ROMANS 14:5-6 AND COLOSSIANS 2:16 IN SOCIAL CONTEXT

By Norman H Young
Avondale College
COORANBON NS! 2265
A"#$%al&a
I In$%od"'$&on
There is very little agreement among scholars concerning the interpretation of Col 2:8-
23. However, it is generally accepted, even by those who arge for a syncretistic heresy in
Colossians, that the bac!grond of verse"# is $ewish.
"
There is also wide spport for the view
that %om "&:"-23 parallels to a considerable degree the isse in Col 2:"3-22.
2
The main
elements in common between the two passages are the references to not 'dging (Col 2:"#)
%om "&:&, "*, "3, 22+) to holy days (Col 2:"#) %om "&:,-#+) to scrples abot food (Col 2:"#,
2"-22) %om "&: 2-3, #b, "&-"-, 2*-22+, and to dying and rising with Christ (Col 2:"2-"3, 2*)
3:"-3) %om "&:8-.+. /e shall start then by loo!ing at the contention over days in %om "&:,-#.
II T(e I##"e ove% Day# &n Ro) 14:5-6
%omans "&:,-# }O" meVn (gaVr) krivnei hJmevran par= hJmevran, o}" deV
krivnei pa'san hJmevran: e{kasto" ejn tw'/ ijdivw/ noi p!hro"oreivs#w$ oJ
"ronw'n thVn hJmevran k%rivw/ "ronei': kaiV oJ ejs#ivwn k%rivw/ ejs#ivei,
e%j&aristei' gaVr tw'/ #ew'/: kaiV oJ mhV ejs#ivwn k%rivw/ o%jk ejs#ivei kaiV
e%j&aristei' tw'/ #ew'/$
"
0or a thorogh srvey of the varios viewpoints regarding the natre of the Colossian
challenge see $ohn 1. C. 2arclay, New Testament Guides: Colossians and Philemon
(3heffield: 4cademic 5ress, "..-+ 3--,,) 4. T. 6incoln and 4. $. 1. /edderbrn, The
Theology of the Later Pauline Letters (Cambridge: C75, "..3+ 3--".
2
C. 8. 2arrett, The Epistle to the Romans (29TC) 6ondon: 4. : C. 2lac!, ".,-+ 2,--
2,8) $ames ;. <. ;nn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon (9=<TC) <rand
%apids, 1=>Carlisle, ?ngland: ?erdmans>5aternoster, "..#+ "-3) ;avid 1. Hay, Colossians
(49TC) 9ashville, T9: 4bingdon, 2***+ "*3) %ichard ?. ;e1aris, The Colossian
Controversy: Wisdom in Dispute at Colossae ($39T33 .#) 3heffield: $3@T 5ress, "..&+ ,&.
2
The verb krivnw is sed in v. , with the meaning Ato distingish,B Ato ad'dge,B Ato
prefer,B Ato separate,B Ato decide.B
3
The preposition parav with the accsative hJmevran is
comparative (one day more than another day+.
&
The copling of o'" meVn with o}" dev
emphasises a contrast, that is, Aone ad'dges thisCbt another ad'dges that.B /hat then is
the dispte between these two attitdes regarding days all abotD
0irstly, it is important to note that the contrast is not between someone who
distingishes one day from another day (or other days+ and someone who esteems no day at
all. ;e 6acey, for eEample, has the Astrong,B sch as 5al, observing $ewish holy days, while
on the other hand he sggests Athe consciences of the wea! might well have forbidden them
from en'oying the festivals.B
,
The great ma'ority of commentators ta!e the opposite view and
arge that it is the Awea!B who observe the days and not the Astrong.B
#
9evertheless, many of
these commentators still see the isse as being between those who observe festival or 3abbath
days and those who observe no day.
-
Cranfield translates krivnei pa'san hJmevran as
3
63$, 24<;, sv krivnw$
&
24<;, ===, 3 (p. #"#+.
,
;. %. de 6acey, AThe 3abbath>3nday Festion and the 6aw in the 5aline Corps,B
in ;. 4. Carson Ged.H, !rom "a##ath to Lord$s Day: % &i#li'al( )istori'al( and Theologi'al
*nvestigation (<rand %apids, 1=: Iondervan, ".82+ "82.
#
;oglas $. 1oo, The Epistle to the Romans (9=C9T) <rand %apids, 1=: ?erdmans,
"..#+ 8&2.
-
1oo, Romans, 8&2-8&3) $. ;. <. ;nn, Romans +,-. (/2C 38b, 2 vols) ;allas, TJ:
/ord, ".88+ ==.8""-8"2) %obert $ewett, Romans: % Commentary (Hermeneia) 1inneapolis:
0ortress, 2**-+ 8&&-8&,) $ohn 1. <. 2arclay, AK;o we ndermine the 6awDL 4 3tdy of
%omans "&."-",.#,B in $ames ;. <. ;nn (ed.+, Paul and the /osai' Law (<rand %apids,
1=>Cambridge, 78: ?erdmans, 2**"+ 2.3.
3
Ama!es no difference between days,B that is, has abandoned all the ceremonial festival days.
8

=f 5al were saying one observes 3abbath above other days bt another observes no day at all,
one wold eEpect something li!e }O" meVn krivnei mivan hJmevran parav
pavsa" hJmevra", o}" deV o%j krivnei hJmevran. 2t 5al says no sch thing.
.
3econdly, it is not a case of one day (3abbath+ contrasted with another day (3nday+.
?ven to sggest the possibility of the isse being Adifferences relating to the transition from
the observance of the 3abbath to the 6ordLs ;ayB goes well beyond the evidence of the teEt to
say nothing of the historical realities at the time of the writing of %omans.
"*
2rce /interLs
proposal that the dispte involved non-3abbatarian G3ndayDH and 3abbatarian G3abbathH
congregations in %ome is very nli!ely.
""
Thirdly, we can as readily dismiss the sggestion
that the debate was over the seventh-day 3abbath as opposed to sabbatising the whole wee!.
"2

8
C. ?. 2. Cranfield, The Epistle to the Romans (=CC, 2 vols) ?dinbrgh: T. : T. Clar!,
".-.+ ==.-*,) @tto 1ichel, Der &rief an die R0mer (8?89T, "3 4fl.) <Mttingen:
Nandenhoec! : %precht, ".##+ 338, Ooting 4dolf 3chlatter, Gottes Gere'htig1eit, 3-"
(?.T.) Romans: The Righteousness of God G5eabody, 14: Hendric!son, "..,H 2,&-2,,+.
.
/ayne 1ee!s ignores the second clase in saying that A3abbath observance is
perhaps the most obvios instance of someone who K'dges one day in contradistinction from
another,L bt need not be the only caseB (A$dgment and the 2rother: %omans "&:"-",:3,B in
<erald 0. Hawthorne and @tto 2etP (eds+, Tradition and *nterpretation in the New Testament:
Essays in )onor of E Earle Ellis G<rand %apids, 1=>TQbingen: ?erdmans>$. C. 2. 1ohr
R5al 3iebac!S, ".8-H 2.2+.
"*
1atthew 2lac!, Romans (9C2) 6ondon: @liphants, ".-3+"##.
""
2rce /inter, A%oman 6aw and 3ociety in %omans "2-",,B in 5eter @a!es (ed.+
Rome in the &i#le and the Early Chur'h (Carlisle, 7.8>2a!er 1=: 5aternoster>2a!er, 2**2+
.*-.2.
&
0orthly, there is little merit in the ideas that the isse involved lc!y and nlc!y days or fast
days.
"3
The langage of the teEt ma!es sense only if a grop of days is the conteEt of the
contention. Therefore, the contrast is between one who considers certain days in a grop of
days as more important than other days in the same grop, and someone who thin!s every day
in the grop of days is eOally important. (a'san hJmevran means Aevery day within a
grop of holy days is holyB and not Aevery day is of no religios significance.B =t is after all
first-centry religios %ome and not some twenty-first centry seclar western society.
"&
9or
is it a Oestion of observing Aevery day in the wee! as holy)B this is a later development in the
early chrch and does not fit with the first half of the contrast.
The comparison hJmevran par= hJmevran and the contrast with pa'san
hJmevran assme more than a single day or pair of days is involved. =n the conteEt of
%omans, these mst be holy days, a sacred calendar. Therefore, despite the assmption of
many scholars, the isse is not over the single day of the 3abbath, thogh of corse it too was
part of the $ewish cltic calendar.
",
4pparently some in the %oman chrch considered certain
"2
0. 0. 2rce, The Epistle of Paul to the Romans (T9TC) 6ondon: Tyndale, ".#3+ 2&,)
Herold /eiss, A5al and the $dging of ;ays,B 2NW 8# (".8,+ "3--",3.
"3
?rnst 8Tsemann, Commentary on Romans (?.T.) <rand %apids, 1=: ?erdmans,
".8*+ 3-*) %aol ;ederen, A@n ?steeming one day as better than another: %omans "&:,-#,B
in Holbroo! (ed.+, "a##ath in "'ripture and )istory (/ashington, ;C: %eview and Herald,
".82+ 333-33-.
"&
Troy 1artin, A5agan and $deo-Christian Time-8eeping 3chemes in <al &."* and
Col 2."#,B NT" &2 ("..#+ "*8.
