Philippians 4:4-End

Updated
2001-05-26; 14:32:47utc

VII. Phil. 4:4-23.

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!
Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable; if anything is excellent or praiseworthy; think about such things.
Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me; put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
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.
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
I 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.
I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles.
Moreover, 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; For even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need.
Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account.
I 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.
And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Greet all the saints in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send greetings.
All the saints send you greetings, especially those who belong to Caesar's household.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen."

This chapter gives the impression to the superficial reader that it consists of two parts. A closer look helps us see that Paul treats only one subject, which is joy in the Lord and the practical application of this joy in circumstances which could be a cause of worry and concern.

We encountered the expression "Rejoice in the Lord always" already in ch. 3:1. We saw already that the word "joy," chairo, appears ten times in various forms in this epistle. It is the main theme of the letter. In ch. 3 joy in Christ is the counterweight against human efforts to please God. In this chapter the joy in Christ is a defense against all kinds of circumstances and human relationships that could blur our perception of God's reality.

When Paul says: "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ...... The Lord is near," he puts all human relations and all outward circumstances in the light of the "Maranatha," that is the return of Christ. This puts everything in a different light if we see it in connection with Christ's return. "Always" means "under all circumstances." Ezra and Nehemiah taught the returned captives that the joy of the LORD ought to be their strength. The word "strength" in Neh. 8:11 also means fortress, a place to flee to. The joy of the Lord is a fortress in which we may take our refuge when pressures build up and become too much for us and when our human relationships become too difficult. That is no flight from reality, but a flight towards reality.

When the unbelief and the hardness of heart of Jesus' contemporaries became too much for Him, Jesus took His refuge in the joy of the Holy Spirit. We read in Luke 10:21 "At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, 'I praise you, Father, Lord of Heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.'" Nehemiah and Jesus give us examples to follow.

Since Paul puts so much stress on the necessity for joy in the Lord, we must recognize its importance and its source "in the Lord."

When I first heard the Lord speak to me at a Youth Retreat in Holland joy came as a great surprise. It overwhelmed me and swept me off my feet. When I returned home after the retreat, I desperately tried to hang on to the feeling of joy, but it evaded me. Circumstances closed in upon me as before. I found out by trial and error that if our joy is based on circumstances instead of on the Lord, joy is an unstable entity. The Lord has the key. In Schiller's "Ode to Joy" which is the core of the final movement of Beethoven's ninth symphony, the key to joy is never found. Schiller knows what joy will do for man, but his joy is a myth, borrowed from Greek mythology. The phrase: Joy, beautiful sparks of the gods, daughters of the Elysium[ 1 ] ] is worlds apart from the joy in the Lord. I am not saying that Beethoven's ninth symphony does not overwhelm me every time I hear it. It says: All men become brothers under your soft wing.[ 2 ] ] How much more is this true of those who have been born again by the Holy Spirit and who have become members of the body of Christ and who rejoice in the Lord!

The joy of the Lord will make us gentle. The KJV says: "Let your moderation be known unto all men." And the RSV "Let all men know your forbearance." Adam Clarke says about this word (epikieikes): "The word is of very extensive signification; it means the same as mildness, patience, yieldedness, gentleness, clemency, unwillingness to litigate or contend." The idea is not that we should condone sin, but that we should put up with human frailty because we love the other person. God does not want us to be confrontational. And love is the first of the fruits of the Spirit, according to Gal. 5:22. God wants us to be kind to others because He is kind to us. We must build a reputation of gentleness even though this may not fit our character or natural tendencies. That is why Paul appeals to the presence of the Lord in the Holy Spirit. He makes us kind.

It sounds almost threatening that Paul concludes his exhortation with "Maranatha, the Lord is near!" It is a serious warning. When the Lord returns He will ask us to give account of our kindness. Over against our kindness stand the wrath of the Lamb. In C.S. Lewis' book The Magicians Nephew (One in the series of The Chronicles of Narnia) Aslan says to Digory: "Let us be kind to one another." According to Lewis, Christ says this to us.

