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On the epistle to the Philippians (homilies 115)

OF OUR FATHER AMONG THE SAINTS JOHN CHRYSOSTOM, ARCHBISHOP OF CONSTANTINOPLE, COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE TO THE

PHILIPPIANS.

62.177 INTRODUCTION. 1. The Philippians are from Philippi, a city of Macedonia, so called from its founder, a city which is a colony, as Luke says: There the seller of purple was converted, a woman very devout and attentive; there the ruler of the synagogue believed; there Paul was scourged with Silas; there the magistrates asked them to leave, and were afraid of them; and the preaching had a glorious beginning. And he himself bears much and great witness to them, calling them his crown, and saying they have suffered many things; For to you, he says, it has been granted by God, not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for his sake. But when he wrote to 62.178 them, it happened that he was in bonds. For this reason he says, So that my bonds became manifest in Christ throughout the whole praetorium; calling the palace of Nero the praetorium. But he was bound and was released, and this he made clear to Timothy, saying; At my first defense no one took my part, but all deserted me; may it not be charged against them. But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me. He shows therefore that these were the bonds in which he was before that defense. For that Timothy was not present then, is clear; For, he says, at my first defense no one took my part. And this, by writing so, he made clear. He would not then have written to him, if he had known this. But when he wrote this Epistle, Timothy was with him; 62.179 and he shows this from what he says: But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly; and again, Him I hope to send to you immediately, as soon as I see how things will go with me, from that moment on. For he was released from his bonds, and was bound again after he had come to them. But what he says, That I am already being poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrifice and service of your faith; not as though this had already happened; but, that Even when this happens, I rejoice, he says, raising them up from the despondency they felt about his bonds; for that he was not then about to die is clear from what he says, that But I trust in the Lord that I myself will also come to you shortly; and again, And being confident of this, I know that I will remain, and continue with you all. Now the Philippians had sent Epaphroditus to him, to bring him money, and to learn of his affairs; for they were very lovingly disposed toward him. For that they did send, hear him say: I have all, and abound, I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you. At the same time, then, they sent both to comfort and to learn. For that they also sent to learn of his affairs, he shows immediately at the beginning of the Epistle, writing about himself and saying: But I want you to know, that the things which happened to me have turned out for the furtherance of the Gospel; and again, I hope to send Timothy to you shortly, that I also may be of good comfort, when I know your state. The phrase, That I also, is to show that, Just as you sent for full information to learn of my affairs, so also I, that I may be of good comfort, when I know your state. Since therefore for a long time they had not sent, but did then (for this he shows by saying, Now at length you have revived your care for me); and then they heard

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In epistulam ad Philippenses (homiliae 115)

ΤΟΥ ΕΝ ΑΓΙΟΙΣ ΠΑΤΡΟΣ ΗΜΩΝ ΙΩΑΝΝΟΥ ΤΟΥ ΧΡΥΣΟΣΤΟΜΟΥ ΑΡΧΙΕΠΙΣΚΟΠΟΥ ΚΩΝΣΤΑΝΤΙΝΟΥΠΟΛΕΩΣ ΥΠΟΜΝΗΜΑ ΕΙΣ ΤΗΝ ΠΡΟΣ

ΦΙΛΙΠΠΗΣΙΟΥΣ ΕΠΙΣΤΟΛΗΝ.

