1 PAUL and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:
2 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,
4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy,
5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now;
6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
7 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 of my grace.
8 For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.
9 And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment;
10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ;
11 Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.
12 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel;
13 So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places;
14 And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.
15 Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also of good will:
16 The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds:
17 But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.
18 What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice.
19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,
20 According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death.
21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.
23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
24 Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.
25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith;
26 That your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my coming to you again.
27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
28 And in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.
29 For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake;
30 Having the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me.

1Paul and Timotheus the seruants of Iesus Christ, to all the Saints in Christ Iesus, which are at Philippi, with the Bishops and Deacons:

2Grace be vnto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Iesus Christ.

3I thanke my God vpon euery remembrance of you,

4Alwayes in euery prayer of mine for you all making request, with ioy

5For your felowship in the Gospel from the first day vntill now;

6Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you, will performe it vntil the day of Iesus Christ:

7Euen as it is meete for mee to thinke this of you all, because I haue you in my heart, in as much as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the Gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace.

8For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all, in the bowels of Iesus Christ.

9And this I pray, that your loue may abound yet more & more in knowledge, and in all iudgment.

10That ye may approue things that are excellent, that ye may be sincere, and without offence till the day of Christ.

11Being filled with the fruites of righteousnesse, which are by Iesus Christ vnto the glory and praise of God.

12But I would yee should vnderstand brethren, that the things which happened vnto mee, haue fallen out rather vnto the furtherance of the Gospel.

13So that my bonds in Christ, are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places.

14And many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident, by my bonds, are much more bold to speake the word without feare.

15Some in deed preach Christ, euen of enuie and strife, and some also of good will.

16The one preach Christ of contention, not syncerely, supposing to adde affliction to my bonds:

17But the other of loue, knowing that I am set for the defence of the Gospel.

18What then? Notwithstanding euery way, whether in pretence, or in trueth: Christ is preached, and I therein doe reioyce, yea, and will reioyce.

19For I know that this shall turne to my saluation through your prayer, and the supplie of the spirit of Iesus Christ,

20According to my earnest expectation, and my hope, that in nothing I shalbe ashamed: but that with all boldnes, as alwayes, so now also Christ shal be magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death.

21For to me to liue is Christ, and to die is gaine.

22But if I liue in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shal chuse, I wote not.

23For I am in a strait betwixt two, hauing a desire to depart, & to bee with Christ, which is farre better.

24Neuertheles, to abide in the flesh, is more needfull for you.

25And hauing this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all, for your furtherance and ioy of faith,

26That your reioycing may bee more abundant in Iesus Christ for me, by my comming to you againe.

27Onely let your conuersation bee as it becommeth the Gospel of Christ, that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may heare of your affaires, that yee stand fast in one spirit, with one minde, striuing together for the faith of the Gospel,

28And in nothing terrified by your aduersaries, which is to them an euident token of perdition: but to you of saluation, and that of God.

29For vnto you it is giuen in the behalfe of Christ, not onely to beleeue on him, but also to suffer for his sake,

30Hauing the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now heare to be in me.

 

1 Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus, to all the holy ones in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and ministers: 2 grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, 4 praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, 5 because of your partnership for the gospel from the first day until now. 6 I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. 7 It is right that I should think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, you who are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel. 8 For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. 9 And this is my prayer: that your love may increase ever more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, 10 to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, 11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God. 12 I want you to know, brothers, that my situation has turned out rather to advance the gospel, 13 so that my imprisonment has become well known in Christ throughout the whole praetorium and to all the rest, 14 and so that the majority of the brothers, having taken encouragement in the Lord from my imprisonment, dare more than ever to proclaim the word fearlessly. 15 Of course, some preach Christ from envy and rivalry, others from good will. 16 The latter act out of love, aware that I am here for the defense of the gospel; 17 the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not from pure motives, thinking that they will cause me trouble in my imprisonment. 18 What difference does it make, as long as in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed? And in that I rejoice. Indeed I shall continue to rejoice, 19 for I know that this will result in deliverance for me through your prayers and support from the Spirit of Jesus Christ. 20 My eager expectation and hope is that I shall not be put to shame in any way, but that with all boldness, now as always, Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. 21 For to me life is Christ, and death is gain. 22 If I go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose. 23 I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with Christ, (for) that is far better. 24 Yet that I remain (in) the flesh is more necessary for your benefit. 25 And this I know with confidence, that I shall remain and continue in the service of all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound on account of me when I come to you again. 27 Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear news of you, that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind struggling together for the faith of the gospel, 28 not intimidated in any way by your opponents. This is proof to them of destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God's doing. 29 For to you has been granted, for the sake of Christ, not only to believe in him but also to suffer for him. 30 Yours is the same struggle as you saw in me and now hear about me.