",
4mong those who write as thogh the isse was eEclsively or especially the
3abbath are the following: /ayne 4. 1ee!s, A$dgment and the 2rother: %omans "&:"-
",:"3,B in <erald 0. Hawthorne and @tto 2etP (eds+, Tradition and *nterpretation in the New
,
holy days more important than other holy days. Contrariwise, others thoght every holy day
was eOally important (o}" deV krivnei pa'san hJmevran+. 4re we able to identify the
natre of the two gropsD 5resmably the AstrongB wold be those who selected certain holy
days, sch as the 3abbath, 5assover and 5entecost, as more important than other holy days.
"#

The Awea!B wold then be those who considered all the holy days as eOally holy, inclding
the 3abbath, the ;ay of 4tonement and the 9ew 1oon.
"-
The identity is not as impossible as
some sppose, since clearly for 5al those who abandoned part of a system of practice are
strong compared with those who held rigidly to the whole tradition.
"8
Testament: Essays in )onor of E Earle Ellis (<rand %apids, 1=>TQbingen: ?erdmans> $. C.
1ohr G5al 3iebec!H, ".8-+ 2.2) $. 5al 3ampley, AThe /ea! and the 3trong: 5alLs Carefl
and Crafty %hetorical 3trategy in %omans "&:"-",:"3,B in 6. 1ichael /hite and @. 6arry
Uarbrogh (eds+ The "o'ial World of the !irst Christians: Essays in )onor of Wayne %
/ee1s (1inneapolis, 19: 0ortress, "..,+ &2) ;nn, Romans, ==.8*,) 1ar! %easoner, AThe
Theology of %omans "2:"-",:"3,B in ;avid 1. Hay and ?. ?liPabeth $ohnson (eds+, Pauline
Theology 3olume ***: Romans (1inneapolis: 0ortress, "..,+ 2.-.
"#
;e 6aceyLs contention that the strong were those who celebrated the festivals while
the wea! were those who abstained seems to reverse the parallels in the teEt (;. %. de 6acey,
"82.
"-
;aniel 3tM!l, The *mpa't of 4om 5ippur on Early Christianity: The Day 6f
%tonement from "e'ond Temple 7udaism to the !ifth Century (/79T "#3) TQbingen: 1ohr
3iebec!, 2**3+ 2",-2"#) T. C. <. Thornton, A$ewish 9ew 1oon 0estivals, <alatians &:3-""
and Colossians 2:"#,B 7T" &* (".8.+ .--"**) Heather 4. 1c8ay, A9ew 1oon or 3abbathDB in
Tamara C. ?s!enaPi et al (eds+, The "a##ath in 7ewish and Christian Traditions (9ew Uor!:
Crossroad, ".."+ "2-2-.
"8
%oss Cole has arged that 5alLs pattern in %omans is to place the strong first and
then the wea! (see %om "&:2, 3, #, 22-23) ",:"+, and so presmable in "&:, (H. %oss Cole,
#
/ithin the overall conteEt of %omans, where the main thrst is the nity between
$ewish and gentile believers, the Awea!B cold be the minority $ewish believers and the
AstrongB the ma'ority gentile Christians. $ewish believers are li!ely to be those maintaining
the whole of the cltic calendar (pa'san hJmevran+, whereas gentile Christians are more
li!ely to be those emphasising 5assover and 5entecost, for eEample, above the other feast
days. @f corse gentiles can live as faithfl $ews and $ews li!e 5al can be renegades vis,8,
vis their tradition. However, thogh identifying the strong with $ewish Christians and the
wea! with gentile believers is plasible, it is not necessary in order to have a reasonable
nderstanding of the teEt.
".
The langage of %om "&:2, ,-# follows a carefl symmetry:
STRON !EA* BOT+
o}" meVn piste%vei
"agei'n pavnta (v. 2+
oJ deV ajs#enw'n !av&ana
ejs#ivei (v. 2+
o'" meVn (gaVr) krivnei
hJmevran par= hJmevran
(v. ,a+
o}" deV krivnei pa'san
hJmevran (v. ,b+
kaiV oJ ejs#ivwn k%rivw/
ejs#ivei (v. #b+
kaiV oJ mhV ejs#ivwn
k%rivw/ o%jk ejs#ivei (v.
#c+
oJ "ronw'n thVn hJmevran
k%rivw/ "ronei' (v. #a+
2*
2oth the one who eats and the one who does not eat (obviosly referring to AmeatB+
do so for the 6ord. 3ignificantly, 5al has no parallel negative statement for the one who
observes the day. There is 'st the single positive statement abot the one who observes the
day does so for the 6ord. There is no balancing reference to the one not observing the day
A2t ?veryone 8eeps the ;ayV 4 9ovel %eading of %om "&:,, #,B (npblished paper, p. #+.
".
3ampley correctly observes that the main isse in the passage is not the identity of
the Awea!B and the AstrongB relative to the days (AThe /ea! and the 3trong,B &"+.
2*
The reading kaiV oJ mhV "ronw)n thVn hJmevran k%rivw/ o%j "ronei) is a
gloss to bring v. #a into harmony with v. #b, which is common in the 2yPantine family of
teEts.
-
doing so for the 6ord. 5alLs langage abot observing days is ths different from his words
abot eating or not eating.
2"
This is becase both the Awea!B and the AstrongB are observing
days.
22
The contrast is not between one grop observing days and another observing no days.
23
Hence, de 6acey is misleading when he says, Athe parallelism in verses 2, ,, and # sggests
that it is the strong and not the wea! that observe KdaysL.B
2&
The fact is the parallel
demonstrates that they both do) thogh one observes the whole calendar while the other only
a part of it.
The freOent references to $ews and gentiles in %omans telegraph to s 5alLs concern
in the letter. A7ncircmcisedB occrs "" times in %omans (2, times in the 9T+ and
AcircmcisedB is fond ", times (&" times in the 9T+. There are "" incidents of A$ewsB in
%omans (2*" times in the 9T, mostly in 4cts+ and 2. of AgentilesB ("#- times in the 9T+.
5alLs admonitions in chapter ", address this diversity. They are not to please themselves (v.
"+, bt to live in harmony with one another (v. ,+ and to glorify <od with one voice (v. #+, for
2"
There were varios sitations in a pagan conteEt where a conscientios $ew might
abstain from meat and wine. 3ee %obert $. 4stgen, Natural /otivation in the Pauline
Epistles (2
nd
ed.) 9otre ;ame: 7niversity 5ress, ".#.+ chapter , A9atral 1otives and ;ietary
5ractices,B .8-""-) %oger T. 2ec!with, AThe Negetarianism of the Therapetae, and the
1otives for Negetarianism in ?arly $ewish and Christian Circles,B Revue de 9umran "3
(".88+ &*--&"*) and the references in fn ,3.
22
@f corse both parties are eating food) bt one eats meat and the other does not. =t is
the latter fact that 5al focses on. 5al cold have made a contrast between those who
observe every holy day that those who do not. However, he chose to say whether observing all
the days or only some days, both do it to the 6ord.
23
24;< are misleading with their paraphrase for %om "&:#: oJ "ronw'n thVn
hJmevran (Aa particlar day rather than others,B sv "ronevw, 2, p. 8-&+.
2&
;e 6acey, AThe 3abbath>3nday Festion,B "82.
8
the gentiles too are to glorify <od (v. .+. 5al Ootes for biblical teEts, all containing the
plral ejv#nh, to prove that the inclsion of the gentiles into the worshipping Christian
commnity was always <odLs intention. $eremy 1oiser says that Aonly $ews needed
convincing of that,B bt that is srely not tre.
2,
<entile Christians needed assrance that they
were eOally heirs of the covenant with the $ews. <od is praised among the gentiles (vv. .b,
""+, they re'oice with his people (v. "*+, and their hope is centred in Christ (v. "2+. 2oth
grops, $ew and gentile Christians, are therefore to welcome one another (v. -+.
The admonitions in %om ",:"-"3 seem to be directed at the several hose chrches in
%ome to cltivate an integrated worship. =n 6ampeLs well-researched opinion, becase of AC
the lac! of a central worship place in %ome throghot the centries, we can hardly avoid the
conclsion that these (at least+ eight circles also worshipped separatelyWin separate dwellings
somewhere in the different Oarters of the city.B
2#
The @T Ootations are all directed towards
mtal acceptance within the congregations of $ewish and gentile believers. 5alLs desire was
for a nited worship of the diverse social grops. 9o dobt these separate hose chrches
gathered for commnal meals.
2-
AThs, %om "# confirms the hypothesis abot the prpose of
%omans derived from "&:"-",:"3. The prpose of %omans is to encorage $ewish and <entile
Christians in %ome, divided over the Oestion of the law, to set aside their differences and to
2,
$eremy 1oiser, A%ethin!ing %omans "2-",,B NT" 3# ("..*+ ,8*.
2#
5eter 6ampe, AThe %oman Christians of %omans "#,B in 8arl 5. ;onfried (ed.+, The
Romans De#ate: Revised and E:panded Edition (?dinbrgh: T : T Clar!, ".."+ 22.-23*.
2-
AThe chrch Gin %omeH consisted of abot eight atonomos cells which !ept in
toch by eEchanging the echaristB (1oiser, A%ethin!ing %omans "2-",,B ,--+.
