Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Colossians 4:18

"The salutation of me Paul with mine own hand. Remember my bonds. Grace be with you." — Colossians 4:18 (ASV)

When a stenographer’s services were used to write a letter (as perhaps was Paul’s custom; cf. Romans 16:22), it was normally the stenographer’s task to compose the final greeting.

Apparently, however, Paul regularly wrote the benediction in his own hand (cf. 2 Thessalonians 3:11). So here at the end of this letter, he took the stylus and signed the letter in his own hand. The letter ends as it began, with the simple but profound prayer: “Grace be with you.”