I REJOICE GREATLY in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. 11I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
14Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles. 15Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; 16for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. 17Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account. 18I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. 19And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
20To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
21Greet all the saints in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send greetings. 22All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar’s household.
23The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
Original Meaning
PAUL ENDS HIS letter with a paragraph of thanks to the Philippians for their gifts to him through Epaphroditus (4:10–20), some final words of greeting (4:21–22), and a benediction (4:23). The first section is the longest and most theologically significant, although both the final greetings and the benediction are much more than routine pleasantries.
Thanks, Sort of (4:10–20)
In 4:10–20 Paul returns to the themes and style of the letter’s opening prayer (1:3–11). The similarities between the two sections include the note of joy that begins each section (1:4/4:10), the concern of each section with the Philippians’ practical display of fellowship with Paul in the work of the gospel (1:5, 7/4:10, 14, 18), the importance to each section of the Philippians’ progress in the faith (1:6, 9–11/4:17b), and the conclusion of each section with an ascription of glory to God (1:11/4:20). In 4:10–20, then, Paul provides a fitting conclusion to the body of the letter by visiting again the central themes of the letter’s opening.
The section is basically an expression of thanks to the Philippians for a monetary gift they sent to him through their messenger Epaphroditus. The note of appreciation appears in three places: in verse 10, where Paul speaks of his great joy because of the Philippians’ expression of concern for him; in verse 14, where he tells them that “it was good” of them to help him in his affliction; and in verse 18, where he uses both financial and cultic metaphors to describe the immense value of their gift to him. Paul’s expression of thanks is qualified, however, by two efforts to distance himself from the Philippians’ gift. In verses 11–13 he claims that ultimately he did not need their gift, and in verse 17 he says that he did not seek it.
Why this concern? Paul’s use of a series of financial terms in verses 17b–18a shows that the gift at least included, and was perhaps entirely composed of, money. Yet Paul was always circumspect about money matters. Charlatan philosophers were a frequent sight on the street corners of cities like Philippi in ancient times. They dressed like philosophers, and many were able to gather a following that was willing not only to hear and submit to them but to give them financial support. According to the second-century satirist Lucian, “they collect tribute, going from house to house, or, as they themselves express it, they ‘shear the sheep’: and they expect many to give, either out of respect for their cloth or for fear of their abusive language.”1
Like itinerant philosophers both sincere and otherwise, Paul sometimes preached in the open and sometimes used the workshop as a platform for evangelistic efforts.2 Because of this resemblance, Paul was aware that misunderstanding could arise if he depended on the churches he established for his financial support. Although he recognized the principle that those primarily responsible for the spiritual nurture of a Christian community could ask for the community’s financial support (1 Cor. 9:3–14; 2 Thess. 3:9; 1 Tim. 5:17–18), he usually refused such support to avoid even a hint of an unfair scandal over his proclamation of the gospel. “We did not use this right,” he explains to the Corinthians. “On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ” (1 Cor. 9:12b; cf. 1 Thess. 2:1–12).3
In addition, Paul took precautions with his collection for the needy believers in Jerusalem to be sure that everyone understood his intentions and to make certain that no cause for scandal could develop. Thus, when Paul asked the Corinthians to contribute to the collection, he told them that after the funds had been gathered, emissaries from the Corinthian church itself would carry them to Jerusalem and that he would only accompany the group if it seemed advisable (1 Cor. 16:4). Other churches in which Paul had raised funds for this special project contributed their own representatives to the embassy (Acts 20:4; 2 Cor. 8:18–19). Paul apparently insisted on it, “for we are taking pains to do what is right,” he explains, “not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men” (2 Cor. 8:21).
In Philippians 4:10–20, therefore, Paul faces the difficult task of showing the Philippians his genuine appreciation for their financial support, both past and present, but of also showing that his work is neither dependent on nor motivated by this support. He does this through combining expressions of gratitude with qualifications designed to prevent misunderstanding.
Paul begins in verse 10 with an exuberant expression of joy that the Philippians have again shown their concern for him. The Philippians had generously supplemented the income Paul earned in the workshop during his attempts to establish other churches both in Macedonia (4:15–16) and Achaia (2 Cor. 11:7–9).4 Perhaps because of their poverty (2 Cor. 8:1–2), however, they had not been able to help Paul in this way recently. Thus Paul rejoices “greatly” that the opportunity to show their concern for him has returned.