Where love and joy grow we will also find peace. In verses 5-7 Paul contrasts peace with anxiety. The transition from being anxious to having peace takes place in the middle of a prayer. It is a common tendency in our thought life to be anxious. If we let our thoughts go, anxiety will surface by itself. Therefore, we should bring everything that befalls us to the Lord. The idea is, of course, not that we should inform the omniscient God about our circumstances, but that if we draw God into every situation, He will let His light shine upon it, so we can see our circumstances in His light.

We are living people, and we deal with a living God. Our life has not been predetermined by God in the sense that everything has been prearranged in an unchangeable way. Our desires play an important part in what happens. God asks us: "What do you want Me to do for you?" Paul does not say in these verses that God will fulfill all our wishes, but that our anxiety will make place for peace. If our relationship with the Father is such that our wishes are completely in accordance with His will and character, He will grant us our requests. But most of us are not that far along in our walk with Him. That is why thanksgiving is important in prayer. Thanksgiving is only possible if there is obedience and faith in us. When we give thanks, we reach out in faith to the answer of our prayers. It means that we lay aside our own desires if God wants to give us something else. That is obedient surrender.

The word "petition," or "supplication," as the KJV and RSV translate it, draws the right picture of our relationship with God. He is the Almighty One, and we are men. We are in no position to dictate anything to God. "Supplication" also speaks of intense longing. Why would God give us anything that we did not really want with all our hearts? Prayer is serious business. There is no place for impulsiveness in prayer.

The surprise in the verse is, of course, "thanksgiving." It implies not only that we expect that our prayers will be heard, but also that we recognize that our circumstances are arranged and ordered by God. It is especially this last recognition that changes anxiety into peace. And what a peace! It is "the peace of God which transcends all understanding." This brings to us a dimension of which we have no idea in our earthly relationships. This peace is not only more intelligent than our human understanding but it is also something that our intelligence cannot grasp. It is the peace of God in Jesus Christ.

The effect of this peace upon us is that our hearts and minds are guarded. In dealing with animals, we can excite them to the point at which they can no longer be handled. As human beings we can be shocked so deeply by people, things or demons that our feelings and thoughts can no longer be kept under control. The peace of Christ makes us into people who can control themselves, both intellectually and emotionally, so that we will not suffer from anxiety when threatened by anything. God protects us in Christ with His peace.

It seems to go against the grain of our intelligence that we should pray for all things with thanksgiving. Paul says the same thing in I Thess 5:17,18 - "Pray continually; Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." We will only be able to see the logic of this if we see all our circumstances as part of God's plan for our life, as so many factors that work together for good.

In the book The Hiding Place Corrie ten Boom tells of her experience in the German Concentration camp Ravensbrueck where she and her sister Betsie were imprisoned. Betsie quoted the verse from I Thess. 5 and started to give thanks to the Lord for everything there was in the camp, including the multitude of fleas in their barracks. Corrie thought this was going too far. Who would thank God for an abundance of fleas? Shortly afterward the ladies started a prayer group and Bible study in the barracks which were never disturbed by the guards. They found that the reason that the guards left them alone was the fleas!

Paul is almost playful when he shows that giving thanks for everything does not go against our intelligence but that it transcends our understanding.

In the next two verses, 8 and 9, Paul gives a plea for aestheticism. In reading these words we would almost get the impression that Paul gives us a humanistic treatise. Of course, the opposite is true. In Paul's day there was no such thing as humanistic aestheticism, at least not in the form we know it now. Undoubtedly, there were Greek schools that uttered thoughts that would sound familiar to a modern humanist. Paul's words prove that all truth and all nobility and purity and loveliness comes from God. All aesthetic values lose their content if they are not brought in relationship with God. Everything that is beautiful and noble is related to God. In some cases the relationship is consciously demonstrated as in the works of Bach and Rembrandt and Bruckner; their works are the ones that move me most deeply. But I receive enough blessing and joy to glorify God, when listening to Mozart, Beethoven, and Chopin. Probably for opposite reasons I cannot stand Wagner!

