It is interesting to note here that Paul describes the "things" of vs. 16 (whatever they are) as being a "shadow" (whatever that refers to) as being in the present.  This means that as far as he was concerned "they" still existed; i.e., they were not done away with at the cross about 30 years before! ¹  It is also interesting to note how quickly some people who comment on this verse change the tense to the past (for instance, to "were").  For examples, see some of those just mentioned above.  As another example note how Mussner inserts material into and drops material out of vs 17: "These things are [only] shadows of what was to come, the body belongs to Christ."  He has added the word "only" (at least he put that in brackets), turned the singular "shadow" into a plural, and supplied the word "belongs" with no indication to the reader that he has done so! ²  Ridderbos changes the last clause to "but the body is Christ" when it should be "but the body of Christ." ³

1. This is contra Ladd [ibid., page 554], Warren [ibid., page 5], Hess, Charles "Colossians Chapter Two," page 22, Brinsmead [ibid., page 6], Camping, Harold "Sunday the Sabbath?," page 6, Deck [ibid., page 86], Riggle [ibid., page 1], Rutherfurd, John St Paul's Epistles to Colossae and Laodicea. (T. & T. Clark, 1908): pages 67-8, and countless others.  Back to text

2. Mussner [ibid., page 143].  Back to text

3. Ridderbos, [ibid., page 284] cited by Buzzard, Anthony The Law, The Sabbath and New Testament Christianity. (Self-published, n.d.): page 28.  Back to text

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