Philippians 1:17 - Printer Friendly

ESV: The former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but thinking to afflict me in my imprisonment.

NIV: The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains.

NASB: the former proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking that they are causing me distress in my imprisonment.

CSB: the others proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, thinking that they will cause me trouble in my imprisonment.

NLT: Those others do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ. They preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely, intending to make my chains more painful to me.

KJV: But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel.

NKJV: but the latter out of love, knowing that I am appointed for the defense of the gospel.

Paul referred to those properly motivated to preach Christ in verse 16. In verse 17, his thoughts return to those with inappropriate motivations. Their goals were selfish, jealous, and even hostile. Some might have even spoken about the gospel for the purpose of making Paul's imprisonment worse. Such people were more concerned with their own benefit than the spread of the gospel.

However, the opposite was actually the result. First, their selfish ambition led to more people hearing about Jesus. Second, the growing popularity of Christianity may have had something to do with Paul's later release. The church was small when Romans was written in 55–56. Yet by 64, less than 10 years later, Christians had become a large enough minority to receive the blame from Nero for the fires in Rome. Believers endured intense persecution during this time, traditionally including the deaths of both Paul and Peter in or near Rome during Nero's reign (AD 64–68). Both the Gospels of Mark and Luke may have been written in Rome during this time period as well.

Truth is a powerful thing; the harder one tries to suppress it, the more eagerly it seems to spread!

Philippians 1:12–18 explains Paul's perspective on his imprisonment. Specifically, Paul sees the many hardships of his life as a good thing, for one reason: they have led to the spread of the gospel. Paul has been held captive; this has allowed him to preach to his jailers. Paul has seen others repeat his own message in an effort to harm him; this has caused even more people to hear the gospel. This passage sets up Paul's upcoming argument that, whether by life or death, he intends to bring glory to God.

In chapter 1, Paul thanks the Philippian believers for supporting his ministry. Even when Paul was jailed, or persecuted, they had been generous and loyal. Paul encourages these Christians by explaining that all of his suffering has been for a good cause. Even better, these attempts to persecute Paul have actually caused the gospel to spread. For this, Paul is grateful. He fully expects to be released, and to see the believers of Philippi again.

Chapter 1 introduces the major themes of Paul's letter. A large proportion of the passage is given to thanking the Philippian church for their loyal support of Paul. Paul also encourages them with a reminder that, good or bad, anything a Christian experiences can be used for the glory of God. This sets the tone for the rest of the letter, where Paul will continue to stress the importance of living out the Christian life. This, he says, starts with having a proper attitude and approach.

Philippians is Paul's discussion of living the Christian life. In this letter to the church of Philippi, Paul highlights themes such as joy and glory. He also puts great emphasis on how a Christian's thinking—their attitude—affects the way they live out their faith. Paul is very thankful for the support of the Philippian church, but is also concerned about the influence of various false teachers. This letter is less theological than most of his other writings, and more practical.