Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Colossians 1:25
Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God;
25. whereof ] That is, of the Church; on behalf of it, serving its holy interests.
according to ] His “ministry” was conditioned and guided by the terms of “the dispensation” just about to be mentioned.
the dispensation ] Better, the stewardship. So Eph 3:2, a close parallel. For the figure see 1Co 4:1-2; 1Co 9:17 ; 1Pe 4:10. And cp. Mat 13:52. On Eph 1:10, where the word occurs in a somewhat different phase of meaning, see note in this Series.
It is almost needless to say that the N.T. use of the figure of stewardship has regard to the minister’s duty to provide the household of God with the food of truth, and not to any supposed right or duty to reserve that food.
fulfil the word of God ] I.e. in the light of the context, not to “accomplish His promise,” but to “develope, unfold, His message to the full.” Cp. Rom 15:19; “I have fully preached (lit., fulfilled) the Gospel of Christ.”
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
According to the dispensation of God – The arrangement which God has made. That is, he designed that the gospel should be preached to the Gentiles, and, in accordance with that arrangement, he has called me to be a minister. Notes, Eph 3:2.
To fulfil the word of God – Margin, fully to preach. The Greek is, to fill up the word of God; the meaning is, fully to teach and promulgate the gospel; compare the notes at Rom 15:19.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Col 1:25-27
Whereof I am made a minister.
The pre-eminent honour and sublime theme of the Christian ministry
I. The Christian ministry is a Divine institution.
1. The Christian minister is divinely commissioned. Dispensation involves the idea of stewardship.
2. The true minister is charged with the most complete proclamation of the Divine Word.
II. The Christian ministry deals with a theme of profound significance and ineffable worth.
1. It is designated a mystery. The gospel is still a mystery to the unconverted.
2. It is a mystery unveiled to those who are morally fitted to understand it. To His saints. God chose His own time for making it known. Like all the Divine procedures, the development was gradual, increasing in clearness and completeness as the fulness of time approached. It is an axiom in optics that the eye only sees what it brings with it the power to see: and in spiritual things the soul comprehends the revelation of God only as it is fitted by she Spirit.
3. The revelation of the mystery was an act of the Divine will. To whom God would make known. There was nothing impelling Him to unfold it but His own good pleasure.
4. The revelation of the mystery endowed humanity with a vast inheritance of moral wealth. What is the riches of the glory of this mystery.
(1) This inheritance enriched the most needy. It was exhibited among the Gentiles.
(2) This inheritance includes the hope inspired by the indwelling Christ. Which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Lessons–
1. The Christian ministry involves solemn responsibilities.
2. The transcendent theme of the Christian ministry is divinely revealed.
3. Personal experience of the grace of God endows man with the clearest insight into its mystery and the most satisfying possession of its spiritual riches. (G. Barlow.)
Divine ordination to the ministry
If they say, You have gifts for preaching, and you might have been a tolerable preacher if you had been properly ordained, I reply that I was properly ordained. My father ordained me. Ah! I was better ordained than that: my greater Father ordained me. He ordained me twice: first, when He put his hand on my head before I was born, and said, Be a head; and then, after I had carried it round a few years, when He stretched out His hand and touched my heart rather than my head, and said, Be ordained again. First, He makes the head-piece to think; and then He touches the heart, and says, Go preach My gospel. When a man has had that done to him, he is ordained. A pope could not make him any better; a bishop could not make him any better; a whole presbytery could not make him any better. (H. W. Beecher.)
St. Paul a proof of his gospel
This is not merely an appeal to their affection for him, though that is perfectly legitimate. Holy words may be holier because dear lips have taught them to us, and even the truth of God may allowably have a firmer hold upon our hearts because of our love for some who have ministered it to us. It is a poor commentary on a preachers work if, after long service to a congregation, his words do not come with power given to them by old affection and confidence. The humblest teacher who has done his masters errand will have some to whom he can appeal, as Paul did, and urge them to keep hold of the message he has preached. But there is more than that in the apostles mind. He was accustomed to quote the fact that he, the persecutor, had been made the messenger of Christ, as a living proof of the infinite mercy and power of that ascended Lord, whom His eyes saw on the road to Damascus. So here he puts stress on the fact that he became a minister as being an evidence of Christianity. The history of his conversion is one of the strongest proofs of the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ. You know, he seems to say, what turned me from being a persecutor into an apostle. It was because I saw the living Christ, and heard the words of His mouth, and, I beseech you, listen to no words which make His dominion less sovereign, and His sole and sufficient work on the Cross less mighty. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 25. Whereof I am made a minister] Having received especial commission from God to preach salvation to the Gentiles.
According to the dispensation] . According to the Gospel economy or institution; the scheme or plan of salvation by Christ crucified.
To fulfil the word of God] The Greek may be translated, fully to preach the doctrine of God. See Ro 15:19, and the note there. Were we to take the word in its common meaning, it might signify to accomplish the purpose of God, as predicted by the prophets.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Whereof I am made a minister; see under what title he suffers for the church, because a minister, ( in the more general acceptation of the word), as Col 1:23, not (as one of the ancients saith) to give the price of redemption, but to preach. He looked not on his apostleship as a domination, but ministration, 2Co 5:18; and though in regard of his call he was an extraordinary apostle, yet he, (remembering his Masters injunction, Mat 20:26), no more than Peter did affect dominion or a lordship over Christs heritage 2Co 1:24; 1Pe 5:1-3, according to his singular and eminent call to be a minister and a witness, Act 26:16. As he doth elsewhere make mention of the minister of God, 2Co 6:4; 1Th 3:2; of the New Testament, gospel, word, reconciliation, Act 6:4; 2Co 3:6; 5:18,19; Eph 3:7; of Jesus Christ and of the Lord, Rom 15:8; 1Co 4:1; Eph 6:20; 1Ti 4:6; so he doth here, by reason of the union between the Head and the body, own himself to be constituted a minister of the church, which some, of a lower rank, like not now to be called.
