Albert Barnes Commentary Philippians 3

PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 3

ANALYSIS OF CHAPTER 3

This chapter consists, in the main, of exhortations to holy living and to an effort to make great attainments in the divine life. It is full of tenderness and affection, and is one of the most beautiful appeals that can anywhere be found to induce Christians to devote themselves to the service of the Redeemer. The appeal is drawn in large measure from the apostle's statement of his own feelings, and is one which the Philippians could not help but feel, for they knew him well. In the course of the chapter, he addresses the following points:

1. He exhorts them to rejoice in the Lord (Philippians 3:1).

2. He warns them against the Jewish teachers who urged the necessity of complying with the Mosaic laws, and who appear to have boasted of their being Jews, and to have regarded themselves as the favorites of God on that account (Philippians 3:2–3).

3. To meet what they had said, and to show how little all that on which they relied was to be valued, Paul says that he had advantages of birth and education which surpassed them all, and that all the claim to the favor of God, and all the hope of salvation which could be derived from birth, education, and a life of zeal and conformity to the law, had been his (Philippians 3:4–6).

4. Yet, he says, he had renounced all this, and now regarded it as utterly worthless in the matter of salvation. He had cheerfully suffered the loss of all things, and was willing still to do it, if he might obtain salvation through the Redeemer. Christ was more to him than all the advantages of birth, and rank, and blood; and all other grounds of dependence for salvation, compared with reliance on him, were worthless (Philippians 2:7–11).

5. The object which he had sought in doing this, he says, he had not yet fully attained. He had seen enough to know its inestimable value, and he now pressed onward that he might secure all that he desired. The mark was before him, and he pressed on to secure the prize (Philippians 3:12–14).

6. He exhorts them to aim at the same thing, and to endeavor to secure the same object, assuring them that God was ready to disclose to them all that they desired to know, and to grant all that they wished to obtain (Philippians 3:15–16).

7. He enforces this whole exhortation at the end of the chapter (Philippians 3:17–21) with two considerations. One was that there were many who had been deceived and had no true religion—whom he had often warned with tears (Philippians 3:18–19).

   The other consideration was that the home, the citizenship of the true Christian, is in heaven, and those who are Christians ought to live as those who expect soon to be there. The Savior will soon return to take them to glory. He will change their vile body and make them like himself, and they should therefore live as befits those who have a hope so blessed and transforming.

Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. That is, in the Lord Jesus (Philippians 3:3; see Barnes on Acts 1:24 and 1 Thessalonians 5:16).

The idea here is that it is the duty of Christians to rejoice in the Lord Jesus Christ. This duty implies the following things:

1. They should rejoice that they have such a Savior. Men everywhere have felt the need of a Savior, and to us it should be a subject of unfeigned joy that one has been provided for us. When we think of our sins, we may now rejoice that there is One who can deliver us from them; when we think of the worth of the soul, we may rejoice that there is One who can save it from death; when we think of our danger, we can rejoice that there is One who can rescue us from all peril, and bring us to a world where we shall be forever safe.

2. We may rejoice that we have such a Savior. He is just such as we need. He accomplishes just what we want a Savior to do. We need one to make known to us a way of pardon, and he does it. We need one to make an atonement for sin, and he does it. We need one to give us peace from a troubled conscience, and he does it. We need one to support us in trials and bereavements, and he does it. We need one who can comfort us on the bed of death, and guide us through the dark valley, and the Lord Jesus is just what we want. When we look at his character, it is just such as it should be to win our hearts, and to make us love him; and when we look at what he has done, we see that he has accomplished all that we can desire, and why should we not rejoice?

3. We may and should rejoice in him. The principal joy of the true Christian should be in the Lord. He should find his happiness not in riches, or gaiety, or vanity, or ambition, or books, or in the world in any form, but in communion with the Lord Jesus, and in the hope of eternal life through him.

   In his friendship, and in his service, should be the highest of our joys, and in these we may always be happy. It is the privilege, therefore, of a Christian to rejoice. He has more sources of joy than any other man—sources which do not fail when all others fail.

   Religion is not sadness or melancholy; it is joy. And the Christian should never leave the impression on others that his religion makes him either gloomy or morose. A cheerful countenance, an eye of benignity, a pleasant and kind conversation, should always evince the joy of his heart, and in all his interactions with the world around him he should show that his heart is full of joy.

To write the same things. That is, to repeat the same truths and admonitions. Perhaps he refers in this to the exhortations which he had given them when he was with them, on the same topics on which he is now writing to them. He says, that for him to record these exhortations, and transmit them by a letter might be the means of permanent welfare to them, and would not be burdensome or oppressive to him. It was not absolutely necessary for them, but still it would be conducive to their order and comfort as a church. We may suppose that this chapter is a summary of what he had often inculcated when he was with them.

