pians, the apostle certainly expected his return before he himself was released; or at least before he left Italy. From Heb. xiii. 23. we learn that Timothy was actually sent to Philippi, consequently we may suppose that the apostle, who was released according to his expectation, waited for Timothy's return at some place in Italy, that they might set out together for Judea. And the apostle's release happening as is generally believed in the spring of A. D. 62. the epistle to the Philippians may have been written in the summer or autumn of A. D. 61. PHILIPPIANS. CHAPTER I. View and Illustration of the Matters contained in this Chapter. AFTER giving the Philippians, with their bishops and deacons, his apostolical benediction, St. Paul thanked God for their conversion; declared his persuasion that God would preserve them in the faith to the end of their lives, through the confirmation which the gospel would derive from his sufferings; expressed the most tender affection for them; and prayed God to bestow upon them spiritual blessings, that they might be filled with the fruits of righteousness, ver. 1.-11.-In the next place, lest they might have been afraid that his long imprisonment had been hurtful to the gospel of Christ, he assured them that it had contributed to advance that good cause, ver. 12.-insomuch that the gospel was now known in the palace itself, ver. 13.That the indulgence shewn to him, had made many of the brethren more bold in preaching than formerly, ver. 14.-Yet they were not all actuated by laudable motives, ver. 15.-For some preached publicly, merely to enrage the priests and magistrates against him, as the ringleader of the Christians, ver. 16.-But he told the Philippians, he knew that this, through the direction of the Spirit of Christ, would rather contribute to his enlargement, ver. 19.-At the same time he declared his resolution boldly to defend the gospel when brought before the emperor, even although it were to bring death upon himself, ver. 20.— To be continued in life, he told them, would promote the cause of Christ, but to die would be more for his own advantage, ver. 21.-Therefore he was in a strait, whether to choose life or death, ver. 23.-Only knowing that his continuing in life would be more for their interest, ver. 24.-he was persuaded he should still live, ver. 25.-In which case he promised to visit them, ver. 26. In the mean time he exhorted them all to behave suitable to the gospel. And in particular, strenuously to maintain the true doctrine of the gospel, both against the unbelieving Jews and against the heathens, ver. 27.—And to be in no re OLD TRANSLATION. CHAP. I. 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. GREEK TEXT. 1 Παυλος και Τιμόθεος, δουλοι Ιησου Χριςου, πασι τοις ἅγιοις εν Χριςῳ Ιησου τοις ουσιν εν Φιλιπποις, συν επισκόποις και διακονοις· 2 Χαρις ύμιν και ειρήνη απο Θεου πατρος ήμων και Κυρίου Ιησου Χριςου. 3 I thank my God upon 3 Ευχαριςω τῷ Θεῷ μου remembrance of επι πασῃ τῇ μνεια ὑμων, every you. 4 (Always in every prayer of mine for you all, making request with joy) τη 4 (Παντοτε εν πασῃ δεη σει μου ὑπερ παντων ὑμων, μετα χαρας την δέησιν ποιούμενος) Ver. 1.—1. Paul and Timothy. See preface to 1 Thessalonians, sect. 3. where the reason of Paul's inserting Timothy's name in the inscription of several of his epistles, although he was no apostle, is explained.-For Timothy's history and character, see pref. to 1 Tim. 2. Servants of Jesus Christ. Δελοι, literally bondmen, slaves.This appel. lation was given to the chief ministers of the Eastern princes.-Wherefore, it may be considered as an honourable title, as was observed Rom. i. 1. note 1. Or, this appellation Paul and Timothy took perhaps to express the labours and hardships which they were undergoing in the service of Christ.-In writing to the Philippians, Paul had no occasion to assert his apostolical authority. There were no dissentions among them, and all of them loved and obeyed him sincerely as an apostle of Christ. 3. With the bishops and deacons. The Syriac translator hath rendered this: Senioribus et ministris. That the apostle ordained bishops and deacons in all the churches which he planted I think evident from Acts xiv. 23. where they are called by the general name of elders. That there were such at Ephesus, appears from Acts xx. 17. 28. where the elders of that church are expressly called bishops. Farther, Galat. vi. 6. The instructer is mentioned as a stated office in the church: And 1 Thess. v. 12, 13. The presidents are spoken of: And Col. iv. 17. Archippus is said to have received a ministry in the Lord among the Colossians.