1:19
For: Notice that the Berean Standard Bible begins 1:19 with the word For. 1:19 explains and provides a reason for the previous verses.
God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him: A literal English translation of the Greek is: “in him was-pleased all the fullness to-dwell.” The phrase in Him refers to Jesus. In Greek there is no subject of the verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates was pleased. There are two main possibilities:
(1) The subject of the verb is God. This is how most English versions translate the verse.
(Berean Standard Bible, New International Version, Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, God’s Word, New Century Version, NET Bible, New Living Translation (2004)).
(2) The subject of the verb is fullness. This is how the Revised Standard Version translates the verse.
Most scholars agree that God is the subject of the verb was pleased and so it is recommended that you follow the first option (1). Another way to translate the words God was pleased is:
God decided…
all His fullness: The Greek is literally “all the fullness.” It is not clear from this verse alone what fullness Paul meant. However, this is similar to what Paul says in 2:9: “in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form.” This helps us to understand that Paul was probably referring to God’s fullness in this verse. When Jesus came into the world, even though he became a man, he was still God, and he still retained all the power and characteristics of God.
in Him: This, of course, refers to Christ. In the Greek text Paul placed these words at the beginning of the clause to emphasize them. You should emphasize them in your translation in a way that is natural in your language.
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