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Q: In Col 1:14 (KJV, NKJV) should it say "redemption through His blood", or "redemption" as the NIV, NASB, uNASB, RSV, NRSV, and Wuest?
A: The vast majority of manuscripts just have redemption. This includes Byzantine, Alexandrian, Syriac, Chrysostom, Italic, and some Vulgate. The manuscripts that have "redemption through his blood" are few and not very early: Harclean Syriac (616 A.D.) and Armenian (fifth century). The Text of the New Testament p.193 "through his blood" was added in a few Greek manuscripts.
Williams Translation has "ransom from captivity" in place of redemption, but does not have "through his blood".
Q: In Col 1:15-18 and Heb 1:6, if Jesus is uncreated and not a creature, then how is Jesus "the firstborn of every creature"? (Jehovah’s witnesses bring this up)
A: The Greek word here, prototokos, means the pre-eminent one. We are brothers and sisters of Christ, but Christ is the pre-eminent firstborn.
In Bible times, firstborn did not only mean the first one born, but the inheritance and birthright of the firstborn. Jehovah’s Witnesses Answered Verse by Verse p.97-98 points out that as an example of "firstborn" not meaning the first one born, Psalm 89:27 says David will be appointed as his firstborn, even though David was the last-born of Jesse.
As When Critics Ask p.485 says, Christ is not the firstborn in creation, but the firstborn over creation. Christ is not the first one to be born on earth (Old Testament people preceded him) but Christ is the firstborn of the resurrection and as the heir of all.
This question was answered by Athanasius back around 330 A.D. He said that since Christ is both the Only-Begotten as well as firstborn, these refer to different senses of Christ. After differentiating between "created" and "born", Athanasius shows that Only-Begotten refers to Jesus being from the Father, while firstborn refers to both his preeminence over humanity and his preeminence among all who are born again. For the full text of Athanasius’ detailed argument, see Four Discourses Against the Arians Discourse II ch.21 section 57-60.
However, prior to Athanasius, Hippolytus of Rome (225-235/6 A.D.) answered this in his commentary on Luke 2:7. He says, "And if you please, we say that the Word was the first-born of God, who came down from heaven to the blessed Mary, and was made a first-born man in her womb, in order that the first-born of God might be manifested in union with a first-born man."
See The Complete Book of Bible Answers p.111-112, 1001 Bible Questions Answered p.25, and Hard Sayings of the Bible p.651-653 for more info.
Q: In Col 1:16, does anyone become an angel after he or she dies?
A: No. Those who go to Heaven will not be angels, but we will be judging angels according to 1 Corinthians 6:3. We will be co-seated with Christ on Christ’s throne in Ephesians 2:6.
Some might wish they had been born an angel instead of a human being. As an angel, they would have the joys of serving God and being in Heaven and not have to experience sinfulness, suffering, and death. However, unlike the angels, we are directly involved in the fight on earth through our words, lives, and prayers in preaching the Gospel. We can have children, and 1 Corinthians 6:2-3 shows that in Heaven believers will be higher than angels.
See The Complete Book of Bible Answers p.233 for more info.
Q: In Col 1:16, did God need angels to create the world?
A: No. The fact the He used them does not mean God needed them. See The Complete Book of Bible Answers p.237 for more info.
Q: In Col 1:16, are there different ranks among angels?
A: Apparently so, though the Bible does not detail all the ranks and responsibilities. We know of seraphs/seraphim in Isaiah 6:2,3, cherubim in Ezekiel 1:5-21; 10:1-22; and four living creatures in Revelation 4:6-9. These likely are all the same. We also know of the archangel Michael in Jude 9, Revelation 12:7; and Daniel 12:1. Gabriel served as a messenger in Daniel 9:21 and Luke 1:26. See The Complete Book of Bible Answers p.236-237 and Billy Graham’s book on Angels for more info.
Q: In Col 1:20, Eph 1:10, and 2 Cor 5:1, are the demons reconciled too?