To me indeed is not grievous. It is not burdensome or oppressive to me to repeat these exhortations in this manner. They might suppose that in the multitude of cares which he had, and in his trials in Rome, it might be too great a burden for him to bestow so much attention on their interests.

But for you it is safe. It will contribute to your security as Christians, to have these sentiments and admonitions on record. They were exposed to dangers which made them proper. What those dangers were the apostle specifies in the following verses.

Beware of dogs. Dogs in the East are mostly without masters; they wander at large in the streets and fields, and feed upon refuse, and even upon corpses. (Compare 1 Kings 14:11; 16:4; 21:19).

They are held as unclean, and to call someone a dog is a much stronger expression of contempt there than with us (1 Samuel 17:43; 2 Kings 8:13). The Jews called the Gentiles dogs, and Muslims call Jews and Christians by the same name. The term dog also is used to denote a person who is shameless, impudent, malignant, snarling, dissatisfied, and contentious, and is evidently so employed here.

It is possible that the language used here may have been derived from a custom of posting a warning on a house guarded by a dog for people approaching it. L'Enfant remarks that in Rome it was common for a dog to lie chained before the door of a house, and for a notice to be placed in sight, "Beware of the dog." I have seen the same notice in this city affixed to dog kennels in front of a bank, which were appointed to guard it.

The reference here is, doubtless, to Judaizing teachers; and the idea is that they were contentious, troublesome, dissatisfied, and would produce disturbance. The strong language the apostle uses here shows the sense he had of the danger arising from their influence. It may be observed, however, that the term dogs is used in ancient writings with great frequency, and even by the most serious speakers.

It is employed by the most dignified characters in the Iliad (Bloomfield; ), and the name was given to a whole class of Greek philosophers—the Cynics. It is used in one instance by the Savior (Matthew 7:6). By the use of the term here, there can be no doubt that the apostle meant to express strong disapproval of the character and course of the persons referred to, and to warn the Philippians in the most solemn manner against them.

Beware of evil workers. This doubtless refers to the same persons he had characterized as dogs. The reference is to Jewish teachers, whose doctrines and influence he regarded as only evil.

We do not know the exact nature of their teaching. However, we may presume that it consisted largely in urging the obligations of the Jewish rites and ceremonies, speaking of the advantage of having been born Jews, and urging compliance with the law for justification before God. In this way, their teachings tended to set aside the great doctrine of salvation by the merits of the Redeemer.

Beware of the concision. This doubtless refers also to the Jewish teachers. The word translated concision—katatomh—properly means a cutting off, a mutilation. It is used here contemptuously for the Jewish circumcision, in contrast with the true circumcision (Robinson, Lexicon).

It is not to be understood that Paul meant to show contempt for circumcision as commanded by God and as practiced by devout Jews of other times (Acts 16:3), but only as it was held by the false Judaizing teachers.

As they held it, it was not the true circumcision. They made salvation depend on it, instead of its being only a sign of the covenant with God. Such a doctrine, as they held it, was a mere cutting off of the flesh, without understanding anything of the true nature of the rite, and hence the unusual term by which he designates it.

Perhaps, also, the idea may be included that a doctrine so held would be, in fact, a cutting off of the soul; that is, that it tended to destruction. Their cutting and mangling the flesh might be regarded as an emblem of the manner in which their doctrine would cut and mangle the church (Doddridge). The meaning of the whole is that they did not understand the true nature of the doctrine of circumcision, but that with them it was a mere cutting of the flesh and tended to destroy the church.

Compare Psalm 119:115 (for "beware of"); Galatians 5:1–3 (for "concision").

For we are the circumcision. We who are Christians. We have and hold the true doctrine of circumcision. We have that which this rite was intended to secure, for we are led to renounce the flesh and to worship God in the spirit.

The apostle, in this verse, teaches that the ordinance of circumcision was not designed to be a mere outward ceremony, but was intended to be emblematic of the renunciation of the flesh with its corrupt propensities and to lead to the pure and spiritual worship of God. In this, he has undoubtedly stated its true design.

Those who now urged it as necessary for salvation, and who made salvation depend on its mere outward observance, had lost sight of this object of the rite. But this, the real design of circumcision, was attained by those who had been led to renounce the flesh and who had devoted themselves to the worship of God (See notes on Romans 2:28 and Romans 2:29).

Which worship God in the spirit (See notes on John 4:24).

