Philippians 1:21-30
King James Version
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.
23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.
25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith;
26 That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.
27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
28 And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.
29 For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;
30 Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me.
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Philippians 1:21-30
Disciples’ Literal New Testament
21 for to me, the living is Christ, and the dying[a] is gain.
Death Would Be Much Better For Me, But I Know I Will Continue To Live For Your Sake
22 Now if it is the living in the flesh, this for me means fruit from work. And I do not know[b] what I shall choose, 23 but am gripped[c] by the two— having the desire that I might depart and be with Christ, for that is better by much more, 24 but the remaining in the flesh is more-necessary for your sake. 25 And being confident-of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your advancement and joy of faith, 26 in order that your boast may be abounding in Christ Jesus in me through my presence again with you.
But Conduct Yourselves Worthily of The Gospel, And Don’t Be Frightened
27 Only be conducting-yourselves[d] worthily of the good-news of Christ in order that whether having come and seen you or being absent, I may be hearing-of the things concerning you— that you are standing-firm in one spirit, contending-together with one soul for the faith of the good-news, 28 and not being frightened[e] in any way by the ones opposing you— which is a sign[f] of destruction for them, but of your salvation, and this from God.
God Has Granted That We Should Both Believe In Christ And Suffer For Him
29 Because to you was granted the thing[g] for Christ’s sake— not only the believing in Him, but also the suffering for His sake, 30 having the same struggle[h] such as you saw in me and now are hearing to be in me.
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- Philippians 1:21 That is, the death-event.
- Philippians 1:22 Or, make-known.
- Philippians 1:23 Or, controlled, governed.
- Philippians 1:27 Or, living your citizenship, performing your duties as citizens (of heaven).
- Philippians 1:28 Or, startled, scared, intimidated.
- Philippians 1:28 Or, a proof of, a pointing to.
- Philippians 1:29 That is, the two-fold thing following; or, the suffering in particular, emphasized by contrast to the believing.
- Philippians 1:30 Or, conflict, fight.
Philippians 1:21-30
English Standard Version
21 For to me (A)to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. 23 (B)I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is (C)to depart and (D)be with Christ, for that is far better. 24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. 25 (E)Convinced of this, (F)I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your (G)progress and (H)joy in the faith, 26 so that in me (I)you may have ample cause to glory in Christ Jesus, because of my coming to you again.
27 Only (J)let your manner of life be (K)worthy[a] of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you (L)that you are standing firm in one spirit, with (M)one mind (N)striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, 28 and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is (O)a clear sign to them of their destruction, but (P)of your salvation, and that from God. 29 For (Q)it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also (R)suffer for his sake, 30 engaged in the same (S)conflict that (T)you saw I had and now hear that I still have.
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- Philippians 1:27 Greek Only behave as citizens worthy
Philippians 1:21-30
The Message
18-21 So how am I to respond? I’ve decided that I really don’t care about their motives, whether mixed, bad, or indifferent. Every time one of them opens his mouth, Christ is proclaimed, so I just cheer them on!
And I’m going to keep that celebration going because I know how it’s going to turn out. Through your faithful prayers and the generous response of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, everything he wants to do in and through me will be done. I can hardly wait to continue on my course. I don’t expect to be embarrassed in the least. On the contrary, everything happening to me in this jail only serves to make Christ more accurately known, regardless of whether I live or die. They didn’t shut me up; they gave me a platform! Alive, I’m Christ’s messenger; dead, I’m his prize. Life versus even more life! I can’t lose.
22-26 As long as I’m alive in this body, there is good work for me to do. If I had to choose right now, I hardly know which I’d choose. Hard choice! The desire to break camp here and be with Christ is powerful. Some days I can think of nothing better. But most days, because of what you are going through, I am sure that it’s better for me to stick it out here. So I plan to be around awhile, companion to you as your growth and joy in this life of trusting God continues. You can start looking forward to a great reunion when I come visit you again. We’ll be praising Christ, enjoying each other.
27-30 Meanwhile, live in such a way that you are a credit to the Message of Christ. Let nothing in your conduct hang on whether I come or not. Your conduct must be the same whether I show up to see things for myself or hear of it from a distance. Stand united, singular in vision, contending for people’s trust in the Message, the good news, not flinching or dodging in the slightest before the opposition. Your courage and unity will show them what they’re up against: defeat for them, victory for you—and both because of God. There’s far more to this life than trusting in Christ. There’s also suffering for him. And the suffering is as much a gift as the trusting. You’re involved in the same kind of struggle you saw me go through, on which you are now getting an updated report in this letter.
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Philippians 1:21-30
Good News Translation
21 For what is life? To me, it is Christ. Death, then, will bring more. 22 But if by continuing to live I can do more worthwhile work, then I am not sure which I should choose. 23 I am pulled in two directions. I want very much to leave this life and be with Christ, which is a far better thing; 24 but for your sake it is much more important that I remain alive. 25 I am sure of this, and so I know that I will stay. I will stay on with you all, to add to your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that when I am with you again, you will have even more reason to be proud of me in your life in union with Christ Jesus.
27 Now, the important thing is that your way of life should be as the gospel of Christ requires, so that, whether or not I am able to go and see you, I will hear that you are standing firm with one common purpose and that with only one desire you are fighting together for the faith of the gospel. 28 Don't be afraid of your enemies; always be courageous, and this will prove to them that they will lose and that you will win, because it is God who gives you the victory. 29 For you have been given the privilege of serving Christ, not only by believing in him, but also by suffering for him. 30 (A)Now you can take part with me in the battle. It is the same battle you saw me fighting in the past, and as you hear, the one I am fighting still.
Read full chapterDisciples' Literal New Testament: Serving Modern Disciples by More Fully Reflecting the Writing Style of the Ancient Disciples, Copyright © 2011 Michael J. Magill. All Rights Reserved. Published by Reyma Publishing
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