A: No. In Philippians 2:10, God distinguishes between "in Heaven", "on earth", and "under the earth". Colossians does not mention reconciling those "under the earth." If demons are part of the realm designated "under the earth" they already made their choice, with full knowledge, when they fell. Hebrews 2:16 shows that Jesus atoned for humans and He did not atone for angels or fallen angels.
Q: In Col 1:20, Eph 1:10, and 2 Cor 5:19, since God reconciled all things in Heaven and on earth, will all people be saved, as the heresy of Universalism teaches?
A: No. God reconciled to all things to Himself, but all things have not reconciled themselves to God. All people are "savable" but not all combine what they hear with faith, as Hebrews 4:2 shows. Rom 4:2-5,16 and Eph 2:8-9 show that we are justified by faith.
1001 Bible Questions Answered p.82 points out that salvation is not merely forgiveness or even justification. Salvation is life, and John 5:39,40 shows the world will not come to Christ to have life.
Hell is eternal punishment in Matthew 25:41,46. The devil and others will be tormented forever in Revelation 20:10. Hell is everlasting destruction in 2 Thessalonians 1:9. See When Critics Ask p.485-486, When Cultists Ask p.243-244, p.251, and Hard Sayings of the Bible p.653-654 for more info and Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties p.406-409 for an extensive discussion of Colossians 1:20 and the heresy of universalism.
Q: In Col 1:21 (KJV), how are we "sometime" alienated?
A: In King James English, the word "sometime" implies "formerly" to stress the past tense.
Q: In Col 1:22, as part of the ransom, did Christ permanently give up having a physical body, as Jehovah’s Witnesses, Rev. Moon, and other heretics teach?
A: No. Reconciling us by the death of Christ’s physical body does not mean Christ did not get the body back again in His resurrection. If you believe Jesus, then you agree that Jesus’ body was raised because of the following verses.
1. In John 2:19-22, "Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple and I will raise it again in three days.’ … But the temple he had spoken of was his body."
2. In John 20:25-29, when Jesus told Thomas to place his finger and hands on him, either
2a) Jesus was "pulling a trick on Thomas", in other words, deceiving Thomas, or
2b) This really was Jesus’ physical body.
3. In Luke 24:37 Jesus said, "Look at my hands and feet. It is myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have."
The apostles taught us about what they experience firsthand, about what they saw and even touched themselves (1 John 1:1-4). If you are a part of a religion that denies what both Jesus and his apostles said on this, you need to decide whether to follow the god of your religion, or whether to follow the God of Jesus and the apostles. I hope you choose well.
Q: Does Col 1:23 teach that people who do not continue in the faith will lose their salvation?
A: Five points to consider in the answer.
God knows the elect: On earth, many can appear to Christians, but before Creation, God knew who would go to Heaven, and God will never be surprised. To say that God knew for certain that someone will be in Heaven, and then for them not to go to Heaven is a contradiction in terms.
Counterfeit Conversion: A person can fool others into thinking he or she is a Christian. Even worse, people can fool themselves, as Matthew 7:21-23 shows.
The need to examine ourselves: Assurance of salvation would be no good if counterfeit conversion were completely undetectable. But it is not undetectable. Paul admonishes us to examine ourselves, to see that we are in the faith in 2 Corinthians 13:5-6.
Apostasy: People sometimes do leave the Christian faith, - never to return. But 1 John 2:9 says that they went out from among us because they never were of us.
Beyond this, genuine Christians disagree on once-saved-always-saved. Either
a) those who do not continue in the faith lost it, or
b) those who do not continue never really had it.
See the discussion on Ephesians 1:14 and Hebrews 6:4-10 for more info.
Q: In Col 1:24, how could Paul try to "make up what is lacking in afflictions of Christ"?
A: Two words to remember: consistency and approximate language.