According to the dispensation of God; and that by Divine vouchsafement and commandment, being called from persecution of the church to this ministry, Act 9:15,16; 1Co 4:1; 2Co 5:19; Eph 1:1. Yea, and also for them at Colosse, who, being of the Gentiles, were in his commission, according to the gift of the grace of God given to him, Eph 3:7.
Which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God; fully to preach the word of God amongst them, as well as to the Romans and others, Rom 15:19, and so to fulfil the prophecy, Zec 2:11, for the calling of the Gentiles by the promulgation of the gospel amongst them, Act 22:21; Rom 1:5; 11:13; 1Ti 2:7; and so fulfilling Gods word, by fully expounding the whole doctrine of salvation amongst them, and promoting of it to the end of his life.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
25. amGreek, “Iwas made a minister”: resuming Col1:23, “whereof I Paul was made a minister.”
dispensationthestewardship committed to me to dispense in the house of God,the Church, to the whole family of believers, the goods of my Master(Luk 12:42; 1Co 4:1;1Co 4:2; 1Co 9:17;Eph 3:2).
which is givenGreek,“which was given.”
for youwith a view toyou, Gentiles (Col 1:27; Rom 15:16).
to fulfilto bring itfully to all: the end of his stewardship: “fully preached”(Ro 15:19). “The fulnessof Christ (Col 1:19), and ofthe times (Eph 1:10) requiredhim so to do” [BENGEL].
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Whereof I am made a minister,…. Not of Christ, or of the Gospel as before, though both were true; but of the churches for whose sake he endured afflictions; and which carries in it a reason of his suffering for them: he was not a saviour of the body, nor a redeemer of the church, nor Lord of it; but a minister, a servant of it, that ministered to it in holy things, in the word and ordinances; not a deacon, as the word, sometimes signifies, nor an ordinary minister, or a pastor of a particular church; but a minister of the church in general, being an apostle sent to preach the Gospel everywhere: he was made a minister of it, not by men, or anything he received from men; nor by himself, not by usurpation, he did not thrust himself into this office, or take it upon him of himself; but was put into it by Christ, who counted him faithful, he appeared to him, and made him a minister, qualified him for this office, called him to it, and sent him to perform it: and which he executed
according to the dispensation of God: or divine economy, which denotes such an authority and administration as is used in a family. The church is God’s family, it is called the house and household of God, and the household of faith, part of which is in heaven and part on earth; God is the householder or master of the family; Christ is the Son over his own house; ministers are stewards in it, and their work is to give to everyone their portion of meat in due season; their authority from God to do so, and the exercise of it, are the economy or dispensation of the Gospel committed to them: this is of God and not man, for none but God can give them a power to dispense it, and which is purely of his grace, called therefore the dispensation of the grace of God, Eph 3:2; and here said to be given,
which is given to me for you; not according to any merits of his, who was before a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an injurious person to Christ and his Gospel; but according to the pure grace of God, and that not for himself, but for the good of others, for the Gentiles especially, and so for the Colossians:
to fulfil the word of God; either the promises and prophecies contained in the word of God, respecting the preaching of the Gospel to the Gentiles, and their conversion by it; which had in a great measure their accomplishment through the ministry of the apostle: or to fill all places with the word of God and Gospel of Christ, as the apostle did from Jerusalem, and round about to Illyricum, diffusing the savour of the knowledge of Christ in every place; and sinners being converted, churches were planted and daily filled with such as should be saved; or to preach fully and faithfully the Gospel, keeping back nothing that was profitable, but declaring the whole counsel of God, continuing faithful to it to the end, as he did: to fill up or fulfil words is an Hebraism, and signifies to confirm them, or act according to them; see 1Ki 1:14 and the Septuagint there.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
According to the dispensation of God ( ). “According to the economy of God.” An old word from , to be a house steward (, ) as in Luke 16:2-4; 1Cor 9:17; Eph 1:9; Eph 3:9. It was by God’s stewardship that Paul was made a minister of Christ.
To fulfil the word of God ( ). First aorist active infinitive of purpose (), a fine phrase for a God-called preacher, to fill full or to give full scope to the Word of God. The preacher is an expert on the word of God by profession. See Paul’s ideal about preaching in 2Th 3:1.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
1) “Whereof I am made a minister” (hes egenomen ego diakonos) “Of which I became a common minister” Paul was not only a preacher of the gospel but also a Mission director, fund-raiser for the needy, councilor, and educator. All of this is included in the Greek term (diakonos) translated-minister, 1Co 9:17.
2) “According to the dispensation of God” (kata ten oikonomian tou theou) “according to the stewardship (houselaw) of God.” The term dispensation is one derived from the idea of an household steward or porter with a charge to keep and perform. Mar 13:34-37; 1Co 4:2.
3) “Which is given to me for you” (ten dotheisan moi eis humas) which is given (committed) to me with reference to you all,” the church at Colosse, 2Ti 4:2; 2Ti 4:5. Paul felt himself a life-debtor to help save the souls and lives of all men, Rom 1:14-16; Col 1:10-11.
