Глава II

Admonition to Readers (1–7). Analysis of the teachings of the Colossian heretics (8–23). Col.2:1. I want you to know what a feat I have for your sake and for the sake of those who are in Laodicea and Hierapolis, and for the sake of all who have not seen my face in the flesh, Ap. loves and cares for the Colossians and their neighbors - the Laodiceans and Hierapolis. He is very pleased that they lead a good life, but he instills in them that they should firmly adhere to the teaching taught to them, since otherwise they might be tempted by false teachers. Col.2:2. so that their hearts may be comforted, united in love for all the riches of perfect understanding, for the knowledge of the mystery of God and the Father and Christ, Col.2:3. in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Ap. wants the Colossians and other Christians of those places who do not know him personally to know how much he cares about them (“what a feat I have”). In fact, he was far away in chains and could not help the Colossians, who were at that time threatened by heretics. The subject of his concern is to console and calm the hearts of the Colossians, troubled by this appearance of false teachers. Ap. wants them, having cemented the union of Christian love among themselves, to achieve the completeness of Christian convictions that they so desperately need (“for all the riches of perfect understanding”) in regard to knowledge of the mystery of God and the Father and Christ (i.e., knowledge of the plan of the divine economy for human salvation). – “In which” is more correct: in which, i.e. in secret (έν φ - does not refer to the word Χριστού, because then the previous expression τ. Θεού will remain without definition, but to the word τοϋ μυστηρίου). Ap. wants the Colossians to comprehend this secret, because in it all the treasures of “wisdom” are hidden, i.e. the highest divine wisdom (σοφία) and human knowledge (γνώσις): only for the knowledge of this secret, therefore, is it worth using all your efforts. Col.2:4. I say this so that no one will deceive you with insinuating words; Col.2:5. for, although I am absent in body, I am with you in spirit, rejoicing and seeing your prosperity and the strength of your faith in Christ. Explaining his thought, Ap. says that he wants to protect the Colossians from being carried away by false teachings, which had all the appearance of logical evidence, but in fact were deception (“deception” or false reasoning - παραλογίζηται). - “In insinuating words” - πιθανολογία - this is the ability, through skillful turns of speech, to present something untrue in the essence of the matter as plausible. - “For, although I” ... The Apostle greatly grieves that he cannot protect them from heretics through personal conversation with the Colossians, and therefore asks them to remember that he is still with them spiritually. Feeling as if he were close to the Colossians, Ap. rejoices to see that their church has both the external structure and the internal firmness that their faith in Christ gives them. Pointing to this state of the Colossian Church, Apostle. thereby, as it were, advising the Colossians to take pity on themselves and not exchange what they own for what the false teachers promise them. Col.2:6. Therefore, just as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, Col.2:7. being rooted and established in Him and strengthened in the faith, as you were taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving. In view of the fact that they live a correct Christian life, the Colossians must keep unchanged what was taught to them about Christ by their teacher, Epaphras. In addition, they must “walk in Christ,” that is, put into practice the Christian teaching they have learned. Then they will be true Christians, who will not be led astray by any false teachers. - “Rooted in Christ,” just as a plant takes root in good soil, resting on Him, just as a building under construction rests on a solid foundation and, as a result, becomes even more strengthened in the faith taught to them by Epaphras, and also combines with progress in faith a feeling of gratitude to God, who leads them in this way - this is how the Colossians should live (The last words must be added, because otherwise the words would have to be written: “being rooted” ... be attributed to the expression: “walk”, which is inconvenient in the meaning of the concepts of “walking” and “rooting” contained in these expressions). Col.2:8–23. The essence of this important department is as follows. The false teaching of the Colossian heretics 3 is nothing more than an empty deception, which consists entirely of human traditions and is far from true Christianity (8). To expose the false teaching of these heretics about Christ, Apostle. says that Christ is not at all what the heretics said about Him: He is God incarnate, the God-man (Col 2:9), and in Him Christians received salvation from the yoke of demonic power that weighed on them (Col 2:10–15). Therefore, believing Colossians should not be carried away by those means to achieve the salvation of the soul that are recommended by false teachers, namely, they should not again subject themselves to the ritual prescriptions of the Mosaic