Instruction about Prayer

11 It happened that while ^[a]Jesus was praying in a certain place, when He had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John also taught his disciples.” ² And He said to them, “^(A)When you pray, say:

⁵ And He said to them, “^[f]Suppose one of you has a friend, and goes to him at midnight and says to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, ⁶ because a friend of mine has come to me from a journey and I have nothing to serve him’; ⁷ and from inside he answers and says, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been shut and my children ^[g]and I are in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’ ⁸ I tell you, even if he will not get up and give him anything just because he is his friend, yet ^(D)because of his ^[h]shamelessness he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

⁹ “So I say to you, ^[i](E)ask, and it will be given to you; ^[j]seek, and you will find; ^[k]knock, and it will be opened to you. ¹⁰ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks, it will be opened. ¹¹ Now ^[l]which one of you fathers will his son ask for a ^[m]fish, and instead of a fish, he will give him a snake? ¹² Or he will even ask for an egg, and his father will give him a scorpion? ¹³ So ^(F)if you, despite being ^[n]evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will ^[o]your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him?”

Pharisees’ Blasphemy

^14 (G)And He was casting out a mute demon; when the demon had gone out, the man who was previously unable to speak talked, and the crowds were amazed. ¹⁵ But some of them said, “He casts out the demons ^(H)by ^(I)Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.” ¹⁶ Others, ^[p]to test Him, ^(J)were demanding of Him a ^[q]sign from heaven. ^17 (K)But He knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and a house divided against ^[r]itself falls. ¹⁸ And if ^(L)Satan also has been divided against himself, how will his kingdom ^[s]stand? For you claim that I cast out the demons by ^(M)Beelzebul. ¹⁹ Yet if by ^(N)Beelzebul I cast out the demons, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore, they will be your judges. ²⁰ But if I cast out the demons by ^[t]the ^(O)finger of God, then ^(P)the kingdom of God has come upon you. ²¹ When ^[u]a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are ^[v]secure. ²² But when someone stronger than he attacks him and overpowers him, that man takes away his armor on which he had relied and distributes his plunder. ^23 (Q)The one who is not with Me is against Me; and the one who does not gather with Me scatters.

²⁴ “^(R)When the unclean spirit comes out of ^[w]a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and not finding any, it then says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ ²⁵ And when it comes, it finds it swept and put in order. ²⁶ Then it goes and brings along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they come in and live there; and the last condition of that person becomes worse than the first.”

²⁷ While ^[x]Jesus was saying these things, one of the women in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “^(S)Blessed is the womb that carried You, and the breasts at which You nursed!” ²⁸ But He said, “On the contrary, blessed are ^(T)those who hear the word of God and follow it.”

The Sign of Jonah

²⁹ Now as the crowds were increasing, He began to say, “^(U)This generation is a wicked generation; it ^(V)demands a ^[y]sign, and so no ^[z]sign will be given to it except the ^[aa]sign of Jonah. ³⁰ For just as ^(W)Jonah became a ^[ab]sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. ³¹ The ^(X)Queen of the South will rise up with the men of this generation at the judgment and condemn them, because she came from the ends of the earth to listen to the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. ³² The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment and condemn it, because ^(Y)they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

³³ “^(Z)No one lights a lamp and puts it away in a cellar nor under a basket, but on the lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light. ^34 (AA)Your eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is ^[ac]clear, your whole body also is full of light; but when it is ^[ad]bad, your body also is full of darkness. ³⁵ So watch out that the light in you is not darkness. ³⁶ Therefore if your whole body is full of light, without any dark part, it will be wholly illuminated, as when the lamp illuminates you with its light.”

Woes upon the Pharisees

³⁷ Now when He had spoken, a Pharisee *asked Him to have lunch with him; and He went in and reclined at the table. ³⁸ When the Pharisee saw this, he was surprised that Jesus had not first ^[ae](AB)ceremonially washed before the ^[af]meal. ³⁹ But ^(AC)the Lord said to him, “Now ^(AD)you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and of the dish; but your inside is full of greed and wickedness. ^40 (AE)You foolish ones, did He who made the outside not make the inside also? ⁴¹ But ^(AF)give that which is within as a charitable gift, and ^[ag]then all things are ^(AG)clean for you.

