Philippians

Philippians 1

1. Paul and Timothy, servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Jesus Christ, together with priests* and ministers,
2. Blessings be with you from our Father and from our Lord, Jesus Christ.
 
3. I confess to my God over your loyal unity,
4. That in every request I have made on your behalf, I have found you as one body,
5. With regard to your relationship to the Revelation of God,* from the first day to the present,
6. Because I perceive this that He who released among you the blessed deeds, shall [see to it] that you will remain faithful* until the Day of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
7. For this is how I was blessed, as to look after all of you, because I have a place for you in my heart, though I may be in chains, I think of you constantly in the outpouring of my spirit,* over the truth of God's Revelation,* that you may be participants in that blessing.
8. For God is my witness that I love you with the compassion of Jesus Christ.
9. And this I pray that once again your love is augmented and enriched with knowledge and total Spiritual discipline,
10. So that you may be able to choose those things that bring contentment, and that you may be pure, without obstacles on the Day of Christ,
11. And that you may be full of spiritual fruit that you produced through Jesus Christ, with which you shall glorify and honor God.
 
12. I wish that you should know, brethren, that my pledge had proceeded ahead of me by the Revelation of God,*
13. So much so that even my chains were revealed through Christ in all the empire and to all other human beings.
14. And most of the brethren in the Lord would testify to my chains, and thronged in greater numbers to preach the manifestation of God.
15. There are people* who preach Christ out of divisiveness and overindulgence, others out of good will and love,
16. Because they know that I have ordained them for the purpose of preaching the Revelation of God.*
17. Those, then, that preach Christ while overindulging themselves, are not doing it with a clean spirit, except they hope to add to the torment of my chains.
18. And for this too I am pleased and happy, that however it is spread, whether out of [personal] motive or in earnest, Christ should be preached.
19. For I know that they are leading* me towards everlasting life, according to your invocation and through the endowment of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,
20. So that I shall preach and hold fast to nothing less than that Christ should be reflected in me before everyone's eyes, at every opportunity and even now, whether while Living or while dying.*
21. For Christ is my Life, and when I die, He is my Salvation.
22. If then in this life of the flesh also I bear fruit through my labors, I know not which to choose.
23. For both of them constrain me, I desire to fly away and be with Jesus, and that would suit me fine.*
24. Except even staying firm in body,* I feel obliged to do so on your behalf.*
25. And I can imagine this,* that I should remain and add to your happiness and for the sake of nurturing your faith,
26. Whereas when I come to you, your pride in Jesus Christ is augmented through me.
 
27. Be only devoted to proffering the Hope of Christ, so that if I come to see you or if I am far off, I may hear about you, that you are standing in one spirit and one soul, sanctified as one body in the faith of His Revelation.
28. And nothing could shake you from those who stood against me, in showing them the way to oblivion and the way to life everlasting,*
29. It was given to you that you did not believe in Christ only for the sake of believing, except that you should also sorrow on His behalf,
30. And you shall proffer His passion that you saw in me, and that now you hear regarding me.

*1:1 Reference to Jewish priests who converted to Christianity.
*1:5 Lit. Aramaic word: "Awen-ga-lee-yoon."
*1:6 Lit. Ar. id.: "In submission."
*1:7.1 Lit. Ar. expression retained: "In my preaching."
*1:7.2 Lit. Aramaic word: "Awen-ga-lee-yoon."
*1:12 Lit. Aramaic word: "Awen-ga-lee-yoon."
*1:15 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "And human human."
*1:16 Lit. Aramaic word: "Awen-ga-lee-yoon."
*1:19 Lit. Ar. id.: "Finding."
*1:20 Lit. Ar. idiomatic construction: "Whereas I [proffer the] hope and hold on to that nothing be granted except through openness of faces like in every season also now that be magnified Christ in my body, if through lives or if by death."
*1:23 Lit. Ar. expression: "Emerge for."
*1:24.1 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression retained: "Staying put."
*1:24.2 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "The utterance constrains me because of you."
*1:25 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "And this through my thoughts I know."
*1:28 Lit. Ar. idiomatic construction: "...in showing their oblivion and your lives."

