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Live as Citizens of Heaven

27 Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing together with one spirit and one purpose, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News. 28 Don’t be intimidated in any way by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself. 29 For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him. 30 We are in this struggle together. You have seen my struggle in the past, and you know that I am still in the midst of it.

Have the Attitude of Christ

Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.

27 Only conduct yourselves[a] in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ so that—whether I come and see you or whether I remain absent—I should hear that[b] you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, by contending side by side for the faith of the gospel,[c] 28 and by not being intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is[d] a sign of their[e] destruction, but of your salvation—a sign which[f] is from God. 29 For it has been granted to you[g] not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him, 30 since you are encountering[h] the same conflict that you saw me face and now hear that I am facing.[i]

Christian Unity and Christ’s Humility

Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit,[j] any affection or mercy,[k] complete my joy and be of the same mind,[l] by having the same love, being united in spirit,[m] and having one purpose.

Footnotes

  1. Philippians 1:27 tn Grk “live as citizens.” The verb πολιτεύεσθε (politeuesthe) connotes the life of a freeman in a free Roman colony.sn Conduct yourselves (Grk “live your lives as citizens”). The Philippians lived in a free Roman city, and thus understood from their own experience what it meant to live as citizens. Paul is here picking up on that motif and elevating it to the citizenship of heaven. Cf. 3:20 (our citizenship is in heaven).
  2. Philippians 1:27 tn Grk “the things concerning you, [namely,] that.” The ὅτι (hoti) clause is appositional to τὰ περὶ ὑμῶν (ta peri humōn) and therefore “the things concerning you” was not translated.
  3. Philippians 1:27 tn The phrase “the faith of the gospel” could mean one of three things: “the faith that is the gospel” (genitive of apposition), “the faith that originates from the gospel” (genitive of source), or “faith in the gospel” (objective genitive).
  4. Philippians 1:28 tn Grk “which is,” continuing the sentence begun in v. 27.sn The antecedent of the pronoun This is conceptual, most likely referring to the Philippian Christians standing firm for the gospel. Thus, their stand for the gospel is the dual sign of their opponents’ destruction and of their own salvation.
  5. Philippians 1:28 tn Grk “to them.” sn Paul uses the dative “to them” (translated here as their) to describe the coming destruction of the gospel’s enemies, but the genitive “your” to describe the believers’ coming salvation. The dative accents what will happen to the enemies (called a dative of disadvantage [see ExSyn 143-44]), while the genitive accents what the believers will possess (and, in fact, do already possess, as v. 29 makes clear).
  6. Philippians 1:28 tn Grk “this.” The pronoun refers back to “a sign”; thus these words have been repeated for clarity.
  7. Philippians 1:29 tn Grk “For that which is on behalf of Christ has been granted to you—namely, not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him.” The infinitive phrases are epexegetical to the subject, τὸ ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ (to huper Christou), which has the force of “the on-behalf-of-Christ thing,” or “the thing on behalf of Christ.” To translate this in English requires a different idiom.
  8. Philippians 1:30 tn Grk “having,” most likely as an instrumental participle. Thus their present struggle is evidence that they have received the gift of suffering.
  9. Philippians 1:30 tn Grk “that you saw in me and now hear [to be] in me.”
  10. Philippians 2:1 tn Or “spiritual fellowship” if πνεύματος (pneumatos) is an attributive genitive; or “fellowship brought about by the Spirit” if πνεύματος is a genitive of source or production.
  11. Philippians 2:1 tn Grk “affection and mercy.” The Greek idea, however, is best expressed by “or” in English.
  12. Philippians 2:2 tn Or “and feel the same way,” “and think the same thoughts.” The ἵνα (hina) clause has been translated “and be of the same mind” to reflect its epexegetical force to the imperative “complete my joy.”
  13. Philippians 2:2 tn The Greek word here is σύμψυχοι (sumpsuchoi, literally “fellow souled”).