The Meaning of Colossians 2:21 Explained

Colossians 2:21

KJV: (Touch not; taste not; handle not;

YLT: -- thou mayest not touch, nor taste, nor handle --

Darby: Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch,

ASV: Handle not, nor taste, nor touch

KJV Reverse Interlinear

(Touch  not;  taste  not;  handle  not; 

What does Colossians 2:21 Mean?

Context Summary

Colossians 2:13-23 - Avoiding Errors
The reiteration of the prepositions in and with emphasizes our close identification with our Savior. Such we are in the purpose of God, and so we should be in daily experience. In union with Him we have once and forever put away the sins of the flesh, have lain in His grave, have passed to the heavenside of death, and are living under the blue sky of acceptance with God. Our Master's victory is potentially ours. He won it, but we may share its fruits. Yet faith must apprehend and affirm these blessings. The land of Canaan is ours by right, but every inch has to be claimed by faith. "Faith is an affirmation and act that bids eternal truth be fact."
We must not allow our religious life to become a piece of outward ritual, Colossians 2:16-17; nor permit the supposed mediation of angels to obscure the supreme majesty of our Lord, Colossians 2:18-19. We who have died with Christ must not be always regulating ourselves by the don'ts of the Law. Let us enter Christ's more intimate fellowship and live on the positive side. Ours should be the freedom of a full life, and the ampler vision of the mountains. Nothing else really avails against the indulgence of the flesh. [source]

Chapter Summary: Colossians 2

1  Paul still exhorts them to be constant in Christ;
8  to beware of philosophy, and vain traditions;
18  worshipping of angels;
20  and legal ceremonies, which are ended in Christ

Greek Commentary for Colossians 2:21

Handle not, nor taste, nor touch [μη απσηι μηδε γευσηι μηδε τιγηις]
Specimens of Gnostic rules. The Essenes took the Mosaic regulations and carried them much further and the Pharisees demanded ceremonially clean hands for all food. Later ascetics (the Latin commentators Ambrose, Hilary, Pelagius) regard these prohibitions as Paul‘s own instead of those of the Gnostics condemned by him. Even today men are finding that the noble prohibition law needs enlightened instruction to make it effective. That is true of all law. The Pharisees, Essenes, Gnostics made piety hinge on outward observances and rules instead of inward conviction and principle. These three verbs are all in the aorist subjunctive second person singular with μη — mē a prohibition against handling or touching these forbidden things. Two of them do not differ greatly in meaning. απσηι — Hapsēi is aorist middle subjunctive of απτω — haptō to fasten to, middle, to cling to, to handle. Τιγηις — Thigēis is second aorist active subjunctive of τιγγανω — thigganō old verb, to touch, to handle. In N.T. only here and Hebrews 11:28; Hebrews 12:20. Γευσηι — Geusēi is second aorist middle subjunctive of γευω — geuō to give taste of, only middle in N.T. to taste as here. [source]
Touch - taste - handle [ἅψῃ - γεύσῃ - θίγῃς]
Ἅπτομαι , A.V., touch, is properly to fasten one's self to or cling to. So John 20:17(note). Frequently rendered touch in the New Testament, and used in most cases of Christ's touching or being touched by the diseased. To get hands on so as to injure, 1 John 5:18. To have intercourse with, 1 Corinthians 7:1; 2 Corinthians 6:17. Thus, in every case, the contact described exerts a modifying influence, and a more permanent contact or effect of contact is often implied than is expressed by touch. “The idea of a voluntary or conscious effort is often involved.” No single English word will express all these phases of meaning. Handle comes, perhaps, as near as any other, especially in its sense of treatment, as when we say that a speaker or writer handles a subject; or that a man is roughly handled by his enemies. This wider and stronger sense does not attach to θιγγάνειν A.V., handle, though the two words are sometimes used interchangeably, as Exodus 19:12, and though θιγγάνειν also implies a modifying contact, unlike ψηλαφάω , which signifies to touch with a view of ascertaining the quality of the object; to feel after, to grope. See Luke 24:39; Acts 17:27. Thus ψηλαφίνδα is blind-man's-bluff. The contact implied by θιγγάνειν is more superficial and transitory. It lies between ἅπτομαι and ψηλαφάω . Thus we have here a climax which is lost in the A.V. Handle not, taste not, do not even touch. Rev., handle not, nor taste, nor touch. [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Colossians 2:21

