1 ¶ Paul and Timothy, slaves of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:

2 G race be unto you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

3 ¶ I thank my God upon every remembrance of you

4 a lways in every prayer of mine for you all, making request with joy,

5 f or your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now,

6 b eing confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Jesus Christ.

7 ¶ Even as it is right for me to think this of you all because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are joint partakers of my grace.

8 F or God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ.

9 ¶ And this I pray that your charity may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all perception,

10 t hat ye may approve the best, that ye may be sincere and without offense until the day of Christ,

11 b eing filled with fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.

12 ¶ But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel,

13 s o that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace and in all other places;

14 a nd many of the brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.

15 S ome indeed preach the Christ even out of envy and strife, but others also out of good will.

16 S ome preach the Christ out of contention, not sincerely, supposing to add tribulation to my bonds,

17 b ut the others out of charity, knowing that I am placed here for the defense of the gospel.

18 W hat then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in pretense, or in truth, Christ is preached, and I therein do rejoice, and will even rejoice.

19 F or I know that this shall become my saving health through your prayer and the nourishment of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,

20 a ccording to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death.

21 ¶ For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.

22 B ut if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour, yet I do not know what to choose.

23 F or I am in a strait between the two, having a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better:

24 n evertheless, to abide in the flesh is more needful for you.

25 A nd having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith,

26 t hat your glorying in Jesus Christ may be more abundant by my coming to you again.

27 ¶ Only let your conversation be as is worthy of the gospel of Christ, that whether I come and see you or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, unanimous, working together for the faith of the gospel,

28 a nd in nothing terrified by your adversaries, which is to them an evident token of perdition, but to you of saving health and that of God.

29 F or unto you it is granted regarding Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake,

30 h aving the same conflict which ye saw in me and now hear to be in me.