a deutero-pauline mystery? 175
elements of both continuity and discontinuity with the undisputed let-
ters, a mediating position is also gaining traction. several scholars believe
that Paul may have authorized someone, probably timothy, to write the
letter.3
the arguments against Pauline authorship include stylistic consider-
ations, but most scholars place more weight on the theological differences.
these differences concern first and foremost eschatology, Christology,
ecclesiology, and the picture of the apostle. Colossians has a stronger
emphasis on realized eschatology (see especially 3:1–2), teaches a cosmic
Christology (cf. 1:15–20), uses the word “church” for the universal church
rather than individual congregations (1:18, 24), identifies Christ as the
head of the church (cf. 1:18; 2:19), and invests the apostle’s sufferings with
a more profound significance (cf. 1:24).
A Universal Church
in the following, i will focus on arguments pertaining to ecclesiology and
the view of the apostle, as they are closely related. the use of the term
“church” (ἐκκλησία) with reference to the universal church is character-
istic of Colossians and ephesians, but there is also considerable fluid-
ity in Paul’s use of this term in the undisputed letters. the term occurs
44 times in these letters. Paul may use the word in the plural to refer to
all the churches (rom 16:16; 1 Cor 7:17; 14:33, 34; 2 Cor 8:18, 19, 23, 24; 11:8,
28; 12:13), all the gentile churches (rom 16:4), or all the churches in a
particular area (1 Cor 16:1, 19; gal 1:2, 22; 2 Cor 8:1 9; 1 thess 2:14). in the
singular, ἐκκλησία usually refers to a specific congregation. in these cases,
however, a qualifier normally identifies the particular locale (rom 16:1, 5;
1 Cor 1:2; 16:19; 2 Cor 1:1; 1 thess 1:1; Phlm 2). sometimes, such a qualifier is
3 eduard schweizer, The Letter to the Colossians [trans. andrew Chester; london: sPCK,
1976], 15–24; James d. g. dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon [nigtC;
grand rapids: eerdmans, 1996], 38; david M. hay, Colossians [antC; nashville: abingdon,
2000], 19–24). Marianne Meye thompson also holds that Paul either wrote or authorized
the letter (Colossians and Philemon [two horizons new testament Commentary; grand
rapids: eerdmans, 2005], 2–4).
some scholars are undecided on the question of authorship, e.g., raymond e. Brown,
An Introduction to the New Testament (aBrl; new york: doubleday, 1997), 610–15; Christian
stettler, Der Kolosserhymnus: Untersuchungen zu Form, traditionsgeschichtlichem Hintergr-
und und Aussage von Kol 1,15–20 (wunt 2.131; tübingen: Mohr siebeck, 2000), 43–44; Mark
allan Powell, Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey
(grand rapids: Baker, 2009), 361–63. John M. g. Barclay maintains that if Colossians were
not by Paul it must have been from someone so close to him that it still is a “Pauline” letter
(Colossians and Philemon [ntg; sheffield: sheffield academic, 1997], 35).