Philippians 2

1. If you have such empathy with Christ, and if your heart is full of love and the fellowship of the Spirit, and if your heart flutters with compassion,
2. Make me fully happy by having one outlook and one love and one soul and one conscience.
3. And do nothing out of destructive or vainglory motives, except with kind consideration let every human being regard their friend greater than themselves.
4. And no human being should worry about themselves only, except about their friends also.
5. Contemplate this within yourselves, just as Christ,
6. Who was in the likeness of God, did not think it a sin that He did not assume God's manner,
7. Except He reduced himself and consecrated himself to be a servant and was born in the likeness of human beings,
8. And by design He allowed Himself to be discovered as the Son of Man, and He humbled Himself in obedience unto death, dying thence on the Cross.
9. Because of that even God multiplied His greatness and gave Him a name that is greater than all the names,
10. That in the name of Jesus every knee shall bend in heaven and on earth and below the earth,
11. And that every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord to the glory of God His Father.
12. Therefore, my beloved, whereas you listened to me not only when I was near you, except now that I am far from you, hence do the work that connotes the salvation of your life eternal, in submission and trembling.
13. For God strives through you also to establish and pledge that which you also want.
14. Whatever you do, do it without complaint and without divisiveness.
15. That you may be wholesome and without fault, as pure children of God, though you live among brutal and abysmal generations,* and so you may appear among them as the enlightened of this universe,
16. As you are in comparison to them in the offering of your lives, you will be my pride on the Day of Christ, as I neither narrowed down my run or pared down my efforts.
17. Except even though I imbibe the wine of the offering over the sacrifices and service of your faith, I rejoice and celebrate with all of you.
18. Likewise, you also rejoice and celebrate with me.
 
19. My hope is in our Lord Jesus Christ, as I send Timothy to you quickly, that I too may be relieved to learn concerning you.
20. For I have no one like myself, who will undo himself on your behalf.*
21. For they all want what is best for themselves and not what is best for Jesus Christ.*
22. For you know his reputation, however, he worked with me like a son for his father, in preaching [the Kingdom.]
23. For that I hope to send him to you quickly, having seen what he has done while with me.
24. And I rely on my Lord that I too will be able to come to you.
25. Now, however, the Spirit compels me,* to send you the brother Epaphroditus, who is a helper and worker with me, to you however an apostle whom I recommend.
26. Because he deserves to see you all and express his sadness over your concern for him regarding his illness.
27. For even though he was sick enough to almost die, God took mercy on him, and not just on him, but on me also, so that I may not have agony over agony.
28. Thus I send him to you expeditiously, so that when you see him you may be happy again, and as for me there is little left [before I join you also.]
29. Receive him thus through the Lord in all happiness, and to these who are thus presented, receive them with honors.
30. Because the servant of Jesus is not even deterred by death and denies himself, so as to fulfill whatever you may lack in service with me.
*2:15 Lit. Ar. idiomatic figure of speech: "Centuries."
*2:20 Lit. Ar. expression: "Lowly endeavor."
*2:21 Lit. Ar. construction: "For all want that which is for themselves and not for Jesus Christ."
*2:25 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "The utterance constrains me."

Philippians 3

1. Thus, my brethren, rejoice in our Lord. These things that I write you are not for my benefit,  but because I want you to be cautious.
2. Beware of dogs.* Beware of panderers.* Beware of butchers.*
3. For circumcision we have, and we perform it for God in the Spirit, and we are proud in Jesus Christ, and we are not justified by the flesh.
4. Whereas I also had reliance on the flesh. For if anyone* had the reliance on the flesh, I surely had it more than them.
5. Circumcised on the eight day, of the heritage of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew, son of the Hebrews, according to the Law, a Pharisee,
6. Zealous in casting out the church and in the righteousness of the Law without peer.*
7. Except these things instead of being of benefit to me, I considered them as loss, because of Christ.
8. And also I have come to regard them all as a loss, because of the supremacy of the knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ, for whose sake I gave up everything, and considered what I lost as rubbish, so that I may be enriched by Christ,
9. So as to be worthy of Him, as I possess no righteousness of myself, that which is from the Law, except that which is from the faith in Christ, which is the righteousness of God,
10. By which I declare Jesus and the power of His resurrection, and I identify with his sorrow and imitate his death,
11. So I may not end up in the resurrection from the Dead.*
12. It was not that I was consecrated now, or that I became mature as of now, except I run the course so I do not forget to serve the purpose* for which Jesus Christ recalled me.
13. Brethren, I do not depend on myself for being recalled. One thing I do know, that whereas in the past* I was lost, now I point the way to the future.*
14. And I ran toward the goal, so as to receive the righteousness of those called above by God through Jesus Christ.
15. Those who are thus brought up, tend to be this way,* and if you run into other things, those too God will reveal them to you.
16. Therefore, what we have arrived at, let us follow in one line and in one unity.
17. Imitate me, brethren, and stay in pace with those who follow this line,* as you have seen us do.
18. There are many who follow in a different direction, those of whom I have told you about frequently,* now, however, I cry as I tell you about them, they that are the enemies of the Cross of Christ.
19. Those whose end is oblivion, those whose god has dumbfounded* them and their glory is their ruin, those whose conscience is in the ground.*
20. For us, however, our deeds are in heaven, and from there we hold fast to that resurrection in our Lord Jesus Christ,
21. Who transformed His body to put us at ease,* so we may become in the likeness of His glorified body, according to His Supreme power, through Whom everyone is in submission.
*3:2.1 Lit. Ar. id.: Same metaphor as in English.
*3:2.2 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "Laborers for evil-doers."
*3:2.3 Lit. Ar. id.: (Rhetorical usage,) "hackers of flesh."
*3:4 Lit. Ar. id.: "Human being."
*3:6 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "[No one] ahead of me in leadership."
*3:11 Lit. Ar. idiom retained: Or, in other words, be subject to the second death, or stand judgment.
*3:12 Lit. Ar. id.: "Because of which."
*3:13.1 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "Behind me I was lost"
*3:13.2 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "Point out before me."
*3:15 Lit. Ar. idiomatic construction: "Those who are thus matured, such they reckon."
*3:17 Lit. Ar. expression: "Thusly stride."
*3:18 Lit. Ar. id.: "Many seasons."
*3:19.1 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "Possessed them with the spirit of muteness."
*3:19.2 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression retained (Flexible expression, depends on context): "Their mind is on owning property," or "those who are destined to Die."
*3:21 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "To soften us."

