Text -- Philippians 1:28-30 (NET)

1:28 and by not being intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is a sign of their destruction, but of your salvation– a sign which is from God. 1:29 For it has been granted to you not only to believe in Christ but also to suffer for him, 1:30 since you are encountering the same conflict that you saw me face and now hear that I am facing.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Phi 1:28

¹ tn Grk “which is,” continuing the sentence begun in v. 27.

sn The antecedent of the pronoun This is conceptual, most likely referring to the Philippian Christians standing firm for the gospel. Thus, their stand for the gospel is the dual sign of their opponents’ destruction and of their own salvation.

² tn Grk “to them.”

sn Paul uses the dative “to them” (translated here as their) to describe the coming destruction of the gospel’s enemies, but the genitive “your” to describe the believers’ coming salvation. The dative accents what will happen to the enemies (called a dative of disadvantage [see ExSyn 143-44]), while the genitive accents what the believers will possess (and, in fact, do already possess, as v. 29 makes clear).

³ tn Grk “this.” The pronoun refers back to “a sign”; thus these words have been repeated for clarity.

NET Notes: Phi 1:29

¹ tn Grk “For that which is on behalf of Christ has been granted to you – namely, not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him.” The infinitive phrases are epexegetical to the subject, τὸ ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ (to Juper Cristou), which has the force of “the on-behalf-of-Christ thing,” or “the thing on behalf of Christ.” To translate this in English requires a different idiom.

NET Notes: Phi 1:30

¹ tn Grk “having,” most likely as an instrumental participle. Thus their present struggle is evidence that they have received the gift of suffering.

² tn Grk “that you saw in me and now hear [to be] in me.”