Colossians 3.6-The Wrath of God is and will be Directed Against the People Characterized by Disobedience
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday May 29, 2016
Colossians: Colossians 3:6-The Wrath of God is and will be Directed Against the People Characterized by Disobedience
Lesson # 73
Colossians 3:5 Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. 6 For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience. (NASB95)
“Because of these things” is composed of the following: (1) preposition dia (διά), “because” (2) relative pronoun hos (ὅς), “these things.”
The accusative neuter plural form of the relative pronoun hos is anaphoric meaning it is pointing back to the nouns porneia, “sexual immorality,” akatharsia, “sexual impurity,” pathos, “sexual lust,” epithumia, “desire” which is modified by the adjective kakos, “evil,” and pleonexia, “greed,” which all appear in Colossians 3:5.
This relative pronoun is the object of the preposition dia which means “because” since it is functioning as a marker of cause meaning that these five vices or sins mentioned in verse 5 are the reason for the assertion it is introducing here in verse 6.
Therefore, this prepositional phrase indicates that the sins mentioned in verse 5 are the reason why the wrath of God or in other words, His righteous indignation is and will be directed against the non-believer or the unregenerate.
“The wrath of God” is composed of the following: (1) noun orgē (ὀργή), “wrath” (5) noun theos (θεός), “of God.”
The noun orgē means “wrath, righteous indignation” since the word pertains to God’s legitimate anger directed towards unrepentant sinners which is an expression of His holiness.
It will be experienced for all of eternity by these unrepentant, unregenerate sinners in the eternal lake of fire for either rejecting the revelation of God in creation, or the revelation of God in the person and work of Jesus Christ, or the gospel of Jesus Christ.
The noun theos refers to the Father which is indicated by the word’s articular construction which in the New Testament commonly signifies the first member of the Trinity unless otherwise indicated by the context.
The noun theos functions as a genitive of production meaning that it is producing the noun orgē to which it stands related.
This would indicate that this wrath or righteous indignation is “produced by” or “exercised by” the Father and is thus the “product” of His holy character or holiness.
“Will come” is the verb erchomai (ἒρχομαι), which means “to happen, to occur, to take place, with the implication of the event being directed at someone or something.”
This indicates that because of the five sins listed in Colossians 3:5, the wrath exercised by God the Father is and “will take place” or “will be directed against” unrepentant, unregenerate sinners.
The present tense of the verb erchomai is a “futuristic” present which is describing an event begun in the present time but will be completed in the future.
This would indicate that the wrath exercised by the Father is already being exercised at the present time against unrepentant, unregenerate sinners but ultimately in the future it will be exercised against these individuals in the eternal lake of fire.
This interpretation is supported by Romans 1:18-32 which asserts that the wrath of God is already being exercised against unrepentant, unregenerate sinners because of their sinful conduct.
It is also supported by the fact that Revelation 20:11-15 teaches that the wrath of God will in the future be exercised by Him against every unrepentant, unregenerate sinner in human history-past, present and future in the eternal lake of fire.
The present tense of this verb is also a gnomic present which is used of a general timeless fact indicating an eternal spiritual truth or spiritual axiom.
Thus, it denotes that the wrath exercised by the Father, “as an eternal spiritual truth” is and will be directed against those people characterized by disobedience, i.e. against unrepentant, unregenerate sinners.
“Upon the sons of disobedience” is composed of the following: (1) preposition epi (ἐπί), “upon” (2) noun huios (υἱός), “the sons” (3) noun apeitheia (ἀπείθεια), “of disobedience.”
The noun huios is in the plural and does not mean “sons” but rather “persons, people” since the word pertains to human beings without reference to the gender and speaks of a particular category of human beings who are distinguished by a particular characteristic.
Here in Colossians 3:6, it is used of unrepentant, unregenerate sinners who are characterized as being disobedient to God.
The noun apeitheia means “disobedience” and refers to those members of the human race who are unwilling or refuse to obey God’s authority as expressed in His Word.
In other words, it speaks of those members of the human race who unrepentant, unregenerate sinners.
This word is in the genitive case and functions as a descriptive genitive indicating these children or human beings are “characterized by” disobedience to God.
The noun apeitheia is the object of the preposition epi, which means “against” since it is functioning as a marker of opposition indicating that the wrath of God is and will be directed “against” those members of the human race who are characterized by disobedience.
Colossians 3:5 Therefore, I solemnly charge each and every one of you to put to death the members of that which belongs to your earthly nature with regards to the practice of sexual immorality, sexual impurity, sexual lust, evil desire as well as that which is greed which is, as an eternal spiritual truth characterized as idolatry 6 These things are the reason why the wrath exercised by God the Father, as an eternal spiritual truth is and will be directed against the people characterized by disobedience. (My translation)
The apostle Paul’s assertion in Colossians 3:6 is directly tied to his command in Colossians 3:5 which is an inference from his previous statements recorded in Colossians 3:1-4.
Now, here in Colossians 3:6, Paul asserts that the five sins listed in Colossians 3:5 are the reason why the wrath exercised by God the Father, as an eternal spiritual truth is and will be directed against those people characterized by disobedience.
This refers to unrepentant, unregenerate sinners experiencing God’s wrath for eternity in the eternal lake of fire.
This “wrath” refers to God’s legitimate anger directed towards unrepentant sinners which is an expression of His holiness.
It will be experienced for all of eternity by these unrepentant, unregenerate sinners in the eternal lake of fire for either rejecting the revelation of God in creation, or the revelation of God in the person and work of Jesus Christ, or the gospel of Jesus Christ.
At the present time, this righteous indignation is being exercised by the Father against unrepentant, unregenerate sinners but ultimately in the future it will be exercised against these individuals in the eternal lake of fire.
This interpretation is supported by Romans 1:18-32 which asserts that the wrath of God is already being exercised against unrepentant, unregenerate sinners because of their sinful conduct.
Ultimately, the Father will exercise His righteous indignation against every unrepentant, unregenerate sinner in human history-past, present and future in the eternal lake of fire according to Revelation 20:11-15.
So therefore, God’s wrath or righteous indignation refers to His legitimate anger towards evil and sin since both are contrary to His holiness or perfect character and nature.
It expresses His holiness, which pertains to the absolute perfection of God’s character.
His holiness is expressing the purity of His character or moral perfection and excellence and means that God can have nothing to do with sin or sinners.
He is totally separate from sin and sinners unless a way can be found to constitute them holy and that way has been provided based upon the merits of the impeccable Person and Finished Work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross.
The presence of evil, sin and injustice is totally absent in the character of God, thus God does not tolerate evil or sin because it is contrary to His character, i.e. His inherent moral qualities, ethical standards and principles.
God’s wrath or righteous indignation is used of God’s settled opposition to and displeasure against sin meaning that God’s holiness cannot and will not coexist with sin in any form whatsoever.
It is not the momentary, emotional, and often uncontrolled anger to which human beings are prone and does not refer to an explosive outburst but rather it refers to an inner, deep resentment that seethes and smolders, often unnoticed by others as in the case of God’s wrath.
God hates sin so much and loves the sinner so much that He judged His Son Jesus Christ for every sin in human history-past, present and future and provided deliverance from sin through faith in His Son Jesus Christ.
The only way to avoid God’s righteous indignation is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. John 3:36).
The apostle Paul in Romans 5:9 writes that if Christ died as a substitute for sinners, how much more then, will He deliver the sinner justified by faith in Jesus Christ from the wrath of God.
Romans 5:6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. (NASB95)