Consistency: The only way to misinterpret his words would be to ignore what he said in other places. Almost no one, then or now, could consider that Paul was not trying to take the place of the cross he preached. However, in Colossians 2, some Colossians were trying to make up what they perceived was lacking in Christ by the law, angel worship, and rituals. In Colossians 1, Paul made up what was lacking in their understanding of the sufficiency of Christ’s afflictions. Paul did this not only by his words in Colossians 1:15-23, but by his life and endurance in suffering, which both validated his words and demonstrated the sufficiency of Jesus.
Approximate language: Paul spoke precisely enough for all who wanted to understand him. Paul did not think taking Christ’s place when he tried to "save some" in 1 Corinthians 9:22, and Paul said Timothy could save his hearers in 1 Timothy 4:16, and James said we could save others in James 5:20.
See Hard Sayings of the Bible p.654-657 and When Critics Ask p.486-487 for more info.
Q: In Col 1:28, how come Paul teaches every man, and not the women?
A: Like the English and Hebrew words for "man" the Greek word for man, anthropos, can represent men and women. Galatians 3:28 specifically says that in Christ there is no male or female.
Q: In Col 2:2 (NIV,NRSV), should this be "and united in love" or "being knit together in love" (KJV, NASB, uNASB, Williams)?
A: Aland et al. does not indicate any manuscript variations on this phrase, so this is a translation issue, not a manuscript issue.
The Greek for this verse does not have "and" or "or". The verb indicates "being" or "having been".
Wuest translates this as "having been knit together in the sphere of love"
NKJV says "being knit together in love", as the KJV.
Jay P. Green’s Literal Translation says "being joined together in love"
NASB "by being united in love"
The Bible Knowledge Commentary : New Testament p.676 says "and united in love", as the NIV and NRSV.
Q: In Col 2:4, what does "deceive" mean here?
A: It means to miscalculate or reason beside the point. At the end of Colossians 2:4, Paul specifically says he does not mean the absence of any reasoning or arguments, but rather bad reasoning. There can be sins of the intellect as well as sins of the heart. Wuest translates this as "leading you astray by false reasoning".
Q: In Col 2:5 and 1 Cor 5:3, how was Paul with others in spirit, since Paul was not present everywhere?
A: Paul could know, because God could teach him through his spirit. Christians are united with a special bond of the Spirit according to Ephesians 4:3.
Q: In Col 2:6, what is the significance of the word tenses?
A: The first three main verbs, "rooted", "built up", and "strengthened", are all passive. In other words, these are things God does to us. The phrase "overflowing with thanksgiving" is active, and indicates our response to what God has done. Many people are motivated primarily by greed, lust, fear, or a desire to be thought a better person in the eyes of themselves and others. However, Christians should have a primary motivation of thanksgiving to God
Q: In Col 2:8, what is philosophy that depends on human tradition and the principles of this world evil?
A: First of all, what exactly is philosophy? Philosophies are people’s mental models of life, the cosmos, people, and/or ethics. However, a model is just a model, it is not life itself. In mathematical modeling, a good model for the static behavior of a chemical plant or other system is often not a good model for the dynamic behavior, and vice versa. Thus a model of life, if it was good enough to be useful for some purposes, does not guarantee all-encompassing usefulness for all purposes. When your philosophy takes the place of life, philosophy can become an idol, and a poor choice of one at that. Likewise, even a theology can become an idol, if it becomes more important than God’s word. We can and should help people in very primitive cultures be freed from mental bondage to cruel idols, but let’s make sure we do not have idols in our own minds, too.
However, many philosophers, even secular philosophers, do not worship their philosophy. Nevertheless, any philosophy of "this-world" that claims to figure out life without needing God, is evil. There are lies to yourself as well as lies to others. There are sins of the mind as well as sins of the tongue.
