Philippians 1–2

Greeting

1Paul ^aand Timothy, ^bslaves of Christ Jesus:

To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, ^cincluding the overseers ^dand deacons. ^e

²Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Thanksgiving and Prayer

³I give thanks to my God for every remembrance of you, ^f4always praying with joy for all of you in my every prayer, ⁵because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day ^guntil now. ^h6I am sure of this, that He who started a good work ⁱin you ^jwill carry it on to completion ^kuntil the day of Christ Jesus. ⁷It is right ^lfor me to think this way about all of you, because I have you in my heart, ^mand you are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment ⁿand in the defense ^oand establishment of the gospel. ⁸For God is my witness, ^phow deeply I miss all of you ^qwith the affection of Christ Jesus. ⁹And I pray this: that your love ^rwill keep on growing ^sin knowledge and every kind of discernment, ^t10so that you can approve the things that are superior ^uand can be pure ^vand blameless ^win ^xthe day of Christ, ^y11filled with the fruit ^zof righteousness ^athat comes through Jesus Christ to the glory ^band praise of God.

Advance of the Gospel

¹²Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has actually resulted in the advance of the gospel, ^c13so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard, ^dand to everyone else, that my imprisonment is in the cause of Christ. ¹⁴Most of the brothers in the Lord have gained confidence from my imprisonment and dare even more to speak the message ^effearlessly. ¹⁵To be sure, some preach Christ out of envy and strife, ^gbut others out of good will. ^h16These do so out of love, ⁱknowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel; ¹⁷the others proclaim Christ out of rivalry, ^jnot sincerely, seeking to cause me anxiety in my imprisonment. ^k18What does it matter? Just that in every way, whether out of false motives ^lor true, Christ is proclaimed. And in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice ¹⁹because I know this will lead to my deliverance ^mnthrough your prayers and help from the Spirit ^oof Jesus Christ. ^p20My eager expectation and hope ^qis that I will not be ashamed about anything, but that now as always, with all boldness, Christ will be highly honored in my body, whether by life ^ror by death. ^s

Living Is Christ

²¹For me, living is Christ ^tand dying is gain. ^u22Now if I live on in the flesh, this means fruitful ^vwork ^wfor me; and I don’t know which one I should choose. ²³I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart and be with Christ ^x—which is far better ^y— ²⁴but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. ²⁵Since I am persuaded of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, ^z26so that, because of me, your confidence may grow ^ain Christ Jesus ^bwhen I come to you again.

²⁷Just one thing: Live your life ^cin a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or am absent, I will hear about you that you are standing firm ^din one ^espirit, with one mind, ^fworking side by side for the faith ^gthat comes from the gospel, ²⁸not being frightened in any way by your opponents. ^hThis is a sign of destruction for them, ⁱbut of your deliverance ^j—and this is from God. ²⁹For it has been given to you on Christ’s behalf not only to believe ^kin Him, but also to suffer for Him, ³⁰having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I have.

Christian Humility

2If then there is any encouragement in Christ, if any consolation of love, ^lif any fellowship with the Spirit, ^mif any affection and mercy, ⁿ²fulfill my joy by thinking the same way, ^ohaving the same love, ^psharing the same feelings, focusing on one ^qgoal. ³Do nothing out of rivalry ^ror conceit, ^sbut in humility ^tconsider others as more important ^uthan yourselves. ⁴Everyone should look out not only for his own interests, ^vbut also for the interests of others. ^w

Christ’s Humility and Exaltation

⁵Make your own attitude that of Christ Jesus,

⁶who, existing in the form of God,

did not consider equality with God ^x

as something to be used for His own advantage. ^y

⁷Instead He emptied Himself ^z

by assuming the form of a slave, ^a

taking on the likeness of men. ^b

And when He had come as a man

in His external form,

⁸He humbled Himself by becoming obedient

to the point of death—

even to death on a cross. ^c

⁹For this reason God highly exalted Him ^d

and gave Him the name

that is above every name,

¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus

every knee will bow ^e—

of those who are in heaven ^fand on earth

and under the earth ^g—

¹¹and every tongue ^hshould confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord, ⁱ

to the glory ^jof God the Father.

Lights in the World

¹²So then, my dear friends, ^kjust as you have always obeyed, ^lnot only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. ¹³For it is God who is working in you, enabling you both to desire and to work out His good purpose. ¹⁴Do everything without grumbling ^mand arguing, ⁿ¹⁵so that you may be blameless ^oand pure, ^pchildren of God who are faultless ^qin a crooked ^rand perverted ^sgeneration, ^tamong whom you shine like stars in the world. ¹⁶Hold firmly to ^uthe message ^vof life. Then I can boast ^win the day of Christ ^xthat I didn’t run or labor for nothing. ¹⁷But even if I am poured out ^yas a drink offering ^zon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. ¹⁸In the same way you should also be glad and rejoice with me.

Timothy and Epaphroditus

¹⁹Now I hope in the Lord Jesus ^ato send Timothy ^bto you soon so that I also may be encouraged when I hear news about you. ²⁰For I have no one else like-minded who will genuinely care about your interests; ²¹all seek their own interests, ^cnot those of Jesus Christ. ^d22But you know his proven character, because he has served with me in the gospel ministry like a son with a father. ²³Therefore, I hope to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. ²⁴I am convinced in the Lord that I myself will also come quickly. ^e

²⁵But I considered it necessary to send you Epaphroditus ^f—my brother, coworker, and fellow soldier, as well as your messenger and minister to my need ^g— ²⁶since he has been longing for all of you and was distressed because you heard that he was sick. ²⁷Indeed, he was so sick that he nearly died. However, God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, so that I would not have one grief on top of another. ²⁸For this reason, I am very eager to send him so that you may rejoice when you see him again and I may be less anxious. ²⁹Therefore, welcome him in the Lord with all joy and hold men like him in honor, ³⁰because he came close to death for the work ^hof Christ, risking his life to make up what was lacking in your ministry to me.