Philippians, EPISTLE TO THE

Philippians, EPISTLE TO THE, the latest of the four letters that claim to have been written by the apostle Paul during his captivity (see PAUL). The Philippian Church was looked upon with peculiar tenderness and affection by the apostle. It was the first-fruits of his mission in Europe; its members were singularly kind to him; more than once, when he was labouring in other cities, they sent him contributions, that he might not be burdensome to his new converts, and now they had despatched one of the brethren—Epaphroditus—all the way to the place of his captivity with presents for him, knowing that he was in bonds, and suspecting (as was in fact the case) that he might be in straits for his daily bread. His letter to them, of which Epaphroditus, on his return journey, was the bearer, is the 'most epistolary of all the epistles;' though containing important doctrinal matter, it is characterised primarily by its warm expression of personal feelings towards his friends at Philippi. The external evidence in favour of the genuineness of this epistle is exceptionally strong; it is alluded to by Polycarp, and enumerated among the Pauline writings both by Marcion and by the writer of the Muratorian canon. The arguments of Baur and others against its genuineness, which turn purely on questions of biblical theology, such as the compatibility of Phil. ii. 6-11 with 1 Cor. xv. 45-49, or of Phil. iii. 6-11 with certain other expressions in the undisputed writings, still find some supporters (one of the latest and ablest being Holsten); but they are not regarded as convincing even by Hilgenfeld, Schenkel, Weizsäcker, Pfeiderer, or Harnack. There are commentaries on Philippians by Meyer, Weiss, Ellicott (Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon, 3d ed. 1865), Lightfoot (6th ed. 1881), and C. J. Vaughan (1882).