1 So then, my brethren, beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand ye in the Lord, beloved.
Only worthily of the good news of the Christ conduct ye yourselves, that, whether having come and seen you, whether being absent I may hear of the things concerning you, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one soul, striving together for the faith of the good news,
Watch ye, stand in the faith; be men, be strong;
For God is my witness, how I long for you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ,
so that, my brethren beloved, become ye stedfast, unmovable, abounding in the work of the Lord at all times, knowing that your labour is not vain in the Lord.
to those, indeed, who in continuance of a good work, do seek glory, and honour, and incorruptibility -- life age-during;
already ye are clean, because of the word that I have spoken to you; remain in me, and I in you, as the branch is not able to bear fruit of itself, if it may not remain in the vine, so neither ye, if ye may not remain in me.
who, having come, and having seen the grace of God, was glad, and was exhorting all with purpose of heart to cleave to the Lord,
Jesus, therefore, said unto the Jews who believed in him, `If ye may remain in my word, truly my disciples ye are, and ye shall know the truth,
`Because thou didst keep the word of my endurance, I also will keep thee from the hour of the trial that is about to come upon all the world, to try those dwelling upon the earth. Lo, I come quickly, be holding fast that which thou hast, that no one may receive thy crown.
And to Him who is able to guard you not stumbling, and to set `you' in the presence of His glory unblemished, in gladness, to the only wise God our Saviour, `is' glory and greatness, power and authority, both now and to all the ages! Amen.
Ye, then, beloved, knowing before, take heed, lest, together with the error of the impious being led away, ye may fall from your own stedfastness,
All these, then, being dissolved, what kind of persons doth it behove you to be in holy behaviours and pious acts? waiting for and hasting to the presence of the day of God, by which the heavens, being on fire, shall be dissolved, and the elements with burning heat shall melt; and for new heavens and a new earth according to His promise we do wait, in which righteousness doth dwell; wherefore, beloved, these things waiting for, be diligent, spotless and unblameable, by Him to be found in peace,
Having, then, a great chief priest passed through the heavens -- Jesus the Son of God -- may we hold fast the profession,
for partakers we have become of the Christ, if the beginning of the confidence unto the end we may hold fast,
so, then, brethren, stand ye fast, and hold the deliverances that ye were taught, whether through word, whether through our letter;
to the establishing your hearts blameless in sanctification before our God and Father, in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.
for what `is' our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? are not even ye before our Lord Jesus Christ in his presence? for ye are our glory and joy.
Salute you doth Epaphras, who `is' of you, a servant of Christ, always striving for you in the prayers, that ye may stand perfect and made full in all the will of God,
For our citizenship is in the heavens, whence also a Saviour we await -- the Lord Jesus Christ -- who shall transform the body of our humiliation to its becoming conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working of his power, even to subject to himself the all things.
seeing he was longing after you all, and in heaviness, because ye heard that he ailed,
As to the rest, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might; put on the whole armour of God, for your being able to stand against the wiles of the devil, because we have not the wrestling with blood and flesh, but with the principalities, with the authorities, with the world-rulers of the darkness of this age, with the spiritual things of the evil in the heavenly places; because of this take ye up the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to resist in the day of the evil, and all things having done -- to stand. Stand, therefore, having your loins girt about in truth, and having put on the breastplate of the righteousness, and having the feet shod in the preparation of the good-news of the peace; above all, having taken up the shield of the faith, in which ye shall be able all the fiery darts of the evil one to quench, and the helmet of the salvation receive, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the saying of God, through all prayer and supplication praying at all times in the Spirit, and in regard to this same, watching in all perseverance and supplication for all the saints --
confirming the souls of the disciples, exhorting to remain in the faith, and that through many tribulations it behoveth us to enter into the reign of God,
and they were continuing stedfastly in the teaching of the apostles, and the fellowship, and the breaking of the bread, and the prayers.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Philippians 4
Commentary on Philippians 4 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 4
Exhortations to several Christian duties, as stedfastness, unanimity, joy, etc. (v. 1-9). The apostle's grateful acknowledgments of the Philippians' kindness to him, with expressions of his own content, and desire of their good (v. 10-19). He concludes the epistle with praise, salutations, and blessing (v. 20-23).
Phl 4:1-9
The apostle begins the chapter with exhortations to divers Christian duties.
In these things he proposes himself to them for an example (v. 9): Those things which you have learned, and received, and heard and seen in me, do. Observe, Paul's doctrine and life were of a piece. What they saw in him was the same thing with what they heard from him. He could propose himself as well as his doctrine to their imitation. It gives a great force to what we say to others when we can appeal to what they have seen in us. And this is the way to have the God of peace with us-to keep close to our duty to him. The Lord is with us while we are with him.
Phl 4:10-19
In these verses we have the thankful grateful acknowledgment which the apostle makes of the kindness of the Philippians in sending him a present for his support, now that he was a prisoner at Rome. And here,
Phl 4:20-23
The apostle concludes the epistle in these verses,