.
worship together.B
28
@r as 1oiser states it: 5alLs Aaim is to reconcile $ew and gentile in the
%oman chrches and thereby provide himself with a starting-point for his frther mission.B
2.
The Oestion mst be as!ed when and where this nited worship wold occr. <iven
the continity at this early period with the synagoge, one might sggest on the 3abbath in a
centralised hose chrch.
3*
There is nothing in %om "&-", to sggest that 5al was rging
$ewish Christians to abandon this part of their synagoge-worship pattern. =f his Alet each be
persaded in his own mindB was intended to ma!e the day of worship a matter of individal
preference, then he wold have destroyed any chance he had of getting gentile and $ewish
believers in %ome to worship together.
3"
=f the 3abbath were not the time when the gentile
ma'ority nited in worship with the $ewish minority in the %oman chrches, there wold have
28
0rancis /atson, AThe Two %oman Congregations: %omans "&:"-",:"3,B in
;onfried, The Romans De#ate, 2"". =t is li!ely that there were in fact several congregations in
%ome (6ampe, AThe %oman Christians of %omans "#,B 22.-23*) 4ndrew Clar!, A$ew and
<ree!, 3lave and 0ree, 1ale and 0emale: 5alLs Theology of ?thnic, 3ocial and <ender
=nclsiveness in %omans "#,B in @a!es Ged.H Rome in the &i#le, "*.-""*+.
2.
1oiser, A%ethin!ing %omans "2-",,B ,-,. 3ee also /. 3. Campbell, A/hy ;id 5al
/rite %omansDB E:pT ) idem, AThe %omans ;ebate,B 7"NT "* (".8"+ ".-28) 0. 0. 2rce,
The Romans De#ate,,Continued (1anchester: The $ohn %ylands 7niversity 6ibrary, ".82+)
4. $. 1. /edderbrn, The Reasons for Romans (?dinbrgh: T. : T. Clar!, ".88+) $ohn /.
;rane, A/hy ;id 5al /rite %omansDB in ;onald 4. Hagner and 1rray $. Harris (eds+,
Pauline "tudies: Essays Presented to Professor ! ! &ru'e on his ;<
th
&irthday (?Eeter><rand
%apids 1=: 5aternoster>?erdmans, ".8*+ 2*8-22-) and the varios essays in ;onfried (ed.+,
The Romans De#ate (".."+ 5art ==, 3ection 4, "-,-2&2.
3*
0or the interface between ?arly Christianity and $daism see $ames. ;. <. ;nn,
The Partings of the Ways: &etween Christianity and 7udaism and their "ignifi'an'e for the
Chara'ter of Christianity (6ondon>5hiladelphia: 3C1>Trinity, ".."+ 23*-2,..
been a mighty rc!s over the isse. 7nli!e the dispte over circmcision, there is no sign in
the 9T of an intense debate over the 3abbath. 4ccording to 2rtchaell, silence on an isse
indicates a smooth transfer of a practice from $daism to Christianity.
32
2efore trning to Colossians we need to smmarise or conclsions from %om "&.
0irst, we have accepted that the two passages of %om "&:,-# and Col 2:"# are considerably
parallel to each other. 3econd, we fond that the isse over days in %om "& focsed on $ewish
festival days, probably inclding festivals sch as the ;ay of 4tonement and the 9ew 1oon.
3ince the 3abbath was part of the cltic calendar, it is probable that both those who selected
certain festivals days above others and those who observed them all as eOally important
observed it. Third, we conclded that 5alLs concern was for the $ewish and gentile hose
chrches in %ome to welcome one another in a centralised commnal worship. 0orth we
have sggested that sch nited worship reOired an agreed time, and that for $ewish
Christians this wold certainly have been the 3abbath. 0inally, the bac!grond of the isse in
%om "&:,-# is clearly $ewish.
33
III T(e Mean&ng o, $(e +oly Day# &n Colo##&an# 2:16
3"
2arclay accepts that the practical conseOence of 5alLs advice in %om "&-",,
contrary to his intentions, was ltimately to case a social split between $ewish and gentile
Christians (2arclay, AK;o we ndermine the 6awDL 3*3-3*8+. 5erhaps this was becase his
advice was misnderstood or ignored.
32
A2t when the record is silent or all bt mte on any aspect of how the Christians
arranged their affairs and provided themselves with chrch officers, it is safe as an initial
assmption to sppose that the traditional patterns may have been carrying onB ($ames
Tnstead 2rtchaell, !rom "ynagogue to Chur'h: Pu#li' "ervi'es and 6ffi'es in the Earliest
Christian Communities GCambridge: C75, "..2H "..+.
33
2arclay is entirely correct in seeing the isse in "&:"-",:# as a matter of $ewish law,
specifically the $ewish prity laws (A;o we ndermine the 6awDB 28--."+.
Colossians 2:"# *hV o%+n ti" %Jma'" krinevtw ejn ,rwvsei h- ejn povsei h- ejn
mevrei eJorth'" h- neomhniva" h- sa,,avtwn:
./
$ames ;. <. ;nn has arged strongly for the view that representatives of the local
$ewish synagoge were applying pressre to the yong Christian commnity or commnities
in Colossae.
3,
=n spport of his position he appeals to the following:
". There was in the first centry a considerable $ewish presence in the 6ycs Nalley.
3#
2. The choice of langage that the writer ses to describe the conversion of the
gentile believers shows a $ewish self-nderstanding (see Col ":"2) 3:"2+.
3. The prominence given to circmcision is Aanother indicator of the $ewish character
of the Colossian philosophyB (see 2:"", "3) 3:""+.
3-
&. The ma'or indicators of the $ewish natre of the Colossian philosophy are the
practices enmerated in Col 2:"# and 22. ;nn sees implied here Aa $ewish
sspicion of <entiles ma!ing what they wold regard as nacceptable claims of
=sraelLs distinctive heritage withot ta!ing on all that was most distinctive of that
heritage.B
38
3&
The reading h- is Oite well attested (a4;<=+ and Christian 3tettler prefers it (AThe
@pponents at Colossae,B in 3tanley ?. 5orter Ged.H, Paul and )is 6pponents G6eiden: 2rill,
2**,H "-. fn #*+.
3,
$ames ;. <. ;nn, AThe Colossian 5hilosophy: 4 Confident $ewish 4pologia,B
&i#li'a -# ("..,+ ",3-"8". 3ee also 9. T. /right, The Epistles of Paul to the Colossians and
Philemon: %n *ntrodu'tion and Commentary (T9TC) 6eicester, ?ngland: =N5, ".8#+ 2&-3*.
3#
;nn relies mainly on 5. Trebilco, 7ewish Communities in %sia /inor (39T313 #.)
Cambridge: C75, ".."+ "2-". and ""., n. -*.
3-
;nn, AThe Colossian 5hilosophy,B "#*.
38
*#id, "#&.
,. The Aelements of the worldB (2:8, 2*+ refers to the spirital powers that controlled
the heavenly bodies, which is very mch a $ewish idea and not eEclsively
pagan.
3.
#. ;nn ta!es #ev!wn ejn tapeino"ros%vnh/ kaiV #rhskeiva/ tw'n
ajggev!wn in v. "8a to refer to a $ewish synagoge that Adelighted in their
worship sabbath by sabbath as a participation in the worship of the angels in
heaven.B =n this conteEt tapeino"ros%vnh wold Adenote the spirital discipline
and mortification (particlarly, bt not only, fastingC+B as the means of 'oining in
with the worship of the heavenly holy ones.
&*
-. ;nn also relates the clase a} eJovraken ejm,ate%vwn to a $ewish conteEt.
This is despite a veritable scholarly tradition of seeing in these words a clear
reference to visionary eEperiences related to the initiation rites of a pagan mystery
clt.
&"
0or ;nn the langage reflects the boast of Colossian $ews abot what they
3.
*#id, "#--"-*) ;nn, Colossians, ",*-",".
&*
;nn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, "8") idem, AThe Colossian
5hilosophy,B "-,.
&"
3ee for eEample, ?. 6ohse, Colossians and Philemon (Hermeneia) 5hiladelphia:
0ortress, ".-"+ "".) %alph 5. 1artin, Colossians and Philemon (9C2, %ev. ed.) 6ondon:
@liphants, ".-8+ .&-.,. 0or the argment that the ideas are 5ythagorean see ?dard
3chweiPer, AChristianity of the Circmcised and $daism of the 7ncircmcisedWThe
2ac!grond of 1atthew and Colossians,B in %obert Hamerton-8elly and %obin 3croggs
(eds+, 7ews( Gree1s and Christians: Religious Culture in Late %nti=uity( Essays in )onor of
William David Davies (6eiden: 2rill, ".-#+ 2&.-2#*.
saw when 3abbath-by-3abbath throgh their self-mortification they entered into
the heavenly realm and 'oined the angels there in adoration and praise of <od.
&2
This paper accepts the cogency of ;nnLs position. =ndeed, two other considerations
can be added in spport of the above argments that $daism alone was the case of the
troble in Colossae, namely, the parallel with %om "&, which as we have seen has a $ewish
conteEt, and the fact that the days in Col 2:"# are a shadow of the things to come. 5al wold
hardly ma!e this latter statement of pagan ritals.