Many Christians have harmed the cause of the Gospel by their neglect in recognizing the value of beauty and aesthetics. Very few Evangelical churches are tastefully and artfully decorated.

"Whatever is true ...." The opposite of truth (alethea) is a lie. A lie, however, can take various forms and shades. The best definition in the context of this chapter is probably the opposite of "phony." It is not only important for us as Christians that we do not lie but speak the truth, but also that we live the truth. We have to be genuine for God as well as for men. If we think the truth we will live it also. Only the Holy Spirit can protect us against self deception. We have to concentrate upon the truth.

"Whatever is noble ...." The Greek word is semna. The KJV translates it with "honest," the RSV with "honorable." Of the three translations "honorable is probably the most correct rendering. The German book Linguistic key to the New Testament [ 3 ] says: "To step back before somebody."[ 4 ] If truth is related to our own character then to be honorable should be applied to our relationship with others. As members of the body of Christ, we should honor one another. We came across this thought already in 2:3 "in humility consider others better than yourselves." To step back before somebody means to take off our hat for someone. If we meet the image of Christ in one another, this attitude will come naturally. We learn to recognize in one another those characteristics that point toward Christ, instead of getting stuck on people's negative side.

In a world in which injustice and unrighteousness have the upper hand, it is important that we hang on to the concept of God's character of absolute righteousness. Man's acts do not determine the norms for living. We will not be judged on the basis of public opinion but of God's righteousness. If we lose sight of this fact, we will get bogged down in "situational ethics." Our own moral conduct and that of others can only be judged in the light God.

In these verses Paul does not present to us a series of subjects for meditation that would give us a spiritual boost so that we would feel good about ourselves, but he calls for realism to see the enemy clearly and to celebrate the victory of Christ over him. This is not an attempt to moralize but a call to arms.

"Whatever is pure ...." No man who is a descendant of Adam is completely pure in his motives. Our best intentions are polluted. Purity is only possible if we confess our secondary thoughts and let ourselves be filled with the Holy Spirit. This kind of purity is a hard reality. It is as far removed from the sweet dreams we have when we meditate about it as sweet dreams are removed from a waking up in the trenches. Purity is much more than something that is nice and attractive. It is as hard as a diamond; it is gold, purified in the fire.

"Whatever is lovely ....." This word stands against the background of love. It is that which is done out of love and which provokes love. It is an aesthetic word that, although greatly misused, indicates that everything that is beautiful somehow is related to the character of God. That is why the psalmist can say: "How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty!" (Ps. 84:1).

Whatever is lovely to the eye is admirable to the ear. God is both the God of painters and sculptors as well as of musicians. He created both the tone and the poet who makes the word sing. Maybe Paul speak in the first place of gracious speech, but that doesn't exclude music. Music is grace par excellence. I have nothing against dissonance as long as it is intended to contribute to the harmony. Music and poetry are for me the best instruments for the glory of God. I don't want to exclude prose, of course. Eloquence can praise God also.

"If anything is excellent ...." The KJV uses here "if there be any virtue ...." The Wycliffe Commentary quotes Lightfoot, who believes that virtue refers to certain good elements in paganism. This is quite possible. No culture is one hundred percent corrupt. Even among atheists one can find people with a high moral conduct. It is dangerous, however, to keep virtue purposely separated from the character of God, as if the image of God would have nothing to do with our moral behavior. Virtue is, in final analysis, a manifestation of holiness. If this is not recognized, then "good" becomes the enemy of "best."

In his book Peace child, Don Richardson speaks about "redemptive analogies." Those are traditions and acts in a pagan culture that express something of God's redemptive intervention in this world. We find those analogies in several cultures. Among the Me tribe in Irian Jaya, Indonesia, for instance, generosity is a virtue that is highly valued, perhaps more from the side of the receiving party than from the giving one. We have to be careful, though, that we do not draw the line too far. There are pagan virtues that are incompatible with the moral standards of a child of God. The opposite is true also. Meekness, for instance, is nowhere considered a virtue outside the sphere of influence of the Gospel. There were values that were valid for first century Christians, who had just come out of heathenism, which we could hardly apply to ourselves. But the least we can do, as children of God, is to live up to the standards that unbelievers set for us. The praise Paul speaks about will have to come from our fellow human beings, as well as from God.

In the 9th verse Paul puts the preceding truths in the right perspective. It becomes clear that there is much more involved than decency alone. "Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me ...." is the moral law of the Old Testament, which is the expression of God's character, as well as the message of the Gospel of Christ. Once again Paul puts himself up as the example to be followed, as he did also in 3:17. It is God's intention in some stages in our lives that we follow and imitate people who know God. This helps us to grew into the position where our fellowship with the Lord is direct and intimate enough that God can speak to us personally. Even a position of spiritual maturity does not guarantee complete protection against temptation, and we may very well stumble and fall. But, not only will "the peace of God, which transcends all understanding guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" but also "the God of peace will be with [you]."

In vs. 10 we come to the gift the church had sent Paul through Epaphroditus. In both epistles to the Corinthians, Paul explains extensively his financial policy in relation to the churches. In I Cor. 9 he makes it clear that, as an apostle, he had a claim to the financial support of the churches that he founded, but that he refused to accept this support. He was consistent in this policy, at least as far as his relationship with the church in Corinth was concerned. Corinth was a booming city and undoubtedly there must have been members of the church who were well-to-do. In Philippi, however, most people had to live of their pension. Possibly Paul had initially refused the gifts of the Philippians, but their insistence was ultimately too strong for him. To keep on refusing would have meant to turn down genuine love.

Here, too, we see the irony of the fact that God gives preference to the widow's mite for the support of His work. To the poor the grace of giving was given; but in contrast, rich people are often left on the side. II Cor. 8:1-5 gives an interesting picture of the above truth. It has been my personal observation that sacrificial giving is most often practiced by people who really cannot afford to give, affluent people often give little.

Paul's joy about the gift had little to do with the amount given, but primarily with the grace of God behind the gift. Paul treats the whole subject as a spiritual matter. Several commentaries point out that the gift is mentioned at the end of the letter, not at the beginning. This would indicate that the epistle is not written as a "Thank-You" note. I do not agree with this view. This kind of reasoning is typical for the materialistic spirit of our twentieth century. We put too much emphasis upon the financial side of the work of the Kingdom of Heaven. It is not true that financial support requires more of God's omnipotence than other, more spiritual matters. Finances are part of God's grace to us. It is amazing how stimulating this insight is to our faith once we catch the vision. If we seek first the Kingdom of God and its righteousness, we will not have to mention money first in our "Thank-You" letters.

It is hard to reconstruct the circumstances. The Philippians had wanted earlier to send money to Paul, but they did not have the opportunity. We are talking about a world in which money, which consisted in a certain amount of heavy metal, had to be carried by special courier. Robbery was a common phenomenon. How complicated the transfer of money must have been is shown by the careful plans Paul had to make himself to carry the collection of Macedonia and Achaia to Jerusalem. (See Rom. 15:25-28, 31; I Cor. 16:3,4 etc.) In this case Epaphroditus' trip was the ideal opportunity to put the plan of the Philippians into practice.

In vs. 10 Paul says: "I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me." The KJV translates "renewed" with "flourished." The Greek word is anathalo, which literally means "to bloom" or "to sprout out again" such as trees do in the spring. Paul rejoices in this new spring in Philippi's garden. Paul does not say that he did not need the money, but that he had learned to be content whatever the circumstances. That is, he knew how to live frugally when he had to. The money must have been very welcome, but the demonstration of love was even more valuable. Love without demonstration doesn't amount to anything.

Paul doesn't tell us anything about his circumstances. The only thing he reveals is that he had learned an important lesson in the various conditions in his life; he had learned to be content. He went in his life from one extreme to the other; from poverty to abundance and back to poverty. He says that he has learned the secret. The Greek word used here stands for someone who is initiated into a secret society. He has learned the secrets of both conditions. In the "Parable of the Sower" Jesus points out the danger of poverty and riches in connection with the growth of the Word of God in our hearts. The thorns and thistles stand for the man who hears the word, but "the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth" choke the Word in his heart (Matt. 13:22). Agur in Prov. 30:7-9 recognizes the same danger. He says: "Two things I ask of you, O LORD; do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the LORD?' or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God." We need to know ourselves well in order to be able to say such things.

Not many people are poor by choice. If we do have a choice, we usually choose to be rich. We should not take Paul's confession that he was initiated to be an indication in the art of dealing with poverty as well as with riches, as an indication that he was proud and conceited. He ascribes his ability to cope to the Lord, who enables him. It is good to realize that we need strong legs to be able to bear the burden of wealth, and that to bear poverty we need legs that are at least as strong. Even more, it is important to know that our legs will never be strong enough if the power of Jesus does not sustain us. Our foolishness is that when we are poor we worry, but when we become affluent, we ascribe our affluence to our own cleverness. There is no reason to feel guilty under any of the above mentioned circumstances. The Lord grants grace both to bear and to enjoy. It is all from His hand.

Vs. 13 "I can do everything through him who gives me strength" is often quoted out of context. Of course, "everything" contains more than poverty and riches. An important factor which we should not overlook in this context is, that everything, that is all our circumstances, are part of God's plan with our life. The attacks of the enemy become in God's hand tests for our purification. The important thing is not our circumstances but whether we react to them by leaning upon the Lord and availing ourselves of His strength. Paul says that he learned in everything to switch over to God's omnipotence, to the God who loves us and gives us grace. No circumstance, however bad, can hold out against this.

Having said this, Paul hastens to add that the Philippians did well to share in his troubles. The power of Jesus does not work outside the fellowship of the saints. We should not try to be rugged individualists who don't need anybody's help. The grace of the Lord is sufficient, even if all the saints would leave us stuck, but that is not God's primary way of giving help. If the body functions as it should, the body sustains the members. The word "troubles" is translated in the KJV as "afflictions." A Roman prison was no sinecure. It spoke well of the church of Philippi that they had compassion with Paul in his imprisonment.

"The matter of giving and receiving" in vs. 15 is borrowed from the world of commerce. Paul shows a sense of humor in using those terms. Speaking about debits and credits does not mean, of course, that Paul sent money to the church, and they sent it to him. There is a reference here to what Paul calls in I Cor. 9:9 "an ox that is treading out the grain." It is also true that Paul did not have kept careful accounts of what he did for the church and what they did for him. How could the salvation of souls be expressed or recorded in money or material goods? As Jesus said in Matt. 16:26: "What can a man give in exchange for his soul?"

More than a conversion from spiritual values into material values, Paul sees in the gift of the Philippians a demonstration of a spiritual gift: generosity and love. It is not the gift, but the love that gives which tips the balance in favor of the church. In II Cor. 8:1,2 Paul says about the church in Philippi and surrounding area: "And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity." "God loves a cheerful giver" (II Cor.9:7).

People who are on the receiving end often have the experience that the giver has a tendency to remind the recipient of his generosity. That is why Paul's gesture is so graceful here; he reverses the roles and reminds them of their own generosity, the gifts they had sent him before while he was in Thessalonica. "I have received full payment" (vs. 18) is one of the funniest, most sparkling, sentences in the Bible. The account is balanced! The only full payment of our debt which we have in this world before God is the blood of Jesus Christ. No collection or sacrifice can stand next to this. But just as the animal sacrifice in the Old Testament was an aroma pleasing to the Lord, not because the blood had any value in itself, but because it was an image of the sacrifice of Christ, so He accepts our gifts as a pleasing aroma, if they express the love of Christ. Our gifts have no value and they have infinite value.

