Beginning
Paul’s reasons for thanks
1 From Paul and Timothy, slaves of Messiah Jesus, to all God’s holy ones in Messiah Jesus who are in Philippi, together with the overseers and ministers: 2 grace to you and peace, from God our father and Messiah Jesus the Lord.
3 I thank my God every time I think of you! 4 I always pray with joy, whenever I pray for you all, 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 Of this I’m convinced: the one who began a good work in you will thoroughly complete it by the day of Messiah Jesus.
7 It’s right for me to think this way about all of you. You have me in your hearts, here in prison as I am, working to defend and bolster up the gospel. You are my partners in grace, all of you! 8 Yes: God can bear witness how much I’m longing for all of you with the deep love of Messiah Jesus.
9 And this is what I’m praying: that your love may overflow still more and more, in knowledge and in all astute wisdom. 10 Then you will be able to tell the difference between good and evil, and be sincere and faultless on the day of the Messiah, 11 filled to overflowing with the fruit of right living, fruit that comes through Messiah Jesus to God’s glory and praise.
The Messiah is proclaimed
12 Now, my dear family, I want you to know that the things I’ve been through have actually helped the gospel on its way. 13 You see, everybody in the Imperial Guard, and all the rest for that matter, have heard that I am here, chained up, because of the Messiah. 14 My imprisonment has given new confidence to most of the Lord’s family; they are now much more prepared to speak the word boldly and fearlessly.
15 There are some, I should say, who are proclaiming the Messiah because of envy and rivalry; but there are others who are doing it out of good will. 16 These last are acting from love, since they know that I’m in prison because of defending the gospel; 17 but the others are announcing the Messiah out of selfishness and jealousy. They are not acting from pure motives. They imagine that they will make more trouble for me in my captivity.
18 So what? Only this: the Messiah is being announced, whether people mean it or not! I’m happy to celebrate that!
To live or to die?
Yes, and I really am going to celebrate: 19 because I know that this will result in my rescue, through your prayer and the support of the spirit of Messiah Jesus. 20 I’m waiting eagerly and full of hope, because nothing is going to put me to shame. I am going to be bold and outspoken, now as always, and the Messiah is going to gain a great reputation through my body, whether in life or in death.
21 You see, for me to live means the Messiah; to die means to make a profit. 22 If it’s to be living on in the flesh, that means fruitful work for me. Actually, I don’t know which I would choose. 23 I’m pulled both ways at once: I would really love to leave all this and be with the Messiah, because that would be far better. 24 But staying on here in the flesh is more vital for your sake. 25 Since I’ve become convinced of this, I know that I will remain here, and stay alongside all of you, to help you to advance and rejoice in your faith, 26 so that the pride you take in Messiah Jesus may overflow because of me, when I come to visit you once again.
The gospel in public
27 The one thing I would stress is this: your public behavior must match up to the gospel of the Messiah. That way, whether I do come and see you or whether I remain elsewhere, the news that I get about you will indicate that you are standing firm with a single spirit, struggling side by side with one united intent for the faith of the gospel, 28 and not letting your opponents intimidate you in any way. This is a sign from God: one that signifies their destruction, but your salvation.
29 Yes: God has granted you that, on behalf of the Messiah, you should not only believe in him, but also suffer for his sake. 30 You are engaged in the same struggle which you once watched me go through; and, as you now hear, I’m still going through it.
Unity in everything
2 So if our shared life in the Messiah brings you any comfort; if love still has the power to make you cheerful; if we really do have a partnership in the spirit; if your hearts are at all moved with affection and sympathy— 2 then make my joy complete! Bring your thinking into line with one another.
Here’s how to do it. Hold on to the same love; bring your innermost lives into harmony; fix your minds on the same object. 3 Never act out of selfish ambition or vanity; instead, regard everybody else as your superior. 4 Look after each other’s best interests, not your own.
The mind of the Messiah
5 This is how you should think among yourselves—with the mind that you have because you belong to the Messiah, Jesus:
6 Who, though in God’s form, did not
regard his equality with God
as something he ought to exploit.