&3
Thogh we agree with ;nnLs conclsion,
we find his emphasis on the 3abbath, as if it were the ma'or isse, rather odd. The teEt gives
the well attested threefold listing of eJorth'" h- neomhniva" h- sa,,avtwn, which is
inclsive of the $ewish calendar and cannot be limited to the 3abbath.
&&
This triadic list occrs freOently in the 6JJ, sally in the order 3abbaths, 9ew
1oons, and set feasts, and always in the plral, whereas Col 2:"# reverses the order and is in
the singlar: (9m 28:., "", "#) " Chron 23:3") 2 Chron 2:3 (&+) 8:"3 (ejn toi'"
&2
;nn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon, "83-"8&) idem, AThe
Colossian 5hilosophy,B "---"-.. ;nn is indebted here to 0red @. 0rancis, AHmility and
4ngelic /orship in Col 2:"8,B in 0red @. 0rancis and /ayne 4. 1ee!s (eds+, Confli't at
Colossae: % Pro#lem in the *nterpretation of Early Christianity *llustrated #y "ele'ted
/odern "tudies (326323 &, %ev. ed.) 1issola, 1T: 3cholars 5ress, ".-,+ "#3-".,.
&3
4ccording to 3chweiPer A5al cold not possibly ma!e the statement against
$daiPers that all these rles were bt shadows of the reality which is in ChristB (AChristianity
of the Circmcised,B 2,"+. @f corse, he believes that paganism inflenced even the $ewish
3abbath (*#id, 2,.+.
&&
They are not li!ely to be other than prely $ewish days, contrary to what $oachim
<nil!a says: A;ie HTreti!er mMgen drch das $dentm inspiriert gewesen sein der 3inn, den
sie mit ihren Ieiten nd 0esten verbanden, dQrfte ein ganP anderer gewesen seinB (Der
5olosser#rief GHT89T "*) 0reibrg: Herder, ".8*H "&#+.
sa,,avtoi" kaiV ejn toi'" mhsiVn kaiV ejn tai'" eJortai'" trei'" kairo%V" to%'
ejnia%to%' ejn th'/ eJorth'/ tw'n aj0%vmwn kaiV ejn th'/ eJorth'/ tw'n
eJ,domavdwn kaiV ejn th'/ eJorth'/ tw'n skhnw'n+) 3":3) 9eh "*:3& (33+) =sa ":"3
Gno%mhniva" %Jmw'n kaiV taV sav,,ata kaiV hJmevran megav!hn o%jk
ajnev&omai nhsteivan kaiV ajrgivanH) ?Pe! &,:"- Gejn tai'" eJortai'" kaiV ejn
tai'" no%mhnivai" kaiV ejn toi'" sa,,avtoi" kaiV ejn pavsai" tai'" eJortai'"
oi1ko% 2srah!H) ?P! &#:&, #, .) Hos 2:"3 (""+ GeJortaV" a%jth'" kaiV taV"
no%mhniva" a%jth'" kaiV taV sav,,ata a%jth'" kaiV pavsa" taV" panhg%vrei"
a%jth'"H.
TeEts from sorces otside of the canon shold also be listed, for they demonstrate
even more than the biblical teEts how variegated $ewish writers li!e 5al were in their listing
of the time-seOences. 4lthogh the listing of the time-seOences is freOent in $ewish
sorces, there is nothing fiEed abot which holy days are inclded, what terms are sed, or the
order in which they are cited: $dt 8:# Gsa,,avtwn$$$kaiV no%mhniw'n kaiV eJortw'n
kaiV &armos%nw'n oi1ko% 2srah!H) " ?sdr ,:,2 (,"+ (kaiV metaV ta%'ta
pros"oraV" ejnde!e&ismo%' kaiV #%siva" sa,,avtwn kaiV no%mhniw'n kaiV
eJortw'n pasw'n hJgiasmevnwn+) " 1acc "*:3& (kaiV pa'sai aiJ eJortaiV kaiV
taV sav,,ata kaiV no%mhnivai kaiV hJmevrai ajpodedeigmevnai+) " ?noch
82:--"* (the months, the festivals, the years, and the days+) $b. ":"& (new moons, sabbaths,
festivals, 'bilees, and ordinances+) 2:.-"* (days, 3abbaths, months, feast GdaysH, years,
sabbath of years, and all the GappointedH times of the years+) #:3&, 3-, 38 (the new moons, and
GappointedH times and sabbaths) months, sabbaths, feasts and 'bilees) new moons, seasons,
sabbaths, and festivals+) 23:". (festivals, and months, and sabbaths+) 5hilo, "pe' Leg ".2
(some are offered daily Gka#3 eJkavsthn hJmevranH, others on the seventh days Gtai)"
eJ,dovmai"H, others at the new moons Gno%mhnivai"HCothers at the fasts Gnhsteivai"H,
",
others at the three festal seasons GtrisiV kairoi)" eJortw)nH+) "F1 2.& (for their feasts
Gh4d%wm!H, for their new moons Gh4vdwj!H, and for their sabbaths Gtwt,v!H, and all
the days of the year Ghnvh 4m4 !wk!H+) $stin, Dial. 8.& (with respect to the sabbath, and
the feasts, and the new moons of <od+.
9either the variations in the order nor the se of the singlar in the case of Col 2:"#
have any significance relative to the meaning.
&,
The three terms smmarise the time-
seOences in the $ewish religios calendar, namely, the wee!ly, monthly and annal
festivals.
&#
The se of the genitive plral (sa,,avtwn+ in Col 2:"# probably reflects the
Hellenistic habit of treating the 4ramaic (at,v+ as a natral <ree! neter plral bt with
reference specifically to the seventh day, that is, the 3abbath (see 1att "2:") 28:") 1ar! 2:2&)
6!e #:2) "3:"*) 4cts "3:"&) "#:"3) "-:2+. However, the trilogy shold not be treated apart
from one another as if the 3abbath alone were in focs. 3een together it is clear that a grop
&,
%on d 5reePLs detailed effort to eEclde the seventh-day 3abbath from Col 2:"# on
the basis of sch differences, as well as the fact that most of the teEts also refer to the daily
rital, is less than convincing becase the lists are not fiEed in their terminology (Putting the
>"a##ath$ to Rest: % "'riptural "tudy of Colossians ?:-. G2
nd
ed.) 2errien 3prings, 1=: @mega
1edia, 2**#H 3.-&*+.
&#
0or a discssion of both the biblical and eEtra-biblical references see 5al <iem,
A34224TX9 in Col 2:"#,B %@"" ". (".8"+ ".,-2"* and Heather 4. 1c8ay, "a##ath and
"ynagogue: The 9uestion of "a##ath Worship in %n'ient 7udaism (6eiden: 2rill, "..&+ 2#-3..
However, her negative thesis concerning 3abbath worship has cased one scholar to accse
1c8ay of being a minimalist, who down plays the evidence, ses special pleading, and Ain
her fervent Peal overshoots the mar!B (5ieter /. van der Horst, A/as the 3ynagoge a 5lace
of 3abbath /orship before -* C?DB in 3teven 0ine Ged.H, 7ews( Christians( and Polytheists in
the %n'ient "ynagogue: Cultural *ntera'tion during the Gre'o,Roman Period G6ondon :
9ew Uor!: %otledge, "...H 3"+.
"#
of holy days is referred to, namely, the annal feasts, the monthly 9ew 1oons and the wee!ly
3abbaths.
&-
/ith the eEception of " 1acc "*:3&, which is a political decree granting $ews freedom
to celebrate their feasts, and $dt 8:#, which is abot not fasting before or on the holy days, all
the passages cited above are dealing with matters pertaining to the temple rital. 0or eEample,
grain, drin! and brnt offerings (9m 28: ., "", "#+, brnt offerings (" Chron 23:3") 2 Chron
2:&) 8:"2-"3) 3":3) 9eh "*:33) ?Pe! &#:&, #, .+, offerings and incense (=sa ":"3+, and grain
and drin! offerings (?Pe! &,:"-+. /ithin the conteEt of the temple, the wee!ly 3abbath, along
with the monthly and annal convocations, was an occasion for sacrificial offerings and
ritals. Hence when the prophets =saiah and Hosea castigate their contrymen for their cltic
observances devoid of covenant and social faithflness, they are not denigrating the 3abbath
per seWand certainly not rging the $ews to abandon it. There is no reason to believe that
5alLs sage of these three terms together has any meaning different from the @T vorlage, that
is, temple rital days, of which, of corse, the 3abbath was a part.
&8
&-
1c8ayLs attempt to redce the place of the 3abbath in the @T fails to eEplain how it
came to be part of the creation narrative and the ;ecaloge (Heather 4. 1c8ay, A0rom
?vidence to ?difice: 0or 0allacies abot the 3abbath,B in %obert 5. Carroll, Te:t as Prete:t:
Essays in )onour of Ro#ert Davidson ($3@T33 "38) 3heffield: 4cademic 5ress, "..2+ "-.-
".. and idem( "a##ath and "ynagogue, passim. Her opinion that since there was no
synagoge in $essL day, he cold not have attended on the 3abbath what did not eEist is ably
refted by $ames ;. <. ;nn (A;id $ess 4ttend the 3ynagogeDB in $ames H. Charlesworth
Ged.H, 7esus and %r'haeology G<rand %apids>Cambridge, 1=>78: ?erdmans, 2**#H 2*#-222+.
