Colossians 4:16 Ulasan

I. He continues his account of the duty of masters, from the close of the former chapter (Col 4:1). II. He exhorts to the duty of prayer (Col 4:2-4), and to a prudent and decent conduct towards those with whom we converse (Col 4:5, Col 4:6). III. He closes the epistle with the mention of several of his friends, of whom he gives an honourable testimony (Col 4:7-18).

INTRODUCTION TO COLOSSIANS 4 This chapter begins with an exhortation to masters to behave towards their servants in a just and equitable manner, from the consideration of their having a master in heaven, which should have concluded the preceding one; and in it the apostle gives some general exhortations, and some particular instructions about reading this, and another epistle, and stirring up their minister to his duty; and great part of it is taken up in expressing his love to the Colossians, and in the salutations of others, and of himself. The general exhortations are to prayer, with watchfulness and thankfulness, not only for themselves, but especially for the ministers of the Gospel, Col 4:2 and next to a wise behaviour towards them that were of the world, Col 4:5 and also to a prudent conversation, particularly in language, with everyone, Col 4:6. And then the apostle proceeds to declare his great affection for them, and care of them, which he showed by sending two proper persons to them from him, partly to make known his affairs to them, and partly to know the state and condition they were in, and comfort them, Col 4:7 and next follow the salutations of various persons to them, who are mentioned by name, and whose characters are given, Col 4:10. And then he orders them to read this epistle in the church of Laodicea, and also that which came from that place, Col 4:16 and to admonish Archippus to take heed to, and fulfil his ministry, since it was what he had received in the Lord, Col 4:17. And then closes the epistle with his own salutation and benediction, entreating a remembrance of him and his bonds, Col 4:18.

And when this epistle is read amongst you, Which the apostle was now writing, and sent unto them; and which was to be read publicly, before the whole church; being sent not to any particular person, or persons, but to the whole body, and for their general good and instruction: cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; his will was, that after it had been read to the church at Colosse, it should be sent, or at least a copy of it, to the church of the Laodiceans, in order to be read there: his reason might be, not only because this church was near them, but because it was in much the same situation, being infested with the same sort of false teachers; and therefore what was said to the one, was pertinent to the other: and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea; which was not an epistle of the apostle to the Laodiceans, as some have thought, but one that was "written from" thence, as the Syriac version renders it. Marcion, the heretic, called the epistle to the Ephesians, the epistle to the Laodiceans, but without any reason; and others have forged an epistle which bears this name, and appears to be a collection out of others, and chiefly from the epistle to the Philippians; and which being short, and may gratify the curious who cannot otherwise come at it, I shall transcribe it, and is as follows (r). "Paul an Apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ; to the brethren which are of Laodicea, grace be unto you, and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to Christ in every prayer of mine, that ye continue and persevere in good works, expecting the promise in the day of judgment: neither let the vain speeches of some that pretend to truth disturb you, so as to turn you from the truth of the Gospel which is preached by me; and now the Lord cause that those who belong to me may be serviceable for the furtherance of the truth of the Gospel, and doing kind actions, which are of salvation unto eternal life: and now my bonds are manifest which I suffer in Christ, in which I am glad and rejoice; and this is to my perpetual salvation which is done by your prayers, the Holy Ghost supplying, whether by life or by death; for me to live is life in Christ, and to die is joy; and he will do his own mercy in you, that ye may have the same love, and be unanimous: therefore, most beloved, as ye have heard of the presence of the Lord, so think ye, and do in fear, and you shall have life for ever; for it is God that worketh in you; and whatsoever ye do, do without sin; and what is best, most beloved, rejoice in the Lord Jesus Christ, and take heed of all filth in all gain; let your petitions be openly with God, be ye steadfast in the sense of Christ: and whatsoever things are sound and true, and chaste and just, and lovely, do; and what ye have heard and received retain in the heart, and peace shall be with you. Salute all the brethren with an holy kiss; all the saints salute you; the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen. Cause this to be read to the Colossians, and that which is of the Colossians to you.'' Every one on reading it will easily see that it is a spurious piece, a collection out of other epistles, and very ill put together: however, the apostle here does not speak of any epistle written to the church of Laodicea, but of one that was written from thence; which some think was written by himself, and that he means his first epistle to Timothy, which is said to be written from Laodicea; and the rather, because in that the qualifications of the ministers of the Gospel are given; and also suitable instructions for the discharge of their work, and so very proper to be read in the presence of Archippus; who, from the following verse, seems to have been remiss and negligent, and needed stirring up to the performance of his office: but from Col 2:1 it appears, that the apostle had not been at Laodices when he wrote this, and had not so much as seen any of the faces of the brethren there in the flesh; it therefore seems rather to be an epistle which was sent from Laodicea to him, or to the Colossians; which having something in it very instructive and useful, the apostle desires it might be publicly read. (r) Jachasin, fol. 87. 2. & 117. 1.

"And when this Epistle hath been read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans." I suppose there are some of the things therein written, which it was needful that those also should hear. And they would have the greater advantage of recognizing their own errors in the charges brought against others. "And that ye also read the Epistle from Laodicea." Some say that this is not Paul's to them, but theirs to Paul, for he said not that to the Laodiceans, but that written "from Laodicea."

