What does Colossians 1:2 mean?

The recipients of this letter are Christians of the church located at Colossae. This city was about 100 miles east of Ephesus, in Asia Minor. It is located fairly close to the city of Laodicea. Unlike some of Paul's other letters, this one seems to be written to a church he had not yet personally visited (Colossians 1:7, Colossians 2:1).

Scripture does not use the term "saints" as a category of ultra-holy people. Rather, "saints" refers to all saved believers (Romans 1:7; 8:27). Before he was a Christian, Paul had thrown many of "the saints" in prison (Acts 26:10). Now, after a miraculous conversion, he is a missionary and a fellow saint among the early church. "Brothers" here is not meant to refer specifically to men. This is a general word for people, and includes both male and female believers.

This verse is the only place where the recipients are specifically referred to as those Christians in "Colossae." This city was 100 miles east of Ephesus and around 12 miles away from Laodicea. The Christians of this city were likely those who had heard the gospel during Paul's ministry in Ephesus, but whom Paul had not personally evangelized. Epaphras, instead, is the man credited with reaching this city with the gospel (Colossians 1:7; 4:12; Philemon 1:23).

Paul's standard greeting includes the phrase "Grace to you and peace from God our Father." The phrase "grace to you" starts all four of his Prison Epistles and is found in all of Paul's letters except his letters to Timothy and Titus.