Thomas Aquinas, on Col 2:14

“Blotting out the handwriting of the decree that was against us, which was contrary to us. And he hath taken the same out of the way, fastening it to the cross:”

“He says, having canceled the bond which stood against us. This bond or written decree can be understood in two ways. In one way it is the Old Law: "By abolishing in his flesh the law of commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two" (Eph 2:15). This is its meaning when he is here speaking in reference to the Jews, as if to say: and you... God made alive. Again, a written bond is a warranty usually employed in contracts. And whoever violates God's bond is subject to a debt of punishment. This violation is retained in the person's memory, which it disturbs and stains; it is retained in God's memory, who is to judge such matters; and in the memory of the devils, who will torment them. Now the memory of this violation is called a bond. And it is Christ who has forgiven all by having canceled the bond, that is, the memory of the transgression, which stood against us. The bond, in both its meanings, was against us: the Law, because it gave mankind a knowledge of sin, but did not help in overcoming sin, and the memory of our transgressions, for which we deserved to be punished. The term bond is used because its violation is not forgiven in such a way as to bring it about that there was never any sin. Rather, such sin is not remembered by God as something to be punished; it is not remembered by the devils as something to accuse us of; and we do not remember our sins as reasons for sorrow: "Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered" (Ps 32:1). Another interpretation of this passage would be that Paul is here speaking in general, to all, not just about the Jews. And then we can say that a command was given to the first man: "You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die" (Gen 2:16). But man violated this law, and the memory of this violation became a bond which stood against us. And Christ canceled this. How did Christ cancel this bond? On the cross, for this he set aside, nailing it to the cross. It was the custom for a bond to be torn up once a person had fulfilled all his obligations. Now man was in sin and Christ paid for this by his suffering: "What I did not steal must I now restore?" (Ps 69:4). And therefore, at the moment of Christ's death this bond was canceled and destroyed. And so he says, this he set aside, nailing it to the cross, by which he took away our sin by making satisfaction to God.”

Imported from an open dataset — not yet checked against the printed edition.