1As for you, masters, give your servants what is fair and reasonable, knowing that you yourselves have a Master in heaven.
Further instructions
2 ① Be steadfast in prayer and even spend the night praying and giving thanks. 3Pray especially for us and our preaching: may the Lord open a door for us that we may announce the mystery of Christ. Because of this I am in chains; 4pray then that I may be able to reveal this mystery as I should.
5Deal wisely with those who do not belong to the Church; take advantage of every opportunity. 6Let your conversation be pleasing with a touch of wit. Know how to speak to everyone in the best way.
7Tychicus will give news of me. He is our dear brother and for me a faithful assistant and fellow worker for the Lord. 8I am purposely sending him to give you news of me and to encourage you. 9With him I am sending Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of yours. They will tell you about everything that is happening here.
10My companion in prison, Aristarchus, greets you, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas, about whom you have already received instructions. If he calls on you, receive him warmly. 11Jesus, called Justus, also greets you. They are the only Jewish people working with me for the kingdom of God, and because of that they have been a comfort to me.
12Greetings from your countryman Epaphras, a good servant of Christ Jesus. He constantly battles for you through his prayer that you be perfect and firm in whatever God asks of you. 13I assure you that he has worked hard for you, as well as for those at Laodicea and Hierapolis.
14Greetings from Luke, our dear doctor and from Demas. 15Greet the brothers and sisters of Laodicea, and don’t forget Nympha and the church that gathers in her house.
16After reading this letter, see that it is read in the Church of the Laodiceans, and have the letter they received read in yours. 17And say to Archipus, “Do not forget the ministry given to you in the Lord.”
18Greetings in my own hand, Paul. Remember that I am in chains. Grace be with you.
- Col 4,2 All this is commented on in Ephesians 6:18-21. Onesimus is a runaway slave who returns to Colossae with Tychicus after Paul converted him to the faith (see Letter to Philemon). The evangelist Mark, now reconciled with Paul (see Acts 15:38), is with him. Luke (v. 14) mentioned here is the author of the Gospel and Acts. We can see there was much communication between churches of different places. Each one was not locked within its own community: had this been the case, within a short time, there would have been as many religions as there were churches. Quite to the contrary, they were conscious of being the Church of Christ, established in various places, but with one testimony concerning Christ, which explains the interest the believers had in keeping in close contact with one another. At a time in which it seemed difficult to preserve unity due to the distance and differences among the people, the power that preserved unity - more than a rigid organization - was the profound sense all the people had that the church was a communion or a community enlivened by the Spirit of Christ. Nowadays when we attempt to form basic Christian communities, we must also be careful to remain in contact and in harmony with other communities.