7 Instead, he emptied himself,
and received the form of a slave,
being born in the likeness of humans.
And then, having human appearance,
8 he humbled himself, and became
obedient even to death,
yes, even the death of the cross.
9 And so God has greatly exalted him,
and to him in his favor has given
the name which is over all names:
10 That now at the name of Jesus
every knee within heaven shall bow—
on earth, too, and under the earth;
11 And every tongue shall confess
that Jesus, Messiah, is Lord,
to the glory of God, the father.
How salvation is worked out
12 So, my dear people: you always did what I said, so please now carry on in the same way, not just as though I was there with you, but much more because I’m not! Your task now is to work at bringing about your own salvation; and naturally you’ll be taking this with utter seriousness. 13 After all, God himself is the one who’s at work among you, who provides both the will and the energy to enable you to do what pleases him.
14 There must be no grumbling and disputing in anything you do. 15 That way, nobody will be able to fault you, and you’ll be pure and spotless children of God in the midst of a twisted and depraved generation. You are to shine among them like lights in the world, 16 clinging on to the word of life. That’s what I will be proud of on the day of the Messiah. It will prove that I didn’t run a useless race, or work to no purpose.
17 Yes: even if I am to be poured out like a drink-offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I shall celebrate, and celebrate jointly with you all. 18 In the same way, you should celebrate, yes, and celebrate with me.
On Timothy
19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I in turn may be encouraged by getting news about you. 20 I have nobody else of his quality: he will care quite genuinely about how you are. 21 Everybody else, you see, looks after their own interests, not those of Messiah Jesus. 22 But you know how Timothy has proved himself. Like a child with a father he has worked as a slave alongside me for the sake of the gospel. 23 So I’m hoping to send him just as soon as I see how it will turn out with me. 24 And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come very soon as well.
On Epaphroditus
25 But I did think it was necessary to send Epaphroditus to you. He is my brother; he has worked alongside me and fought alongside me; and he’s served as your agent in tending to my needs. 26 He was longing for you all, you see, and he was upset because you heard that he was sick. 27 And he really was sick, too; he nearly died. But God took pity on him—yes, and on me as well, so that I wouldn’t have one sorrow piled on top of another.
28 This has made me all the more eager to send him, so that you’ll see him again and be glad, and my own anxieties will be laid to rest. 29 So give him a wonderfully happy welcome in the Lord, and hold people like him in special respect. 30 He came close to death through risking his life for the Messiah’s work, so that he could complete the service to me that you hadn’t been able to perform.
Warning: don’t trust in the flesh
3 So then, my dear family, it comes down to this: celebrate in the Lord! It’s no trouble for me to write the same things to you, and it’s safe for you.
2 Watch out for the dogs! Watch out for the “bad works” people! Watch out for the “incision” party, that is, the mutilators! 3 We are the “circumcision,” you see—we who worship God by the spirit, and boast in Messiah Jesus, and refuse to trust in the flesh.
4 Mind you, I’ve got good reason to trust in the flesh. If anyone else thinks they have reason to trust in the flesh, I’ve got more. 5 Circumcised? On the eighth day. Race? Israelite. Tribe? Benjamin. Descent? Hebrew through and through. Torah-observance? A Pharisee. 6 Zealous? I persecuted the church! Official status under the law? Blameless.
Gaining the Messiah
7 Does that sound as though my account was well in credit? Well, maybe; but whatever I had written in on the profit side, I calculated it instead as a loss—because of the Messiah. 8 Yes, I know that’s weird, but there’s more: I calculate everything as a loss, because knowing Messiah Jesus as my Lord is worth far more than everything else put together! In fact, because of the Messiah I’ve suffered the loss of everything, and I now calculate it as trash, so that my profit may be the Messiah, 9 and that I may be discovered in him, not having my own covenant status defined by Torah, but the status which comes through the Messiah’s faithfulness: the covenant status from God which is given to faith. 10 This means knowing him, knowing the power of his resurrection, and knowing the partnership of his sufferings. It means sharing the form and pattern of his death, 11 so that somehow I may arrive at the final resurrection from the dead.
