Philippians

Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching

Fred B. Craddock

• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
• Year: 2011
• Print ISBN: 9780664238834
• eBook ISBN: 9781611645750
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Commentary

In this commentary, Fred Craddock focuses on the text of Philippians rather than on conversations among scholars about the text. His commentary on the text differs from many other commentaries in that issues of authorship, date, place of writing, integrity, of purpose are dealt with at points where the text itself raises these issues. In order to assist those who preach, Craddock gives special attention to passages that appear in most lectionaries. Further, he draws attention to the theology of Paul as reflected in all of his letters wherever it enlightens or is enlightened by the text. Craddock helps the reader understand what it meant for an apostle and a church to be partners in the gospel.

Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching is a distinctive resource for those who interpret the Bible in the church. Planned and written specifically for teaching and preaching needs, this critically acclaimed biblical commentary is a major contribution to scholarship and ministry.

SALUTATION

Paul Greets the Church and Its Leaders

PHILIPPIANS 1:1–2

According to the custom of his day, and quite unlike our own, Paul uses the threefold salutation: signature, address, and greeting. However, much like our own correspondence, the signature reveals a great deal about the mood, purpose, and content of a letter as well as the relationship between writer and reader. One can look at a signature and determine if the letter is formal or informal, official or casual, between friends or strangers. Paul’s signatures are no less revealing and the reader of Paul’s letters should pause to savor them. His lengthy (six verses!) signature with full credentials in the Roman letter tells the reader Paul is writing to strangers; the cold and official signature in Galatians announces tension immediately; whereas the warmly emotional signature in Philemon alerts the reader that Paul will be using the relationship as ground for asking a favor. Here in Philippians the absence of Paul’s usual credentials as an apostle says that his relationship with the readers makes that unnecessary; but neither does Paul permit his affection for the Philippians to substitute for the central subject matter: the gospel. Being friends of the pastor is not to be equated with being the church. He prefers to sign his name “Paul a servant (slave) of Christ Jesus,” flavoring the entire letter, for he will call upon them to be servants of one another just as Christ himself took the form of a servant (2:7). Here as elsewhere Paul adds to his name that of his associate in ministry. This does not mean that Timothy coauthored the letter—Paul writes in the first person singular (1:3)—but that Paul always worked as part of a team. In this case Timothy was not only well known to the church at Philippi, having been with Paul at its founding and having visited there more than once (Acts 16; 19:22), but he was soon to be sent to Philippi as Paul’s emissary (2:19–23).

The letter is to “all the saints in Christ Jesus.” The term “saints” or “holy ones” refers primarily to God’s act of claiming them as God’s people, consecrated, bound in a covenant (Exod. 19:6; Deut. 7:6). It is in a derived sense that the term came to refer to the moral character of those so set apart, but this secondary meaning should not be negated in order to underscore the primary one. Paul knew perhaps better than we how easily grace can degenerate into sentimental “acceptance” without moral earnestness.

Paul gives the saints two addresses: “in Christ Jesus” and “in Philippi.” He will elaborate upon this double designation later when he calls upon them to let their life in Christ Jesus be evident in their life in Philippi (2:5). Paul will not let them forget, as though they could, that they had been called to be God’s people in that time and place.

And how strategic it was for the whole Christian mission! Located on the Egnatian Way, nine miles from the port of Neapolis, Philippi witnessed daily the traffic of commerce, culture, and religion between East and West. Philip of Macedon, father of Alexander the Great, had rebuilt the town of Krenides and had given it his own name. It had flourished because of the gold mines nearby, but those days were gone. It now flourished as a Roman colony, having been favored by both Mark Antony and Octavius following their victory over the armies of Brutus and Cassius, assassins of Julius Caesar, on the plains of Philippi in 42 B.C. Antony settled some of his soldiers there and Octavius, now Caesar Augustus, located Italian families there soon after 30 B.C. Philippi is now a Roman colony, an administrative center of the Empire whose proud inhabitants are Roman citizens and whose official language is Latin. Luke provides our only account of the beginning of the Christian mission there (Acts 16: 11–40). In response to a vision and call to “Come over to Macedonia and help us,” Paul and companions made a slow start at a riverside place of prayer. Lydia and some others responded but difficulties mounted. Victimized by local anti-Semitism and charged with civil disobedience, Paul and Silas endured beatings and imprisonment. As far as we know, this was the first time Paul came up against Roman power. He remembered in a letter to the Thessalonians how he had “suffered and been shamefully treated at Philippi” (I Thess. 2:2). According to Luke, Paul made at least two other visits to Philippi (Acts 20:1–6), but the political and social climate apparently did not improve. In fact, the church at the time of this letter is “engaged in the same conflict which you saw and now hear to be mine” (1:30). Most likely the common agony helped forge the bonds holding Paul and this church together.

