prayer of Eph. 3: is that the believer may be filled with all the fullness of God and if

to be filled with all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, proves the Deity of Christ in

Col. 2: 9, what does Eph. 3: 19 teach of the believer? Identical language, pan to

pleroma "all the fullness", is found in Eph. 3: 19, Col. 1: 19 and 2: 9, and these

passages cannot be separated and interpreted independently of each other. The "fullness"

of Christ dwells "bodily" in the church, even as the "fullness" of the Godhead dwells

"bodily" in Him. Philippians does not contain the word "fullness", but it reveals the

blessed condescension of the Lord that alone made the "fullness" possible, for the word is

always used with a redemptive meaning. The words of Phil. 2: 7 "He made Himself of

no reputation" are literally "He emptied Himself". As our Mediator, He emptied Himself,

so that as our Mediator He might become our fullness. The same thought underlies the

words of Heb. 1: and 2: "He was made a little lower than the angels", and as a result He

was "made so much better than the angels" (Heb. 2: 7; 1: 4, 5).

There are moreover many contextual links that bind these references together as one

whole.  In Eph. 1: 21-23 the stress is upon the Headship of Christ as the risen and

ascended One, with all things under His feet, the Church which is His Body, being the

fullness of Him Who in His turn filleth all in all. In Col. 1: 15-20 the two creations are

brought together, with Christ as "Firstborn" in each (Col. 1: 15, 18), with Christ as

pre-eminent in each (Col. 1: 17, 18). Things in heaven and earth were His creation

(Col. 1: 16) and they are the objects of reconciliation (Col. 1: 20). When we come to

Col. 2: 4-23, we have left the positive revelation of truth, and have entered into the

sphere of conflict with error. The complete structure of this passage has been set out on

page 84 of Volume XXIII, but for our present purpose we will give the opening and

closing members of this great correspondence.

R | a | 4-8-. Plausible speech. Philosophy (philoophia).

b | -8-. Traditions of men.

c | -8-. Rudiments of the world.

CORRECTIVE. | -8. Not after Christ. Fullness pleroma

9, 10. Ye are filled full in Him. pleroo

R |

c | 20-22. Rudiments of the world.

b | 22. Teaching of men.

a | 23-. Wordy show of wisdom (sophia).

CORRECTIVE. | -23-. Not in any honour.

-23. Filling of the flesh. plesmone

Whatever is intended by Col. 2: 9 "all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" is closely

and intimately carried forward into verse ten, for the word translated "complete" is

pepleromenoi, even as conversely, the title of the church as "the fullness" is carried

upward to Christ , as the One Who is filling (pleroumenon) the all things in all.

Col. 2: 4-23 combats the invasion of a vain and deceitful philosophy, supported by

tradition and the rudiments of the world, but "not after Christ", and later in the same

argument, not only philosophies and traditions, but even Divinely appointed "new moons

and sabbath days" are alike set aside as "shadow of things to come" because "the Body is