Philippians 1
Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus, to the holy ones at Philippi with the overseers and servants — grace and peace. He gives thanks with joy over their sharing toward the gospel from the first day, confident that he who began a good work will bring it to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Sharers of the grace in his bonds and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel — he longs for them in the bowels of Christ, and prays that love may abound in knowledge and perception, to judge what excels, sincere and free of stumbling, filled with the fruit of righteousness. His bonds have turned to the advance of the gospel — manifest in the praetorium, the brothers speak the word without fear. Whether from envy and strife or from love, Christ is announced, and he rejoices. Eager longing — in life or in death Christ will be magnified in his body. To live is Christ, to die is gain — gripped between the two, to depart is better, but to stay in the flesh is more necessary. Live as citizens worthily of the gospel — in one spirit, with one life contending together, not scared by those who oppose. Not only to believe but also to suffer has been freely given.
Why this rendering
Phil.1.5 Observation
Syntactic observation
Εὐχαριστῶ τῷ θεῷ μου ἐπὶ πάσῃ τῇ μνείᾳ ὑμῶν πάντοτε ἐν πάσῃ δεήσει μου ὑπὲρ πάντων ὑμῶν, μετὰ χαρᾶς τὴν δέησιν ποιούμενος, ἐπὶ τῇ κοινωνίᾳ ὑμῶν εἰς τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἀπὸ τῆς πρώτης ἡμέρας ἄχρι τοῦ νῦν — I give thanks to my God upon all my remembrance of you — always, in my every supplication for all of you, making the supplication with joy — upon your sharing toward the gospel from the first day until now. Verses 3-7 are one sentence, and ἐπί names the ground of thanks twice (v.3 upon the remembrance · v.5 upon the sharing) — both rendered ‘upon’. Verse 4 uses δέησις twice (in every supplication · making the supplication) — ‘supplication’ twice. κοινωνία has two site-rules, Acts 2:42 ‘fellowship’ and Rom 15:26 · 2 Cor 8:4 ‘sharing’ (the collection); since the end of this letter (4:15-16) speaks of giving and receiving from the first day, ‘sharing’ — and v.7 συγκοινωνούς ‘sharers’ keeps the root. πᾶς comes four times in vv.3-4·7 (all remembrance · every supplication · all of you · all of you) — all kept. τῆς (v.5 ⸀) is the article of the base text.
Rendering options · 3
Basis The site-rule of Rom 15:26 · 2 Cor 8:4 ‘sharing’ — 4:15-16 speaks of giving and receiving from the first day; one root with v.7 ‘sharers’.
Basis The default site of Acts 2:42 ‘fellowship’.
Rejected It would turn εἰς into ‘in’, and the giving and receiving the letter itself names in ch. 4 would vanish.
Basis Both ἐπί hang on one verb (I give thanks) — kept as one preposition.
Lost in translation
Two ἐπί (v.3 · v.5) — ‘upon’ twice shows one preposition.
κοινωνία (v.5) / συγκοινωνούς (v.7) — ‘sharing / sharers’ keep the root.
δεήσει … τὴν δέησιν (v.4) — the same noun twice in one verse, ‘supplication’ twice.
τῇ μνείᾳ ὑμῶν (v.3) — the genitive is open between ‘my remembrance of you’ and ‘your remembrance’. Closed as ‘of you’.
Why this rendering
Phil.1.7 Observation
Syntactic observation
καθώς ἐστιν δίκαιον ἐμοὶ τοῦτο φρονεῖν ὑπὲρ πάντων ὑμῶν, διὰ τὸ ἔχειν με ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ὑμᾶς, ἔν τε τοῖς δεσμοῖς μου καὶ ἐν τῇ ἀπολογίᾳ καὶ βεβαιώσει τοῦ εὐαγγελίου συγκοινωνούς μου τῆς χάριτος πάντας ὑμᾶς ὄντας — just as it is righteous for me to think this about all of you, because I have you in my heart, all of you being sharers with me of the grace, both in my bonds and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel. διὰ τὸ ἔχειν με ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ὑμᾶς — the infinitive has two accusatives (με · ὑμᾶς), so ‘I have you’ and ‘you have me’ are both possible. The first-placed με is read as subject, and v.8 follows at once with ‘I long for all of you’. δίκαιον is the same predicate as Eph 6:1 ‘this is righteous’ — not softened to ‘right’. δεσμός ‘bonds’ comes four times in this chapter (vv.7 · 13 · 14 · 17) — always ‘my bonds’. βεβαίωσις occurs twice in the New Testament (Heb 6:16) — the noun of Mark 16:20 ‘confirm’. συγκοινωνός is the ‘sharer’ of Rom 11:17 · 1 Cor 9:23.
