Verse Lens · Expanded explanation

Colossians 4:16 Explained in Context

Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.

Selected verse

Verse 16. And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.

King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions

Quick Meaning

The letter must be read in Colossae and Laodicea, and the Colossians must also read the letter coming from Laodicea.

Read It With

  • Colossians 4:7-18

Read Colossians 4:7-18 as a complete movement. Tychicus and Onesimus carry news and encouragement; a diverse network of coworkers and house churches exchanges greetings and letters; Epaphras prays for Colossae, Laodicea, and Hierapolis; Archippus is charged to fulfill ministry; and Paul's claimed hand closes with bonds and grace. At 4:16, focus on this verse's contribution: The letter must be read in Colossae and Laodicea, and the Colossians must also read the letter coming from Laodicea.

Why This Verse Appears Here

At 4:16, this verse advances Colossians 4:7-18 with this contribution: The letter must be read in Colossae and Laodicea, and the Colossians must also read the letter coming from Laodicea.

Read Colossians 4:10–18 together

Why these verses belong together: Coworker greetings, Lycus Valley connections, letter exchange, Archippus's charge, autograph claim, bonds, and grace close the letter.

Verse 10. Aristarchus my fellowprisoner saluteth you, and Marcus, sister’s son to Barnabas, (touching whom ye received commandments: if he come unto you, receive him;)

Verse 11. And Jesus, which is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These only are my fellowworkers unto the kingdom of God, which have been a comfort unto me.

Verse 12. Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God.

Verse 13. For I bear him record, that he hath a great zeal for you, and them that are in Laodicea, and them in Hierapolis.

Verse 14. Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you.

Verse 15. Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea, and Nymphas, and the church which is in his house.

Verse 16. And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.

Verse 17. And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which thou hast received in the Lord, that thou fulfil it.

Verse 18. The salutation by the hand of me Paul. Remember my bonds. Grace be with you. Amen.

Follow the Context

  1. Tychicus and Onesimus are sent as beloved, faithful brothers to report, learn the community's situation, and encourage hearts.
  2. Aristarchus, Mark, Jesus Justus, Epaphras, Luke, and Demas greet the church; Epaphras labors in prayer for the Lycus Valley communities.
  3. The Colossians greet Laodicea and Nympha's house church, exchange letters, charge Archippus, recognize the claimed Pauline hand, remember the writer's bonds, and receive grace.

Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation

“epistle from Laodicea”

In plain language: A letter coming from Laodicea is to be read.

The phrase does not name its author, original destination, contents, or canonical identity.

Why it matters: It preserves a real documentary uncertainty.

How certain? strong

What This Verse Is Not Saying

The Laodicean letter does not survive here and cannot be confidently identified with Ephesians or any modern alleged discovery.

What Remains True

Early Christian teaching circulated through public reading and inter-community exchange rather than private possession.

How It Can Shape Life

  • Share teaching across accountable communities and preserve provenance, while admitting when a source is lost.

Teach It Back

Explain Colossians 4:16's exact contribution to Colossians 4:7-18. Include its role in the argument, one material wording or alternative, one uncertainty where present, and what this verse does not permit.

Your explanation stays in this browser. It is not sent or saved.

Continue in Context

The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.

Read Colossians 4:7-18 — Coworkers, Neighboring Churches, a Lost Letter, and Grace Close the Letter
Sources used for this Verse Lens

How certain is this explanation? probable

Where care is needed

Ephesians, a lost Pauline letter, a letter to Laodicea, and other proposals have been offered; none is textually certain.

These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.

Biblical text

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society

USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.

Supports: The exact pinned KJV wording, paragraph data, and supplied-word markup for Colossians 4:7-18.

Exact location: eBible/CrossWire eng-kjv2006 USFM, source files dated 2026-08-19, Colossians 4:7-18; archive and normalized-corpus SHA-256 values are recorded in the shared library policy.

Open source ↗

Greek textual evidence

The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition

Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos

Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010

Supports: The critically edited Greek wording, connective structure, lexical forms, and variation markers.

Exact location: Official Faithlife SBLGNT repository, data/sblgnt/text/Col.txt, Colossians 4:7-18.

Open the Colossians Greek text file ↗

Translation and textual notes

NET Bible - Colossians with translators' and textual notes

Biblical Studies Press

Biblical Studies Press, 2005-2026 online edition

Supports: Material translation choices, syntax, and textual variants checked at the cited verses.

Exact location: NET Bible official Colossians chapter 4, translator, study, and textual notes attached to Colossians 4:7-18.

Open NET Colossians 4 notes

modern open commentary

Colossians

Alistair I. Wilson

The Gospel Coalition Bible Commentary, 2023

Supports: A current pro-Pauline commentary check on literary flow, theology, pastoral purpose, and major interpretations.

Exact location: Alistair I. Wilson, The Gospel Coalition Bible Commentary, “Colossians,” TGC Final Greetings (4:7-18).

Open source ↗

modern annotated new testament

Colossians introduction and annotations in The Jewish Annotated New Testament

Peter Zaas; edited by Amy-Jill Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler

Oxford University Press, 2011

Supports: A modern historical-critical and Jewish-context check on authorship, setting, calendar, ethics, slavery, and textual questions.

Exact location: Peter Zaas, “Colossians,” in The Jewish Annotated New Testament (2011 first edition), print pp. 371-372.

Open source ↗

peer reviewed open access article

The spirit: Left out and then reintroduced? Colossians 3:16 and Ephesians 5:18-19 in the authorship debate

J. Gertrud Toensing

Scriptura 119.1, 2020

Supports: Direct-Pauline and Deutero-Pauline evidence, a coworker-composition alternative, relation to Philemon and Ephesians, and the hypothesis's explicit limits.

Exact location: J. Gertrud Toensing, ‘The spirit: Left out and then reintroduced?,’ Scriptura 119.1 (2020), sections Authorship debate - Colossians, Proposed hypothesis, The Word and the Spirit in Colossians 3:16, Implications, and Conclusion.

Open source ↗
Open the complete thought-unit research record
Open a verse without taking it out of context.

Try 1:15, or 1:15.

Choose book, chapter, and verse