Philippians 4:23

4:23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. ¹ 

Philippians 1:27

1:27 Only conduct yourselves ²  in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ so that – whether I come and see you or whether I remain absent – I should hear that ³  you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, by contending side by side for the faith of the gospel, ⁴ 

Philippians 3:18

3:18 For many live, about whom I have often told you, and now, with tears, I tell you that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ.

Philippians 1:5

1:5 because of your participation ⁵  in the gospel from the first day until now. ⁶ 

Philippians 1:16

1:16 The latter do so from love because they know that I am placed here for the defense of the gospel.

Philippians 1:12

Ministry as a Prisoner

1:12 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, ⁷  that my situation has actually turned out to advance the gospel: ⁸ 

Philippians 3:14

3:14 with this goal in mind, ⁹  I strive toward the prize of the upward call of God ¹⁰  in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:14

1:14 and most of the brothers and sisters, ¹¹  having confidence in the Lord ¹²  because of my imprisonment, now more than ever ¹³  dare to speak the word ¹⁴  fearlessly.

Philippians 1:19

1:19 for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance ¹⁵  through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

Philippians 3:10

3:10 My aim is to know him, ¹⁶  to experience the power of his resurrection, to share in his sufferings, ¹⁷  and to be like him in his death,

Philippians 4:7

4:7 And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds ¹⁸  in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:8

3:8 More than that, I now regard all things as liabilities compared to the far greater value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things – indeed, I regard them as dung! ¹⁹  – that I may gain Christ,

Philippians 3:21

3:21 who will transform these humble bodies of ours ²⁰  into the likeness of his glorious body by means of that power by which he is able to subject all things to himself.

Philippians 4:15

4:15 And as you Philippians know, at the beginning of my gospel ministry, when I left Macedonia, no church shared with me in this matter of giving and receiving except you alone.

Philippians 1:7

1:7 For ²¹  it is right for me to think this about all of you, because I have you in my heart, ²²  since both in my imprisonment ²³  and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel all of you became partners in God’s grace ²⁴  together with me.

¹ tc Most witnesses, including several important ones (Ì⁴⁶ א A D Ψ 33 Ï lat sy bo), have ἀμήν (amhn, “amen”) at the end of this letter, while an impressive combination of Alexandrian and Western mss (B F G 075 6 1739* 1881 sa) lack the valedictory particle. Such a conclusion is routinely added by scribes to NT books because a few of these books originally had such an ending (cf. Rom 16:27; Gal 6:18; Jude 25). A majority of Greek witnesses have the concluding ἀμήν in every NT book except Acts, James, and 3 John (and even in these books, ἀμήν is found in some witnesses). It is thus a predictable variant. Thus, on internal grounds, with sufficient support from external evidence, the preferred reading is the omission of ἀμήν.

² tn Grk “live as citizens.” The verb πολιτεύεσθε (politeuesqe) connotes the life of a freeman in a free Roman colony.

³ tn Grk “the things concerning you, [namely,] that.” The ὅτι (Joti) clause is appositional to τὰ περὶ ὑμῶν (ta peri Jumwn) and therefore “the things concerning you” was not translated.

⁴ tn The phrase “the faith of the gospel” could mean one of three things: “the faith that is the gospel” (genitive of apposition), “the faith that originates from the gospel” (genitive of source), or “faith in the gospel” (objective genitive).

³ sn Your participation (Grk “fellowship”) could refer to Paul rejoicing because of the Philippian converts’ “fellowship” in the gospel along with him, but it is more likely that this refers to their active “participation” with him in the gospel by means of the financial support they sent to Paul on more than one occasion, discussed later in this letter (4:10-19, esp. 4:15-16).

⁴ tn Several alternatives for translating vv. 3-5 are possible: (1) “I thank my God every time I remember you, yes, always in my every prayer for all of you. I pray with joy because of your participation…” (see NAB; also M. Silva, Philippians [BECNT], 43-44; G. D. Fee, Philippians [NICNT], 76-80); (2) “I thank my God because of your every remembrance of me. Always in my every prayer for all of you I pray with joy. [I am grateful] for your participation…” (see Moffatt; also P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 58-61). Option (1) is quite similar to the translation above, but sees v. 4a as more or less parenthetical. Option (2) is significantly different in that Paul thanks God because the Philippians remember him rather than when he remembers them.

⁴ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).

⁵ tn Grk “for the advance of the gospel.” The genitive εὐαγγελίου (euangeliou) is taken as objective.

⁵ tn Grk “according to the goal.”

⁶ tn Grk “prize, namely, the heavenly calling of God.”

⁶ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.

⁷ tn Or “most of the brothers and sisters in the Lord, having confidence.”

⁸ tn Grk “even more so.”

⁹ tc A number of significant mss have “of God” after “word.” Although τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou) is amply supported in the Alexandrian and Western texts (א A B [D*] P Ψ 048^vid 075 0278 33 81 1175 al lat co), the omission is difficult to explain as either an intentional deletion or unintentional oversight. To be sure, the pedigree of the witnesses is not nearly as great for the shorter reading (Ì⁴⁶ D² 1739 1881 Ï), but it explains well the rise of the other reading. Further, it explains the rise of κυρίου (kuriou, “of the Lord”), the reading of F and G (for if these mss had followed a Vorlage with τοῦ θεοῦ, κυρίου would not have been expected). Further, τοῦ θεοῦ is in different locations among the mss; such dislocations are usually signs of scribal additions to the text. Thus, the Byzantine text and a few other witnesses here have the superior reading, and it should be accepted as the original.

⁷ tn Or “salvation.” Deliverance from prison (i.e., release) is probably what Paul has in view here, although some take this as a reference to his ultimate release from the body, i.e., dying and being with Christ (v. 23).

⁸ tn The articular infinitive τοῦ γνῶναι (tou gnwnai, “to know”) here expresses purpose. The words “My aim is” have been supplied in the translation to emphasize this nuance and to begin a new sentence (shorter sentences are more appropriate for English style).

⁹ tn Grk “to know him, the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings.”

⁹ tn Grk “will guard the hearts of you and the minds of you.” To improve the English style, the second occurrence of ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “of you”) has not been translated, since it is somewhat redundant in English.

¹⁰ tn The word here translated “dung” was often used in Greek as a vulgar term for fecal matter. As such it would most likely have had a certain shock value for the readers. This may well be Paul’s meaning here, especially since the context is about what the flesh produces.

¹¹ tn Grk “transform the body of our humility.”

¹² tn Grk “Just as.” The sense here is probably, “So I give thanks (v. 3) just as it is right for me…”

¹³ tn Or possibly “because you have me in your heart.”

¹⁴ tn Grk “in my bonds.” The meaning “imprisonment” derives from a figurative extension of the literal meaning (“bonds,” “fetters,” “chains”), L&N 37.115.

¹⁵ tn The word “God’s” is supplied from the context (v. 2) to clarify the meaning.