&8
; 5reeP correctly sees sa,,avta as ceremonial bt limits it to the annal ;ay of
4tonement and feast of Trmpets (Putting the >"a##ath$ to Rest(A 28-32, ,#-,-+. However,
this ignores the fact that the wee!ly 3abbath was part of the temple rital as is made clear in
the common groping of 3abbaths, 9ew 1oons, and annal feasts. =n other words the
"-
The conteEt confirms this for whatever the specifics of the nons ejn ,rwvsei h-
ejn povsei or the prohibitions mhV a{4h/ mhdeV ge%vsh/ mhdeV #ivgh/, within a
$ewish milie, the reference has to do with religios practices. 3eeing as the eating or
drin!ing are mentioned in close connection with the holy days, and since both are governed
by the same imperative (krinevtw+ with the repeated con'oining h- (ejn ,rwvsei h- ejn
povsei h- ejn mevrei eJorth'" h- neomhniva" h- sa,,avtwn+, it is reasonable to
infer that the parta!ing of food or drin! refers to commnal meals on the festival days, that is,
the conteEt of the eating or drin!ing is the holy days. The three negated verbs have clear
associations with prity laws in the 6JJ and therefore presmably also in Col 2:"#. /hether
the Colossians are being criticised for eating or not eating may not be clear, as Hay concldes,
bt it wold seem that they are celebrating their viands in a conteEt that was not acceptable to
orthodoE $daism.
&.
The verb a'ptomai is sed freOently in the 6JJ throghot the 6evitical material
warning the people against toching anything that is nclean: 6ev ,:2 (carcass of nclean
creatre+) ,:3 (hman eEcreta+, "":2& (dead nclean flying insect+, 2# (nclean animal+, 2-
(corpse of animal with paws+) ",:".-23 (ob'ects toched by a menstrating woman+) 9m
".:"#-"8 (corpse, bone, or grave+) ;et "&:8 (pigLs carcass+) $dt "":"3 (consecrated food+.
Twenty-eight percent of the occrrences of a'ptomai in the 6JJ occr in 6evitics.
5e%vomai, which occrs ". times in the 6JJ, sally in the middle voice, is generally
sed in connection with tasting food. 4 relevant teEt is 2 1acc #:2* where ?leaPar refses to
taste pigLs flesh, not even to save his life. 6iggavnw occrs only once in the 6JJ (?Eod
".:"2+, and in the 9T only in Heb "".28 and "2:2* (besides Col 2:"#+. =n these three teEts it
refers to not toching ob'ects that are sacred to <od, and that meaning also fits the conteEt of
Col 2:"#.
description Aceremonial 3abbathsB does not eEclde the seventh-day 3abbath.
&.
Hay, Colossians, "-3.
"8
/hat is the antecedent of the relative neter pronon (a'+ in verse "-D =t is nli!ely
to refer bac! only to the immediately preceding neter plral sa,,avtwn.
,*
=t is more
probably a generalising neter referring to all the elements mentioned in v. "#.
,"
?lsewhere in
Colossians, whatever the gender of the antecedents, 5al ses a neter plral relative pronon
to refer to a preceding list (2:"8, 22, 23) 3:#, -+. The eating or drin!ing shold not be related
to 6evitical offerings or even to $ewish !osher laws in isolation. The scrples abot eating or
drin!ing occr within the conteEt of festival meals. The three prepositions are eOivalent in
meaning (ejn and ejn mevrei+ and all are governed by the same imperatival verb
(krinevtw+, Alet no one 'dge yo regarding food, and regarding drin!, or regarding feasts,
or new moons, or 3abbaths.B
,2
3ch things as $ewish festive meals are a shadow or harbinger
of the reality, which belongs to Christ. The eating or the drin!ing and the festive days shold
not be seen as separate from one another.
Hence 5alLs negativity regarding eating, drin!ing, or festive days does not mean that
he is against these activities per se. =t wold srely be wrong to thin! that he opposed the
items listed in v. "# simply becase they were $ewish. 5al is not anti-3emitic. =f the
detractors are $ewish, as we have arged, they wold not li!ely be critical of gentile
Christians for observing their own commnal meals, in their own way, and at their own times.
However, they wold be highly critical of gentile Christians if they were observing commnal
meals on $ewish holy days in what they considered a half-ba!ed $ewish manner. This wold
be especially so if the members were made p, as is probable, of a gentile ma'ority and a
$ewish minority.
,*
4. T. %obertson, 4 <rammar of the <ree! 9ew Testament in the 6ight of Historical
%esearch (&
th
edition) 9ashville, T9: 2roadman, ".3&+ -"2,
,"
1rray $. Harris, Colossians B Philemon (?<<9T) <rand %apids, 1=: ?erdmans,
".."+ ""..
,2
Ta!ing the genitive singlars as generic plrals.
".
The fact that there is no biblical prescription concerning drin!ing (povsi"+ does not
demand a Hellenistic bac!grond for the detractors. ?ating or drin!ing (wine+ was an isse
for $ews in a pagan conteEt. The other two instances of the copling in the <ree! 2ible
demonstrate this, namely, ;an ":"* (kaiV ei+pen oJ ajr&ie%no%'&o" tw'/ 7anih!
"o,o%'mai ejgwV toVn k%vriovn mo% toVn ,asi!eva toVn ejktav8anta thVn
,rw'sin %Jmw'n kaiV thVn povsin %Jmw'n+ and %om "&:"- (o%j gavr ejstin hJ
,asi!eiva to%' #eo%' ,rw'si" kaiV povsi" aj!!aV dikaios%vnh kaiV eijrhvnh
kaiV &araV ejn pne%vmati aJgivw/+. These two verses are referring to $ews adhering to
their religios piety within a hostile pagan conteEt. The Colossian and %oman Christians were
not apparently observing these reglations strictly enogh for their $ewish detractors. $ess
himself was challenged over his table fellowship and eating or drin!ing style (1ar! -:2-,, "&-
23) 6!e ,:2.-3*, 33) -:3&) ",:2) ".:-+.
,3
The manner in which the Colossian Christians were celebrating these festive occasions
wold have been inclsive. 3ince the things to come had come with Christ they were to Alet
the peace of Christ rle in GtheirH hearts, to which indeed GtheyH were called in the one #ody
(3:",+. 4dherence to the Head norishes the whole body and !nits it together throgh its
'oints and ligaments (Col 2.".+, and no scrples over food mst challenge the new
commnityLs living organic nity. The $ewish criticisms of the Colossians (whether from
within or withot the Christian grop+ may not have differed mar!edly from that eEperienced
in 4ntioch. =t is the manner not the occasion of the Colossian fellowship that is coming nder
,3
Heb .:"*) "3:.-"* also indicate that eating and drin!ing are descriptive of $ewish
practices.
2*
'dgment.
,&
9otably that the festive grop is a miEed fellowship of $ews and gentiles. The
references to circmcision (2:"", "3+ wold then be pertinent and not simply a metaphor.
The incorporation of the gentiles into the people of <od throgh the redemptive wor!
of Christ is very mch the brden throghot this epistle and no dobt the inclsive
commnal festive meals wold and did pset $ewish traditions. This is evidenced also in the
eating and drin!ing of %om "&:"-.
,,
The langage of Col 2:"# mst be seen within the overall
theme of the epistle, which, as the following teEts emphasise, has to do with social cohesion
in Christ:
Cand throgh him <od was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on
earth or in heaven, by ma!ing peace throgh the blood of his cross. 4nd yo who were
once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his
fleshly body throgh death, so as to present yo holy and blameless and irreproachable
before him (":2*-22 9%3N+.
To them <od chose to ma!e !nown how great among the <entiles are the riches of the
glory of this mystery, which is Christ in yo, the hope of glory. =t is he whom we
proclaim, warning everyone (pa)" a9n#rwpo"+ and teaching everyone (pa)" a9
n#rwpo"+ in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone (pa)" a9n#rwpo"+
matre in Christ (":2--28 9%3N+.
,&
$ews cold and did eat with ncircmcised gentiles bt not withot difficlties. 3ee
$ames ;. <. ;nn, AThe =ncident at 4ntioch (<al 2:""-"8+,B 7"NT "8 (".83+ 3-,-) ?. 5.
3anders, A5rity, 0ood and @fferings in the <ree!-3pea!ing ;iaspora,B in 7ewish Law from
7esus to the /ishnah (6ondon>5hiladelphia: 3C1>T5=, "..*+, 2,,-3*8) idem, A$ewish
4ssociation with <entiles and <alatians 2:""-"&B in %oberta 0ortna and 2everly <aventa
(eds+, The Conversation Continues. Essays on Paul and 7ohn Presented to 7 Louis /artyn
(9ashville, "..*+ "-*-"88) 5eter $. Tomson, ATable 0ellowship of $ews and <entiles,B in
Paul and the 7ewish Law: )ala1ha in the Letters of the %postle to the Gentiles
(4ssen>1inneapolis: Nan <orcm>0ortress, "..*+, 22"-2,8.