⁴² “^(AH)But woe to you Pharisees! For you ^(AI)pay tithes of mint, rue, and every kind of garden herb, and yet you ^[ah]ignore justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. ⁴³ Woe to you Pharisees! For you ^(AJ)love the seat of honor in the synagogues and personal greetings in the marketplaces. ^44 (AK)Woe to you! For you are like ^[ai]unseen tombs, and the people who walk over them are unaware of it.”

⁴⁵ One of the ^[aj](AL)lawyers *said to Him in reply, “Teacher, when You say these things, You insult us too.” ⁴⁶ But He said, “Woe to you ^(AM)lawyers as well! For ^(AN)you load people with burdens that are hard to bear, ^[ak]while you yourselves will not even ^[al]touch the burdens with one of your fingers. ^47 (AO)Woe to you! For you build the ^[am]tombs of the prophets, and it was your fathers who killed them. ⁴⁸ So you are witnesses and you approve of the deeds of your fathers; because it was they who killed them, and you build their ^[an]tombs. ⁴⁹ For this reason also, ^(AP)the wisdom of God said, ‘^(AQ)I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they will kill, and some they will ^[ao]persecute, ⁵⁰ so that the blood of all the prophets, shed ^(AR)since the foundation of the world, may be charged ^[ap]against this generation, ⁵¹ from ^(AS)the blood of Abel to ^(AT)the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the house of God; yes, I tell you, it shall be charged ^[aq]against this generation.’ ⁵² Woe to you ^[ar](AU)lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge; ^(AV)you yourselves did not enter, and you hindered those who were entering.”

⁵³ When He left that place, the scribes and the Pharisees began to be very hostile and to interrogate Him about many subjects, ^54 (AW)plotting against Him ^(AX)to catch ^[as]Him in something He might say.

Thanksgiving

1 ^(A)Paul and ^(B)Timothy, ^(C)bond-servants of ^(D)Christ Jesus,

To ^(E)all the ^[a](F)saints in Christ Jesus who are in ^(G)Philippi, ^[b]including the ^(H)overseers and ^(I)deacons: ^2 (J)Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

^3 (K)I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, ⁴ always offering prayer with joy in ^(L)my every prayer for you all, ⁵ in view of your ^[c](M)participation in the ^(N)gospel ^(O)from the first day until now. ⁶ For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work ^[d]among you will complete it ^[e]by ^(P)the day of Christ Jesus. ^7 [f]For ^(Q)it is only right for me to feel this way about you all, because I ^(R)have you in my heart, since both in my ^[g](S)imprisonment and in the ^(T)defense and confirmation of the ^(U)gospel, you all are ^[h]partakers of grace with me. ⁸ For ^(V)God is my witness, how I long for you all with the ^[i]affection of ^(W)Christ Jesus. ⁹ And this I pray, that ^(X)your love may overflow still more and more in ^(Y)real knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ so that you may ^[j](Z)discover the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and blameless for ^(AA)the day of Christ; ¹¹ having been filled with the ^(AB)fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, for the glory and praise of God.

The Gospel Is Preached

¹² Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that my circumstances ^(AC)have turned out for the greater progress of the ^(AD)gospel, ¹³ so that my ^[k](AE)imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the ^[l]praetorian guard and to ^(AF)everyone else, ¹⁴ and that most of the brothers and sisters, ^[m]trusting in the Lord because of my ^[n](AG)imprisonment, have ^(AH)far more courage to speak the word of God without fear. ^15 (AI)Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ even ^[o]from envy and strife, but some also ^[p]from goodwill; ¹⁶ the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the ^(AJ)gospel; ¹⁷ the former proclaim Christ ^(AK)out of selfish ambition ^[q]rather than from pure motives, thinking that they are causing me distress in my ^[r](AL)imprisonment. ¹⁸ What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed, and in this I rejoice.

But not only that, I also will rejoice, ¹⁹ for I know that this will turn out for my ^[s]deliverance ^(AM)through your ^[t]prayers and the provision of ^(AN)the Spirit of Jesus Christ, ²⁰ according to my ^(AO)eager expectation and ^(AP)hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with ^(AQ)all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be ^(AR)exalted in my body, ^(AS)whether by life or by death.