Singled out for special mention in addressing all the saints are “bishops and deacons” (no definite articles are used). This reference is noticeable by its singularity in Paul’s letters. That fact, coupled with the common assumption that such offices were yet a generation or two from appearing in the church, has convinced many scholars to regard the phrase as an editorial addition at the time Paul’s letters were gathered and granted wider authority in the church. Such certainly may have been the case, but original or editorial, the reference is not to ecclesiastical positions such as were later to be so designated. The terms, now clerical, were in that culture rather common, referring to overseers or superintendents and servants or attendants. Deacon was a common term for servant and an overseer could be a state or local official or a leader of a religious guild. As such these persons were responsible for collecting, managing, and distributing taxes or other funds. It is practically impossible to document the evolution of church order, but it is quite possible that some persons in the church at Philippi functioned in such a capacity. After all, a prominent feature of Paul’s relation to this church is their gifts to him, their repeated support for his mission (4:10–20), and their generous offerings for the famine victims among the Christians of Judea (II Cor. 8—9).

Paul’s greeting to the churches, “grace and peace” has become almost as familiar as his name. The double greeting was a compound derived from his heritage as a Jew and his mission as an apostle to the gentiles. “Peace” (shalom) reminded Paul that his gospel had been promised through the prophets in holy Scripture and that, for all his battles with legalistic distortions of Judaism, Paul was still an Israelite (Rom. 11:1). “Grace” (charis) was a Christianized modification of the common Hellenistic greeting (chairein). Whether or not, as some have speculated, Paul began his preaching by “saying the blessing” of grace and peace from God through Christ, it is difficult to imagine that it ever became routine for him. After all, Paul’s earlier zealous defense of his Jewish tradition and his violent persecution of the group that in the name of Jesus “said grace” upon all without distinction of Jew or gentile never faded from memory. It was that past which made his blessing of grace and peace a miracle every time he said it. Or for that matter, every time anyone says it. Given the sinful conditions that determine our granting or withholding a blessing, for any of us to desire God’s unmerited favor upon other persons is certainly due to the presence in us of a God who sends sun and rain upon good and evil alike (Matt. 5:45) and who is kind even to the ungrateful and selfish (Luke 6:35).

THANKSGIVING

Paul Is Grateful for His Relationship with the Church

PHILIPPIANS 1:3–11

That 1:3–11 is a literary unit is apparent. In both content and form this passage is distinct from the verses which precede and follow it. In addition, 1:3–11 has its own identity in what is now commonly referred to as “the Pauline Thanksgiving.” That the expression of thanks is confined to verses 3–6 is no reason to limit the Pauline thanksgiving in Philippians to those four verses. As was noted in the Introduction, Paul modified the thanksgiving formula common to letters of his time to include not only a statement of gratitude for the readers but autobiographical items, a summary of matters to be discussed, implicit or explicit exhortations and eschatological references. If this thanksgiving seems a bit long for a brief letter, one has only to read Paul’s other letter to a Macedonian church, First Thessalonians, to discover that the thanksgiving can be more than one-half the entire epistle.

Having satisfied ourselves about the unity of 1:3–11, it remains our task to discern any internal pattern to the passage which would aid hearers (not readers) to grasp and hold in mind the contents. The thanksgiving here has a threefold structure which may be viewed in either of two ways: In content, there is the expression of gratitude (vv. 3–6), the expression of Paul’s affection for them (vv. 7–8), and the expression of a prayer for the church (vv. 9–11). In terms of movement, however, the passage can be viewed in terms of Paul’s relation to the Philippians’ past (vv. 3–6), present (vv. 7–8), and future (vv. 9–11). Comments on the text will follow this latter perspective because it maintains the centrality of the writer-reader relationship and because it does not give the impression, as does the former analysis, that thanksgiving, participation, and petition are distinctly separate categories in Paul’s joyful reflection.

