Colossians 1:16Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

"All things," he says, "were created through Him and for Him." Thus "through Him" means the same as "for Him," because after saying "in Him," ἐν αὐτῷ, he added, "and for Him," δι' αὐτόν.

What does "unto Him," εἰς αὐτόν, mean? It means that the essence of all things is established upon Him.

He not only brought this from non-being into being, but even now contains it. If anything were removed from His providence, it would be destroyed and perish.

But the Apostle did not say "contains," which would have been somewhat coarser. He used a subtler expression: "it is established upon Him." It is enough only to rest upon Him, and He will support and firmly hold it.

Thus the title "firstborn" is used in the same sense, as one who constitutes the support. This does not show that He is of like essence with creatures, but that all exists in Him and through Him.

So also elsewhere, when he says, "I laid a foundation" (1 Cor 3:10), he speaks not of essence, but of action.

So that you should not think He is a ministerial instrument, the Apostle says that He contains this. This means no less than creation itself, and for us even more.

The first is joined to skill, while the latter is not. What is held by Him is not destroyed.

"All things were created through Him and for Him," δι' αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰς αὐτόν.

See, what he earlier expressed by "in Him," ἐν αὐτῷ, he now expresses by "through Him," δι' αὐτοῦ. So also the Evangelist John says, "All things came to be through Him," δι' αὐτοῦ (Jn 1:3).

But in saying "all things," he did not include the Spirit. For the Spirit is not one of all those things, but One absolutely, as there is one God and one Lord.

Thus everything that has being was created through Him. Then, so that you should not consider Him a servant, he adds, "and for Him," εἰς αὐτόν, that is, all things are held together in Him.

He not only created, but also contains all things. Therefore, if creation were deprived of His providence, it would perish.

He did not say "contains," but something much subtler: "it rests on Him and is held together." This alone, that creatures rest on Him, is enough for their support and preservation.

This is no less than creating, and even greater, especially in relation to us. For we too may produce clothing or a dwelling, but we cannot preserve it from decay. He both created and preserves.

The Greek ἔκτισται means not only that something has been created, but also that, once created, it lives. Therefore the meaning is: all things received being through Him, and because of Him preserve that being.

By "dominions," "principalities," and "powers," he names those to whom care for the nations has been entrusted. For Michael ruled over the Jews, and blessed Daniel names the prince of Persia and the prince of Greece.

By the words "all things were created through Him," the Apostle signifies the first creation. By "for Him," he indicates His activity after the Incarnation.

For it is said, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation" (2 Cor 5:17). Again, "to sum up all things in Christ" (Eph 1:10). And in the Prophet, "there will be a new heaven and a new earth" (Isa 65:17).

Also, "the old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Cor 5:17; Isa 43:18-19).

We hope that this change will be accomplished, for "creation itself will be freed from its bondage to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God" (Rom 8:21).

That here the name "firstborn" has the meaning of primacy, the following words make clear to us.

Principalities are those who rule even over good angels. By arranging when something must be done, they exercise authority over other subordinate spirits, disposing them to fulfill divine ministries.

Dominions are those who surpass even the authority of principalities by the loftiness of their rank. To have principality means to be first before others; to have dominion means even to possess all who are subject.

Therefore those angelic hosts distinguished by wondrous might are called dominions, because the rest are subject to them in obedience.

Thrones are those hosts before whom Almighty God always presides for the utterance of judgment. Since in Latin we call thrones "seats," those who are filled with such grace of the Godhead are called God's thrones.

The Lord judges upon them and through them utters His judgments. Therefore it is said through the Psalmist: "Thou hast sat upon the throne, judging righteousness" (Ps 9:5).

What is signified by the throne, if not those angelic powers which, by the dignity of a higher place, surpass even the angels?

Since angels are called messengers, angels are often sent to announce something to men. But thrones are never sent for the ministry of a messenger, because the Creator of all rests upon them in the most exalted height.

Therefore the Apostle Paul, describing the ranks of the heavenly hosts which he saw when caught up to the third heaven, says: "whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created through Him and for Him."

Thus he spoke of thrones before those angelic ranks above which he saw them exalted.

Those in heaven he divides into visible and invisible. He did not name the visible things in heaven, the sun, moon, and stars, because these too are visible and known.

But he wrote the names of the invisible and unknown ones, saying, "whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers."

Yet he did not speak of all, but only of four. He had already spoken of three, namely angels, powers, and archangels (Rom 8:38). Moses, David, and Ezekiel spoke of the Cherubim, and Isaiah of the Seraphim (1 Thess 4:16; Gen 3:24; Ps 17:11; Ezek 10:1; Isa 6:2).

Learning from these, Dionysius the Areopagite handed down exalted contemplations concerning the nine ranks of angels.

