Overview:
The letter to the Philippians was written by Paul to the Christian community at Philippi. Paul had established the congregation on his missionary journey through Macedonia. The story of his visit to Philippi and his ignominious treatment there is told in chapter 16 of Acts. Although scholars are generally agreed that this is a genuine letter of Paul, there is not unanimity as to where and when the letter was written. However, a majority view favors Rome as the location and the early 60s AD as the time, when Paul was a prisoner awaiting trial before Nero. Paul had requested an appearance before the Emperor in order to answer charges brought against him by the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem, as recounted in Acts 24:5-6.
1:1 Paul introduces himself and Timothy as “servants” of Christ Jesus in the RSV, KJV, and NIV translations. The NASB gives it as “bond-servants.” But the Greek douloi is properly translated as “slaves.” There was in ancient times no such thing as what we understand by the word “servant,” and translating it this way suppresses a part of what Paul may be trying to convey. “The word he uses (douloi) means literally ‘slaves,’ and implies that Paul and Timothy not only worked in Christ’s service but belonged to him, body and soul.” (The Interpreter’s Bible, vol.11, p.15.)
It would be anachronistic to believe that Paul is referring to positions in an official church hierarchy when he uses the words translated as “bishops and deacons” in the RSV and KJV. “The Greek words mean nothing more than ‘overseers and assistants,’ and we must not read into them the more definite significance which they acquired at a later day.” (The Interpreter’s Bible, vol.11, p.16.) Similarly, when he greets the “saints” he is not referring to any formal process of canonization. The Greek word simply means “holy ones,” and was used by Paul to refer to Christians in general.
1:6 It would be easy to miss the slight change in tone that this verse represents in comparison to other passages where Paul anticipates the return of Jesus. Here he speaks of the “day of Jesus Christ” as though it is no longer just around the corner. There is an almost wistful quality about Paul’s tone. Contrast this verse with 1 Thessalonians 4:15 where he speaks of “we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord” – indicating that Paul himself expected to be alive when Jesus returned - or Romans 13: 12 where he proclaims that “the day is at hand,” or 1 Corinthians 7:29 where he announces that “the time has grown very short.” Here in Philippians, the sense of immediacy is lacking when he speaks of “the day of Jesus Christ,” and Paul contemplates the possibility of his own impending death – before the “day of Jesus” - in 1:20-24.
1:7 “My imprisonment” may refer to Paul’s incarceration at Rome, awaiting trial before the Emperor, but might possibly be instead his imprisonment at Caesarea, which is the subject of the last chapters of Acts. It has also been suggested that Paul was imprisoned for a time in Ephesus and that this letter could have been written from that city. For a discussion of these possibilities, and the implications for the date of the letter, see Raymond E. Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament, pp.493-496.
1:9 Paul prays that the Philippians’ love “may abound more and more.” Paul is apparently unaware of Jesus’s teaching that we should not pray to God for the things we want, because God already knows what we need. Instead, Jesus teaches that his followers should only pray the Lord’s prayer. (Matthew 6:9-13) This is not the only occasion when Paul spoke a prayer that conflicted with Jesus’s teaching. See also Philemon 1:6; Romans 10:1. We may question just how familiar Paul was with the teachings of Jesus, since he says in Romans 8:26 that “we do not know how to pray as we ought.”
1:14 “The brethren” is Paul’s phrase for his fellow Christians. He assures his readers that “most” of the brethren,” but not all, have been emboldened by his imprisonment and preach the word of God with greater confidence.
1:15-17 These verses remind us once again that the early Christian movement was not united. Even among the brethren, Paul notes that some preached Christ out of “envy and rivalry,” and that some were trying to afflict Paul in his imprisonment. Because Paul’s writings made it into the New Testament, and those of his opponents by and large did not, it is easy to think of Paul as representing the “true faith” and the others as heretics and dissenters, but at the time Paul was writing, there was not yet a well-defined and widely accepted view of what constituted the true faith.
1:20-24 Here Paul weighs the possibility of his own death. Whether he thinks of this as the likely outcome of his trial, or the result of poor health, or just a general danger associated with missionary work, he does not say. For his own part, he would be happy to “depart and be with Christ,” but realizing his importance to others, he would be satisfied to remain in the flesh a while longer as well. Paul was never one to downplay his own significance in keeping his congregations on the correct theological path.
Paul hopes that Christ will be “honored in my body.” This is a strange wish coming from someone who said that “nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh.” (Romans 7:18). Apologists cannot get out of this difficulty by pointing out that “body” is the Greek word soma, whereas “flesh” is sarx. Paul also uses soma in a similarly negative light – e.g., Romans 8:10 where “the body (soma) is dead because of sin.”
