He is before all things, and in him all things are held together.
Parallel Translations
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He is before all things, and in him all things are held together.
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and he is before all thinges and in him all thynges have their beynge.
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And hee is before all things, and in him all things consist.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
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Cross-references (19)
Passages linked to Colossians 1:17 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Hebrews 1:3 His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, who, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high,
- 1 Corinthians 8:6 yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we live through him.
- John 1:1-3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him. Without him, nothing was made that has been made.
- John 8:58 Jesus said to them, “Most certainly, I tell you, before Abraham came into existence, I AM.”
- John 17:5 Now, Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed.
- Acts 17:28 ‘For in him we live, move, and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also his offspring.’
- Psalms 75:3 The earth and all its inhabitants quake. I firmly hold its pillars.
- Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
- Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
- Proverbs 8:22-23 “Yahweh possessed me in the beginning of his work, before his deeds of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, before the earth existed.
- Isaiah 44:6 This is what Yahweh, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Yahweh of Armies, says: “I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God.
- Isaiah 43:11-13 I myself am Yahweh. Besides me, there is no savior. I have declared, I have saved, and I have shown, and there was no strange god among you. Therefore you are my witnesses”, says Yahweh, “and I am God. Yes, since the day was, I am he. There is no one who can deliver out of my hand. I will work, and who can hinder it?”
- Revelation 1:17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me, saying, “Don’t be afraid. I am the first and the last,
- Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
- Revelation 2:8 “To the angel of the assembly in Smyrna write: “The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life says these things:
- 1 Samuel 2:8 He raises up the poor out of the dust. He lifts up the needy from the dunghill to make them sit with princes and inherit the throne of glory. For the pillars of the earth are Yahweh’s. He has set the world on them.
- Micah 5:2 But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, being small among the clans of Judah, out of you one will come out to me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings out are from of old, from ancient times.
- John 5:17-18 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is still working, so I am working, too.” For this cause therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the Sabbath, but also called God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
- Revelation 1:11 saying, “What you see, write in a book and send to the seven assemblies: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.”
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 17. All things were created by him, and for…
17. All things were created by him, and for him. He places angels in subjection to Christ, that they may not obscure his glory, for four reasons: In the first place, because they were created by him; secondly, because their creation ought to be viewed as having a relation to him, as their legitimate end; thirdly, because he himself existed always, prior to their creation; fourthly, because he sustains them by his power, and upholds them in their condition. At the same time, he does not affirm this merely as to angels, but also as to the whole world. Thus he places the Son of God in the Highest seat of honor, that he may have the pre-eminence over angels as well as men, and may bring under control all creatures in heaven and in earth.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 17 And he is before all things, and by…
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Ver. 17. By him all things consist] They would soon fall asunder, had not Christ undertaken to uphold the shattered condition thereof, by the word of his power.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain And he is before all things: to obviate all…
And he is before all things: to obviate all exceptions to what he had said before, the apostle doth expressly assert (what was implied before) Christ’s pre-existence to all the things that were created, and therefore that he himself was not made, but eternally begotten, and so did exist, and was actually before all creatures in causality, dignity, and time; which proves his eternity, (consonant to other scriptures, Pro 8:22; Isa 44:6; Mic 5:2; Joh 1:1; 17:5; Rev 1:8,11,17; Re 22:13), because before all things there was nothing but proper eternity, Psa 90:2.
