COL 1:15 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, pink:genitive/possessor.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

UST God’s Son perfectly reveals who God is, even though no one can see God. The Son existed before God created anything, and he has first place over everything that God has created.

AICNT Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation,

OEB For Christ is the incarnation of the invisible God – firstborn and head of all creation;

CSB He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

NLT Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation,

NIV The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

CEV Christ is exactly like God, who cannot be seen. He is the first-born Son, superior to all creation.

ESV He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

NASB He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

LSB Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

WEBBE He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

WMBB (Same as above)

MSG Christ Holds It All Together (15-20) We look at this Son and see the God who cannot be seen. We look at this Son and see God’s original purpose in everything created. For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invisible, rank after rank after rank of angels—everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him. He was there before any of it came into existence and holds it all together right up to this moment. And when it comes to the church, he organizes and holds it together, like a head does a body.

NET He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,

LSV who is the image of the invisible God, firstborn of all creation,

FBV The Son is the visible picture of the invisible God. He was before[fn] all creation,

1:15 Literally, “first-born,” denoting position rather than timing of birth.

TCNT He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

T4T God’s Son reveals perfectly what God, his Father, is like, whom no one can see. God’s Son existed before and ranks above everything that God has created.

LEB who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all[fn] creation,

1:15 *Translated as a genitive of subordination (Wallace, GGBB, 104)

NRSV He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;

NKJV He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

NAB He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

BBE Who is the image of the unseen God coming into existence before all living things;

Moff He is the likeness of the unseen God, born first before all the creation--

Wymth Christ is the visible representation of the invisible God, the Firstborn and Lord of all creation.

ASV who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;

DRA Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

YLT who is the image of the invisible God, first-born of all creation,

Drby who is image of the invisible [fn]God, firstborn of all creation;

1.15 Elohim

RV who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;
(who is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; )

SLT Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation:

Wbstr Who is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of every creature:

KJB-1769 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
(Who is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of every creature: )

KJB-1611 Who is the image of the inuisible God, the first borne of euery creature.
(Who is the image of the inuisible God, the first-born of every creature.)

Bshps Who is the image of the inuisible God, the first borne of all creatures.
(Who is the image of the inuisible God, the first-born of all creatures.)

Gnva Who is the image of the inuisible God, the first begotten of euery creature.
(Who is the image of the inuisible God, the first begotten of every creature. )

Cvdl Which is the ymage of the inuisyble God, first begotte before all creatures.
(Which is the image of the inuisyble God, first begotten before all creatures.)

TNT which is the ymage of the invisible god fyrst begotten of all creatures.
(which is the image of the invisible god first begotten of all creatures. )

Wycl Which is the ymage of God vnuysible, the first bigetun of ech creature.
(Which is the image of God invisible, the first begotten of each creature.)

Luth welcher ist das Ebenbild des unsichtbaren Gottes, der Erstgeborene vor allen Kreaturen.
(which is the Ebenbild the unsichtbaren God’s, the/of_the Erstgeborene before/in_front_of all/everyone Kreaturen.)

ClVg qui est imago Dei invisibilis, primogenitus omnis creaturæ:[fn]
(who/which it_is imago of_God invisibilis, firstborn everyone creatures: )

1.15 Qui est imago. Aliter imago regis est in nummo, aliter in filio. Nos sumus nummus, in quibus imago Dei Christus Filius. Nulla imago Dei debet coli, nisi illa quæ, hoc est quod ipse, nec ipsa pro illo, sed cum illo.

1.15 Who it_is imago. Aliter imago king it_is in/into/on nummo, otherwise in/into/on son. We we_are nummus, in/into/on to_whom imago of_God Christ/Messiah Son. Nulla imago of_God must coli, except that which, this it_is that exactly_that/himself, but_not herself for that/there, but when/with that/there.

UGNT ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου, πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως;
(hos estin eikōn tou Theou tou aoratou, prōtotokos pasaʸs ktiseōs;)

SBL-GNT ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου, πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως,
(hos estin eikōn tou theou tou aoratou, prōtotokos pasaʸs ktiseōs,)

RP-GNT ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου, πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως·
(hos estin eikōn tou theou tou aoratou, prōtotokos pasaʸs ktiseōs;)

TC-GNT ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου, πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως·
(hos estin eikōn tou Theou tou aoratou, prōtotokos pasaʸs ktiseōs; )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 1:13–23: Jesus Christ is greater than everything

In this section, Paul stated these things: Jesus is equal to God in every way. He has always been with God and he (with God) created the world. God has freed Christians from the power of Satan and has placed them under the rule of his Son, Christ Jesus. God has accepted those who believe in Jesus as his own people. This was possible because Jesus died on the cross instead of them.

