For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
Parallel translations
- WEB For all the fullness was pleased to dwell in him;
- BSB For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him,
- NKJV For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
- NASB For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him,
- NLT For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ,
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Christ. The complete divine nature resides in the Son.
Overview
'All the fullness' refers to the totality of God's own being and perfections, which dwell in Christ by the Father's good pleasure. This directly counters any view that divine fullness was spread among many intermediaries or angelic beings. In Christ alone the believer meets the fullness of God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Col 2:9For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
- John 1:16And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.
- Eph 1:23Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
- Col 2:3In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.
- Col 3:11Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all.
- John 3:34For he whom God hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto him.
- Eph 4:10He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)
- Eph 1:3Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
- Luke 10:21In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.
- Eph 1:5Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
- Matt 11:25–27At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
The image of the invisible God, firstborn over creation, in whom all things hold together and all the fullness of God dwells bodily — supreme over every power.
How Colossians 1:19 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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