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PHILIPPIANS (Epistle)

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PHILIPPIANS (Epistle)

This letter was addressed to the oldest church in Europe, and was written by the apostle Paul from his captivity (Phil. 1:7, 13, 14, 17).

Paul is under the surveillance of the Praetorian Guard (Phil. 1:13); he conveys the greetings of the saints belonging to Caesar’s house (Phil. 4:22).

In the town where Paul is there are numerous Christians who spread the new faith (Phil. 1:14-18). These allusions, and the tone of the entire epistle, show that the apostle was writing during his first imprisonment in Rome (see PAUL). The most probable date is towards the end of this period, the year 61 or 62. There are various facts that seem to confirm it:

(a) The apostle has already been living for some time in the place from which he writes, Rome most certainly (Phil. 1:12 ff.),

(b) he is awaiting his deliverance (Phil. 1:25; 2:23, 24),

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(c) The Philippians had sent him a gift (Phil. 4:10) through Epaphroditus (Phil. 2:25) who had fallen ill in Rome (Phil. 4:10). The Philippians had come to know of this and had been troubled by it (Phil. 2:26). Thus, Pablo had long since arrived in the capital.

The letter had been written as an acknowledgment of receipt of the gift of the Philippians. The apostle had already accepted their liberality many times, contrary to his custom (Phil. 4:15). He takes advantage of this occasion to give news of himself to the Philippians and to warn them against errors.

This epistle constitutes the message of a pastor to his flock; Unlike other cases, this epistle was not motivated by a crisis within the church. Abundant in spiritual teachings, it sheds much light on Paul’s situation and state of mind in Rome. Epaphroditus was now recovered and was to be the bearer of the letter to Philippi (Phil. 2:25, 30).

(a) Content:

(A) Introduction (Phil. 1:1, 2).

(B) Paul thanks the Philippians, assuring them of his affection for his prayers for their advancement in sanctification (Phil. 1:3-11). He claims that his imprisonment contributes to the progress of the Gospel; he rejoices that Christ is preached, despite the opposition he has to suffer; He would rather leave to be with Christ, but he knows that he will be preserved, to be even more useful to them; he exhorts them to remain in the faith (Phil. 1:12-30).

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(C) Appeal to spiritual union, based on self-denial and love, following the example of Christ, which should encourage them to carry out their service to the end (Phil. 2:1-18).

(D) Paul hopes to send Timothy to them, and go himself to Philippi; meanwhile, he delegates to Epaphroditus (Phil. 2:19-30).

(E) Exhortation to joyfully continue the earthly pilgrimage, in submission to Christ, without losing sight of the heavenly reward, according to the example of the apostle. He puts the Philippians on their guard against the Judaizers (Phil. 3).

(F) Final recommendations to certain people and to the entire church. The theme is joy, serenity of mind, holiness (Phil. 4:1-9).

(G) Last allusion to the joy that had come to him through the gift and affection of the Philippians. Last greetings (Phil. 4:10-23).

(b) Authenticity and unity.
This epistle is indisputably Paul’s; The content, tone, style, personal details, testify to this. There are also numerous external testimonies. Clement of Rome (90 AD) knew the epistle and Ignatius (110 AD) cited it.

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Because of the abrupt change in tone from Fil. 3:2, there have been suggestions that this passage could have been part of another letter of Paul. However, the epistle is not intended to be a didactic exposition. Abrupt transitions and introductions of new topics are commonly found in letters of a personal nature, such as this one.
(c) Spiritual message.

It is very rich, and only two particularly relevant topics can be mentioned here.
(A) One of them is that of joy (Phil. 1:5). He can rejoice in the midst of all circumstances (Phil. 1:18), and he rejoices in the joy of others (Phil. 1:25).

His perfect joy is to see the love and unity of believers (Phil. 2:2). The very perspective of martyrdom leads him to rejoice and to ask the Philippians to rejoice and rejoice with him (Phil. 2:17, 18). The servant of God has a permanent joy and crown: the souls of those whom he has brought to salvation (Phil. 4:1). Paul cannot help but insist on it: “Again I say, Rejoice!” (Phil. 3:1; 4:4).

(B) The other issue is that of “the best” that we are to discern (Phil. 1:10). What is the best? The faithful testimony given to Christ in prison is better than freedom itself (Phil. 1:12-14).

Death is more excellent than life, because “it is being with Christ” (Phil. 1:21-23). Following the Lord in his self-emptying is the path of greatest glory (Phil. 2:5-11). Everything that is good from the point of view of merely human values becomes like rubbish in comparison with “the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:4-8).

Humiliation, scarcity, anguish, abundance, are nothing; The excellent thing is to be satisfied and strengthened in Christ (Phil. 3:11-14). God himself, our fullness, will supply all our needs according to his riches in Christ Jesus (Phil. 3:19).

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Bible Dictionary

BETHEL

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BETHEL

is the name of a Canaanite city in the ancient region of Samaria, located in the center of the land of Canaan, northwest of Ai on the road to Shechem, 30 kilometers south of Shiloh and about 16 kilometers north of Jerusalem.

Bethel is the second most mentioned city in the Bible. Some identify it with the Palestinian village of Beitin and others with the Israeli settlement of Beit El.

Bethel was the place where Abraham built his altar when he first arrived in Canaan (Genesis 12:8; Genesis 13:3). And at Bethel Jacob saw a vision of a ladder whose top touched heaven and the angels ascended and descended (Genesis 28:10-19).

For this reason Jacob was afraid, and said, “How terrible is this place! It is nothing other than the house of God, and the gate of heaven »and he called Bethel the place that was known as «Light» (Genesis 35-15).

Bethel was also a sanctuary in the days of the prophet Samuel, who judged the people there (1 Samuel 7:16; 1 Samuel 10:3). And it was the place where Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah, Isaac’s wife, was buried.

