Philippians 2
English Standard Version
Christ's Example of Humility
2 So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from (A)love, any (B)participation in the Spirit, any (C)affection and sympathy, 2 (D)complete my joy by being (E)of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from (F)selfish ambition or (G)conceit, but in (H)humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you (I)look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 (J)Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,[a] 6 (K)who, though he was in (L)the form of God, did not count equality with God (M)a thing to be grasped,[b] 7 but (N)emptied himself, by taking the form of a (O)servant,[c] (P)being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by (Q)becoming obedient to the point of death, (R)even death on a cross. 9 (S)Therefore (T)God has (U)highly exalted him and bestowed on him (V)the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus (W)every knee should bow, (X)in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and (Y)every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is (Z)Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Lights in the World
12 Therefore, my beloved, (AA)as you have always (AB)obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for (AC)it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for (AD)his good pleasure.
14 Do all things (AE)without grumbling or (AF)disputing, 15 that you may be blameless and innocent, (AG)children of God (AH)without blemish (AI)in the midst of (AJ)a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine (AK)as lights in the world, 16 holding fast to (AL)the word of life, so that in (AM)the day of Christ (AN)I may be proud that (AO)I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17 Even if I am to be (AP)poured out as a drink offering upon (AQ)the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18 Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.
Timothy and Epaphroditus
19 I hope in the Lord Jesus (AR)to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one (AS)like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all (AT)seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know Timothy's[d] (AU)proven worth, how (AV)as a son[e] with a father (AW)he has served with me in the gospel. 23 I hope therefore to send him just as soon as I see how it will go with me, 24 and (AX)I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself will come also.
25 I have thought it necessary to send to you (AY)Epaphroditus my brother and fellow worker and (AZ)fellow soldier, and your messenger and (BA)minister to my need, 26 for he has been longing for you all and has been distressed because you heard that he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, near to death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 I am the more eager to send him, therefore, that you may rejoice at seeing him again, and that I may be less anxious. 29 So (BB)receive him in the Lord with all joy, and (BC)honor such men, 30 for he nearly died[f] (BD)for the work of Christ, risking his life (BE)to complete what was lacking in your service to me.
Footnotes
- Philippians 2:5 Or which was also in Christ Jesus
- Philippians 2:6 Or a thing to be held on to for advantage
- Philippians 2:7 Or slave (for the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface)
- Philippians 2:22 Greek his
- Philippians 2:22 Greek child
- Philippians 2:30 Or he drew near to the point of death; compare verse 8
Philippians 2
New American Standard Bible
Be like Christ
2 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any (A)fellowship of the Spirit, if any [a](B)affection and compassion, 2 (C)make my joy complete [b]by (D)being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. 3 Do nothing [c]from [d](E)selfishness or (F)empty conceit, but with humility (G)consider one another as more important than yourselves; 4 (H)do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. 5 (I)Have this attitude [e]in yourselves which was also in (J)Christ Jesus, 6 who, as He already (K)existed in the (L)form of God, (M)did not consider equality with God something to be [f]grasped, 7 but [g](N)emptied Himself by taking the form of a (O)bond-servant and [h](P)being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, (Q)He humbled Himself by becoming (R)obedient to the point of death: (S)death [i]on a cross. 9 (T)For this reason also God (U)highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him (V)the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus (W)every knee will bow, of (X)those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is (Y)Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12 So then, my beloved, (Z)just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own (AA)salvation with (AB)fear and trembling; 13 for it is (AC)God who is at work in you, both to [j]desire and to work (AD)for His good pleasure.
14 Do all things without (AE)complaining or arguments; 15 so that you will [k]prove yourselves to be (AF)blameless and innocent, (AG)children of God above reproach in the midst of a (AH)crooked and perverse generation, among whom you [l](AI)appear as [m]lights in the world, 16 holding firmly the word of life, so that on (AJ)the day of Christ I can take pride because I did not (AK)run in vain nor (AL)labor in vain. 17 But even if I am being (AM)poured out as a drink offering upon (AN)the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and share my joy with you all. 18 You too, I urge you, rejoice in the same way and share your joy with me.
