Philippians — Chapter 2
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1Therefore if you have any encouragement in Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any affection and compassion,
2then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit and purpose.
3Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves.
4Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.
5Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus:
6Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
7but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.
8And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.
9Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,
10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now even more in my absence, continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
13For it is God who works in you to will and to act on behalf of His good purpose.
14Do everything without complaining or arguing,
15so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine as lights in the world
16as you hold forth the word of life, in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain.
17But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.
18So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.
19Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I learn how you are doing.
20I have nobody else like him who will genuinely care for your needs.
21For all the others look after their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.
22But you know Timothy’s proven worth, that as a child with his father he has served with me to advance the gospel.
23So I hope to send him as soon as I see what happens with me.
24And I trust in the Lord that I myself will come soon.
25But I thought it necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger and minister to my needs.
26For he has been longing for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill.
27He was sick indeed, nearly unto death. But God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow.
28Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may rejoice, and I may be less anxious.
29Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him,
30because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for your deficit of service to me.
1If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,
2Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
3Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
4Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.
5Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:
8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
9Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:
10That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;
11And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
13For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
14Do all things without murmurings and disputings:
15That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
16Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.
17Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all.
18For the same cause also do ye joy, and rejoice with me.
19But I trust in the Lord Jesus to send Timotheus shortly unto you, that I also may be of good comfort, when I know your state.
20For I have no man likeminded, who will naturally care for your state.
21For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.
22But ye know the proof of him, that, as a son with the father, he hath served with me in the gospel.
23Him therefore I hope to send presently, so soon as I shall see how it will go with me.
24But I trust in the Lord that I also myself shall come shortly.
25Yet I supposed it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, and companion in labour, and fellow soldier, but your messenger, and he that ministered to my wants.
26For he longed after you all, and was full of heaviness, because that ye had heard that he had been sick.
27For indeed he was sick nigh unto death: but God had mercy on him; and not on him only, but on me also, lest I should have sorrow upon sorrow.
28I sent him therefore the more carefully, that, when ye see him again, ye may rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful.
29Receive him therefore in the Lord with all gladness; and hold such in reputation:
30Because for the work of Christ he was nigh unto death, not regarding his life, to supply your lack of service toward me.
1If there is therefore any exhortation in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any tender mercies and compassions,
2make full my joy, that ye be of the same mind, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind;
3[doing] nothing through faction or through vainglory, but in lowliness of mind each counting other better than himself;
4not looking each of you to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.
5Have this mind in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
6who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men;
8and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, becoming obedient [even] unto death, yea, the death of the cross.
9Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name;
10that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of [things] in heaven and [things] on earth and [things] under the earth,
11and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12So then, my beloved, even as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;
13for it is God who worketh in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure.
14Do all things without murmurings and questionings:
15that ye may become blameless and harmless, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom ye are seen as lights in the world,
16holding forth the word of life; that I may have whereof to glory in the day of Christ, that I did not run in vain neither labor in vain.
17Yea, and if I am offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all:
18and in the same manner do ye also joy, and rejoice with me.
19But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy shortly unto you, that I also may be of good comfort, when I know your state.
20For I have no man likeminded, who will care truly for your state.
21For they all seek their own, not the things of Jesus Christ.
22But ye know the proof of him, that, as a child [serveth] a father, [so] he served with me in furtherance of the gospel.
23Him therefore I hope to send forthwith, so soon as I shall see how it will go with me:
24but I trust in the Lord that I myself also shall come shortly.
25But I counted it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother and fellow-worker and fellow-soldier, and your messenger and minister to my need;
26since he longed after you all, and was sore troubled, because ye had heard that he was sick:
27for indeed he was sick nigh unto death: but God had mercy on him; and not on him only, but on me also, that I might not have sorrow upon sorrow.
28I have sent him therefore the more diligently, that, when ye see him again, ye may rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful.
29Receive him therefore in the Lord with all joy; and hold such in honor:
30because for the work of Christ he came nigh unto death, hazarding his life to supply that which was lacking in your service toward me.
1Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit, any affection or mercy,
2complete my joy and be of the same mind, by having the same love, being united in spirit, and having one purpose.
3Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself.
4Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well.
5You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had,
6who, though he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped,
7but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature.
8He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death —even death on a cross!
9As a result God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name,
10so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow —in heaven and on earth and under the earth—
11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.
12So then, my dear friends, just as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence but even more in my absence, continue working out your salvation with awe and reverence,
13for the one bringing forth in you both the desire and the effort—for the sake of his good pleasure—is God.
14Do everything without grumbling or arguing,
15so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without blemish though you live in a crooked and perverse society, in which you shine as lights in the world
16by holding on to the word of life so that on the day of Christ I will have a reason to boast: that I did not run in vain nor labor in vain.