The promise of vs. 19 "My God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus" runs as a purple thread through the whole Bible. David says in Ps 37:25 "I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread." And in Matt. 6:32,33 Jesus assures us: "Your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

Paul's words have nothing in common with "Green Power." It states nowhere in the Bible that we should become rich. God promises to take care of our needs and often He does much more than just that. For most people it would mean a spiritual punishment if they became rich. If a man becomes rich and loses his soul, he loses all.

The authority with which Paul states the promise is striking. He uses the personal pronoun "my" in front of God. It is dangerous to say those things. We can only say that God is "our God" if He possesses us completely. That is the reason that Paul can take the liberty to promise support to the Philippians in God's Name, because he has a "partnership" with God.

It should be made clear also that the promise can take effect only if the Lord has top priority in our life. If we don't trust Him completely to take care of our needs and if we worry about our support, He will let us go ahead in our efforts to take care of ourselves. Only if we take His interests to heart will He take care of ours. The glorious riches in Christ Jesus is our guarantee. There is nothing on earth that can be compared to this; therefore a Christian can always afford to pay his debts.

We are treading on dangerous ground. We will need deep spiritual insight and the gift of discernment to be able to keep the right course. We are not more than our Lord, who had no place on earth to lay His head, according to Matt. 8:20 and who "though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor" (II Cor. 8:9). God's promise does not mean that we will always have the food we want at the time we want it. If the Father withheld breakfast from His Son, as we read in Matt. 21:18,19, what grounds do we have to suppose that we will always eat our fill? There are some lessons we will only be able to learn if God withholds something from us. We read in Deut. 8:3: "He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD." Much of the fulfillment of God's promise will depend on how fast and well we learn. If we realize that behind all our experiences stands the love of the Father for us in Christ Jesus, we will understand how well God provides for our needs.

The purpose of the promise is to keep us from worry and to bring us to thanksgiving. After all, providing for our needs "according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus" is no small matter. The doxology of vs. 20 is therefore very appropriate. "To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen." The essence of all experiences of abundance and need is the glory of God. This means that we have to glorify God in all our circumstances. This is, in a nut shell, the lesson Paul gives us. The better we learn this lesson, the more joyful we will be as Christians, who give thanks to God in all circumstances. In doing so, we prepare ourselves for the real task that is awaiting us in eternity. Amen! It is certain!

In vs. 21 Paul greet all the saints in Christ Jesus personally. Unity in the body of Christ does not eliminate our individuality. To the contrary; our personality will be strengthened and accentuated when we become new creatures in Christ. Sin reduces us to part of a mass of people. God respects our personality and makes us stand out in the crowd.

If it is true, what commentators suppose, that Paul dictated this letter, probably to Timothy, it is likely that he wrote vs. 21 personally in his own handwriting. We find parallels of this in Gal. 6:11; Col. 4:18 and II Thess. 3:17.

The mention of all the saints "who belong to Caesar's household" is very intriguing and has led to endless controversy. Vincent believes that the reference is to slaves and servants of the palace. But it is not necessarily so that Paul speaks about the palace in Rome. Inscriptions have been unearthed that indicate that there was a "praetorian guard" in Ephesus. One commentator (Synge) believes that Paul's words are a funny equivalent of the British designation of prisoners as "his majesty's guests." Such humor would not have been beneath Paul. Whatever the meaning or the place may have been, the suggestion is strong that Paul used his imprisonment to lead others to Christ. The epistle to Philemon is proof of this.

The last blessing, "the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen," is meant for our spirit. Our body and soul need the grace of Jesus Christ also, but our spirit, the organ with which we exercise fellowship with God would be dead without God's grace.

[ 1 ] "Freude, schone Gotterfunken, Tochter aus Elysium"

[ 2 ] "Alle Menschen werden Brüder, wo Dein sanften Fluegel weilt."

[ 3 ] Sprachlicher Schlussel des Neuen Testaments

[ 4 ] Vor jemand zurucktreten.