Tongue-in-cheek, philosophical reasoning can be quite attractive. As an example, take the philosopher, David Hume. He wrote, "If we take into our hands any volume; of divinity or school metaphysics, for instance; let us ask, Does it contain any abstract reasoning concerning quantity or number? No. Does it contain any experimental reasons concerning matter of fact and existence? No. Commit it then to the flames: for it contains nothing but sophistry and illusion." Few other atheistic philosophers have had the frankness and honesty to tell people their writings were worthless and should be burned. For, I reason, that since Hume’s works are not mathematical reasoning or experimental science (at least according to my own personal definitions), I can conclude that Hume is saying to burn his own works.
For another example, Immanuel Kant attempted to define good apart from God. Kant came up with good is that which is done out of a sense of duty. By that analogy, Nazi German soldiers who tortured and murdered Jews out of their sense of duty, and Communists who killed even women and children out of their sense of duty, were all doing good. If I somehow felt that it was my duty to try to destroy all of Kant’s works, then, I reason, Kant would agree that I would be doing a good thing.
Secular atheist philosophers and I actually can probably agree on one thing: perhaps I should keep my day job, for it is not very worthwhile for me to devote my life to philosophizing.
See When Critics Ask p.487-488 for a rather different answer.
Q: In Col 2:8-9, what is the contrast here?
A: Paul is contrasting the hollowness of human philosophy with the fullness of Christ.
Q: Does Col 2:10 show that God has a physical image like us?
A: No. Colossian 1:15,17 says image of the invisible God. However, God does have an actual physical image; because Jesus has a physical, glorified body today, as John 20:25-29; 2:19-22; and Luke 24:37 show.
Q: In Col 2:11-12, since baptism is a type of circumcision, should infants should be baptized?
A: Baptism is an outward sign of "circumcision by Christ", done when we were dead in our sins with a sinful nature. True Christians differ on infant baptism.
Pro infant baptism: As circumcision of Jewish male babies was a sign of their participation in the visible expression of God’s people on earth, baptism is similar. "Babies" implies their consent was not required, and "males" implies it was not for personal gain but for the corporate expression of faith. From the times of Ambrose (c.378 A.D.) and Augustine (c.400 A.D.) on, the church has continuously practiced infant baptism.
R.C. Sproul in Now That’s a Good Question p.341-342, in the context of someone who had infant baptism being baptized as an adult says, "I would say the repetition of the act [baptism] would be a thinly veiled insult of God’s integrity, though I fully recognize that not one person in a million who undergoes a second baptism intends it to be an insult."
Pro believer’s baptism: Colossians 2:12 and Romans 6:3-7 show that baptism is a visible expression of our identification with Christ’s burial and resurrection. While babies who die may still be saved by God’s grace, Baptism is a sign of our pledge toward God (1 Peter 3:21) and receiving the Holy Spirit. As Jewish males were circumcised right after they joined the Jewish nation (by natural birth), Christians should be baptized right after they join God’s people, the church, by second birth. Justin Martyr (wrote about 138-165 A.D. First Apology chapter 61) records that in the early church baptism was given to "those who are persuaded and believe" and after immediately after discussing babies says not that the babies are baptized, but that baptism is over "him who chooses to be born again, and has repented of his sins". Justin calls believers, "children of choice and knowledge."
Clementine Homily 17 ch.7 says, "He sent us to the ignorant Gentiles to baptize them for remission of sins, and commanded us to teach them first." (anonymous author 1-4th century)
For all: If the ultimate reason for baptism is to obey Jesus, genuine Christians should not divide from other Christians who are genuinely trying to obey Jesus.
For more on infant baptism, see the discussion on 1 Corinthians 1:16; 7:14 and Christian Theology by Millard Erickson (Baker 1985) p.1089-1105.
Q: In Col 2:13 and Eph 2:1,5, can people who are dead in sin have any more free agency than dead animals?
A: Apart from God’s grace, none seek God, according to Psalms 14:1-3; 53:1-3 and Romans 3:10-12. Yet many through God’s grace have sought God according to Psalms 9:10; 22:26; 24:6; 27:4,8; 40:16; 105:3,4; 119:2,30,45,94, 173. God not only works on people after they are born again, it is required that God work in people’s lives before they will come to Him to be born again, as John 6:44; 15:5 show.