Of Crete, Titus. Of Athens, Dionysius. Of Tripoli in Phoenicia, Marathones. Of Laodicea in Phrygia, Archippus.

It seems to me that something was written here that the Laodiceans also needed to hear; and they, in turn, needed to learn what was written in that epistle. There is much more benefit when, from a rebuke directed against others, they learn of their own shortcomings. What then was this epistle from Laodicea? The First Epistle to Timothy: it was written from Laodicea. Some, however, say that it was an epistle that the Laodiceans were sending to Paul. But I do not know what they could have borrowed from it for their own correction.

We can see from what he says, see that you read also the letter from Laodicea, that Paul wrote other letters: the one to the Laodiceans mentioned here, and another to the Corinthians, besides the first and second, because in 1 Corinthians (5:9) he says: "I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with immoral men." There are two reasons why they are not in the canon: either there was some doubt about their authority, because they were possibly distorted, and had been destroyed in the churches, or because they contained nothing different from the others.

The duty of masters to their servants, Col 4:1. Continuance in prayer recommended, to which watchfulness and thanksgiving should be joined, Col 4:2. And to pray particularly for the success of the Gospel, Col 4:3, Col 4:4. Directions concerning walking wisely, redeeming of time, and godly conversation, Col 4:5, Col 4:6. He refers them to Tychicus and Onesimus, whom he sends to them for particulars relative to his present circumstances, Col 4:7-9. Mentions the salutations of several then at Rome, of whom he gives some interesting particulars, Col 4:10-14. Sends his own salutations to the brethren in Laodicea, and to Nymphas and the Church at his house, Col 4:15. Directs this epistle to be read in the Church of the Laodiceans, and that to them to be read at Colosse, Col 4:16. Directions to Archippus relative to his ministry, Col 4:17. Concludes with salutations to the people at Colosse, to whom he sends his apostolical benediction, Col 4:18.

Cause that it be read also in the Church of the Laodiceans - That is: Let a copy be taken, and sent to them, that it may be read there also. This appears to have been a regular custom in the apostolic Church. That ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea - Some suppose that this was an epistle sent from Laodicea to the apostle, which he now sent by Aristarchus to the Colossians, that they might peruse it; that thereby they might see the propriety of sending a copy of his epistle to them, to the Laodicean Church. Many eminent critics are of this opinion, which appears to me to be both forced and far fetched. Others think that the Epistle to the Ephesians is the epistle in question, and that it was originally directed to them, and not to the Ephesians. See the notes on Eph 1:1, etc. But others, equally learned, think that there was an epistle, different from that to the Ephesians, sent by St. Paul to the Laodiceans, which is now lost. There was an epistle under this direction in the times of Theodoret and Jerome, for both of them mention it; but the latter mentions it as apocryphal, Legunt quidam et ad Laodicenses Epistolam, sed ab omnibus exploditur; "Some read an Epistle to the Laodiceans, but it is exploded by all." The seventh Ecumenic council, held in 787, states that the ancients allowed that there was an epistle with this direction, but that all the orthodox rejected it as supposititious. An epistle ad Laodicenses is still extant in the Latin language, a very ancient copy of which is in the library Sancti Albani Andegavensis, St. Alban's of Anjou. Hutter has translated it into Greek, but his translation is of no authority. Calmet has published this epistle, with various readings from the above MS. I shall subjoin it at the end of this epistle, and give my opinion relative to its use and authenticity. A copy of this epistle stands in this place as a portion of Divine revelation in one of my own MSS. of the Vulgate.

EXHORTATIONS CONTINUED. TO PRAYER: WISDOM IN RELATION TO THE UNCONVERTED: AS TO THE BEARERS OF THE EPISTLE, TYCHICUS AND ONESIMUS: CLOSING SALUTATIONS. (Col. 4:1-18) give--Greek "render": literally, "afford." equal--that is, as the slaves owe their duties to you, so you equally owe to them your duties as masters. Compare "ye masters do the same things" (see on Eph 6:9). ALFORD translates, "fairness," "equity," which gives a large and liberal interpretation of justice in common matters (Plm 1:16). knowing-- (Col 3:24). ye also--as well as they.

the epistle from Laodicea--namely, the Epistle which I wrote to the Laodiceans, and which you will get from them on applying to them. Not the Epistle to the Ephesians. See Introduction to Ephesians and Introduction to Colossians. The Epistles from the apostles were publicly read in the church assemblies. IGNATIUS [Epistle to the Ephesians, 12], POLYCARP [Epistle to the Philippians, 3.11,12], CLEMENT [Epistle to the Corinthians, 1. 47], Th1 5:27; Rev 1:3, "Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear." Thus, they and the Gospels were put on a level with the Old Testament, which was similarly read (Deu 31:11). The Holy Spirit inspired Paul to write, besides those extant, other Epistles which He saw necessary for that day, and for particular churches; and which were not so for the Church of all ages and places. It is possible that as the Epistle to the Colossians was to be read for the edification of other churches besides that of Colosse; so the Epistle to the Ephesians was to be read in various churches besides Ephesus, and that Laodicea was the last of such churches before Colosse, whence he might designate the Epistle to the Ephesians here as "the Epistle from Laodicea." But it is equally possible that the Epistle meant was one to the Laodiceans themselves.