Rendering options · 3
Basis The first accusative as subject; v.8 ‘how I long for all of you’ continues the direction.
Basis Grammatically of equal weight — the second half of v.7, ‘all of you being sharers with me’, speaks of them.
Rejected The base text closes neither; word order and v.8 decided it, and the openness is recorded here.
Basis The predicate of Eph 6:1 ‘this is righteous’, unchanged.
Lost in translation
με … ὑμᾶς — who holds whom in the heart is left open by the text; the rendering must pick a subject.
βεβαιώσει (v.7) / βεβαιόω (Mark 16:20 · 1 Cor 1:6) — ‘confirmation / confirm’ keep the root.
δεσμός four times (vv.7 · 13 · 14 · 17) — ‘my bonds’ four times shows one word.
Why this rendering
Phil.1.16 Observation
Syntactic observation
Τινὲς μὲν καὶ διὰ φθόνον καὶ ἔριν, τινὲς δὲ καὶ δι’ εὐδοκίαν τὸν Χριστὸν κηρύσσουσιν· οἱ μὲν ἐξ ἀγάπης, εἰδότες ὅτι εἰς ἀπολογίαν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου κεῖμαι, οἱ δὲ ἐξ ἐριθείας τὸν Χριστὸν καταγγέλλουσιν, οὐχ ἁγνῶς, οἰόμενοι θλῖψιν ἐγείρειν τοῖς δεσμοῖς μου — Some indeed proclaim Christ even because of envy and strife, but some also because of good pleasure: the ones out of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel, but the others announce Christ out of selfish ambition, not purely, supposing to raise affliction for my bonds. Verse 15 runs bad · good, and vv.16-17 run good (love) · bad (selfish ambition) — the base text (⸂⸃) reads a chiasm (bad · good · good · bad); the Received Text swaps vv.16 and 17 into parallel order (bad · good · bad · good). The base text is followed. κεῖμαι εἰς ‘set for’ is the construction of Luke 2:34 ‘set for the falling and the rising of many’. ἁγνῶς occurs once in the New Testament — the adverb of 2 Cor 7:11 ‘pure’. οἶμαι is the word of John 21:25 ‘I suppose’ (three New Testament places). θλῖψιν ἐγείρειν ‘raise affliction’ — ἐγείρω is the verb that raises the dead. κηρύσσω (v.15 proclaim) and καταγγέλλω (vv.17 · 18 announce) are different words and kept apart.
Rendering options · 4
Basis The base text’s reading (⸂⸃) — with v.15 it forms a chiasm.
Basis The order of the Received Text and the older versions made from it.
Rejected The translation does not alter the base text’s reading — which order is a manuscript divergence, recorded here.
Basis ‘Lie / be set’ as fixed at John 20:6 · 1 Cor 3:11, with the εἰς construction of Luke 2:34.
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected ‘Appoint’ belongs to τίθημι · καθίστημι, and the noun ἀπολογία would turn into a verb.
Lost in translation
The base text’s ⸂⸃ — the sign that the order of vv.16-17 diverges in the manuscripts. A rendering shows one order only.
ἁγνῶς (v.17) / ἁγνός (2 Cor 7:11) — ‘purely / pure’ keep the root.
κηρύσσουσιν (v.15) / καταγγέλλουσιν (v.17) / καταγγέλλεται (v.18) — ‘proclaim / announce / is announced’ keep the two verbs apart.
