Philippians 3
Rejoice in the Lord. Watch out for the dogs, the bad workers, the mutilation — we are the circumcision, serving by the Spirit, boasting in Christ, not trusting in flesh. If anyone could trust in flesh, I more — circumcised the eighth day, of Israel, of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews, a Pharisee, a persecutor in zeal, faultless in the law’s righteousness. But what was gain I count loss because of Christ — the knowledge of Christ is higher, all things are rubbish, to gain him and be found in him with the righteousness through faith of Christ, not from law. To know him, the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, conformed to his death, to arrive at the resurrection out from the dead. Not already received, not already completed — seized by Christ, he pursues to seize, forgetting what is behind, stretching forward to the prize of the calling above. Imitate me; the enemies of the cross have the belly for god. Our citizenship is in the heavens, and the saviour from there will reshape the body of lowliness to the form of the body of his glory.
Why this rendering
Phil.3.2 Observation
Syntactic observation
Βλέπετε τοὺς κύνας, βλέπετε τοὺς κακοὺς ἐργάτας, βλέπετε τὴν κατατομήν. ἡμεῖς γάρ ἐσμεν ἡ περιτομή, οἱ πνεύματι θεοῦ λατρεύοντες καὶ καυχώμενοι ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ καὶ οὐκ ἐν σαρκὶ πεποιθότες — Watch out for the dogs, watch out for the bad workers, watch out for the mutilation. For we are the circumcision, who serve by the Spirit of God and boast in Christ Jesus and do not trust in flesh. Three βλέπετε stand in the same place with only the object changing — the site-rule of 1 Cor 8:9 ‘watch out’ (warning), the same word three times. κατατομή occurs once in the New Testament — ‘cutting down’ set against περιτομή (‘cutting around’, circumcision). The two words share the ‘cutting’ piece in a play on words that ‘mutilation / circumcision’ cannot carry. κύων is Matt 7:6 ‘dog’. λατρεύω is Acts 24:14 ‘serve’; the dative πνεύματι is ‘by the Spirit’ — not read as ‘serve the Spirit’. πεποιθότες at the end of v.3 and πεποίθησιν · πεποιθέναι in v.4 are one root three times — ‘trust · confidence · trust’.
Rendering options · 3
Basis ‘Cutting down’ set against περιτομή (circumcision) — kept as a different word from ‘circumcision’.
Basis The familiar renderings.
Rejected ‘Concision’ is opaque and the Korean familiar rendering adds a party and a hand — the word is one noun of cutting.
Basis The dative with λατρεύω is the means of service — the same construction as Rom 1:9 ‘whom I serve in my spirit’.
Lost in translation
κατατομήν / περιτομή — a play on the shared ‘cutting’ piece. ‘Mutilation / circumcision’ have no shared piece.
Three βλέπετε — ‘watch out’ three times shows one word.
πεποιθότες (v.3) · πεποίθησιν · πεποιθέναι (v.4) — one root three times. ‘Trust / confidence’ split at the noun.
Why this rendering
Phil.3.5 Observation
Syntactic observation
περιτομῇ ὀκταήμερος, ἐκ γένους Ἰσραήλ, φυλῆς Βενιαμίν, Ἑβραῖος ἐξ Ἑβραίων, κατὰ νόμον Φαρισαῖος, κατὰ ζῆλος διώκων τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, κατὰ δικαιοσύνην τὴν ἐν νόμῳ γενόμενος ἄμεμπτος — in circumcision of the eighth day, of the race of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews, according to law a Pharisee, according to zeal persecuting the assembly, according to the righteousness that is in law, having become faultless. A verbless list of seven — the first four are birth (dative · ἐκ · genitive · ἐξ), the last three κατά (‘according to’). ὀκταήμερος occurs once in the New Testament — ‘of the eighth day’ in one word. Ἑβραῖος is ‘Hebrew’ in Paul’s letters (2 Cor 11:22), as the fixing at Acts 6:1 ‘Hebrew-speaking Jew’ noted in advance. ζῆλος is John 2:17 ‘zeal’; Gal 1:13 names the same persecution with the same word. ἄμεμπτος in v.6 is the word set as ‘faultless’ at 2:15 — the predicate of ‘according to the righteousness that is in law’. ⸀ζῆλος (neuter form — the Received Text has masculine ζῆλον) is the base text’s reading.
Rendering options · 3
Basis The text is not a sentence ‘circumcised on the eighth day’ but a single adjective — the first item of the list.