1:25 After reflecting on his own indispensability, Paul concludes that he will certainly continue among the living in order to guide his readers’ “progress and joy in the faith.” There is no way to tell for sure whether this is actually what happened. If the letter was indeed written from Rome, it would have been close to the end of Paul’s career, and there is the distinct possibility that he died soon afterwards. Tradition has it that he died during the persecution undertaken by Nero in or shortly after 64 AD. (See Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament, p.436.)
2:6-11 These verses are identified by some commentators as a “Christological hymn.” They represent one of the most significant theological passages in all of Paul’s writing, and have been the subject of numerous debates among biblical scholars. There have been many interpretations of these verses and what they imply about the nature of Jesus (or more accurately, Christ). The straightforward reading suggests that Christ was not equal to God, and did not really become human, but only took on the form of a man. This, of course, is heretical in relation to what became the orthodox doctrine, but it was a widespread belief among some early Christian factions, and went by the name of docetism – i.e., the belief that the divine Christ only appeared to become human, but did not actually have a physical body. The difficulty, theologically, is that if he did not have a physical body, he did not really die, and if he did not really die, then the resurrection could not have happened. Since the salvation scheme of orthodox Christianity is based on belief in the resurrection, we find the early proponents of orthodoxy to be quite concerned with refuting the claims of the docetists.
Paul, of course, emphasized the importance of the resurrection elsewhere in his writing (e.g., 1 Corinthians 15:14), and cannot by any stretch of the imagination be considered as a docetist, but this “hymn,” if that is what it is, may have been incorporated by him into the letter from an earlier source, thus introducing some theological inconsistency in relation to the rest of Paul’s system.
The difficulty arises from the statement that Christ was “found in human form,” which can very easily be construed to mean that he did not really become human, but only appeared in the form of a human. Some commentators argue here that “form” should be taken in the Platonic sense – i.e., as the ideal or essence of a particular thing, so that taking human form would mean the same as actually becoming human in essence. However, this argument fails, because Christ is also said to be “in the form of God” (v.6) and “taking the form of a servant” (i.e., “slave”) (v.7) and this shifting of a being’s essence from one form to another is inconsistent with the essential meaning of Plato’s forms. One’s essence is not an attribute that can be thrown off and changed like a suit of clothes. Essence is the unchanging essential nature of a thing. Therefore, the forms of Platonic philosophy do not apply, and so this argument does not eliminate the docetic implications of v.8.
2:9 An additional theological embarrassment contained in the hymn is the suggestion that Christ is a being inferior to God. Here in v.9 we read that “God has highly exalted him.” “Exalt” means “to raise in rank, power, or character, to elevate by praise or in estimation.” (Merriam-Webster online dictionary at m-w.com.) So the fact that God exalts Christ implies Christ’s inferior status in relation to God. Also, we have again the “form” problem. Verse 6 tells us that Christ was “in the form of God,” implying that he was not actually God. Again, the Platonic interpretation of “form” will not work, because Christ is found to be shifting from one form to another, and so the form referred to cannot possibly represent his essential nature. So if Christ was only in the form of God, and if God exalted him from a lower position, Christ is seen to be not equal to God but inferior to him. This is the Arian heresy, which was rejected by the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. (See Bertrand Russell, A History of Western Philosophy, Simon & Schuster, 1945, p.333.)
Again, we do not claim that Paul himself was an Arian, but that by incorporating this Christological hymn into his letter to the Philippians, he introduced, perhaps inadvertently, theological views that contradict the doctrines that he teaches elsewhere in his writing.
2:12 Paul encourages the Philippians to “work out your own salvation.” But on numerous other occasions, he states that salvation is only by God’s grace and predestination, and not because of any effort on the individual’s part. E.g., Romans 3:24; 8:29-30; 11:6.
2:14 Paul’s advice here surely is not meant to be taken literally. “Do all things without grumbling or questioning” must certainly be limited to those things which a Christian is supposed to do, and not literally “all” things. This is obvious to any intelligent reader, but those fundamentalists who believe that the Bible is to be taken literally in every word will have a difficult time explaining why they do not take this verse in its literal meaning. There is, however, a contradiction between this verse and another piece of advice that Paul offers in his first letter to the Thessalonians. Although here he advises against “grumbling or questioning,” in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 he counsels his followers to “test everything.” The Greek verb used in the Thessalonians passage means to examine, scrutinize, or put to the test. It can hardly be reconciled with his advice here to avoid questioning.
2:16-17 Paul once again hints at the possibility of his possible condemnation and death, and speaks of the “day of Christ” as something in the distant future. The urgency of Christ’s second coming seems to be absent from this letter. See also the comment to 1:6.
2:19-21 Despite Paul’s alleged success in winning converts to Christ, Timothy seems to be the only one that he can trust to look after the Philippians’ welfare. All the rest “look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.”
2:23 However, Timothy will not begin his journey to Philippi just yet. Instead, he will wait with Paul to see how his trial turns out.
