Philippians
Philippians is a letter of joy written from a prison cell. Paul's bond with the church at Philippi, the first he founded in Europe, was warm and uncomplicated, and it shows: he thanks them for their partnership, reports on his chains with startling contentment, and urges them to shine like stars in a crooked generation. At the letter's heart stands the great Christ hymn, tracing the Lord's descent from equality with God to death on a cross, and his exaltation above every name. Rejoice in the Lord always, Paul writes, and again he says it: rejoice.
The apostle Paul, with Timothy, writing from imprisonment
AD 60–62, likely from Rome
The beloved church at Philippi, Paul's first in Europe
To thank the Philippians for their partnership and to encourage joyful, humble unity shaped by the mind of Christ.