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected It supplies a verb to a verbless list and adds ‘after birth’.
Basis The fixing at Acts 6:1 marked out the Pauline sites in advance.
Lost in translation
A verbless list of seven (vv.5-6) — the rendering keeps it verbless.
ὀκταήμερος — ‘of the eighth day’ unfolds one word into a phrase.
Three κατά (vv.5-6) — ‘according to’ three times shows one preposition.
διώκων (v.6) / διώκω (vv.12 · 14) — ‘persecute / pursue’ split one verb.
Why this rendering
Phil.3.8 Observation
Syntactic observation
Ἀλλὰ ἅτινα ἦν μοι κέρδη, ταῦτα ἥγημαι διὰ τὸν Χριστὸν ζημίαν. ἀλλὰ μενοῦνγε καὶ ἡγοῦμαι πάντα ζημίαν εἶναι διὰ τὸ ὑπερέχον τῆς γνώσεως Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ τοῦ κυρίου μου δι’ ὃν τὰ πάντα ἐζημιώθην, καὶ ἡγοῦμαι σκύβαλα ἵνα Χριστὸν κερδήσω — But whatever things were gains to me, these I have counted loss because of Christ. Yes rather, I even count all things to be loss because of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord being higher — because of whom I suffered the loss of all things, and I count them rubbish, so that I may gain Christ. κέρδη (plural) · ζημίαν · ἐζημιώθην · κερδήσω — gain and loss face each other twice each. On the gain side ‘gain / gain’ (κέρδος · κερδαίνω) keep the root; on the loss side ‘loss / suffer loss’ (ζημία · ζημιόω) keep it too. ἥγημαι (perfect) → ἡγοῦμαι (present), twice — ‘I have counted / I count’. τὸ ὑπερέχον τῆς γνώσεως is the neuter participle of 2:3 ‘be higher’ — ‘the knowledge … being higher’. The genitive of γνώσεως Χριστοῦ is left open as ‘the knowledge of Christ’. σκύβαλα occurs once in the New Testament — ‘rubbish’. ⸀μενοῦνγε · ⸀σκύβαλα (the Received Text without the conjunction) are readings of the base text.
Rendering options · 3
Basis κέρδος ‘gain’ (Phil 1:21) · ζημία ‘loss’ (Acts 27:10) · ζημιόω ‘suffer loss’ (1 Cor 3:15) · κερδαίνω ‘gain’ (Matt 16:26) as fixed.
Basis The familiar renderings.
Rejected ‘Profit’ belongs to συμφέρω · ὠφελέω, and ‘lose’ to ἀπόλλυμι.
Basis Not closed as ‘knowing Christ’ — v.10 ‘to know him’ gives the direction.
Lost in translation
κέρδη (v.7) / κερδήσω (v.8) — ‘gains / gain’ keep the root.
ζημίαν / ἐζημιώθην (v.8) — ‘loss / suffered the loss’ keep the root.
ἥγημαι (v.7 perfect) / ἡγοῦμαι (v.8 present, twice) — ‘have counted / count’ carry the tense.
γνώσεως Χριστοῦ — subjective or objective genitive, open. ‘The knowledge of Christ Jesus’ keeps it open.
Why this rendering
Phil.3.12 Observation
Syntactic observation
Οὐχ ὅτι ἤδη ἔλαβον ἢ ἤδη τετελείωμαι, διώκω δὲ εἰ καὶ καταλάβω, ἐφ’ ᾧ καὶ κατελήμφθην ὑπὸ Χριστοῦ. ἀδελφοί, ἐγὼ ἐμαυτὸν οὐ λογίζομαι κατειληφέναι· ἓν δέ, τὰ μὲν ὀπίσω ἐπιλανθανόμενος τοῖς δὲ ἔμπροσθεν ἐπεκτεινόμενος, κατὰ σκοπὸν διώκω εἰς τὸ βραβεῖον τῆς ἄνω κλήσεως τοῦ θεοῦ ἐν Χριστῷ Ἰησοῦ — Not that I already received or have already been completed, but I pursue, if I may also seize that for which I was also seized by Christ. Brothers, I do not reckon myself to have seized it; but one thing — forgetting the things behind and stretching forward to the things before, I pursue toward the goal, unto the prize of the calling above, of God in Christ Jesus. λαμβάνω · καταλαμβάνω (active · passive · perfect infinitive) are one root four times — ‘receive / seize · was seized · have seized’. καταλαμβάνω is John 1:5 · 1 Cor 9:24 ‘seize’ — 1 Cor 9:24 uses the same word in the same picture of the race (βραβεῖον ‘prize’ is in that verse too). The two διώκω (vv.12 · 14) are Rom 9:30 ‘pursue’ — one verb with v.6 ‘persecute’. τετελείωμαι is the perfect passive of Luke 13:32 ‘be completed’, one root with v.15 τέλειοι ‘complete’. ἓν δέ is verbless — ‘but one thing —’. ἐπεκτείνομαι occurs once in the New Testament — Matt 12:13 ‘stretch out’ with ἐπ-; σκοπός also once (the noun of σκοπέω ‘look to’, ‘goal’). ⸀Χριστοῦ · ⸀οὐ · ⸀εἰς are readings of the base text.
