Colossians 3:22 (ASV)

Passage

Servants, obey in all things them that are your masters according to the flesh; not with eye-service, as men-pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing the Lord:

Nearby Context

Colossians 3:20 Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well-pleasing in the Lord.

Colossians 3:21 Fathers, provoke not your children, that they be not discouraged.

Colossians 3:22 Servants, obey in all things them that are your masters according to the flesh; not with eye-service, as men-pleasers, but in singleness of heart, fearing the Lord:

Colossians 3:23 whatsoever ye do, work heartily, as unto the Lord, and not unto men;

Colossians 3:24 knowing that from the Lord ye shall receive the recompense of the inheritance: ye serve the Lord Christ.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "all things", "servants", "obey", "masters", "flesh", "eye-service", "men-pleasers", and "singleness". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "all things" and "servants", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 21's "Fathers provoke not your children that they..." into verse 23's "whatsoever ye do work heartily as unto...", so "all things" and "servants" 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 "all things" and "servants" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.