Chapter 2

Be Like Christ

1 Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any afellowship of the Spirit, if any 1baffection and compassion,

2 amake my joy complete 1by bbeing of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.

3 Do nothing 1from 2aselfishness or bempty conceit, but with humility of mind cregard one another as more important than yourselves;

4 ado not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

5 aHave this attitude 1in yourselves which was also in bChrist Jesus,

6 who, although He aexisted in the bform of God, cdid not regard equality with God a thing to be 1grasped,

7 but 1aemptied Himself, taking the form of a bbond-servant, and cbeing made in the likeness of men.

8 Being found in appearance as a man, aHe humbled Himself by becoming bobedient to the point of death, even cdeath 1on a cross.

9 aFor this reason also, God bhighly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him cthe name which is above every name,

10 so that at the name of Jesus aevery knee will bow, of bthose who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is aLord, to the glory of God the Father.

12 So then, my beloved, ajust as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your bsalvation with cfear and trembling;

13 for it is aGod who is at work in you, both to will and to work bfor His good pleasure.

14 Do all things without agrumbling or disputing;

15 so that you will 1prove yourselves to be ablameless and innocent, bchildren of God above reproach in the midst of a ccrooked and perverse generation, among whom you 2dappear as 3lights in the world,

16 holding 1fast the word of life, so that in athe day of Christ I will have reason to glory because I did not brun in vain nor ctoil in vain.

17 But even if I am being apoured out as a drink offering upon bthe 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 1in the Lord Jesus to asend bTimothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition.

20 For I have no one else aof kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare.

21 For they all aseek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus.

22 But you know aof his proven worth, that bhe served with me in the furtherance of the gospel clike a child serving his father.

23 aTherefore I hope to send him immediately, as soon as I see how things go with me;

24 and aI trust in the Lord that I myself also will be coming shortly.

25 But I thought it necessary to send to you aEpaphroditus, my brother and bfellow worker and cfellow soldier, who is also your 1dmessenger and aminister to my need;

26 because he was longing 1for 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 on him only 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 aReceive him then in the Lord with all joy, and bhold men like him in high regard;

30 because he came close to death 1afor the work of Christ, risking his life to bcomplete 2what was deficient in your service to me.