Mark Meynell on Colossians and Philemon

Every month, The Good Book Company make available digital versions of one of their books at no charge. This month (September 2021) it’s Colossians & Philemon for You by Mark Meynell – which is excellent – and is available in exchange for an email address here.

Murray J. Harris Expanded Paraphrase of Colossians

Thanks to Andy Naselli for the link to an expanded paraphrase of Colossians (linked to here) by Murray J. Harris, from the latter’s Colossians & Philemon, Exegetical Guide to the Greek New Testament (Nashville: B&H Academic, 2013).

Nijay Gupta and Martin Salter on Colossians

Nijay Gupta, ‘New Commentaries on Colossians: Survey of Approaches, Analysis of Trends, and the State of Research’, Themelios 35.1 (2010), 7-14.

This is a very helpful short essay, not only highlighting six recent commentaries on Colossians, but looking briefly at how they handle the following interpretive cruxes in Colossians:

• Authorship
• The Colossian heresy or philosophy
• Paul and the sufferings of Christ (1:24)
• Stoicheia tou kosmou (2:8, 20)
• The fullness (pleroma) of God (1:19; 2:9)
• Shadow and body/substance (2:17)
• Worship of angels (2:18)
• The household codes (3:18-4:1)

This same issue of Themelios also contains a longer essay on Colossians 2:11-12:

Martin Salter, ‘Does Baptism Replace Circumcision? An Examination of the Relationship between Circumcision and Baptism in Colossians 2:11-12’, Themelios 35.1 (2010), 15-29.

His discussion takes in the situation at Colossae, Paul’s theology of circumcision and baptism, before providing a close exegesis of Colossians 2:11-12.

If you don’t want to know his answer to the question before reading the article, don’t scroll down…

































No. (At least, not on the basis of Colossians 2:11-12 alone.)

New Covenant Commentary Series

Last week I took delivery of the inaugural volumes in a new commentary series, written by the two editors of the series, Michael F. Bird and Craig S. Keener:

Michael F. Bird, Colossians and Philemon: A New Covenant Commentary, New Covenant Commentary Series (Eugene: Cascade, 2009), xiv + 177pp., ISBN 9781606081310.

Craig S. Keener, Romans: A New Covenant Commentary, New Covenant Commentary Series (Eugene: Cascade, 2009), xxv + 268pp., ISBN 9781606081563.

I have already started to read the one on Colossians and Philemon, and I’m very impressed with what I’ve found. The blurb on the back says that the commentary combines ‘exegetical insight, rhetorical analysis, theological exposition, and practical application all in one short volume’. My first thought was, ‘What? All that – in 177 pages?’ Actually, it might be right.

The series itself is designed ‘for ministers and students who require a commentary that interacts with the text and context of each New Testament book and pays specific attention to the impact of the text upon the faith and praxis of contemporary faith communities’.

It claims a number of distinguishing features:

• The contributors come from diverse backgrounds, denominationally and from around the world, with an international set of writers drawn from every continent (except Antarctica), supporting its intention ‘to engage in the task of biblical interpretation and theological reflection from the perspective of the global church’.

• The commentaries deal with larger units of the text rather than provide a verse-by-verse treatment, seeking to interpret the ‘story’ in the text.

• The series aims to reflect on how the New Testament ‘impacts the life, faith, ministry, and witness of the New Covenant Community today’, sometimes by offering comments in a ‘Fusing the Horizons’ section, providing windows into community formation (‘how the text shapes the mission and character of the believing community’) and ministerial formation (‘how the text shapes the ministry of Christian leaders’).

I look forward to seeing how the series develops.