θλῖψιν ἐγείρειν (v.17) — ‘raise affliction’ keeps the verb that raises the dead.
Why this rendering
Phil.1.22 Observation
Syntactic observation
ἐμοὶ γὰρ τὸ ζῆν Χριστὸς καὶ τὸ ἀποθανεῖν κέρδος. εἰ δὲ τὸ ζῆν ἐν σαρκί, τοῦτό μοι καρπὸς ἔργου— καὶ τί αἱρήσομαι οὐ γνωρίζω — For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if to live in flesh, this is for me fruit of work — and what I shall choose I do not make known. Verse 21 has no verb (to live — Christ · to die — gain). In v.22 the condition is broken off by the base text’s dash (—): whether what follows ‘if …’ is ‘I do not make known’ or the first clause stands alone is left open. γνωρίζω is always ‘make known’ in this version (Luke 2:15 · Rom 9:22 · Eph 1:9) — not ‘I do not know’ (οἶδα · γινώσκω) but ‘I do not make known’. It must stay apart from οἶδα ‘I know’ in vv.19 · 25. ἐν σαρκί is Gal 2:20 ‘in flesh’ (J18). αἱρέομαι occurs three times in the New Testament (2 Thess 2:13 · Heb 11:25) — ‘choose’. κέρδος is the noun of Matt 16:26 ‘gain’ (κερδαίνω).
Rendering options · 4
Basis ‘Make known’ as fixed at Luke 2:15 · Rom 9:22 · Eph 1:9 — not ignorance but withholding.
Basis The familiar rendering — the following ‘I am gripped’ speaks of hesitation.
Rejected ‘Know’ is the place of οἶδα (vv.19 · 25), and this version has nowhere rendered γνωρίζω as ‘know’.
Basis The site-rule of J18 — not paraphrased as ‘in the body’.
Basis ‘Choose’ for ἐκλέγομαι is ‘select’ in Korean; ‘choose’ here coincides with ἐπιλέγω at Acts 15:40 (recorded below).
Lost in translation
τὸ ζῆν Χριστός (v.21) — a verbless sentence. ‘To live is Christ’ supplies ‘is’.
κέρδος (v.21) / κερδαίνω (Matt 16:26) — ‘gain / gain’ keep the root.
αἱρήσομαι (v.22) — ‘choose’ becomes one word with ἐπιλέγω ‘choose’ at Acts 15:40.
The dash (—) of v.22 — the base text’s openness about where the condition’s consequence lies, carried as a dash.
Why this rendering
Phil.1.23 Observation
Syntactic observation
συνέχομαι δὲ ἐκ τῶν δύο, τὴν ἐπιθυμίαν ἔχων εἰς τὸ ἀναλῦσαι καὶ σὺν Χριστῷ εἶναι, πολλῷ γὰρ μᾶλλον κρεῖσσον, τὸ δὲ ἐπιμένειν ἐν τῇ σαρκὶ ἀναγκαιότερον δι’ ὑμᾶς. καὶ τοῦτο πεποιθὼς οἶδα ὅτι μενῶ καὶ παραμενῶ πᾶσιν ὑμῖν — But I am gripped from the two, having the desire to depart and to be with Christ, for it is far better, by much; but to stay on in the flesh is more necessary because of you. And confident of this, I know that I will remain, and remain with all of you. συνέχομαι is Matt 4:24 · Acts 18:5 ‘be gripped’. ἀναλύω occurs twice in the New Testament — at Luke 12:36 the master ‘returns’ from the wedding feast, here Paul ‘departs’ (the picture of loosing anchor and striking camp); the rendering differs by site. πολλῷ μᾶλλον κρεῖσσον piles ‘more’ and ‘by much’ on a comparative, three layers — ‘far better, by much’. ἐπιθυμία is the word of Rom 1:24 ‘desires’, here for being with Christ — ‘desire’ (the noun of Luke 22:15 ‘earnestly desired’). μενῶ καὶ παραμενῶ sets a verb beside its compound — ‘remain · remain with’. ⸀ἐν (v.24) · ⸀παραμενῶ (v.25; the Received Text adds συν-) are readings of the base text.