Paragraph 1:15–20

Theme: Jesus Christ has shown exactly what God is like. He is the great ruler over everything that he, with God, created.

In this paragraph Paul was emphasizing how great Jesus is. This was in order to oppose the following things that the false teachers were teaching the Colossian Christians.

The Greek people believed that evil spirits created and then controlled the world. A summary of Paul’s response to that false teaching is: No, Jesus, who is equal to God, created the world and now controls it.
The Greeks also said that God’s Messiah would never live in a human body. A summary of Paul’s response is: When Jesus, God’s Messiah, became a man, he retained all the character and power of God.

1:15a

The Son is the image of the invisible God,

¶ No one can see God, but when his Son became a man, he revealed God to people.
¶ We^(incl) cannot see God, but when his Son, Christ Jesus, became a man, he caused us to understand what God is like, because he is just like him.

The Son: The Greek word that the BSB translates as The Son is literally the pronoun “he,” as in the NIV. It refers back to “His beloved Son” in 1:13b. See the note in 1:14a about Paul’s use of pronouns in this section. Refer to Jesus in a way that is natural in your language.

the image of the invisible God: When Jesus, who is God, became a man, he retained all the characteristics of God, yet people could see him. Therefore, when people saw Jesus they saw exactly what God is like, that is, they saw the character of God. This is why Paul called Jesus the image of God. Be sure that your translation does not cause your readers to think that Jesus merely showed people what God looked like.

1:15b

the firstborn over all creation.

Just as a firstborn son has the greatest authority in the family, so Christ has the greatest authority over everything that God has created.
He has supreme authority over all that God has created.

the firstborn over all creation: This does not refer to when Jesus was born in Bethlehem, nor does it mean that Jesus was the first person that God created. No one created Jesus. He has always existed with God and is one with God.

Scholars interpret this phrase in one of three ways:

Some biblical scholars believe that the word firstborn in this verse means, “the one who has the authority that the firstborn son has.” Therefore, the firstborn over all creation means, “the one who has supreme authority over all creation.” The word firstborn is used this way in Psalm 89:27:
And I will also appoint him my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth.
Other scholars believe that the firstborn over all creation means, “the one who existed before anything was created.”
The other main interpretation is that it means both, that is, “the one who existed from the beginning of time and who has supreme authority over all creation.”

Throughout this section Paul was emphasizing that Christ rules over everything, so the first interpretation is the most likely. The GNT clarifies this by saying:

He is the first-born Son, superior to all created things. (GNT)

Here are some other ways you could translate this part of the verse:

He is more important than everything God created.

He is higher in rank/authority than everything God created.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

ὅς ἐστιν εἰκὼν τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου

who (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ὅς ἐστίν εἰκών τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως)

Here, image does not mean a representation of something that is visible, like a photo or a reflection. Instead, image refers to how the Son perfectly reveals the Father. If it would be helpful in your language, you could replace image with an expression that emphasizes how the Son reveals the Father. Alternate translation: [What the invisible God is like can be seen in his Son]

Note 2 topic: translate-unknown

τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ ἀοράτου

˱of˲_the God ¬the invisible

The word invisible does not mean that God the Father could be seen by people but hides himself. Instead, it means that human sight is unable to perceive God the Father, since he is not part of the created world. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a phrase to clarify the idea. Alternate translation: [of God, whom humans are unable to see]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως

˓the˒_firstborn ˱of˲_all creation

The word firstborn does not refer to when Jesus was born. Instead, it refers to his position as the eternal Son of God the Father. In this sense, firstborn is a metaphor that means that he existed as God before God created anything and that he is most important. You could emphasize either or both of these ideas in your translation. Alternate translation: [God’s Son, the most important one over all creation] or [God’s Son, who existed as God before all creation]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

πάσης κτίσεως

˱of˲_all creation

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea behind creation, you could express the idea by using a verb such as “create.” Alternate translation: [of all that God created]

Parallel COL 1:15

Section 1:13–23: Jesus Christ is greater than everything

Paragraph 1:15–20

1:15a

1:15b