Jehovah's Witnesses And The Firstborn Of All
Creation
Colossians 1:15 calls Jesus "the firstborn
of all creation." Does this verse teach that Jesus is a created being?
The expression "firstborn of all creation" in Colossians 1:15 has
been interpreted in three different ways. First, the Jehovah's Witnesses
and other groups have argued that it means that Jesus was the first
creature created by God. Well, a text without a context is a pretext,
and this definitely does not fit the context. After saying that Jesus
is the firstborn of all creation, Paul adds in verse 16, "Because all
things were created in Him." It simply makes no sense to say that Christ
is the first creature because everything was created in Him. This is
so obvious that the Jehovah's Witnesses have added the word "other"
four times to verses 16 and 17 to make Paul say that all other things
were created in Christ.
The second explanation is that Christ is called the "firstborn of
all creation" because, as the exalted incarnate Son of God, He is both
created and the head in all creation. This explanation is consistent
with the orthodox view of Christ, since orthodox Christianity teaches
that Jesus is both the Creator God and a real human being. However,
since verse 16 says that all things were created through Christ, and
verse 17 says that Christ is before all things, Paul seems to be speaking
in verses 16 and 17 of what Christ always has been and not merely of
what He has become since exalted as a man.
The third explanation is that Christ is called the "firstborn of
all creation" because the entire created universe was created in, through,
and for Him as the eternal Son of God. This interpretation seems to
fit the context and has been favored by the vast majority of biblical
scholars. The one interpretation, of course, which is certainly wrong
is the one which tries to make this verse prove that Jesus is not the
Creator.
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