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Bethel was the birthplace of Hiel, who sought to rebuild the city of Jericho (1 Kings 16:34).

When Bethel did not yet belong to the people of Israel, Joshua had to battle against the king of Bethel and other kings and defeated them (Joshua 12-16).

When the people of Israel had taken possession of the promised land, in the division by tribes it was assigned to the Tribe of Benjamin (Joshua 18-22), but in later times it belonged to the Tribe of Judah (2 Chronicles 13:19).

It was one of the places where the Ark of the Covenant remained, a symbol of the presence of God.

In Bethel the prophet Samuel judged the people.

Then the prophet Elisha went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up the road, some boys came out of the city and mocked him, and said to him: “Go up, bald man; Come up, bald! When he looked back and saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. Then two bears came out of the forest and tore to pieces forty-two boys” (2 Kings 2:23).

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After the division of the kingdom of Israel, Jeroboam I, king of Israel, had a golden calf raised at Bethel (1 Kings 21:29) which was destroyed by Josiah, king of Judah, many years later (2 Kings 23:15). .

Bethel was also a place where some of the Babylonian exiles who returned to Israel in 537 BC gathered. (Ezra 2:28).

The prophet Hosea, a century before Jeremiah, refers to Bethel by another name: “Bet-Aven” (Hosea 4:15; Hosea 5:8; Hosea 10:5-8), which means ‘House of Iniquity’, ‘House of Nothingness’, ‘House of Vanity’, ‘House of Nullity’, that is, of idols.

In Amos 7: 12-13 the priest Amaziah tells the prophet Amos that he flee to Judah and no longer prophesy in Bethel because it is the king’s sanctuary, and the head of the kingdom.

The prophet Jeremiah states that “the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel” (Jeremiah 48:13), because of their idolatry and, specifically, the worship of the golden calf.

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Bible Dictionary

PUTEOLI

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PUTEOLI

(lat.: “small fountains”).
Two days after arriving in Rhegium, the ship carrying Paul arrived at Puteoli, which was then an important maritime city.

The apostle found Christians there, and enjoyed their hospitality (Acts 28:13).

It was located on the northern coast of the Gulf of Naples, near the site of present-day Pouzzoles.

The entire surrounding region is volcanic, and the Solfatare crater rises behind the city.

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Bible Dictionary

PUT (Nation)

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PUT

Name of a nation related to the Egyptians and neighbors of their country (Gen. 10:6).

Put is mentioned with Egypt and other African countries, especially Libya (Nah. 3:9) and Lud (Ez. 27:10; Is. 66:19 in the LXX. Put appears between Cush and Lud in Jer. 46:9; Ez. 30:5).

In the LXX he is translated as Libyans in Jeremiah and Ezekiel. Josephus also identifies it with Libya (Ant. 1:6, 2), but in Nah. 3.9 is distinguished from the Libyans.

Current opinion is divided between Somalia, Eastern Arabia and Southern Arabia (Perfume Coast).

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Bible Dictionary

PURPLE

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PURPLE

A coloring substance that is extracted from various species of mollusks. The ancient Tyrians used two types of them: the “Murex trunculus”, from which the bluish purple was extracted, and the “Murex brandaris”, which gave the red.

The ink of its coloring matter varies in color depending on the region in which it is fished.

Piles of murex shells, artificially opened, have been discovered in Minet el-Beida, port of ancient Ugarit (Ras Shamra), which gives evidence of the great antiquity of the use of this purple dye (see UGARIT).

Due to its high price, only the rich and magistrates wore purple (Est. 8:15, cf. the exaltation of Mordecai, v. 2, Pr. 31:22; Dan. 5:7; 1 Mac. 10 :20, 62, 64; 2 Mac. 4:38; cf. v 31; Luke 16:19; Rev. 17:4).

The rulers adorned themselves in purple, even those of Midian (Judg. 8:26). Jesus was mocked with a purple robe (Mark 15:17).

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Great use had been made of purple-dyed fabrics for the Tabernacle (Ex. 25:4; 26:1, 31, 36) and for the high priest’s vestments (Ex. 28:5, 6, 15, 33; 39: 29). The Jews gave symbolic value to purple (Wars 5:5, 4).

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Bible Dictionary

PURIM

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PURIM

(Heb., plural of “luck”).
Haman cast lots to determine a day of good omen for the destruction of the Jews.

As Haman’s designs were undone, the liberation of the Jews was marked by an annual festival (Est. 3:7; 9:24-32) on the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month of Adar.

This festival is not mentioned by name in the NT, although there are exegetes who assume that it is the one referred to in Jn. 5:1.

This festival continues to be celebrated within Judaism: the book of Esther is read, and curses are pronounced on Haman and his wife, blessings are pronounced on Mordecai and the eunuch Harbonah (Est. 1:10; 7: 9).

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Bible Dictionary

PURIFICATION, PURITY

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PURIFICATION, PURITY

In the Mosaic Law four ways to purify oneself from contamination were indicated:

(a) Purification of contamination contracted by touching a dead person (Num. 19; cf. Num. 5:2, 3),

(b) Purification from impurity due to bodily emissions (Lev. 15; cf. Num. 5:2, 3).

(c) Purification of the woman in labor (Lev. 12:1-8; Luke 2:21-24).

(d) Purification of the leper (Lev. 14).

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To this, the scribes and Pharisees added many other purifications, such as washing hands before eating, washing vessels and dishes, showing great zeal in these things, while inside they were full of extortion and iniquity (Mark 7: 2-8).

In Christianity the necessary purification extends:

to the heart (Acts 15:9; James 4:8),
to the soul (1 Pet. 1:22), and
to the conscience through the blood of Christ (Heb. 9:14).

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