FOOTNOTES:

^a This is a conditional statement. ‘When Christ is revealed’ is in the subjunctive mood), tying the church being revealed as dependent on Christ being revealed. That makes less sense if we are trying to keep in mind the church’s purpose of sharing the news of victory about Christ, but it makes more sense if we keep the context in mind, which is that Christ is the head of the body of Christ, and it was in his death, and reawakening that the church died and was reawakened along with him. Christ leads the way in all the things the church experiences in Colossians.

^b Traditionally, ‘in glory.’

^c Literally, ‘make dead or lifeless’

^d This may be a more specific translation than the word means, possibly better as ‘sexual misbehavior’ or ‘inappropriate sexual behavior’ or ‘harmful sexual behavior’ or something like that. However, there is plenty of contextual evidence that sexual exploitation is frequently what the writers had in mind when they used this word.

^e This is the word used in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible (Septuagint) several times in Leviticus for ‘uncleanness,’ such as Leviticus 7:20, 15:3, 15:24, 20:21, 20:25, and 22:3.

^f Traditionally, ‘passion,’ which in both Greek and English can be related to suffering and anguish or to emotional desire and motivation.

^g This is two word, ‘desire/longing’ and kakos, which traditionally has been translated as ‘bad’ and has to do with unhealthiness, corruption, being in bad condition. I wonder if ‘coveting’ or ‘envy’ could be a good word to cover the concept of ‘harmful longing.’

^h Traditionally, ‘disobedience’ or ‘unbelief.’ The word is not related to pistis (‘trust,’ ‘belief,’ ‘faithfulness’).

ⁱ ‘Are how’ here is translating the preposition en and is traditionally translated here as ‘in.’ The word ‘walk’ is used here as a reference to the metaphor Jesus taught about following the Path, and many other words are also connected to that core metaphor, such as ‘deviate,’ ‘trip up/falter,’ ‘shortfall.’ Since ‘in’ only makes sense in terms of location or time, it’s not the appropriate word to use here. Here it seems to be a ‘preposition of manner.’ Very literally it could be something like ‘You used to walk in the manner of these things,’ meaning ‘this is how you used to live.’

^j The lexicon describes this as a disposition toward anger or as ‘wrathful’ behavior.

^k This is kakia, which is the noun form of kakos (bad condition/harmful/unhealthy). According to the lexicon, it can mean ‘malice’ or ‘trouble/calamity.’ The core of it seems to be harm, the desire to cause harm or the presence of harm.

^l Traditionally, ‘slander.’ This is the same word used in Matthew traditionally as ‘blasphemy’ and is what Jesus was accused of by the Sanhedrin that led to his execution. ‘Slander’ is an appropriate translation, but in Matthew it is clearly used more broadly for language that belittles or disrespects and not only about telling lies about someone. The American legal usage of ‘slander’ is specific to spreading false information about someone, so it is likely too narrow for what is in view for translating this word in many places in the Bible. However, the next verse (Colossians 3:9) does specifically address lying or false speech, so maybe that is what is meant here.

^m Or ‘obscene’ or ‘offensive.’

ⁿ This whole passage is talking about the ‘body of Christ’ as a whole with many parts. ‘Your’ is plural here, but ‘mouth’ is singular.

^o Or ‘lie to.’ The word is a verb form of pseudo, and is most literally something like ‘don’t false each other,’ but English doesn’t have a verb form of false that works here, the closest being ‘falsify,’ which is about making something false rather than spreading a falsehood.

^p Here and in 3:8 ‘take off/taken off’ is the word used for removing clothing.

^q Keep in mind—again—that the entire book so far has been clearly addressing the group as a whole and how they interact with each other, not specific to each individual but as group dynamics. The metaphor of ‘body of Christ’ is essential to keep in mind throughout. Putting off the former person and putting on the new one is not about an individual transformation but about the group changing from being ‘the body’ of something else to being ‘the body of Christ.’ Compare with Ephesians 2:15.

^r ‘Them’ here refers to the ‘new one (person)’ from the beginning of verse 10.

^s ‘Labeling people as’ is not explicitly in the Greek, but it is strongly implied by the context. The English ‘there is no’ by itself risks being misunderstood as it not existing or being present. The first four categories could be taken that way, but when in the context of the previous chapters in which being judged is spoken against and in the fifth and sixth items which were people groups used broadly as slurs, the value judgments are what is being spoken against, not the existence of these categories of people.

^t Literally, ‘barbarian.’ The word originated as a reference to a specific people group, but by the time of the writing of Colossians, it was used widely as a slur against anyone who did not speak Greek and was, therefore, considered uncultured or lower social status.

^u Literally, ‘Scythian.’ The word originally meant someone from Scythia, which was the region of what is now Russia and Mongolia and some of the other Asian countries north of India and China. At the time of the writing of Colossians, it was used widely as a slur for those were ‘savage’ or ‘uncouth’ or ‘uncivilized,’ dismissing them as lower status.

^v Here and in verse 10, ‘put on’ is the word for dressing with clothing.

^w Literally, ‘guts/bowels of compassion.’ Since this set of organs represented emotions (whereas ‘heart’ represented desire) in the culture, something like ‘compassion from the bottom of your heart’ could work.

^x Translating this as ‘kindness’ is not wrong, but it’s too easy to mistake as being polite or agreeable. The word is much more active, doing things that directly benefit others.

