Philippians

11Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus being in Philippi, with the overseers and deacons. 2Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

3I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, 4always, in every prayer of mine for all of you, making my prayer with joy 5because of your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; 6having become confident about this very thing, that the one having begun a good work in you will perfect {it} until the day of Jesus Christ; 7just as it is right for me to think this {way} about all of you because, I have you in my heart, all of you being partakers with me of grace both in my chains and in my defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8For God {is} my witness, how I long for all of you with the inner parts of Christ Jesus. 9And I pray this: that your love would abound still more and more in knowledge and all understanding 10so that you may approve {what} excels, so that you might be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, 11being filled with the fruit of righteousness {that is} through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

12Now I want you to know, brothers, that the things concerning me have really happened for the advancement of the gospel. 13As a result, my chains in Christ became apparent among the whole palace guard and all the others. 14And most of the brothers have become confident in the Lord by my chains to dare more fearlessly to speak the word. 15Some indeed even proclaim Christ because of envy and strife, but also some because of goodwill, 16the ones indeed from love having understood that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel, 17but the ones from selfish ambition proclaim Christ not sincerely, supposing to raise up trouble in my chains. 18What then? Only that in every way—whether in pretext or in truth—Christ is proclaimed, and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, 19for I know that this will result to me in deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 20according to my eager expectation and hope that I will in nothing be ashamed, but in everything have boldness, and that now, as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether through life or through death. 21For to me to live {is} Christ, and to die {is} gain. 22Now if to live in the flesh, this {is} fruitful labor for me, but I do not know which I will choose. 23But I am hard pressed between the two, having the desire to depart and to be with Christ, for {that is} very much better, 24but to remain in the flesh {is} more necessary for your sake. 25And having become confident of this, I know that I will remain and will continue with you all for your progress and joy in the faith 26so that in me your boasting in Christ Jesus might abound through my coming to you again. 27Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ so that whether having come and having seen you or whether being absent, I might hear about you, that you stand firm in one spirit, with one soul striving together for the faith of the gospel. 28And do not be frightened in anything by the ones opposing {you}. This is a sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation—and this from God. 29For it has been freely given to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer on behalf of him, 30having the same struggle which you saw in me, and now you hear in me.

21Therefore, if {there is} any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affections and compassions, 2fulfill my joy that you might think the same, having the same love, united in soul, thinking the one thing. 3{Do} nothing according to selfish ambition or according to empty conceit, but with humility considering others better than yourselves, 4each one not considering the things of themselves, but also the things of each other. 5Have this attitude in you which also {was} in Christ Jesus,

6who, existing in the form of God,

did not consider being equal with God

something to be grasped.

7Instead, he emptied himself,

having taken the form of a servant,

having been born in the likeness of men,

and having been found in appearance as a man,

8he humbled himself, having become obedient to the point of death,

even death on a cross!

9Therefore, God also highly exalted him

and gave him the name {that is} above every name

10so that at the name of Jesus every knee would bend,

in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11and every tongue would confess that Jesus Christ {is} Lord,

to the glory of God the Father.

12So then, my beloved, just as you always obeyed, not only as in my presence, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13For God is the one working in you both to will and to work for his good pleasure. 14Do all things without complaining or arguing 15so that you might become blameless and pure, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16holding forth the word of life for my boasting on the day of Christ that I did not run in vain nor labor in vain. 17But even if I am being poured out as an offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice and rejoice with you all. 18Now in the same manner, you also rejoice and rejoice with me.

19Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon so that I also might be encouraged, having come to know the things concerning you. 20For I have no one like-minded, who will be genuinely anxious about the things concerning you, 21for they all seek their own things, not the things of Jesus Christ. 22But you know his proven worth, that as a child with his father, he served with me in the gospel. 23Therefore, I hope to send him at once, as soon as I would see {how} the things concerning me {go}. 24But I am confident in the Lord that I myself will also come soon. 25Now I consider {it} necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow worker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister for my needs, 26seeing that he has been longing to be with you all, and he is distressed because you heard that he was sick. 27For indeed he was sick nearly to death, but God had mercy on him, and not on him only, but also on me, so that I might not have sorrow upon sorrow. 28Therefore, I sent him all the more eagerly, so that, having seen him again, you might rejoice, and I might be free from pain. 29Therefore, welcome him in the Lord with all joy, and hold in honor the ones such as {him}, 30since for the sake of the work of Christ, he came near even to death, risking his life so that he might make up your lack of service to me.

31{As to} the rest, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. For me to write these same things to you {is} no trouble, and {is} a safeguard for you. 2Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the mutilation. 3For we are the circumcision—the ones worshiping by the Spirit of God and boasting in Christ Jesus and not being confident in the flesh, 4although I myself having confidence even in the flesh. If anyone else thinks to be confident in the flesh, I even more: 5circumcision on the eighth day, from the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; according to the law, a Pharisee; 6according to zeal, persecuting the church; according to righteousness {that is} in the law, having become blameless. 7Whatever things were gains for me, I consider these things loss for the sake of Christ. 8But on the contrary, I consider even all things to be loss because of the surpassing value of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, because of whom I have suffered the loss of all things—and I consider {them} dung—so that I might gain Christ 9and be found in him, not having my own righteousness {that is} from law, but {that which is} through faith in Christ—the righteousness from God by faith— 10to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, 11if, in some way, I might attain to the resurrection {that is} from the dead. 12Not that I already received {it}, or have already been made perfect, but I am pursuing {it}, if perhaps I might also grasp that for which I was also grasped by Christ Jesus. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself to have grasped {it}. But one thing: forgetting {what is} behind and straining for {what is} ahead, 14I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward calling of God in Christ Jesus. 15Therefore, as many as {are} perfect should think this {way}; and if you think differently about anything, God will also reveal that to you. 16However, in what we have attained, we should live in it.

17Become imitators of me, brothers, and watch closely the ones walking in this manner, just as you have us {as} an example. 18For many walk—about whom I have often told you, but now even weeping, I say—{as} the enemies of the cross of Christ, 19whose end {is} destruction, whose god {is their} belly, and {whose} glory {is} in their shame, the ones thinking about earthly things. 20But our citizenship exists in heaven, from where we also eagerly await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21who will transform our lowly body to conformity to his glorious body, according to the working of his power even to subject all things to himself.

41Therefore, my brothers, beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, in this way stand firm in the Lord, beloved.

2I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to think the same in the Lord. 3Yes, I also ask you, true companion, to help these {women} who labored with me in the gospel, with also Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names {are} in the Book of Life.

4Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice. 5Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord {is} near. 6Be anxious about nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God, 7and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8{As to} the rest, brothers, as many as are true, as many as honorable, as many as just, as many as pure, as many as lovely, as many as reputable, if anything {is} virtuous, and if anything {is} praiseworthy, think about these things. 9And what you learned and received and heard and saw in me, do these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

10Now I greatly rejoice in the Lord, because now at last you renewed your concern on my behalf, for which indeed you were concerned, but were lacking opportunity. 11Not that I speak according to need, for I myself have learned in whatever I am to be content. 12I know both {how} to be brought low, and I know {how} to abound. In each {situation} and in all {situations}, I have learned both to be filled and to be hungry, and to abound and to be in need. 13I can do all things in the one strengthening me. 14However, you did well, having shared together in my affliction. 15Now you Philippians also know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I went out from Macedonia, no church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving except you alone, 16for even in Thessalonica, both once and twice you sent for my needs. 17Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that is increasing to your account. 18Now I have all things in full, and I abound. I have been filled, having received from Epaphroditus the things from you, an aroma, a sweet smell, an acceptable, pleasing sacrifice to God. 19Now my God will fulfill all your need according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 20Now to our God and Father {be} the glory forever {and} ever. Amen.

21Greet every saint in Christ Jesus. The brothers with me greet you. 22All the saints greet you, but especially the ones from the household of Caesar.

23The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ {be} with your spirit. Amen. Some ancient copies do not have Amen.