Chapter 1
1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ, write to all God’s holy people who live in Philippi and belong to Jesus Christ. We also write to your bishops, who lead the church, and to the deacons who help them.
2 God is our Father, and Jesus Christ is our Lord. May God fill you with His grace, and may Jesus bring His peace into your hearts.
3 Every time I remember you, I thank my God.
4 And I always pray for you all with joy.
5 I am so thankful to the Lord that from the very first day you joined me, and since then we have been spreading the Good News about Christ together.
6 God has already begun to do His wonderful work in your hearts. And I am sure that He will continue to do so until Jesus Christ returns to earth.
7 I cannot think of you any other way, because you hold a special place in my heart. Now I am in prison because I was preaching the Good News about Christ. But God has given all of us His grace, and you did not abandon me when I stood before the court and defended my faith in Christ.
8 God knows how much I love you all. Jesus Christ has filled my heart with His love, and that is why I feel such a deep affection for each of you.
9 I pray that your love for each other will grow and become stronger. I ask God to give you a greater understanding and sense of what it means to truly love one another. May God give you spiritual discernment so that you can properly understand everything that is happening around you.
10 I pray that you will learn to recognize what is most important and precious in your life. Then you will live a holy life and never lead others to sin. Continue to do so until the day Christ returns to earth.
11 Jesus Christ has given you His righteousness as a gift. That is why you should live in the right way so that the fruit of His righteousness will grow in your lives. Then you will glorify and praise God with your whole life.
12 Brothers, I want you to know that everything that has happened to me has helped spread the Good News of Christ even more.
13 Now all the Roman guards and many others know that I am in prison because I was preaching about Jesus.
14 Even though I am in prison, many brothers have started trusting the Lord even more. They are not afraid to preach God’s Word with even greater boldness than before.
15 It is true that some are jealous of my success and preach about Christ out of a competitive spirit. But there are also those who do so with a pure heart and with the best of intentions.
16 Those who preach with the right motives truly love Jesus and are concerned about me. They know that God has entrusted me to spread the Good News about Christ. That is why I am in prison, where I must defend my faith in Christ before the court.
17 But those who preach out of competitive spirit and with impure intentions think that their success will make me upset, and then I will have an even harder time in prison.
18 I do not care what motivates others to preach about Jesus. Perhaps someone does it with wrong motives, and someone else sincerely shares about Christ. But the most important thing is that people hear about the Lord. So, I rejoice and will always rejoice about this.
19 I know that you are praying for me. I also know that Jesus Christ is working by His Spirit, and He will help me to be free.
20 I hope that I will never be ashamed of myself. I also hope that I will speak boldly about Christ, not only now but always. I am confident that as long as I live on this earth, I will glorify Jesus with all that I am. I want both my life and my death to bring glory to Him.
21 Christ has become the meaning of my life. And when I die, I will not lose anything. Instead, I will gain Christ.
22 As long as I live on this earth, my work for the Lord will be fruitful. If I had to choose between life and death, I would not know which one would be better for me.
23 At the same time, my heart is filled with two great desires. On the one hand, I want to leave this world to be with Christ forever, because that is much better than remaining here on earth.
24 On the other hand, I want to continue my ministry because you need me.
25 I know for sure that I will stay with you and continue to serve you all so that I can see your success. I am sure that your faith will become stronger, and this will bring you joy.
26 I want to visit you again. Then you will praise Jesus Christ even more for what He is doing through my ministry among you.
27 When you believed the Good News about Christ, you became citizens of God’s Kingdom. So live according to the teachings of Christ. Then it will not matter to me whether I can come and visit you or not. I want to know that you are standing firm in one Spirit who unites and guides you. And I want to be sure that you are doing your best to spread the Good News about Christ in unity.
28 Never be afraid of those who oppose you. Remember that this is a sign that they will perish, but you will be saved.
29 He who believes in Christ will also suffer for His sake. This is what God has determined.
30 You are facing the same difficulties and experiencing the same inner struggles as I am. You know that I have been through all of this before, and I still face great opposition.
Chapter 2
1 So if you believe in Christ, He encourages and inspires you through His love. If you belong to Christ, you have fellowship with the Holy Spirit. If you live with Christ, you are kind and compassionate toward one another.
2 Then make me even more glad. Live in unity, love one another with all your heart, learn to understand one another, and set the same goals.
3 Do nothing out of a competitive spirit or a desire to show off to impress others. Instead, be humble, appreciate one another, and do not think that you are better than others.