,,
<ary 3. 3hogren, A=s the 8ingdom of <od abot ?ating and ;rin!ing or =snLt =tDB
NovT &2 (2***+ 238-2,#) 5eter-2en 3mit, A4 3ymposim in %om. "&:"-D 4 9ote on 5alLs
Terminology,B NovT &. (2**-+ &*-,3.
2"
4nd when yo were dead in trespasses and the ncircmcision of yor flesh, <od
made yo alive together with him, when he forgave s all or trespasses, erasing the
record that stood against s with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the
cross (2:"3-"& 9%3N+.
These are the ways yo also once followed, when yo were living that life. 2t now
yo mst get rid of all sch things-anger, wrath, malice, slander, and absive langage
from yor moth (3:#-- 9%3N+.
=n that renewal there is no longer <ree! and $ew, circmcised and ncircmcised,
barbarian, 3cythian, slave and free) bt Christ is all and in all (3:"" 9%3N+V
,#
The phrase taV stoi&ei'a to%' kovsmo% (vv. 8, 2*+ also points in the direction of
festive meals. 5al ses the genitive of kovsmo" some 22 times (3" per cent of 9T sage+
and it generally has a negative connotation, for eEample, when he spea!s of the Awisdom of
the worldB (" Cor ":2*) 3:".+, Athe folly of the worldB (" Cor ":2-+, Athe ill-born of the
worldB (" Cor ":28+, Athe spirit of the worldB (" Cor 2:"2+, Athe rbbish of the worldB (" Cor
&:"3+, Athe immoral of the worldB (" Cor ,:"*+, or Athe things of the worldB (" Cor -:33, 3&+.
The general trend in 5al and of the rest of the 9T is to refer to the tangible things of the
world (" Cor -:33, 3&+ that men cherish bt which <od either despises or rates rather low or
vice versa (" Cor ":2-, 28+. =n the conteEt of Col 2:"# this wold be $ewish rital meals on
festival days.
,-
3everal commentators accept that tapeino"ros%vnh in v. 23 refers bac! to the
negative discipline of v. 2" and incldes fasting in the rigoros religios lifestyle being
advocated.
,8
=f this is so, it is difficlt to see the 3abbath as the focs in Col 2:"#. =n $daism
,#
A?ven more stri!ing is the fact that the first for all focs on the $ew-<entile
divisionB (;nn, Colossians, 223-22&+.
,-
1artins C. ;e 2oer, AThe 1eaning of the 5hrase taV stoi&ei'a to%' kovsmo%
in <alatians,B NT" ,3 (2**-+ 2*&-22&.
,8
0rancis, Confli't, "#--"-") ;nn, Colossians, "-8-"-., ".,.
22
the 3abbath was a feast day and not a fast day.
,.
There is some evidence that the $ews in
%ome may have fasted on the 3abbath, bt as the sorces are non-$ewish, there is some dobt
even abot this.
#*
2e that as it may, otside of %ome the evidence indicates the 3abbath was a
feast day and not a fast day. The only certain biblical fast day is the annal ;ay of 4tonement
rital, thogh it conclded with a feast. 3tM!l at least thin!s the festival days referred to in Col
2:"# Aalmost certainly incldeGedH Uom 8ippr.B
#"
The tendency of commentators to nderstand vv. 2*-23 as indicating the Colossians
were being pressred into a severe ascetic lifestyle may be going beyond the teEt.
#2
/ithin the
conteEt of polemic, 5alLs langage is perfectly appropriate with regards to $ewish scrples
abot food.
#3
3ch scrples may appear to be ascetic to some, both ancient and modern, bt
,.
8enneth 4. 3trand, A3ome 9otes on the 3abbath 0ast in ?arly Christianity,B %@"" 3
(".#,+ "#--"-&.
#*
1argaret /illiams, A2eing a $ew in %ome: 3abbath 0asting as an ?Epression of
%oman-$ewish =dentity,B in $ohn 1. <. 2arclay (ed.+, Negotiating Diaspora: 7ewish
"trategies in the Roman Empire (63T3 &,) 6ondon: T : T Clar!, 2**&+ 8-"8.
#"
3tM!l, The *mpa't of 4om 5ippur on Christianity, 2"#.
#2
?. 6ohse, Colossians and Philemon (Hermeneia) 5hiladelphia: 0ortress, ".-"+ "",)
1argaret U. 1ac;onald, ACitiPens of Heaven and ?arth: 4sceticism and 3ocial =ntegration in
Colossians and ?phesians,B in 6eif ?. Naage and Nincent 6. /imbsh (eds+, %s'eti'ism and
the New Testament (9ew Uor!>6ondon: %otledge, "...+ 2#.-2.8) =an 8. 3mith, AThe
3hadow of 4sceticism: Colossians 2."#-".,B chapter # in his )eavenly Perspe'tive: % "tudy
of the %postle Paul$s Response to a 7ewish /ysti'al /ovement at Colossae (69T3 32#)
6ondon: T : T Clar!, 2**#+ "",-"33.
#3
9or is there any reason to see Hellenistic asceticism in %om "&:"-8, as there are
many circmstances in which a $ew might abstain from meat and wine. 3ee 9eil ?lliott,
A4sceticism among the K/ea!L and the K3trongL in %omans "&-",,B in Naage and /imbsh
23
that is hardly the way $ews viewed or practised them. The dismissal of the Colossian
sensitivities concerning food in v. 2" (a{ ejstin pavnta eij" "#oraVn th'/
ajpo&rhvsei, kataV taV ejntav!mata kaiV didaska!iva" tw'n ajn#rwvpwn+ is
parallel to $essL comment abot $ewish food laws (1ar! -:".+. 0rthermore, the phrase taV
ejntav!mata kaiV didaska!iva" tw'n ajn#rwvpwn is well attested in reference to
$ewish tradition (1att ",:.) 1ar! -:-) Tits ":"&+ and it is srely an over simplification to say
that Aascetic practices are not characteristic of the Torah, or of mainstream $daism.B
#&
/ithin
the conteEt of second-temple $daism restrictions on eating and drin!ing, to say nothing of
fasting, mst have given the appearance of asceticism to most of the $ewsL contemporaries.
There is little data as to how ;iaspora $ews !ept the feasts in practice in the
synagoges, bt it is clear that they did.
#,
The evidence indicates that the emphasis was on
prayer, scriptre reading, singing hymns, and fellowship meals.
##
Nictor Tcheri!over notes
that Athe festivals celebrated in 5alestine were also broght to the ;iaspora, and these
(eds+, %s'eti'ism and the New Testament, 23"-2," and idem, The Rhetori' of Romans:
%rgumentative Constraint and "trategy and Paul$s Dialogue with 7udaism ($39T33 &,)
3heffield: $3@T 5ress, "..*+ ,&) /inter, A%oman 6aw and 3ociety,B 8.-.*) /edderbrn, The
Reasons for Romans, 33-3,.
#&
Herold /eiss, % Day of Gladness: The "a##ath among 7ews and Christians in
%nti=uity (Colmbia, 3C: 7niversity of 3oth Carolina 5ress, 2**3+ "32.
#,
=t is reasonably well attested that $ews !ept 3abbath and the festivals Aall over the
%oman ?mpireB (3acha 3tern, A$ewish Calendar %ec!oning in the <raeco-%oman Cities,B in
$ohn %. 2artlett Ged.H, 7ews in the )ellenisti' and Roman Cities G6ondon>9ew Uor!:
%otledge, 2**2H "*-+.
##
?mil 3chQrer, The )istory of the 7ewish People in the %ge of 7esus Christ C-;D&C,,
%D -EDF, (%ev. ed., <ePa Nermes, 0ergs 1illar and 1artin <oodman GedsH) ?dinbrgh: T.
: T. Clar!, ".8#+ ===.", "&&-"&,, and fnn. 2#-2..
2&
inclded not only the traditional celebrations sch as 5assover and Tabernacles, bt also the
new festivals of 5rim and Hann!ah.B
#-
3anders also recognises that there is evidence for the
!eeping of 5assover sacrifice in the ;iaspora.
#8
5hilo spends &** words defending the
celebration of the 9ew 1oon Ait is the beginning of the month, and the beginning, both in
nmber and in time, deserves honor...when it arrives, nothing in heaven is left withot
light.B
#.
However, 5hilo is derogatory towards pagan new moon celebrations, contrasting
them with the $ewish 3abbath.
-*
4ccording to the 1ishnah, special synagoge services were
held at the appearance of the 9ew 1oon.
-"
$st how cltic these days wold have been in a
synagoge setting is difficlt to say, thogh T. C. <. Thornton thin!s they Awold reflect the
celebrations prescribed for the Temple at $ersalem.B
-2
2rtchaell has arged persasively that the early Christians too! over many of the
worship strctres of the $ewish synagoge, thogh sally with a change in the terms sed.
He notes that dring the late first centry when 4cts was written, chrches li!e Corinth and
%ome remained strongly inflenced by their $ewish Christian membership regards their
theology and practice.
-3
;espite the efforts of some to deny it, synagoge worship was well
established in $daism at the start of the Christian era and had a profond inflence on the
#-
Nictor Tcheri!over, )ellenisti' CiviliGation and the 7ews (9ew Uor!: $ewish 5bl.
