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NASB | Colossians 1:15 ¶ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Colossians 1:15 ¶ He is the exact living image [the essential manifestation] of the unseen God [the visible representation of the invisible], the firstborn [the preeminent one, the sovereign, and the originator] of all creation. |
Subject: firstborn: prototokos |
Bible Note: The term "firstborn" is translated from the greek term "prototokos"- which does not mean here "created first", or "born first in time". It's the same word that Paul uses when he says in 1Tim 1:15, "...to save sinners; of whom I am chief". That term 'chief' is translated from the same word 'prototokos', so unless you believe that Paul was the first person to have ever sinned, don't interpret this passage to mean that Jesus was the 'first' creation of God. It means here to be first in rank, or highest in order: as in the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords, by whom and for whom all things are made (Col 1:16). |