Despite this, Paul wants the Philippians to know that his joy does not depend on the alleviation of his physical discomfort; thus, although he is in prison, Paul says that he is not in need (vv. 11–13). He has learned to be content in every circumstance. The term “content” (autarkes, v. 11) was used by Stoic philosophers of Paul’s time to mean “self-sufficient,” and in their view this characteristic was the most valuable attribute of the wise person.5 Indeed, like the wise Stoic, Paul does not consider physical deprivation an unmitigated disaster nor physical comfort the sign of success. But unlike the Stoic, Paul does not find the resources for this attitude in himself. They reside instead in the Lord, through whom he can face all things (v. 13).6
So Paul remains unperturbed either by his own imprisonment and possible death or by fellow believers who seek to intensify his suffering. As long as Christ is being preached, Paul is joyful (1:18), and he does not want the Philippians to think that the physical comfort their gifts have made possible has increased his ability to cope with the difficulties at hand.
The apostle is also concerned that the Philippians not read his comments as ingratitude. Thus, he follows this qualification with a second expression of appreciation to the Philippians for their generosity both present and past (vv. 14–16). Unlike the believers around him who have stirred up “trouble” (thlipsis) for him in his imprisonment (1:17), the Philippians have shared in Paul’s “troubles” (thlipsis, 4:14). They have done this through a practical display of their mutual friendship: Not only has Paul given to them spiritually, but they have given to him financially.7
Paul is still not satisfied that he has forestalled misunderstanding about his attitude toward this financial help, however. So in verse 17 he explains that he does not “wish for” a gift.8 His hope instead is that the Philippians’ account might grow ever greater. The NIV’s “what may be credited to your account” is more literally “continuously increasing profit for your account,” and the imagery is of a bank account that receives compounded interest.9 The phrase “what may be credited” (karpos), moreover, renders the same Greek word Paul used in 1:11 to refer to the Philippians’ “fruit” of righteousness on the final day. The notion of a future day when the Philippians would give an account of themselves before Christ, therefore, is probably not far from Paul’s mind. If so, this verse means that Paul was not interested in the gifts that the Philippians had sent for his own advantage, but for the Philippians’ spiritual advantage. Their generosity was a concrete demonstration that God was completing the good work that he had started in them when they believed the gospel (1:6).
In verse 18 the emphasis shifts again to gratitude. Paul at first continues the financial imagery and, perhaps with a touch of friendly humor, composes a “receipt” for the Philippians’ gifts to him. Behind the NIV’s “I have received full payment” stands a technical term from the business world of Paul’s day (apecho), which was often used to refer to the receipt of full payment for goods delivered or services rendered.10 Paul says that he has not only received full payment from his friends at Philippi, but that they have paid him more than enough.
Paul then drops the financial metaphor and begins to speak in language that the Old Testament uses to describe the sacrifices of God’s people (see, e.g., Ex. 29:18, 25, 41; Lev. 1:3–4; 17:4; 19:5; 22:19–20). In Israel’s history these sacrifices were often corrupted by the people’s idolatrous practices or social injustices. But Isaiah looks forward to a time when God’s people will once again offer “acceptable” sacrifices to the Lord (Isa. 56:7; 60:7). Perhaps Paul understands the generous commitment the Philippians have shown to the gospel to be a partial fulfillment of these prophecies within the new Israel.11 In any case, the adjectives “fragrant,” “acceptable,” and “pleasing” will leave no doubt in the Philippians’ minds that Paul is grateful to them for their gifts.
In response to these gifts, Paul says, God will meet all of the Philippians’ needs (v. 19). As with God’s exaltation of Christ to the highest place in 2:9–11, this response is not recompense but God’s gracious and freely given blessing. Interpreters have engaged in a vigorous debate over precisely what this blessing is. Does it cover only material needs? Only spiritual needs? Both? Certainly it may cover some physical needs (v. 16), but if Paul’s own understanding of “need” (vv. 11–13) is the key to understanding the term here, then surely Paul is promising that God will supply the Philippians with the greatest need of all—the ability to face all circumstances through the one who gives them strength (v. 13).
Paul ends his expression of gratitude to the Philippians for their partnership with a doxology that echoes the note of praise at the end of the letter’s opening prayer (v. 20; cf. 1:11). Here, as there, this is more than a perfunctory expression of piety. It focuses the reader’s attention on the primary goal both of Paul’s apostolic vocation and of the Philippians’ participation in it: God’s glory.
Greetings and Grace (4:21–23)
Paul closes his letter with what at first looks like an uninteresting greeting formula and a routine benediction, but in light of the letter’s twin themes of internal unity in the face of dissension and outward steadfastness in the face of persecution, these seemingly humdrum features of the letter take on new meaning.
