What Does Colossians 1:23 Mean in the King James?
If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Faith here is trust with its weight on a foundation, so hope is something you stand in rather than a feeling you chase.
THE MEANING
You remain in trust with a footing beneath you, so the hope carried in the good news does not have to be recreated each time life shifts. The message you have heard is preached to every creature under heaven, and the voice names itself as a minister of that message. Hope appears as a grounded position within a message larger than the self.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
Hope is only a passing feeling that loses its footing whenever circumstances shift.
THE ROOT
πίστις
pistis
GROWS FROM
πείθω
peithō
To persuade or win trust; in this word family, confidence rests on what has persuaded it.
“faith” in this verse is pistis. The word pistis (πίστις, trust) carries reliance rather than detached opinion. Beside “grounded,” it pictures trust as weight placed on a foundation.
ALSO GROWS
peithō: Persuade; win trust.
πείθω
Trust is a response to what has proved persuasive, rather than bare assent.
pistos: Firm, steady; trustworthy.
πιστός
This related word carries the dependability that “grounded and settled” makes visible.
τεθεμελιωμένοι
tethemeliōmenoi
GROWS FROM
θεμελιόω
themelioō
To lay as a foundation; establish on a base.
“grounded” in this verse is tethemeliōmenoi. The Greek form describes a foundation already laid, with its result still holding. Hope is pictured as having a footing beneath it, not as something that must be rebuilt with every change.
ALSO GROWS
themelios: Foundation; foundation stone.
θεμέλιος
This noun makes the image beneath “grounded” concrete: a base on which a life can stand.
themelioō: Lay a foundation; establish.
θεμελιόω
The verb presents groundedness as an established condition that continues to hold.
THE PATTERN
Hope holds its place when trust is established on a foundation.
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;THE THREAD
That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love,“Grounded” here and in Colossians 1:23 translates the same Greek verb, θεμελιόω (themelioō, to lay a foundation). Ephesians names love as the foundation, opening the picture of continuing in trust as being held by something already beneath you.
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