2:25 For now, Paul will send Epaphroditus back to Philippi, even though, by the standard of vv.20-21, he must be a poor substitute for Timothy, and only looks after his own interests.
3:1 “Finally” he says, but in reality Paul is only about halfway through his letter.
3:2 Here Paul warns to watch out for the “dogs,” the “evil-workers,” who “mutilate the flesh.” These adversaries are most likely the Jewish Christians who advocate circumcision and adherence to Jewish law for all who join the Christian movement. They are the principal antagonists in Paul’s letter to the Galatians. The description in Acts of Paul’s activities in Philippi indicates that his troubles in Philippi were not related to opposition from “the Jews” or from Jewish Christians, but from the native population. The charge levelled against Paul and Silas in Philippi was that “These men are Jews and they are disturbing our city.” (Acts 16:20) So it is not clear why Paul feels the need to warn the Philippians against these Christian competitors, unless they have begun to gain influence in Philippi since Paul’s departure.
3:3-4 Within two lines, Paul directly contradicts himself. In v.3, Paul and his followers “put no confidence in the flesh.” Yet Paul immediately turns around and tells his readers in v.4, “I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh.” And further: “If any other man thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more.” The word he uses is sarx, which he elsewhere denigrates as the source of sin. E.g., Romans 7:25. Also see the comment to 1:20-24.
3:5-6 Paul touts his Jewish credentials, noting his background as a circumcised Jew, born of Hebrew parents in the tribe of Benjamin, and “blameless” under the law. This last claim is difficult to reconcile with his statements in Romans where he confesses his own sinfulness. See Romans 7:8-11.
3:9 Paul just got through saying in v.6 that he was “as to righteousness under the law blameless.” But now he speaks of “not having a righteousness of my own, based on law.” Paul says here that righteousness “depends on faith.” But once again he talks a different game in Romans, where he calls righteousness “a gift,” resulting from Jesus’s sacrifice. (Romans 5:17-19)
3:11 The resurrection from the dead is something that Paul hopes to attain “if possible.” (RSV) This is another example of what appears to be a diminished confidence in his chances of living until the return of Jesus. He was much more confident of participating in the resurrection when he wrote the letter to the Romans: “For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” (Romans 6:5) The “if possible” of the RSV is rendered as “somehow” in NIV, and “if by any means” in the KJV.
3:17 Paul urges the Philippians to “join in imitating me.” He does not tell them to imitate Christ. Since Paul did not have any written gospels to refer to, perhaps he had no way of knowing how Jesus lived or what he taught. But suggesting that his readers should imitate Paul himself raises the question as to who exactly is the object of worship in this religion.
3:19 It is a recurring theme throughout Paul’s correspondence that he considers earthly things to be base and contemptible, and the “spiritual” world to be superior. This attitude eventually suppressed mankind’s curiosity about the natural world, and had a stultifying effect on the advancement of science, which did not fully recover until the Renaissance.
3:21 Paul appears to be saying that at the resurrection it will not be the physical body which is raised. Instead, our “lowly body” will be changed to be like Jesus’s “glorious body.” A similar thought is expressed in 1 Corinthians 15:44 – “It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body.”
4:2 Obviously all is not well in Philippi, as there is some sort of dispute, apparently a theological one, between two of the women members of the congregation.
4:3 The “yokefellow” of this verse may be a proper name. If so, the one whom Paul is asking to help reconcile the two women is named Syzygus. Although Paul here praises Euodia, Syntyche, and Clement, they cannot measure up to Timothy, according to 2:20. They must, therefore, be counted among those who “look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” (2:21)
4:6 Paul counsels the Philippian Christians to “let your requests be known to God” through prayer. Once again, Paul ignores Jesus’s command to pray only the Lord’s prayer, because “your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” (Matthew 6:8)
4:9 Again, Paul sets himself up as the object of imitation, rather than Jesus or God. However, Jesus himself urged his followers to aim for a higher standard: “You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48)
4:10 In this concluding section of the letter, Paul acknowledges a gift of money that the Philippians had sent him in his need.
4:16 In place of “help” in this verse, some ancient manuscripts read, “money for my needs.” (The New Oxford Annotated Bible, p.1427.) Although Paul elsewhere claims that he worked his trade in order not to be a burden to his congregations (e.g., 1 Thessalonians 2:9; 3:8), this practice must not have been consistently adhered to, in light of his acceptance of the Philippians’ gift, and indeed he sets forth a general principle in 1 Corinthians 9:11, that those who sow spiritual good (including himself) are entitled to reap material benefits.
4:22 This reference to “Caesar’s household” is considered by some commentators as evidence that Paul composed the letter in Rome. See the comment to 1:7 for other possibilities, and a reference to a more detailed treatment of the question.
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