Rendering options · 4
Basis The picture of loosing anchor and striking camp; differs by site from Luke 12:36 ‘return’.
Basis A paraphrase by sense.
Rejected The text uses θάνατος · ἀποθανεῖν in vv.20-21 and chooses a different word here — the paraphrase erases that choice.
Basis The noun of Luke 22:15 ‘earnestly desire’ — Rom 1:24 ‘desires’ is the bad site; one word here.
Basis The fixing of Rom 1:24 · Gal 5:16.
Rejected Being with Christ cannot be called ‘lust’ — one Greek word bearing both sides is recorded below.
Lost in translation
ἐπιθυμία — Rom 1:24 ‘desires’ and here ‘desire’ are one word; the rendering keeps one.
πολλῷ μᾶλλον κρεῖσσον — a triple comparison. ‘Far · better · by much’ carry all three.
μενῶ καὶ παραμενῶ (v.25) — ‘remain · remain with’ show a verb and its compound.
ἀναλύω — Luke 12:36 ‘return’ and here ‘depart’ are one word (loose). Rendered apart.
Why this rendering
Phil.1.27 Observation
Syntactic observation
Μόνον ἀξίως τοῦ εὐαγγελίου τοῦ Χριστοῦ πολιτεύεσθε, … ὅτι στήκετε ἐν ἑνὶ πνεύματι, μιᾷ ψυχῇ συναθλοῦντες τῇ πίστει τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, καὶ μὴ πτυρόμενοι ἐν μηδενὶ ὑπὸ τῶν ἀντικειμένων (ἥτις ἐστὶν αὐτοῖς ἔνδειξις ἀπωλείας, ὑμῶν δὲ σωτηρίας … τὸν αὐτὸν ἀγῶνα ἔχοντες — Only live as citizens worthily of the gospel of Christ … that you stand in one spirit, with one life contending together for the faith of the gospel, and not being scared in anything by those who oppose (which is to them a showing of destruction, but of your salvation … having the same contest. πολιτεύομαι is the verb of Acts 23:1 ‘I have lived as a citizen’ — Acts 16:12 calls Philippi a κολωνία (colony; the only place of that word in the New Testament), and 3:20 πολίτευμα ‘citizenship’ answers it. μιᾷ ψυχῇ ‘with one life’ — ψυχή fixed as ‘life’; 2:2 σύμψυχοι · 2:20 ἰσόψυχον return to the root (each once in the New Testament). συναθλέω occurs twice (4:3) — ‘contend together’. πτύρομαι occurs once — ‘be scared’. ἥτις is feminine — it takes up the whole preceding clause while drawn to the following ἔνδειξις (feminine), hence ‘which’. The base text’s parentheses (vv.28-29) are carried over. ⸀ὑμῶν (Received Text ὑμῖν) — ‘of your salvation’. ἀγών, six times in the New Testament — ‘contest’.
Rendering options · 4
Basis ‘Live as a citizen’ as fixed at Acts 23:1 — in the colony of Philippi (Acts 16:12), the word 3:20 ‘citizenship’ answers.
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected πολίτης (citizen) is inside the word, and the echo with 3:20 would be cut.
Basis ψυχή fixed as ‘life’ — the ψυχ- compounds of 2:2 · 2:20 return to the root.
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected ‘Mind’ belongs to καρδία · νοῦς — that 2:2 ‘thinking the same … of one life’ uses two words would vanish.
Lost in translation
πολιτεύεσθε (1:27) / πολίτευμα (3:20) — ‘live as citizens / citizenship’ keep the root.
ἥτις (v.28) — the feminine relative drawn to the following ἔνδειξις. ‘Which’ shows no gender.
The base text’s parentheses (vv.28-29) — carried over.
συναθλοῦντες (v.27) / ἀγῶνα (v.30) — two words of different roots (συναθλέω · ἀγών), yet ‘contending / contest’ share a piece.
πτυρόμενοι (v.28) — ‘be scared’ stays apart from φοβέομαι ‘fear’.