Law (Col. 2:16-17), perform some special service to the angels (Col. 2:18-20) and fall into false asceticism (Col. 2:21-23). Col.2:8. Take heed, brethren, lest anyone lead you away with philosophy and empty deception, according to human tradition, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ; “Captured” - συλαγωγών - did not catch in his net, like a hunter catches birds in a snare. - “Philosophy”. Ap. does not mean philosophy in general - he undoubtedly assigned a large role to the philosophizing mind in comprehending the Divine (see Rom 1:20 “through the consideration of creations”) - but philosophy of a certain kind, precisely that which he immediately further calls empty seduction (before the word φιλοσοφίας there is a term showing that Apostle has in mind a certain philosophy. In addition, before the expression κενήσ απάτης there is no member and preposition δια - which means it constitutes an application to the word φιλοσοφίας). - “According to human tradition.” Tradition Ap. calls him “human,” obviously wanting to show his disdain for him. Perhaps he has in mind here some of the teachings of the Jewish philosophizing rabbis, mainly those of Alexandria. The Colossian false teachers were also based on these traditions ("according to tradition" - more precisely: "according to tradition" - κατά παρ.), but these traditions did not constitute the content of their teaching: they were only the norm according to which the false teaching was formed. - “According to the elements of the world.” Until recently, the elements of the world were usually considered to be the same elements of the world that Ap speaks of. Paul in his letter to the Galatians (Gal 4:3, 9), i.e., the initial foundations of religious and moral life, elementary attempts to solve the religious and moral problem and, in particular, the commandments of the ritual Mosaic Law. But recently, among wide circles of readers of Holy Scripture in Germany, the view of these elements as a designation of spiritual living beings (“astral spirits”) has begun to spread. However, we cannot agree with this view, because the expression στοιχεία only in later Byzantine literature began to be used to designate spirits or demons, and before the time of Paul it was not found anywhere in this sense. Then to designate demons Ap. uses more specific expressions - principles and powers (Col. 2:15). Finally, this view is also contradicted by Col. 2:20. Here is Ap. says: “If you and Christ died to the elements of the world, then why do you, as those living in the world, adhere to the decrees?” If here, as in the 8th verse under consideration, by the elements we understand “elemental spirits,” then by the world we should already understand the world as a whole, nature in general. But in verse 20, it will no longer be possible to understand the word “peace” in this way: after all, Christians continue to live in the world as a whole, although they died with Christ... Some interpreters mean by the elements of the world the stars. But this interpretation is even less solid, because it is not clear why Ap. called the stars already in the world, included in its composition, elements or stars of the world? Then, how can we understand their designation in the letter to Gal as “the weak and the poor” (Gal 4:9)? – As for the view of the elements of the world as natural elements (there is also such a view - for example, Tsang holds it), then this interpretation is opposed by the mention of the Apostle in the last. to Gal. that pre-Christian humanity or pre-Christian Israel were enslaved to these elements (Gal. 4:9). – Therefore, it seems more likely that under the elements of the world Ap. understands the elements of knowledge, so to speak, the alphabet of the world. This understanding is completely consistent with the placement of this expression after the expression “according to human tradition” and before the expression “and not according to Christ”; it will contain almost the same thought as the expression that precedes it. In addition, it is the direct opposite of the following expression: if in the mystery of God and Christ all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden (Col. 2:3), then in the teaching of false teachers only the first elements of knowledge are found. Christians have already parted with these elements, they have grown out of them - so why return to them? Col. can be interpreted this way. 2:20. Ap., it should be noted, does not condemn these elements of knowledge as absolutely false - he only speaks of their insufficiency for a Christian. Col.2:9. for in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, The Colossian heretics considered Christ only one of the aeons - the exponents of the Divinity. In contrast to them, Ap. says that in Christ dwells all the fullness of the Divinity 4 and, moreover, “bodily” or in the body (σωματικώς - equals the expression έν σώματι), so that we can observe it: Ap. of course he wants to say that we can see God in the incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ (cf. Col. 1:19). Col.2:10. and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power; On the other hand, believers are already fulfilled in Christ, that is, through a mysterious union