3oc., ".,. and reprinted 4thenem, ".-.+, 3,,
#8
?. 5. 3anders, 7udaism: Pra'ti'e and &elief (6ondon>5hiladelphia: 3C1>Trinity
=nternational, "..2+, "33-"3&.
#.
"pe' Leg 2."&*-"&".
-*
De'al .#.
-"
m /eg &.2.
-2
Thornton, A$ewish 9ew 1oon 0estivals,B .-.
-3
2rtchaell, !rom "ynagogue to Chur'h, ".2.
2,
worship forms of the chrch.
-&
=t wold be going well beyond the teEt and what we !now of
the interface between nascent Christianity and the ancient synagoge to assme that 5alLs
admonition mhV o%+n ti" %Jma'" krinevtw means the Colossian Christians had
abandoned worshipping on the 3abbath. Troy 1artin concldes, Athat the 5aline commnity
at Colossae, not the opponents, practices the temporal scheme otlined by Col 2."#.B
-,
He
arges, thogh the Colossian Christians participated in a religios calendar that inclded
festivals, new moons, and 3abbaths, they did not necessarily observe the $ewish ritals
associated with these days.
-#
1artin attempts to defend his thesis Athat the practices mentioned in 2:"# are those of
the Colossian Christians and not the opponentsB by relating the clase toV deV sw'ma
to%' :risto%' (v. "-b+ to the verb krinevtw (v. "#+ and not to the immediately preceding
a{ ejstin skiaV tw'n me!!ovntwn (v. "-a+.
--
However, althogh the syntaE is aw!ward,
it is more natral to ta!e the relative clase and the dev-clase as a contrasting nit. %oss
Cole has demonstrated the shortcomings in 1artinLs argment and defended the more
traditional view of the syntaE.
-8
?ven so, = am not convinced that his eEpanded translation
WAthe body Gthe sbstance of the shadowH (is+ ChristLs (body+ Gthe chrchHBWis necessary,
-&
Nan der Horst, A/as the 3ynagoge a 5lace of 3abbath /orship before -* C?DB 33.
-,
A5agan and $deo-Christian Time-8eeping 3chemes,B """. There is no need to
accept his thesis that the critics of the ColossiansL practices were Cynics (Troy /. 1artin, &y
Philosophy and Empty De'eit: Colossians as Response to a Cyni' Criti=ue G$39T33 ""8)
3heffield: 4cademic 5ress, "..#H+.
-#
=bid.
--
Troy 1artin, A2t 6et ?veryone ;iscern the 2ody of Christ (Colossians 2:"-+,B 7&L
""& ("..,+ 2,,.
-8
H. %oss Cole, AThe Christian and Time-8eeping in Colossians 2:"# and <alatians
&:"*,B %@"" 3. (2**"+ 2-3-282.
2#
despite the spport of 6ohse and /right.
-.
The genitive after the verb Ato beB is not n!nown
in the <ree! 2ible, for eEample, 6ev -:2*-2" (6JJ+ (hJ deV 4%&hv h{ti" ejaVn "avgh/
ajpoV tw'n krew'n th'" #%siva" to%' swthrivo% o{ ejstin k%rivo%CkaiV "avgh/
ajpoV tw'n krew'n th'" #%siva" to%' swthrivo% o{ ejstin k%rivo% ajpo!ei'tai hJ
4%&hV ejkeivnh ejk to%' !ao%' a%jth'"+.
8*
The most common meaning in sch eEamples
is Abelongs to,B and this ma!es good sense in Col 2:"-, where $ewish sacred festive meals are
a shadow of the coming good things, bt the sbstance that casts the shadow belongs to
Christ.
;oes the re'ection of 1artinLs syntactical proof, reOire s to abandon his thesis that
the practices referred to in v. "# are the ColossiansL and not the opponentLsD = do not thin! so.
1artin himself did not thin! that his innovative syntaE eliminated the ambigity in the teEt as
regards identifying whose practices the teEt referred to.
8"
The detractors are not rging the
Colossians to retrn to practices that they have abandoned, bt rather to celebrate their festive
meals in conformity with the strict and eEclsive $ewish manner. They were not pressring a
grop that had no fellowship meals, or festive days to embrace the 3abbath. 9or were they
trying to get 3nday-!eepers to revert to 3abbath observance. 5alLs negativity is to remind
them that the 6ordship of Christ mst inform their eating or drin!ing in the conteEt of
Christian fellowship. ChristLs 6ordship did not demand the abandonment of their commnal
meals, bt it did dictate the inclsive natre of them.
Hence 5al does not oppose festive days as sch in v. "-. His assertion that the
sbstance behind the shadows belongs to Christ is not so as to rge the Colossians to abandon
their festive days, bt to direct the manner in which they celebrate them. =f Christians
-.
=bid, 2-&-2-, and fn "3.
8*
@ther eEamples are & 8ings 2,:". (6JJ+) 2 Chr 3&:33 (6JJ+) 6!e ,:3) 4cts
".:3,) 23:#) " Cor ":"2) 3:&) "&:33) " Thess ,:,) %ev 2":"-.
8"
1artin, A2t 6et ?veryone ;iscern the 2ody of Christ,B 2,,.
2-
manifest social or racial ineOality when they gather together (" Cor "":"--22: A;o yo not
have homes to eat and drin! inD @r do yo show contempt for the chrch of <od and
hmiliate those who have nothingDB v. 22) <al 2:""-"&) 3:28-2.) %om "&:"--2*) ",:,--+, they
are allowing the shadow to control their fellowship and not the sbstance, which belongs to
Christ. =f division and not nity characterises their meal, whatever else it is, it is not the
6ordLs repast.
The shadow>body metaphor shold not be pressed so far as to relate to the literal body
of Christ or to the chrch. The point the metaphor ma!es is that the body castes the shadow
and not the reverse. The two co-eEist. 6i!ewise, Christ shapes the Christian commnal meals
and not the reverse. There is an eschatological element to 5alLs se of mev!!w here, bt it
simply reinforces the speriority of Christ, to whom the body image relates, over the shadow
(that is, the festive days+. 0or 5al Christ is central and he is the reference point for all
Christian choices and condct. The immediately preceding verses ma!e the same point.
;ataV :ristovn (v. 8+ is 5alLs mantra. The ColossiansL former ncircmcised pagan state
has been overcome by hJ peritomhv to%) :risto%) (v. ""+. They had been made alive in
Christ, his death having forgiven and obliterated their transgressions, nailing them to the
cross, and ths disarming and trimphing over the forces of evil that were against them. 3ince
they had been circmcised in Christ with a circmcision made withot hands (v. ""+, no one
cold 'dge their freedom to associate with $ewish Christians in fellowship meals.
This means that 5alLs Alet no one 'dge yoB is not becase the Colossians had
abandoned all the festivals of $daism, bt becase, from a $ewish point of view, they were
not celebrating them in an acceptable manner.
82
=t is nli!ely that $ews wold find falt with
gentile Christians for totally abandoning the festival days. The verb krivnw more natrally
indicates some activity with which they disapproved becase it was not being observed
82
<. /. 2chanan, A/orship, 0easts and Ceremonies in the ?arly $ewish-Christian
Chrch,B NT" 2# (".8*+ 2.3-2.-.
28
properly. 4s Herold /eiss notes, ATo Hudge does not normally mean to impose.B
83
?ven within
the synagoge service, $daism celebrated the festivals as related to the temple. The temple
very Oic!ly became meaningless for the Christians, and this affected their attitde to the
festivals.
8&
5assover (?aster+ and 5entecost remained important, thogh not withot dispte.
8,

4 wee!ly day of worship remained vital too, and in the earliest period when the Christian
commnities inclded a significant body of Christian $ews, the 3abbath-tradition of the
synagoge was readily available to provide a time for corporate worship.
=f 5al were attempting to get $ewish Christians to meet with gentile Christians on a
day other than the 3abbath, one wold eEpect, as with circmcision, the resltant controversy
to be visibly present in the 9T docments. The silence is very adible and, as 2rtchaell
notes, A?very enterprise, even if it is most creative, prolongs many of the older ways
nchallenged, and therefore often nnoticed. 2ecase these continities are ncontroversial
the record tends to be silent abot them.B
8#
I- Con'l"#&on
@r stdy has led to a nmber of conclsions, which may be listed as follows:
83
/eiss, % Day of Gladness, "3,.
8&
4ccording to ;nn, this Aparting of the waysB from $daism occrred Aat a very
early stageB and was Athe first of the for pillars of second Temple $daismB to be
Andermined by the earliest ChristiansB (Partings, .,+.
8,
8enneth 4. 3trand, A3nday ?aster and Fartodecimanism in the ?arly Chrch,B
%@"" 28 ("..*+ "2--"3#) 2. 6ohse, Das Passafest der 9uartade'imaner (20CT ,&)
<Qtersloh, ".,3+) 4listair 3tewart-3y!es, The Lam#$s )igh !east: /elito >Peri Pas'ha$ and
the 9uartode'iman Pas'hal Liturgy at "ardis (3pp. Nigiliae Christianae, &2) 6eiden: 2rill,
"..8+.
8#
2rtchaell, !rom "ynagogue to Chur'h, ".&.
2.
