Philippians introductory material

Philippians -

Who:

The letter to the Philippians was written by Paul to the church in the city of Philippi. The idea of Paul being the author is not disputed much by scholars. Historically speaking the letter to the Philippians has always been considered Paul's. One of the only major problems with the text of Philippians is that some scholars feel it may have been two or three letters compiled into one. For the sake of this study I will reference the author as Paul and treat the letter as one entity as we have inherited it.

What:

As you may have noticed in the previous paragraph I referred to the text of Philippians as a letter. This is something of the upmost importance for us to remember. Philippians is not a book but a letter to friends and should be read as such. One of the defining themes in this letter is joy and that is to be expected in a letter between friends. My opinion is that is also why this letter is varied as much as it is. With thoughts seemingly interrupted and shifted at a moments notice. When you are writing to loved ones and friends you are more likely to switch thoughts as you think of them and communicate as naturally as possible.

Where and When:

The letter to the Philippians was probably written in the earl 60's CE. This is based on the assumption that Paul is writing this letter during his Roman imprisonment toward the end of his life and ministry. The setting of Rome is based on some textual evidence as well as tradition.

We need to also understand a little bit about the context of where the letter is sent to, Philippi. Philippi was a primary city who's main export was agriculture goods. The city was populated primarily by Italians with no presence of a Jewish community. Philippi was a Roman city with all the privileges and problems of Roman citizenship.