Commentaries:
Robertson's Word Pictures (NT)
Handle not, nor taste, nor touch (mh ayh mhde geush mhde qighv). Specimens of Gnostic rules. The Essenes took the Mosaic regulations and carried them much further and the Pharisees demanded ceremonially clean hands for all food. Later ascetics (the Latin commentators Ambrose, Hilary, Pelagius) regard these prohibitions as Paul's own instead of those of the Gnostics condemned by him. Even today men are finding that the noble prohibition law needs enlightened instruction to make it effective. That is true of all law. The Pharisees, Essenes, Gnostics made piety hinge on outward observances and rules instead of inward conviction and principle. These three verbs are all in the aorist subjunctive second person singular with mh, a prohibition against handling or touching these forbidden things. Two of them do not differ greatly in meaning. ayh is aorist middle subjunctive of aptw, to fasten to, middle, to cling to, to handle. Qighv is second aorist active subjunctive of qigganw, old verb, to touch, to handle. In N.T. only here and Hebrews 11:28; Hebrews 12:20. Geush is second aorist middle subjunctive of geuw, to give taste of, only middle in N.T. to taste as here.
Other Robertson's Word Pictures (NT) entries containing Colossians 2:21:
1 Timothy 4:3
Hebrews 11:28
1 John 5:18
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