4) “To fulfill the word of God” (plerosai ton logon tou theou) to fulfill, complete, sustain, or confirm the Word of God” Joh 20:21. As the Father sent the Son to seek and to save the lost, so has he sent the Church, Luk 19:10; Mar 16:15; Act 1:8-11; Act 26:16-23.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
25. Of which I am made a minister. Mark under what character he suffers for the Church — as being a minister, not to give the price of redemption, (as Augustine dexterously and piously expresses himself,) but to proclaim it. He calls himself, however, in this instance, a minister of the Church on a different ground from that on which he called himself elsewhere, (1Co 4:1,) a minister of God, and a little ago, (Col 1:23,) a minister of the gospel. For the Apostles serve God and Christ for the advancement of the glory of both: they serve the Church, and administer the gospel itself, with a view to promote salvation. There is, therefore, a different reason for the ministry in these expressions, but the one cannot subsist without the other. He says, however, towards you, that they may know that his office has a connection also with them.
To fulfill the word. He states the end of his ministry — that the word of God may be effectual, as it is, when it is obediently received. For this is the excellence of the gospel, that it is the
power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth. (Rom 1:16.)
God, therefore, gives efficacy and influence to his word through means of the Apostles. For although preaching itself, whatever may be its issue, is the fulfilling of the word, yet it is the fruit that shews at length (339) that the seed has not been sown in vain.
(339) “ Toutesfois c’est a proprement parler, le fruit qui monstre en fin;” — “Yet it is, properly speaking, the fruit that shews at last.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
CRITICAL AND EXPLANATORY NOTES
Col. 1:25-27. See notes on Eph. 3:7 ff.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.Col. 1:25-27
The Pre-eminent Honour and Sublime Theme of the Christian Ministry.
The highest dignity and most solemn responsibility are conferred on man when he is entrusted with the ministration of Gods word. It is the infinite condescension of God that we have this treasure in earthen vessels. He who, in the exercise of His unchallengeable wisdom, calls man to this work, can alone inspire and endow him with the necessary intellectual and moral fitness for the awful charge. In these verses we learn that the apostle was appointed a minister of the Churcha steward in Gods householdcharged to preach without reserve the whole gospel of God, to dispense to the Gentiles the stores which His bountiful grace provided. Note:
I. The Christian ministry is a divine institution.
1. The true minister is divinely commissioned. Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you (Col. 1:25). The word dispensation involves the idea of stewardship. God governs His Church, not as a tyrant, who rules what is not his own, not as a monarch, who knows not a thousandth part of his subjects; but as a father, who knows, loves, and provides for his own children. The apostle was entrusted with a stewardship in Gods household; he was a steward of the mysteries of God. He received the office from God. This invested it with the highest dignity; yet he was the minister of the Church, and it was his joy to serve it, whatever might be the labour, sacrifice, or suffering entailed. The Christian ministry is not a lordship, but a stewardship; the minister is solemnly commissioned of God to maintain, defend, and dispense the truth that saves and edifies. There are moments when the minister can derive stimulus and courage for his work only by falling back upon the irrefutable fact of his divine call.
2. The true minister is charged with the most complete proclamation of the divine word.To fulfil the word of God (Col. 1:25)to preach fully, to give its most complete development to. The apostle had declared the gospel in all its depth and breadth of meaning, its wealth of blessing, and amplitude of revelation. He had proclaimed it in every direction, in harmony with his insight into its universal fitness and sufficiency. Fulfil implies the figure of a measure to be filled. The true minister is empowered to preach the word of God in all the fulness of its internal import, and in accord with the universality of its outward purpose. Whether palatable or unpalatable, he must not shun to declare everywhere the whole counsel of God. The fulness there is in Christ and the urgent needs of humanity alike demand this.
II. The Christian ministry deals with a theme of profound significance and ineffable worth.
1. It is designated a mystery. Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations (Col. 1:26). Mystery in the Scripture sense does not mean something actually incomprehensible, but something concealed or unknown until it please God to reveal it; something beyond the human mind to discover for itself, and which can only be attained by divine aid. The mystery comprehended two leading featuresthe divine purpose in saving man through a suffering and crucified Saviour, and the free admission of the Gentiles on equal terms with the Jews to the privileges of the covenant. Unlike the heathen mysteries, which were confined to a narrow circle, the Christian mystery is freely communicated to all. The mystery was concealed from the ages, which may be referred to the angels; and from the generations, which may be referred to men. Though faintly shadowed in types and figures, the truth would never have been discovered by man. In the revelation of the mystery the apostle applauded the lavish wealth of the divine goodness. The gospel is still a mystery to the unconverted.
2. It is a mystery unveiled to those who are morally fitted to understand it.But now is made manifest to His saints (Col. 1:26). God chose His own time for making known the mystery of the gospel. Like all the divine procedures, the development was gradual, increasing in clearness and completeness as the fulness of time approached; that time embraced the advent of the incarnate Son of God, His ascension and enthronement in heaven, and the descent of the revealing Spirit. It is an axiom in optics that the eye only sees what it brings with it the power to see; and it is equally true in spiritual things that the soul comprehends the revelation of God only as it is prepared and fitted by the good Spirit. The holier the organ of divine revelation, the clearer the vision. It was not to the dignitaries of imperial Rome or the ruling powers of Judea, but to humble shepherds that the tidings of the Saviours advent were first announced; not to the aristocracy of Pharisaic or Sadducean intellect, but to the plain, unlettered, believing fishermen of Galilee that the full glory of salvation by Christ was disclosed. Augustine has said, Illiterate men rise and seize heaven, while we, with all our learning, are rolling in the filth of sin.
3. The revelation of the mystery was an act of the divine will.To whom God would make known (Col. 1:27). There was nothing impelling Him to unfold this mystery but His own good pleasure. It was His sovereign will to disclose to the humble and devout, rather than to the proud and self-sufficient, the wondrous grace and glory of the gospel. The most sincere seeker after holiness could not of himself discover the mystery. But though made known in its richer spiritual developments only to the good, the good pleasure of God has put the knowledge of it within the reach of all.