4 Do not look only to your own interests, but also consider what is important to others.
5 Let your thoughts and your attitude toward life be the same as those of Jesus Christ.
6 He was in the image of God and was equal with God. But He did not think that He had to hold on to that equality.
7 Instead, He willingly gave up His authority and took the place of a slave. He became like human beings and appeared as a man.
8 Jesus humbled Himself and fully submitted to God, even to the point of death, when He died on the cross.
9 God exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every other name.
10 So everything in heaven and on earth and under the earth will bow its knee at the name of Jesus.
11 Then everyone will acknowledge and declare, “Jesus Christ is Lord!” And this will bring glory to God the Father.
12 My dear brothers, when I was with you, you always followed everything I taught you. And now when I am gone, this is even more important. So keep walking on the path of salvation, treat God with deep respect, and serve Him faithfully.
13 God is working in your hearts. He gives you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.
14 So whatever you do, do it without complaining, doubting, and quarreling.
15 You are God’s children. So do not sin and do not do anything that defiles a person. Instead, live a holy life. Then you will shine like stars among those who have chosen the wrong path and live an immoral life.
16 Do what the Word of life teaches you. Then on that day when I see Christ, I will rejoice that my efforts were not in vain and that my ministry to you brought results.
17 I rejoice with you that your faith is growing stronger and stronger every day and that you serve God faithfully. And even if I have to sacrifice my life for the sake of serving you, I will do it with joy.
18 So you also should rejoice with me.
19 The Lord Jesus gives me hope that soon I will be able to send Timothy to you. When he returns and tells me about you, I will be more at peace and full of joy.
20 I have no one else except Timothy who is so close to me in spirit and who so sincerely cares about what is happening in your lives.
21 Everyone around me is pursuing their own interests and not doing what Jesus Christ wants.
22 You know how faithful Timothy is. He served with me as a son serves his father while I was spreading the Good News about Christ.
23 So I hope to send him to you immediately, as soon as I know what will happen to me next.
24 The Lord has given me confidence that soon I will be able to visit you.
25 You sent your minister brother Epaphroditus to help me. He works with me for the Lord and serves God as a soldier of Christ. But I thought it is better to send him back to you.
26 He had a great desire to see you all. And when he got to know that you had heard about his illness, he was very sad.
27 He was so sick that he almost died, but God had mercy on him and spared his life. God had mercy not only on him but also on me, so that I would not have to suffer one trouble after another.
28 I know that you will be glad to see him again, so I hurried to send him back to you. Then I will also feel more at peace in my heart.
29 Epaphroditus serves the Lord, so give him a warm and friendly welcome. People like him are truly worthy of respect.
30 He risked his life and almost died while doing ministry for Christ.
Chapter 3
1 So my brothers, rejoice in the Lord, He is the source of your joy! It is not difficult for me to write to you again about this, because it strengthens your faith.
2 I want to warn you against associating with those who behave like dogs and do evil. Do not trust those who insist that circumcision is necessary for salvation.
3 True circumcision takes place in the heart. When we believed in Jesus, He circumcised our inner person and set us free from our sinful nature. Now we serve God in the Holy Spirit and glorify Jesus Christ. We no longer rely on the rituals of the Law of Moses or on our own efforts. Instead, we rely on what Jesus did for us.
4 Although I have every reason to be proud that I have pleased God with my actions. Perhaps someone thinks that he has earned God’s approval because he did what was right and kept the Law of Moses. But I have much more reason for this than others have.
5 When I was born, I was circumcised on the eighth day, as the Law of Moses requires. I am a true Jew, from the people of Israel, from the tribe of Benjamin. I used to be a Pharisee and strictly kept the Law of Moses.
6 I persecuted God’s Church cruelly because I sincerely believed that by doing so I was pleasing God. I kept everything the Law of Moses required to earn righteousness. From human point of view, I acted absolutely right. And no one could accuse me of breaking the Law of Moses.
7 But when I met Christ, He changed me completely. And everything I was so proud of became meaningless to me.
8 Now Jesus Christ is my Lord. So more than anything, I want to know who He is. And everything else does not matter to me. For His sake I gave up everything I once valued so much. Now I consider it garbage. Everything that once seemed important has lost all value. And now my goal is to truly know Christ.
9 I used to think that I could be considered righteous if I strictly followed the Law of Moses. Then I would earn righteousness by my actions. But now I belong to Christ. And I have the righteousness from God that I received the moment I believed in Jesus Christ.
