Philippians 1-2

American Standard Version

1 Paul and Timothy, ^[a]servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus that are at Philippi, with the ^[b]bishops and deacons: ² Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

³ I thank my God upon all my remembrance of you, ⁴ always in every supplication of mine on behalf of you all making my supplication with joy, ⁵ for your fellowship in furtherance of the ^[c]gospel from the first day until now; ⁶ being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ: ⁷ even as it is right for me to be thus minded on behalf of you all, because ^[d]I have you in my heart, inasmuch as, both in my bonds and in the defence and confirmation of the ^[e]gospel, ye all are partakers with me of grace. ⁸ For God is my witness, how I long after you all in the tender mercies of Christ Jesus. ⁹ And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment; ¹⁰ so that ye may ^[f]approve the things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and void of offence unto the day of Christ; ¹¹ being filled with the ^[g]fruits of righteousness, which are through Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.

¹² Now I would have you know, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the progress of the ^[h]gospel; ¹³ so that my bonds became manifest in Christ ^[i]throughout the whole praetorian guard, and to all the rest; ¹⁴ and that most of the brethren in the Lord, ^[j]being confident through my bonds, are more abundantly bold to speak the word of God without fear. ¹⁵ Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will: ^16 [k]the one do it of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the ^[l]gospel; ^17 [m]but the other proclaim Christ of faction, not sincerely, thinking to raise up affliction for me in my bonds. ¹⁸ What then? only that in every way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and therein I rejoice, yea, and will rejoice. ¹⁹ For I know that this shall turn out to my salvation, through your supplication and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, ²⁰ according to my earnest expectation and hope, that in nothing shall I be put to shame, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether by life, or by death. ²¹ For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. ^22 [n]But if to live in the flesh,—if ^[o]this shall bring fruit from my work, then ^[p]what I shall choose I know not. ²³ But I am in a strait betwixt the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ; for it is very far better: ²⁴ yet to abide in the flesh is more needful for your sake. ²⁵ And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide, yea, and abide with you all, for your progress and joy ^[q]in the faith; ²⁶ that your glorying may abound in Christ Jesus in me through my presence with you again. ²⁷ Only ^[r]let your manner of life be worthy of the ^[s]gospel of Christ: that, whether I come and see you or be absent, I may hear of your state, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one soul striving ^[t]for the faith of the ^[u]gospel; ²⁸ and in nothing affrighted by the adversaries: which is for them an evident token of perdition, but of your salvation, and that from God; ²⁹ because to you it hath been granted in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer in his behalf: ³⁰ having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me.

2 If there is therefore any exhortation in Christ, if any ^[v]consolation of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any tender mercies and compassions, ² make full my joy, that ye be of the same mind, having the same love, being of one accord, ^[w]of one mind; ³ doing nothing through faction or through vainglory, but in lowliness of mind each counting other better than himself; ⁴ not looking each of you to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others. ⁵ Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: ⁶ who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped, ⁷ but emptied himself, taking the form of a ^[x]servant, ^[y]being made in the likeness of men; ⁸ and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming obedient even unto death, yea, the death of the cross. ⁹ Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name; ¹⁰ that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things on earth and ^[z]things under the earth, ¹¹ and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

¹² So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not ^[aa]as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; ¹³ for it is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure. ¹⁴ Do all things without murmurings and questionings: ¹⁵ that ye may become blameless and harmless, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom ye are seen as ^[ab]lights in the world, ¹⁶ holding forth the word of life; that I may have whereof to glory in the day of Christ, that I did not run in vain neither labor in vain. ¹⁷ Yea, and if I am ^[ac]offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all: ¹⁸ and in the same manner do ye also joy, and rejoice with me.

¹⁹ But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy shortly unto you, that I also may be of good comfort, when I know your state. ²⁰ For I have no man likeminded, who will care ^[ad]truly for your state. ²¹ For they all seek their own, not the things of Jesus Christ. ²² But ye know the proof of him, that, as a child serveth a father, so he served with me in furtherance of the ^[ae]gospel. ²³ Him therefore I hope to send forthwith, so soon as I shall see how it will go with me: ²⁴ but I trust in the Lord that I myself also shall come shortly. ²⁵ But I counted it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow-worker and fellow-soldier, and your ^[af]messenger and minister to my need; ²⁶ since he longed ^[ag]after you all, and was sore troubled, because ye had heard that he was sick: ²⁷ for indeed he was sick nigh unto death: but God had mercy on him; and not on him only, but on me also, that I might not have sorrow upon sorrow. ²⁸ I have sent him therefore the more diligently, that, when ye see him again, ye may rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful. ²⁹ Receive him therefore in the Lord with all joy; and hold such in honor: ³⁰ because for the work of ^[ah]Christ he came nigh unto death, hazarding his life to supply that which was lacking in your service toward me.