GORDON-CONWELL THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

EXEGESIS OF PHILIPPIANS 4:10-13

SUBMITTED TO DR. ELIZABETH SHIVELY

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
NT630 - EXEGESIS OF PHILIPPIANS

BY
LARRY HACKMAN
13 AUGUST 2010
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INTRODUCTION
A careful reading of the epistle of Philippians will reveal an amazing tapestry of themes woven

together, of unity and fellowship, of joy and humility, of imitation and service, all in the light of

the theologically rich and magnificent “Christ hymn” of 2:6-11 embedded in the middle.

However, Philippians too often gets a patronizing pass by Christians. Stripping its rich themes to

a boney hulk, many use verses like “I can do all things through the one who strengthens

me” (4:13) to bolster confidence at sports events. “I have learned... how to be satisfied” (4:12)

becomes a mantra meant to quell desires. But really, how is a passage such as 4:10-13 informed

by the rest of Philippians? Is Paul’s thank-you to the Philippians only a strip-mine for bumper

sticker sayings or can it offer a deeper meaning, inseparable from the larger tapestry of the letter?

In fact, Philippians 4:10-13 is intricately linked with themes from the rest of the letter. In

particular, Paul’s response to the Christ hymn in 2:12-13 provides the argument for this paper:

Paul sees the Philippian’s gift as evidence of the “working out” of their salvation, to which Paul

responds with his shared experience of transformation, all of which is an outflow of God’s work

in both of them.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT
The Epistle to the Philippians is recognized by scholars as being written by Paul with little

opinion to the contrary, though the authorship of the Christ hymn in the middle of the epistle has

been widely contested as possibly being a hymn of the early church.1 Rome has traditionally

been understood as the place Paul was writing from because of his mentions of “Caesar’s

household” and the “praetorium,”2 among other reasons, but because of the distance between

1D.A. Carson and Douglas J. Moo, An Introduction to the New Testament-Second Edition. Grand Rapids, MI:
Zondervan, 2005, 499.
2Sean M. McDonough, “Introduction to the Letter of Paul to the Philippians” in English Standard Version Study
Bible. Eds. Lane T. Dennis et al.; Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008, 2275.
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Philippi and Rome and the letter’s implication of at least three journeys in a relatively short

period of time, Ephesus and Caesarea have been suggested as other possible provenances with

Ephesus being the stronger possibility of the two.3 In any case, the evidence is not entirely

conclusive for a provenance, leaving Ephesus or Rome as the two best possibilities. Because the

exact provenance of the letter is inconclusive, the date of the epistle must range between 55AD

to 62AD.4

Paul is writing from imprisonment and he writes the letter in part to inform the

Philippians about his situation. But Paul also writes to inform them of how their messenger,

Epaphroditus, (who presumably carried the epistle to the Philippians), has fared. The Philippians

had apparently contributed to Paul at some point, so Paul thanks them (4:14-18, and also

possibly 1:3-11) and speaks several times of their “participation in the Gospel.”5 It is a tribute to

Paul’s gift as a pastor that he weaves theological and pastoral concerns amidst these three

different occasional concerns to produce a thematically complex and coherent letter.

LITERARY CONTEXT
Paul’s letter follows the conventional literary structures of an epistle, including a salutation,

thanksgiving, prayer, the body of the letter, a paranesis, greeting, and a final benediction. 6

Though because of some literary oddities, such as two apparent “finally” sections and a “thank-

you” uncharacteristically located at the end of the letter, some scholars believe that Philippians

may be an edited collection of three different letters. Despite this, the literary unity of the letter,

among other reasons, presents some difficulties to this claim. The Christ hymn informs many of

3 Carson, An Introduction to the New Testament-Second Edition, 506.

4 Ibid., 507.
5 Phil 1:5, 4:15.
6 McDonough, English Standard Version Study Bible, 2277.
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the themes that permeate the letter, including imitation, humility, unity, and exaltation, among

others. At the same time, 1:27-30 reveals that Paul’s intent in writing the Philippians was his

hope that the Philippians would be “standing firm in one spirit” and that the Philippians would

“suffer on behalf of [Christ]... having the same struggle which [they] saw in Paul.” This passage

of the epistle acts as purpose statement of sorts that Paul works to encourage in the Philippians

and is what O’ Brien calls the “heart of the letter.”7 In essence, Paul’s aim was to encourage the

same character that Christ exemplified in the Christ hymn by partnership (koinwnia) with Paul

(1:5)and with each other (2:2), but primarily with Christ himself (3:10).