And by him all things consist: then follows this further argument of Christ’s excellency and perfection, that he is not only the Creator or Founder, but likewise the Supporter or Upholder, of all things whatsoever are created, yea, even of the most excellent and useful of them, who in him do live and move, Act 17:28; Heb 1:3; he being the conservant as well as procreant cause of the heavens and earth, with all things therein, because in respect of God it is the same action which is continued in conservation and providence whielt was in creation, not breaking off the same influence which was exerted in producing them out of nothing into being, Isa 46:4; Joh 5:19.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And he is before all things,.... Not only in…
And he is before all things,.... Not only in dignity, being preferable to angels and men in his nature, names, offices, and works, and worthy of more honour than all creatures; but he is before them in existence, as he must needs be, since they are all made by him; he was not only before John the Baptist, his forerunner, before Abraham who saw his day and was glad, before the first man was made, but before the angels were in being, or the heavens and the earth, or any creature were formed; and therefore must be God, who is from everlasting to everlasting:
and by him all things consist; he upholds all things by the word of his power; the heavens have their stability and continuance from him; the pillars of the earth are bore up by him, otherwise that and the inhabitants of it would be dissolved; the angels in heaven are confirmed in their estate by him, and have their standing and security in him; the elector God are in his hands, and are his peculiar care and charge, and therefore shall never perish; yea, all mankind live and move, and have their being in him; the whole frame of nature would burst asunder and break in pieces, was it not held together by him; every created being has its support from him, and its consistence in him; and all the affairs of Providence relating to all creatures are governed, directed, and managed by him, in conjunction with the Father and the blessed Spirit.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain And he is before all things - It is…
And he is before all things - It is not said, he was: he is from everlasting to everlasting. And by him all things consist - The original expression not only implies, that he sustains all things in being, but more directly, All things were and are compacted in him into one system. He is the cement, as well as support, of the universe. And is he less than the supreme God?
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 17. See Clarke on Col 1:16
Verse 17. See Clarke on Col 1:16
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain And he is before all things - As he…
And he is before all things - As he must be, if he created all things. Those who regard this as referring to a moral creation, interpret it as meaning that he has the pre-eminence over all things; not as referring to his pre-existence. But the fair and proper meaning of the word “before” (πρὸ pro) is, that he was before all things in the order of existence; compare Mat 8:29; Joh 11:55; Joh 13:1; Act 5:36; Act 21:38; 2Co 12:2. It is equivalent to saying that he was eternal - for he that had an existence before any thing was created, must be eternal. Thus, it is equivalent to the phrase, “In the beginning;” Gen 1:1; compare the notes at Joh 1:1.
And by him all things subsist - Or are sustained; see the notes at Heb 1:3. The meaning is, that they are kept in the present state; their existence, order, and arrangement are continued by his power. If unsupported by him, they would fall into disorder, or sink back to nothing. If this be the proper interpretation, then it is the ascription to Christ of infinite power - for nothing less could be sufficient to uphold the universe; and of infinite wisdom - for this is needed to preserve the harmonious action of the suns and systems of which it is composed. None could do this but one who is divine; and hence we see the reason why he is represented as the image of the invisible God. He is the great and glorious and everactive agent by whom the perfections of God are made known.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain (Joh 8:58.) Translate as Greek, "And He Himself (the…
(Joh 8:58.) Translate as Greek, "And He Himself (the great HE) is (implying divine essential being) before all things," in time, as well as in dignity. Since He is before all things, He is before even time, that is, from eternity. Compare "the first-born of every creature" (Col 1:15).
by him--Greek, "IN Him" (as the conditional element of existence, Col 1:16) [ALFORD].
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consist--"subsist." Not only are called into being from nothing, but are maintained in their present state. The Son of God is the Conserver, as well as the Creator of all things [PEARSON]. BENGEL less probably explains, "All things in Him come together into one system: the universe found its completion in Him" (Isa 41:4; Rev 22:13). Compare as to GOD, Rom 11:36 : similar language; therefore Christ must be God.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 17. And he is before—Rather, and he is himself…
17. And he is before—Rather, and he is himself before all things. Observe, it is not said that he was, or became, but he is—the word of eternity. If he existed before any act of creation, he is eternal.
All things consist—He holds the universe together, preserves its permanence, and maintains its order as its sustainer. The Son of God is therefore omnipresent, as well as omnipotent and eternal.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 17. he] Emphatic in the Greek; He, and no…
17. he] Emphatic in the Greek; He, and no other who could even seem to rival or obscure His sublime eminence.
is before all things] ante omnes, Latin Versions. The Greek genitive form is ambiguous; it might be either masculine or neuter. But the mention in the last clause, in the unambiguous nominative, of “all things,” decides for a similar reference here.
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Lightfoot prints his rendering here, “and He is before all things,” comparing Joh_8:58, and Exo_3:14, and adding, “The imperfect [‘was’] might have sufficed, … but the present [‘is’] declares that this pre-existence is absolute existence.” He quotes Basil of Cæsarea (adv. Eunom., iv.) as emphasizing the special force of “is” (as against e.g. “was” or “became”) in this very passage: “(the Apostle) indicates thus that He ever is while the creation came to be.”
