THE EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE PHILIPPIANS
Greeting
1 Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in
Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, together with the overseers and
ministers:
2 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanksgiving and Prayer
3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,
4 always in every
prayer of mine on behalf of you all, with joy,
5 for your
fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now,
6 having
been persuaded of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you
will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus;
7 just as it is
right for me to think this concerning you all, because I have you in my
heart, both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the
gospel, you all are partakers with me of grace.
8 For God is my
witness, how greatly I long for you all with the affection of Jesus
Christ.
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and
more in knowledge and all perception,
10 that you may approve the
things that are excellent, in order that you may be sincere and
blameless until the day of Christ,
11 having been filled with the
fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory
and praise of God.
The Advance of the Gospel
12 But I want you to know, brothers, that the things which happened to
me have come about for the advancement of the gospel,
13 so that
it has become evident to the whole praetorian guard, and to all the
rest, that my chains are in Christ;
14 and most of the brothers
in the Lord, having been persuaded by my chains, are much more bold to
speak the word fearlessly.
15 Some indeed are preaching Christ
even from envy and strife, but others from good will:
16 The
former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely,
supposing to add affliction to my chains;
17 but the latter out
of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the
gospel.
18 What then? Nevertheless in every way, whether in
pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice; yes,
and I will rejoice.
To Live is Christ
19 For I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your
prayer and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,
20
according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I will be
ashamed, but with utmost boldness, as always, now also Christ will be
magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
21 For to me,
to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22 But if I am to live on
in the flesh, this to me will mean fruit from my labor; and what I
shall choose I do not know.
23 For I am hard pressed by the two,
having a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far
better.
24 But to remain in the flesh is more needful for your
sake.
25 And convinced of this, I know that I shall remain and
continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith,
26
that your boasting may abound in Christ Jesus in me through my coming
again to you.
Striving and Suffering for Christ
27 Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ,
so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your
affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving
together for the faith of the gospel,
28 and not being terrified
in anything by your enemies, which is to them a proof of destruction,
but to you of salvation, and this from God.
29 For to you it has
been granted for the sake of Christ, not only to believe in Him, but
also to suffer for His sake,
30 experiencing the same struggle which
you saw in me and now you hear is in
me.
PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 2
Unity Through Humility
1 Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of
love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and acts of
compassion,
2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having
the same love, being united in spirit, intent on one purpose,
3
doing nothing according to selfish ambition or conceit, but with
humility, regarding one another as being better than yourselves.
4 Let each of you look out not only for his own concerns, but also for
the concerns of others.
The Humbled and Exalted Christ
5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,
6 who,
existing in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with
God,
7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a
bondservant, and coming to be in the likeness of men.
8 And being
found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself, becoming obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross.
9 Therefore God also has
highly exalted Him, and has bestowed on Him the name which is above
every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of
those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the
earth,
11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Lights in the World
12 So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my
presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own
salvation with fear and trembling;
13 for it is God who is
working in you, both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
14
Do all things without grumbling and disputing,
15 in order that
you may become blameless and innocent, children of God above reporach
in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you
shine as light bearers in the world,
16 holding fast the word of
life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run
in vain or labored in vain.
17 But even if I am being poured upon
the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice; yea, and I rejoice
with you all.
18 Likewise you also rejoice, and rejoice together
with me.
Paul Commends Timothy
19 Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, that I
also may be encouraged when I learn of your circumstances.
20 For
I have no one like-minded, who will be genuinely concerned about your
circumstances.
21 For all seek their own interests, not the
things of Christ Jesus.
22 And you know his approved character,
that as a child with his father he served as a slave for the
gospel.
23 Therefore I hope to send him at once, as soon as I may
see how my circumstances go.
24 But I trust in the Lord that I
myself will also come shortly.
Paul Commends Epaphroditus
25 Yet I considered it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my
brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, and your messenger and
minister to my needs; 26 since he was longing for you all, and
was distressed because you had heard that he was sick.
27 For
indeed he was sick, and near death; but God had mercy on him, and not
only on him but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon
sorrow.