10 I want to personally know who Jesus is. I want to experience the power that raised Him from the dead. I am ready to go through the whole path of suffering like Christ did, and even to die like Him.
11 I strive for this, so that one day God will raise me from the dead.
12 I am not saying that I have already reached this goal or that I have become perfect. But I do not give up and keep pressing forward. Jesus Christ found me, so that I could do what He called me to do.
13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have already reached perfection. But I am doing my best to move forward. So I do not look back or pay any attention to the things I used to be proud of.
14 I keep pressing forward toward the goal in order to receive that great reward which God has prepared for those whom He has called to Himself through Jesus Christ.
15 All spiritually mature people should have this understanding and attitude. But if you disagree with me on any point, God will reveal it to you also.
16 However, our thoughts and our actions must reflect the truth we have already understood.
17 Brothers, follow my example and the example of those who live the same way we do.
18 I have often told you that many people act as enemies of the cross of the Lord Jesus. And now I say this again with tears.
19 Such people do not serve the Lord. They live only to satisfy their sinful desires. They boast about behavior they should be ashamed of. Their thoughts are set only on earthly things, not on heavenly things. So their destiny is destruction.
20 We live on earth, but we are citizens of heaven. And we joyfully await the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
21 Then He will transform our weak mortal bodies by His power, and they will become like His body, which God has filled with His glory. The same power that enables Christ to bring everything under His control will also work in our bodies.
Chapter 4
1 My dear brothers, how I love you and miss you! You bring me so much joy, you are my reward from God. How precious you are to me! So I ask you to continue to follow the Lord faithfully.
2 My dear sisters Euodia and Syntyche, live in unity, because you both belong to the Lord.
3 Remember how much effort you have put to spread the Good News about Christ. You worked together with me, Clement, and the other brothers whose names are written in the Book of Life. I also ask you, my faithful helpers, to help Euodia and Syntyche come to an understanding.
4 You belong to the Lord. So rejoice always! And I will say it again: keep rejoicing in all circumstances!
5 Let everyone see that you are kind and patient with one another. Remember that the Lord is coming soon.
6 Do not worry about anything. Instead, in every situation pray about everything that bothers you and ask God for help. Do this with a grateful heart. Tell God about your desires and your needs.
7 And God will fill you with His peace, which cannot be understood or explained. God’s peace will drive out all worries from your heart and free you from the thoughts that disturb you, because you belong to Jesus Christ.
8 Finally, my brothers, meditate on what the truth teaches us. Think the way honest, just, and pure-hearted people think. Focus your thoughts on everything that is lovely, good, and worthy of respect and approval.
9 You have accepted everything that I have taught you. You have heard what I said and you have seen the way I acted. So practice what you have learned. Then the God who fills the heart with His peace will always be with you.
10 I am very glad that you have started supporting me financially again, and I thank the Lord for this. You wanted to help me before, but you did not have the opportunity.
11 I am not saying this because I want to complain about being in need. Instead, I have learned to be content in any circumstances.
12 I know what it means to live with almost nothing. And I know what it means to live with more than enough. I have learned everything and understood the secret of how to handle any situation. So it does not matter to me whether I am full or hungry. It is not important to me whether I live in abundance or in need.
13 I can overcome all difficulties and handle any situation because Jesus Christ fills me with His strength.
14 However you did the right thing when you helped me in my time of need.
15 Philippians, you know how I started my ministry. I went from Macedonia to other places to spread the Good News about Christ. But no church supported me financially except you.
16 When I was in Thessalonica and needed help, you sent me your support twice.
17 I am not saying this because I want to receive anything from you. Instead, I want God to reward you for your generosity.
18 I am glad that I have received everything, and now I have more than enough. Epaphroditus brought me the financial support that you sent. Your gift is like a sweet aroma, like a sacrifice of love that you offered to God, and He gladly accepted it.
19 My God is great and glorious. He has unlimited riches that have been made available to us through Jesus Christ. So God will take care of everything you need, and He will provide for you.
20 God is our Father, and He is worthy to be praised forever. Amen.
21 I greet everyone who believes in Jesus Christ and belongs to God’s holy people. The brothers who are with me also send their greetings to you.
22 And all the other believers greet you, especially those who serve in the Roman emperor’s palace.
23 Jesus Christ is our Lord. May He fill your spirit with His grace. Amen.