The particular passage under discussion comes in the midst of Paul’s closing remarks,

marked by the “To loipon” in 4:8. Even as he closes Paul continually has in mind his

exhortation to imitate and charges the Philippians to “think about these [good, pure, excellent,

etc.] things” and to practice the things that they have seen in Paul, echoing the charge in 2:5 to

“have this attitude in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” This sets the stage for Paul’s thanks to

the Philippians for the gift they had sent.

ARGUMENT
The mind has a prominent place in Paul’s theology, especially in Philippians. The verb

“fronew” (to think) occurs frequently in this epistle, more than anywhere else in the New

Testament.8 Paul consistently uses it and its noun form in Philippians to mean possessing the

same thoughts or attitudes, to be like-minded,9 either with Paul (3:15) or with each-other (2:2),

but especially with Christ (2:5). The word does not merely mean “think” in the context of the

7Peter T. O’Brien, The Epistle to the Philippians: A Commentary on the Greek Text. Grand Rapids, MI: William B.
Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1991, 37.
8 One more time than in Romans, which has six occurrences.
9 BAGD, 866
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letter, but more specifically to “think like.” So when Paul uses “fronein” to speak of the

Philippians reviving “to think” of him in 4:10, it must be considered with the weight of the

previous six uses of the verb. In this sense, they are not only concerned for him, they are not just

“thinking,” but rather they are like-minded with him and each other, and even Christ himself, in

their concern. Paul hints to this like-mindedness in his introduction to the letter when he thanks

God for their “partnership in the Gospel,” (1:5) indicating that their gift is not only a

consideration of Paul but a joining-in on what Paul is doing.

Further, Paul uses a rare word to indicate how the Philippians are thinking: “ajneqalete”

which only appears here in the New Testament. It means, variously, to grow, flourish, bloom, or

revive,10 with connotations of a plant or tree growing healthily.11 The word provides a striking

visual picture of the Philippians blooming like a flower as they think on Paul’s behalf. Paul

rejoices in the gift of the Philippians as he would rejoice in a flower expressing its full potential

when it begins to bloom.

To understand the significance of the plant metaphor here, it helps to understand another

word Paul uses frequently, “karpoς” or fruit. Fruit, to Paul, can mean the result of the work of

God within the believer. For example, the fruit of the Spirit is the tangible results of love, joy,

peace, kindness, and so forth in Gal 5:22. Even more helpful is Rom 7:4 (ESV): “you also have

died to the law through the body of Christ... in order that we may bear fruit for God.” In

Philippians Paul uses “karpoς” three times, two of which help inform our discussion. In 1:11,

the ending of a thanksgiving prayer (a thankfulness that may refer to the Philippian’s gift), he

speaks of his hope that they will “[have] been filled with the fruit of righteousness, which is

10 Ibid., 54.
11 O’Brien, The Epistle to the Philippians: A Commentary on the Greek Text, 517.
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through Jesus Christ” on the day of Christ. In other words, he prays for an ongoing work that will

lead to a fullness of “fruit” in the eschaton. Then in 4:17, Paul returns to this idea, noting that he

desires “the increasing fruit to [their] credit,” referring specifically to the Philippian’s gift as

“fruit.” The “flourishing” (ajneqalete) of the Philippians is really the outflow of Christ’s work in

them, an outflow that Paul prays will increase more and more until they are present with Christ

in glory.

With 4:17, Paul makes it crystal clear that he does not desire their gift for the monetary

benefit it brings him, but for the spiritual profit it brings the Philippians. It is important to note

that he initially does not mention the actual gift, only that they “revived [themselves] to think on

behalf of me” (4:10). Paul is rejoicing over the proof that “God is the one working in [them] also

to will and to work on behalf of his good will,” (2:13) the proof of which lies in their like-

mindedness (fronew). Even as Paul is encouraging the Philippians to imitate Christ throughout

the letter, here he is affirming that they are, indeed, doing so.

