RSV ~ Colossians 3 Notes
Col 3:1 | ISB Notes
right hand of God: Where Christ is enthroned in heaven and where believers are seated with him through the grace of Baptism (Eph 2:6). This must be the focus of our thoughts as we struggle to lift our minds above the concerns of the world (Rom 8:5-6) (CCC 664, 1003). See note on Eph 1:20.
Col 3:4 | ISB Notes
When Christ … appears: i.e., at his Second Coming. His return will initiate the general resurrection of the dead, when the bodies of the righteous will radiate the glory of the Lord. See note on 1 Cor 15:42-44.
Col 3:5-8 | ISB Notes
The catalogue of vices that Paul enumerates in 3:5 and 3:8 overlaps with other lists in Rom 1:29-31, Gal 5:1921, and Eph 4:31. He implies here what he insists elsewhere: no one who fails to repent of these sins has any inheritance in heaven (1 Cor 6:9-10; Eph 5:5) (CCC 1852-53).
Col 3:5 | ISB Notes
Put to death: Paul urges us to crucify the old man, Adam, who lives on in our fallen nature and inclines us toward evil, and to conform our lives to the new Adam, Jesus Christ, who draws us toward greater and greater sanctity (Rom 6:15-19; 8:29).
covetousness: Equated with idolatry here and in Eph 5:5. Perhaps the link was inspired by the teaching of Jesus in Mt 6:24.
• Covetousness is a kind of idolatry, not expressly, but by resemblance. It is idolatry when someone gives to an image the honor owed to God, but the person who covets gives to money the honor owed to God when he builds his entire life around it (St. Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Colossians 3, 1).
Col 3:6 | ISB Notes
wrath of God: The fixed response of God to sin. See note on Rom 1:18.
Col 3:10 | ISB Notes
put on the new: A challenge to live out our baptismal commitments. Paul compares this to the daily routine of changing our clothes. .
Col 3:11 | ISB Notes
Christ is all: Believers are drawn together into a worldwide family where the distinctions between language, nationality, and social standing are no longer relevant (Gal 3:28). In this list, barbarian is a resident of
the Roman world who speaks no Greek, and a Scythian belongs to the tribal people living north of the Black Sea.
Col 3:12 | ISB Notes
chosen … holy … beloved: Believers have a special relationship with Christ that entitles them to receive from the Father every grace and blessing that is needed to follow the gospel.
• The same descriptions are applied to the children of Israel in Deut 7:6-7. If Paul has this text in mind, he is driving home the point that Gentile believers are now part of the covenant people of God. Elsewhere he describes the Gentiles as wild branches grafted onto the olive tree of Israel (Rom 11:17-24).
Col 3:13 | ISB Notes
as the Lord has forgiven: We express gratitude to the Lord by imitating his mercy in our relationships with others. In fact, extending forgiveness to others is necessary if we hope to receive the ongoing forgiveness of the Father (Mt 6:14-15; 18:23-35).
Col 3:14 | ISB Notes
love: The crowning virtue of the Christian life and the one that holds all others together (CCC 1827). See note on 1 Cor 13:4-7.
Col 3:16 | ISB Notes
the word of Christ: The full scope o
f Jesus’ teaching and example passed down through tradition or inscribed in the canonical Gospels. It is meant to shape every area of our lives (Mt 11:28-30). psalms and hymns: Honoring the Lord in song is a tradition that reaches back to the worship of Israel. The early Church continued this by adopting the Psalter as her songbook and by singing new hymns to Jesus Christ as God. Musical praise is particularly appropriate for the eucharistic liturgy as well as for everyday circumstances (Eph 5:19) and even for times of distress (Acts 16:25). The Book of Revelation lets us listen to numerous songs from the heavenly liturgy of the angels and saints (Rev 4:8, 11; 5:9-10; 7:10-12; 11:17-18; etc.) (CCC 1156, 2641-42).
Col 3:18-4 | ISB Notes
Paul gives pastoral instruction on family life. He is challenging every household to be transformed with the “peace of Christ” (3:15). The apostle’s vision for domestic life stands in stark contrast to the godlessness of the pagan society, especially the tyranny of husbands and fathers, as well as the inhuman treatment of household slaves. See notes on Eph 5:22, 5:25, 6:4, 6:5, and 6:22.
Col 3:24 | ISB Notes
the inheritance: Heaven awaits the baptized, who, as heirs, already possess the Spirit as a pledge of their future heritage (1:5). The life of God that is now possessed in part we hope to possess in full (Eph 1:13-14).