For in Him
This phrase emphasizes the centrality of Christ in the Christian faith. The Greek word "ἐν" (en) signifies a fixed position in place, time, or state, indicating that all that follows is inherently and permanently found in Christ. Historically, this affirms the early church's understanding of Jesus as the locus of divine activity and presence. In a world filled with various philosophies and religious ideas, Paul asserts that the fullness of divine truth and life is found in Christ alone.

all the fullness
The Greek term "πᾶν τὸ πλήρωμα" (pan to plērōma) conveys the idea of completeness and totality. This phrase underscores that nothing of God is lacking in Christ. In the context of Colossians, Paul is countering the Gnostic idea that spiritual fullness could be found through secret knowledge or other intermediaries. Instead, he declares that everything that God is, in His essence and attributes, is fully present in Christ.

of the Deity
The word "θεότητος" (theotētos) is a rare term in the New Testament, used to express the divine nature or essence. It is stronger than the more common "θεῖος" (theios), which means divine or godlike. This indicates that Christ is not merely godlike or possessing divine qualities, but He embodies the very essence of God. This is a profound statement of Christ's divinity, affirming the doctrine of the Trinity and the belief that Jesus is fully God.

dwells
The Greek word "κατοικεῖ" (katoikei) means to settle or inhabit permanently. This suggests a continuous and enduring presence, not a temporary or partial one. In the historical context of the early church, this was a radical assertion against any teaching that diminished the full deity of Christ. It assures believers that Christ is the permanent dwelling place of God's fullness, offering a stable foundation for faith.

in bodily form
The phrase "σωματικῶς" (sōmatikōs) emphasizes the incarnation, the belief that God became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. This counters any early heresies that denied the physical reality of Jesus or separated His humanity from His divinity. It affirms that the divine nature was fully present in the human Jesus, bridging the gap between God and humanity. This truth is foundational for understanding the significance of the incarnation, where God fully entered into human experience to redeem and restore.

(9) In him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.--Here almost every word is emphatic. First, "All the fulness of the Godhead"--not a mere emanation from the Supreme Being. Next, "dwells" and remains for ever--not descending on Him for a time and leaving Him again. Lastly, "bodily," i.e., as incarnate in His humanity. The whole is an extension and enforcement of Colossians 1:19, "God was pleased that in Him all the fulness should dwell." The horror of all that was material, as having in it the seed of evil, induced denial either of the reality of our Lord's body, or of its inseparable connection with the Godhead in Him. Hence the emphasis here; as also we find (somewhat later) in St. John, "The Word was made flesh" (John 1:14); "The spirit which confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh . . . is the spirit of antichrist" (1John 4:3).

On the meaning of "fullness" (plerorna), see Colossians 1:10; Ephesians 1:3; Ephesians 3:19; Ephesians 4:13. Here it is only necessary to add, that, as in the later Gnosticism, so probably in its earlier forms, the word was used for the infinite nature of the Supreme Deity, out of which all the emanations (afterwards called 'ons) received in various degrees of imperfection, according to their capacity. Probably for that reason St. Paul uses it so emphatically here. In the same spirit, St. John declares (John 1:16), "Out of His (Christ's) fulness have all we received." It is not finite, but infinitely perfect; hence we all can draw from it, yet leave it unimpaired. . . .

Verse 9. - Because in him dwelleth all the fulness (or, completeness) of the Godhead bodily (Colossians 1:19; Philippians 2:6-8; Romans 1:3, 4; Romans 9:5; John 1:1, 14). In Colossians 1:18-20 we viewed a series of events; here we have an abiding fact. The whole plenitude of our Lord's Divine-human person and powers, as the complete Christ, was definitively constituted when, in the exercise of his kingly prerogative, "he sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." "From henceforth" that fulness evermore resides in him (comp. note, Colossians 1:19). The undivided pleroma of Colossians 1:19 now reveals its twofold nature: it is "the fulness of the Godhead," and yet "dwells corporeally in him." "Godhead" (θεότης) is the abstract of "God" (θεός), not of the adjective "Divine" (θεῖος: the Vulgate therefore, wrongly, divinitatis: comp. Romans 1:20; Acts 17:29; Wisd. 18:9), and denotes,"not Divine excellences, but the Divine nature" (Bengel); see Trench's 'Synonyms.' Schenkel and others, guided by a conjecture of Theodoret, have found here the Church, supporting their view by a very doubtful interpretation of Ephesians 1:23. Still more groundless is the identification of this pleroma with the created world. The apostle unmistakably affirms that the Divine nature, in its entirety, belongs to the Church's Christ. The literal sense of "bodily" (maintained by Meyer, Alford, Ellicott, Lightfoot, Hofmann, after Chrysostom and Athanasius) has been avoided by those who render it "wholly" (Jerome); "essentially, substantially" (Cyril, Theophylact, Calvin, Klopper), as opposed to "relatively" or "partially;" "truly" (Augustine, Erasmus, Bengel, Bleek), as opposed to "figuretively" (ver. 17). The adverb σωματικῶς (always literal in classical usage, along with its adjective) occurs only here in the New Testament; the adjective "bodily" in 1 Timothy 4:8; Luke 3:22. "The body of his flesh" in Colossians 1:22 affords a truer parallel than the language of ver. 17, where σῶμα, bears an exceptional sense (see note). Elsewhere St. Paul balances in similar fashion expressions relating to the twofold nature of Christ (see parallels). The assertion that "all the fulness of Deity" dwells in Christ negatives the Alexandrine "philosophy," with its cloud of mediating angel powers and spiritual emanations; the assertion that it dwells in him bodily equally condemns that contempt for the body and the material world which was the chief practical tenet of the same school (comp. notes on Colossians 1:22 and Colossians 2:23).

Parallel Commentaries ...


For
ὅτι (hoti)
Conjunction
Strong's 3754: Neuter of hostis as conjunction; demonstrative, that; causative, because.

in
ἐν (en)
Preposition
Strong's 1722: In, on, among. A primary preposition denoting position, and instrumentality, i.e. A relation of rest; 'in, ' at, on, by, etc.

[Christ]
αὐτῷ (autō)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative Masculine 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

all
πᾶν (pan)
Adjective - Nominative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3956: All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.

the
τὸ (to)
Article - Nominative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

fullness
πλήρωμα (plērōma)
Noun - Nominative Neuter Singular
Strong's 4138: From pleroo; repletion or completion, i.e. what fills, or what is filled.

of the
τῆς (tēs)
Article - Genitive Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

Deity
Θεότητος (Theotētos)
Noun - Genitive Feminine Singular
Strong's 2320: Deity, Godhead. From theos; divinity.

dwells
κατοικεῖ (katoikei)
Verb - Present Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 2730: To dwell in, settle in, be established in (permanently), inhabit. From kata and oikeo; to house permanently, i.e. Reside.

in bodily form.
σωματικῶς (sōmatikōs)
Adverb
Strong's 4985: Bodily, corporeally, belonging to the body. Adverb from somatikos; corporeally or physically.


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NT Letters: Colossians 2:9 For in him all the fullness (Coloss. Col Co)