For this reason he assures the Philippians that his motive for speaking (i.e. rejoicing) is

not because of his poverty (4:11). Further, it is not because he is well taken care of, nor because

he is wealthy already, but rather because he is “aujtarkhς,” or “content.” This word is loaded

with meaning because it is a word that his readers might be familiar with as belonging to the

Stoic tradition and to the Greco-Roman world as a whole.12 The word stood for the ideal of Stoic

living: the pinnacle of self-dependance, reliant on no one but one’s self. It is very likely that Paul

was familiar with the Stoic vocabulary.13 He has just previously used a Stoic-like list of virtues

12J.B. Lightfoot, St. Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians: A Revised Text with Introductions, Notes and Dissertations.
Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1973, 163.
13 Moises Silva, Philippians, Second Edition. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2005, 204.
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for his own ends, pointing the Philippians to himself as the living representation of these virtues

in 4:8. He is doing much the same here. There is an underlying statement: “You have heard what

the Stoics say that “aujtarkhς” means, now hear what I say it means.” And indeed, Paul

proceeds to turn “self-sufficiency” on its head, as will soon be demonstrated.

But first, it should be made clear by verse 12 that Paul’s primary concern is not in the

gift. Paul is a good pastor and so he is, in his way, making this a “teachable moment.” He looks

beyond the facts of the occasion to pull out the spiritual implications. He has rejoiced over what

God is doing in the Philippians to cause them to “bloom” in such a way, and now he turns to

what God has done in him, the working out of his own salvation.

Greco-Roman culture cannot be too far from his mind because Paul proceeds to expand

on his definition of “aujtarkhς” in 4:12 using another loaded word: “memuhmai.” Though many

translations translate this as “learned the secret,”14 it is most commonly used in Greek literature

as “initiated”15 and is especially used in reference to mystery religions.16 Initiates, or those

initiated, would be understood as those who had undergone some type of ceremony (itself

understood to be a mystery) to become privy and part of a cultic, mystic religion. Thus Paul has

been “initiated” into his circumstances. So what does this mean?

This verb, “muew,” only appears here in the New Testament, but Paul often uses the noun

form, “musterion”: mystery. While most commonly used to describe the participation of Gentiles

14 And so do I, for the sake of brevity and understanding. “Initiate” would carry the mystical nuance of the word if
Paul’s discussion included explicit talk of the mystery religions, but since it does not the nuance must be brought out
in the translation.
15Plato uses it to speak of being “initiated into the pure light,” i.e. truth, a purely philosophical versus religious
connotation. “...ὁλόκληρα δὲ καὶ ἁπλᾶ καὶ ἀτρεµῆ καὶ εὐδαίµονα φάσµατα µυούµενοί τε καὶ ἐποπτεύοντες ἐν αὐγῇ
καθαρᾷ...” Plato, Faidroς, 320c.
16 O’Brien, The Epistle to the Philippians: A Commentary on the Greek Text, 524.
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in the Gospel, musterion was not exclusive to this use. It is also used to describe the mystery of

marriage (Eph 5:32), the mystery of the resurrection (1 Cor 15:51), and the mystery of “Christ in

you, the hope of glory” (Col 1:27, ESV). Though the usage of “musterion” seems to change

depending on the context, this paper will argue that there is a commonality within the usages:

reconciliation, or unification. For Paul, the “mystery” of the Gospel is exemplified in those

things which reveal God’s purpose in uniting his creation with him, the “climax of the divine

purpose for creation.”17

It is this meaning of “musterion” that makes for the subtext of “muew.” Paul is hinting at

being initiated into God’s plan, the reconciliation of his creation to himself through Christ.

Though, paradoxically unlike the pagan initiation, this initiation, this “secret mystery,” is

available to anyone.18 Paul uses a social construct the Philippians might be familiar with and

turns it for his own, seemingly counter-intuitive ends.19

To further develop this idea of “initiation,” Paul couches the term in alternatives that echo

the Christ hymn from 2:6-11. He begins in 4:12 by talking of knowing both how to be humbled

and how to be in abundance. The word he uses for “humbled” is the verb “tapeinow,” the same

verb used in the Christ hymn to describe Christ humbling himself even to death. As Paul

describes the different extremes of abundance and poverty, hunger and fullness, he mirrors the

pattern of the Christ hymn in the humiliation and exaltation of Christ. So then, Paul is ultimately

