Philippians 4:11

4:11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content in any circumstance.

Philippians 2:6

2:6 ¹ who though he existed in the form of God ² 

did not regard equality with God

as something to be grasped,

Philippians 3:7

3:7 But these assets I have come to regard as liabilities because of Christ.

Philippians 1:10

1:10 so that you can decide what is best, and thus be sincere and blameless for the day of Christ,

Philippians 2:13

2:13 for the one bringing forth in you both the desire and the effort – for the sake of his good pleasure – is God.

Philippians 2:26

2:26 Indeed, he greatly missed all of you and was distressed because you heard that he had been ill.

Philippians 2:28

2:28 Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, ³  so that when you see him again you can rejoice ⁴  and I can be free from anxiety.

Philippians 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul ⁵  and Timothy, slaves ⁶  of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, ⁷  with the overseers ⁸  and deacons.

Philippians 1:23

1:23 I feel torn between the two, ⁹  because I have a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far,

Philippians 1:28

1:28 and by not being intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is ¹⁰  a sign of their ¹¹  destruction, but of your salvation – a sign which ¹²  is from God.

Philippians 3:3

3:3 For we are the circumcision, ¹³  the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, ¹⁴  exult in Christ Jesus, and do not rely on human credentials ¹⁵ 

Philippians 4:9

4:9 And what you learned and received and heard and saw in me, do these things. And the God of peace will be with you.

Philippians 1:7

1:7 For ¹⁶  it is right for me to think this about all of you, because I have you in my heart, ¹⁷  since both in my imprisonment ¹⁸  and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel all of you became partners in God’s grace ¹⁹  together with me.

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! ²⁰  – that I may gain Christ,

Philippians 4:8

4:8 Finally, brothers and sisters, ²¹  whatever is true, whatever is worthy of respect, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if something is excellent or praiseworthy, think about these things.

[2:6]  ¹ sn This passage has been typeset as poetry because many scholars regard this passage as poetic or hymnic. These terms are used broadly to refer to the genre of writing, not to the content. There are two broad criteria for determining if a passage is poetic or hymnic: “(a) stylistic: a certain rhythmical lilt when the passages are read aloud, the presence of parallelismus membrorum (i.e., an arrangement into couplets), the semblance of some metre, and the presence of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, chiasmus, and antithesis; and (b) linguistic: an unusual vocabulary, particularly the presence of theological terms, which is different from the surrounding context” (P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 188-89). Classifying a passage as hymnic or poetic is important because understanding this genre can provide keys to interpretation. However, not all scholars agree that the above criteria are present in this passage, so the decision to typeset it as poetry should be viewed as a tentative decision about its genre.

[2:6]  ² sn The Greek term translated form indicates a correspondence with reality. Thus the meaning of this phrase is that Christ was truly God.

[2:28]  ¹ tn Grk “I have sent him to you with earnestness.” But the epistolary aorist needs to be translated as a present tense with this adverb due to English stylistic considerations.

[2:28]  ² tn Or “when you see him you can rejoice again.”

[1:1]  ¹ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ² tn Traditionally, “servants” or “bondservants.” Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  ³ map For location see JP1 C1; JP2 C1; JP3 C1; JP4 C1.

[1:1]  ⁴ sn The overseers (or “church leaders,” L&N 53.71) is another term for the same official position of leadership as the “elder.” This is seen in the interchange of the two terms in Titus 1:6-7 and in Acts 20:17, 28, as well as in the parallels between Titus 1:6-7 and 1 Tim 3:1-7.

[1:23]  ¹ tn Grk “I am hard-pressed between the two.” Cf. L&N 30.18.

[1:28]  ¹ tn Grk “which is,” continuing the sentence begun in v. 27.

[1:28]  ² tn Grk “to them.”

[1:28]  ³ tn Grk “this.” The pronoun refers back to “a sign”; thus these words have been repeated for clarity.

[3:3]  ¹ tn There is a significant wordplay here in the Greek text. In v. 2 a rare, strong word is used to describe those who were pro-circumcision (κατατομή, katatomh, “mutilation”; see BDAG 528 s.v.), while in v. 3 the normal word for circumcision is used (περιτομή, peritomh; see BDAG 807 s.v.). Both have τομή (the feminine form of the adjective τομός [tomo"], meaning “cutting, sharp”) as their root; the direction of the action of the former is down or off (from κατά, kata), hence the implication of mutilation or emasculation, while the direction of the action of the latter is around (from περί, peri). The similarity in sound yet wide divergence of meaning between the two words highlights in no uncertain terms the differences between Paul and his opponents.

[3:3]  ² tc The verb λατρεύω (latreuw; here the participial form, λατρεύοντες [latreuonte"]) either takes a dative direct object or no object at all, bearing virtually a technical nuance of “worshiping God” (see BDAG 587 s.v.). In this text, πνεύματι (pneumati) takes an instrumental force (“by the Spirit”) rather than functioning as object of λατρεύοντες. However, the word after πνεύματι is in question, no doubt because of the collocation with λατρεύοντες. Most witnesses, including some of the earliest and best representatives of the Alexandrian, Western, and Byzantine texts (א* A B C D² F G 0278^vid 33 1739 1881 Ï co Ambr), read θεοῦ (qeou; thus, “worship by the Spirit of God”). But several other important witnesses (א² D* P Ψ 075 365 1175 lat sy Chr) have the dative θεῷ (qew) here (“worship God by the Spirit”). Ì⁴⁶ is virtually alone in its omission of the divine name, probably due to an unintentional oversight. The dative θεῷ was most likely a scribal emendation intended to give the participle its proper object, and thus avoid confusion about the force of πνεύματι. Although the Church came to embrace the full deity of the Spirit, the NT does not seem to speak of worshiping the Spirit explicitly. The reading θεῷ thus appears to be a clarifying reading. On external and internal grounds, then, θεοῦ is the preferred reading.

[3:3]  ³ tn Grk “have no confidence in the flesh.”

[1:7]  ¹ tn Grk “Just as.” The sense here is probably, “So I give thanks (v. 3) just as it is right for me…”

[1:7]  ² tn Or possibly “because you have me in your heart.”

[1:7]  ³ tn Grk “in my bonds.” The meaning “imprisonment” derives from a figurative extension of the literal meaning (“bonds,” “fetters,” “chains”), L&N 37.115.

[1:7]  ⁴ tn The word “God’s” is supplied from the context (v. 2) to clarify the meaning.

[3:8]  ¹ 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.

[4:8]  ¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.