Philippians 1:3–6

The Past: How It Has Been Between Paul and the Philippians

To begin with a word of thanksgiving was not unusual for any correspondent of that day, but for Paul it was theologically central and essential. Having expressed the blessing of God’s grace in the greeting (v. 2), the clear responding word was “thanks.” Even in English one can see the word “grace” (charis) in the word “I give thanks” (eucharisto). In fact, Paul can sometimes use exactly the same word for grace and gratitude (II Cor. 9:14–15). If the action is from God to us, the translators render it grace; if from us to God, gratitude. Paul testifies to what the heart already knows: Giving and receiving are really so much alike, one word can define both.

That for which Paul is grateful is twofold, stated in parallel phrases: his remembrance of them (v. 3) and their partnership in the gospel (v. 5). Actually, the Greek text translated “all my remembrance of you” can also be translated “all your remembrance of me.” In the latter rendering, Paul would have clearly in mind their gifts to him. While that fact in their relationship is imbedded in the words partnership and partakers (vv. 5, 7) and will receive full treatment in 4:10–20, the entire orientation of 1:3–11 makes “all my remembrance of you” more appropriate here. In circumstances which could understandably breed doubt, despair, even bitterness, Paul remembers and is grateful. It was his legacy as a Jew to survive and even to flourish in painful difficulties by remembering Abraham, the exodus, the temple, the promises. Paul already knew before conversion that being a believer is to a large extent an act of memory. It still is, as some early Christians understood when they referred to being lost in the world as a “having amnesia.” Secondly, Paul is thankful “for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” (v. 5). From the time of his arrival in Philippi, Paul experienced the faithful as participants, partners, partakers, sharers. The word koinonia, to have in common, is variously translated according to what is being shared: money, suffering, work, or grace. Its frequency in the letter (1:5, 7; 2:1; 3:10; 4:14) testifies to the full identification of the Philippians with Paul’s message and mission. Our common translation of this rich New Testament word is “fellowship” but that overused and misused word probably will not carry the freight any more. For the church today to announce a meeting for the purpose of fellowship is in essence to promise all attending that there will be no serious business, no worship, no work. Given the degeneration of language, one has to say something different in order to mean the same thing.

In the sub-unit verses 3–6, verse 4 is parenthetical. One wonders why Paul separates the two matters for which he is grateful with a note to the effect that he always prays for all of them with joy. The impression is that the relationship between Paul and the Philippians, strong and beautiful as it was, suffered from some nagging minority report. If so, what in the parenthetical comment is to be underscored? It could be the word all; that is, Paul prays for all of them, not a favored few. Paul certainly uses all noticeably (vv. 4, 7, 7b, 8), and later comments reflect some tension and disunity (2:1–11; 4:2–3). Or the key word may be joy. It is common to refer to Philippians as the epistle of joy, but one does wonder why the word occurs so very frequently. Perhaps we are unduly suspicious of writers and speakers who say some words too often. Here it may be as simple a matter as trying to assure close friends who are heavy with the news of Paul’s imprisonment that being in prison and facing death have not robbed him of joy. Or, it may be that the Philippians, themselves suffering hostility and conflict (1:28–30), have lost their joy; and Paul knows that if they can see that he remains joyful, they might recover their own.

Just as Paul began in verse 3 with thanks to God, he comes now full circle in verse 6 to look beyond the Philippians and himself to the God whose own “good work” the church is, including both Paul and the Philippians. Paul’s confidence is expressed with his characteristic symmetry: The one who started the work of grace in Philippi will not abandon it in a state of incompleteness. God will complete, finish, bring to fulfillment, perfect that work “at the day of Christ Jesus.” This eschatological reference to the day of Christ recurs at verse 10 and at that point will draw more detailed attention.

