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OET (OET-LV) tolerating of_one_another and forgiving to_yourselves, if anyone may_be_having a_complaint against anyone, as also the master forgave to_you_all, thus also you_all forgive.
OET (OET-RV) tolerating each other, and forgiving anyone who has a complaint about another person. The master forgave all of you, so you also should forgive others.
Theme: Paul told the Colossians that they should decide to please only God. That is, they should not do evil deeds, they should love one another, they should live peacefully with one another, and they should continually learn more and more about God.
Theme: Paul told the Colossians that since God loved them so much, they must love one another.
Bear with one another
Accept other believers who are different from you, even if they annoy you.
Do not get upset with one another.
Bear with one another: The Greek word that the BSB translates as Bear with means almost the same as the Greek word translated as “patience” in 3:12b. The difference is that the word used in this verse means tolerating the things other people do regularly that are annoying, rather than being patient when someone does something wrong.
Among the Colossian believers, there was a mixture of nationalities. These different groups would have had trouble tolerating the different views of others—in particular the Jews would have found it difficult to Bear with the Gentiles, and the Greeks would have had difficulty “bearing with” the barbarians.
and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else.
If someone has wronged you, forgive him.
If someone has offended you in any way, you must forgive him.
complaint: A “complaint” is an accusation or criticism that one person has against another person because of something this other person has done.
Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
In the same way as the Lord forgave you, so you also must forgive other people.
Forgive as the Lord forgave you: The word as means Paul was comparing two things. There are two possible interpretations:
Paul was comparing the manner the Lord had forgiven the Colossians with the manner they should forgive others. He had forgiven them freely and completely. So they should forgive others freely and completely.
Paul was comparing the fact that the Lord had forgiven the Colossians with the fact that they should forgive others.
Both these interpretations are possible. Most English versions are ambiguous, but the majority of commentators favor the first option (1), so the Display follows that.
Lord: It is not clear whether the word Lord here refers to the Lord God, or the Lord Jesus. If your translation cannot be ambiguous, you should probably translate it “Lord Jesus.”
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / infostructure
ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων καὶ χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς, ἐάν τις πρός τινα ἔχῃ μομφήν
tolerating ˱of˲_one_another (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων καί χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς ἐάν τὶς πρός τινά ἔχῃ μομφήν καθώς καί ὁ Κύριος ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν οὕτως καί ὑμεῖς)
If your language would put the conditional statement first, you could move the if clause to the beginning, starting a new sentence. Alternate translation: [If someone may have a complaint against someone else, bear with one another and be gracious to each other]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom
ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων
tolerating ˱of˲_one_another
In Paul’s culture, the phrase bearing with one another refers to being patient with others, even when they do things that are annoying or strange. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable idiom or express the idea plainly. Alternate translation: [putting up with one another] or [being patient with one another]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / hypo
ἐάν
if
Paul uses if to introduce a hypothetical situation that he thinks will happen among the Colossians at times. It is in this kind of situation that he wants them to “bear with one another and be gracious to each other.” If your language would not use if to express that idea, you could express the idea by using a word or phrase that refers to any time something happens. Alternate translation: [whenever]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / idiom
τις πρός τινα ἔχῃ μομφήν
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων καί χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς ἐάν τὶς πρός τινά ἔχῃ μομφήν καθώς καί ὁ Κύριος ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν οὕτως καί ὑμεῖς)
This phrase indicates a situation in which one person feels offended or hurt by another person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable idiom or an expression that indicates that one party has been offended or hurt by another. Alternate translation: [a person has been offended by another person]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns
πρός & ἔχῃ μομφήν
against & ˓may_be˒_having ˓a˒_complaint
If your language does not use an abstract noun to express the idea behind complaint, you could express the idea by translating the abstract noun as a verb. Alternate translation: [may complain against]
Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / infostructure
καθὼς καὶ ὁ Κύριος ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν, οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων καί χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς ἐάν τὶς πρός τινά ἔχῃ μομφήν καθώς καί ὁ Κύριος ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν οὕτως καί ὑμεῖς)
If your language would put the comparison after the command, you could switch them in your translation, including “forgive” in the new first clause. Alternate translation: [you should forgive others, just as the Lord forgave you]
Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / simile
καθὼς καὶ ὁ Κύριος ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων καί χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς ἐάν τὶς πρός τινά ἔχῃ μομφήν καθώς καί ὁ Κύριος ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν οὕτως καί ὑμεῖς)
Here Paul draws a comparison between how he wants the Colossians to forgive and how Jesus has forgiven them. Use a word or phrase that would normally be used for comparing things that are similar. Alternate translation: [in the same way that the Lord forgave you]
Note 8 topic: figures-of-speech / ellipsis
οὕτως καὶ ὑμεῖς
thus (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀνεχόμενοι ἀλλήλων καί χαριζόμενοι ἑαυτοῖς ἐάν τὶς πρός τινά ἔχῃ μομφήν καθώς καί ὁ Κύριος ἐχαρίσατο ὑμῖν οὕτως καί ὑμεῖς)
Paul leaves out words that could be needed in some languages to make a complete statement. If your language needs these words, you could supply words such as “forgive one another.” Alternate translation: [so also you should forgive each other]
OET (OET-LV) tolerating of_one_another and forgiving to_yourselves, if anyone may_be_having a_complaint against anyone, as also the master forgave to_you_all, thus also you_all forgive.
OET (OET-RV) tolerating each other, and forgiving anyone who has a complaint about another person. The master forgave all of you, so you also should forgive others.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.