Colossae, Colosse

Colossae was an ancient city in Asia Minor. It was in the southwestern part of present-day Turkey. The apostle Paul wrote a letter to the church there (Colossians 1:2). Colossae was near the Lycus River, a tributary of the Meander. The city flourished during the sixth century BC.

According to Herodotus, an ancient Greek historian, when the Persian king Xerxes came to Colossae, it was a city of great size. Another Greek historian, Xenophon, related that Cyrus the Great, founder of the Persian Empire, had passed Colossae still earlier on his way to Greece.

Colossae was in the region of Phrygia. It was a trade center at a crossroads on the main road from Ephesus to the east. During the Roman period, the road north to Pergamum was moved. This change helped Laodicea grow, while Colossae slowly declined. Laodicea was about 16 kilometers (10 miles) from Colossae. Both cities took part in the wool trade. The name Colossae may have come from the Latin word collossinus, meaning “purple wool.”

In the time of the apostle Paul, Colossae was a small city. Its people included Phrygians, Greeks, and Jews. During Paul’s long stay in Ephesus, he may have taught Jews and Greeks who lived in Colossae (Acts 19:10). Epaphras, who was from Colossae, later visited Paul in Rome. He told Paul about the condition of the church in Colossae (Colossians 1:7; 4:12). Epaphras was later imprisoned with Paul (Philemon 1:23).

Other members of the church in Colossae included Philemon, Apphia, Archippus, and Onesimus. Onesimus was a slave who became a Christian (Philemon 1:16). Little is known about the later history of the church in Colossae. The city became weaker under Islamic rule and was eventually destroyed in the twelfth century.