The whole world is a "prisoner" of sin in Galatians 3:22. In addition to being spiritually dead, we are legally dead with a judgment of eternal death. Charles Spurgeon gave this analogy with convicted criminals in the pamphlet Free Will - a Slave (p.3), "Though perhaps a month may intervene before he is brought on the scaffold to endure the sentence of the law, yet the law looks upon him as a dead man."
Q: In Col 2:18, what does this mean about not worshipping angels?
A: Placed in the hearts of many people throughout the ages is the knowledge that they should worship someone or something. At Colossae, some there worshipped angels. Since angels are acknowledged as God’s creations, they were probably trying to worship the angels as well as God. While they undoubtedly had their reasons (it was not devotion or worship, only veneration, etc.), Paul simply said the whole thing was wrong. See Hard Sayings of the Bible p.656-658 for more info.
Q: In Col 2:20; 3:3, how are Christians dead in Christ?
A: We are to be dead as far as living for ourselves is concerned. As Christ literally died in this world, baptism represents our death to living for ourselves, with our own way, wisdom, ambitions, and desires.
Q: Does Col 3:16 indicate that we are not to use musical instruments?
A: Actually it indicates the opposite. People in the Church of Christ point out that the words in this verse refer to singing, and singing does not require musical accompaniment.
Church of Christ people often feel that if an example of something is not found in the New Testament, then it should not be done. However, if there is no example of people washing their hands before eating, and Jesus did not wash his hands before eating in Luke 11:38-41.
However, Colossians 3:16 mentions using Psalms. The instructions in many Psalms included using musical instruments. Some of these are Psalm 4, 5, 6, 54, 55, 61, 67, and 76. Others might be also, but we are unsure about the musical terms. Colossians 3:16 says to use Psalms when you sing. Try using this Psalm: "…I will sing and make music with all my soul. Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn." (Psalm 108:1-2 NIV) I suppose Church of Christ people should not listen to what they are singing though. ;-)
Psalms mentioning harps are Psalm 33:2; 43:4; 49:4; 57:8; 71:22; 81:2; 92:3; 98:5; 108:12; 147:7; 149:3; 150:3.
Here is some other evidence that musical instruments are OK.
Habakkuk 3 was a song to be sung and played on a stringed instrument, according to Habakkuk 3:19.
God’s prophets in the Old Testament prophesied with lyres, tambourines,, flutes, and harps in 1 Samuel 10:5.
Miriam the prophetess praised God with a tambourine in Exodus 15:20.
David played a lyre and worshipped God according to 1 Samuel 18:10, as well as Psalm 4 -6.
Under David, many sounded trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments in 1 Chronicles 16:5,6,42.
In Solomon’s Temple, some used harps in thanking and praising the Lord in 1 Chronicles 24:3.
In Nehemiah’s temple, they dedicated it with cymbals, harps, and lyres in Nehemiah 12:27.
In Revelation 14:2; 15:2, 5:8, God’s worshipers used harps.
Summary: What David and other prophets did to please God in Old Testament times, what the four living creatures and God’s people will do in heavenly worship, is not displeasing to God now. God Himself gives His people harps to praise Him in Revelation 15:2. If you are a genuine believer, get used to it.
However, see also the next question for two answers people who belong to Church of Christ might give.
Q: In Col 3:16, given the evidence for the use of instruments in the previous question, how would someone in the Church of Christ respond?
A: There are two possible comebacks.
Church service only: Many (probably almost all) in the Church of Christ are not against musical instruments in all circumstances, nor are they against musical instruments to worship God. They are only against musical instruments in the church building and/or church service. I heard of one church of Christ minister who once debated another Christian on the use of mechanical instruments for music, and later was seen enjoying listening to a Christian radio station in his car. He was not being hypocritical, as it apparently only in the church service that he was against musical instruments.