with Him they have received the fullness of divine gifts of grace. – “Who is the head”... There is nothing more to expect from the angelic powers, because these powers are all subordinate to Christ and cannot give anything new to believers in the matter of salvation. Col.2:11. in Him you were circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the sinful body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ; Believers have nothing to look for in carnal circumcision, which the Colossian heretics wanted to restore among Christians. The goal that carnal circumcision had in mind, namely the killing of the old man, had already been achieved by the Colossians through the acceptance of baptism, which Ap. calls circumcision performed by Christ Himself. – “Body of the flesh” – sinful human nature, the body, since it was subject to the influence of the carnal mood. The addition of “sinful” further strengthens the meaning of the entire expression “bodies of the flesh.” Col.2:12. Having been buried with Him in baptism, you were also raised with Him by faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead, In the water of baptism, man is buried in Christ and the old man dies in Him. But this is not enough: immediately the Christian is resurrected with Christ for a new life. This resurrection takes place in man, thanks to the power of his faith in the omnipotence of God, already manifested in the resurrection of Christ Himself (cf. Rom 10:9). Col.2:13. and you, who were dead in sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, he made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our sins, Col.2:14. having destroyed the handwriting that was against us, which was against us, and He took it out of the way and nailed it to the cross; As for the Jews, God also forgave them (Ap. adds himself to them - “about us”), “destroying” them - έξαλείψας - more precisely: by blotting out and wiping away the “handwriting” or debt obligation that the Jews gave at Sinai, pledging to do the will of God. This handwriting was compiled in the form of certain precise regulations (τοις δόγμασιν - in Russian not exactly: “having destroyed by teaching” cf. Eph. 2:15). - “Against us”. We did not have the power to fulfill the terms of this receipt, and it hung in front of us, blocking our path to God. - “Took from the environment”, - that is, destroyed (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:7). - “Nailed to the cross,” i.e., with His suffering on the cross, Christ destroyed the power of this obligation, and our very receipt, which had already completely lost all its writing, was hung by Him on His cross, as a sign that it was no longer valid. Col.2:15. having taken away the strength of the principalities and powers, he powerfully subjected them to shame, having triumphed over them with Himself, On His cross, Christ at the same time took away the strength of the evil spirits who so harmed the pagans (cf. Eph 2:2), or, in fact, took off their military armor (άπεκδυσάμενος). Here He “imperiously” - more precisely: openly, publicly (Theophylact) - showed them defeated. - “Having triumphed over them with Himself” - more precisely: “leading them after Him in His triumphal procession.” - “By Himself” - more precisely: “in it”, i.e. in the cross - Col. 2:14, or “behind His cross” (which, according to the Apostle, He holds in His hands, as a triumphant usually held his banner or spear in his hands). Col.2:16. So let no one judge you for food or drink, or for any festival, or the new moon, or the Sabbath: Since Christ freed people from the obligation to fulfill the ritual decrees of the Mosaic Law, therefore no one has the right to condemn the Colossians for their free attitude to the choice of food and drink or for their failure to observe any Jewish holiday (εορτής - great holiday), or the New Moon holiday, or the ordinary Sabbath. In relation to food and drink, the Colossian false teachers probably went beyond the requirements of the Mosaic Law and, like the Essenes, demanded abstinence from certain types of food and drink. (Mukhin p. 194) - “Somehow” - more precisely: “parts of the holidays” (εν μέρει). The false teachers, obviously, did not have the opportunity to observe all the Jewish holidays, on which foreign Jews usually went to Jerusalem for pilgrimage. It was a very long walk from Colossae. Col.2:17. this is a shadow of the future, and the body is in Christ. All these Old Testament institutions, and even now, under the Apostle, continuing to exist, are nothing more than a shadow (σκιά), which is cast by the “future” (τά μελλοντα), that is, for Christians it is no longer the future, but the present age of the Messiah. If the Apostle speaks of the coming of the Messiah and His Kingdom as the future, then he speaks so from the point of view of the Old Testament, in which the Kingdom of the Messiah was always designated as the future, the coming. - “The body is in Christ.” The body from which the shadow fell in the Old Testament, which gave meaning to all the Old Testament institutions, is Christ Himself. But since the body itself has already come, there is no need for a shadow or reflection, which previously gave some unclear idea of \u200b\u200bthis