Passage
Philippians 3
Book: Philippians · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT
Immediate context (±2 verses)
ASV
- Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not irksome, but for you it is safe. 2. Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the concision: 3. for we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God, and glory in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh: 4. though I myself might have confidence even in the flesh: if any other man thinketh to have confidence in the flesh, I yet more: 5. circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; 6. as touching zeal, persecuting the church; as touching the righteousness which is in the law, found blameless. 7. Howbeit what things were gain to me, these have I counted loss for Christ. 8. Yea verily, and I count all things to be loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but refuse, that I may gain Christ, 9. and be found in him, not having a righteousness of mine own, even that which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith: 10. that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, becoming conformed unto his death; 11. if by any means I may attain unto the resurrection from the dead. 12. Not that I have already obtained, or am already made perfect: but I press on, if so be that I may lay hold on that for which also I was laid hold on by Christ Jesus. 13. Brethren, I count not myself yet to have laid hold: but one thing I do, forgetting the things which are behind, and stretching forward to the things which are before, 14. I press on toward the goal unto the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 15. Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, be thus minded: and if in anything ye are otherwise minded, this also shall God reveal unto you: 16. only, whereunto we have attained, by that same rule let us walk. 17. Brethren, be ye imitators together of me, and mark them that so walk even as ye have us for an ensample. 18. For many walk, of whom I told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19. whose end is perdition, whose god is the belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things. 20. For our citizenship is in heaven; whence also we wait for a Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: 21. who shall fashion anew the body of our humiliation, that it may be conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working whereby he is able even to subject all things unto himself. (Philippians 3:1-21, ASV)
WEB
- Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not tiresome, but for you it is safe. 2. Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision. 3. For we are the circumcision, who worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh; 4. though I myself might have confidence even in the flesh. If any other man thinks that he has confidence in the flesh, I yet more: 5. circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee; 6. concerning zeal, persecuting the assembly; concerning the righteousness which is in the law, found blameless. 7. However, I consider those things that were gain to me as a loss for Christ. 8. Yes most certainly, and I count all things to be a loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord, for whom I suffered the loss of all things, and count them nothing but refuse, that I may gain Christ 9. and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own, that which is of the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 10. that I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, becoming conformed to his death; 11. if by any means I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. 12. Not that I have already obtained, or am already made perfect; but I press on, if it is so that I may take hold of that for which also I was taken hold of by Christ Jesus. 13. Brothers, I don’t regard myself as yet having taken hold, but one thing I do. Forgetting the things which are behind, and stretching forward to the things which are before, 14. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 15. Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, think this way. If in anything you think otherwise, God will also reveal that to you. 16. Nevertheless, to the extent that we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule. Let us be of the same mind. 17. Brothers, be imitators together of me, and note those who walk this way, even as you have us for an example. 18. For many walk, of whom I told you often, and now tell you even weeping, as the enemies of the cross of Christ, 19. whose end is destruction, whose god is the belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who think about earthly things. 20. For our citizenship is in heaven, from where we also wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; 21. who will change the body of our humiliation to be conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working by which he is able even to subject all things to himself. (Philippians 3:1-21, WEB)
KJV
- Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe. 2. Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision. 3. For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. 4. Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more: 5. Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; 6. Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. 7. But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 8. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, 9. And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: 10. That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; 11. If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead. 12. Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. 13. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 15. Let us therefore, as many as be perfect, be thus minded: and if in any thing ye be otherwise minded, God shall reveal even this unto you. 16. Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing. 17. Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. 18. (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19. Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.) 20. For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: conversation: or, we live or conduct ourselves as citizens of heaven, or, for obtaining heaven 21. Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself. (Philippians 3:1-21, KJV)
YLT
- As to the rest, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord; the same things to write to you to me indeed is not tiresome, and for you [is] sure; 2. look to the dogs, look to the evil-workers, look to the concision; 3. for we are the circumcision, who by the Spirit are serving God, and glorying in Christ Jesus, and in flesh having no trust, 4. though I also have [cause of] trust in flesh. If any other one doth think to have trust in flesh, I more; 5. circumcision on the eighth day! of the race of Israel! of the tribe of Benjamin! a Hebrew of Hebrews! according to law a Pharisee! 6. according to zeal persecuting the assembly! according to righteousness that is in law becoming blameless! 7. But what things were to me gains, these I have counted, because of the Christ, loss; 8. yes, indeed, and I count all things to be loss, because of the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, because of whom of the all things I suffered loss, and do count them to be refuse, that Christ I may gain, and be found in him, 9. not having my righteousness, which [is] of law, but that which [is] through faith of Christ, the righteousness that is of God by the faith, 10. to know him, and the power of his rising again, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death, 11. if anyhow I may attain to the rising again of the dead. 12. Not that I did already obtain, or have been already perfected; but I pursue, if also I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by the Christ Jesus; 13. brethren, I do not reckon myself to have laid hold; and one thing, the things behind indeed forgetting, and to the things before stretching forth 14. to the mark I pursue for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. 15. As many, therefore, as [are] perfect, let us think this, and if [in] anything ye think otherwise, this also shall God reveal to you, 16. but to what we have come, by the same rule walk, the same thing think; 17. become followers together of me, brethren, and observe those thus walking, according as ye have us, a pattern; 18. for many walk of whom many times I told you, and now also weeping tell, the enemies of the cross of the Christ! 19. whose end [is] destruction, whose god [is] the belly, and whose glory [is] in their shame, who the things on earth are minding. 20. For our citizenship is in the heavens, whence also a Saviour we await, the Lord Jesus Christ 21. who shall transform the body of our humiliation to its becoming conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working of his power, even to subject to himself the all things. (Philippians 3:1-21, YLT)
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Setting
- Speaker: Paul the Apostle, writing with Timothy named as co-sender (Phil 1:1).