". The bac!grond for both %om "&:,-# and Col 2:"# is $ewish. However, the former was
internal, and the latter was eEternal.
2. 2oth teEts deal with the condct of commnal meals on the festival days inherited
from the $ewish synagoge tradition.
8-
3. %omans "&:,-# indicates that some Christians wished to preserve the whole $ewish
festival calendar, while others were committed to celebrating only a selection of them.
&. The $ewish detractors wished to ma!e the Colossian Christians adhere more rigidly to
$ewish practices. Hence we affirm the opposite to /eiss when he says that Athe
opposing teachers wished to do away with what they considered $ewish.B
88
%ather than
do away with it they wished to reinforce it.
,. The threefold list in Col 2:"# inclded the 3abbath as part of the festivals related to the
temple.
8.
However, the triadic list is a fiEed phrase li!e Aloc!, stoc! and barrelB and
8-
/eiss is incorrect in arging that the absence of the term novmo" in Colossians
indicates the isse was not simply a matter of the 1osaic 6aw (Herold /eiss, AThe 6aw in
the ?pistle to the Colossians,B C&9 3& G".-2H 2.&, 3*&, 3*-, 3""+. <ovmo" is also absent
from %om ", ""-"2 and "&-",, bt 2arclay is still able to demonstrate that the dispte in the
%om "&-", was entirely over elements of the $ewish law (A;o we ndermine the 6awDB 28--
8., 2.3+.
88
/eiss, % Day of Gladness, "&2.
8.
; 5reeP (Putting the >"a##ath$ to Rest, p. DD+ tries to eEclde the wee!ly 3abbath
by arging that the triadic formla refers to 4nnal 5ilgrim 0easts (5assover, 5entecost, and
TabernaclesYgj+, 9ew 1oons, and 4nnal Ceremonial 3abbaths (Trmpets and ;ay of
4tonement+. To limit eJorthv to the three pilgrim festivals (gj+ is arbitrary as the 6JJ also
ses eJorthv to translate the general term d%wm. =t is this latter term that is sed in the
triadic lists in 9m 28:2) 2.:3.) " Chron 23:3") 2 Chron 2:3) 8:"3) 3":3) 9eh "*:3&) =sa ":"&)
?Pe! &,:"-) &#:., "") Hos 2:"3. The three words cannot be treated independently, as d 5reeP
3*
when the three terms are sed together they refer to rital days in general withot
signifying any particlar holy day.
#. 0rthermore, the synagoge and not the temple is the main inflence behind the
sitation in %omans and Colossians) hence fellowship rather than sacrifice is the isse
in the 9T.
-. 2oth %om "&:,-# and Col 2:"# are concerned with the condct of commnal meals in
the conteEt of $ewish sensibilities regarding food, especially where ncircmcised
gentiles are present at the table.
.*
5alLs stress is on the $ew and gentile fellowship in
the Christian meals rather than on the natre of the viands (as in 4cts "*-"" and <al 2+.
8. 5alLs ob'ective in both teEts is to maintain the nity of the diverse social grops that
formed the Christian fellowship.
.. =n the case of %omans 5al eEhorts tolerance of diversity regarding the eating
preferences of those participating in the commnal meals.
"*. =n Colossians, on the basis of ChristLs redemptive trimph, he rges freedom against
any forced conformity to $ewish eating or drin!ing restrictions, especially as regards
the inclsion of gentiles.
."
does, bt together as a nit.
.*
A5al is discssing here not the general practices of the Christians concerned bt
their specific behavior when they meet and eat together. The disptes arise when they do (or
do not+ welcome one another to meals (G%omH "&."-3+, and their debates are given rgency
not as general discssions of lifestyle bt as specific argments abot the food set before them
on sch occasionsB (2arclay, AK;o we ndermine the 6awDLB 2."+.
."
4s Harold Nan 2roe!hoven arges Athe writerLs primary tas! was to socialise the
chrch to become a harmonios, caring, stable commnity with some concern for the social
and cltral world of his timeB (AThe 3ocial 5rofiles in the Colossian ;ebate,B 7"NT ##
G"..-H 8.+.
3"
"". The tension in Col 2:"# was not becase the Christians were gathering to worship on
3abbath, bt becase their commnal meals were inclsive and presmably negligent
of 1ashrut
+?
"2. Col 2:"# indicates the members of the Colossian commnity were being 'dged
becase of the manner in which they celebrated their commnal meals on the feast
days, inclding 3abbath. They were not being 'dged becase of their choice of days,
since the threefold list conformed to $ewish tradition.
The isse in both %om "&:,-# and Col 2:"# was compleE. 2t it was not a debate over
when to gather for worship. That was a habit already embedded in the tradition of the
synagoge, which was readily absorbed into Christian practice by the earliest chrch.
.3
The
conflict between the early followers of $ess and their $ewish origins was more over AwhoB
($ew and gentile+ and AhowB (what to eat+ than AwhenB as regards worship. 5al was
comfortable with diversity and advocated tolerance of it, bt he was also anEios to preserve
the nity of the chrch grops. Hence, he is concerned for the Christians to worship
corporately, and, therefore, at the same time. =t is hard to conceive of any other time than the
3abbath for first-centry $ew and gentile Christians to worship together.
.2
2arclay, AK;o we ndermine the 6awDLB 3*"-3*-. 2arclay ta!es the eEtreme view
that 5al totally abandoned his $ewish heritage while allowing others the option of observing
the food laws and the 3abbath.
.3
ACthe oldest Christian commnities condcted wee!ly religios services. =t seems
to me an inevitable conclsion that they adopted this practice, too, from their $ewish
contemporaries,C.3o it seems almost certain that the wee!ly worship in earliest Christianity
was a legacy of $daismB (van der Horst, A3ynagoge and 3abbath /orship,B 33+. @f corse,
somewhat contrary to his own thesis, van der Horst says this involved a shift to 3nday.
32
A..ENDIX
-ARIANTS IN AD-ENTIST /NDERSTANDIN O0 SAVBBATA IN COL 2:16
Na)e -&e1 E23lana$&on
!(o#e Sa44a$(-
*ee3&ng5
2acchiocchi
.&
The wee! or the -
th
day
3abbath
=f -
th
day, it refers to the false teachersL perverted 3abbath-!eeping. The false teachers
Cole
.,
The -
th
day 3abbath 5al re'ects ritalistic 3abbath-!eeping. The false teachers
; 5reeP
.#
The 4nnal 3abbaths
5al abolishes the annal ceremonial 3abbaths of Trmpets and the
;ay of 4tonement.
The false teachers
0ord
.-
5robably the -
th
day
3abbath
5al is against the ritalistic and ascetic !eeping of the 3abbath, bt
not the 3abbath as sch.
The false teachers
<iem
.8
The -
th
day 3abbath 5al is referring to the sacrifices of the holy days The false teachers
Holbroo!
..
The -
th
day 3abbath 5al opposes a <nostic perversion of the 3abbath. The false teachers
9ichol
"**
4nnal ceremonial
3abbaths
5al abolishes the ceremonial law for Christians The false teachers (D+
.&
3amele 2acchiocchi, The "a##ath in the New Testament: %nswers to 9uestions (2errien 3prings, 1=: 2iblical 5erspectives, ".8,+ "33.
.,
H. %oss Cole, AThe Christian and Time-8eeping in Colossians 2:"# and <alatians &:"*,B %@"" 3. (2**"+ 2---2-8.
.#
%on d 5reeP, Putting the >"a##ath$ to Rest: % "'riptural "tudy of Colossians ?:-. (2
nd
ed.) 2errien 3prings, 1=: @mega 1edia, 2**#+
,8-#".
.-
;esmond 0ord, The !orgotten Day (9ewcastle, C4: ;esmond 0ord 5blications, ".8"+ "*,-"",.
.8
<iem, A34224TX9 in Col 2:"#,B ".,-2"*
..
0ran! 2. Holbroo!, A;id the 4postle 5al 4bolish the 3abbathD Colossians 2:"&-"- %evisited,B 7%T" "3>2 (2**2+ #&.
"**
0rancis ;. 9ichol, %nswers to 6#He'tions (/ashington, ;.C.: %eview and Herald, ".,2+ "#,-"#-.
3&
%ichardson
"*"
The -
th
day 3abbath
5al denonces a Christ-less, ritalised $ewish, and <nosticising
ascetic 3abbath.
The false teachers
3;42C
"*2
4nnal ceremonial
3abbath(s+
5al opposes the !eeping of the ceremonial law against the ceremonial
legalism of the pagan>$ewish false teachers.
The false teachers
/eiss
"*3
The -
th
day 3abbath
The athor defends the ColossianLs 3abbath-!eeping against the
opposition of anti-$ewish teachers.
The Colossians
"*"
/illiam ?. %ichardson, A3abbath: 9ailed to the CrossDB /inistry -* (1ay, "..-+ ",, 2..
"*2
0rancis ;. 9ichol et al (eds+, The "eventh,day %dventist &i#le Commentary, - Nols (%ev. ed.) Hagerstown, 1;: %eview and Herald,
".8*+ -:"8&, 2*,-2*#.
"*3
Herold /eiss, % Day of Gladness (Colmbia, 3C: 7niversity of 3oth Carolina 5ress, 2**3+ "3,, "&,.
3,