17James D.G. Dunn, The Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon: A Commentary on the Greek Text (Grand
Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1996), 122.
18J.B. Lightfoot, Saint Paul’s Epistles to the Colossians and to Philemon: A Revised Text with Introductions, Notes
and Dissertations. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1970, 168. Also Silva, Philippians, Second
Edition 204.
19L Gregory Bloomquist. "Subverted by joy: suffering and joy in Paul's letter to the Philippians." Interpretation 61,
no. 3 (July 1, 2007): 270-282. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials, EBSCOhost (accessed August 12, 2010).
 L Hackman 9

being conformed to Christ (3:10) in his submission to God, identifying himself with Christ’s

suffering and exaltation. Even as Paul has learned to be content in both material abundance and

lack, so Christ was subject to God as he was both humbled and glorified. It is this, the Christ-life,

that Paul has been “initiated” into.

And here the reader arrives in 4:13 at the thrust of what Paul is going at in this passage.

This verse is no mere interjection or aside, but rather the grounds for Paul’s rejoicing and the

way he is able to be content. Paul does not live this Christ-life by his own will and effort for it is

God who wills and works in Paul. Thus he turns the Stoic understanding of “aujtarkhς” on its

head when he explains that his ability to be “self-sufficient” in all his circumstances comes from

God and not from himself (4:13). It is, as one commentator put it, a “God-sufficiency.”20 Not

only does the ability for Paul to be content in his circumstances come solely from God, but so

also does the ability of the Philippians to give generously. They, and Paul, find their strength in

Christ, as “companions of grace” (1:7). Paul rejoices at their shared experience of sufficiency in

Christ.

And in this way we come full circle, for Paul rejoices not only that the Philippians have

“partnered in the Gospel” (1:5) by their gift and thus partnered with Christ, but that Paul himself

has been partnered with Christ and thereby found his sufficiency in him. They both, the

Philippians and Paul, are finding themselves being “transformed into the same image from one

degree of glory to another,” (2 Corinthians 3:18, ESV) as they behold the work of Christ on the

cross.

20FF. Bruce, New International Biblical Commentary: Philippians. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.,
1989, 150.
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CONCLUSION

Many commentators have described the passage under discussion as merely Paul

awkwardly, 21 perhaps even rudely accepting a gift,22 something that is not even in his custom to

do.23 But a careful reading, taken in context with the rest of the epistle, reveals that Paul is

viewing the gift with spiritual eyes that see the offering in light of Christ’s work on the cross.

Paul cannot help but see that the Philippian’s thinking mirrors Christ’s self-emptying (kenosis) as

exemplified in the Christ hymn, and thus he rejoices as they become more like Christ (theosis).

To borrow Michael Gorman’s phrase, “Kenosis is theosis.”24 Paul, of course, sees this work of

transformation occurring in himself as well and must explain to the Philippians that the strength

of God is his sufficiency in all situations, whether made low or brought high. It is in this that he

rejoices, both for himself and for the sake of the Philippians.

So then, the Philippians and Paul have truly, jointly, responded to the Christ hymn in the

spirit of 2:12-13. They are “working out” their salvation in light of God’s character exemplified

on the cross and this only because it is God who is working in them to do his good will. The

Philippians give generously, “sharing” in Paul’s trouble (4:14) (and thus in Christ’s own

suffering), despite the cultural baggage and shame imprisonment meant.25 Paul receives their

21John A. Barnet, "Paul's reception of the gift from Philippi." St Vladimir's Theological Quarterly 50, no. 3 (January
1, 2006): 225-253. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials, EBSCOhost (accessed August 12, 2010).
22 Silva, Philippians, Second Edition, 200.
23 See also 1 Cor 9:1-18; 1 Thess 2:9.
24Michael J. Gorman, Inhabiting the Cruciform God: Kenosis, Justification, and Theosis in Paul’s Narrative
Soteriology. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdman’s Publishing Company, 2009, 37.
25James L. Bailey, "Perspective from prison: reading Philippians." Trinity Seminary Review 27, no. 2 (June 1,
2006): 88. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials, EBSCOhost (accessed August 12, 2010).
 L Hackman 11

gift, seeking only the “fruit that increases to [their] credit” (4:17), their fellowship (koinwnia) in

the same mind (fronema), which is the mind of Christ (1 Cor 2:16).