body. Col.2:18. Let no one deceive you with self-willed humility and the ministry of Angels, intruding into what he has not seen, recklessly puffed up with his carnal mind Col.2:19. and not holding on to the head, from which the whole body, being united and held together by joints and bonds, grows by the growth of God. As for the theoretical teaching of the Colossian false teachers, its central point was the doctrine of angels; this teaching of Ap. prohibits getting carried away. Let no one, he says, snatch from your hands the reward for the victory you have won (κατοφραβευέτω - in Russian not exactly; “let him not deceive”), that is, salvation. Meanwhile, it is this taking away of your reward that the heretics strive for, using as bait that false humility, which they based not on a true view of the nature of man renewed in Christ, but on completely arbitrarily accepted premises (probably on the false consideration that hereditary sin is not destroyed in a Christian). Next Ap. indicates that in the name of such false humility, false teachers introduced special service to angels. They themselves considered themselves unworthy to approach God and therefore considered it necessary to resort to the mediation of angels, who supposedly expressed the divine pleroma and could, in their opinion, bring people into communication with the Divine. What exactly this service to the angels consisted of is unknown, but, obviously, the false teachers performed some rituals in their honor (this is indicated by the very designation of “service” by the term θρησκία). This ministry took root in some regions of Asia Minor so much that in 365 the fathers of the Council of Laodicea threatened with anathema for adhering to it (Mukhin p. 201) 5 . - “Invading” - more precisely: plunging into the very depths and, moreover, completely ineffectively (έμβατεύειν has this meaning). – “Reasonably arrogant”... The consequence of such investigations in the angelic world was that the false teachers fell into pride, which had no support (εική φυσ.). – “Carnal”, that is, their mind submitted to the desires of their flesh, the sensory side of their being. - “Heads”, - that is, Christ. Just as the head gives direction to the activity of the joints and connections (muscles), forcing them to work for the benefit of the entire bodily organism, so Christ gives direction to all church leaders so that they work for the common benefit of the Church. The heretics were separated from the head - Christ, and therefore their society could not live a correct Christian life and grow in such growth as God promotes ("the age of God"). Col. 2:20 . So, if you and Christ died to the elements of the world, then why do you, as those living in the world, adhere to the ordinances: Col.2:21. Don't touch, don't taste, don't touch Col.2:22. [that everything decays through use] - according to the commandments and teachings of men? Since the ascetic rules of the false teachers were still clearer and more acceptable for the Colossians than their abstract theosophical reasoning about angels, then from this side, obviously, the greatest danger was approaching the Colossian Church, and therefore Ap. once again refers to these “rules”. For him, it seems very strange that the Colossian Christians, who, as Christians, are thought to have already died with Christ and at the same time left those initial stages of knowledge ("verses and the world" cf. Col. 2:8), on which they previously stood, that these Christians again, as if living in the world - in that world that still continues to be guided in its life by these elementary knowledge ("elements and the world") - again allow make oneself dependent on various rules or regulations that have the nature of strict and firm instructions (this is the meaning of the expression “stick to the regulations” - in Greek δογιχατίζεσθε from δόγμα prescription). These instructions relate to various types of food and drink, about which the false teachers said: “do not touch, do not taste, do not touch.” Against such fear Ap. says that all this, that is, both food and drink, decays from consumption or when eaten (αποχτήσει), is digested and cannot produce any morally harmful effect on a person. - “According to the commandments and teachings of man,” that is, heretics are guided, in this case, by individual rules that developed among the Jews as additions to the Law of Moses, and by the teachings or various philosophical views that underlay these rules. Col.2:23. This has only the appearance of wisdom in self-willed service, humility and exhaustion of the body, in some neglect of the saturation of the flesh. If rumors spread about heretical dogmas (in Greek λόγος, in Russian inaccurately: “view”) as wise rules, due to the fact that they require unauthorized or a new kind of reverence for God (έθελοθρησκία), due to humility and ascetic exhaustion of the body, then this did not at all depend on in order for these rules to have real dignity ( ουκ έν τιμή τινί - incorrect in Russian: “in some negligence”). One can even say that these rules lead to completely different goals than those indicated by the heretics. The latter precisely claimed that adherence to their rules would elevate a Christian above the movements