Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Colossians
Chapter 2: Complete in Him
Colossians 2 is the doctrinal heart of the letter, and one of the greatest declarations of the deity of Christ in all Scripture. Paul labors that believers would grasp 'the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.' He warns them not to be spoiled 'through philosophy and vain deceit... and not after Christ,' and then gives the reason no one can improve on Christ: 'For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him.' All of God dwells in Jesus; nothing can be added. Believers are 'circumcised with the circumcision made without hands... by the circumcision of Christ,' 'buried with him in baptism,' and 'risen with him,' their sins forgiven, the law's condemnation 'nailing it to his cross,' and the powers of darkness disarmed and openly triumphed over. So Paul frees them from every legalism, festival, food law, angel worship, and man-made asceticism: these are 'a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.' This chapter shows us that Christ is God in fullness, and that in Him we lack nothing.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Colossians chapter 2. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Greek words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Paul declares that all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ bodily, that believers are complete in Him and risen with Him in baptism, and that no legalism or human tradition can add anything to Christ. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
Treasures of Wisdom
All wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ.
The Godhead Bodily
All the fullness of God dwells in Jesus.
Buried and Risen with Him
Dead sins forgiven, the law nailed to His cross.
The Body Is of Christ
No shadow can add to the substance, which is Christ.
In Him Dwelleth All the Fulness of the Godhead (Colossians 2:1-15)
All of God dwells in Christ bodily, so that believers are complete in Him, buried and risen with Him in baptism, and their sins forgiven at His cross.
For in Him Dwelleth All the Fulness of the Godhead Bodily
"For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have for you, and for them at Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh; That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love, and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the acknowledgement of the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words. For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ. As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it."
Word Study
"Godhead," Greek theotes (θεότης). The word means deity, divinity, the state of being God, the very essence and nature of God Himself. It is the strongest word available; it does not mean godlike qualities or a divine influence, but Godhood itself, the whole of what makes God God. "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." Every word bears down on the same truth. Not some of the Godhead but "all"; not a portion or emanation but "the fulness," the complete totality of deity; and this fullness "dwelleth" in Him, a settled, permanent indwelling, not a temporary visitation; and it dwells in Him "bodily," in a real human body, the flesh of Jesus of Nazareth. This is the mystery of the incarnation stated with breathtaking plainness: the entire being of God, all that God is, is present in the man Christ Jesus. There is not a portion of God somewhere else, a second or third divine person standing apart from Jesus; all the fullness dwells in Him. This is why Jesus could say, "he that hath seen me hath seen the Father" (John 14:9), and why in Him we are "complete": to have Christ is to have all of God, for in His body dwells the whole Godhead.
Explanation
Paul labors "in great conflict" for churches he has never met, that they might know "all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" are "hid in Christ" — a warning against teachers who promise deeper secrets elsewhere. In Him "dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily," and "ye are complete in him." Believers were "buried with him in baptism" and raised through faith, forgiven all trespasses. And the law's condemnation is dramatically cancelled: God, "blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us... nailed it to his cross," and "spoiled principalities and powers," triumphing over them. The believer needs no supplement to a Christ this complete.
Gospel Focus
Paul opens his heart: he agonizes in prayer for these believers he has never met face to face, that their hearts would be "knit together in love" and brought to "the full assurance of understanding," to know "the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ." Notice how Paul speaks of the one God, revealed as the Father and in Christ, "in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge." Every treasure of truth is found in Christ, so there is no need to look beyond Him. That is Paul's whole point against the false teachers, and he says it plainly: "beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit... and not after Christ." Then he gives the reason no teaching can ever improve on Jesus: "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." Here is the towering center of the chapter. All of God, the entire fullness of deity, dwells in Jesus in a real body. Jesus is not a lesser being sent from God, not one divine person among several; He is God in fullness, God manifest in flesh. And the conclusion follows at once: "and ye are complete in him." If all of God is in Christ, and we are in Christ, then we lack nothing; no ritual, no angel, no philosophy can add a thing. He "is the head of all principality and power", higher than every spiritual authority. Then Paul shows how we came to be in Him. We are "circumcised with the circumcision made without hands... by the circumcision of Christ", an inward cutting away of "the body of the sins of the flesh." This happens in baptism: "buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead." Baptism is a burial and a resurrection: we go down into the water as into a grave with Christ, and rise up in newness of life, all by faith in God's mighty working. And what God has done is total: those "dead in your sins" He "hath quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses." The record of debt that stood against us, "the handwriting of ordinances," He cancelled, taking "it out of the way, nailing it to his cross." At Calvary the charge sheet of our guilt was nailed up and blotted out. And there too He "spoiled principalities and powers," disarming the forces of darkness and "triumphing over them in it," leading them as defeated captives in His victory parade. So in the fullness of God dwelling in Christ, and in His cross, we have complete forgiveness, complete victory, and complete sufficiency. We are complete in Him.
The Body Is of Christ (Colossians 2:16-23)
Because Christ is the substance, no festival, food law, angel worship, or man-made asceticism can add to those who hold fast to the Head.
Which Are a Shadow of Things to Come
"Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ. Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind, And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God. Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances, (Touch not; taste not; handle not; Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men? Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh."
