back to the
King James Bible |
Next Chapter
1:1 Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the
saints in Christ Jesus which are at
Philippi, with the bishops and
deacons: 1:2 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and
from the Lord Jesus Christ.
1:3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 1:4 Always in every
prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, 1:5 For your
fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; 1:6 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: 1:7 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.
1:8 For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the
bowels of Jesus Christ.
1:9 And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in
knowledge and in all judgment; 1:10 That ye may approve things that
are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day
of Christ.
1:11 Being filled with the fruits of
righteousness, which are by Jesus
Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.
1:12 But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which
happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the
gospel; 1:13 So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the
palace, and in all other places; 1:14 And many of the brethren in the
Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the
word without fear.
1:15 Some indeed preach Christ even of envy and strife; and some also
of good will: 1:16 The one preach Christ of contention, not sincerely,
supposing to add affliction to my bonds: 1:17 But the other of love,
knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.
1:18 What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretence, or in
truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will
rejoice.
1:19 For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your
prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, 1:20 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.
1:21
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
1:22 But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet
what I shall choose I wot not.
1:23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and
to be with Christ; which is far better: 1:24 Nevertheless to abide in
the flesh is more needful for you.
1:25 And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and
continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith; 1:26 That
your rejoicing may be more abundant in Jesus Christ for me by my
coming to you again.
1:27 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; 1:28 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.
1:29 For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to
believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake; 1:30 Having the same
conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
back to:
Philippians
Book: Philippians
Chapter: 1
Overview:
The
Apostle offers up thanksgivings and prayers, for the good
work of
Grace in the
Philippians.
(1-7) He expresses
Affection,
and prays for them.
(8-11) Fortifies them against being cast
down at his sufferings.
(12-20) He stood prepared for glorifying
Christ By Life, or
Death.
(21-26) Exhortations to zeal, and
constancy in professing the
Gospel.
(27-30)
1-7 The highest honour of the most eminent ministers is, to be
servants of
Christ. And those who are not really saints
On
Earth, never will be saints in
Heaven. Out of
Christ, the best
saints are sinners, and unable to stand before
God. There is
No
peace without
Grace. Inward peace springs from a sense of Divine
favour. And there is
No Grace and peace but from
God our
Father,
the
Fountain and origin of all blessings. At
Philippi the
Apostle was evil entreated, and saw little
Fruit of his labour;
yet he remembers
Philippi with joy. We must thank our
God for
the graces and comforts,
Gifts and usefulness of others, as we
receive the benefit, and
God receives the
Glory. The work of
Grace will never be perfected till the
Day of
Jesus Christ, the
Day of his appearance. But we may always be confident
God will
perform his good work, in every soul wherein he has really begun
it
By Regeneration; though we must not trust in outward
appearances, nor in any thing but a new
Creation to
Holiness.
People are dear to their ministers, when they receive benefit
By
their ministry. Fellow-sufferers in the cause of
God should be
dear one to another.
8-11 Shall not we pity and
Love those souls whom
Christ loves
and pities? Those who abound in any
Grace, need to abound more.
Try things which differ; that we may approve the things which
are excellent. The truths and laws of
Christ are excellent; and
they recommend themselves as such to any attentive mind.
Sincerity is that in which we should have our
Conversation in
the world, and it is the
Glory of all our graces. Christians
should not be apt to take
Offence, and should be very careful
not to offend
God or the brethren. The things which most honour
God will most benefit us. Let us not leave it doubtful whether
any good
Fruit is found in us or not. A small
Measure of
Christian Love, knowledge, and fruitfulness should not satisfy
any.
12-20 The
Apostle was a prisoner at
Rome; and to take off the
Offence of the
Cross, he shows the
Wisdom and
Goodness of God in
his sufferings. These things made him known, where he would
never have otherwise been known; and led some to inquire after
the
Gospel. He suffered from false friends, as
Well as from
enemies. How wretched the temper of those who preached
Christ
out of envy and contention, and to add affliction to the bonds
that oppressed this best of men! The
Apostle was easy in the
midst of all. Since our troubles may tend to the good of many,
we ought to rejoice. Whatever turns to our
Salvation, is
By the
Spirit of
Christ; and
Prayer is the appointed means of seeking
for it. Our
Earnest expectation and
Hope should not be to be
honoured of men, or to escape the
Cross, but to be upheld amidst
Temptation, contempt, and affliction. Let us leave it to
Christ,
which way he will make us serviceable to his
Glory, whether
By
labour or suffering,
By diligence or patience,
By living to his
honour in working for him, or dying to his honour in suffering
for him.
21-26 Death is a great loss to a
Carnal, worldly
Man, for he
loses all his earthly comforts and all his hopes; but to a true
believer it is gain, for it is the
End of all his weakness and
misery. It delivers him from all the evils of
Life, and brings
him to possess the chief good. The
Apostle's difficulty was not
between living in this world and living in
Heaven; between these
two there is
No comparison; but between serving
Christ in this
world and enjoying him in another. Not between two evil things,
but between two good things; living to
Christ and being with
him. See the power of
Faith and of Divine
Grace; it can make us
willing to die. In this world we are compassed with
Sin; but
when with
Christ, we shall escape
Sin and
Temptation, sorrow and
Death, for ever. But those who have most reason to desire to
depart, should be willing to remain in the world as long as
God
has any work for them to do. And the more unexpected mercies are
before they come, the more of
God will be seen in them.
27-30 Those who profess the
Gospel of
Christ, should live as
becomes those who believe
Gospel truths, submit to
Gospel laws,
and depend upon
Gospel promises. The original
Word
"
Conversation" denotes the conduct of citizens who seek the
credit, safety, peace, and prosperity of their
City. There is
that in the
Faith of the
Gospel, which is worth striving for;
there is much opposition, and there is need of striving. A
Man
may sleep and go to
Hell; but he who would go to
Heaven, must
look about him and be diligent. There may be oneness of
Heart
and
Affection among Christians, where there is diversity of
Judgment about many things.
Faith is
God's
Gift On the behalf of
Christ; the ability and disposition to believe are from
God. And
if we suffer reproach and loss for
Christ, we are to reckon them
a
Gift, and prize them accordingly. Yet
Salvation must not be
ascribed to bodily
Afflictions, as though
Afflictions and
worldly persecutions deserved it; but from
God only is
Salvation:
Faith and patience are his
Gifts.