Passage

Philippians 4.4

Book: Philippians · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

2. I exhort Euodia, and I exhort Syntyche, to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3. Yea, I beseech thee also, true yokefellow, help these women, for they labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

4. Rejoice in the Lord always: again I will say, Rejoice.

Let your forbearance be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6. In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. (Philippians 4:2-6, ASV)

WEB

2. I exhort Euodia, and I exhort Syntyche, to think the same way in the Lord. 3. Yes, I beg you also, true partner, help these women, for they labored with me in the Good News, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the book of life.

4. Rejoice in the Lord always! Again I will say, “Rejoice!”

Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is at hand. 6. In nothing be anxious, but in everything, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. (Philippians 4:2-6, WEB)

KJV

2. I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord. 3. And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whose names are in the book of life.

4. Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.

Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6. Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. (Philippians 4:2-6, KJV)

YLT

2. Euodia I exhort, and Syntyche I exhort, to be of the same mind in the Lord; 3. and I ask also thee, genuine yoke-fellow, be assisting those women who in the good news did strive along with me, with Clement also, and the others, my fellow-workers, whose names [are] in the book of life.

4. Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice;

let your forbearance be known to all men; the Lord [is] near; 6. for nothing be anxious, but in everything by prayer, and by supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God; (Philippians 4:2-6, YLT)

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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 begins a run of short commands (Philippians 4:4-9) that gathers up the letter's repeated theme of joy before Paul thanks the church for its gift.
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

Joy runs through the whole letter. "Rejoice in the Lord always: again I will say, Rejoice" (Philippians 4:4, ASV). The verb is chairō (G5463), and the letter uses it and the noun chara repeatedly, from Paul's own prayer "with joy" (1:4) to his rejoicing that Christ is proclaimed (1:18) and his joy even at the prospect of being offered upon the sacrifice of their faith (2:17). Paul writes this from imprisonment, so the command does not depend on favorable circumstances.

"Always" and "again I will say" settle the meaning. In 3:1, "Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord" (Philippians 3:1, ASV), some take chairete in its common sense as a word of farewell. Here the addition of "always" and the doubled command make clear that Paul means an ongoing act of rejoicing, not a parting greeting. The imperative is present tense, consistent with a continuing practice.

The object of joy is "in the Lord." Paul does not command joy in events but in the Lord (kyrios), the same sphere in which he urged Euodia and Syntyche to agree (4:2) and the church to stand fast (4:1). The command echoes the psalms, "Be glad in Jehovah, and rejoice, ye righteous" (Psalm 32:11, ASV), and it rests on what Christ is rather than on what Paul's situation is.

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.

G2962 - kyrios, kyrios, Strong's G2962

Quoted in

Arguments and defeaters:

Argument from Sanctity, via Philippians 4.4-13

Concepts:

Church at Philippi

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.