1:19
“Deliverance” (ESV) here can be translated as salvation, and there is debate about how exactly we should take this word here. Some see it as deliverance from prison, others view it much more in eternal deliverance terms. Perhaps Paul is deliberately ambiguous, and just means that this will turn out for his good (Rom 8:28). Whatever the case, Paul is not a love Christian, and he knows that his deliverance is dependent upon the prayers of the Philippians and the help of the “Spirit of Jesus Christ” (i.e. the Holy Spirit). We are in a real battle and need the prayers of others and the help of the Holy Spirit. Our salvation is assured, our final victory is assured, but this is not fatalism, the battle is real and what we, and others, do with our lives matters.
1:20
This verse would seem to imply that in the previous verse it is his salvation that Paul is talking about, for here he considers both the possibility that he will die, and that he will be released. Ultimately our salvation means eternal life, but it starts to take effect from the moment that we believe. It has real effects in the here and now. Paul believes that Christ will be honoured in his body. This includes both how God works through Paul in his life on earth, and the praise that will come to God when he is raised from the dead.
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