Every time I remember you I thank my God,

And I have a right to think this way about you, because I always have you in my heart, whether shut up in prison or out defending and vindicating the good news, for you are sharers with me of God's favor.

For God is my witness how I never stop yearning for all of you with the affection Christ Jesus inspires.

And it is my prayer that your love may overflow still more and more, directed by fuller knowledge and keener insight,

so that you may always approve the better things, and be men of transparent character and blameless life,

Now I want you to rest assured, brothers, that those things which have befallen me have actually resulted in the progress of the good news;

and that most of the Christian brothers have grown confident enough, because of my imprisonment, to dare to tell God's message without being afraid.

the latter, indeed, are doing so from love to me, for they know that I am providentially put here to defend the good news;

the former are preaching Christ from the motive of rivalry, not in sincerity, supposing that this is making it harder for me to bear my imprisonment.

What difference then does it make? In one way or another, whether in pretense or in sincerity, Christ is being preached, and that is the thing that makes me glad; yes, more too, I will continue to be glad of it,

for I know that through your prayers and a bountiful supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my spiritual welfare,

in accordance with my eager expectation and hope that I shall never disgrace myself, but that now as always hitherto, by my all-conquering courage, whether by living or dying, Christ will be honored in me.

For to me living means Christ and dying brings gain.

But if to keep on living here means fruit from my labor, I cannot tell which to choose.

And yet for your sakes it is very necessary for me to stay on here.

which will result in your joy; so that, through union with Christ Jesus, you may have more than sufficient ground for boasting about me, through my being with you again.

Only you must practice living lives that are worthy of the good news, so that whether I come and see you or stay away, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, and that with one purpose you are continuing to cooperate in the fight for faith in the good news.

since you are having the same struggle that you once saw me have and which you hear that I am still having.

fill up my cup of joy by living in harmony, by fostering the same disposition of love, your hearts beating in unison, your minds set on one purpose.

So, my dearly loved friends, as you have always been obedient, so now with reverence and awe keep on working clear down to the finishing point of your salvation not only as though I were with you but much more because I am away;

so that you may prove to be blameless and spotless, faultless children of God in a crooked and perverted age, in which you shine as light-bearers in the world as you continue

to hold up the message of life. That will give me ground for boasting on the day of Christ, because neither my career nor my labor has been a failure.

Yes, even if I am pouring out my life as a libation on the sacrifice and service your faith is rendering, I am glad to do so and congratulate you upon it;

you too must do likewise, be glad of it, and congratulate me.

I hope, with the approval of the Lord Jesus, soon to send Timothy to you, so that I too may be cheered on getting the news about you.

But you know his tested character, how like a son in fellowship with his father he has toiled with me like a slave in preaching the good news.

So I hope to send him to you just as soon as I can see how my case is going to turn out.

But I think it proper now to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow-laborer, and fellow-soldier, but your messenger to minister to my needs,

For he was so sick that he was on the point of dying, but God took pity on him, and not only on him but on me too, to keep me from having one sorrow after another.

I very eagerly send him, so that when you see him you may be glad of it, and I may be less sorrowful.

because he came near dying for the sake of the Lord's work and risked his life to make up for your lack of opportunity to minister to me.

Finally, my brothers, continue to be glad that you are in union with the Lord. I am not tired of writing you the same things over and over: it means your safety.

But for Christ's sake I have counted all that was gain to me as loss.

Yes, indeed, I certainly do count everything as loss compared with the priceless privilege of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have lost everything, and value it all as mere refuse, in order to gain Christ

and be actually in union with Him, not having a supposed right standing with God which depends on my doing what the law commands, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the real right standing with God which originates from Him and rests on faith.

in the hope of attaining, in some measure, the resurrection that lifts me out from among the dead.

Brothers, I do not think that I have captured it yet, but here is my one aspiration, so forgetting what is behind me and reaching out for what is ahead of me,

Follow my example, brothers, and keep your eyes on those who practice living by the pattern we have set you.

So, my dearly loved brothers, whom I long to see, my joy and crown, by the help of the Lord keep on standing firm, dearly loved friends.

And I solemnly beg you, my true comrade, keep on cooperating with those two women, because they shared with me the struggle in spreading the good news, together with Clement and the rest of my fellow-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Practice the things you learned, received, and heard from me, things that you saw me do, and then the God who gives us peace will be with you.

I was made very happy as a Christian to have your interest in my welfare revived again after so long; because you have always had the interest but not the opportunity to show it.

I can do anything through Him who gives me strength.

But you did me a kindness to share my sorrow with me.

And you Philippians yourselves know that immediately after the good news was first preached to you, when I left Macedonia, no church but yours went into partnership with me to open an account of credits and debits.

Even while I was at Thessalonica you sent money more than once for my needs.

My God will amply supply your every need, through Christ Jesus, from His riches in glory.

Remember me to every one of God's people in union with Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me wish to be remembered to you.