However, there is no scripture that differentiates between a church service and a worship service. In fact, there is no scripture that says in any kind of worship service singing is OK but musical instruments are not.
New Testament Times: Some might say that musical instruments were only OK in the Old Testament, as the New Testament gives no examples of worship with musical instruments on earth.
However, the New Testament does not say this was abolished, and indeed it is not abolished, if people will still be using harps in Heaven in the future.
All can agree on three points.
1. Praising God and singing without musical instruments is OK.
2. While seven angels had trumpets in Revelation, the trumpets were not for making music.
3. If a person’s focus in a church service is something besides God, such as hearing either instrumental music or singing, then they need to change their focus to be on God.
Q: In Col 3:16, what do you think of the Church of Christ; how Biblical are they?
A: The Churches of Christ are very heterogeneous. I have served in inter-denominational Christian Student Fellowships on Campus with wonderful Church of Christ brothers and sisters. Unfortunately they deviate from Bible teaching on some things; musical instruments, water baptism, etc. We could agree that He Who united us was greater than what divided us. However, none of these differences are the primary issue here. The primary issue here is with a second group of people, who are also called Church of Christ.
The first group says (for the most part) you should not have mechanical musical instruments in church. The second group also says that mechanical musical instruments in church are a sign of the antichrist and send people to Hell. The first group believes that God does regenerative work during water baptism. The second group also believes that everyone who differs with them on their interpretation goes to Hell.
The first group is very "Arminian" in the outlook, and does not believe in assurance of salvation. The second group I have personally heard speak highly of Pelagius, and they deny that people were born sinful. Predestination appears to be a dirty word to them.
People in the first group are Christian brothers and sisters who have some errors. People in the second group appear very close to substituting their doctrinal interpretations for Christ’s saving blood.
Besides these two broad categories of Church of Christ, there is a third group, called both Boston Church of Christ (= Church of Christ International). These people think all the rest of the Church of Christ (as well as all other denominations) are wrong and are false groups that do not glorify God. Unlike the first two groups, the Boston Church of Christ also has cultish practices, such as believers having to confess every sin to elders, who enter these into a database and can hold these over the members’ heads if they try to leave.
Q: In Col 3:20; Mt 10:37, should kids obey parents?
A: Children are to honor their parents (Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16), obey their parents (Colossians 3:20), in the Lord (Ephesians 6:1), but they are not to love their parents or anyone else more than they love God. (Matthew 10:37). See When Critics Ask p.488 for more info.
Q: In Col 3:22, why should slaves obey masters?
A: The New Testament did not recommend slavery, but it did not condemn it either. Even when the environment was not good, such as when a Christian had an unjust master with unjust suffering in 1 Peter 2:18-19, Christians were still to endure under these bad conditions. It would usually go better for the Christians in this life, and it would be a witness to others of Christ living in them.
Q: In Col 4:7, was Colossians written at the same time as Eph, 2 Tim, and Tt?
A: The skeptical Asimov’s Guide to the Bible (p.1131) mentions the link with Colossians and Ephesians, and this could be true. Both Ephesians 6:21 and Colossians 4:7 says that Tychicus will tell them in person. In 2 Timothy 4:12, Paul says he sent Tychicus to Ephesus. In Titus 3:12, Paul says he will send Artemas or Tychicus to Titus.
However, in Titus 3:12, Paul was free, and the other references were when Paul was in prison, so there were at least two trips. Since there were at least two trips, there could have been three or more. Whichever way it was though, does not affect Christian doctrine or the scriptural authority (called canonicity) of the letters.
Q: In Col 4:13-14, is the letter from Laodicea a lost book of the Bible?
A: No, for two reasons.
First, it would necessarily not be a part of the Bible, because even if there was really a lost book, God is not "forced" to preserve any books He did not want to preserve. As a side note, there was a forged letter to the Laodiceans, but it was written in the fourth century and recognized as a forgery at that time.