4. The revelation of the mystery endowed humanity with a vast inheritance of moral wealth.What is the riches of the glory of this mystery (Col. 1:27). The terms employed seem inadequate to convey the meaning intended. It is impossible fully to explain or illustrate the sublime truths they indicate. The gospel is a mystery full of glorya glory unique, resplendent, unsurpassable; and this glory is dowered with riches, abundant, inexhaustible, and divine. The riches of the glory appear in the manifestation of the nature and attributes of God which the mystery supplies, and also in the moral wealth that has descended upon man. Here is the most lavish provision for the salvation of sinful and perishing humanityan inheritance of imperishable bliss.
(1) This inheritance enriched the most needy. It was exhibited among the Gentiles (Col. 1:27). The Jews were the children of promise and possessed every religious privilege; the Gentiles were the children of mercy, and had never dared to dream of enjoying the blessings of the gospel. In the revelation of the mystery to them, the dispensation of grace achieved its greatest triumphs and displayed its transcendent glory. Here, too, was its wealth, for it overflowed all barriers of caste or race. Judaism was beggarly in comparison, since its treasures sufficed only for a few. The glory of the gospel was never so brilliant as in the moral transformations it effected among the degraded Gentiles.
(2) This inheritance includes the hope inspired by the indwelling Christ. Which is Christ in you, the hope of glory (Col. 1:27). The mystery of the gospel begins and ends in Christ, and Christ is in every believer the hope of glory. Only in Christ can we hope for the highest glory, and in Him we infallibly find all the blessedness we can enjoy in this world or expect in the future. In Him we have here as seed what we shall have in Him there as harvest. Even now we sit there in Him, and shall sit with Him in the end.
Lessons.
1. The Christian ministry involves solemn responsibilities.
2. The transcendent theme of the Christian ministry is divinely revealed.
3. Personal experience of the grace of God endows man with the clearest insight into its mystery, and the most satisfying possession of its spiritual riches.
GERM NOTES ON THE VERSES
Col. 1:25-27. The Glory of the Gospel
I. A mystery once hidden, but now revealed (Col. 1:26-27).
II. Enriches all nations with moral blessings.
III. Is entrusted to divinely authorised messengers to make known (Col. 1:25; Col. 1:27).
Col. 1:27. Christ in you the Hope of Glory.
I. What it implies of present experience.
1. GenerallyChrist among you.
2. PersonallyChrist in you.
II. What it presages.The hope of glory.
1. Personal gloryin the perfection of being where the servant is like his Lord.
2. Relative glorysharing the throne with Jesus, and sharing in His triumph and glory.Preachers Magazine.
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell
25. whereof I was made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which was given me to youward, to fulfill the word of God,
Translation and Paraphrase
25. I was made a servant (or minister of the church) in accordance with the (gracious terms of the) stewardship (entrusted to me) of God, (which was) given to me for your sake, to make fully known the word of God.
Notes
1.
Paul indicates in Col. 1:25 that his ministry was a gift to him. He was made a minister. He did not choose the office himself.
Furthermore the nature of the work that God laid out for Paul was chosen not according to what Paul might have thought best, but it was rather a dispensation, or stewardship, from God.
2.
The word dispensation here means that which is dispensed by God, It is a translation of the Gr. oikonomia, which is often translated stewardship, Stewardship is the managing of the goods or property of someone else. A steward might operate a farm or a vineyard for the owner.
God gave Paul a particular stewardship, or dispensation, a special privilege and responsibility. Pauls ministry then consisted of that which GOD had given him to do. It was a challenging stewardship and occupied every bit of the time and talent Paul could give to it, but it was still Gods choice for Paul, not Pauls choice for himself, Eph. 3:2; Eph. 3:7-9.
3.
Pauls stewardship was given him for you. It was designed to help others. Our service to the Lord should always be done to help others, rather than to make ourselves appear outstanding.
4.
Pauls ministry was given to him to fulfill the word of God, that is, to cause the word of God to abound, to carry it into effect, to carry it through to the fullest.
Study and Review
5.
What does the whereof in Col. 1:25 refer back to?
6.
According to what was Paul made a minister: (Col. 1:25)
7.
What was it that was given to Paul? (Col. 1:25)
8.
Define the word dispensation. What word is a synonym for it?
9.
For what purpose was the dispensation given to Paul?
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
(25) Whereof I am made (or, became) a minister.Above (in Col. 1:23) St. Paul describes himself as a minister of the gospel, here as a minister (or, servant) of the Church. Elsewhere he is always the minister of God and of Christ; here of the Church, as the Body of Christ, and so indissolubly united with Christ.
The dispensation of God.See Eph. 3:2-9, and Notes there. The reference is to his peculiar Apostleship of the Gentiles.
To fulfil.The marginal reading and reference to Rom. 15:19 give the explanation of the word, fully to preach the Word of Godto be a messenger of the perfect revelation, which had now unfolded what was previously a hidden mystery.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
25. Minister Servant, of the gospel, in Col 1:23, here of the Church.
Dispensation Stewardship, the office of a servant, for the work of preaching; not a priesthood to offer sacrifice or to administer sacraments. His sphere of labour was, by the terms of his commission, among the Gentiles, and his work was to preach to them the unsearchable riches of Christ. Eph 3:5.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Whereof I was made a minister (diakonos) according to the stewardship of God which was given me towards you, to fulfil the word of God, even the mystery which has been hid from all ages and generations, but now has it been openly revealed to his saints, to whom God was pleased to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you the hope of glory.’
