Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,
Beguile you of your reward, х katabrabeuetoo (G2603] - literally, 'to adjudge a prize out of hostility away from him who deserves it' (Trench). This defrauding of their prize the Colossians would suffer, by letting any self-constituted judge (i:e., false teacher) draw them away from Christ, "the righteous Judge" and Awarder of the prize (Philippians 3:14; 1 Corinthians 9:25; 2 Timothy 4:8; James 1:12; 1 Peter 5:4), to angel-worship.
In a voluntary humility, х theloon (G2309) en (G1722) tapeinofrosunee (G5012)]. So х ethelothreeskia (G1479)] 'will-worship and humility' х tapeinofrosunee (G5012)] (Colossians 2:23). Literally, 'delighting in humility' [Hebraism, chapeets bª-]; loving (so the Greek, Mark 12:38, "love to go in long clothing") to indulge in a humility of his own imposing: 'a volunteer in humility' (Dalloeus). Not as Alford, 'Let no one of purpose defraud you,' etc. Nor as Grotius, 'If he ever so much wish' (to defraud you). For 'wishing' or 'delighting' is one of the series of participles in the same category as 'intruding,' 'puffed up,' 'not holding:' the self-pleasing implied stands in happy contrast to the (mock) humility with which it is connected. His "humility" (Greek, 'lowliness of mind'), so-called, is a pleasing of self; in parallelism to "his fleshly mind" (its real name, though he styles it "humility") as, 'wishing' or 'delighting' is parallel to 'puffed up.' Under pretext of humility, as if they durst not come directly to God and Christ (like modern Rome), they invoked angels, and gave themselves secret names of angels (Irenaeus, 'Adv. Haer.' 1: 31, 32); as Judaizers, they justified this on the ground that the law was given by angels.
So Josephus (Jewish Wars 2: 8, 7) as to the Essenes. This error continued long in Phrygia (where Colosse and Laodicea were), so that the council of Laodicea (360 AD) framed 1 Thessalonians 3 5th canon against the 'Angelici' (as Augustine, 'Haereses,' 39, calls them), or 'invokers of angels.' As late as Theodoret there were oratories to Michael the archangel. The modern Greeks have a legend that Michael opened a chasm to draw off an inundation threatening the Colossian Christians. Once men admit the inferior powers to share invocation with the Supreme, the former gradually engross all serious worship, almost to the exclusion of the latter: thus the pagan, beginning with adding the worship of other deities to the Supreme, ended with ceasing to worship Him at all. Nor does it signify much whether we regard such as directly controlling us (the Pagan view), or as only influencing the Supreme in our behalf (Rome's view); because he from whom I expect happiness or misery, becomes the uppermost object in my mind, whether he give, or only procure it ('Cautions for Times.') Scripture opposes the idea of 'patrons' or 'intercessors' (1 Timothy 2:5-6). True humility joins consciousness of personal demerit with a sense of participation in the divine life through Christ, and in the dignity of our adoption by God. Without this being realized, false self-humiliation results, displaying itself in ceremonies and asceticism (Colossians 2:23), which after all is but spiritual pride under the guise of humility. Contrast "glorying in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 1:31).
Intruding into those things which he hath not seen. So C G g, Vulgate, and Origen. But 'Aleph (') A B Delta f and Lucifer omit "not." [Embateuon] 'haughtily treading on [Erasmus; g, extollens se] the things which he hath seen:' whether fancied visions of angels, or things actually seen by him, either of demoniacal origination (1 Samuel 28:11-20) or resulting from natural causation, mistaken as supernatural. Paul, not stopping to discuss the nature of the things so seen, fixes on the radical error, the tendency of such a one to walk by SENSE (namely, what he haughtily prides himself on having SEEN), rather than by FAITH in the UNSEEN "Head" (Colossians 2:19: cf. John 20:29; 2 Corinthians 5:7; Hebrews 11:1). Thus, the parallel, "vainly puffed up," explains 'haughtily treading on;' "his fleshly mind" answers to 'the things which he hath seen,' his fleshliness betraying itself in glorying in what he hath seen, rather than in the unseen objects of faith. Compare 1 Timothy 4:1, "Some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons:" a warning to spiritualists.
Puffed up - implying that the previous so-called "humility" ('lowliness of mind') was really a 'puffing up.'
Fleshly mind - Greek, 'by the mind of his own flesh.' How anomalous, that mind which ought to govern flesh, is itself sunk under flesh. The flesh, or sensuous principle, is the fountain whence his mind draws its craving after objects of sight, instead of, in true humility as a member, 'holding fast the (unseen) Head.' Fleshliness can assume the spiritual form, prude of asceticism, when its grosser form is suppressed.