62.177 ΥΠΟΘΕΣΙΣ. αʹ. Οἱ Φιλιππήσιοι ἀπὸ πόλεώς εἰσι τῆς Μακεδονίας Φιλίππων, οὕτω καλουμένης ἀπὸ τοῦ οἰκιστοῦ πόλεως κολωνίας, καθὼς ὁ Λουκᾶς φησιν· Ἐνταῦθα ἡ πορφυρόπωλις ἐπέστρεψεν, εὐλαβὴς γυνὴ σφόδρα, καὶ προσεκτική· ἐνταῦθα ὁ ἀρχισυνάγωγος ἐπίστευσεν· ἐνταῦθα ἐμαστίχθη ὁ Παῦλος μετὰ τοῦ Σίλα· ἐνταῦθα οἱ στρατηγοὶ ἠξίωσαν αὐτοὺς ἐξελθεῖν, καὶ ἐφοβήθησαν αὐτούς· καὶ λαμπρὰν ἔσχε τὸ κήρυγμα τὴν ἀρχήν. Μαρτυρεῖ δὲ αὐτοῖς καὶ αὐτὸς πολλὰ καὶ μεγάλα, στέφανον αὐτοῦ καλῶν αὐτοὺς, καὶ πολλὰ πεπονθέναι λέγων· Ὑμῖν γὰρ ἐχαρίσθη, φησὶν, ἀπὸ Θεοῦ οὐ μόνον τὸ εἰς αὐτὸν πιστεύειν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸ ὑπὲρ αὐτοῦ πάσχειν. Ὅτε δὲ ἔγραφε πρὸς 62.178 αὐτοὺς, συνέβη αὐτὸν δεδέσθαι. ∆ιὰ τοῦτό φησιν, Ὥστε τοὺς δεσμούς μου φανεροὺς, ἐν Χριστῷ γενέσθαι ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ πραιτωρίῳ· πραιτώριον τὰ βασίλεια τοῦ Νέρωνος καλῶν. Ἀλλ' ἐδέθη καὶ ἀφείθη, καὶ τοῦτο πρὸς Τιμόθεον ἐδήλωσε, λέγων· Ἐν τῇ πρώτῃ μου ἀπολογίᾳ οὐδείς μοι συμπαρεγένετο, ἀλλὰ πάντες με ἐγκατέλιπον· μὴ αὐτοῖς λογισθείη· ἀλλ' ὁ Κύριός μοι παρέστη, καὶ ἐνεδυνάμωσέ με. Τὰ οὖν δεσμὰ, ἐν οἷς ἦν πρὸ τῆς ἀπολογίας ἐκείνης δείκνυσιν ὄντα. Ὅτι γὰρ οὐ παρῆν Τιμόθεος τότε, δῆλον· Ἐν γὰρ τῇ πρώτῃ μου, φησὶν, ἀπολογίᾳ οὐδείς μοι συμπαρεγένετο. Καὶ τοῦτο, οὕτω γράφων, ἐδήλου. Οὐκ ἂν οὖν, εἰ ᾔδει τοῦτο, ἔγραψεν αὐτῷ. Ὅτε δὲ τὴν Ἐπιστολὴν ἔγραφε ταύτην μετ' αὐ 62.179 τοῦ Τιμόθεος ἦν· καὶ δηλοῖ ἐξ ὧν φησιν· Ἐλπίζω δὲ ἐν Κυρίῳ Ἰησοῦ Τιμόθεον ταχέως πέμψαι ὑμῖν· καὶ πάλιν, Τοῦτον μὲν ἐλπίζω εὐθέως πέμψαι ὑμῖν, ὅταν ἀπίδω τὰ περὶ ἐμὲ, ἐξ αὐτῆς. Ἀφείθη γὰρ ἀπὸ τῶν δεσμῶν, καὶ πάλιν ἐδέθη μετὰ τὸ πρὸς αὐτοὺς ἐλθεῖν. Ὃ δὲ λέγει, Ὅτι καὶ σπένδομαι ἐπὶ τῇ θυσίᾳ, καὶ λειτουργίᾳ τῆς πίστεως ὑμῶν· οὐχ ὡς ἤδη τούτου γενομένου· ἀλλ', ὅτι Καὶ ὅταν τοῦτο συμβῇ, χαίρω, φησὶ, διανιστῶν αὐτοὺς ἀπὸ τῆς ἀθυμίας τῆς ἐπὶ τοῖς δεσμοῖς· ὅτι γὰρ οὐκ ἔμελλε τότε ἀποθανεῖσθαι, δῆλον ἐξ ὧν φησιν, ὅτι Ἐλπίζω δὲ ἐν Κυρίῳ, ὅτι καὶ αὐτὸς ταχέως ἐλεύσομαι πρὸς ὑμᾶς· καὶ πάλιν, Καὶ τοῦτο πεποιθὼς οἶδα, ὅτι μένω, καὶ συμπαραμενῶ πᾶσιν ὑμῖν. Ἦσαν δὲ πέμψαντες πρὸς αὐτὸν οἱ Φιλιππήσιοι τὸν Ἐπαφρόδιτον, χρήματα ἀποίσοντα αὐτῷ, καὶ εἰσόμενον τὰ κατ' αὐτόν· διέκειντο γὰρ σφόδρα περὶ αὐτὸν ἀγαπητικῶς. Ὅτι γὰρ ἔπεμψαν, ἄκουε αὐτοῦ λέγοντος· Ἀπέχω πάντα, καὶ περισσεύω, πεπλήρωμαι, δεξάμενος παρὰ Ἐπαφροδίτου τὰ παρ' ὑμῶν. Ἐν ταυτῷ γοῦν ἔπεμψαν καὶ παρακαλέσοντες, καὶ εἰσόμενοι. Ὅτι γὰρ καὶ ἔπεμψαν εἰσόμενοι τὰ κατ' αὐτὸν, δηλοῖ εὐθέως ἐν τῇ ἀρχῇ τῆς Ἐπιστολῆς κατ' αὐτὸν γράφων, καὶ λέγων· Γινώσκειν δὲ ὑμᾶς βούλομαι, ὅτι τὰ κατ' ἐμὲ μᾶλλον εἰς προκοπὴν τοῦ Εὐαγγελίου ἐλήλυθε· καὶ πάλιν, Ἐλπίζω Τιμόθεον ταχέως πέμψαι ὑμῖν, ἵνα κἀγὼ εὐψυχῶ γνοὺς τὰ περὶ ὑμῶν. Τὸ, Ἵνα κἀγὼ, δηλοῦντός ἐστιν, ὅτι Ὥσπερ ὑμεῖς ὑπὲρ πολλῆς πληροφορίας ἐπέμψατε εἰσόμενοι τὰ κατ' ἐμὲ, οὕτω καὶ ἐγὼ, Ἵνα εὐψυχῶ γνοὺς τὰ περὶ ὑμῶν. Ἐπεὶ οὖν καὶ πολὺν χρόνον ἦσαν μὴ πέμψαντες, ἀλλὰ τότε (τοῦτο γὰρ δηλοῖ διὰ τοῦ εἰπεῖν· Ἤδη ποτὲ ἀνεθάλετε τὸ ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ φρονεῖν)· καὶ τότε ἤκουον