Paul stresses again that he has been made a servant in accordance with the stewardship from God which was given to him to ‘fulfil the word of God’, that is to preach it openly and fully and to bring into being what the prophets promised beforehand (Rom 16:26; 1Pe 1:10; 2Pe 3:2).
What had been prophesied was ‘a mystery’, something hidden. But now it was revealed to all those who would receive it. None who will hear are excepted. It had been hidden ‘from ages and from generations’ but was now openly revealed to all His people (no exclusivism here). Indeed God was pleased to make known to them the full glorious riches of that mystery, and that mystery was ‘Christ in you, the hope of glory’, Christ in the Gentiles who are to share in all the blessings brought by the Messiah.
That God’s word was to be a blessing to the Gentiles was declared again and again in the Old Testament, and the Jews had welcomed Gentile proselytes on this basis (e.g. Gen 12:3; Isa 42:1; Isa 42:6-7; Isa 49:6). But they had to become Jews. What had not previously been revealed was that they were to be received on equal terms as fellow-heirs, fellow-members of the body, fellow-partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus revealed by the Gospel (Eph 3:6)
‘To fulfil the word of God.’ Here Paul may be saying that he has brought the word of God into effect by his preaching and ensured its fulfilment. But compare Rom 15:19, ‘so that from Jerusalem and round about, even to Illyricum, I have fulfilled the Gospel of Christ’, which means that he has preached it fully, completely and successfully over a wide area.
‘The riches of the glory (a Hebraism for ‘glorious riches’, Hebrew was lacking in adjectives) of the mystery.’ No richer mystery could be known for it brought home to them the ‘unsearchable riches of Christ’ (Eph 3:8).
‘Christ in you, the hope of glory.’ How are we to express fully this amazing fact and its consequences, the reception of the unsearchable riches of Christ (Eph 3:8)? Christ the Creator and Redeemer being among them and in them, possessing them, dwelling within each of them (Eph 3:17), working in them (Php 2:13), united with them so that they have become His body, and are thus becoming perfected together as He is perfect, being made complete as He is complete, and are experiencing His saving work which will bring them to their glorious inheritance and destiny (Col 1:12; Act 26:18; Eph 1:14) and give them glory (Rom 5:2; Rom 8:18 ; 1Co 15:43; 2Co 3:18; 2Co 4:17; Eph 1:18; 2Th 2:14; 2Ti 2:10; 1Pe 5:4).
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Col 1:25 . That He suffers thus, as is stated in Col 1:24 , for the good of the church , is implied in his special relation of service to the latter; hence the epexegetical relative clause . . . (comp. on Col 1:18 ): whose servant I have become in conformity with my divine appointment as preacher to the Gentiles ( . . . . .). In this way Paul now brings this his specific and distinctive calling into prominence after the general description of himself as servant of the gospel in Col 1:23 , and here again he gives expression to the consciousness of his individual authority by the emphasized . The relation of the testimony regarding himself in Col 1:25 to that of Col 1:23 is climactic , not that of a clumsy duplicate (Holtzmann).
. . . .] in accordance with the stewardship of God, which is given to me with reference to you . The . is in itself nothing else than a characteristic designation of the apostolic office, in so far as its holder is appointed as administrator of the household of God (the ), by which, in the theocratic figurative conception, is denoted the church (comp. 1Ti 3:15 ). Comp. 1Co 9:17 ; 1Co 4:1 ; Tit 1:7 . Hence such an one is, in consequence of this office conferred upon him, in his relation to the church the servant of the latter (2Co 4:5 ), to which function God has appointed him, just because he is His steward. This sacred stewardship then receives its more precise distinguishing definition, so far as it is entrusted to Paul , by the addition of . . . It is purely arbitrary, and at variance with the context ( . ), to depart from the proper signification, and to take it as institution, arrangement (see on Eph 1:10 ; Eph 3:2 ). So Chrysostom and his successors (with much wavering), Beza, Calvin, Estius, Rosenmller, and others. It is well said by Cornelius a Lapide: “in domo Dei, quae est ecclesia, sum oeconomus, ut dispensem bona et dona Dei domini mei.” Comp. on 1Co 4:1 .
] although the office concerned Gentile Christians generally; a concrete appropriation, as in Col 1:24 . Comp. on Phi 1:24 . It is to be joined with . , as in Eph 3:2 ; not with . . . (Hofmann), with the comprehensive tenor of which the individualizing “ for you ” is not in harmony, when it is properly explained (see below).