Second, there was no lost book. Colossians does not say Paul wrote the letter to the Laodiceans, but rather one of Paul’s letters that was circulated and was arriving from Laodicea. Ephesus was about 100 miles (160 km) from the city of Colossae, and Laodicea was between the two, 12 miles (19 km) outside of Colossae. See the discussion on Ephesians 1:1 and When Critics Ask p.489 for more info.
Q: In Col, why should this book be in the Bible?
A: There are at least three reasons.
1. Paul wrote it, and He was an apostle. Peter attested that Paul’s words were scripture in 2 Peter 3:15-16.
2. Paul himself said he was apostle in 1 Timothy 1:1; 2:7, Romans 1:1; 1 Corinthians 1:1; 9:1, 2 Corinthians 1:1, 11:5; Galatians 1:1, Ephesians 1:1; Colossians 1:1; 1 Timothy 1:1; 2 Timothy 1:1; Titus 1:1.
3. Evidence of the early church. See the next question for a few of the writers who referred to verses in Colossians.
Q: In Col, how do we know that what we have today is a reliable preservation of what was originally written?
A: There are at least three good reasons.
1. God promised to preserve His word in Isaiah 55:10-11; Isaiah 59:21; Isaiah 40:6-8; 1 Peter 1:24-25; Matthew 24:35.
2. Early Church evidence: Here are a few of the writers who referred to verses in Colossians.
Ignatius 110-117 A.D.
The Muratorian Canon (c.170 A.D.) mentions Paul’s Letter to the Colossians, as well as Paul’s other 12 letters.
Irenaeus 182-188 A.D.
Tertullian 200-240 A.D.
Hippolytus 222-235/6 A.D.
Novatian 250-280 A.D.
Cyprian was a bishop of Carthage from 248 to his martyrdom in 258 A.D.. He quotes from "to the Colossians" in Treatise 12 The Third Book 11.
Chrysostom 396 A.D. wrote down 12 sermons on Colossians, which we still have today. He said it was by Paul
others
3. Earliest manuscripts we have of Colossians show there are small manuscript variations, but zero theologically significant errors.
p46 Chester Beatty II 100-150 A.D. has 79 verses of Colossians. Specifically it has Col 1:1-2,5-13,16-24; 1:27-2:19; 2:23-3:11; 3:13-24; 4:3-12,16-18 and other parts of Paul’s letters and Hebrews. The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts has a photograph of part of p46 on p.192. It also says on p.197-198 that the quality and the stichiometric marks show that a professional scribe wrote this.
First half of 3rd century - 1936 - Frederic G. Kenyon according to The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts.
2nd century, 200 A.D. - 1935 - Ulrich Wilken according to The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts.
200 A.D. - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament.
81-96 A.D. - 1988 - Young Kyu Kim according to The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts.
About 200 A.D. - 1975 - Aland et al. Third edition.
About 200 A.D. - 1998 - Aland et al. Fourth revised edition.
Early to middle 2nd century - 1999 - The Complete Text of the Earliest New Testament Manuscripts. This is based in part on the handwriting being very similar to Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 8 (late first or early second century) and Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 2337 (late first century).
p61 Romans 16:23,25-27; 1 Corinthians 1:1-2, 2-6; 5:1-3, 5-6, 9-13; Philippians 3:5-9, 12-16, Colossians 1:3-7, 9-13, 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3; Titus 3:1-5, 8-11, 14-15 Philemon 4-7. c.700 A.D.
c.700 A.D. - 1968 - The Text of the New Testament.
About 700 A.D. - 1975 - Aland et al. Third edition.
About 700 A.D. - 1998 - Aland et al. Fourth revised edition.
Vaticanus 325-350 A.D.
Sinaiticus 340-350 A.D.
Bohairic Coptic 3rd/4th century
Sahidic Coptic 3rd/4rth century
Gothic 493-555 A.D.
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