New Testament Reflections: Phil 1:12-18

Philippians 1:12-18

Paul's Situation and Cause for Rejoicing

Text and Translation

Now I want you to know, brothers, that my circumstances have
rather turned out into advancement of the gospel,
12 Γινωσκειν δε υμας βουλομαι, αδελφοι, οτι τα κατ εμε μαλλον
εις προκοπην του ευαγγελιου εληλυθεν

so that my chains have become manifest, among the whole
Praetorian [guard] and all the rest, that they are in Christ.
13 ωστε τους δεσμους μου φανεπους εν Χριστος γενεσθαι εν
ολω τω πραιτωριω και τοις λοιποις πασιν

And the majority of the brothers, having become confident
in the Lord by my chains, to a greater degree dare fearlessly
to speak the word.
14 και τους πλειονας των αδελφων εν κυριω πεποιθοτας
τοις δεσμοις μου περισσοτερως τολμαν αφοβως τον
λογον λαλειν

Some, on the one hand, even through envy and strife;
some, on the other hand, even through goodwill preach Christ
15 τινες μεν και δια φθονον και εριν, τινες δε και δι ευδοκιαν
τον Χπιστον κηρυσσουσιν

The ones, on the one hand, out of love, having come to know
that I am laid out for a defense of the gospel
16 οι μεν εξ αγαπης, ειδοτες οτι εις απολογιαν του
ευαγγελιου κειμαι

The ones, on the other hand, out of selfish ambition proclaim
Christ; not with pure motive, thinking to stir up trouble
in my chains.
17 οι δε εξ εριθειας τον Χριστον καταγγελλουσιν,
ουχ αγνως, οιομενοι θλιψιν εγειρεν τοις δεσμοις μου

For what then [am I concerned]? Only that in every way,
whether in pretext or in truth, Christ is proclaimed,
and in this I rejoice. But also I will rejoice.
18 Τι γαρ; πλην οτι παντι τροπω, ειτε προφασει ειτε
αληθεια, Χριστος καταγγελλεται, και εν τουτω χαιρω.
Αλλα και χαρησομαι

Commentary
1:12 The great apostle, the one commissioned and designated as the “apostle to the gentiles,” has ended up in prison due to the preaching of the gospel. What can such an event mean for the church? After all, if the greatest evangelist has been silenced and is no longer available to proclaim the gospel, what will become of the cause of Christ? Under the present circumstances, it is understandable how those in Philippi may have fallen prey to despair upon hearing the news of how things have turned out for Paul. If Paul has been thrown into prison, what will become of the rest of us? And what will become of the gospel itself? Paul’s evaluation of the situation is starkly contrasted: Now I want you to know, brothers, that my circumstances have turned out rather for the advancement of the gospel. The gospel cannot be stifled; nor can the minister of the gospel be silenced. Just when the forces of darkness seem to have made their boldest inroad against the gospel of Christ, we find that the cause of the gospel has rather been advanced.

1:13 But advanced in what way, exactly? First, it has become clear that Paul’s chains are in Christ. For a time, Christianity enjoyed the status of religio licita (legal religion) by virtue of its association with Judaism, which had legal status in Rome. However, once it became clear that this was not the same religion, the Roman authorities (who had previously dismissed the charges of the Jews against Christians as mere conflicts over interpretations within Judaism, Acts 25:19) began to imprison Christians, in many cases on trumped-up charges. Only Caesar was “Lord and Savior” (an official title reserved at that time for Nero), and to proclaim another Lord and Savior was treason.

In fact, it is likely that Paul’s own imprisonment was based on the pretense of a false charge made against him, since it is only after his imprisonment, and after he has been able to clarify his position to his jailors, that his chains have become manifest [that they are] in Christ. That is to say, Paul has not been imprisoned for committing murder, robbery, or some other crime. Rather, he is there for his commitment to Christ and the gospel; and those in charge of guarding him (the whole Praetorian) have come to realize that, as well as all the rest—likely a reference to everyone else involved in processing his case. Indeed, there is rich irony to what has happened. From Paul’s closing in 4:22—“All the saints greet you, especially those of Caesar's household”—it would seem that some involved in Paul’s legal case have already come to believe in Christ through Paul’s testimony and are now counted among the Christian brothers! Nero has therefore been thwarted. His purpose in putting Paul in prison was to put an end to Christianity by silencing its most vocal proponent, and thereby to put down the threat of a competing “Lord and Savior.” But Nero could not have anticipated the adverse consequences such a course of action would yield, primarily because he knew neither the power of the gospel nor Paul. Putting Paul in a Roman prison placed Paul in the very center of Caesar’s household, making the threat of garnering allegiance to another Lord and Savior even more ominous than before because now the enemy had made its way into the camp and was converting Caesar’s own household!

1:14 The second evidence Paul give that the gospel has been advanced is that most of the brothers, having become emboldened in the Lord by my chains, dare to a greater degree to speak the word fearlessly. Whatever deterrent Nero thought it would be to throw Paul into prison backfired. No doubt Nero assumed if he could take out the ringleader, all the others would simply admit defeat and their efforts would come to nothing. There is little that motivates the true followers of Christ to become refreshed, re-invigorated, and re-inspired; and to re-double their efforts in advancing the gospel more than news of the persecution or martyrdom of a Christian who has made Christ and the gospel his priority. That’s why reading Foxe’s Book of Martyrs encourages so many in the faith. That’s why the stories of modern martyred missionaries (Jim Elliot and the like) move us and act as catalysts for re-commitment to what’s really important in Christian life—Christ and his gospel. In a similar way, news of Paul’s imprisonment had emboldened the Christians in Rome to speak the word even more fearlessly than before.