Paul wrote Philippians from a Roman prison 62-63 A. D. The reason for this date:
a. He had appeared before the tribunal 1:7-12. He was well known to “Caesar’s household” (Soldiers, guards, servants), 1:12,13. He was expecting death or acquittal 1:19,20; 2:17.
b. He had relative freedom to preach as in his first Roman imprisonment, Acts 28:30,31; Phil. 1:12,13.
c. End of his imprisonment 62-63 A. D, and this was the last of his prison epistles.
Paul and Silas founded the church at Philippi on Paul’s second missionary journey, and helpers were Luke and Timothy. There were not enough Jews (10 men) to have a synagogue, so they began the ministry on the river bank where the Jews  gathered to pray. There Lydia was his first convert in Europe. He cast a spirit of divination from a maid, resulting in his imprisonment and salvation of the jailer, Acts 16. The purpose of the letter was to thank them for a gift of support they had given, 4:10,14, but he also addressed some of the problems in the church. (Their first gifts were sent to Thessalonica the three weeks Paul was there.) This letter was carried by Epaphroditus, 2:25, who fell sick after bringing the gift to Paul, 2:27. Philippians were very concerned, so on his recovery, Paul sent him back with this letter, 2:25-30. It is the most personal of all his letters to a church.
v 1. Servant  (slave) of Christ. He addressed saints, bishops and deacons. 
v 2. Grace expresses God’s love to man, and peace the result of that grace.
v 3-5. Remembering them in prayer regularly with joy and thanks, even in prison. (Thanks for everything he remembered about them.)
v 6. Paul was settled in heart and mind that the work God had started would continue till the return of Christ. (Although individual churches may fail.)
v 7. Except for Paul being in prison, they were partners with him in defending and propagating the gospel.
v 8. They could not know, but God knew Paul’s deep affection for them.
v 9,10. He prayed that their love might overflow as an artesian well, producing  greater insight into the highest and best, not stumbling or causing others to stumble.
v 11. If we are clothed with Christ’s righteousness, we will have a righteous stand  before God and our deeds will magnify and bring glory to Him.
v 12-14. Be assured that this imprisonment has actually served to advance the spread of the gospel. It had become generally known among guards and Caesar’s household that it was for the cause of Christ. Paul’s courage inspired other believers to boldly proclaim the gospel in his place.
v 15-18. Some preached Christ out of love and good will in support of Paul’s labors. Others preached with envy, strife and insincerity, seeking to promote their own ambitions while Paul was helpless in jail. They were not legalist Judaizers, because they were preaching the true gospel, just out of wrong motives. Paul did not condemn them but rejoiced, because at least Christ was being preached. (Respect other groups)
v 19. Salvation, or deliverance, probably does not mean from prison, because he goes ahead and talks about the possibility of death. It is the assurance that prayer and the Spirit would lead to his spiritual welfare now or hereafter.
v 20,21. His desire to magnify Christ would be advanced by either release or martyrdom, and he would be better off personally if he did die.
v 22-24. The Lord was giving results for Paul’s efforts, but it would be joy and a relief from his trials if he went to be with the Lord. However, he realized it would be better for their sakes if he lived.
v 25, 26. The knowledge that Paul was needed convinced him more than verse 19 that he would live and be released. In contrast, we would have to say “If it is God’s will”. Compare Dan. 3:17,18 and 2 Kings 8:10, 15. The Philippians would exult in Christ for both Paul’s release and the presence with them of the one who told them about Christ.
v 27. They were to conduct themselves as good citizens, worthy of the gospel of Christ, even in this Roman colony. Either in prison or with them, he would hear of their united stand for the faith.
v 28. They should be courageous in the face of opposition, because such fearlessness would be a sign to adversaries of eventual destruction, but to believers, an assurance of God’s deliverance.
v 29,30. They need not be surprised if they were called to suffer for Christ. As salvation was a grace from God, so was suffering. They shared a similar struggle with Paul, so knowing how he fared, they could be encouraged.