The thrust of Phil 4:10-13 lies in verse 13: “I am able to do all things through the one

who strengthens me.” This is truth for both Paul and the Philippians and it is the truth for us, not

in the Sunday-school cheerleader sense that you can do anything through Christ, but in the sense

that you can do nothing without Christ, for, “every good gift and every perfect gift is from

above...” (James 1:17, ESV). True saints are those who are empty vessels, filled up to the brim

and overflowing with the life of Christ in them, not those who “bootstrap” themselves into

perfection, egging themselves on with pithy encouragements (of which 4:13 has become).

Oswald Chambers paraphrases Paul as saying in 1:20, “‘My determination is to be my utmost for

His Highest.’ To get there is a question of will, not of debate nor of reasoning, but a surrender of

will, an absolute and irrevocable surrender on that point.”26 As the believer surrenders himself to

Christ, participating in his death on the cross, then he also participates in the resurrection life as

well.27 This does not mean that believers sit around waiting to be manipulated like puppets.

Rather, there is a confluence of our works and what Christ has already done in us, and it is this

recognition of where the power to do Christ’s work comes from that makes us truly saints, “holy

ones,” those who live in Christ’s image. It is the dynamic of relationship and indwelling.

Chambers again puts it so well: “God not only expects me to do His will, but He is in me to do

it.”28

26 Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest. Uhrichsville, OH: Barbour Publishing, Inc., 1963, 1.
27 See Romans 8:9-11
28 Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest, 115.
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APPENDIX A
TRANSLATION

Philippians 4:10-13
10 And29 I greatly rejoiced in the Lord, that now at length you revived yourself to think on behalf
of30 me, for indeed 31 you were thinking, but you were lacking opportunity. 11 Not that I am
speaking out of need, for I have learned in which things I am to be content. 12 I know both how
to be humbled, as well as how to be in abundance; in all and in everything I have learned the
secret, both to be satisfied and to be hungry, both to abound and to be lacking32 ; 13 I am able to
do all things by 33 the one who strengthens me34.

29 The de here is is often not rendered in modern translations, as it is meant only to signify a transition.
30 Some very few manuscripts have the article in front of uJper here to be “tou” instead of “to.” This is very likely
a scribal error, blending the ending “o” of “to” with the beginning of “uJper.”
31“ejf wJ” is an idiom sometimes translated “for indeed.” See also Philippians 3:12 and Romans 5:12. Silva,
Philippians, Second Edition, 203.
32 Paul uses the “kai... kai” pattern three times here, which roughly translates as the idiom “both... and.”
33 The ejn here is causative not locative.
34 Some manuscripts insert “Cristw” at the end of the sentence, which would interpret something like, “I am strong
in all things by the one who strengthens me, namely Christ.” This is almost certainly inserted later for clarification
as the textual witness is much stronger for its omission. In any case, it does not present any difficulties for the text as
it is actually a useful, and in my opinion correct, clarification.
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APPENDIX B
SENTENCE DIAGRAM

x
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APPENDIX C
DISCOURSE ANALYSIS
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bailey, James L. "Perspective from prison: reading Philippians." Trinity Seminary Review 27, no. 2 (June
1, 2006): 83-97. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials, EBSCOhost (accessed August 12,
2010).
Barnet, John A. "Paul's reception of the gift from Philippi." St Vladimir's Theological Quarterly 50, no. 3
(January 1, 2006): 225-253. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials, EBSCOhost (accessed
August 12, 2010).
Bauer, W., W. F. Arndt, F. W. Gingrich, and F. W. Danker. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament
and Other Early Christian Literature. 2nd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979.
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Interpretation 61, no. 3 (July 1, 2007): 270-282. ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials,
EBSCOhost (accessed August 12, 2010).
Bruce, F.F. New International Biblical Commentary: Philippians. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers,
Inc., 1989.
Carson, D.A. and Douglas J. Moo. An Introduction to the New Testament-Second Edition. Grand Rapids,
MI: Zondervan, 2005.
Chambers, Oswald. My Utmost for His Highest. Uhrichsville, OH: Barbour Publishing, Inc., 1963.
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(Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1996.
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Narrative Soteriology. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdman’s Publishing Company, 2009
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Notes and Dissertations. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1970.
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Dissertations. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1973.
McDonough, Sean M. “Introduction to the Letter of Paul to the Philippians” in English Standard Version
Study Bible. Edited by Lane T. Dennis et al.; Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008.
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William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1991.
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