€œcertificate of debt consisting of decreesโ€ has been โ€œnailed โ€ฆ to the crossโ€.

Col 2:11-14 explains Col 2:10

2:11-14 expands on the concept in 2:10 that Christians โ€œhave been made completeโ€ โ€œin Himโ€.ย  The entire letter to the Colossians can perhaps be summarized by two concepts.ย  The first is stated by 2:9, but is also mentioned throughout the letter, namely that everything is in Christ; nothing exists outside Christ:

โ€œAll the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily formโ€ in Christ (Col 2:9).ย  In Christ โ€œare hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledgeโ€ (Col 2:3). โ€œAll things have been created through Him and for Himโ€ (Col 1:16). โ€œHe is before all things, and in Him all things hold togetherโ€ (Col 1:17).ย  He has first place in everything (Col 1:18). โ€œIt was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Himโ€ (Col 1:19). Through Him, God reconciles all things to Himself (Col 1:20).

Notice the word โ€œallโ€ in these examples, which excludes the possibility of anything existing outside of Christ.

The second main thought is stated by Col 2:10, namely that Christians are already complete in Christ; they do not need something else to make them complete. It is this point on which Paul elaborates in the current verses by saying that they have been โ€œcircumcised โ€ฆ without handsโ€ (Col 2:11), โ€œburied with Himโ€, โ€œraised up with Himโ€ (Col 2:12), โ€œmade โ€ฆ aliveโ€ (Col 2:13) and โ€œforgivenโ€ (2:13).ย  This is also the point of their โ€œcertificate of their debtโ€ that has been nailed to the cross.

These two main concepts can be described as:

      1. Christ all-inclusiveness
      2. The Christianโ€™s completeness

The second concept is dependent on the first: Since nothing exists outside Christ, Christians are complete if they are โ€œin Himโ€. This dependence is indicated by phrases such as โ€œin Himโ€ and โ€œwith Himโ€:

โ€œโ€ฆ present every man complete in Christโ€ (Col 1:28) โ€œin Him you have been made complete โ€ฆ โ€ฆ in Him you were also circumcised โ€ฆ having been buried with Him in baptism โ€ฆ raised up with Him โ€ฆ made you alive together with Him โ€ฆ โ€ (Col 2:10-13).

โ€œIn Himโ€ means to be in a trust relationship with Him.

Since 2:11-13 explains 2:10, and since the Christianโ€™s completeness in 2:10 is dependent on Christโ€™s all-inclusiveness in 2:9, the entire 2:9-14 should be read together.

Colossian deception

But the question remains, why does Paul emphasize the transfer from the โ€œdomain of darknessโ€ to freedom from guilt?ย  It is proposed that Paul put so much emphasis on the completion of Christians because the Colossian deception claimed that Christians are incomplete.ย  It is further proposed that Paul put so much emphasis on the all-inclusiveness of Christ because the Colossian deception claimed that Christians need something outside of Christ to make them complete.

As proposed before, the frequent mention of the word โ€œmysteryโ€ in Colossians (Col 1:26, 27; 2:2; 4:3), and the description of Christ as the mystery of God (Col 2:2) indicates that the Colossians deception was related to the pagan mystery religions.ย  In these ancient mystery religions secret knowledge was imparted to the initiates via an initiation rite.ย  For that reason, Paul uses the Biblical initiation rites, namely circumcision under the old covenant and baptism under the new, as part of his description of how Christians were made โ€œcompleteโ€ in Christ.

God the Father

It is perhaps appropriate to point out that verse 13 reads โ€œHe made you alive together with Himโ€.ย  The Means of transfer is Christโ€™s death, but it is โ€œGod the Fatherโ€ (Col 3:17; 1:2, 3) that โ€œcircumcisedโ€ Christians โ€œwith a circumcision made without handsโ€ (2:11), that โ€œburiedโ€ them โ€œwith Him in baptismโ€, and also raised them up with Him (2:12), that made them โ€œalive together with Himโ€ (2:13), that forgave โ€œus all our transgressionsโ€ (2:13) and that โ€œcanceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decreesโ€ (2:14) by nailing โ€œit to the crossโ€ (2:14).

Freedom from guilt

To conclude, note that Christians are free from guilt, but not free from sin.ย  Christians have been transferred to a realm where they have been โ€œforgivenโ€ their โ€œtransgressionsโ€.ย  The Lord said, referring to the new covenant:

Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more” (Heb 10:17)

Since we are free from guiltโ€”โ€œholy and blameless and beyond reproachโ€ (Col 1:22)โ€”we need to strive that our deeds must also become consistent with the โ€œkingdom of His beloved Sonโ€ (1:13), which is also free from sin.

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