Word Study
"shadow," Greek skia (σκιά). The word means a shadow, the dark outline cast by an object standing in the light; by extension, a foreshadowing, a mere sketch or silhouette as opposed to the real thing. "Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ." Paul is not despising the old covenant feasts, new moons, and sabbaths; he is putting them in their place. They were the skia, the shadow cast ahead of time by a reality that was coming; and the reality, the "body" that casts the shadow, "is of Christ." A shadow is real and useful, it tells you something is there, but it is not the substance, and no one clings to a shadow once the substance has arrived. When the sun rises behind a man, his shadow falls in front of him; you can trace his shape in it, but you would not embrace the shadow while the man himself stands before you. So it is with the ceremonies: they truly pointed to Christ, but now that He has come, to go back to the shadow, to bind consciences with food laws and holy days and festivals, is to prefer the outline to the reality. The believer holds the substance, Christ Himself, and is therefore free.
Explanation
Because believers are complete in Christ, Paul frees them from legalism: "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday... which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ." Rules about food and festivals were shadows cast by a substance now arrived. He warns too against a false humility and "will worship" — self-made, ascetic religion that touches not, tastes not, handles not — which "hath indeed a shew of wisdom" but is "of no value against the indulgence of the flesh." Man-made severity impresses the eye while doing nothing for the heart. Christ, not rule-keeping, is the reality.
Gospel Focus
Having shown that all fullness is in Christ and believers are complete in Him, Paul now defends that completeness against every attempt to bind it with rules. "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days." The false teachers were pressing the Colossians to observe the old ceremonial calendar and dietary laws as though these were still binding, and to submit to their judgment. Paul's answer is the shadow and the substance: these observances "are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ." They pointed forward to Christ, and now that He has come, the shadow has served its purpose. To go back to it is to turn from the reality to the outline. He warns of another danger too: "let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels." Some, with a false modesty, claimed special visions and insisted that worship must go through angelic mediators, "intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind." The fatal flaw of all such teaching is named exactly: "not holding the Head." Whatever seems humble or spiritual, if it draws the soul away from direct union with Christ, it has let go of the Head, from whom alone the whole body receives nourishment and grows "with the increase of God." Then Paul exposes the emptiness of man-made asceticism. Believers have "died with Christ from the rudiments of the world," so why submit again to rules like "touch not; taste not; handle not", regulations "after the commandments and doctrines of men," about things that simply "perish with the using"? Such rules "have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body," they look spiritual and self-denying, but they have no real power over sin, "not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh." Rule-keeping and self-punishment cannot change the heart; only Christ can. So the whole chapter drives to one conclusion: hold the Head. Christ is the fullness of God, the substance of every shadow, the sole source of the body's life. Cling to Him, and add nothing to Him, for in Him you are already complete.
Chapter 2 in Review
Colossians 2 is the doctrinal summit of the letter. Paul agonizes that believers would know "the mystery of God, and of the Father, and of Christ; in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge," and warns them not to be spoiled "through philosophy and vain deceit... and not after Christ." Then comes the crown: "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him." Believers are "buried with him in baptism," and "risen with him," forgiven "all trespasses," the law's condemnation "nailing it to his cross," and the powers of darkness disarmed and openly triumphed over. So no one may judge them by food laws, festivals, or sabbaths, "which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ," nor beguile them by angel worship or man-made asceticism, for the fatal error is "not holding the Head." In Christ, believers are complete.
For the Apostolic reader this chapter is one of the clearest windows in Scripture onto the mystery of God in flesh. "All the fulness of the Godhead" dwells in Jesus, "bodily", not part of God, not a second divine person alongside Him, but the entire being of God present in the man Christ Jesus. This is why He alone is enough: to have Christ is to have all of God, so we are "complete in him" and need no addition. It shows us, too, the meaning of baptism, a burial and resurrection with Christ by faith in God's working, and the finished triumph of the cross, where our debt was blotted out and the powers of darkness were defeated. And it frees the conscience from every legalism: shadows cannot bind those who hold the substance. So we hold the Head, rest in the fullness of God revealed in Jesus, walk in the completeness we already have in Him, and refuse to add anything to the all-sufficient Christ.
- All "the treasures of wisdom and knowledge" are hidden in Christ (2:3).
- "In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him" (2:9-10).
- Baptism is being "buried with him" and "risen with him" by faith in God's working (2:12).
- The record of our guilt was blotted out, "nailing it to his cross" (2:14).
- Festivals and food laws "are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ" (2:16-17).
- The fatal error of false teaching is "not holding the Head" (2:19).
Questions for Reflection
- Do you see that all the fullness of God dwells in Jesus, and nothing can be added to Him?
- If you are "complete in him," what are you still tempted to add to Christ for acceptance?
- Have you been "buried with him in baptism" and "risen with him" by faith?
- Are you holding fast to the Head, or has some teaching drawn you away from direct union with Christ?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. The mystery of God and the treasures of wisdom in Christ: Colossians 2:1-7; Colossians 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 1:24. All the fullness of the Godhead in Christ; complete in Him: Colossians 2:8-10; Colossians 1:19; John 14:9; 1 Timothy 3:16. Buried and risen in baptism; the cross and forgiveness: Colossians 2:11-15; Romans 6:3-4; Acts 2:38; Ephesians 2:1-5. Shadow and substance; freedom from legalism and asceticism: Colossians 2:16-23; Hebrews 10:1; Galatians 4:9-11; Romans 14:5-6. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- The mystery of God and the treasures of wisdom in Christ: Colossians 2:1-7; Colossians 1:26-27.
- All the fullness of the Godhead bodily; complete in Him: Colossians 2:8-10; John 14:9; 1 Timothy 3:16.
- Buried and risen with Him in baptism; the cross: Colossians 2:11-15; Romans 6:3-4; Acts 2:38.
- Shadow and substance; freedom from legalism: Colossians 2:16-23; Hebrews 10:1; Galatians 4:9-11.