Passage

Colossians 2.6

Book: Colossians · NASB95

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

4. This I say, that no one may delude you with persuasiveness of speech. 5. For though I am absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ.

6. As therefore ye received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him,

rooted and builded up in him, and established in your faith, even as ye were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. 8. Take heed lest there shall be any one that maketh spoil of you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ: (Colossians 2:4-8, ASV)

WEB

4. Now this I say that no one may delude you with persuasiveness of speech. 5. For though I am absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, rejoicing and seeing your order, and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.

6. As therefore you received Christ Jesus, the Lord, walk in him,

rooted and built up in him, and established in the faith, even as you were taught, abounding in it in thanksgiving. 8. Be careful that you don’t let anyone rob you through his philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the elements of the world, and not after Christ. (Colossians 2:4-8, WEB)

KJV

4. And this I say, lest any man should beguile you with enticing words. 5. For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ.

6. As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:

Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving. 8. Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. ^{rudiments: or, elements} ^{make a prey: or, seduce you, or, lead you astray} (Colossians 2:4-8, KJV)

YLT

4. and this I say, that no one may beguile you in enticing words, 5. for if even in the flesh I am absent, yet in the spirit I am with you, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in regard to Christ;

6. as, then, ye did receive Christ Jesus the Lord, in him walk ye,

being rooted and built up in him, and confirmed in the faith, as ye were taught, abounding in it in thanksgiving. 8. See that no one shall be carrying you away as spoil through the philosophy and vain deceit, according to the deliverance of men, according to the rudiments of the world, and not according to Christ, (Colossians 2:4-8, YLT)

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Setting

Speaker: Paul the apostle, writing with Timothy (Colossians 1:1)
Audience: the saints and faithful brethren at Colossae in Phrygia (Colossians 1:2), a church founded through Epaphras (1:7)
Location: written from imprisonment (4:3, 4:18), most often placed at Rome
Time period: c. AD 60-62 on the Roman dating

Theological reading

"As therefore ye received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him." The verb "received" is the word Paul uses elsewhere for receiving a handed-down tradition (1 Corinthians 15:3), so the Colossians received not only a person but a teaching about him. They are to live in the same way they began, without adding a different foundation.

The full title, "Christ Jesus the Lord," sums up the confession. "Walk" is Paul's usual image for the whole conduct of life. Verse 7 fills it out with images of a rooted tree and a rising building, and verse 8 explains why the reminder is needed: there were teachers offering "philosophy and vain deceit."

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word.

G5547 - christos, christos, Strong's G5547
G2962 - kyrios, kyrios, Strong's G2962
G2424 - Iesous, Iesous, Strong's G2424

Notes

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Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.