Philippi was an important city in Macedonia, and was a Roman colony. As well as the indigenous population, many Romans had settled there as well. It was located on the main highway from the eastern provinces to Rome. It had the same legal rights as Italian cities. Various suggestions are made as to the date of the letter, ranging from AD 53 to about AD 61, and various locations are suggested for Paul’s imprisonment at the time of the letter. These include Rome, Ephesus and Caesarea. The most favoured option is a Roman imprisonment with a date of AD 61.
Paul wrote the letter partly to thank the Philippians for their kind gift, but also to encourage them. In particular, he wants to encourage them to stand firm in the faith, and to have a servant heart. There are also warnings against Judaisers and antinomianism. Joy is one of the recurring themes in the letter. Interestingly, it contains no direct Old Testament references.
At the time of writing these notes on Philippians I am reading the following commentary:
Philippians (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament), Moises Silva, Baker Academic (2005)
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