I HARDLY EVER write actual letters anymore; mostly, I write emails. Some of those are addressed to groups of people, as when I need to communicate something to several of my colleagues at once. And some messages are meant only for particular individuals. But because I was born long before the existence of email, I still have the sensibilities of someone who grew up in a letter-writing world. It’s not just about the exchange of information, but of social pleasantries like, “Hi! I hope you’re doing well.” So even if I’m writing to one person, and only need to give or get information, I’ll still take the time to ask after that individual’s health, or family, and so on, and sometimes will send an additional greeting to the person’s spouse: “Say hi to so-and-so for me.”

Paul does something similar, but his purpose is more pastoral. As we’ve seen, Paul brings greetings to the Colossians from several people whom he names individually. Three of these are Jews: Aristarchus, Mark, and Jesus Justus. To these he adds the Gentiles Epaphras, Luke, and Demas. All of them must have been known to the Colossians, chiefly Epaphras, who planted the church. But 2,000 years after the fact, we’re left with only bits and pieces of information about these folks. In some cases, as with Justus and Demas, we have precious little to work with, even from Scripture.

Then, just before signing off, Paul turns things around. Instead of sending greetings from people who are around him, he sends greetings or instructions to people around them. Here’s how the letter ends:

Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house. After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea. Tell Archippus: “See to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord.” I, Paul, write this greeting in my own hand. Remember my chains. Grace be with you. (Col 4:15-18, NIV)

Who are Nympha and Archippus? As with Jesus Justus, this is the only mention of Nympha in the New Testament. All we know of her is what we read here: she was a resident of nearby Laodicea, and hosted a house church. There’s no way to know how many Christians there were in Laodicea (or anywhere else) at the time; Nympha’s may have been the only regular gathering of believers there, or one of many. But what we can infer from Paul’s greeting is that there was communication between the churches in Colossae and Laodicea, and probably Hierapolis as well. Epaphras planted all three churches, so there may also have been some shared administrative or pastoral oversight.

Moreover, this passage also illustrates the practice of writing “circular” letters, that is, letters that are meant to be circulated more widely, beyond its original recipients. Paul instructs the Colossians to make sure that the letter he wrote to them is also read to the Laodiceans, and conversely, that the so-called “letter from Laodicea” is read in Colossae as well. The English is a bit ambiguous here; it could mean that this mysterious letter, of which we know nothing for certain, was written by the Laodiceans. More likely, though, Paul is referring to a letter that he wrote, possibly directly to the Laodiceans, or one written to another church then circulated to Laodicea.

Some have suggested that this letter is the one we know as the epistle to the Ephesians which, again, is generally believed to be circular. If so, then the Ephesians may have passed it on to the Laodiceans, or at least a copy of it, keeping the original. If Tychicus was the courier for Paul’s letters to the Colossians, Philemon, and the Ephesians at the same time, then Ephesians may have been delivered first, with the intention that it would eventually make its way east, first to Hierapolis, then to Laodicea, and finally to Colossae.

This, of course, is all speculation. But both Ephesians and Colossians were meant to be read elsewhere. And if in fact copies were made and the originals preserved, it could help explain two things: first, how Paul’s letters were preserved as the earliest documents of what would later become the New Testament; and second, why there are variations in the ancient manuscripts we have. Indeed, one of those variations is that in some manuscripts Paul greets “Nympha,” and in others, greets “Nymphas.” The difference is only one letter at the end; but the first name is for a woman and the second is for a man. Thankfully, either way, it hardly makes a difference for our reading of Colossians.

We also don’t know much about Archippus, nor the meaning of Paul’s instruction to him. The only other place he appears in the New Testament is in the opening greeting of Paul’s letter to Philemon:

Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker— also to Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier—and to the church that meets in your home: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Philem 1-2)

This may mean that Archippus was a member of Philemon’s house church — or not. At best, we can be confident that he was a resident of Colossae. But Paul’s description of him as “our fellow soldier,” especially in a letter through which Paul wants to make common cause with Philemon, suggests that Paul thought of Archippus in a positive light, as a partner in the work of the gospel. That makes a difference to how we read the instruction given to Archippus in Colossians: “See to it that you complete the ministry you have received in the Lord.” It’s possible to read a negative tone into Paul’s words, something like a parent scolding a child who keeps procrastinating on their homework. Because of what Paul says in Philemon, however, a letter probably written at the same time, I prefer to read Paul’s words to Archippus as a friendly and pastoral push to finish whatever ministry task he had been assigned, and to finish it well.

All of this should help us have a richer sense of Paul’s situation. He’s an apostle of Jesus and a minister of the gospel. As much as possible, he does ministry in partnership with others whom he trusts. He has the apostolic authority to give pastoral encouragement and instruction — even to people he’s never met, and expects that instruction to be circulated more broadly.

And as we’ll see, as he writes Colossians in particular, he never forgets that he is in chains.