Colossians 1:15-17
NT Letters
Colossians 1:15-1715The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16For in Him all things were created, things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
JW Usage
JWs cite "firstborn of all creation" to argue Jesus was the first thing created. NWT adds "other" four times to make Jesus part of creation.
Protestant Usage
Prototokos means "heir/preeminent one" (cf. , David called firstborn). The text says "all things were created through him" — no "other" in the Greek. Jesus is the creator, not a creature.
NWT Issue
NWT inserts "other" four times in brackets: "all [other] things." This word does not appear in any Greek manuscript. It changes Jesus from creator of all things to creator of all other things.
Arguments Using This Verse
Jesus' Eternality
Psalm 102 → Hebrews 1
Deity of Christ Strong
Colossians 1 — Inserted 'Other'
The NWT adds a word that changes everything
NWT Translation Strong
Monogenes — 'Only Begotten' Means Unique
John 3:16
Deity of Christ Strong
The New World Translation — Anonymous and Unqualified
Can you trust a Bible translated by unnamed, untrained scholars?
NWT Translation Strong
The Holy Spirit Is a Person, Not a Force
"He will guide you into all truth" (John 16:13)
Holy Spirit Strong
Jehovah Created Alone — So Jesus Must Be Jehovah
Isaiah 44:24
Deity of Christ Strong
The Bible Has Not Been Corrupted
5,800 Manuscripts Can't All Be Wrong
Authority Very Strong
The NWT's One-Way Mirror
Every Change Points the Same Direction
NWT Translation Strong
Spirit of Christ — Restructured Away
1 Peter 1:11 — The NWT Breaks the Genitive to Hide Pre-Existence
NWT Translation Strong
The Angel from Heaven
Galatians 1:8 — Three-Way Angel Parallel
Deity of Christ Strong
Let Us Make Man — The Isaiah 44:24 Trap
Genesis 1:26 / Isaiah 44:24 / Job 33:4
Deity of Christ Strong
Hebrews 1:6 Quotes a Jehovah-Worship Text — And Applies It to Jesus
Deuteronomy 32:43 LXX / Hebrews 1:6 / Dead Sea Scrolls
Deity of Christ Very Strong
Gods Who Die and God to Pharaoh Don't Parallel Jesus
Psalm 82:6-7 / Exodus 7:1 / John 10:34-36
Deity of Christ Very Strong
The Christian Shema — Paul Splits the Shema to Include Jesus
1 Corinthians 8:6 / Deuteronomy 6:4 / Isaiah 44:24
Deity of Christ Very Strong
All Things Exist For and Through Jesus
Hebrews 2:5-10
Deity of Christ Strong
King of Kings and Lord of Lords
Revelation 19:16 — A title shared with Jehovah
Deity of Christ Strong
Arianism Is Not New — JW Christology Was Rejected in AD 325
Council of Nicaea / Arius / Athanasius
Authority Strong
Images Are Not the Problem — Worship Is
Numbers 21:8 / 2 Kings 18:4 / Exodus 25:18
Practice Strong
Theotokos Is About Jesus, Not About Mary
Luke 1:43 / John 1:14 / Colossians 2:9
Deity of Christ Strong
When 'Is' Becomes 'Means'
The NWT's Pattern of Paraphrasing the Greek Copula
NWT Translation Moderate
Whoever Denies the Son Does Not Have the Father
1 John 2:22-23
Deity of Christ Very Strong
You Can't Cite a Bible You Say Is Corrupted
The Selective-Appeal Inconsistency
Authority Very Strong
I Live Because of the Father
John 6:57 — incarnation context, not pre-existent origin
Deity of Christ Moderate
Two Verbs, Two Categories
John 1 — the Word 'was' (ēn), creation 'came to be' (egeneto)
Deity of Christ Strong
A First-Century Parallel to JW Christology
Colossians 1:15-20 — Paul Addressed a Christology Structurally Like the Watchtower's
Deity of Christ Strong
Two Matches, One Candle — How Three Persons Create as One
Causal overdetermination and opera ad extra sunt indivisa
Deity of Christ Strong
You're Already a Trinitarian — The Watchtower's Eternal Logos Problem
If two persons existed before creation, where's the "one"?
Deity of Christ Strong
Have You Read That Yourself? — Surfacing Watchtower-Mediated Reading
A gentle, repeated question that exposes secondhand belief
Authority Moderate
When Scholars Write Back — The Watchtower's Quote-Mining Pattern
Julius Mantey's 1974 letter, plus Westcott, Robertson, Alford, Harner, Barclay
Authority Very Strong
Sharing a Role Is Not Sharing Who God Is
Isaiah 44:24 / 1 Corinthians 6:2-3 / Job 38:7 — when 'God alone' texts allow others in, and when they don't
Deity of Christ Strong