Beware of dogs (Philippians 1-4)

Episode 287: Beware of dogs

Philippians 1-4

Greetings and Salutations!

1 ¹ From Paul and Timothy to the saints, bishops, and deacons in Philippi.

⁷ I am thinking of you while I am here in prison.

⁸ I long for you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.

¹⁰ I pray that you'll be blameless until the day of Christ.

To die is gain (Is Paul contemplating suicide here?)

¹³ Everyone here knows that I am imprisoned for Christ.

²⁰ Christ will be magnified in my body, whether I live or die.

²¹ To me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

²² I'm not sure which I should do.

²³ I'd like to be with Christ, which would be much better.

²⁴ But if I live, I could be more helpful to you.

²⁵ So for your sake, I'll continue to live.

Every knee must bow (to the name of Jesus)

2 ³ Treat others with respect, valuing them more than yourself.

⁴ Don't just look after your own things but consider the needs of others.

⁵ So in this, you'll be like Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, didn't try to make himself equal to God.

⁹ So God gave him the best name ever.

¹⁰ Every knee must bow to the name of Jesus.

¹¹ And everyone must say that Jesus is Lord.

Work out your own salvation (with fear and trembling)

¹² Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

¹⁵ So you can be sons of God.

Future visits to Philippi

¹⁹ Jesus will send Timothy to you pretty soon.

²⁴ I hope to visit you soon, as well.

²⁵ I'll send Epaphroditus too.

²⁶ He knows you've been worried about him after hearing that he was sick.

²⁷ And he nearly died, but God had mercy on him.

And finally, beware of dogs

3 ^1-2 And finally, beware of dogs, evil workers, and those who want to mutilate the flesh.

³ Because we are the ones who are truly circumcised.

⁴ So if anyone can boast about his flesh, I can.

⁵ I was circumcised when I was eight days old.

⁸ I've lost everything (it's all dung to me) to win Christ.

¹⁷ Follow me. Mark those who follow me and set them as an example.

¹⁸ Many others are the enemies of the cross of Christ.

¹⁹ They will be destroyed. Their God is their belly, and their glory is their shame.

²¹ Jesus will change our vile bodies into glorified ones.

Jesus will be here soon

4 ² I ask Euodia and Syntyche to come to an agreement.

³ And I ask you to help these two women who have helped me spread the gospel.

⁵ The Lord will be returning very soon.

⁸ Think about and value whatever is true, honest, just, pure, lovely, good, virtuous, and worthy of praise.

⁹ Follow my example by doing whatever you've seen me do or say.

¹³ I can do all things with Christ strengthening me.

¹⁸ I have received from Epaphroditus the gift that you sent. It had a sweet smell and was very pleasing to God.

¹⁹ My God will take care of all of your needs.

²³ Amen.

A few more words about this episode

From Paul and Timothy to the saints, bishops, and deacons in Philippi. (1:1): Most scholars believe that Philippians was written by Paul, but not as a single letter. It is thought to be a composite of at least two separate letters. (Wikipedia: Epistle to the Philippians); Philippi was a city in northeastern Greece. Paul visited it on his second missionary journey (Acts 16:9-10, ca. 49-50 CE).; Timothy was a companion of Paul who was circumcised by Paul in Acts 16.
I am thinking of you while I am here in prison. (1:7): Paul claims to be writing from prison, but, if so, no one seems to know where that might have been.
I'm not sure which I should do. (1:22): Paul seems to be contemplating suicide here.
What the Bible says about suicide
Epaphroditus (2:25): Epaphroditus is only mentioned in Philippians. He was a messenger from Philippi, who delivered some money from the Philippian church to Paul. (See 4:18)
And finally (3:1): Finally? It seems a bit strange to say "finally" in the middle of a letter.; That's one of the reasons Bible scholars think Philippians may have been cut and pasted from several letters.
Beware of dogs (3:2): I'm not sure who Paul is calling "dogs" here, but in the Bible, it usually refers to non-Jews, temple prostitutes, or (possibly) homosexuals. (See Dt 23:18, Mk 7:27-28, Rev 22:15); But since, in this passage, Paul is condemning Christians who say gentile converts must be circumcised, he is probably referring to them.
Euodia and Syntyche (4:2): Euodia (the KJV mistakenly has "Eudodias") and Syntyche were two women in Philippi who were involved in some kind of argument. It is interesting Paul permitted women to work with him in his preaching activities.
I can do all things with Christ strengthening me. (4:13): Christians are superhuman and omnipotent. They can do whatever they want.; This is often used by Christian athletes - as made famous by Tim Tebow.
I have received from Epaphroditus the gift that you sent. (4:18): I have received from Epaphroditus the gift that you sent.