Does Colossians 1:20 limit reconciliation by not mentioning what is under the earth?

No, for it expressly speaks of a mutual reconciliation of “all,” lit. the all (“things” is not actually there!). That this truly knows no exceptions is evident from the way Paul uses this expression in this passage:

– … the Firstborn of every creature, for in Him all is created (1:15);
– … all is created through Him and for Him (1:16);
– … all has its cohesion in Him (1:17);
– … through the blood of the Cross, to reconcile all to Himself again (1:20).

In addition, “under the earth” is where the dead are found, and they most certainly once were on earth. On earth they were once hostile in disposition, and therefore they are reconciled mutually—vertically and horizontally. Hostility is not an obstacle, but precisely a condition for sharing in the “mutual reconciliation of all” (Gr. “apokatallaxai ta panta”)!

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