Philippians 1:7–8

The Present: How It Is Between Paul and the Philippians

In this brief passage Paul’s expression of affection for the Philippians is stronger than any other in his letters, with perhaps the exception of his statement of attachment to his own people, the Israelites (Rom. 9:1–5). This is true, that is, if one translates the difficult clause in verse 7 “I hold you in my heart’ (RSV) rather than “you hold me in such affection” (NEB). The Greek construction permits either, but the Revised Standard Version is much preferred here because what is being so strongly stated, if not argued, has nothing to do with whether the Philippians hold Paul in deep affection. And it hardly fits Paul’s relationship with any church to say he feels the way he does because they feel the way they do. Nowhere in Paul’s letters does one get the impression that his love waited for the phone to ring. We have no reason to doubt his sincerity when he says his love is the very love of Christ (v. 8) which was, of course, an initiating love, not a love reacting to the initiative of another.

The central feature of Paul’s statement of affection in verses 7–8 is precisely the unusual strength of his assertion. In fact, the statement is not simply strong, it is in the language of persuasion. Notice his line of thought in verse 7: It is right, just (I am justified) to think, feel, be oriented toward you (the word translated “feel” is a favorite and important one in Philippians. It means frame of mind, attitude, life direction; cf. 2:2, 5; 3:15, 19; 4:2, 10). Why would Paul even have to assert that “it is right” or “he is justified” in feeling as he does? Then he states the grounds of his justification: because I hold you in my heart. Then even that is given justification: You are all partners with me of grace, says Paul, both in imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel.

Before exploring further this unusual statement of love, framed and mounted as though there were doubters or opponents, we ought to attend to some of the remarkable phrases within it. The Philippians are “fellow sharers,” a redundant expression to reflect how totally they have identified with Paul’s mission. Paul, though, does not call it mission or work but grace (v. 7). While we would expect any elaboration upon grace to involve affirmations of redemption, Paul surprisingly relates grace to prison bonds and courtroom scenes. What have such modifying expressions to do with grace? Paul elsewhere refers to his ministry as grace (Rom. 1:5) and shortly will be saying to these Philippians that it has been granted (graced) to them to suffer for Christ and to engage in the same conflict which was Paul’s (1:29–30). Such grace participates in the very suffering of Christ (3:10).

The present form of that grace for Paul is prison. He does not say what precipitated his arrest nor what the accusations were. He only says his imprisonment is “for Christ” (1:13). Whatever its originating causes, his imprisonment was not a matter to be handled by religious authorities settling a synagogue-church clash. References to the praetorian guard (1:13) and those of Caesar’s household (4:22) tell us Paul is in the powerful hands of Roman authority. Paul is apparently being held in a barracks or guardhouse where Roman officials and supporting military are quartered. Imprisonment was for persons awaiting trial and not punishment following conviction; therefore, “jail” could be a house, a cave, a barracks, or any secured room. Mention of the praetorium means that Paul is in an imperial city, but which one is not known. Rome has been traditionally the favorite guess but Caesarea and Ephesus were also imperial cities. Most of the commentaries debate the pro’s and con’s of Rome, Caesarea, and Ephesus as sites of Paul’s imprisonment and easy access to those arguments make a rehearsal of them here unnecessary (see Bibliography). Wherever he is and on whatever charges, Paul uses the technical language of the legal process: “imprisonment and defense and confirmation (vindication) of the gospel.” Whether his use of courtroom terms is to be taken literally as trial appearances (as does the NEB, “when I lie in prison or appear in the dock to vouch for the truth of the Gospel”) or only symbolically (as does the TEV, “in prison and also while I was free to defend and firmly establish the gospel”), what is clear is that while it is Paul who is in prison he understands that it is the gospel which is on trial. Any thought of distancing himself from the gospel for his own security apparently never entered his mind.

The one matter about which Paul does defend and justify himself is his feeling for the Philippians. As though he had not done so adequately in verse 7, he speaks even more strongly in verse 8. As though he were on trial in their eyes, Paul calls on God as witness in his behalf and characterizes his love as that of Christ himself. Paul’s yearning for them is with “the affection (viscera) of Christ Jesus.” The signals are too clear to miss: verses 7–8 and the parenthetical verse 4 reflect a problem in Paul’s relationship with the church at Philippi. The exact nature of the matter is not clear, but it does seem to be an issue of intimacy, not distance. Has Paul been very close to some members while others felt slighted? Is it the nature of and not the fact of Paul’s affection that needs justification? Have other churches been critical of Paul’s apparent favoritism toward Philippi? After all, this same missionary who absolutely refused to take a d...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Series Preface
• Preface
• Contents
• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• Outline of the Letter
• Commentary
• Bibliography