Philippians 3
1 Here is the rest of what I have to say, Family: Rejoice concerning the Lord! Writing these things to you is truly not an imposition for me, and it makes you secure.
2 Watch out for the feral dogs;a watch out for those who enact harm; watch out for the mutilators. 3 You see, we are the circumcision, the ones performing dutiful serviceb forc God’s Life-breath and taking pride in Christ Jesus and not being convinced about bodily qualification,d 4 even though, I also used to rely on bodily qualification. If someone else seems to have reason to be confident of bodily qualification, I have even more reason. 5 I was circumcised at eight days old, was from the lineage of Israel, was of the tribe of Benjamin, was a Hebrew of Hebrews, and was a Pharisee adherent to Torah, 6 targeting the Assembly based on fanaticism, and was innocent based on living with justness as described in Torah. 7 However, whatever profits these were to me, I consider them loss because of Christ. 8 Not only that, but I also consider everything as loss compared to holding up the way of thinking of Christ Jesus my lord, for whose cause I have been cost all these things—I consider them shit—so that my profit can be Christ, 9 and I might be found with him, not having my own justness by Torah but by Christ’s faithfulness. The justness from God is based on faithfulness, 10 knowing him and the power of his reawakeninge and participating in his sufferings, taking the same shape with his death, 11 so somehow, I can arrive at the reawakening from the dead.
12 Not that I already attained it or have already been brought to the finish, but I am pursuing specifically to claim that for which I was also claimed by Christ Jesus. 13 Family, I am not creditingf myself with having claimed it; however, I have attained one thing:g forgetting what is behind me but reaching for the things ahead. 14 With this goal in view, I am pursuing the prize of the upward calling of God through Christ Jesus. 15 Therefore, whoever is finished, this is how we would think. And if you think something else, God will reveal it to you too. 16 Nevertheless, may we proceed in line with the progress we have already made.
17 Imitate me in this,h Family, and watch out for those who are walking that path,i since you have us as a model. 18 You see, I have often spoken of them with you, but now I am telling you with grief that many walk that path, and they are hostile to the cross of Christ. 19 Their aim is destruction, their god is the belly, and they honor what is to their shame; their thinking is about earthly things. 20 Our duties as citizensj originate in the heavens, from where we are also expectantly awaiting a liberator,k Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will change the nature of our humble Body to be conformed to the shape of his renownedl Bodym proportionately to how effective he is in arranging everything under his direction.n
FOOTNOTES:
a Though traditionally, kuon is just translated ‘dogs’ it is a specific reference to feral dogs that were aggressive pests. A different though related word, kunarion, means domesticated dogs, such as pets.
b The word here for ‘dutiful service’ is latreuo, the verb form of what was used in verse as a conceptual noun (leitourgia—‘performance of ritual service’) in Philippians 2:17 and as a personal noun (leitourgos—'representative servant’) in Philippians 2:25.
c There is no preposition in the Greek here; instead, ‘life-breath of God’ is in the dative case, which means it functions as the indirect object of the sentence. In English, an indirect object is always accompanied by a preposition, so the translator must make an educated guess which English preposition is most appropriate. ‘For’ is used here, but ‘with’ or ‘by’ or several other options are possibilities.
d Literally, ‘flesh’ or ‘the stuff bodies are made of.’ The exact usage of this word varies, sometimes referring to a physical body as opposed to the Body of Christ, sometimes referring to short-term craving fulfillment instead of long-term values commitment, and here as elsewhere emphasizing the limitation of surface level signs of faithfulness like circumcision in contrast with a whole lifestyle of love and serving each other.
e Traditionally, ‘resurrection’
f This is more than acknowledgment and affirmation. The word is an accounting term and is the same as ‘credit’ in Galatians 3:6, “Just as ‘Abraham faithfully trusted God, and it was it was recorded as a credit for him toward justice.’”
g The Greek for “however, I have attained one thing” is just two words, and an extremely literal translation would be “but one.” Various translators have attempted to clarify this in different ways, including “being single-minded” and “one thing I have.” The context seems to support “however, I have attained one thing.”
h Literally, ‘be imitators of me.’ The words ‘in this’ have been added for clarity. The context suggests he has a specific issue in mind, not imitating him generally. Specifically, he seems to have in mind that he put behind him the pursuit of ‘righteousness’ based on following bodily rules of personal piety, even ones based in scripture and is instead pursuing life according to the way of Christ in sacrificial love for each other.
i He seems to be referring to people who continue to pursue a status of being qualified as achieved by adherence to the rules of Torah.
j The word politeuma is usually translated as ‘citizenship’ but it is less about legal status as it is about “1) the administration of civil affairs or of a commonwealth 2) the constitution of a commonwealth, form of government and the laws by which it is administered.” It seems to be about the expectations for how one lives as part of the society organized under the recognized authority. In this case, living like Jesus as those who have committed to Christ and being part of the Family of God is the ‘citizenship’ being discussed.
k Traditionally, ‘savior.’ According to the Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, “1) saviour, deliverer, preserver. The name was given by the ancients to deities, esp. tutelary deities, to princes, kings, and in general to men who had conferred signal benefits upon their country, and in more degenerate days by the way of flattery to personages of influence.”
l Traditionally, ‘glorious.’
m The word body is capitalized in this verse to indicate it is referring to the Church. With a few exceptions, most instances of soma in Paul’s writing seem to be about the ‘Body of Christ.’ The context here also clearly involves discussing humility and honor regarding the church and how the church approaches living with each other. The entirety of Philippians is about that theme. It is unlikely to the point of near impossibility that Paul would slip in an unrelated clue about afterlife in this one verse that has nothing to do with the rest of the book. It is almost certain that soma, ‘body,’ here has to do with the collective group of people who identify as following Christ and not with individuals’ physical bodies, whether in this life or after a physical death and resurrection.
n According to the Theological Dictionary of the New Testatment, hupotasso (also appearing in Colossians 3:18 and Ephesians 5:21) is “A Greek military term meaning ‘to arrange [troop divisions] in a military fashion under the command of a leader’. In non-military use, it was ‘a voluntary attitude of giving in, cooperating, assuming responsibility, and carrying a burden’.”