Philippians 2:25

Philippians 2:25. But I counted it necessary. In our idiom we should say ‘I count,' but the Greeks put their verbs in epistolary writing into the tense which would be true not only at the date of the writing, but also at the date of receiving the letter. We have no such indefinite tense, though some-times we use our present in a similarly indefinite way. It was necessary that Epaphroditus should be sent, for he would hardly recover thoroughly, while longing to go home; nor could the Philippians be happy till they saw again their messenger, whose work in their stead had cost him a severe sickness, and nearly his life. He must go back at once.

to send to you Epaphroditus my brother. The name only occurs in the N. T. here and at Philippians 4:18. There is another form of it (Epaphras) found in Epistles of this same time, Colossians and Philemon; but as the apostle has written the name in this Epistle in the longer form, and in the other places in the shorter, we may almost surely conclude that different persons are intended. He is called ‘brother' by St. Paul, as a member of the same Christian fellowship. The subsequent epithets rise to a higher level.

and fellow-worker. A title applied to those who, like the apostle, laboured for the spread of the Gospel by their missionary preaching. So it is used of Aquila and Priscilla (Romans 16:3), of Timothy (Romans 16:21), of Titus (2 Corinthians 8:23).

and fellow-soldier. Implies that a more devoted service still had been called for from those to whom the title is given. It is only found elsewhere applied to Archippus (Philemon 1:2), on whom an important charge was laid which required good heed that he might fulfil it. It was not only work to do, but enemies to resist.

but your messenger. The Greek is the word ‘apostle,' but it cannot have that restricted sense here, though some good authorities so render it. It is not given as a title except to the twelve, and those who like Paul and Barnabas were placed on the same level with the first apostles in the earliest days of the Church.

and minister to my need. The noun here signifies primarily ‘one who discharges some public function,' and it is applied to magistrates, kings' servants, and others; but it soon came to have a special signification, and to be used for one who performed religious services. This use of it has no doubt had some influence on the minds of those who would translate ‘apostle' in the previous clause. The word appears in our English ‘liturgy,' but almost certainly here signifies no more than that Epaphroditus was the representative of the Philippian Church in the mission to Rome. St. Paul may have selected the word, which had these various shades of meaning, to indicate that he felt the service done unto himself was in a sense a religious work, and done unto Christ's cause as well as to the individual prisoner.