The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to
the Philippians
From beatings to imprisonment, Paul had endured much
suffering for the cause of Christ. These trials had taught Paul to be content
in all circumstances, an ability that Paul encouraged the Philippians to
cultivate (4:11). In fact, his
letter to the Philippians is a testimony to this attitude. Even though he was
in prison, facing an uncertain future, Paul wrote this thank-you letter to the
Philippians, a letter that expresses Paul's abundant joy in what God was
accomplishing through them.
Author and
Date:
Church tradition unanimously agrees with the statement in
Philippians (1:1) that Paul wrote this letter. The events described in this
letter parallel the life of Paul.
To determine when Paul wrote this letter to the
Philippians requires identifying the location from which he wrote. He says that
he was in prison (1:13).
But which imprisonment was Paul referring? The answer must be guided by three
factors: evidence of Paul's imprisonment in a given city, whether the
Praetorian Guard was in that city, and the distance of that city from Philippi, which has to allow for several trips between the two cities.
Some speculate that Paul was writing from Corinth, and therefore date the letter around A.D. 50. Proponents
of the view typically refer to Acts 18:10, a passage in which the Lord indicates
to Paul that He would protect him from harm in Corinth. However the passage does not explicitly speak about
imprisonment.
Others point to the city of Ephesus (and hence a date of A.D.53-55) on the basis of its
proximity to Philippi and the definite possibility that the Praetorian
Guard was stationed there. Once again although several passages reveal that
Paul experienced difficulties in Ephesus (Rom. 16:4, 7; 1 Cor. 15:32; 2 Cor. 1:8-23), there is no clear record that he
was ever imprisoned there.
Still others advocate Caesarea as the location from which Paul wrote the letter (about A.D. 58-59).
The Praetorian Guard may have been garrisoned at Caesarea, and the guard was at times considered to be part of Cesar's household
(see Paul's statement in 4:22).
However, Paul's expectation that he would
soon be set free (1:19,
26; 2:24) does not fit the circumstances of the imprisonment.
In Caesarea, release from prison was only a remote possibility.
In fact, Paul had to appeal to Cesar in order to escape Jewish influence over
the judicial process (Acts 25:6-11). Furthermore, Caesarea was far from Philippi. It is an improbable origin for Paul's short letter
to the Philippians.
Most students have favored Rome (about A.D. 60-62) as the city from which Paul wrote
this epistle. Although the distance between Rome and Philippi are great, Paul was in Rome long enough for the message to travel back and forth
to that city. Furthermore, Paul's imprisonment in Rome is well established in Scripture (Acts 28:16-31).
Because his situation allowed him freedom to preach the gospel (1:12-13; Acts 28:23-31), he undoubtedly felt confident
that his release from prison was imminent.
Setting:
While on his second missionary journey, and in response
to a vision from God, Paul left Troas in the province
of Asia (part of present-day Turkey) and traveled to Macedonia (in present-day Greece) to establish the first church in Europe, the church in the City Philippi (Acts 16:6-12).
Named for Philip II of Macedon, the father of Alexander
the Great, Philippi was strategically located on a major road, the Egnatian Way, that connected the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire to Rome. This, Philippi became the
leading city of Macedonia. In 42 B.C., the Romans granted that the citizens of
Philippi could purchase, own, or transfer property. They also
had the privilege of filing civil lawsuits in Roman courts and were exempted
from paying both poll and land taxes. Their elevated status and wealth gave
them not only confidence but a pride that bordered on arrogance.
The church that Paul established in Philippi was a mixture of races, cultures and social classes (although mostly
poor; see 4:15-16) from its inception. The first converts were an
upper-class woman (Lydia, a seller of royal dyes; see Acts 16:14-15). a middle class Roman jailer (Acts 16:22-34), and perhaps a lower class young girl who had
been demon possessed (Acts 16:16-18). As the church grew, it maintained primarily a Gentile flavor, yet
the less populous group of Jewish-Christians exerted much influence over the
church.
Literary
Structure:
Philippians closely follows the normal form of Paul's
letters: (1) an identification of the author and readers; (2) a pronouncement
of God's grace and peace; (3) thanks offered to God because of the readers; (4)
the body of the letter; (5) a personal desire to see the readers or send
someone to them; (6) greetings to the readers from those with Paul; and (7) a
statement of blessing which serves as the conclusion of the letter. The only
variation from this basic pattern is that Paul places the desire-to-send
section (2:19-30) in the body of the letter. Paul does this in
order to illustrate his point concerning humble service with the lives of
Timothy and Epaphroditus.
Although the letter follows Paul's normal pattern, some
have suggested that the letter is actually three letters combined into one.
They do so on the basis of Paul's use of the Greek words for finally in 3:1 and
4:8. They argue that those words signal actual conclusions at those two points,
thus indicating that Philippians is
actually three different letters.
Themes:
The most prominent theme of the Epistle to the
Philippians is joy, specifically the joy of serving Jesus. The general tone of
the letter reflects Paul's gratitude towards the Philippians and his joy in
God. This may seem strange because Paul wrote this letter while he was in
prison. Paul, however, had the ability to recognize opportunities for sharing
the gospel even in apparent setbacks. This was the origin of Paul's joy: He saw
God working through the different situations he faced.
Another theme of Paul's letter is "partnership in
the gospel." Paul uses the Greek word Koinonia in this letter in various
ways" fellowship" (1:5; 2:1; 3:10).
"partakers" (1:7), "and "shared" (4:15). All of these passages highlight the Philippians'
active involvement in Paul's own ministry. By supporting Paul, the Philippians
had become partners with him to further the Good News of Jesus Christ. Paul illustrates
the concept of "partnering" or "fellowshipping" with the
lives of Jesus Christ (2:5-1), Timothy (2:19-23),
Epaphroditus (2:25-30), and Euodia
and Syntyche (4:2-3).
Since the Philippian Christians already possessed great
joy and had demonstrated their partnership in sharing the gospel, Paul took the
opportunity to identify a few weak areas that could be improved (4:2). For example,
fellowship has two components: love and discernment. The Philippians had
expressed the former but lack the later (1:9; 4:10-16). Thus Paul exhorted the Philippians to grow in
knowledge and discernment, words that in the Greek refer to relational
understanding (1:9). In other words, the Greek word knowledge focuses on a
person-to-God relationship, Whereas the Greek word discernment points to a
person-to-person relationship. Paul wanted the Philippians not only to abound
in love but also to experience more of God so that they could grow into a
mature understanding of His ways.
All this shows that Paul had more than one purpose for
his letter to the Philippians. Today's readers will continue to find wonderful
passages of encouragement in this short joyful letter. Situations such as
bickering among church members, living in this evil world, giving to
missionaries, and finding contentment are still current issues for today's
Christians. In this letter, Paul provides God's wisdom and encouragement. But
most importantly, he holds up Jesus' life as the model for believers.