Colossians 1:13 (ASV)

Passage

who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love;

Nearby Context

Colossians 1:11 strengthened with all power, according to the might of his glory, unto all patience and longsuffering with joy;

Colossians 1:12 giving thanks unto the Father, who made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light;

Colossians 1:13 who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of his love;

Colossians 1:14 in whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins:

Colossians 1:15 who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "darkness", "delivered", "power", "translated", "kingdom", and "love". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "darkness" and "delivered", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "giving thanks unto the Father who made..." into verse 14's "in whom we have our redemption the...", so "darkness" and "delivered" belong inside that flow. In Colossians context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "darkness" and "delivered" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.