17But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I am glad and rejoice together with all of you.
18And in the same way you also should be glad and rejoice together with me.
19Now I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I, too, may be encouraged by hearing news about you.
20For there is no one here like him who will readily demonstrate his deep concern for you.
21Others are busy with their own concerns, not those of Jesus Christ.
22But you know his qualifications that like a son working with his father, he served with me in advancing the gospel.
23So I hope to send him as soon as I know more about my situation,
24though I am confident in the Lord that I, too, will be coming to see you soon.
25But for now I have considered it necessary to send Epaphroditus to you. For he is my brother, coworker and fellow soldier, and your messenger and minister to me in my need.
26Indeed, he greatly missed all of you and was distressed because you heard that he had been ill.
27In fact he became so ill that he nearly died. But God showed mercy to him—and not to him only, but also to me—so that I would not have grief on top of grief.
28Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you can rejoice and I can be free from anxiety.
29So welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor people like him,
30since it was because of the work of Christ that he almost died. He risked his life so that he could make up for your inability to serve me.
1If therefore there is any exhortation in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any tender mercies and compassion,
2make my joy full, by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind;
3doing nothing through rivalry or through conceit, but in humility, each counting others better than himself;
4each of you not just looking to his own things, but each of you also to the things of others.
5Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus,
6who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped,
7but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men.
8And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, yes, the death of the cross.
9Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name;
10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth,
11and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
13For it is God who works in you both to will and to work, for his good pleasure.
14Do all things without murmurings and disputes,
15that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without defect in the middle of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you are seen as lights in the world,
16holding up the word of life; that I may have something to boast in the day of Christ, that I didn’t run in vain nor labor in vain.
17Yes, and if I am poured out on the sacrifice and service of your faith, I rejoice, and rejoice with you all.
18In the same way, you also rejoice, and rejoice with me.
19But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered up when I know how you are doing.
20For I have no one else like-minded, who will truly care about you.
21For they all seek their own, not the things of Jesus Christ.
22But you know the proof of him, that, as a child serves a father, so he served with me in furtherance of the Good News.
23Therefore I hope to send him at once, as soon as I see how it will go with me.
24But I trust in the Lord that I myself also will come shortly.
25But I counted it necessary to send to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker, fellow soldier, and your apostle and servant of my need;
26since he longed for you all, and was very troubled, because you had 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 on me also, that I might not have sorrow on sorrow.
28I have sent him therefore the more diligently, that, when you see him again, you may rejoice, and that I may be the less sorrowful.
29Receive him therefore in the Lord with all joy, and hold such in honor,
30because for the work of Christ he came near to death, risking his life to supply that which was lacking in your service toward me.
Summary
Paul appeals for unity among the Philippians, urging them to be of one mind, act without selfish ambition, and consider others more important than themselves (vv. 1-4). He points to the example of Christ, who though equal with God, emptied himself, took the form of a servant, and humbled himself to death on a cross — so God exalted him above every name, that every knee would bow and every tongue confess him Lord (vv. 5-11). Paul then urges them to work out their salvation with reverence, since God is at work in them, doing everything without complaining so they shine as lights in a corrupt world (vv. 12-16). Rejoicing even in possible martyrdom, Paul plans to send Timothy soon to check on them and hopes to visit himself (vv. 17-24). In the meantime he sends back Epaphroditus, who nearly died serving Paul on their behalf, asking the church to welcome him with honor (vv. 25-30).
Authorship & Background
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik provides extensive analysis of the Christ Hymn, the kenosis (self-emptying), the exaltation, and the "work out" passage.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Philippians -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- Esteeming Others Above Yourself (v.3) — Paul calls believers to genuinely consider others more important than themselves, against every natural instinct. Who in your life do you need to esteem above yourself today, and what would that look like in practice?
- The Mind of Christ (v.5) — Believers are called to share the same mindset Christ had, one of voluntary descent rather than self-promotion. Where are you clinging to privilege or status that you could release for the sake of someone else?
- Emptied of Reputation (v.7) — Christ gave up His reputation entirely, taking on the nature of a servant. In a world obsessed with image, what would it cost you to care less about how you're seen and more about how you serve?
- Working Out What God Works In (v.12) — Paul calls believers to actively work out their salvation, not to earn it but to live it out with seriousness. Where is your spiritual life stagnant, and what would intentional effort look like there?
- God at Work in You (v.13) — Paul balances the command to work with the reminder that God is the one working in believers to will and to act. How does knowing God is doing the deeper work change the pressure you put on yourself?
- Shining as Lights (v.15) — Believers are called to shine like lights in a crooked and dark generation. In your workplace, neighborhood, and relationships, are you actually shining, or quietly blending into the darkness around you?