Colossians 3:12 (YLT)

Passage

Put on, therefore, as choice ones of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humble-mindedness, meekness, long-suffering,

Nearby Context

Colossians 3:10 and having put on the new, which is renewed in regard to knowledge, after the image of Him who did create him;

Colossians 3:11 where there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision, foreigner, Scythian, servant, freeman--but the all and in all--Christ.

Colossians 3:12 Put on, therefore, as choice ones of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humble-mindedness, meekness, long-suffering,

Colossians 3:13 forbearing one another, and forgiving each other, if any one with any one may have a quarrel, as also the Christ did forgive you--so also ye;

Colossians 3:14 and above all these things, <FI>have<Fi> love, which is a bond of the perfection,

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "therefore", "choice", "ones", "holy", "beloved", "bowels", "mercies", and "kindness". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "therefore" and "choice", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 11's "where there is not Greek and Jew..." into verse 13's "forbearing one another and forgiving each other...", so "therefore" and "choice" 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 "therefore" and "choice" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.