“Before:”—i.e., as the whole context shews, in respect of priority of existence; the priority of eternity.
by him] Lit. and better, in Him; see above on Col_1:16.
consist] I.e., literally, stand together, hold together. The Latin-English “consist” (Latin versions, constant) exactly renders the Greek. “He is the principle of cohesion in the Universe. He impresses upon creation that unity and solidarity which makes it a cosmos instead of a chaos” (Lightfoot). And Lightfoot quotes Philo to shew that the “Logos” of Alexandrian Judaism was similarly regarded as the “Bond” of the universe.
“Christ was the conditional element of their creation, the causal element of their persistence … The declaration, as Waterland observes, is in fact tantamount to ‘in Him they live, and move, and have their being’ ” (Ellicott).
Natural philosophy, after all observation and classification of phenomena and their processes, asks necessarily but in vain (so long as it asks only “Nature”), what is their ultimate secret, what is, for instance, the last reason of universal gravitation. Revelation discloses that reason in the Person and Will of the Son of God.
Thus far the Apostle has unfolded the glory of Christ as the Cause and Bond of all being in the sphere of “Nature,” material and otherwise. Now he turns to the sphere of Grace.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (17) He is before all things.—The words “He is”…
(17) He is before all things.—The words “He is” are both emphatic. He, and He only, is; all else is created. It is impossible not to refer to the “I am” of Eternal existence, as claimed by our Lord for Himself. “Before Abraham was, I am” (Joh_8:58; comp. also Joh_1:15). Hence the word “before” should be taken, not of supreme dignity, but of pre-existence.
By him all things consist.—That is, hold together in unity, obeying the primæval law of their being. In this clause is attributed to our Lord, not only the creative act, but also the constant sustaining power, “in which all lives and moves and has its being,” and which, even less than the creative agency, can be supposed to be a derivative and finite power, such as that of the Demiurgus of Gnostic speculation.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And he is before all things (ver. 15; Joh_1:1…
And he is before all things (ver. 15; Joh_1:1 Joh_8:58; Rev_3:14; Pro_8:22-31) This emphatic "he" (aujtov) meets us in every clause and in every possible grammatical form, as though in the very grammar of the sentence Christ must be "all in all." "He" is kept ringing in the cars of those who were in danger of forgetting him in the charm of other sounds (Col_2:4, 19: comp. Col_2:9-15; Eph_2:14-18, for the same rhetorical feature; also (Eph_4:11; 1Jn_2:2 Rev_19:15, Greek) We now pass from the origination (ver. 16 a), through the continuance (ver. 16 b, present perfect ektistai), to the present constitution (ver. 17 b) of the universe as Jesting upon this antecedent and perpetual He Is, which affords the underlying basis uniting in one the redemptional and the creative offices of Christ (vers. 17, 18). In the mouth of a Hebraist like St. Paul, the coincidence of the doubly emphatic "He Is" with the etymological sense of Jehovah (Yahweh; oJ wn, LXX), as interpreted in. Exo_3:6., can scarcely be accidental (see Lightfoot) And Greek readers of the LXX might be reminded of such declarations as those of Isa_41:4 Isa_44:6 Isa_48:12. (comp. Joh_1:1, 2 8:24, 28, 58 13:19; Rom_1:8, Rom_1:17) In St. Paul"s Christ, as in Isaiah"s Jehovah, sovereignty of redeeming, rests upon sovereignty of creative power, and both alike upon that perpetuity of being which "the Son of God"s love" shares with the Father. Socinian exegetes give to "before" an ethical sense ("at the head of," "superior to"), in harmony with their reference of vers. 15-18 to the relation of Christ to the Church. But pro never has this sense in St. Paul: comp. also the "Firstborn" of ver. 15, and again "Beginning," "Firstborn" (ver. 18). If ver. 15 left us in any doubt as to the writer"s intention to assert Christ"s pro-mundane existence, this expression ought to remove it. Language can hardly be more explicit. And all things in him consist (Joh_1:3, Joh_1:4, R.V margin; Heb_1:3 Heb_11:3) i.e. have their common standing, are constituted a whole. The apostle speaks here the language of philosophy. In Plato and Aristotle, the term consist (consistence) is found expressing the essentially philosophical conception of the inherent unity, in virtue of which the universe is such and forms a single, correlated whole. The Alexandrine Judaists had already found this unifying principle in the Loges: "He is the Image of God, to whom alone fulness belongs. For other things of themselves are loose; and if they happen to be consolidated anywhere, it is the Divine Word by which they are tied fast. For it is the cement and the bond of things, that has filled all things with its essence. And having chained and woven together everything, it is itself absolutely full of itself" (Philo, "Who is Heir of Divine Things?" St. Paul"s declaration meets the questionings indicated by language of this kind (see the more extended references of Meyer and Lightfoot).
