Jesus was the symbol of deity. Paul would have meant that Jesus exactly symbolized God. The second element of meaning in the word “image” (eikōn) was manifestation. When the term was employed, it meant that the symbol was more than a symbol. The symbol brought with it the actual presence of the object. Thus J. B. Phillips translated it, “visible expression,” and by it Paul meant that Jesus brought God into the human sphere of understanding. He manifested God. The terminology is similar to Heb 1:3,
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