Philippians 1:23

“But. am in. strait betwixt the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ; for it is very far better”

“But. am in. strait”: It means to compress, like being pressed by. large crowd. “This serves to highlight the magnitude of Paul's dilemma. It is. powerful word that can describe. person who is hemmed in on both sides so that he has no room to move” (Hawthorne p. 47). “Restricted on both sides, under pressure which prevents. definite choice” (Jackson p. 33). “Betwixt the two”: “The pressure comes from both sides, the two considerations just mentioned, departing or abiding in the flesh” (Vincent p. 425). “I feel pressure from both sides” (Ber). “The stress Paul felt with two desires like two equally strong external forces pressing in on him viselike from both sides” (Hawthorne p. 47).

“Having the desire”: “I keep on having (present tense)” (Jackson p. 33). “To depart”: “It is the word for striking camp, loosening the tent ropes, pulling up the tent pins and moving on” (Barclay p. 28). See 2 Corinthians 5:1. Thus death is not annihilation, rather this very word suggests that it is simply the time that the Christian pilgrim moves on from this earthly life. “And be with Christ”: 2 Corinthians 5:6. Death will simply mean. closer relationship with the Christ who is the absolute focus of Paul's life. “For it is very far better”: Than anything this life can afford (Romans 8:18). “He piles up comparatives, as if unable to find words capable of expressing the glory of his hope” (P.P. Comm. p. 6).

“For Paul, death is not extinction, it is. transition” (Jackson p. 33). “It does not ‘go out of existence' until the day of the resurrection, nor does it ‘go to sleep'” (Hendriksen p. 78). Carefully note what Paul does not say. Paul does not say, “I really want to die now”, because death is absolutely meaningless without Christ on the other side. Death, in and of itself has no positive value. The phrase "to be with Christ" does not necessarily infer that the intermediate state known as Hades has been removed for the Christian. Compare this statement with the expression found in Ecclesiastes 2:7.