Philippians 1

The Favor of God paraphrase

Greeting and Thanksgiving

¹ From Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, to all God’s holy people in Christ Jesus at Philippi, together with the overseers and deacons: ² Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

³ I thank my God every time I remember you. ⁴ In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy ⁵ because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, ⁶ being confident of this: that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. ⁷ It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart; and whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me. ⁸ God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus.

⁹ And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, ¹⁰ so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, ¹¹ filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.

Paul’s Chains Advance the Gospel

¹² Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. ¹³ As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. ¹⁴ And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.

¹⁵ It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. ¹⁶ The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. ¹⁷ The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. ¹⁸ But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached! And because of this, I rejoice. Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, ¹⁹ for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance.

Paul’s Life is Christ

²⁰ I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. ²¹ For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain! ²² If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! ²³ I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; ²⁴ but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. ²⁵ Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, ²⁶ so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me.

Live Worthy of the Gospel

²⁷ Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ! Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel ²⁸ without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. ²⁹ For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for Him, ³⁰ since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.

Footnotes:

1.“Partnership in the gospel” (verse 5) emphasizes the close, cooperative relationship between Paul and the Philippians in spreading the message of Jesus. The Greek word koinonia means fellowship or partnership, reflecting their shared mission.

2.“He who began a good work” (verse 6) refers to God’s ongoing work of spiritual transformation in believers. The emphasis is on God’s faithfulness to bring to completion what He started.

3.“Affection of Christ Jesus” (verse 8) uses the Greek word splagchna, referring to the deepest emotional and compassionate feelings. Paul’s affection for the Philippians is modeled on Christ’s love and compassion.

4.“To live is Christ, to die is gain” (verse 21) expresses Paul’s absolute devotion to Jesus. For Paul, living means continuing his mission for Christ, but dying would bring him into the full presence of Jesus, which he views as even better.

5.“Conduct yourselves” (verse 27) uses the Greek word politeuesthe, meaning to behave as citizens. The Philippians, who were proud of their Roman citizenship, are called to live as citizens of heaven, reflecting the values of the gospel in their lives.

6.“Striving together” (verse 27) uses the image of an athletic team working in unison. Paul calls the believers to work as a unified body in their faith, standing strong against opposition.

7.“Granted to you…to suffer” (verse 29) indicates that suffering for Christ is not just an unfortunate consequence but a privilege granted by God. Paul emphasizes that believers share in both Christ’s victory and His suffering.