The final greetings in Philippians (vv. 21–22) are apparently formulated with care to encourage the unity of the church. Thus the way Paul phrases his personal greetings to the church is unique among his letters in its stress on each member of the congregation without distinction.12 The NIV’s rendering does not capture this nuance since the words “all” and “saints” are actually singular in Greek. Translated more literally, the sentence says, “Greet every saint in Christ Jesus,” or as one commentator puts it, “Give my greetings to each member of God’s people in Christ Jesus.”13 Just as Paul stressed the unity of the congregation at the letter’s beginning when he addressed them as “all the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi,” so here at the letter’s conclusion he again stresses the equal worth before God of each member of the congregation. Each has been set apart to belong to God’s chosen people.
The greetings from Paul’s associates are likewise general and all-encompassing in nature. They come not only from the brothers with Paul—probably a reference to close coworkers, such as Timothy—but from all the saints in the area. Paul’s only effort to make distinctions in the greeting comes in the last phrase of verse 22, where he singles out the members of Caesar’s household for special attention. If the Philippians were caught in the tension between their own civic pride as members of a Roman colony and the offense they presented to their city’s unbelieving citizenry (cf. 1:27; 3:20), then perhaps Paul hopes to encourage them with the news that even some of the Roman emperor’s staff have turned to the gospel.14
Paul concludes the letter (v. 23) in much the same way as he began it (1:2), with a reference to “the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.” The same grace that transformed Paul from a persecutor of the church into its apostle (1:7; 3:6) will sustain the Philippians as they seek to “stand firm in one Spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel” (1:27). This benediction, then, serves as much more than a rote formula tacked onto the end of the letter. It leaves ringing in the Philippians’ ears the message that the gospel, because it reveals God’s grace (charis), is good news and reason enough to rejoice (chairein) in the Lord.
Bridging Contexts
FROM PAUL’S PERSPECTIVE, the primary purpose of this passage is to show the Philippians that, while he appreciates their gifts, the chief value of their generosity does not lie in the help which it gives to him. Instead, as verses 17–18 say, it lies in increasing the spiritual capital of the Philippians and in rendering to God a fragrant, acceptable, and pleasing sacrifice. If we read verses 17–18 in light of Paul’s opening prayer in 1:3–11, moreover, we can be more specific about the way in which the Philippians’ spiritual capital has increased: Their aid to Paul demonstrates their partnership with him in the work of the gospel and shows that they are progressing in sanctification as they move toward the day of Christ.
An important subsidiary point is that God will meet the Philippians’ needs, just as he has met Paul’s. Although Paul is surrounded by hostility both from the unbelievers who have imprisoned him and from the believers whose selfish ambition has driven them to make life miserable for the apostle, and although Paul is facing a possible death sentence, God has nevertheless met his needs, not least by using these circumstances to guide him safely into salvation (1:19).15 The One who is powerful enough to subject all things to himself (3:21) therefore has enabled Paul to face even the most grim of circumstances (4:13). In the same way, the Philippians are poverty-stricken (2 Cor. 8:1–2), persecuted (1:28–30), and divided (2:14; 4:2), but God will nevertheless meet their needs out of his limitless resources (4:19). Not simply despite these hardships, but through the Philippians’ obedient handling of them, God is working in them to guide them safely to salvation (cf. 2:12–13). This is the ultimate need of God’s people, and this is the primary sense in which to understand the promise of 4:19.
These concerns can move into the modern context easily. They tell us first that our financial support of the church’s mission is at least as important for our own spiritual development as for any good that it might do those to whom we give. As Paul has said in various ways throughout this letter, and as the rest of the New Testament and church history confirms, God’s purposes will march forward despite every human hindrance, including the disobedience of his people. The accomplishment of God’s purposes does not depend on human help. When we give our lives sacrificially to his purposes, however, we benefit spiritually because we confirm that God is at work in us for the ultimate purpose of salvation. We show that we are “saints” (1:1; 4:21–22) and that we are progressing toward that day when we will stand before Christ “pure and blameless … filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through” him (1:10–11).