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And rejoice in Christ Jesus . That is, we have, through him, renounced the flesh; we have become the true worshippers of God, and have thus attained what was originally contemplated by circumcision and by all the other rites of religion.

And have no confidence in the flesh. In our own corrupt nature; or in any ordinances that relate merely to the flesh. We do not depend on circumcision for salvation, or on any external rites and forms whatever—on any advantage of rank or blood.

The word "flesh" here seems to refer to every advantage that any may have by birth, to any external conformity to the law, and to everything that unaided human nature can do to effect salvation. On none of these things can we put reliance for salvation; none of them will constitute a ground of hope.

Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. That is, though I had uncommon advantages of this kind; and if anyone could have trusted in them, I could have done it. The object of the apostle is to show that he did not despise those things because he did not possess them, but because he now saw that they were of no value in the great matter of salvation.

Once he had confided in them; and if anyone could find any ground of reliance on them, he could have found more than any of them. But he had seen that all these things were valueless in regard to the salvation of the soul. We may remark here, that Christians do not despise or disregard advantages of birth, or amiability of manners, or external morality, because they do not possess them—but because they regard them as insufficient to secure their salvation.

Those who have been most amiable and moral before their conversion will speak in the most decided manner of the insufficiency of these things for salvation, and of the danger of relying on them. They have once tried it, and they now see that their feet were standing on a slippery rock.

The Greek here is, literally, "although I [was] having confidence in the flesh." The meaning is that he had every ground of confidence in the flesh which anyone could have, and that if there was any advantage for salvation to be derived from such birth, and blood, and external conformity to the law, he possessed it. He had more to rely on than most other men had; indeed, he could have boasted of advantages of this sort which could not be found united in any other individual. What these advantages were he proceeds to specify.

Circumcised the eighth day. That is, he was circumcised in exact compliance with the law. If there was any ground of confidence from such compliance with the law, he had it. The law required that circumcision should be performed on the eighth day (Genesis 17:12; Leviticus 12:3; Luke 1:59); but it is probable that, in some cases, this was delayed on account of sickness, or from some other cause; and, in the case of proselytes, it was not performed until adult age. . But Paul says that, in his case, the law had been literally complied with; and, consequently, all the advantage which could be derived from such a compliance was his.

Of the stock of Israel. Descended from the patriarch Israel, or Jacob; and, therefore, able to trace his genealogy back as far as any Jew could. He was not a proselyte himself from among the Gentiles, nor were any of his ancestors proselytes. He had all the advantages which could be derived from a regular descent from the venerable founders of the Jewish nation. He was thus distinguished from the Edomites and others who practiced circumcision; from the Samaritans, who were made up of a mixture of people; and from many, even among the Jews, whose ancestors had once been Gentiles, and who had become proselytes.

Of the tribe of Benjamin. Benjamin was one of the two tribes which remained when the ten tribes revolted under Jeroboam, and, with the tribe of Judah, it ever afterwards maintained its allegiance to God. The idea of Paul is, that he was not one of the revolted tribes, but that he had as high a claim to the honor of being a Jew as any one could boast. The tribe of Benjamin, also, was located near the temple, and indeed it has been said that the temple was on the dividing line between that tribe and the tribe of Judah; and it might have been supposed that there was some advantage in securing salvation from having been born and reared so near where the holy rites of religion were celebrated. If there were any such derived from the proximity of the tribe to the temple, he could claim it; for, though his birth was in another place, yet he was a member of the tribe.

An Hebrew of the Hebrews. This is the Hebrew mode of expressing the superlative degree; and the idea is, that Paul enjoyed every advantage which could possibly be derived from the fact of being a Hebrew. He had a lineal descent from the very ancestor of the nation; he belonged to a tribe that was as honorable as any other, and that had its location near the very center of religious influence; and he was a Hebrew by both his parents, with no admixture of Gentile blood. On this fact—that no one of his ancestors had been a proselyte, or of Gentile extraction—a Jew would pride himself much; and Paul says that he was entitled to all the advantage which could be derived from it.

As touching the law, a Pharisee. In my views of the law, and in my manner of observing it, I was of the strictest sect—a Pharisee. (See the commentary on Acts 26:5).

The Pharisees were distinguished among the Jewish sects for their rigid adherence to the letter of the law, and had endeavored to guard it from the possibility of violation by throwing around it a vast body of traditions, which they considered to be equally binding with the written law. (See the commentary on Matthew 3:7).

The Sadducees were much less strict; and Paul here says, that whatever advantage could be derived from the most rigid adherence to the letter of the law was his.