Notice also this: the divine Apostle did not say, "He came to be," nor "He was born before all," but said, "and He is before all."

For the word "is" declares the ever-existing, timeless, and eternal being of the Son of God.

Having taught that He has ever-existing and timeless being, and that He is Creator, Sustainer, and Ruler, that is, that He is true God, in the following words he describes His humanity.

One cannot fail to see from these names that they are adapted to ordinary human ideas about different offices in earthly states.

In explaining these names, interpreters affirm that each earthly ministry has its patron in the corresponding choir of angels. In Holy Scripture we indeed encounter names of angels who are called princes of different kingdoms (Dan 10:13; Dan 12:1).

It is better for us to suppose that through so many turns of speech only this is expressed: whatever one may think necessary in the act of creation is all in the Creator Son, manifested by Him, and placed into the work of creation.

God the Son created all things Himself, by His own power and for Himself. Nothing assisting from outside entered here.

All things were created by Him, that is, by Him as the Firstborn just mentioned, and, still higher, as the Son of God.

The work of creation is the work of the tri-hypostatic God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, indivisibly. Athanasius the Great repeatedly expresses this thus: all things were created by the Father in the Son through the Holy Spirit.

Or again, by the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit. Therefore the Father is Creator, the Son is Creator, and the Holy Spirit is Creator. Yet there are not three Creators, but one Creator.

The prophet David confesses this thus: By the word of the Lord the heavens were established, and by the Spirit of His mouth all their host (cf. Ps 33:6).

If in the writings of the New Testament we meet more places where creation is ascribed to the Son, this is because the holy Apostles had the greatest need to prove the divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ.

He is the incarnate Son of God. In Him the visible human nature concealed His invisible Godhead. The strongest proof of divinity is creative power. For He who creates from nothing is the Existing One.

His essence is to be, containing in Himself the whole fullness of perfections. So also in the present Epistle, the Apostle needed to set before them the divine majesty of Christ the Savior.

He therefore says that by Him, as Son of God and God, all things were created. Of course, in his mind he does not exclude the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Let us note here that all attempts to determine what exactly belonged to the Son in the work of creation should not be regarded as deserving full agreement, respect, and attention.

For example, such expressions are considered to explain much: that the Son is, in the work of creation, causa instrumentalis or causa exemplaris.

By the first, it is meant that the Son is the instrument of creation. By the second, that He, as Wisdom, is the holder of the ideas of all creatures.

Both expressions seem to explain something, but both remove the Son from creative action. If the Son is an instrument, then He does not create, but the Father creates by Him.

If He is only the holder of ideas, then He appears as something at rest, not acting. Besides, is it reasonable to say that, among persons of God equal in all things, one is the instrument of another?

And is it fitting to think that the ideas of creatures are only in the Son, and not also in the Father and the Holy Spirit?

If they are also in Them, then why philosophize and say the Son is causa exemplaris? If it is fitting to apply the work of creation to the activity of our soul, then let each consider how the soul acts.

Whatever it does, it always works with all its powers: intellect, will, and feeling. But if you begin to analyze and divide what belongs to which power in the work, you will not be able to distinguish it precisely.

If even in our own action we cannot discover such distinctions, how shall we devise what belongs to which Person in the work of the tri-hypostatic God?

This is all the more so because the likeness of three powers in the one soul to the three hypostases in the one God is extremely weak. Yet it may be considered when reflecting on God, because the image of God is in the soul.

All things means all that exists. Then he enumerates: what is in heaven and on earth, that is, the earth with all its creatures, and heaven with all that exists in it.

Then, since at the phrase what is in heaven someone might limit his thought only to the sun, moon, and stars, while the Apostle needed to indicate not only this, he added, visible and invisible.

It is as though he were saying: I do not mean this alone, but also what is hidden in them. I mean not only the visible world, but also the invisible, spiritual world.

Finally, so that no one would exclude anyone in this world of spirits from the number of those created by God the Son, the Apostle lists their hosts by name: whether thrones, dominions, principalities, or powers.

He concludes: all things were created by Him and in Him. Everything, everything you might imagine and recognize as existing, all was created by Him.

Saint Paul especially needed to fix attention on this invisible world of the heavenly spiritual powers. The false teachers who were tempting the Colossians speculated about them improperly and placed Christ, Jesus, the Son, in their rank.

The Apostle says that the Lord Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God, is not only not numbered among them. On the contrary, He is their Creator and God.

He lists only four of their hosts, we must suppose, merely by way of example. One may add: these and all their other hosts, whatever they are.

There was no need to enumerate all the angelic ranks. The discourse is not about them, but about the divinity of the Lord and Savior, which is proved above all by creative power.

Having said, all things were created by Him and in Him, the Apostle makes it understood that nothing remains uncreated by Him, except, of course, the Spirit who proceeds from the Father. See blessed Theophylact.