Colossians 2:18

Let no man rob you of your prize by a voluntary humility and worshipping of the angels, dwelling in the things which he hath seen, vainly puffed up in his fleshly mind, and not holding fast the Head, from whom all the body, being supplied and knit together through the joints and bands, increaseth with the increase of God.

This passage is another admittedly difficult one, the rendition of various words and clauses being variously advocated; but such technical disputations lie without the perimeter of this work; and we shall content ourselves by undertaking an exegesis of the text as it stands in this version. We rely in part upon the affirmation of F. F. Bruce to the effect that the most accurate of the versions is the ASV.

Rob you of your prize ... The prize is eternal life; and the promise of it is jeopardized for everyone who turns from the worship of the one and only Saviour to worship angels, or any other creatures.

Voluntary humility and worshipping of angels ... As Peake said:

Their humility found expression in angel worship. It is therefore that lowliness that causes a man to think himself unworthy to come into fellowship with God, and therefore prompts the worship of angels. Such humility was perverted.[51]

Dwelling in things which he hath seen ... Paul made a sharp distinction between the things "that are seen" and things "that are unseen," that is, between the visible and the invisible, the latter being permanent, the other transient, mortal and ephemeral. See full treatment of this in my Commentary on 2Corinthians under "Seeing the Invisible." The error at Colossae was founded upon the visible, as contrasted with the invisible. This of course resulted in their being vainly puffed up in the fleshly mind.

Not holding fast the Head ... The Head is Christ; and any consideration, of any kind whatsoever, that results in the severance of the Christian from his perfect union with Christ, the same results immediately in his spiritual death. "Severance from the Head cuts off the supply of spiritual life."[52]

[51] Ibid., p. 532.

[52] J. R. Dummelow, op. cit., p. 983.