Paul’s subsidiary point is as true of Christians today as it was of him and the Philippians: God is fully able (4:13) and fully willing (4:19) to meet whatever needs surround the believer. Unfortunately, this principle is widely misunderstood today to refer primarily to physical needs. The literature of the infamous “prosperity gospel” movement is spangled with references to Philippians 4:19, which, it claims, promises not simply to meet the needs of believers but to supply them with luxury, in accord with God’s “riches in glory by Christ.”16
More mainstream popular expositions of Philippians are not innocent of a similar error, however. Thus one expositor illustrates verse 19 by referring to his experience of charging traveling expenses to his employer. In the same way, he says, when he shares with others, “God is coming right behind picking up the tab. He’s committed to meeting my needs.” Another explains verse 19 by means of Hudson Taylor’s famous dictum, “When God’s work is done in God’s way for God’s glory, it will not lack for God’s supply.” The reference is to the way God supplied the physical needs of this great missionary when he prayed about them.17
Certainly, verse 19 allows for the possibility that God will supply the physical needs of his people, but this is not the primary concern of the verse. We sometimes forget that many faithful Christians have suffered deeply for the sake of the gospel and have prayed as earnestly as Hudson Taylor that God might alleviate their suffering, but it has nevertheless continued. We dare not claim that the faith of these Christians was somehow flawed, that their lives were less committed than they should have been, or that their suffering must not have been as intense as we imagine. If we take Jesus and Paul as examples, it becomes apparent that sometimes obedience to the will of God requires physical deprivation to the point of death.
The promise of verse 19 must instead be linked with verse 13, and both verses must be read in light of verses 11–12: God supplies the needs of his people by giving them the resources to cope with hardship. Hardship tempts us to think that God is unmoved by our plight or is against us, and so we despair. Thus, when we experience difficult times, we need the moderating presence of God, who shows us by the cross of Christ that he is for us, not against us, and that he was so filled with love for us that he sent his Son to die on our behalf. If this powerful truth dominates our lives, then we can face even the ultimate human hardship with the equanimity of Paul (1:18b–26), and we can rest assured that God is conducting us toward salvation even in the midst of our hardship.
We should not forget, however, that we need God’s presence and help as much when we experience affluence as when we experience poverty. When life is comfortable, we are tempted to forget the grace of God and rely on ourselves.18 We forget easily that many have worked as diligently and capably as we but have not had our success. God has given it to us, not because we deserve it, but as a concrete reminder that he is a gracious God. In the midst of affluence as much as in times of deprivation, we need God’s help to survive spiritually.
As we bring Philippians 4:10–23 out of Paul’s time and into our own, then, we need to focus on the spiritual implications of poverty and wealth, of suffering and comfort. Western societies are obsessed with these issues, and for the churches within them, these verses carry a powerful message.
Contemporary Significance
MODERN CHRISTIANS TEND to view money in two ways. Sometimes they view it as a blessing to which Christians are entitled. Thus advocates of the “prosperity gospel” believe that since the curse of the law involved poverty (Deut. 28:18) and Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law (Gal. 3:13–14), the believer should no longer be subject to poverty.19 Did Jesus not preach good news to the poor (Luke 4:18; 7:22)? Does Jesus not say to give and it will be given to you (Luke 6:38), and does Paul not confirm the same principle (2 Cor. 9:6)? If these promises are true, say advocates of this position, then Christians who give away some of their income should prosper financially.20 In fact if they follow the inexorable “laws of prosperity,” Scripture promises that they will be rewarded with one hundred times what they have given away (cf. Mark 10:29–30). “The success formulas in the Word of God,” says Kenneth Copeland, “produce results when used as directed.”21
More often Christians view wealth simply as something neutral, which can be used for either good or evil purposes.22 The Christian’s responsibility is to use wealth for good purposes, to be like the two servants in the parable of the talents, who used their money wisely and pleased their master (Matt. 25:14–30; cf. Luke 19:12–27), or to be like the shrewd manager, who used “worldly wealth” to gain friends for himself (Luke 16:1–9). Wealth is a powerful tool for good, and Christians should, to paraphrase John Wesley, make all they can, save all they can, and give all they can.23
Neither of these positions, however, adequately faces the persistently cautious approach to wealth in Scripture.24 The Old Testament warns that wealth tempts those who possess it to believe that they are self-sufficient, that they have no need of God, and that they are in fact themselves gods. “Give me only my daily bread,” says Proverbs, “otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ ” (Prov. 30:8–9). Similarly, God promises destruction for the King of Tyre since his wealth has caused him to swell with pride and to claim that he is as wise as a god (Ezek. 28:5–6). The Lord also reminds Israel that when he fed them in the wilderness, they became proud and forgot him (Hos. 13:6).
The teaching of Jesus on wealth can hardly be clearer. He pronounces a woe on the rich and a blessing on the poor, and claims that the wealthy can only enter the kingdom of God with great difficulty (Matt. 19:23–24; Mark 10:23–25; Luke 6:20, 24; 18:24–25). It is true, of course, that some people who are both wealthy and righteous appear in the pages of Scripture—Abraham in the Old Testament and the wealthy women who supported Jesus in the New are two examples—but the list is remarkably short.25
Why is the Bible so wary of wealth? Jesus explains in Luke 16:1–15, where he tells the puzzling tale of a man who has mismanaged his employer’s funds and is called to account for his actions. Knowing that he will be released from his position for his actions, he “cooks the books” for his employer’s creditors so that they will be able to pay less than they actually owe. At least these partners in crime, he reasons, will look after him when he is unemployed. Strangely, the employer finds out about the swindle and commends the dishonest steward for his shrewdness.