-The apostle did not mention the bishops and deacons in the inscription of his other epistles. But there were rea. spect terrified by their threatenings, ver. 28.-But to suffer chearfully for their faith in Christ, ver. 29.-After the apostle's example, ver. 30. NEW TRANSLATION. CHAP. I. 1 Paul and Timothy,' servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints (48.) in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons :3 2 Grace to you, and peace (Rom. i. 7. notes 3, 4.) from God our Father, and FROM the Lord Jesus Christ. 3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you,1 4 (Always in every prayer of mine for you all, with joy, making prayer.) COMMENTARY. CHAP. I. 1 Paul and Timothy, servunts of Jesus Christ in the gospel, to all the believers in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons : 2 May grace be to you and peace, from God, our common Father whether we be Jews or Gentiles, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the Father dispenses these blessings. 3 I thank the true God, who is the object of my worship, as often as I think of you, (Rom. i. 8. note 1.) 4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all, with joy making prayer to God, that he would bestow on you every blessing. sons for mentioning them in this epistle, and for omitting them in the rest. It was a letter of thanks to the church at Philippi for the present of money they had sent him; and in making the collections for that purpose, the bishops and deacons may have shewn such forwardness as merited this mark of respect and gratitude. His letters to the other churches were all concerning points of faith and practice; and therefore they were not addressed to the bishops and deacons, lest they might have imagined these writings were their property, and that it belonged to them to communicate what part of them to the people they thought fit; or at least to interpret them according to their own fancy: a claim which the bishops in aftertimes set up. To prevent that abuse, and to give the people the property of his inspired epistles, and to teach them to read them and to judge for themselves concerning their true meaning, they were all inscribed to the churches, or to the saints in general. Besides, though they were first delivered to the bishops, or presidents of the particular churches for whose use they were designed, it was not left to them to communicate the contents of these letters to the people by word of mouth; but they were ordered to read them in the apostle's own words to all the holy brethren, 1 Thess. v. 27. and such as chose it, might, no doubt, take copies of them for their own use. Ver. 3.-1. Upon every remembrance of you. Επι πάση τη μνεία ύμων. This Pierce thinks should be translated, For all your kind remembrance, namely of me. And in his note he saith, "Paul seems to me to thank 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, in as much 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. "God, not for his own remembrance of them, or the mention made of “ them to him, but for their remembrance of him, and the kind supplies 66 they had sent him." Ver. 5.1. For your fellowship in the gospel. The apostle thanked God for the attention with which the Philippians heard the gospel; and for the readiness of mind with which they embraced it; and for their perseverance in the profession of it, in opposition both to the heathens and to the Jews: for I think all this is included in the phrase, fellowship in the gospel.—The Greek commentators by κοινωνίᾳ εις το ευαγγελιον, fellowship in the gospel, understand the presents of money sent by the Philippians to the apostle, whereby he was enabled to preach the gospel to the Thessalonians without expense. This sense of the phrase Pierce hath adopted. And it must be acknowledged that good works of this sort are called by Paul Ovid, 2 Cor. viii. 4. Yet as the readiness of mind with which the Philippians received the gospel, and their stedfastness in the profession of it, were subjects of thanksgiving, which better deserved to be often mentioned by the apostle in his prayers, than their present of money to him, though very liberally bestowed, I have no doubt that it is what he meant by their fellowship in the gospel. Besides this interpretation agrees better with the context than the other. See ver. 6. note, |