Philippians 1:16 (KJV)

What does Philippians 1:16 mean?

Philippians 1:16 describes people who announce Christ while trying to make Paul’s imprisonment harder. Paul sees a difference between the message they are announcing and their reasons for announcing it: they are acting out of rivalry rather than honest concern.

Paul calls his imprisonment “my bonds,” a word that pictures the restraints placed on a prisoner. Their supposed aim is to add emotional or practical pressure to the hardship Paul is already facing.

The Greek behind Philippians 1:16

• “contention” — ἐριθεία (eritheia): The Greek carries the sense of rivalry or selfish ambition. It points to a competitive motive, not merely to a disagreement.
• “sincerely” — ἁγνῶς (hagnōs): The word carries the sense of acting with pure or genuine motives. With “not,” it describes the manner in which these people preach.
• “affliction” — θλῖψις (thlipsis): The word refers to trouble or pressure. Here it describes the added distress the preachers expect to cause Paul during his imprisonment.

Why Philippians 1:16 matters

• Paul distinguishes between groups of preachers by their motives. The phrase “the one” identifies one group in the contrast that began in verse 15.
• Paul’s concern is not simply that others are preaching without him. Their intention toward him matters: they suppose their preaching will “add affliction” to his bonds.
• Paul’s response in verse 18 keeps the message in view alongside the motives. He says he rejoices that Christ is preached, even when the reasons for preaching are mixed.