1:15-17: Here Paul identifies two groups of people who preach Christ: (1) Some do so through envy and strife; (2) some do so through goodwill. The latter group does so out of love; the former out of selfish ambition. It is easy enough to determine who comprises the latter group; those who love and support Paul in his ministry, and who know he is laid out for a defense of the gospel. Paul’s entire life is here pictured as being “laid out,” and that in the service of the gospel, specifically to “defend” (apologia) it. Of course, this is the “life laid out” for every minister of the gospel, and every minister is charged with and responsible for that same task, whether he realizes it or not. That is, in fact, what it means to be a minister of the gospel. But in Paul’s case, that defense had reached the highest court in the land. He was now on trial for preaching the gospel, and his “defense” would soon be given before the highest official in the land. For Paul, this is not some series of unfortunate circumstances; it is rather the very fulfillment of his purpose on this earth. What others might interpret as the worst thing imaginable, Paul views as the greatest possible opportunity. He will soon have the captive ear of Caesar himself, and he will present the gospel to him and to his minions!

But what of the other group? Just who comprises the former group? Who exactly are these people who proclaim Christ through “envy and strife,” and through “selfish ambition,” and who oppose Paul and his ministry? The options are (1) they are misguided Christians, and (2) they are false teachers.

Some have contended that these are true Christians who are spiritually immature, and who have simply failed to appreciate Paul’s ministry. Support for this view falls along the following evidence. First, the immediate context favors it. This passage comes on the heels of v. 14, which refers unequivocally to the “brothers” who have become emboldened to speak the word more fearlessly than before. Paul then subcategorizes these brothers into two groups: some who are “speaking the word” through strife, and some who are “speaking the word” through goodwill. Second, Paul concludes in v. 17 with (in essence) “What does it matter as long as Christ is preached”?”—a statement that is incongruous with Paul’s sentiments elsewhere regarding false teachers.

As strong as this evidence appears at first blush, this view falters due to its inability to answer a glaring question about motivation and method. Paul informs us in v. 17 that those in the insincere group proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition in the hopes of stirring up trouble for Paul in his chains. But just how their preaching of the gospel might stir up trouble for Paul is not clear. In other words, if Paul has been thrown into prison for openly preaching the gospel, then it follows that anyone else who openly preaches the gospel places himself (not Paul)in danger of that same fate. It would be he himself who would be liable to “trouble.”

It is more likely that Paul has false teachers in mind. The remote context identifies the presence of false teachers more than once. In 3:2, Paul warns the Philippians “Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision,” and then gives us a lengthy lesson on the futility of pursuing the righteousness through Jewish law. He alludes to this same group later in the chapter when speaking of those who are “enemies of the cross of Christ” (3:18-19). It seems evident from his description and counter explanation in this chapter that Paul is referring to the same group of Judaizers that troubled many first-century churches, not least the Galatian church (see also 2 Corinthians 11). It seems justified, then, to think Paul has this same group in mind in chapter one.

But if indeed the false teachers are in mind, how can Paul “rejoice” that they are proclaiming a perversion of the gospel? Isn’t this at odds with the Paul we know; the Paul who unequivocally condemned anyone who would dare preach a distorted version of the gospel (Gal 1:8-10)? The difficulty is immediately resolved once we realize that this “proclamation” (καταγγελλω; κηρυσσω) is not precisely the same thing as evangelism (ευαγγελλιζω). These men are Paul’s enemies; and they are contributing to his trouble in prison by trumping up charges against him. The most effective way for the Judaizers to do that would be to make a clear distinction in the minds of Paul’s captors between the religio licita that they (by virtue of their association with Judaism) enjoyed, and the religio illicita that Paul was advocating; rigorously detailing the differences between what they teach and what Paul teaches, to wit: “Do you realize Paul actually teaches that all one must do to be saved is to believe in Jesus, and that there is no necessity in keeping Jewish law? Why that’s not the religio licita of Judaism!”

1:18 As much as this testimony worked against him in prison, Paul could not be happier. On the positive side, the “brothers” were preaching the gospel in truth, a phrase that acts as another telling point against the view that those in the “selfish ambition” group were Christians. Paul does not use the word we might expect if the opposing group are Christians who were preaching the true gospel, but from insincere motives. In that case, we might expect Paul to say something like “whether from false motives or true” (NIV), calling into question to the motive of such people, but not the content of what they are saying. Instead, Paul says “whether in pretense or in truth” (NASB; αληθεια, not αληθης), signifying that while one group’s gospel is “in truth,” the other’s is not. As much as this constitutes the negative side of things, Paul is still happy to let them do it. Unlike other situations in which the Judaizers masqueraded as Christians (when attempting to make inroads into the church), they were now drawing the same detailed distinctions between their teaching and Paul’s that Paul was accustomed to making in order to expose their perverse gospel. They were now doing his work for him; and in the process they were inadvertently communicating the true gospel. No wonder Paul can exclaim I rejoice; and I will rejoice!