Peter Crouch gave Liverpool the lead in the second half when he headed home a Jermaine Pennant cross to put the Reds 3-1 up on aggregate and cancel out Maccabi's away goal.
Liverpool's lead on the night only lasted nine minutes however before Colautti equalised for the Israeli champions.
The Reds had been comfortably on top until then, with Luis Garcia denied three times by some excellent goalkeeping. Maccabi's equaliser brought them to life however, and the Reds had a nervous last 25 minutes.
Maccabi almost levelled the aggregate scores late on with a dipping shot from Colautti but Pepe Reina made an excellent save to keep Liverpool's lead and send them through.