. . .] telic infinitive, depending on , beside which it stands (Rom 15:15 f.); not on . . (Huther). Paul, namely, has received the office of Apostle to the Gentiles , in order through the discharge of it to bring to completion the gospel ( . , 1Co 14:36 ; 2Co 2:17 ; 2Co 4:2 ; 1Th 2:13 ; Act 4:29 ; Act 4:31 ; Act 6:2 , and frequently), obviously not as regards its contents, but as regards its universal destination, according to which the knowledge of salvation had not yet reached its fulness, so long as it was only communicated to the Jews and not to the Gentiles also. The latter was accomplished through Paul , who thereby made full the gospel conceived, in respect of its proclamation in accordance with its destiny, as a measure to be filled just because the divine stewardship for the Gentiles had been committed to him. The same conception of occurs in Rom 15:19 . Comp. Erasmus, Paraphr.; also Calovius. [68] Similarly Bengel: “ad omnes perducere; P. ubique ad summa tendit.” Partly from not attending to the contextual reference to the element, contained in . . , of the of the gospel which was implied in the Gentile-apostolic ministry, and partly from not doing justice to the verbal sense of the selected expression , or attributing an arbitrary meaning to it, commentators have taken very arbitrary views of the passage, such as, for example, Luther: to preach copiously; Olshausen, whom Dalmer follows: “to proclaim it completely as respects its whole tenor and compass;” Cornelius a Lapide: “ut compleam praedicationem ev., quam cocpit Christus; ” Vitringa, Storr, Flatt, Bhr: has after the signification of the simple docere; Huther: it means either to diffuse , or (as Steiger also takes it) to “realize, ” to introduce into the life, inasmuch as a doctrine not preached is empty; [69] de Wette: to “execute, ” the word of God being regarded either as a commission or (comp. Heinrichs) as a decree; Estius and others, following Theodoret: “ut omnia loca impleam verbo Dei ” (quite at variance with the words here, comp. Act 5:28 ); Fritzsche, ad Rom . III. p. 275: to supplement , namely, by continuing the instruction of your teacher Epaphras . Others, inconsistently with what follows, have explained the . to mean the divine promise (“partim de Christo in genere, partim de vocatione gentium,” Beza, comp. Vatablus), in accordance with which . would mean exsequi . Chrysostom has rightly understood . . . of the gospel , but takes , to which he attaches , as meaning: to bring to full, firm faith (similarly Calvin) a view justified neither by the word in itself nor by the context.
[68] Who rightly says: “Nimirum impletur ita verbum non ratione sui ceu imperfectum, sed ratione hominum, cum ad plures sese diffundit.”
[69] In a similarly artificial fashion, emptying the purposely chosen expression of its meaning, Hofmann comes ultimately to the bare sense: “to proclaim God’s word,” asserting that the word is a fact, and so he who proclaims the fact fulfils it.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
(25) Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God; (26) Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: (27) To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: (28) Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: (29) Whereunto I also labor, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.
I do not think it necessary to swell the pages of the Poor Man’s Commentary on those things which are too plain to need observation. Neither in a work of this kind to lead the Reader into the investigation of what is here said, concerning the length of time in which the mystery of the Gospel was hidden from ages, and from generations. I stop the Reader only to observe, that when Paul speaks, as he doth here, of Christ in his people, the hope of glory, the expression means, such a revelation of the Lord, in the glories of his Person, and the compleatness of his salvation, as make him indeed, to every regenerated believer, known, and enjoyed, the hope of Israel, and the Savior thereof. Paul very properly here, and elsewhere, calls it, Christ revealed in me, Gal 1:16 . For it becomes an inward manifestation of an outward work. Not a work in me, but for me. Not inherent holiness in the sinner; but derived holiness from the Savior. Not a supposed improvement in ourselves by the whole procuring benefit from Christ: yea Christ altogether, the Lord our righteousness! The blessedness of a life of faith lies in this. Yea, the blessedness of a life of glory can only be in the same. And while men, who are unacquainted with the plague of their own heart, are looking for holiness within, and taking comfort from their supposed progressive sanctification; looking to Christ to make up, if any, their deficiency: Paul calls off the Church from everything of self and self-attainments, to fix the soul wholly upon Christ. Paul himself trusted no more upon inward sanctification, as some men call it, but none ever knew, than he would upon a law righteousness in himself, to recommend him to God. To Christ he looked wholly, desiring to win Christ, and to be found in him. And the first, and last, consolation of this great Apostle was, that Christ was made of God, unto all his Church, wisdom, and righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, that he which gloried might glory in the Lord, 1Co 1:30 .
I admire the very sweet way, and manner, in which Paul closeth this chapter, in addressing the Church. It is to the Church Paul is preaching: and to that Church he preacheth Christ. Warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom (saith the Apostle) that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. What every man was it Paul warned and taught? Surely the Church. For who but the Church could be presented perfect in Christ Jesus? None but the members of Christ can be perfect in Christ. And what wisdom, yea, all wisdom was it, that he warned every man in? Surely Christ himself, who, in his comprehensive name, includes everything contained in that wisdom which maketh wise unto salvation. Who therefore doth not see, that all this refers to the Church, not to the world; to Christ’s members, and not to those who have no interest in him. But how did Paul know how to warn every man, and teach every man of the Lord’s people, and not they that are without? Simply by preaching Christ, and Christ only. For Christ is the power of God, and the wisdom of God, for salvation to everyone that believeth. Therefore, as faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God, whenever the Lord opened the eyes of any, Paul warned every one, and taught everyone only of Christ. And he found, that as many as were ordained to eternal life believed, Act 13:48 . And here exhortation becomes most blessed, because they are warned and taught, and God the Spirit is their teacher that they can be presented perfect only in Christ Jesus!
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
25 Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
Ver. 25. According to the dispensation ] What a horrid blasphemy therefore is that of the Jesuits, who stick not to tell the people in their pulpits that St Paul was not secure in his preaching, but by conference with St Peter, nor that he dared publish his Epistles till St Peter had allowed them! (Spec. Europ.)