Timothy and Epaphroditus
19 But I hope, [n]in the Lord Jesus, to (AO)send (AP)Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition. 20 For I have no one else (AQ)of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all (AR)seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus. 22 But you know (AS)of his proven character, that (AT)he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel (AU)like a child serving his father. 23 (AV)Therefore I hope to send him immediately, as soon as I see how things go with me; 24 and (AW)I trust in the Lord that I myself will also be coming shortly. 25 But I thought it necessary to send to you (AX)Epaphroditus, my brother and (AY)fellow worker and (AZ)fellow soldier, who is also your [o](BA)messenger and (BB)minister to my need, 26 because he was longing [p]for you all and was distressed because you had heard that he was sick. 27 For indeed he was sick to the point of death, but God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, so that I would not have sorrow upon sorrow. 28 Therefore I have sent him all the more eagerly, so that when you see him again you may rejoice and I may be less concerned about you. 29 (BC)Receive him then in the Lord with all joy, and (BD)hold people like him in high regard, 30 because he came close to death [q](BE)for the work of Christ, risking his life to (BF)compensate [r]for your absence in your service to me.
Footnotes
- Philippians 2:1 Lit inward parts
- Philippians 2:2 Lit that you be
- Philippians 2:3 Lit according to
- Philippians 2:3 Or contentiousness
- Philippians 2:5 Or among
- Philippians 2:6 Or seized
- Philippians 2:7 I.e., set aside His divine rights
- Philippians 2:7 Or having come to be
- Philippians 2:8 Lit of
- Philippians 2:13 Or be willing
- Philippians 2:15 Or become
- Philippians 2:15 Or shine
- Philippians 2:15 Or luminaries, stars
- Philippians 2:19 Or trusting in
- Philippians 2:25 Lit apostle
- Philippians 2:26 One early ms to see you all
- Philippians 2:30 Lit because of
- Philippians 2:30 Lit your deficiency of service
Philippians 2
Names of God Bible
Have the Same Attitude as Christ
2 So then, as Christians, do you have any encouragement? Do you have any comfort from love? Do you have any spiritual relationships? Do you have any sympathy and compassion? 2 Then fill me with joy by having the same attitude and the same love, living in harmony, and keeping one purpose in mind. 3 Don’t act out of selfish ambition or be conceited. Instead, humbly think of others as being better than yourselves. 4 Don’t be concerned only about your own interests, but also be concerned about the interests of others. 5 Have the same attitude that Christ Yeshua had.
6 Although he was in the form of God and equal with God,
he did not take advantage of this equality.
7 Instead, he emptied himself by taking on the form of a servant,
by becoming like other humans,
by having a human appearance.
8 He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death,
death on a cross.
9 This is why God has given him an exceptional honor—
the name honored above all other names—
10 so that at the name of Yeshua everyone in heaven, on earth,
and in the world below will kneel
11 and confess that Yeshua Christ is Lord
to the glory of God the Father.
12 My dear friends, you have always obeyed, not only when I was with you but even more now that I’m absent. In the same way continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling. 13 It is God who produces in you the desires and actions that please him.
14 Do everything without complaining or arguing. 15 Then you will be blameless and innocent. You will be God’s children without any faults among people who are crooked and corrupt. You will shine like stars among them in the world 16 as you hold firmly to the word of life. Then I can brag on the day of Christ that my effort was not wasted and that my work produced results. 17 My life is being poured out as a part of the sacrifice and service I offer to God for your faith. Yet, I am filled with joy, and I share that joy with all of you. 18 For this same reason you also should be filled with joy and share that joy with me.
Paul Will Send Timothy and Epaphroditus
19 I hope that the Lord Yeshua will allow me to send Timothy to you soon so that I can receive some encouraging news about you. 20 I don’t have anyone else like Timothy. He takes a genuine interest in your welfare. 21 Everyone else looks after his own interests, not after those of Yeshua Christ. 22 But you know what kind of person Timothy proved to be. Like a father and son we worked hard together to spread the Good News. 23 I hope to send him as soon as I see how things are going to turn out for me. 24 But the Lord gives me confidence that I will come to visit you soon.
25 I feel that I must send Epaphroditus—my brother, coworker, and fellow soldier—back to you. You sent him as your personal representative to help me in my need. 26 He has been longing to see all of you and is troubled because you heard that he was sick. 27 Indeed, he was so sick that he almost died. But God had mercy not only on him but also on me and kept me from having one sorrow on top of another. 28 So I’m especially eager to send him to you. In this way you will have the joy of seeing him again and I will feel relieved. 29 Give him a joyful Christian welcome. Make sure you honor people like Epaphroditus highly. 30 He risked his life and almost died for the work of Christ in order to make up for the help you couldn’t give me.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
The Names of God Bible (without notes) © 2011 by Baker Publishing Group.