Rendering options · 4
Basis ‘Seize’ as fixed at John 1:5 · 1 Cor 9:24 — the race and prize of 1 Cor 9:24 are the same picture.
Basis The familiar renderings.
Rejected One verb would split three ways, and ‘obtain’ overlaps κερδαίνω ‘gain’ (v.8).
Basis ‘Be completed’ as fixed at Luke 13:32.
Basis A rendering that would keep the root with v.15 ‘complete’.
Rejected ‘Perfect’ is not the fixed word; the verb τελειόω is ‘be completed’ — the root is recorded below.
Lost in translation
ἔλαβον / καταλάβω / κατελήμφθην / κατειληφέναι — one root four times. ‘Received / seize’ split the first from the rest.
τετελείωμαι (v.12) / τέλειοι (v.15) — ‘completed / complete’ keep the root.
ἓν δέ — the verbless ‘but one thing —’ kept verbless.
σκοπόν (v.14) / σκοπεῖτε (v.17) — ‘goal / look to’ split the root.
ἐπεκτεινόμενος — ‘stretching forward’ keeps the piece of Matt 12:13 ‘stretch out’.
Why this rendering
Phil.3.20 Observation
Syntactic observation
ἡμῶν γὰρ τὸ πολίτευμα ἐν οὐρανοῖς ὑπάρχει, ἐξ οὗ καὶ σωτῆρα ἀπεκδεχόμεθα κύριον Ἰησοῦν Χριστόν, ὃς μετασχηματίσει τὸ σῶμα τῆς ταπεινώσεως ἡμῶν σύμμορφον τῷ σώματι τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ κατὰ τὴν ἐνέργειαν τοῦ δύνασθαι αὐτὸν καὶ ὑποτάξαι αὑτῷ τὰ πάντα — For our citizenship is in the heavens, from which we also await eagerly a saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will reshape the body of our lowliness to be of the same form as the body of his glory, according to the working of his being able also to subject all things to himself. πολίτευμα occurs once in the New Testament — 1:27 ‘live as citizens’ returns. σωτήρ is without article — ‘a saviour’, the name following. μετασχηματίζω (reshape — the word of 2 Cor 11:13) and σύμμορφος (of the same form — Rom 8:29) stand in one verse and take up the μορφή (form) and σχῆμα (shape) of 2:6-8 — ‘reshape … of the same form’. τὸ σῶμα τῆς ταπεινώσεως is the genitive of Luke 1:48 ‘lowliness’ — not paraphrased ‘lowly body’. ἐνέργεια is Eph 1:19 ‘working’. ⸀ἡμῶν · ⸀αὑτῷ are readings of the base text.
Rendering options · 3
Basis μετασχηματίζω ‘reshape’ (1 Cor 4:6) · σύμμορφος ‘of the same form’ (Rom 8:29) as fixed — the ‘form · shape’ of 2:6-8 return.
Basis The familiar rendering.
Rejected σχῆμα (shape) and μορφή (form) inside the words would vanish — the echo of ch. 2 would be cut.
Basis ταπείνωσις ‘lowliness’ as fixed at Luke 1:48 — the genitive paired with ‘the body of glory’.
Lost in translation
πολίτευμα (3:20) / πολιτεύεσθε (1:27) — ‘citizenship / live as citizens’ keep the root.
μετασχηματίσει / σύμμορφον (v.21) ↔ σχήματι / μορφῇ (2:7-8) — ‘shape / form’ link the two chapters.
τῆς ταπεινώσεως ἡμῶν / τῆς δόξης αὐτοῦ — two paired genitives. ‘Body of lowliness / body of glory’ ○.
σωτῆρα — anarthrous ‘a saviour’. The indefinite article carries it.