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Col 1:25 . . With these words Paul returns to Col 1:23 , speaking of himself here, however, as a minister of the Church, there of the Gospel. Because he is a minister of the Church, it is a joy to suffer for its welfare. He proceeds to explain what his peculiar ( emphatic) ministry is. : cf. Eph 3:2 . . is “stewardship” rather than “dispensation” ( cf. 1Co 9:17 ). indicates that this office is held in the house of God, or that it has been entrusted to him by God. : to be taken with . as in Eph 3:2 , not with . (as by Chrys. and Hofm.). It means towards you Gentiles, that is for your benefit. The context shows that the Gentiles are uppermost in his thought. : “to fulfil the word of God”. . is taken by some of the completion by this letter of the teaching already given to the Colossians. But Paul is speaking of the function specially entrusted to him. Generally this is explained of the geographical extension of the Gospel. Haupt thinks the geographical point of view is not present here. An essential characteristic of the Gospel is its universality. Paul’s special mission is to bring this to realisation. This he does by proclaiming the Gospel to the Gentiles, thus making clear the true nature of the Gospel. This suits the context better, for Paul proceeds to define the mystery entrusted to him as the universality of salvation, not the wide extension of the Gospel. Other interpretations may be seen in Meyer or Eadie.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
dispensation. See 1Co 9:17 and compare Eph 3:2,
is = was.
fulfil. Same as “fill”, Col 1:9.
word. App-121.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Col 1:25. , the dispensation of God) Thence Paul (was) a steward [1Co 4:1, one having dispensation] of the grace of God, Eph 3:2.- , to you) Gentiles, Col 1:27.-) to fulfil, to bring it fully to all. Paul everywhere aims towards the farthest point; comp. Rom 15:19, [round about unto Illyricum I have fully preached]. The fulness of Christ and of the times required that.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Col 1:25
Col 1:25
whereof I was made a minister,-Paul was a minister of the church according to or through the duties God laid on him to preach the gospel to the Gentiles, to fulfill the word of the Lord Jesus spoken to him at the time of his conversion, telling him the mission to which he had called him: To this end have I appeared unto thee, to appoint thee a minister and a witness both of the things wherein thou hast seen me, and of the things wherein I will appear unto thee; delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom I send thee, to open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive remission of sins and an inheritance among them that are sanctified by faith in me. (Act 26:16-18).
according to the dispensation of God which was given me to you-ward,-[This clause is explanatory of Pauls position as a minister of Christ and of his church. For that reason he had a spiritual function in it committed to him by God, and because of that very fact it was a joy for him to suffer for its welfare.]
to fulfil the word of God,-To achieve the full aim of the gospel, by proclaiming everywhere to Jew and Gentile salvation through faith in Christ, and by leading man to accept it on Christs own terms. (Mat 28:18-20; Mar 16:15-16).
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
I am: Col 1:23, 1Th 3:2, 1Ti 4:6
according: Rom 15:15-18, 1Co 9:17, Gal 2:7, Gal 2:8, Eph 3:2
to fulfil: or, fully to preach, Rom 15:19, 2Ti 4:2-5
Reciprocal: Mat 13:35 – I will utter Luk 7:28 – but Act 9:15 – to bear Act 14:26 – the work Act 26:16 – a minister Rom 1:1 – called 1Co 4:1 – the ministers 2Co 3:6 – hath Gal 1:16 – that 1Ti 1:11 – which 1Ti 1:12 – putting 2Ti 4:5 – make full proof of
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
(Col 1:25.) -Of which church I was made a minister. [, Eph 3:7.] In the passage in the Epistle to the Ephesians, the apostle speaks of his diaconate in reference to the gospel; but here in connection with the church. And truly the church never had such a servant as Paul – of such industry and heroism – such enthusiasm and perseverance-such sufferings and travels-such opposition and success. He had no leisure even when in chains. The artistic beauties of Athens served but to give point to his orations; and the Praetorium at Rome furnished him with occasion to describe the armour and weapons of the sacramental host of God’s elect. His service stands out in superlative eminence, whether you measure it by the miles he journeyed, by the sermons he preached, by the stripes and stonings he endured, by the privations he encountered,-in hunger and thirst, in cold and nakedness, and by the shipwrecks he suffered, or by the souls he converted, the churches he planted or watered, the epistles he wrote, and the death which crowned a life of such earnestness and triumph.
, -According to the dispensation of God committed to me for you. [, etc., Eph 1:10; Eph 3:2.] In the Divine arrangement of the spiritual house, the apostle held a function which had special reference to the members of the Gentile churches. Paul regarded this as his distinctive office, and how he gloried in it! It had a breadth which suited his mighty mind, and it necessitated the preaching of an unconditioned gospel, which specially delighted his ample heart. He would not be confined within the narrow circuit of Judaism; the field on which his soul set itself was the world.
– To fulfil the word of God. Rom 15:19. The meaning is not altered, whether you connect these words with the first or second clause of the verse, either-of which I was made a servant, to fulfil the word of God, or-according to the dispensation given in charge to me, to fulfil the word of God. The last is the more natural, and is in accordance with the usual style of the apostle. In either case is the infinitive of design. The verb has various meanings in the New Testament, and has therefore been variously understood here.