Chasing on to the finish
12 I’m not implying that I’ve already received “resurrection,” or that I’ve already become complete and mature! No; I’m hurrying on, eager to overtake it, because Messiah Jesus has overtaken me. 13 My dear family, I don’t reckon that I have yet overtaken it. But this is my one aim: to forget everything that’s behind, and to strain every nerve to go after what’s ahead. 14 I mean to chase on towards the finishing post, where the prize waiting for me is the upward call of God in Messiah Jesus.
15 Those of us who are mature should think like this! If you think differently about it, God will reveal this to you as well. 16 Only let’s be sure to keep in line with the position we have reached.
Citizens of heaven
17 So, my dear family, I want you, all together, to watch what I do and copy me. You’ve got us as a pattern of behavior; pay careful attention to people who follow it.
18 You see, there are several people who behave as enemies of the cross of the Messiah. I told you about them often enough, and now I’m weeping as I say it again. 19 They are on the road to destruction; their stomach is their god, and they find glory in their own shame. All they ever think about is what’s on the earth.
20 We are citizens of heaven, you see, and we’re eagerly waiting for the savior, the Lord, Messiah Jesus, who is going to come from there. 21 Our present body is a shabby old thing, but he’s going to transform it so that it’s just like his glorious body. And he’s going to do this by the power which makes him able to bring everything into line under his authority.
4 Well then, my dear family—I miss you so much, you’re my joy and crown!—this is how you must stand firm in the Lord, my beloved people.
Celebrate in the Lord!
2 I have a special appeal which goes jointly to Euodia and Syntyche: please, please, come to a common mind in the Lord. 3 (And here’s a request for you too, my loyal comrade: please help these women. They have struggled hard in the gospel alongside me, as have Clement and my other fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.)
4 Celebrate joyfully in the Lord, all the time. I’ll say it again: celebrate! 5 Let everybody know how gentle and gracious you are. The Lord is near.
6 Don’t worry about anything. Rather, in every area of life let God know what you want, as you pray and make requests, and give thanks as well. 7 And God’s peace, which is greater than we can ever understand, will keep guard over your hearts and minds in Messiah Jesus.
8 For the rest, my dear family, these are the things you should think through: whatever is true, whatever is holy, whatever is upright, whatever is pure, whatever is attractive, whatever has a good reputation; anything virtuous, anything praiseworthy. 9 And these are the things you should do: what you learned, received, heard and saw in and through me. And the God of peace will be with you.
The hidden secret
10 I’ve been having a great celebration in the Lord because your concern for me has once again burst into flower. (You were of course concerned for me before, but you didn’t have an opportunity to show it.)
11 I’m not talking about lacking anything. I’ve learnt to be content with what I have. 12 I know how to do without, and I know how to cope with plenty. In every possible situation I’ve learned the hidden secret of being full and hungry, of having plenty and going without, and it’s this: 13 I have strength for everything in the one who gives me power.
Closing thanks and greetings
14 But you did the right thing by entering into partnership with me in my suffering. 15 Indeed, as you people in Philippi know well, when the gospel was getting under way and I was moving on from Macedonia, there wasn’t a single other church, except yourselves, that entered into a two-way partnership with me, giving and receiving. 16 Yes: when I was in Thessalonica you sent help to me, not just once but twice.
17 I stress that it isn’t the gift I’m interested in. My concern is that you should have a healthy profit balance showing up on your account. 18 For myself, I’ve received full payment, and I’m well stocked up. In fact, I’m full to overflowing, now that I have received from Epaphroditus what you sent. It’s like a sacrifice with a beautiful smell, a worthy offering, giving pleasure to God. 19 What’s more, my God will meet all your needs, too, out of his store of glorious riches in Messiah Jesus. 20 Glory be to our God and father forever and ever, Amen!
21 Give my greetings to all God’s people in Messiah Jesus. The family with me here send their greetings. 22 All God’s people send you greetings, especially those from Caesar’s household.
23 The grace of the Lord Jesus, the Messiah, be with your spirit.
Scripture quotations from The New Testament for Everyone are copyright © Nicholas Thomas Wright 2011, 2018, 2019.