Colossians 2:8 Rudiments [στοιχεῖα]
See on 2 Peter 3:10. Rudimentary teachings, as in Hebrews 5:12; applicable alike to Jewish and to Gentile teaching. Ceremonialism - meats, drinks, washings, Essenic asceticism, pagan symbolic mysteries and initiatory rites - all belonged to a rudimentary moral stage. Compare Colossians 2:11, Colossians 2:21, and Galatians 4:9. [source]
Colossians 2:22 After the commandments and doctrines [κατὰ τὰ ἐντάλματα καὶ διδασκαλίας]
Connect with Colossians 2:20, Colossians 2:21. Ἑντάλματα are specific injunctions. Rev., better, precepts: διδασκαλίας , more general, doctrinal instructions. Both answer to the rudiments of the world (Colossians 2:20). Compare Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23. [source]
1 Timothy 4:3 Forbidding to marry [κωλυοντων γαμειν]
Present active participle of common verb κωλυω — kōluō to hinder, genitive case agreeing with πσευδολογων — pseudologōn See note on Colossians 2:16, Colossians 2:21., where Paul condemns the ascetic practices of the Gnostics. The Essenes, Therapeutae and other oriental sects forbade marriage. In 1 Corinthians 7 Paul does not condemn marriage. [source]
Hebrews 12:20 Touch [θίγῃ]
Elsewhere in N.T. only Hebrews 11:28and Colossians 2:21. lxx only Exodus 19:12. It implies a touching or grasping which affects the object (comp. Hebrews 12:18on ψηλαφᾶν ). In Class. often of touching or handling some sacred object which may be desecrated by the one who lays hands on it. See Soph. Philoct. 667; Oed. Tyr. 891,899. So here, the touch of the mountain was profanation. [source]
Hebrews 11:28 Lest he that destroyed the first-born should touch them [ἵνα μὴ ὁ ὀλοθρεύων τὰ πρωρότοκα θίγῃ αὐτῶν]
Rend. “that the destroyer of the first-born should not touch them,” a rendering which brings out more sharply the preventive purpose of the sprinkling of blood. Ὀλοθρεύειν todestroy, N.T.ooClass. Ὁ ὀλοθρεύων is used in the narrative of Exodus 12:23for the destroying angel. The kindred noun ὀλοθρευτής destroyer(olxx, oClass.) occurs in 1 Corinthians 10:10of the plague in Numbers 16:46-50. For θίγῃ shouldtouch, see on Colossians 2:21. [source]
Hebrews 11:28 He kept [πεποιηκεν]
Perfect active indicative of ποιεω — poieō to make, “he has made,” emphasizing the permanent nature of the feast. The sprinkling of the blood Rather, “the pouring of the blood” An allusion to the command in Exodus 12:7, Exodus 12:22 but in the lxx προσχεω — proscheō is the usual term for the act (Exod 24:6; 29:16; Lev 1:5, 11; Deut 16:6). That the destroyer of the first-born should not touch them Negative final clause with ινα μη — hina mē and the second aorist active subjunctive of τιγγανω — thigganō old verb to touch with genitive, in the N.T. only here, Hebrews 12:20; Colossians 2:21. The articular participle ο ολοτρευων — ho olothreuōn is from Exodus 12:23. For πρωτοτοκα — prōtotoka see Luke 2:7; Exodus 12:29. [source]
1 John 5:18 Toucheth [ἅπτεται]
See on John 20:17, the only other passage in John's writings where the verb occurs. Both this verb and θιγγάνω (Colossians 2:21; Hebrews 11:28; Hebrews 12:20) express a touch which exerts a modifying influence upon the object, though θιγγάνω indicates rather a superficial touch. On ψηλαφάω (Acts 27:27; Hebrews 12:18; 1 John 1:1), see on Luke 24:39. Compare Colossians 2:21. The idea here is layeth not hold of him. [source]
1 John 5:18 Sinneth not [ουχ αμαρτανει]
Lineal present active indicative, “does not keep on sinning,” as he has already shown in 1 John 3:4-10.He that was begotten of God (ο γεννητεις εκ του τεου — ho gennētheis ek tou theou). First aorist passive articular participle referring to Christ, if the reading of A B is correct (τηρει αυτον — tērei auton not τηρει εαυτον — tērei heauton). It is Christ who keeps the one begotten of God (γεγεννημενος εκ του τεου — gegennēmenos ek tou theou as in 1 John 3:9 and so different from ο γεννητεις — ho gennētheis here). It is a difficult phrase, but this is probably the idea. Jesus (John 18:37) uses γεγεννημαι — gegennēmai of himself and uses also τηρεω — tēreō of keeping the disciples (John 17:12, John 17:15; Revelation 3:10).The evil one Masculine and personal as in 1 John 2:13, not neuter, and probably Satan as in Matthew 6:13, not just any evil man.Touchest him not (ουχ απτεται αυτου — ouch haptetai autou). Present middle indicative of απτω — haptō elsewhere in John only John 20:17. It means to lay hold of or to grasp rather than a mere superficial touch (τιγγανω — thigganō both in Colossians 2:21). Here the idea is to touch to harm. The devil cannot snatch such a man from Christ (John 6:38.). [source]
1 John 5:18 The evil one [ο πονηρος]
Masculine and personal as in 1 John 2:13, not neuter, and probably Satan as in Matthew 6:13, not just any evil man.Touchest him not (ουχ απτεται αυτου — ouch haptetai autou). Present middle indicative of απτω — haptō elsewhere in John only John 20:17. It means to lay hold of or to grasp rather than a mere superficial touch (τιγγανω — thigganō both in Colossians 2:21). Here the idea is to touch to harm. The devil cannot snatch such a man from Christ (John 6:38.). [source]

What do the individual words in Colossians 2:21 mean?

Not you should handle Not you should taste you should touch
Μὴ ἅψῃ μηδὲ γεύσῃ θίγῃς

ἅψῃ  you  should  handle 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Middle, 2nd Person Singular
Root: ἅπτω  
Sense: to fasten one’s self to, adhere to, cling to.
γεύσῃ  you  should  taste 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Middle, 2nd Person Singular
Root: γεύομαι  
Sense: to taste, to try the flavour of.
θίγῃς  you  should  touch 
Parse: Verb, Aorist Subjunctive Active, 2nd Person Singular
Root: θιγγάνω  
Sense: to touch, handle.

What are the major concepts related to Colossians 2:21?

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