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain By Him all things consist.
Col_1:17
By Him all things consist.
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That is, Christ upholds, rules, and governs all things by His providence, as is shown elsewhere (Heb_1:2-3; Pro_8:15; Joh_5:12). Christ is not like a carpenter that makes his house and then.. leaves it, or like a shipwright that frames his ship and never guides it.
I. All things are said to consist in Him in respect of
1. Conservation: in that He keeps all things in their being.
2. Precept: in that from Him are prescribed the laws by which nature, policy, and religion are governed.
3. Operation: in that all things move in Him.
4. His position of means to end.
5. As the universal cause of nature and natural instincts in all creatures, by which they further their own preservation.
II. Is Him all things consist.
1. As He is God--
(1) In respect of ubiquity; He comprehends all things, and is comprehended of nothing. The nations are but a drop of His bucket, and time but a drop of His eternity.
(2) In respect of power; in that this whole frame stirreth.
(3) In respect of omniscience and wisdom, for all is within His knowledge, and receiveth order from His wisdom.
(4) In respect of decree, for the world to he made did from everlasting hang in the foreknowledge and pro-ordination of Christ.
2. As He is Redeemer. All things consist in Him--
(1) Because He is that atonement which kept the world from being dissolved.
(2) Because the respect of Him and His Church is that which keeps up the world to this day. Were His body complete the world could not stand one hour.
(3) Because the promise made to man concerning His prosperity in the use of all creatures is made in Christ.
III. In Him all things consist. Which word notes--
1. Order. By an excellent order the creatures agree together in a glorious frame; for God is the God of order, not of confusion.
(1) But are there not many evils in the world?
(a) There may be order in respect of God, though not in respect of us.
(b) It follows not that there is no order because we see none (Rom_11:33).
(c) Many of the reasons of human misery are revealed--sin entailing punishment.
(d) There may be order in respect of the whole, though not in respect of every part.
(2) But there are many sins in the world, and those con-Mist not in Christ, neither tend they to order.
(a) These are restrained by Christ.
(b) Work out His purposes.
2. Continuance. The world, men, and lower creatures, etc., are maintained in being by Christ,
3. Co-operation. By the providence of Christ all things work together.
(1) For Christs glory;
(2) for His peoples good.
4. Immortality.
Uses--
1. For reproof of mens security in sin. Seeing that all things consist in Christ, they cannot stir but He seeth them.
2. It should teach us to trust in Christ, not in second causes.
3. If all things consist in Christ, then much more are the righteous preserved with a special preservation. (N. Byfield.)
All things exist in Christ
All things stand together in Him as the causal and conditional sphere of their continued existence. In Him they live and move and have their being, and in Him the sustentation or upholding of the universe rests. How wondrous, then, the glory and power of the Son of God! Without Him the sun would not shine, nor the seasons revolve; without Him the rain would not descend, nor the rivers run, nor the trees grow, nor the oceans ebb and flow. His power is necessary to summer and winter, seed.time and harvest, to earth and sky. He upholdeth all things by the word of His power, and without Him creation would collapse. Every province of the empire of immensity, with all its contents of life, force, and motion, depends on Him. The intellect of angels reflects His light, the fire of seraphs is the glow of His love, the energy of our own souls is an evidence of His beneficence and skill. In Him all things consist--the power of their support, the primal centre of their order, the rule of their operation. This is the Being in whom we have redemption. What sublimity His greatness sheds around the gospel! What moral richness His gospel throws around nature and humanity! How lofty should be our adoration, how strong our confidence, how warm our love, how complete our submission! (J. Spence, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 17. And he is before all things. He was…
17. And he is before all things. He was before them all in time, and through him they came into existence.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.