The story is difficult at a number of levels, but according to Jesus’ subsequent commentary, it illustrates that, far from being neutral, wealth is “unrighteous” (not “worldly,” as the NIV has it).26 Apparently because it is not only unrighteous but powerful enough to sway people into unrighteous deeds, Jesus speaks of it in personified terms as a power. Money can take the place of God in one’s life. “No servant can serve two masters,” he says, “either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money” (Luke 16:13; cf. Matt. 6:24).
Jesus recognizes in these statements that for the unbelieving world, money takes on divine status. It is the god of this age, a god for which many people are willing to sacrifice their happiness, their children, their health, indeed their own lives. The “workaholic” father, seldom home and never in church because he is too busy “providing” for a family, was once a well-known fixture in our society. He has now given way to the “workaholic” couple, who hardly know their children because they are too busy paying off expensive mortgages and car loans. This kind of zeal for income borders on the irrational, and we are hardly remiss in thinking of it as “religious.”
The believer who possesses wealth should be wary of money’s ability to gain the upper hand. Like the governing structures of the society in which we live, we must make use of it, but we should always do so with our eyes open, aware that it can subtly tempt us to do homage to it rather than to God. It can lead us into dishonesty just as it did the unjust steward (Luke 16:10–12), or it can lead us to think that God has rewarded us with wealth because we are hardworking and clever.
This second deception is the more destructive because it leads us to think that God’s grace is for sale and that we have earned it. It appears alike in the smug philosophy that “God helps those who help themselves” and in the claim of one radio preacher who writes:
There are certain rules governing prosperity revealed in God’s Word. Faith causes them to function. They will work when they are put to work and they will stop working when the force of faith is stopped.27
Both claims take the initiative in blessing his people away from God and put it in human hands, for both imply that God can be manipulated. According to one view, our hard work forces God’s hand; according to the other, the mantra-like invocation of biblical words wrenched from their contexts and laden with special materialistic meaning sets in motion a divine law as impersonal as the law of gravity.28
How can Christians, who must use “unrighteous wealth” in order to survive, guard themselves from its deceptive tendency to take the place of God? In Philippians 4:10–20 Paul and the Philippians supply the antidote. Both are detached from the money they own—Paul by refusing to find contentment in the Philippians’ gift, and the Philippians by being willing to give it. Paul’s contentment rests in the advancement of the gospel, and so he is joyful despite the physical deprivations of prison and the emotional struggles of opposition from fellow believers. The Philippians’ monetary gift will help to alleviate his physical distress, and the presence of another friendly face in the form of Epaphroditus is undoubtedly an emotional comfort, but Paul can do without both; and if the gospel’s purposes will be advanced by sending Epaphroditus back, Paul is willing to do so.
The Philippians, on the other hand, by their very act of giving have refused to let their wealth control them and have instead taken control of it. They have therefore taken away its power and refused to allow it sacred status. Jacques Ellul puts it well: “There is one act par excellence which profanes money by going directly against the law of money, an act for which money is not made. This act is giving.”29 Paul rejoiced in the Philippians’ gift (4:10), then, not because he required it but because it was a useful step in their own sanctification. By giving their money, they demonstrated where their loyalties lay and strengthened their commitment to the God who would supply all that they ultimately needed through his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
And so it is with us. As Richard Foster has said, anyone with enough money to buy a book is wealthy relative to the rest of the world.30 Christians who live in the West, particularly Christians who live in North America, are especially wealthy. Yet we often accrue our wealth unreflectively, never imagining that we have invited into our homes and lives a powerful force for evil. We need to remind ourselves that wealth can deceive us into dishonest dealings with others and, even worse, into thinking that we are wealthy because we are good.
The most powerful antidote to these deceptions is to give generously from our wealth to those who have need, especially, as Paul would say, to those who are of the household of faith (Gal. 6:10). In this way we provide equality among God’s people (2 Cor. 8:13–15) and begin to view ourselves as the channel of God’s blessing to others, rather than as the recipients of payment we have earned. This will in turn serve as a powerful reminder of a principle that runs like a thread throughout Philippians, and indeed through all of Paul’s writings. It is perhaps best expressed in Romans 11:35–36:
Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him? For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever!