Filipi 1:23

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

Filipi 1:25

1:25 And since I am sure of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for the sake of your progress ²  and joy in the faith, ³ 

Filipi 2:1

Christian Unity and Christ’s Humility

2:1 Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit, ⁴  any affection or mercy, ⁵ 

Filipi 2:16

2:16 by holding on to ⁶  the word of life so that on the day of Christ I will have a reason to boast that I did not run in vain nor labor in vain.

Filipi 2:19

Models for Ministry

2:19 Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be encouraged by hearing news about you.

Filipi 2:22

2:22 But you know his qualifications, that like a son working with his father, he served with me in advancing the gospel.

Filipi 2:27

2:27 In fact he became so ill that he nearly died. ⁷  But God showed mercy to him – and not to him only, but also to me – so that I would not have grief on top of grief.

Filipi 3:3

3:3 For we are the circumcision, ⁸  the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, ⁹  exult in Christ Jesus, and do not rely on human credentials ¹⁰ 

Filipi 3:5

3:5 I was circumcised on the eighth day, from the people of Israel and the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews. I lived according to the law as a Pharisee. ¹¹ 

Filipi 3:13

3:13 Brothers and sisters, ¹²  I do not consider myself to have attained this. Instead I am single-minded: ¹³  Forgetting the things that are behind and reaching out for the things that are ahead,

Filipi 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.

Filipi 4:7

4:7 And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds ¹⁴  in Christ Jesus.

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

[1:25]  ² tn Grk “for your progress.”

[1:25]  ³ sn Paul’s confidence in his release from prison (I know that I will remain and continue with all of you) implies that this Roman imprisonment did not end in his death. Hence, there is the likelihood that he experienced a second Roman imprisonment later on (since the belief of the early church was that Paul died under Nero in Rome). If so, then the pastoral letters (1-2 Tim, Titus) could well fit into a life of Paul that goes beyond any descriptions in the book of Acts (which ends with Paul’s first Roman imprisonment). Some have argued that the pastorals cannot be genuine because they cannot fit into the history of Acts. But this view presupposes that Paul’s first Roman imprisonment was also his last.

[2:1]  ⁴ tn Or “spiritual fellowship” if πνεύματος (pneumato") is an attributive genitive; or “fellowship brought about by the Spirit” if πνεύματος is a genitive of source or production.

[2:1]  ⁵ tn Grk “and any affection and mercy.” The Greek idea, however, is best expressed by “or” in English.

[2:16]  ⁶ tn Or “holding out, holding forth.”

[2:27]  ⁷ tn Grk “For he became ill to the point of death.”

[3:3]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ 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]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “have no confidence in the flesh.”

[3:5]  ¹¹ sn A Pharisee was a member of one of the most important and influential religious and political parties of Judaism in the time of Jesus. There were more Pharisees than Sadducees (according to Josephus, Ant. 17.2.4 [17.42] there were more than 6,000 Pharisees at about this time). Pharisees differed with Sadducees on certain doctrines and patterns of behavior. The Pharisees were strict and zealous adherents to the laws of the OT and to numerous additional traditions such as angels and bodily resurrection.

[3:13]  ¹² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.

[3:13]  ¹³ tn Grk “But this one thing (I do).”

[4:7]  ¹⁴ 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.