CHAPTER 1

(A.D. 64)

INTRODUCTION

¹Paul an d Timothy, the servants of Jesus Christ (refers to both men being bound to Jesus Christ by the bands of a constraining love), to all the Saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi (to those who are set apart unto Christ), with the Bishops (Pastors) and Deacons:

²Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ. (The Cross makes both attributes possible.)

THANKSGIVING

³I thank my God upon every remembrance of you (does not refer to disconnected recollections, but his total past experience with the Philippians),

⁴Always in every prayer of mine for you all (proclaims the Apostle continually praying for these people, even as he prayed for all the other Churches) making request with joy (Paul was not interceding for this Church because of problems, but rather for continued Blessing),

⁵For your fellowship in the Gospel (the idea is the Philippians supported Paul with their prayers and finances while he went about his Missionary labors) from the first day until now (refers to the faithfulness of these Philippians);

⁶Being confident of this very thing (refers to both their growth in Christ and their continued financial support), that He (the Holy Spirit) which has begun a good work in you will perform it until the Day of Jesus Christ (the Rapture of the Church):

⁷Even as it is meet (necessary) for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the Gospel (the ground of his confidence), you all are partakers of my Grace (God had indeed made them His Own).

⁸For God is my record (One Who bears Testimony), how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ. (This refers to the compassion of Christ.)

⁹And this I pray (Paul prayed about everything), that your love may abound yet more and more (the Love that God is) in knowledge (knowledge of the Cross) and in all judgment (discernment, which is a spiritual and moral sense or feeling);

¹⁰That you may approve things that are excellent (to approve by testing); that you may be sincere (pure) and without offence (nothing in ones life that would give cause to stumble, which can only be done by exhibiting Faith in the Cross) till the Day of Christ (the Rapture of the Church);

¹¹Being filled with the Fruits of Righteousness (should have been translated, Fruit of Righteousness), which are by Jesus Christ (through what He did at the Cross), unto the Glory and Praise of God. (When we place our Trust in Christ and the Cross, it brings Glory and Praise to God.)

TRIUMPH

¹²But I would you should understand, Brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the Gospel (Paul wrote this Epistle from prison in Rome);

¹³So that my bonds in Christ (he was a prisoner because of his relationship to Christ; the next question would be, who is Christ?) are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places(not only the members of the Praetorian guard who had custody of Paul, but the whole Praetorium itself, and all its judges and officials are included in this statement);

¹⁴And many of the Brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds (many Christians in Rome had been persuaded by the brave example of Paul in prison), are much more bold to speak the Word without fear. (This refers to having overcome the tendency towards silence.)

¹⁵Some indeed Preach Christ even of envy and strife (in other words, they were opposed to Paul in their Preaching, and for whatever reason); and some also of good will (some tried to help Paul in their Preaching):

¹⁶The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely (they have an agenda which is not of God), supposing to add affliction to my bonds (these Preachers, whomever they may have been, were seeking to make Pauls imprisonment even worse than it already was):

¹⁷But the other of love (by pointing to those Preachers who, in fact, did have Love, Paul is at the same time saying the Preachers of the previous Verse did not have love), knowing that I am set for the defence of the Gospel. (The Gospel must not only be preached, it must be defended against false doctrine as well. This, most Preachers will not do!)

¹⁸What then? (This does not mean Paul condoned the activities of these rogue Preachers, but that he did not allow it to bother him.) notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is Preached (Paul was quite satisfied that the servant should be denounced and the Master announced; at least some good is being done! even though these rogue Preachers would have silenced Paul, he would not have reciprocated in kind, which is the attitude of the true Preacher); and I therein do rejoice, yes, and will rejoice. (This presents the idea that some people will get some knowledge of Christ, even from these rogue Preachers, which is better than nothing.)

¹⁹For I know that this shall turn to my Salvation through your prayer (should have been translated deliverance), and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ (Paul is referring to the Holy Spirit, and that He will supply whatever is needed, but that He is able to do such only through Christ and what He did at the Cross, which makes it all possible; hence him using the terminology he did),

CHRIST

²⁰According to my earnest expectation and my hope (describes a person with head erect and outstretched, whose attention is turned away from all other objects and riveted upon just one), that in nothing I shall be ashamed (whichever way it goes, his release or his execution, he will hold up Christ to the end), but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death. (Whatever the Lord wants is what the Apostle wants. This is total consecration!)

²¹For to me to live is Christ (Paul being allowed to live longer makes it possible for him to continue to Preach Christ), and to die is gain. (He is saying it would be gain for him, but not for the Work of God.)

²²But if I live in the flesh (refers to him continuing to live in his physical body, which tells us it will be different in Heaven), this is the Fruit of my labour (souls being saved and lives being changed by the Message of the Cross): yet what I shall choose I wot not. (This actually means that if he had his choice, he is not certain which he would choose, to remain here longer or to go on to be with Christ.)

²³For I am in a strait betwixt two (refers to equal pressure being exerted from both sides; he is speaking here of his personal desires, and not necessarily that which the Lord would desire; however, he has already made it clear his personal will is to be swallowed up in the sweet Will of God), having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better (the centerpiece of all of this is Christ; if one draws any other conclusions, one misses the point entirely):

²⁴Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. (For Paul to continue to live and Preach the Gospel would be of great value to the Church, as would be obvious, at least until his work was finished.)

²⁵And having this confidence (he believes the Lord has told him he will be released from prison), I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of Faith (the Apostle is saying, The Servant of the Lord is immortal until his work is done);

²⁶That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me (presents Paul as the human instrument through which this teaching would come as it referred to Jesus Christ) by my coming to you again. (Without Paul, this advance in the Faith would probably not be brought about.)

EXHORTATION

²⁷Only let your conversation (lifestyle) be as it becomes the Gospel of Christ (refers to their behavior; they were to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the Gospel, and could do so by ever looking to the Cross): that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind (not be moved from Christ and the Cross, to other things) striving together for the Faith of the Gospel (The Faith is Christ and Him Crucified, and we must strive to hold it true; every attack by Satan, and in whatever capacity, is against the Cross and our Faith in that Finished Work);

²⁸And in nothing terrified by your adversaries (those who would Preach another Jesus, by another spirit, presenting another Gospel [II Cor. 11:4]): which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of Salvation, and that of God. (Salvation from God, which is through Christ and the Cross, is evidenced by persecution.)

²⁹For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him, but also to suffer for His sake (the world opposes the Cross, and so does most of the Church);

³⁰Having the same conflict which you saw in me (in essence speaks of the Christian struggle of Faith; the struggle is never so much with sin, as it is of Faith [I Tim. 6:12]), and now hear to be in me (refers to his present incarceration in Rome, which was a test of his Faith).