openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.’ The fine counsel in Philippians encourages all who hope for eternal life in connection with God’s Kingdom to pursue that goal. The letter to the Philippians, however, is addressed primarily to those whose “citizenship exists in the heavens” and who eagerly await being “conformed to [Christ’s] glorious body.” “Forgetting the things behind and stretching forward to the things ahead,” let all of these imitate the apostle Paul in “pursuing down toward the goal for the prize of the upward call,” their glorious inheritance in the Kingdom of the heavens!​—4:8; 2:10, 11; 3:13, 14, 20, 21.

Bible Book Number 51​—Colossians

Writer: Paul

Place Written: Rome

Writing Completed: c. 60–61 C.E.

1. Where was the town of Colossae located?

LEAVING Ephesus behind them, two men traveled east through Asia Minor along the Maeander (Menderes) River. On reaching the tributary called Lycus, in the country of Phrygia, they swung southeast to follow the river up through the mountain-enclosed valley. Before them was a beautiful sight: fertile green pastures with large flocks of sheep. (Wool products were a principal source of income for the region.a) Proceeding up the valley, the travelers passed, on the right, the wealthy city of Laodicea, center of Roman administration for the district. To their left, across the river, they could see Hierapolis, famous for its temples and hot springs. There were Christian congregations in both these cities and also in the small town of Colossae, about ten miles [16 km] farther up the valley.

2. (a) Who were the two envoys sent by Paul to Colossae? (b) What is known concerning the Colossian congregation?

² Colossae was the destination of the travelers. They were both Christians. One of them, at least, knew the region well, as he was from Colossae. His name was Onesimus, and he was a slave returning to his master, who was a member of the congregation there. Onesimus’ companion was Tychicus, a freeman, and both were envoys from the apostle Paul, carrying a letter from him addressed to the “faithful brothers in union with Christ at Colossae.” As far as we know, Paul never visited Colossae. The congregation, which consisted mainly of non-Jews, was probably founded by Epaphras, who had labored among them and who was now with Paul in Rome.​—Col. 1:2, 7; 4:12.

3. What does the letter of Colossians itself reveal regarding the writer, as well as the time and place of writing?

³ The apostle Paul was the writer of this letter, as he states in its opening and closing words. (1:1; 4:18) His conclusion states also that he wrote it from prison. This would be the time of his first imprisonment in Rome, 59-61 C.E., when he wrote a number of letters of encouragement, the letter to the Colossians being dispatched along with the one to Philemon. (Col. 4:7-9; Philem. 10, 23) It appears it was written about the same time as the letter to the Ephesians, as many ideas and phrases are the same.

4. What testifies to the genuineness of Colossians?

⁴ There are no grounds for doubting the authenticity of the letter to the Colossians. Its presence with other Pauline epistles in the Chester Beatty Papyrus No. 2 (P⁴⁶) of about 200 C.E. shows that it was accepted by the early Christians as one of Paul’s letters. Its genuineness is testified to by the same early authorities who testify to the authenticity of Paul’s other letters.

5. (a) What prompted Paul’s writing to the Colossians? (b) What does the letter emphasize?

⁵ What prompted Paul to write a letter to the Colossians? For one thing, Onesimus was going back to Colossae. Epaphras had recently joined Paul, and no doubt his report on conditions at Colossae provided a further reason for the letter. (Col. 1:7, 8; 4:12) A certain danger threatened the Christian congregation there. The religions of the day were in the process of dissolution, and new religions were constantly being formed by fusing parts of old ones. There were heathen philosophies involving asceticism, spiritism, and idolatrous superstition, and these, combined with Jewish abstinence from foods and observance of days, may have influenced some in the congregation.