Philippians 4

1. Henceforth, brethren, beloved and absolved [through the Lord's mercy,] my joy and my wreath, resurrected thus by our Lord, beloved.

2. I beg of you, Eudoia and you also, Syntyche, to be of one opinion regarding our Lord.
3. And I beg you also, my true companion's son, to be of assistance to them, so that they may serve with me in the Revelation of God's Kingdom,* together with Clement and my other helpers, those whose names are written in the Book of Life.
4. Rejoice in our Lord in every season, and again I say, rejoice.
5. And your gentle spirit will become known to every human being, for our Lord is always near.*
6. So that you will never be at a loss for anything, except on every occasion, by kneeling down in prayer, by rogation and confession of faith, your questions will become known before God.
7. And the peace of God that is greater than anything, shall protect your hearts and make the answers known to you through Jesus Christ.
8. Hence, brethren, those things that are true, modest, righteous, pure, merciful, praiseworthy, and those acts of glorification and virtue -- that is what you shall advocate.
9. Those things that you learned and accepted, heard and seen in me, that is what you shall commit to, and the God of Peace shall be with you.
 
10. I rejoice in the Lord then, for my shortcomings, even though you are likewise lacking, except you are not destitute.
11. I am not saying this because I have lost something, for I have learned to give up everything I have.
12. I know how to be gentle and I also know how to be tough, for I debate every point,* whether I am satisfied or hungry,* gaining or losing,
13. So that I can overcome* everything through Christ who empowers me.
14. Therefore, you did beautifully involving yourselves with my suffering.
15. For you also know, Philippians, that at the start of preaching [the Hope,] when I left Macedonia, not a single congregation was involved in figuring what was needed to be given or pledged,* except for you alone.
16. So much so that for one and a half years* you even sent me my due.
17. It was not a reward that I wanted, except that you should yield more fruit.
18. For I have received everything, and it is more than I need and quite sufficient, and everything you sent was delivered to me by the hand of Apaphroditus, sweet smelling and acceptable sacrifice that praises God.
19. And God shall fulfill all your needs according to His riches through the glorification of Jesus Christ.
20. To God then our Father, glory and honor to [the end of] the universe of all the universes. Amen.
 
21. Shalom* to all the saints through Jesus Christ. The brethren with me say shalom to you.
22. Saying shalom to you are all the saints, especially those of them from the "house of Caesar."*
23. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all, amen.

(End of the Letter to the Philippians that was written from Rome.)

*4:2 Lit. Aramaic word: "Awen-ga-lee-yoon."
*4:5 Lit. Ar. idiomatic construction: "And your gentleness makes itself known to every human. Our Lord close by He is."
*4:12.1 Lit. Ar. idiomatic construction: "I know that with which I humble, I know and also that with which I become more, in everything and by everything I argue."
*4:12.2 Lit Ar. expression: "Also by full also by hunger."
*4:13 Lit. Ar. id.: "Overpower."
*4:15 Lit. Ar. idiomatic expression: "Accounts of planting and giving."
*4:16 Lit. Ar. idiomatic figure of speech: "Seasons."
*4:21 Lit. Ar. expression: "Ask for the peace of."
*4:22 Lit. Ar. expression retained: Ironically humorous reference to the prison in Rome where Peter is also held captive, probably included in case the Letter was intercepted by Roman authorities. The expression could also double up as "home of Caesar," in which case it's a reference to the city of Rome.

Translated from the Ancient Aramaic by Victor Alexander ©2000

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