To Live Is Christ

²¹ For to me, ^(AT)to live is Christ, and to die is gain. ^22 [u]But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean ^(AU)fruitful labor for me; and I do not know ^[v]which to choose. ²³ But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the ^(AV)desire to depart and ^(AW)be with Christ, for that is very much better; ²⁴ yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sakes. ^25 (AX)Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all for your progress and joy ^[w]in the faith, ²⁶ so that your ^(AY)pride in Christ Jesus may be abundant because of me by my coming to you again.

²⁷ Only conduct yourselves in a manner ^(AZ)worthy of the ^(BA)gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I will hear about you that you are ^(BB)standing firm in ^(BC)one spirit, with one ^[x]mind ^(BD)striving together for the faith of the gospel; ²⁸ and in no way alarmed by your opponents—which is a ^(BE)sign of destruction for them, but of salvation for you, and this too, from God. ²⁹ For to you ^(BF)it has been granted for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to ^(BG)suffer on His behalf, ³⁰ experiencing the same ^(BH)conflict which ^(BI)you saw in me, and now hear to be in me.

Be like Christ

2 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any ^(BJ)fellowship of the Spirit, if any ^[y](BK)affection and compassion, ^2 (BL)make my joy complete ^[z]by ^(BM)being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. ³ Do nothing ^[aa]from ^[ab](BN)selfishness or ^(BO)empty conceit, but with humility ^(BP)consider one another as more important than yourselves; ^4 (BQ)do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. ^5 (BR)Have this attitude ^[ac]in yourselves which was also in ^(BS)Christ Jesus, ⁶ who, as He already ^(BT)existed in the ^(BU)form of God, ^(BV)did not consider equality with God something to be ^[ad]grasped, ⁷ but ^[ae](BW)emptied Himself by taking the form of a ^(BX)bond-servant and ^[af](BY)being born in the likeness of men. ⁸ And being found in appearance as a man, ^(BZ)He humbled Himself by becoming ^(CA)obedient to the point of death: ^(CB)death ^[ag]on a cross. ^9 (CC)For this reason also God ^(CD)highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him ^(CE)the name which is above every name, ¹⁰ so that at the name of Jesus ^(CF)every knee will bow, of ^(CG)those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is ^(CH)Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

¹² So then, my beloved, ^(CI)just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own ^(CJ)salvation with ^(CK)fear and trembling; ¹³ for it is ^(CL)God who is at work in you, both to ^[ah]desire and to work ^(CM)for His good pleasure.

¹⁴ Do all things without ^(CN)complaining or arguments; ¹⁵ so that you will ^[ai]prove yourselves to be ^(CO)blameless and innocent, ^(CP)children of God above reproach in the midst of a ^(CQ)crooked and perverse generation, among whom you ^[aj](CR)appear as ^[ak]lights in the world, ¹⁶ holding firmly the word of life, so that on ^(CS)the day of Christ I can take pride because I did not ^(CT)run in vain nor ^(CU)labor in vain. ¹⁷ But even if I am being ^(CV)poured out as a drink offering upon ^(CW)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, ^[al]in the Lord Jesus, to ^(CX)send ^(CY)Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition. ²⁰ For I have no one else ^(CZ)of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. ²¹ For they all ^(DA)seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus. ²² But you know ^(DB)of his proven character, that ^(DC)he served with me in the furtherance of the gospel ^(DD)like a child serving his father. ^23 (DE)Therefore I hope to send him immediately, as soon as I see how things go with me; ²⁴ and ^(DF)I trust in the Lord that I myself will also be coming shortly. ²⁵ But I thought it necessary to send to you ^(DG)Epaphroditus, my brother and ^(DH)fellow worker and ^(DI)fellow soldier, who is also your ^[am](DJ)messenger and ^(DK)minister to my need, ²⁶ because he was longing ^[an]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 (DL)Receive him then in the Lord with all joy, and ^(DM)hold people like him in high regard, ³⁰ because he came close to death ^[ao](DN)for the work of Christ, risking his life to ^(DO)compensate ^[ap]for your absence in your service to me.