“And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;”
My Notes
What Does Colossians 2:13 Mean?
Paul paints a vivid before-and-after picture. Before: dead in sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh — spiritually lifeless and cut off from God's covenant people. After: quickened (made alive) together with Christ, with all trespasses forgiven.
The word "quickened" (syzōopoieō) means co-vivified — made alive together with Him. Your spiritual resurrection is joined to Christ's physical resurrection. When He came out of the tomb, in a real spiritual sense, you came with Him. Your new life isn't independent of His — it's embedded in it.
"Having forgiven you all trespasses" — all. Not most. Not the respectable ones. All. The Greek word for forgiveness here (charizomai) is rooted in charis — grace. This forgiveness is grace-based, comprehensive, and already accomplished. Paul uses the aorist tense — it's a completed action, not an ongoing process.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Is there a specific trespass you know God has forgiven but you haven't fully released? What keeps you holding on to it?
- 2.How does the word 'dead' change how you understand your need for God — not just improvement, but resurrection?
- 3.What does it feel like to consider that your forgiveness is completed — past tense, all trespasses — not conditional on your future performance?
- 4.How does being 'made alive together with Christ' change how you think about your daily life and purpose?
Devotional
Dead. That's where you started. Not sick, not struggling, not spiritually underperforming — dead. Paul doesn't soften it because the point isn't where you were. It's what God did while you were there.
He made you alive. Together with Christ. You didn't resuscitate yourself. You didn't pull yourself together enough for God to notice. While you were dead — unable to do anything about your condition — He acted.
And then: all trespasses forgiven. All of them. The ones you can name and the ones you've forgotten. The ones that still embarrass you at 2 a.m. and the ones you haven't committed yet. Forgiven. Past tense. Completed.
If you're still carrying guilt over something God has already forgiven, you're living in a reality that no longer exists. That doesn't mean consequences disappear or that sanctification is instant. But the legal status — guilty or forgiven — is settled. Paul says it's done.
You were dead. Now you're alive. Everything between those two states is grace.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And you being dead in your sins,.... Not corporeally, though sin had subjected them to a corporeal death, and their…
And you, being dead in your sins - Notes, Eph 2:1. And the uncircumcision of your flesh - That is, Gentiles, and giving…
And you, being dead in your sins - See the notes on Eph 2:1, etc.
The uncircumcision of your flesh - This must refer to…
The apostle here represents the privileges we Christians have above the Jews, which are very great.
I. Christ's death is…
And you It is as if the Apostle would have written, "and you with Him" carrying on the last sentence. But he pauses on…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture