Passage

Philippians 1.23

Book: Philippians · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

21. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22. But if to live in the flesh,,if this shall bring fruit from my work, then what I shall choose I know not.

23. But I am in a strait betwixt the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ; for it is very far better:

yet to abide in the flesh is more needful for your sake. 25. And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide, yea, and abide with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith; (Philippians 1:21-25, ASV)

WEB

21. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22. But if I live on in the flesh, this will bring fruit from my work; yet I don’t know what I will choose.

23. But I am in a dilemma between the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.

Yet, to remain in the flesh is more needful for your sake. 25. Having this confidence, I know that I will remain, yes, and remain with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith, (Philippians 1:21-25, WEB)

KJV

21. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.

23. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:

Nevertheless to abide in the flesh is more needful for you. 25. And having this confidence, I know that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy of faith; (Philippians 1:21-25, KJV)

YLT

21. for to me to live [is] Christ, and to die gain. 22. And if to live in the flesh [is] to me a fruit of work, then what shall I choose? I know not;

23. for I am pressed by the two, having the desire to depart, and to be with Christ, for it is far better,

and to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account, 25. and of this being persuaded, I have known that I shall remain and continue with you all, to your advancement and joy of the faith, (Philippians 1:21-25, YLT)

See this page's graph and discover linked topics

Setting

Speaker: Paul the Apostle, writing with Timothy named as co-sender (Philippians 1:1).
Audience: The Church at Philippi, in a Roman colony of Macedonia (Acts 16:12), founded on the mission narrated in Acts 16 and addressed with its bishops and deacons (Philippians 1:1). The church had sent Paul a gift by Epaphroditus (Philippians 2:25-30, 4:18). The verse states Paul's dilemma between living and dying as he awaits the outcome of his trial (Philippians 1:19-26).
Location: Written from imprisonment (Philippians 1:7, 1:13). The place is debated: Rome is the traditional identification, and Ephesus and Caesarea are proposed as alternatives.
Time period: Depends on the imprisonment: c. AD 60-62 if Rome, c. AD 57-59 if Caesarea, the mid-50s if Ephesus.

Theological reading

This verse is the dilemma itself. "The two" are the alternatives of verses 21 and 22: to live in the flesh, which means fruitful work, or to die, which is gain. For the verb "in a strait" (synechō), the sense of "depart" (analyō), the stacked comparatives of "very far better," and the debate over the intermediate state, see Philippians 1:21-23.

"Desire" is a word Paul usually gives a bad sense. Epithymia (G1939) is most often "lust" in his letters: "ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh" (Galatians 5:16, ASV). The word itself is neutral, though, and Paul uses it well of his longing to see the Thessalonians "with great desire" (1 Thessalonians 2:17, ASV). Here the object makes the desire good, because it is a desire to be with Christ.

"With Christ" is the content of the gain. The preposition is syn (G4862). Paul uses it of the final hope, "so shall we ever be with the Lord" (1 Thessalonians 4:17, ASV), and of union with Christ, "if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him" (Romans 6:8, ASV). The verse names no place and describes no condition beyond this one. What verse 21 called "gain" is here given its content: to be with Christ.

The desire is held, not acted on. Paul has the desire, but he does not let it decide. The next verse sets against it what is "more needful for your sake" (Philippians 1:24, ASV), and verse 25 settles the matter in favor of remaining. The pattern anticipates 2:4, where each is to look "also to the things of others" (Philippians 2:4, ASV). Paul does so here against his own stated preference.

Key words

G5547 - christos, christos (Strong's G5547). Also appears in: Matthew 1.1, Matthew 1.16, Matthew 1.

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.

Quoted in

Arguments and defeaters:

Concepts:

Lexicon:

G5590 - psyche

Passages:

1 Thessalonians 4.13