^y ‘Put on’ is not repeated here in the Greek, but it’s added in English for clarity that it’s continuing the thought started in verse 12.

^z I considered ‘ensemble’ also. The word is ‘ligament’ or ‘band’ or ‘bond’ literally, ‘what connects together.’ ‘Uniform’ while not the literal meaning, accomplishes the spirit of the metaphor of putting on clothing and in a way that highlights the unity visible in doing so.

^aa The word here is brabeuo, which literally means ‘arbitrate’ or ‘be an umpire/referee’ or ‘decide’ or ‘govern.’

^bb Literally, ‘your hearts.’ The heart in this culture represents not all emotions but specifically desire and motivation, priorities.

^cc Traditionally, ‘spiritual songs.’

^dd Traditionally, ‘grace.’ Other appropriate ways to translate it could be ‘favor,’ ‘goodwill,’ or ‘benevolence.’

^ee Or ‘because of’

^ff A Greek military term meaning "to arrange [troop divisions] in a military fashion under the command of a leader". In non-military use, it was "a voluntary attitude of giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, and carrying a burden."

^gg Traditionally, this is translated as ‘the Lord’ and is assumed it means God/Jesus. What’s interesting about this is several cues that the traditional translation may be too hasty. Kurios is used in many places where it doesn’t refer to Jesus or God, such as in Jesus’ parables about masters and their enslaved workers. There, kurios is translated as ‘master.’ In the cultural context of the time, anyone who was an authority that one had responsibility to serve was referred to as kurios, including one’s father or husband. Caesar was considered the kurios for everyone, including kings. In that case, even kings would play the role of doulos, traditionally ‘slave’ or ‘servant’ but maybe better as ‘subject’ in that case. The way that en kurio has traditionally been translated is ‘in the Lord’ to mean ‘according to the standard of God/Christ.’ In addition to all the cultural and linguistic context above, the immediate context of this passage poses more questions. While it’s not the only place to leave out the definite article (‘the’/to), it does so here and in verse 20, but it includes it in verses 22, 23, and 24. The way Greek works, the noun (kurios) when it is the object of a preposition (en) may be definite or indefinite (translated as ‘the lord’ or ‘a lord’ and be correct either way. In fact, it seems more common for it to be definite and translated with ‘the’ preceding it. However, it is also possible for it to be indefinite (with ‘a’ or no article). If it has an article in Greek, it must be definite, but if it doesn’t have an article in Greek and is the object of a preposition, it may or may not be definite. Moreover, the change from having an article in Greek in the next verses but not in these two places is worth pondering. No translations seem to take note of that difference, and all translate it as ‘the lord’ seeming to assume it means Jesus without even stopping to think about the contextual cues. While the difference does not immediately mean they are wrong and they could be correct that the best translation includes the article ‘the,’ with all the other clues, I think it’s at least reasonably likely that they are referring to different people. It’s possible that the ones that say ‘the Lord’ in the Greek are referring to Christ while the ones without ‘the’ are referring to a ‘lord’ or ‘master’ in general. The context seems to work well with these verses contrasting Christ with others who hold the position of ‘lord’ or ‘master.’

^hh Agapao ‘love’ may or may not include an emotional component of affection, attraction, or attachment. Instead the focus is on commitment to whomever is loved and dedication to pursuing benefit and goodness for whomever is loved, faithfulness and devotion to them.

ⁱⁱ While this word is related to ‘listen’ as in ‘hear,’ it has the prefix for ‘under’ added, giving a meaning of submitting to what is heard, so ‘listen’ in the sense of ‘obey.’

^jj Or ‘become discouraged’

^kk Literally, ‘according-to-the-flesh/body lords.’ What these ‘lords’ are basing their lordship on is not necessarily being designated as bad, but it does seem to be shown as a different priority than Christ’s priority. The word sarx (traditionally ‘flesh’) is not inherently bad or the opposite of godly. It literally means the stuff a body is comprised of. It can be used metaphorically or symbolically in a number of ways. One of those ways is to refer to ‘flesh and blood,’ meaning people of the same family. Family lineage has been a common way throughout history and cultures to determine who is owed allegiance and authority. It also has to do with the physical body, both in its drives and stature, so that people with ambition and strength both claim and are awarded privilege and power. Sometimes it seems to point at physical as opposed to conceptual or spiritual considerations. These may or may not be what is in view here, but they are all possible, and they are not easy to make clear in translating into English.

^ll Literally, ‘not according to eye-service.’

^mm Literally, ‘heart’

ⁿⁿ Literally, ‘fearing.’ It is often translated as ‘respect’ or ‘revere.’ There seems to be a way of responding to the Lord with respect that is lived out in how we respond to others, even including when we are on the receiving end of injustice.

^oo Kurios in Greek can be translated several ways, including both ‘lord’ and ‘master.’ In other places a word like ‘sir’ may be more appropriate. Here it is contrasting duty to people in positions of more power/less power and duty to God through Christ as the ultimate lord/master.

^pp Literally, ‘seeing’

^qq While this word is frequently used as name/title for God, here it is part of a discussion of allegiance and who you are giving those to, so in context the title of position, ‘lord,’ makes more sense than as if it is the name of God. However, because Kurios is used in these various ways, drawing a clean distinction is not fully possible, and it’s likely that more than one meaning of it is applicable.