In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

COLOSSIANS 2:11KJV
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Colossians 2:11 (KJV)

What does Colossians 2:11 mean?

Colossians 2:11 says that believers have experienced a kind of spiritual circumcision, not done by human hands, but by Christ himself, which involves removing the sinful nature. This verse uses the image of circumcision to describe a deep, inward change that happens through Christ, not through a physical ritual.

Paul is writing to the Christians in Colossae, explaining that they do not need to follow old religious rituals to belong to God. Instead, through Christ, something greater has happened: their old, sinful way of life has been set aside. Paul uses language familiar to Jewish readers but applies it to all believers, showing that Christ brings a new kind of belonging to God.

The Greek behind Colossians 2:11

  • "Circumcision" (περιτομή, peritomē): This word refers to the Jewish ritual, but Paul uses it here to mean a spiritual change, not a physical act. He emphasizes that what matters is not the outward sign, but an inner transformation.
  • "Made without hands" (ἀχειροποιήτος, acheiropoiētos): This phrase highlights that the change is not human work or tradition, but something only God can do through Christ.
  • "Putting off" (ἀπέκδυσις, apekdysis): This word means to strip away or remove completely. Paul uses it to describe the complete removal of the "body of the sins of the flesh," stressing that this is a thorough and decisive change.

Why Colossians 2:11 matters

  • Colossians 2:11 clarifies that belonging to God is not about following outward rituals, but about an inward change brought by Christ.
  • This verse helps readers understand that the old way of life, marked by sin, is decisively dealt with in Christ, not by human effort.
  • Colossians 2:11 connects to the wider theme of the letter, where Paul warns against relying on human traditions and points to the sufficiency of Christ for spiritual life and identity.

Where else these words appear

“hands” Greek G886 · used in 3 verses

  • Mark 14:58 We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands.
  • 2 Corinthians 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

“circumcised” Greek G4059 · used in 16 verses

  • Luke 1:59 And it came to pass, that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they called him Zacharias, after the name of his father.
  • Acts 15:5 But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.
  • Galatians 2:3 But neither Titus, who was with me, being a Greek, was compelled to be circumcised:

“circumcision” Greek G4061 · used in 32 verses

  • John 7:22 Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision;(not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man.
  • Romans 3:1 What advantage then hath the Jew? or what profit is there of circumcision?
  • Galatians 2:9 And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision.

“body” Greek G4983 · used in 122 verses

  • Matthew 5:29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
  • Romans 8:10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
  • 1 Corinthians 15:40 There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.