28 Therefore I sent him more eagerly, in order that when
you see him again you may have joy, and I may be less anxious.
29
Receive him therefore in the Lord with the utmost joy, and honor such
men;
30 because for the work of Christ he drew near unto death,
being careless with his life, in order that he might fill up that which
was lacking in your service to
me.
PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 3
Righteousness Through Faith
1 Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write the same
things to you is not troublesome, but for you it is safe.
2
Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false
circumcision!
3 For we are the true circumcision, worshipping by
the Spirit of God, rejoicing in Christ Jesus, and having no confidence
in the flesh,
4 though I myself have reason for confidence in the
flesh also. If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the
flesh, I have more:
5 circumcised the eighth day, of the nation
of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the
law, a Pharisee;
6 as to zeal, persecuting the church; as to
righteousness which is in the law, blameless.
7 But such things as were gain to me, these I have considered loss for
the sake of Christ.
8 More than that I also consider all things
to be loss, on account of the surpassing worth of the knowledge of
Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have sustained the loss of all things,
and I consider them to be rubbish, in order that I may gain
Christ,
9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness,
which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith;
10 so as to
know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His
sufferings, being conformed to His death,
11 if in some way I may
attain to the resurrection from the dead.
Pressing Toward the Goal
12 Not that I have already obtained it, or have already been made
perfect; but I press on, if also I may lay hold of that for which I was
laid hold of by Christ Jesus.
13 Brothers, I do not count myself
as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do, forgetting those
things which are behind, and reaching forward to those things which are
ahead,
14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the high
calling of God in Christ Jesus.
15 Therefore, as many as are mature,
let us think this way; and if in anything you think otherwise, even
this God will reveal to you.
16 Nevertheless, to what we have attained,
let us walk by the same rule, being of the same mind.
Our Citizenship in Heaven
17 Be fellow imitators of me, brothers, and look out for those walking
this way, just as you have us for a pattern.
18 For many walk, of
whom often I was speaking to you, and now even weeping I tell you, that
they are the enemies of the cross of Christ:
19 whose end is
destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their
shame—who are mindful of earthly things.
20 For our
citizenship exists in heaven, from which also we eagerly await for the
Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
21 who will transform our lowly
body, that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the
working by which He is able even to subject all things to
Himself.
PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 4
1 Therefore, my beloved and longed for brothers, my joy and crown, in this way stand fast in the Lord, beloved.
Exhortation, Encouragement, and Prayer
2 I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the
Lord.
3 Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women who
labored together with me in the gospel, and with Clement also, and the
rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.
4
Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
5 Let your
gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be anxious
for nothing, but in everything by prayer and petition, along with
thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
7 and the peace
of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and
minds in Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brothers, as many things as are true, as many as are
honorable, as many as are just, as many as are pure, as many as are
lovely—if there is any virtue and if there is any
praise—meditate on these things.
9 The things which you
learned and received and heard and saw in me, practice these things;
and the God of peace shall be with you.
10 But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now once again you have
revived your mindfulness on my behalf, inasmuch as indeed you were
mindful, but you lacked opportunity.
11 Not that I am speaking
with respect to need, for I have learned to be content in whatever
state I am.
12 I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound.
In every place and in all circumstances I have learned both to be full
and to be hungry, both to abound and to be in need.
13 I can do
all things through Christ who strengthens me.
14 Nevertheless you
have done well that you shared in my affliction.
15 Now you
Philippians also know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I went
out from Macedonia, no church shared with me in an accounting of giving
and receiving except you only.
16 Because even in Thessalonica,
both once and again you sent help for my needs.
17 Not that I
seek the gift, but I seek the fruit which is increasing to your
account.
18 And I have all things and abound. I have been made
full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a
fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God.
19
And my God will supply all your need according to His riches in glory
in Christ Jesus.
20 Now to our God and Father be glory forever
and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
21 Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me
greet you.
22 All the saints greet you, but especially those of
the household of Caesar.
23 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be
with you all. Amen.