Vitringa, as was natural to such a Hebraist, seeks the meaning of the term from Jewish usage, and compares to , H1698, which signified to teach. Flatt and Bhr follow him in their exegesis; but such a method has no warrant, and we are not forced to it by the impossibility of discovering another. Cornelius a-Lapide ekes out a meaning in this way-to fulfil what Christ began; Steiger, following Tholuck, adopts the subjective idea – to realize and experience its fulness. One class of interpreters, represented by Calixtus and Heinrichs, apply it to the fulfilment of the Divine promises and prophecies of the admission of Gentiles into the church; and another class, headed by Theodoret, regard the clause as pointing out the diffusion of the gospel-the filling of all places with its preaching. Calvin takes the special idea of fulfilling or giving effect to the gospel – ut efficax sit Dei sermo, virtually the interpretation of some of the Greek Fathers; while Luther renders reichlich predigen, to preach fully-a notion adopted by Olshausen, that is, to declare the gospel in all its fulness and extent. Fritzsche has a conjecture of his own-that the apostle uses this term as if his instructions were a supplementary continuation of those of their teacher Epaphras; and De Wette, by a metonymy, regards the gospel as a service or decree which Paul wrought out, a notion also held by some of the Lexicographers. In assigning a meaning to the verb, much depends on the signification given to the noun. Now, we regard the following verse as explanatory-the being the mystery hid from ages and generations-not the gospel in itself, but that gospel in its adaptation to the Gentiles, and its reception by them. The a postle says of himself that he did not preach, but that he fulfilled the gospel. He carried out its design-held it up as the balm of the world-proclaimed it without distinction of blood or race. He did not narrow its purpose, or confine it to a limited sphere of influence; but, as the apostle of the Gentiles, he opened for it a sweep and circuit adapted to its magnificence of aim, and its universality of fitness and sufficiency. He carried it beyond the frontiers of Judaea, lifted it above the walls of the synagogue, and held it up to the nations. The gospel, since the apostle’s time, has received no fuller expansion, nor have any wider susceptibilities been detected or developed in it. As an instrument of human regeneration, he brought it to perfection. Whether you regard the purpose of its author, its own genius or adequacy, its unlimited offers, indiscriminate invitations, and tested efficacy; the apostle, in preaching it everywhere, and to all classes without reserve, laboured to fulfil the word of God. Luk 7:1; Luk 9:31; Act 13:25; Act 14:26.
Fuente: Commentary on the Greek Text of Galatians, Ephesians, Colossians and Phillipians
Col 1:25. Paul calls himself a minister because the word means a servant, whose duty it is to administer the affairs of his master. Such ministra-tion is to be done according to the directions of the master. God had commissioned Paul to dispense (dispensation) His word by preaching (or writing) it to the Colossians and to all others where opportunity appeared.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Col 1:25. Whereof (of which Church) I became a minister. As minister of the gospel (Col 1:23) he became also minister of the Church which proclaims the gospel. In the Church there is no true ministry apart from the ministry of the gospel.
According to the dispensation, etc. The word dispensation has here its more usual sense of Stewardship. His Apostolic office is thus described as of God, belonging to God. In the Church, the house of God, he exercises the function of a steward.
Which was given to me. The emphasis rests on the fact that God had entrusted him with this office, rather than on his having received.
To you-ward. His office was that of Apostle to the Gentiles; comp. Eph 3:1-2, etc.
To fulfil the word of God. This presents the design of the giving, and further explains to you-ward. The reference seems to be to carrying the word of God to the Gentiles as a whole, thus filling out the full measure of its universal destination. Thus the duties of Pauls stewardship would be discharged. This sense accords with what follows (Col 1:26-27) and with the emphasis which Paul everywhere places upon this idea; comp. Ephesians, chaps. 1-3 through out. Many other explanations (all objectionable) have been given: to give the full contents of the gospel; to complete it; to fulfil the promises of God; to realize the word of God; to bring you to full faith.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Our apostle in these words, seems to assign a reason why he underwent the sufferings mentioned in the former verse so cheerfully, as even to rejoice in them; namely, because he was a minister of the church, by the special dispensation of God, to preach the mysteries of the gospel to the Gentile world.
Learn hence, That such as are eminent in the church, and, as ministers of the gospel, do lay out themselves more abundantly in the church’s service, they must expect to meet with a measure, and a full measure of sufferings beyond others. There are no such enemies to the devil’s kingdom, as the zealous and faithful ministers of Jesus Christ; therefore he will be sure to revenge the ruins of his own kingdom.
Observe farther, What it was that St. Paul was appointed by God to preach to the Gentiles, namely, that great mystery of their vocation and calling; this he calls here a mystery, a rich mystery, a glorious mystery, a mystery bid from ages but now made manifest.
Learn hence, That the doctrine of salvation by Jesus Christ, as a Redeemer, was long hid from the knowledge of the Gentiles; and that at last they were brought to the knowledge of Christ, and the participation of gospel privileges was a great mystery awfully to be admired, and a glorious mercy with all thankfulness to be acknowledged, to whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles-which is Christ, in you, the hope of glory, which gospel, preached amongst you, and received and entertained by you, is an earnest and ground of your hope of glory.
Note here, 1. That Christ is in, and among believers; he is among them by the preaching of the gospel, he is in them by the inhabitation of his holy Spirit.
Note, 2. That all true believers, whilst here on earth, have an hope of glory.
Note, 3. That Christ’s indwelling presence in the souls of believers by his holy Spirit, is an earnest of that glory, and an evident demonstration of their hope of it: Believers have in them a glorious hope, they have before them a glory hoped for; Christ is the ground of both, by him we obtain the end of our hope, even the salvation of our souls.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
“Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;” Paul saw himself as one called to minister to the Colossians specifically and to all mentioned in verse twenty-seven.
The term dispensation is translated stewardship in one translation. It is a Greek term meaning to administer as a household or an estate. (Lu. 16:2-4; 1Co 9:17; Eph 1:10; Eph 3:2; Col 1:25; 1Ti 1:4)
Fuente: Mr. D’s Notes on Selected New Testament Books by Stanley Derickson
1:25 {13} Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
(13) He brings another proof of his apostleship, that is, that God is the author of it, by whom also he was appointed especially as apostle for the Gentiles, to the end that by this means, that same might be fulfilled by him, which the Prophets foretold concerning the calling of the Gentiles.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Paul’s message 1:25-27
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
Paul’s role in the household of God (the meaning of "stewardship") was that of a servant who fully expounded God’s revelation for the benefit of his Gentile readers.
"He was a servant of the church, but in the deepest sense he was a steward of God." [Note: Vaughan, p. 191.]