of the sensual and sinful nature, but in fact, the person who fulfilled them came to the satiety of the flesh (πλησμονή τ. σαρκός), i.e. to pride, arrogance. The “flesh”, or the carnal side of man, amused itself here with the consciousness of its special merits, which consisted in the suppression of bodily needs. Colossian false teachers. Based on the first and second chapters of Colossians, we can get some idea about the false teachers at Colossians. We see that these were people who resorted to insinuating words and false conclusions to spread their teachings (Col. 2:4), that they gave their views the appearance of some kind of philosophical system (Col. 2:8). This is relative to the form in which they clothed their teaching. Now, as for the very content of their teaching, here in the foreground was the denial of the unique meaning in the matter of salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ, whom they did not hold as the head (Col. 2:19). Along with Christ, they placed angels, who were taught to serve as mediators between people and God (Col. 2:18, 23). All the angels, together with Christ, constituted, in their view, one divine pleroma, in which the Divinity manifests itself (cf. Col. 1:16, 19). Finally, in relation to morality, the Colossian false teachers preached a kind of asceticism, combining it with the veneration of certain Jewish holidays and other ritual decrees of the Mosaic Law (Col. 2:20-23). Where did this trend in the Colossian Church come from? Scientists address this issue in different ways. Some attribute the origin of this heresy to Greek philosophy, others - to Jewish influence (Mukhin, in particular, sees here the influence of Essenism), others finally (Dibelius) - to the combined influences of different religions and cults that existed at that time in Asia Minor and, in particular, in Phrygia. On the basis that in Judaism one can find the beginnings of all the above-mentioned views of the Colossian false teaching, one should accept as the most plausible assumption that this false teaching was actually of Jewish origin. Thus, the Apostle, saying that the philosophy of the Colossian false teachers was based on human tradition (Col. 2:8), could have meant precisely the Jewish tradition or teaching, which was known among the post-exilic Jews under the name Halakha (tradition). Then, only Jewish influence could explain the desire of the Colossian false teachers to introduce circumcision among Christians (Col. 2:11) and respect for Jewish holidays (Col. 2:16). Finally, the doctrine of angels as mediators between people and God (Col. 2:18) could be based on the view of the Old Testament, according to which angels stand before the throne of God and offer prayers to God for people (Dan 9:21, etc.). In the same way, abstinence from various most nutritious and stimulating foods and drinks could be based on the fact that some pious Jews, thanks to such abstinence, were rewarded with seeing angels (Dan 10:2-5), which, of course, was the subject of the ardent desires of the Colossian false teachers. Thus, it is possible to conclude with certainty that the false teachers of Colossians were Christians who were influenced by later Jewish views and were unable to rise to a correct view of the Person and work of our Lord Jesus Christ. Just don’t insist, as Mr. Mukhin insists, that the basis of the Colossian false teaching was the Essenes’ views themselves: there is no data that would indicate that the Essenes avoided eating meat and wine (cf. Col. 2:16) and practiced any special veneration of angels. In contrast, the false teachers at Colossians did not have the very significant Essene teaching on washing and celibacy. It should be noted that in some of their teachings the Colossian false teachers resemble the Galatian false brethren (cf. Gal 4:3, 9 and Col 2:8, 20), then the Philippian Judaizers (cf. Phil. 3: 2 et seq. and Col. 2:11), then, finally, the Roman “weak ones” (cf. Rom. 14: 1 et seq. and Col 2:16, 21). Deity in Greek is designated by two terms: θεότης and θειότης. The first word comes from the term θεός and is used to designate a divine being, and the second, coming from the adjective. θείος divine - used to denote the properties of the Divine (cf. Rom 1:19–20). It is clear that Ap. here he wants to make it clear to his readers that in Christ there are not only divine properties (θειότης), but also God Himself (Θεός): He is essentially God. The 35th rule of the local Council of Laodicea says: “It is not fitting for Christians to leave the Church of God and go away and name angels and hold assemblies. This is rejected. For this reason, if anyone turns to those who practice such secret idolatry, let him be anathema: for he has left our Lord Jesus Christ, the son of God, and has begun to worship idols.” The interpretation of this rule says: “heretics are condemned who do not pray to God and Christ, but only to the angels, supposedly the creators and rulers of the world.” Bl. Theodoret explains the origin of this cult of angels by the influence of the Colossian or Phrygian heretics. Rev. Theophan makes the assumption that the meetings of these angels were similar to the meetings of modern spiritualists. You might be interested in: