Acts xvi. 12.

Eph. i. 16.

Phil. i. 17.

Eph. v. 27.

THE EPISTLE TO THE

PHILIPPIANS

PAUL and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus,
to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in
Philippi, with the bishops and deacons; grace to
you and peace from GOD our Father, and from
the Lord Jesus Christ.

I THANK my GOD upon all my remembrance
of you (always in every prayer of mine for you
all making request with joy) for your fellowship
in the gospel from the first day until now; being
confident of this very thing, that He who began
a good work in you will go on perfecting it until
the day of Christ Jesus; even as it is meet 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 ye all
are partakers with me of grace.
For GoD is my
witness, how greatly I long after you with the
tender mercies of Christ Jesus.

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And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all perception, that ye may approve the things that are 10 excellent; that ye may be sincere and stable unto the day of Christ, being filled with the fruit 11 of righteousness which is through Jesus Christ unto the glory and praise of GOD.

BUT I would have ye know, brethren, that the 12 things which happened to me have tended rather to the furtherance of the gospel; so that my 13 bonds were made manifest in Christ throughout the prætorian guard (a) and to all the rest; and 14 most of the brethren in the Lord, gaining confidence by my bonds, are much bolder to speak the word of GOD without fear. Some indeed 15 preach Christ even from envy and strife; and

(a) Lit. in the whole Prætorium.

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16 some also from good will: the one part preach
Christ from love, knowing that I am set for the
17 defence of the gospel; the others from contention,
not sincerely, intending to stir up affliction for
18 me in my bonds. What then? only that, every
way, whether in pretence or in truth, Christ is
preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will
19 rejoice. For I know that this will turn to my Rom. viii. 28.
salvation, through your prayer and the supply
20 of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my

earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I Rom. v. 5.
shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as
always so now also, Christ will be magnified in

21 my body, whether by life, or by death. For to Rev. xiv. 13.
22 me to live is Christ, and to die is gain; but if this
life in the flesh is the outcome of my labour,-
23 indeed, I know not what I would choose. But

I am in a strait between the two, having the 2 Cor. v. 8. desire to depart and to be with Christ; for that 24 is far better. Nevertheless, to abide in the flesh 25 is more needful for your sakes. And being confident of this, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your progress and joy in 26 the faith; that your rejoicing in me may be more abundant in Christ Jesus through my presence with you again.

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Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel Phil. iii. 20. of Christ; that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear, concerning your state, that yè stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; 28 and in nothing terrified by your adversaries; Isa. li. 7. and this is to them an evident token of their perdition, but of your salvation, and that from 29 GOD. For unto you it hath been granted on behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but

30 also to suffer for his sake; having the same con- Acts v. 41. flict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in

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me.

THEREFORE if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship 2 of the Spirit, if any tender mercies and pity, fill

ye up my joy, that ye be likeminded, having 2 Cor. xiii. 11. the same love, being of one accord, minding the

3 same thing; doing nothing through strife or

I Cor. xiii. 5.

Psa. xxii. 6.

Heb. xii. 2.

Isa. xlv. 23.

Rom. xiv. 9.

I Cor. x. 10.

2 Tim. iv. 6.

I Thess. iii. 2.

through vainglory; but in your lowliness of mind deeming others better than yourselves; aiming, not each for his own interests, but each for the interests of others also.

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Let that mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus; who, being in the form of GOD, thought not his equality with GoD a thing to be clung to; but emptied himself (a), taking the 7 form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men; and being found in fashion as a man, he 8 humbled himself, and became obedient, unto the death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore also GOD highly exalted him, and gave him the name which is above every name; that in the 10 name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things on earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess II that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

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WHEREFORE, my beloved, as ye always obeyed, 12 not as in my presence only but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation, with fear and trembling, for it is Gop who 13 worketh in you both to will and to work, for His good pleasure.

Do all things without murmurings and dis- 14 putings, that ye may be blameless and simple, 15 children of GOD, without spot, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation; among whom ye are appearing as light-bearers in the world, holding out the word of life; that I may have 16 whereof to glory in the day of Christ, that I did not run in vain nor labour in vain.

Yea, and if I be offered (b) on the sacrifice and 17 service of your faith, I rejoice, and congratulate you all. And, even so, rejoice and congratulate 18

me.

But I hope, in the Lord Jesus, to send Timothy 19 shortly to you, that when I know your state also may be cheered. For I have no man like- 20 minded, so that he will sincerely care for your state. For all seek their own, not the things 21

(a) Or (A.V.) made himself of no reputation.

(b) Or poured out as a drink-offering.

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22 which belong to Christ Jesus. But ye know the
proof of him, that as a son with a father he hath
23 served with me unto the gospel. Him therefore

I hope to send forthwith, as soon as I see how
it will go with me.

24 But I have confidence in the Lord that I my-
25 self also shall come shortly. Yet I thought it

necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my Phil. iv. 18. brother and companion in labour, and fellowsoldier, but your messenger and minister in my 26 need. For he longed after you all, and was full of heaviness because ye had heard that he had 27 been ill. For indeed he was ill, nigh unto death; but GOD had pity on him; and not on him only, but on me also, lest I should have 28 sorrow upon sorrow. I send him therefore the more eagerly, that when ye see him ye may again rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful. 29 Receive him therefore in the Lord with all 30 gladness; and hold such in reputation; because

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for the work of Christ he drew nigh unto death,
hazarding his life, to supply that which was 1 Cor. xvi. 17.
lacking in your service to me.

FINALLY, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. 1 Thess. v. 16.
To write the same things to you is not irksome

2 to me, while for you it is safe.

Beware of the

dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the

3 Mutilation. For we are the true Circumcision, Rom. ii. 28. we who worship by the Spirit of GOD, and glory

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in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the
flesh.

Though I might have confidence even in the
flesh. If any other thinketh he may have con-

5 fidence in the flesh, I have more; circumcised on Acts xxiii. 6.
the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the
tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews;
6 concerning the Law, a Pharisee; concerning
zeal, a persecutor of the church; concerning the
righteousness which is in the Law, shown to be
7 blameless. But what things were gain to me,
8 those, for Christ's sake, I counted loss. Yea,
doubtless, and I count all things loss for the
excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my

Lord; for whom I have suffered the loss of all 2 Cor. xi. 25.

1 Pet. iv. 13.

I Cor. ix. 10.

I Cor. ii. 6.

Gal. vi. 16.

Gal. i. 7.

Eph. ii. 6.

I Cor. xv. 43.

things, and count them but filth, so that I may
win Christ, and be found in him, not having 9
as my righteousness that which is from the Law,
but that which is through faith in Christ, the
righteousness which is from GOD, resting upon
faith; that I may know him, and the power of 10
his resurrection, and the fellowship of his suffer-
ings, being conformed to his death, if by any II
means I may attain to the resurrection from the
dead.

Not that I have already obtained, or am 12
already perfected; but I follow after, if only I
may lay hold of that for which also I was laid
hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not 13
myself to have yet laid hold. But one thing I
do-forgetting those things which are behind,
and reaching forth unto those things which are
in front, I follow on towards the goal unto the 14
prize of GOD's heavenward calling in Christ
Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as are per- 15
fect (a), be thus minded; and if in any thing ye
be otherwise minded, GOD will reveal this also
to you. Only, whereunto we have already at- 16
tained, let us walk in the same path.

Brethren, become, one and all, imitators of 17 me, and mark those who are walking according to the example we give you. For many walk, 18 of whom I told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ; their end is destruction, their god is 19 their belly, their glory is in their shame, they mind earthly things. For our citizenship is in 20 heaven; whence also we look for, as a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will refashion the 21 body of our humiliation that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, according to. the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things to himself.

Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, stand fast thus in the Lord, my dearly beloved.

I BESEECH Euodia, and I beseech Syntyche, to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yea, I (a) Or are full-grown.

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