- Audience: The church at Philippi, a Roman colony in Macedonia and the first congregation Paul planted in Europe (Acts 16:11-40). The letter names overseers and deacons at 1:1 and thanks the church for repeated financial support.
- Location: Written from imprisonment. Paul refers to his bonds and to "Caesar's household" (Phil 1:13, 4:22); the traditional identification is Roman custody, with Ephesus and Caesarea proposed as alternatives.
- Time period: c. AD 60-62 on the traditional Roman-imprisonment dating.
Theological reading
Chapter 3 is the polemical centre of the letter and its longest sustained argument.
The abrupt turn at verse 2. After "finally, my brethren, rejoice," the tone shifts without warning to "beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the concision." The break is sharp enough that some have proposed the letter is a composite of two or more originally separate notes. The unity of the letter is defensible on the grounds that the phroneō vocabulary and the gain-loss accounting run across the seam, but the abruptness is real and should be acknowledged rather than smoothed.
Three insults, each an inversion. Kynes, dogs, was a Jewish term of contempt for Gentiles, turned back on Judaisers. Kakoi ergatai, evil workers, plays on "works." Katatomē, mutilation or concision, is a pun on peritomē, circumcision, and the claim of verse 3 is that "we are the circumcision," so the covenant sign is being redefined rather than merely abandoned.
The résumé and its reversal (3:4-11). Paul lists seven credentials, four inherited and three achieved, culminating in blamelessness under the law (3:6). He then applies commercial vocabulary: what was kerdos, gain, he counts zēmia, loss, and further skybala, refuse or dung, a deliberately coarse term. The argument works because he claims success under the law rather than failure.
The two righteousnesses (3:9). Contrasted by origin, one ek nomou and one ek theou through faith. This is the doctrinal core of the chapter.
The correction against over-realised eschatology (3:12-16). Immediately after the soaring language of knowing Christ and attaining the resurrection, Paul says plainly "not that I have already obtained, or am already made perfect." The athletic imagery of pressing toward the mark guards the preceding verses from being read as a claim to arrival, and it is the answer to any perfectionism drawn from the chapter.
The closing contrast (3:17-21). Enemies of the cross, whose end is destruction and who mind earthly things, set against those whose politeuma is in heaven, awaiting a Saviour who will transform the body of humiliation. The chapter ends where it began, on where one's confidence is located.
Key words
Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.
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Quoted in
Arguments and defeaters:
- Argument from Desire, via Philippians 3.8-14
- Argument from the Fear of Death, via Philippians 3.21
- Argument from the Information-Conservation Convergence, via Philippians 3.21
- Argument from the Narrative-Identity Convergence, via Philippians 3.20-21
- Argument from the Resurrection
- Argument from the Universal Burial Convergence, via Philippians 3.21
- Argument from Transformed Lives, via Philippians 3.5-7, Philippians 3.7-14
- Christians Behaving Badly Defeater, via Philippians 3.12
- Conditional Immortality from Text-First Method, via Philippians 3.19
- Cumulative Case for the Deity of Christ, via Philippians 3.5
- Divine Jealousy Is Covenantal Zeal (Defeater), via Philippians 3.6
- Gentiles Cannot Be Saved Objection Defeater, via Philippians 3.3
- Jews Do Not Need Jesus Objection Defeater, via Philippians 3.5
- Minimal Facts Argument, via Philippians 3.6
Concepts:
- 100 Common Questions, via Philippians 3.8-9
- Christs Deity, via Philippians 3.21
- Conditional Immortality, via Philippians 3.19
- Hell and Eternal Punishment, via Philippians 3.19
- Hypocrisy, via Philippians 3.20
- Idolatry, via Philippians 3.19
- Imputation Doctrine, via Philippians 3.9
- Justification by Faith, via Philippians 3.8-9, Philippians 3.9
- Lesson 2.4, Christology in One Lesson, via Philippians 3.21
- Old Testament Witness to the Deity of Christ, via Philippians 3.20
- Resurrection of Jesus - Theological Significance, via Philippians 3.10
- Resurrection of the Body, via Philippians 3.20-21, Philippians 3.21
- Sanctification, via Philippians 3.12, Philippians 3.12-14
- Sola Fide
People:
Lexicon:
- G0386 - anastasis, via Philippians 3.11, Philippians 3.21
- G1097 - ginosko, via Philippians 3.10, Philippians 3.8
- G1343 - dikaiosyne, via Philippians 3.9
- G1453 - egeiro, via Philippians 3.10-11
- G2205 - zelos, via Philippians 3.6
- G2316 - theos, via Philippians 3.19
- G3551 - nomos, via Philippians 3.5-9
- G3956 - pas, via Philippians 3.21
- G4983 - soma, via Philippians 3.21
- G4990 - soter, via Philippians 3.20
- G5046 - teleios, via Philippians 3.12, Philippians 3.15
- G5056 - telos, via Philippians 3.19
- H1320 - basar
- H3045 - yada, via Philippians 3.10, Philippians 3.8
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.