John Calvin Commentary Colossians 4:3

"withal praying for us also, that God may open unto us a door for the word, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds;" — Colossians 4:3 (ASV)

Pray also for us. He does not say this by way of pretense, but because, being conscious of his own necessity, he earnestly desired to be aided by their prayers and was fully persuaded that they would be of advantage to him. Who then, in the present day, would dare to despise the intercessions of brethren, which Paul openly declares himself to stand in need of?

And, unquestionably, it is not in vain that the Lord has appointed this exercise of love between us—that we pray for each other. Therefore, not only should each of us pray for his brethren, but we should also, on our part, diligently seek help from the prayers of others, as often as occasion requires.

It is, however, a childish argument on the part of Papists, who infer from this that the dead must be implored to pray for us. For what is there here that bears any resemblance to this? Paul commends himself to the prayers of the brethren, with whom he knows that he has mutual fellowship according to the commandment of God. Who will deny that this reason does not hold in the case of the dead? Leaving, therefore, such trifles, let us return to Paul.

As we have a notable example of modesty in the fact that Paul calls others to his assistance, so we are also admonished that persevering steadfastly in the defense of the gospel is a matter of the greatest difficulty, especially when danger presses. For it is not without cause that he desires the Churches to assist him in this matter.

Consider, too, at the same time, his amazing ardor of zeal. He is not anxious about his own safety; he does not ask that prayers be poured forth by the Churches on his behalf, that he might be delivered from the danger of death. He is content with this one thing: that he may, unconquered and undaunted, persevere in confessing the gospel. Indeed, he fearlessly makes his own life a secondary matter compared to the glory of Christ and the spread of the gospel.

By a door of utterance, however, he simply means what, in Ephesians 6:19, he terms the opening of the mouth, and what Christ calls a mouth and wisdom (Luke 21:15). For the expression differs in no way from the other in meaning, but merely in form; for he here intimates, by an elegant metaphor, that it is in no way easier for us to speak confidently about the gospel than to break through a door that is barred and bolted. For this is truly a divine work, as Christ Himself said,

It is not ye that speak,
but the Spirit of your Father
that speaketh in you.
(Matthew 10:20).

Having, therefore, set forth the difficulty, he stirs up the Colossians all the more to prayer. He does this in several ways:

1. He declares that he cannot speak rightly, except insofar as his tongue is directed by the Lord.
2. He argues from the dignity of the matter, when he calls the gospel the mystery of Christ. For we must labor with greater diligence in a matter of such importance.
3. He also makes mention of his danger.